No Room in the Obama Inn for Baby Jesus Crisis
I'm sorry it's taken so long to post this blog about our experience at Valley Forge High School in Parma Heights, Ohio, where presidential candidate Barack Obama held a rally Saturday evening (1 March 2008). I've been having computer issues - and I needed to deal with some distracting household matters. But I just now, finally, got the video finished and uploaded to You Tube.
Earlier that day, as most of you know, my nephew Mike and I attended a rally featuring former president Bill Clinton. "Bodacious Bill," as I like to call him, wowed us. And you can read about that (and watch a video of his speech) by clicking this link: http://crisisblog.crisischronicles.com/2008/03/03/bill-Clinton-speaks.aspx.
We wondered if Senator Obama would wow us, too. And I was very much looking forward to posting his speech in the same blog as Bill's so everyone could compare and contrast them. I was also eager to get some good photos of Barack and perhaps have him sign my copy of his book Dreams from My Father. When I saw Caroline Kennedy campaign for Obama last week, although I captured her speech on video, I was unable to get close enough to her in the small, packed room to either procure her autograph or take one quality photograph of her. I never dreamed (after meeting Hillary twice and Bill once in the past few weeks) that I would have an even harder time getting anywhere near Barack than I had getting near Caroline.
But as John Lennon sang, sometimes "life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."
The local TV news had announced the previous night and that morning that the Barack rally was "free and open to the public." After we got there very early (among the first six people in line) to make sure we could get in, we learned that tickets were required for the event - and that tickets were only to be had at two locations: the Obama campaign station in the Parmatown Mall and some local union office. But there were only a limited number of tickets and they were all gone.
Strange - we'd been to three Clinton rallies, and Hillary and Bill never limited the number of folks they allowed into their rallies. Nor did they make anyone jump though hoops to acquire tickets. On February 15th in Lyndhurst, the gymnasium was packed with 2,500 people. But closed circuit TV monitors were set up in two other huge rooms, so the other 1000-plus folks who had waited outside in the winter weather so long could at least come in, get warm, and hear Hillary speak. After the rally, she tried to greet everyone in the gymnasium - and then she also visited the two rooms with the TVs and greeted the folks there. On 28 February in Lorain, the Clinton campaign made sure everyone who'd waited outside to see Hillary got into the gym and saw her. That was the day she signed my book. And of course you've read in my previous blog how Bill accommodated everyone when he spoke in Lakewood on the morning of 1 March.
It seemed that Mike and I had driven 40 minutes to the site of the Obama rally for nothing.
But not to fear... while we were waiting outside, deciding whether to go home, a gentleman from the Obama campaign came outside and told us to "hold tight" because there would likely be extra tickets - or some other accommodation made - for us. And he'd be right back. So we were again hopeful that we'd have a chance to Barack and Roll with everyone else in the rally. I remembered Caroline Kennedy's words suggesting that hope and inspiration trump the best laid plans.
Bear in mind, the temperature was about 8 degrees below freezing and the wind was beginning to blow fairly briskly. We were just about shivering. But since that guy had told us to hold tight, I was pretty confident we'd get into the building. After another hour of standing in the blustery weather, however, another gentleman came out (not the "hold tight" guy, who never did come back) and told us that apparently the first guy hadn't known what he was talking about. We were not getting in, and that was that.
I find it ironic that the candidate with the reputation for being most inspiring - and who claims to be more inclusive and unifying - made us feel excluded and far less inspired (both when Caroline spoke on his behalf in Elyria and when Barack himself came to Parma Heights) than the Clintons had ever made us feel. I mean, I guess it's not necessarily Barack's fault. But if the Clintons have a successful plan to include everyone at their rallies, why can't Obama? Others turned away include an elderly couple who had driven five hours from Indiana to see the Senator. All the hope in the world couldn't get them into the rally.
I apologize to everyone who's disappointed because he or she didn't get to see and hear an inspiring speech by Senator Obama. Mike and I were disappointed as well.
