Obama's Patriotism Speech

Yesterday, Obama gave a speech, "The America We Love", about patriotism to listeners in Independence, Mo. The impact of it was, unfortunately overshadowed by the news of comments about McCain made by Wesley Clark.

So, today, I am reading the speech. It's very good. He is an inspiring orator. I'm sorry I didn't hear him deliver it.

In other words, the use of patriotism as a political sword or a political shield is as old as the Republic. Still, what is striking about today's patriotism debate is the degree to which it remains rooted in the culture wars of the 1960s - in arguments that go back forty years or more. In the early years of the civil rights movement and opposition to the Vietnam War, defenders of the status quo often accused anybody who questioned the wisdom of government policies of being unpatriotic. Meanwhile, some of those in the so-called counter-culture of the Sixties reacted not merely by criticizing particular government policies, but by attacking the symbols, and in extreme cases, the very idea, of America itself - by burning flags; by blaming America for all that was wrong with the world; and perhaps most tragically, by failing to honor those veterans coming home from Vietnam, something that remains a national shame to this day

Text of "The America We Love"

no worries obama. the majority of those ppl were calmed and gave in or gave up to their ideals that america had no business going over to fight a bogus war. although there are still a few "anti patriots" running around today who disagree w/ the going ons behind closed doors at the government offices and the bogus war our men and women are fighting in and the idea of taking individuals hard earned money to disperse evenly amonst the other civilians, they shouldn't be too much trouble as most of them are too scared thanks to the current president or don't believe their voice is enough to make a difference, therefore making them easily subduable. as hitler said, dear obama, As a Christian I have no duty to allow myself to be cheated, but I have the duty to be a fighter for truth and justice. i buy his good sentiments as much as i buy yours.

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


Nice find, BH, i missed this one as well.

Can you hear that?

The moans from millions of McCain supporters as they are faced with the truths in Obama's speech.




oh well, they say misery love's McCain
i guess, if you subscribe to that belief, you'd be in good company with Johnny boy

These are indeed very eloquent words about patriotism, and I commend his speech writers.

But somehow, they ring hollow coming from a man who is reluctant to recite the pledge of allegiance, salute the American flag, or even wear something as trivial as a flag pin to show his support for our country.

I'm sure someone can provide with a few after-the-fact photo ops of him doing these very things, but like this speech, they're a reaction to one of his supporters putting their foot in their mouth. i.e. Gen. Wesley Clark

The great Race speech he gave, was simply a reaction to his reverend's inflammatory, racist comments which hurt his poll numbers. Would he have made that speech otherwise, I'm not sure..

LLoyd,

I whole heartedly agree. He's got some great speech writers, and he's very talented when it comes to delivering these speeches. However, one needs only to go back and watch a debate or two, to see him trip on his own words when he doesn't have scripted responses to scripted questions. Maybe he is perfect for a scripted presidency.

You might be surprised how many of Obama's own words are in his speeches.

Meet Obama's Speechwriter

Favreau and Obama rapidly found a relatively direct way to work with each other. "What I do is to sit with him for half an hour," Favreau explains. "He talks and I type everything he says. I reshape it, I write. He writes, he reshapes it. That's how we get a
finished product.

"It's a great way to write speeches. A lot of times, you write something, you hand it in, it gets hacked by advisers, it gets to the candidate and then it gets sent back to you. This is a much more intimate way to work."

Some speeches are much more the product of the candidate himself. Obama e-mailed Favreau his draft of his announcement speech in Springfield, Ill., at 4 a.m. on the morning of the campaign launch last February.

Lloyd, I don't know why I bother, but all that crap about Obama being reluctant to recite the pledge of allegiance or wear something as trivial as a flag pin is just that. Crap. If it's so trivial, why is it so important to you?

And saluting the flag? Only military are supposed to salute the flag! You think he should impersonate military personnel just to please the doubters? Jeez!

But somehow, they ring hollow coming from a man who is reluctant to recite the pledge of allegiance, salute the American flag, or even wear something as trivial as a flag pin to show his support for our country.

Funny, I don't see it being an issue when John McCain doesn't wear a flag pin

I'm sorry LLoyd45, but your agenda is pretty clear, and the level of obvious disingenousness in your posts is typical of the kind of mindlessly partisan attack politics most Americans outside the far-right fringe have learned to see through and despise.

Fortunately your own candidate refuses to sink to your level, being (unlike his more vociferous supporters) an honorable man, if simply wrong on most issues.

Originally posted by Benevolent Heretic
Lloyd, I don't know why I bother, but all that crap about Obama being reluctant to recite the pledge of allegiance or wear something as trivial as a flag pin is just that. Crap. If it's so trivial, why is it so important to you?

It's important to me because I'm an American citizen, and I perceive it to be a symbolic gesture of respect for the country that I was born to and love. That's not so hard to understand, is it?

And saluting the flag? Only military are supposed to salute the flag! You think he should impersonate military personnel just to please the doubters? Jeez!

"No", he shouldn't imitate miltary personnel. To my knowledge, he's never served a day of service in the Armed Forces of our country.

In school, when most of us were growing up, we placed our hand over our heart during the Pledge of Allegiance as a gesture of respect to our country.

Surely this simple act of respect shouldn't offend or put off a man that wants to be the President of it..

