First African-American nominee of a major party...

Whether you like him or not, this is a big step for our country.

Sure is a big step, but which direction? He surely isn't the best candidate the DNC could have produced.

i think this could provide for an entertaining election year.

cheesybanana said:

Whether you like him or not, this is a big step for our country.

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In a word,... absolutely. I never thought I'd see this day in my lifetime.

BTW, hope you don't mind my edit of your thread title.

Congrats to Obama. Now, Hillary will join the ticket, and the Democrats will win this election hands down!

JohnTheMacGeek said:

Sure is a big step, but which direction? He surely isn't the best candidate the DNC could have produced.

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The direction is forward.

Even if you don't consider Obama the best candidate the DNC could have produced, either Hillary or Obama would be a step forward for American politics because they both signify groups that have so far never even been seriously considered in a Presidential race.

I'd consider that a significant step for American politics, no matter which party or Candidate you support.

Would I have voted for Margaret Thatcher or Angela Merkel? No.
Do I consider them becoming the elected representatives of their countries an important step for politics in Europe? Yes.

I wish it would've been Colin Powell... But it still remains a step in a direction that people probably wouldn't have imagined a few decades ago.

im not for obama sorry

SchneiderStudio said:

im not for obama sorry

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As I recall, the question posed by this thread was whether you think the nomination of an African-American by a major political party is a big step forward for the country. It was not whether you support him as a candidate.

cwa107 said:

As I recall, the question posed by this thread was whether you think the nomination of an African-American by a major political party is a big step forward for the country. It was not whether you support him as a candidate.

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Exactly.

cwa107 said:

As I recall, the question posed by this thread was whether you think the nomination of an African-American by a major political party is a big step forward for the country. It was not whether you support him as a candidate.

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Or it means that people support him because hes a minority, and the not the best candidate. Is that a step forward? Well in a way, I guess, but I see alot of people who support him, despite knowing very little about his policies.

Im not saying that everyone who supports him is just trying to be politically correct. Im sure millions of people like his policies and could care less about who he is. Its just that it seems like you see alot of it, as if the whole "We are ready for a black or woman president" claim needs to be fulfilled just to prove a point, rather than because he/she is the best candidate. Its like some women voting for Hilary just because she is a woman. Or people voting for bush because they feel they could have a beer with him. Personally, support whoever you want, but if its for those reasons I just think its stupid.

SchneiderStudio said:

im not for obama sorry

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Okay...

CL33Zero said:

Or it means that people support him because hes a minority, and the not the best candidate. Is that a step forward? Well in a way, I guess, but I see alot of people who support him, despite knowing very little about his policies.

Im not saying that everyone who supports him is just trying to be politically correct. Im sure millions of people like his policies and could care less about who he is. Its just that it seems like you see alot of it, as if the whole "We are ready for a black or woman president" claim needs to be fulfilled just to prove a point, rather than because he/she is the best candidate. Its like some women voting for Hilary just because she is a woman. Or people voting for bush because they feel they could have a beer with him. Personally, support whoever you want, but if its for those reasons I just think its stupid.

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Yeah that's a very annoying and prominent issues, I know plenty of people who are voting for McCain just because they're republican, for Hilary just because she's a woman and Barack just because he's young, and although I favor Barack people really need to do their research first, maybe they'll find out that they don't like him OR her, whoever they're voting for!

CL33Zero said:

Or it means that people support him because hes a minority, and the not the best candidate. Is that a step forward? Well in a way, I guess, but I see alot of people who support him, despite knowing very little about his policies.

Im not saying that everyone who supports him is just trying to be politically correct. Im sure millions of people like his policies and could care less about who he is. Its just that it seems like you see alot of it, as if the whole "We are ready for a black or woman president" claim needs to be fulfilled just to prove a point, rather than because he/she is the best candidate. Its like some women voting for Hilary just because she is a woman. Or people voting for bush because they feel they could have a beer with him. Personally, support whoever you want, but if its for those reasons I just think its stupid.

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I understand the point you're trying to make, but again, you miss the point of this thread. Going back to the OP, the question was whether a positive milestone was reached by virtue of the fact that an African-American (regardless of his politics) was nominated as a presidential candidate..... period.

I guess what I'm trying to say is let's try not to make this thread about the candidates' positions and whether or not you support them.

The Vindicat3d said:

Yeah that's a very annoying and prominent issues, I know plenty of people who are voting for McCain just because they're republican, for Hilary just because she's a woman and Barack just because he's young, and although I favor Barack people really need to do their research first, maybe they'll find out that they don't like him OR her, whoever they're voting for!