I didn't get my Barack book signed. I didn't get any cool pictures. And our experience at the site of the Obama rally was a far cry from our experience earlier in the day when Bill Clinton autographed my book, shook our hands, and struck a MySpace pose for a photo with my nephew. I did shoot some video outside the Obama rally, however. You might find it amusing:
Earlier that day, as most of you know, my nephew Mike and I attended a rally featuring former president Bill Clinton. "Bodacious Bill," as I like to call him, wowed us. And you can read about that (and watch a video of his speech) by clicking this link: http://crisisblog.crisischronicles.com/2008/03/03/bill-Clinton-speaks.aspx.
We wondered if Senator Obama would wow us, too. And I was very much looking forward to posting his speech in the same blog as Bill's so everyone could compare and contrast them. I was also eager to get some good photos of Barack and perhaps have him sign my copy of his book Dreams from My Father. When I saw Caroline Kennedy campaign for Obama last week, although I captured her speech on video, I was unable to get close enough to her in the small, packed room to either procure her autograph or take one quality photograph of her. I never dreamed (after meeting Hillary twice and Bill once in the past few weeks) that I would have an even harder time getting anywhere near Barack than I had getting near Caroline.
But as John Lennon sang, sometimes "life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."
The local TV news had announced the previous night and that morning that the Barack rally was "free and open to the public." After we got there very early (among the first six people in line) to make sure we could get in, we learned that tickets were required for the event - and that tickets were only to be had at two locations: the Obama campaign station in the Parmatown Mall and some local union office. But there were only a limited number of tickets and they were all gone.
Strange - we'd been to three Clinton rallies, and Hillary and Bill never limited the number of folks they allowed into their rallies. Nor did they make anyone jump though hoops to acquire tickets. On February 15th in Lyndhurst, the gymnasium was packed with 2,500 people. But closed circuit TV monitors were set up in two other huge rooms, so the other 1000-plus folks who had waited outside in the winter weather so long could at least come in, get warm, and hear Hillary speak. After the rally, she tried to greet everyone in the gymnasium - and then she also visited the two rooms with the TVs and greeted the folks there. On 28 February in Lorain, the Clinton campaign made sure everyone who'd waited outside to see Hillary got into the gym and saw her. That was the day she signed my book. And of course you've read in my previous blog how Bill accommodated everyone when he spoke in Lakewood on the morning of 1 March.
It seemed that Mike and I had driven 40 minutes to the site of the Obama rally for nothing.
But not to fear... while we were waiting outside, deciding whether to go home, a gentleman from the Obama campaign came outside and told us to "hold tight" because there would likely be extra tickets - or some other accommodation made - for us. And he'd be right back. So we were again hopeful that we'd have a chance to Barack and Roll with everyone else in the rally. I remembered Caroline Kennedy's words suggesting that hope and inspiration trump the best laid plans.
Bear in mind, the temperature was about 8 degrees below freezing and the wind was beginning to blow fairly briskly. We were just about shivering. But since that guy had told us to hold tight, I was pretty confident we'd get into the building. After another hour of standing in the blustery weather, however, another gentleman came out (not the "hold tight" guy, who never did come back) and told us that apparently the first guy hadn't known what he was talking about. We were not getting in, and that was that.
I find it ironic that the candidate with the reputation for being most inspiring - and who claims to be more inclusive and unifying - made us feel excluded and far less inspired (both when Caroline spoke on his behalf in Elyria and when Barack himself came to Parma Heights) than the Clintons had ever made us feel. I mean, I guess it's not necessarily Barack's fault. But if the Clintons have a successful plan to include everyone at their rallies, why can't Obama? Others turned away include an elderly couple who had driven five hours from Indiana to see the Senator. All the hope in the world couldn't get them into the rally.
I apologize to everyone who's disappointed because he or she didn't get to see and hear an inspiring speech by Senator Obama. Mike and I were disappointed as well.
I didn't get my Barack book signed. I didn't get any cool pictures. And our experience at the site of the Obama rally was a far cry from our experience earlier in the day when Bill Clinton autographed my book, shook our hands, and struck a MySpace pose for a photo with my nephew. I did shoot some video outside the Obama rally, however. You might find it amusing:
Posted by Jesus Crisis at 3/4/2008 12:11 AM 
Categories: News and Politics, Video Blogs, Election 2008
Categories: News and Politics, Video Blogs, Election 2008
wait a sec... i have to stop laughing first...