[edit on 7/1/08 by LLoyd45]

reply to post by Benevolent Heretic


Thanks for the insight on the origin of his speeches. Until now, I was unaware that he was credited for any of their content. Thanks to you, he gets a little more props from me. Unfortunately, doesn't change anything for me. It doesn't change the fact that you don't get to be a senator from Illinois, especially at that age, by being Mr. Nice guy. He's got as many skeletons in his closet as any of them. Does this qualify him to be pres? No. Does "getting shot down" qualify McCain? No. However, McCain has spent more time in the bathroom than Obama has in politics. I despise Obama, almost as much as I despise McCain. Two different flavors of the same bad medicine. Good thing for me there are other choices (not that any of them will defeat these two), but unlike many here, I realize I'm not limited to Obama or McCain when it comes to voting.

In the end, however, at least Obama's speeches to have something recognizable as content, while McCains are nothing more than regurgitated rhetoric in the flavor of the month. Obama's speeches are proactive, while McCains are reactive. They're always an answer to something. Neither one will get my vote, I'll write my own name in if I have to.

It also seems odd to me to read a speech on patriotism from a man whose own policies fall along the lines of "America is an evil country", and "America is to blame". To speak of patriotism when his own wife, "has never been proud of her country". To speak of unity and freedom when he himself subscribes to the so-called "black liberation theology".

Call me what you will, but I don't believe a word that comes out of his mouth.

Here is the speech on You Tube....



uk.youtube.com...

Originally posted by LLoyd45
It's important to me

Then why did you say it was trivial? Hey, if wearing a little bauble made in China is important to you, then vote for someone who DOES wear it. LOL

John McCain, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee don't wear them either!



But if that's how you show your patriotism, then carry on.

In school, when most of us were growing up, we placed our hand over our heart during the Pledge of Allegiance as a gesture of respect to our country.

So does he. The picture you're referring to was taken during the National Anthem, not the pledge! LOL You KNOW this stuff. You've SEEN these things debunked, yet you keep repeating the same old tired lies like a parrot.

Read something new. Get some new material. This is boring!

oy vey! this thread just goes to show how far we are from any REAL change in american.

Yes, I am sure this is why Axelrod and Plouffe get paid the big bucks. I can only wonder if this speech will get recycled next election the way they recycled Deval Patrick's "words are important" speech.






www.akpmedia.com...


Sure, Obama gave a great "race" speech too, then turned around and talked about how "typical" white people fear blacks, and how white middle-class people in Pennsylvania won't vote for him because they're racists who cling to their guns and religion.

I would guess that Samuel L. Jackson, Danny Glover, and Denzel Washington would have had similar success with the same speeches that Obama has been reading. And I notice too that Eliot Spitzer is on this who's who list of clients, and I remember he gave some very inspiring speeches... before he was caught with a prostitute.

Sorry, but the novelty has long worn off the rhetoric and platitudes.

jamie83, posting false information as if it were fact is against ATS rules. Case in point:

Sure, Obama gave a great "race" speech too, then turned around and talked about how "typical" white people fear blacks, and how white middle-class people in Pennsylvania won't vote for him because they're racists who cling to their guns and religion.

Please don't distort words, thanks.

As for the topic at hand, Obama gives great speeches no matter what they're about. His racism speech was rightly compared to "I am a Catholic" and "I have a Dream." I can't wait for the televised debates.

reply to post by yankeerose

Is anyone else having problems with this video? For me it stops at 12:28 and I can't find another full length video.

From what I saw so far, it looks like an excellent speech.

This issue about patriotism and how those like me that question our government as being labeled as unpatriotic is an issue that's dear to my heart. As Obama explained in the beginning of this speech, he views America the same way I do. I view America in the way that it should be, and not the way that others from the right are trying to turn it into and claim their ideology is what this country was founded on. You only need to read the first line of the Declaration of Independence to understand what our founding fathers meant this country to be.

What a speech *coughs*

After going to a racist anti-Amercian pro-Black Panther theology church for 20 years and hearing about how everything is America's fault ..and ..all of his associations with domestic bombers, Muslim Terrorists, and anti-American bigots ..

Yeah, it is definitely from the heart. Good thing Michelle says she is now proud of her country for the first time in her life.

True Patriotism alright.

[edit on 1-7-2008 by jetxnet]

reply to post by jetxnet

This is exactly what he is saying. Just because he may have had reservations, which I'm not convinced of, you want to slap on an unpatriotic label on him and his wife. You just gave the perfect example of what he was talking about. Bravo.

Originally posted by Benevolent Heretic

John McCain, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee don't wear them either!

They usually do wear them, though not all the time.

The difference is, Obama actually says he refuses to wear them. The others didn't say anything like that, they just forget to wear them sometimes.

There's quite a difference.

Originally posted by evanmontegarde
As for the topic at hand, Obama gives great speeches no matter what they're about. His racism speech was rightly compared to "I am a Catholic" and "I have a Dream." I can't wait for the televised debates.

Why does anybody go "Ooooh...." and "Aaaahhh..." over Barry O.'s speeches as if Barry O. is somehow uniquely qualified to read the words that were written for him? And why do we need Obama

And I am looking forward to the debates too. I didn't like McCain, but I was surprised how well he came across in the debate. I did like Obama, and I was equally surprised at how poorly he came across, especially in the later debates.