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You said it!

Research!

It is so crucial, to me, worse that not voting is making an uneducated vote.

Well, at least in principle.

cwa107 said:

In a word,... absolutely. I never thought I'd see this day in my lifetime.

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agreed. completely.


not only do i think this is a good move, at the very least, in terms of opening up a dialog about "minorities" in positions of power, and easily the greatest, most enduring, culture struggle this young nation has seen; i believe he is a fantastic candidate regardless of color.

this man is a statesman.

he is smart, speaks very well, and in a way that makes people feel good. to me he has a similar feel to bill clinton in that he may simply bring back a more positive zeitgeist; where the curent president seems to engender in people feelings that span from uneasyness, to embarassment, to rage.

it's been proven time and time again, in more cultures and nations than just the u.s., that people don't necessarily need tons of experience to be great leaders. our president is as much a figurehead as a leader, the people he surrounds himself with are easily as important in guiding the country as he is. but he does create good or bad will both inside or outside our boarders due to his actions AND charisma. Obama will fit this bill.

It is a very positive move forward for politics in general in the US. Next milestone will be to see a woman in a position to win the top post in the executive branch. Many other countries have succeeded in this respect.

Since we can not keep this thread on topic...

eric said:

this man is a statesman.

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He's not a "statesman", he's an inexperienced Junior Senator who is a good speaker and charismatic at best, and that is all. I can recall several other prominent historical political figures who fit the same description and at least one prominent current CEO. None of this makes him a "statesman". Experience, common sense and a proven track record make one a statesman, not a good public speaking ability.

He has next to zero experience in how to be a Senator much less anything else (except maybe a lawyer), and his only achievement is the US Senate was to steal the title of "Most Liberal Member" from Teddy Kennedy. He has nary a clue on foreign policy and his random statements about it are going to catch up with him soon (in fact, they already have). His economic policies border on European style socialism (which is the last thing we need here) and if he wins, it will be because he is black not because he is the best person for the job.

I'm not a Hillary fan, but at least she has been in the Senate longer and has more experience. Win or lose, the Democratic party has sold it's soul for the sake of political correctness and we may all have pay for it in the end.

eric said:

it's been proven time and time again, in more cultures and nations than just the u.s., that people don't necessarily need tons of experience to be great leaders. our president is as much a figurehead as a leader, the people he surrounds himself with are easily as important in guiding the country as he is. but he does create good or bad will both inside or outside our boarders due to his actions AND charisma. Obama will fit this bill.

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Considering the state of there world today, someone who can think clearly and draw on experience is a must. Someone who has no experience is likely to fail harder than anyone else. The consequences of that kind of failure are not something we as a country can live with. He can surround himself with the best and brightest, but in the end he is the one that is being paid to make the decisions, not them. Charisma will only get you so far, after that you need experience to back it up.

baggss said:

[SNIP]...and if he wins, it will be because he is black not because he is the best person for the job....Win or lose, the Democratic party has sold it's soul for the sake of political correctness and we may all have pay for it in the end.

Considering the state of there world today, someone who can think clearly and draw on experience is a must. Someone who has no experience is likely to fail harder than anyone else. The consequences of that kind of failure are not something we as a country can live with. He can surround himself with the best and brightest, but in the end he is the one that is being paid to make the decisions, not them. Charisma will only get you so far, after that you need experience to back it up.

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If he wins, it will be because he is black? I'm sorry baggss, but someone as intelligent as you should know that this claim is not only unfounded, but completely illogical.

Experience is something valuable, but it is far from required. He would bring much to the presidency, including a commitment to work with others. You are right that he has one of the most liberal voting records in the Senate. But he has also been praised for reaching across the aisle more than most. Can you really ignore that quality? Further, he DOES bring a message of hope. It is absurd to say this does is unimportant.

The presidency is a fairly weak office, even with the expansions that the Bush administration has made. Anything that he will want to get done must move through the legislature, than be subjected to judicial review. The president can not pass laws by himself. This makes the idea of him creating a 'European socialist system' in this country moot. Even if he did, it would hardly fly. This country has a tradition of a hands-off economic policy...do you really think that one man would be able to change that?

Finally, he has proven himself to be both composed and intelligent under pressure during his campaign. He went up against the all-powerful Clinton machine, and won. Watching him during debates and on the campaign trail, he handled himself eloquently. Once again, can you really ignore this?

While I think this is a big step for the country, I wish it had been Colin Powell instead. Hilliary also would have been a step forward and to be honest I would have preferred her over Obama. It will be interesting to see how this turns out in November.