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first of all, the title? laugh number one.
bodacious bill? did you call him that to his face?
Barack and Roll? oh no you didn't! (still laughing)
the whole concept of obama's campaign being about hope and then turning away people is funny to me too, but in a satirical way. it's like monty python goes to a rally and finds penguins on tellys or something.
i'm sorry that mike and you did not get to see him, i thought you were back quickly i saw mike was online.
obama apparently did not have "dreams to share" with everyone.
perfect song for the end of the video, which is hillaryous in it's way...
apples and oranges?
blog about bill was sugar and spice. this one was sweet (ly funny) and sour, because of the circumstances.
great write my dear. i'm still laughing a little. pixel thinks i'm crazier than usual.
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monday's child is fair of face
tuesday's child is full of grace.
wedsnesday's child is full of woe,
thursday's child has far to go.
friday's child is loving and giving,
saturday's child works hard for a living;
but the child that was born on the sabbath day, is wise and warm and fair and gay.
methinks obama might be a thursday..
.
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This is hilarious. I called you and you didn't answer telling you that you had to get tickets. I saw it in the Plain Dealer. Sometimes it pays to answer your phone. Oh, well, that's life and besides I think Bill was wonderful and we see Obama on the TV every half hour saying the same thing over and over. Change, hope etc.
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I guess I read something more into it cause I'm not laughing. But I do hear you. And you are my hero. Don't stop.
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Thanks, Terese! Now you've got that Bette Midler song going through my head! "Did you ever know that you're my hero?" In a sense, I suppose it's both comic and very tragic. I don't know... I'm still sleepy because I went to bed after three and got up around 5:30 to take my friend to the airport. It's icy out and I just got home. Hopefully the weather won't deter anyone from voting, because our future hangs in the balance. And that, we all agree, is a serious matter.
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no tickee, no laundry.
i'm still against them all (politicians) but i'm against obama a little less than the others.
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Maybe I should have been more tickeed off. As disappointed as I was, I was also cold, tired of standing in long lines, and a tad bit relieved. I was and am willing, however, to give him a chance to win me over.
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I can't help but feel that Obama is merely the spokesman of a marketing campaign. He markets "hope, inspiration & faith" but behind the scenes he has the same filthy corporate interests as the rest of em.
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I've seen some evidence to that suggests that. But I'm holding out hope that he'll prove us wrong. Even if he doesn't win this time (though he may), I have every reason to believe he'll be running again. Then I'll feel more confident in my opinion of him, which now teeters between potential Superman and possible super-scam.
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but is he superfreaky?
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The kind of guy you read about in Newsweek magazine....
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i don't think he's the kind of guy i'd want to get know from his head down to his toes.
it's a freaky scene.
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I think what you discovered was the difference between an experienced campaigner - Clinton, and a newbie - Obama. I admire your tenacity in that kind of cold! Brr! Is your nephew heading toward rockstar fame?? He sure looks the part
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Good point about the difference - and I believe you're right about the rock star fame
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i've seen the commercial. he's a natural
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I was a little upset yesterday when my phone kept ringing off the hook and people asking me, "Are you voting tomorrow?" Of course, I told them I was and let them continue with their talking.
I got to the point of being tired of answering the phone (due to a massive migrane headache) when the phone rang once again, the caller asked me, "Are you a Republican or a Democrat!". And I answered, "I am a Democrat.". She then asked, "Who are you votiing for in tomorrow's primary?". My response back was, "I filled out a form at a rally (did not say which rally) which indicates who I am voting for so, I do not need to justify myself by answering your question.".
So, I voted today and may the best woman win!!!! GO HILLARY!!!!!
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LOL... I know! Even though I gave my phone number to Hillary's campaign, it is Obama's that has been ringing our phones the most and sending us mail everyday (I don't think I gotten one piece of mail from Hillary's though). Part of that is because my wife's union endorsed Obama. I read somewhere that Obama spent twice as much as Hillary on television ads in Ohio and Texas. When Governor Strickland was asked about this, he said something to this effect: if it can be bought, Obama's campaign will buy it. Of course she'd probably spend asmuch as him if she had it.
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Very much enjoying your "stumping" blogs. Even found myself talking about your "Bill moment" over dinner tonight.
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Wow... thanks, Tracy! I'm glad you're enjoying them and I very much appreciate your comment.
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It's a high school, dude. He wasn't turning you away because he didn't like you for not buying a ticket. There's simply not enough room in a high school to hold everyone, specially if it had been advertised as a come-one-come-all non-ticketed venue. You realize that Obama has to turn thousands away from the speeches he does in venues four times as big just because all the people who come can't physically fit in the building, right? I'm sure it would've been moved outdoors if it could've been; that's how they've solved the problem before. Of course, that doesn't work so well when, as you said, it's 8 degrees outside. Should've done your research before you just up and went, in my opinion.
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But I'll definitely take your advice and not just "up and go" to the next Obama rally. I will just up and go to the next Clinton rally, however, because I know that if we put forth the effort to stand in the cold for hours to get in the front of their line, they will make an effort to include us. This is just my personal experience: I've heard Obama talk a lot about being inclusive. But I've seen the Clintons walk the talk. Peace....
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Sorry you had to miss Obama. I tried to tell you about the necessity of getting tickets. It was in the Plain Dealer. Right now I just logged in on my friend's computers (slow dial up AOL connection) and am in Santa Fe, New Mexico where it is now snowing and they have no snow plows here but we made it up the hills to where I am staying after hearing a wonderful poetry reading. I'll blog this later when I get a chance. We are all celebrating here that Hillary won Texas and OHIO!!
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Don't forget Rhode Island... LOL.
I'm assuming the Cleveland Plain Dealer got their information from the same place the TV stations did (an Obama campaign presse release). It's curious they didn't mention tickets. Of course I hadn't read the Plain Dealer that morning because we'd gotten up at around 6 a.m. to see Bill - didn't get home till after 2 p.m. - and then had to stop at my Mom's house before we left around 4 to see Obama. I ASSUMEd "free and open to the public" meant no tickets were necessary, because that's what it meant when I saw the Clintons, Caroline Kennedy and (in 2004) John Kerry. But you know what they say ASSUME stands for: making an ASS of U and ME... lol
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Great write and very enlightening. I have an uneasy feeling about Obama. It's not that I think he's two-faced, I'm pretty sure that he honestly believes most of what he's saying. What does bother me is that he is so optomistic that I have to conclude that he is going to have a rude awakening when he makes it to the White House. This incident that you described just underscores my point. Either he's not as inclusive as he would have us believe or he is not prepared for every eventuality. These are the kinds of idiosyncracies that will never make the news, but they sure do make you think when you hear of them. It seems to me that predicting the turnout for a rally and making appropriate accomodations should not be this much of a challenge for someone who aspires to the highest seat in the land.
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I want to think it is more that he is not prepared for every eventuality. Or at least that the people he is trusting to handle eventualities for him are not adequately prepared or on the same page.... The issues with the advisor undercutting his Iraq-removal commitment, the advisor undercutting his NAFTA stance to the Canadian government, and the lower tier campaign worker who never got back to me and my shivering nephew - these show a trend, in my opinion, that show Obama to be less prepared (and credible) as a commander in chief. Maybe that's not totally fair - but I believe it does merit consideration. If you can't inspire your avid supporters to unite and efficiently carry out what you believe is in your campaign's best interest... how much are you going to be able to accomplish, especially in the early going, when you are in the White House? His over-optimism reminds me of Bush senior's: "Read my lips - no new taxes" he said while campaigning - but after becoming president he realized his promise was not realistic (I'm basing this on an assumption that he was not intentionally deceitful, although that is of course possible). It also reminds me of the Bill Clinton's over-optimism when taking office (one example: he thought he could immediately open the military to people who were openly gay, but he failed and had to settle for the "don't ask, don't tell" compromise). And need I mention Bush junior's over-optimism regarding Iraq and so many other issues?... The good news is that the Clintons have been there. They made some mistakes - but they, and especially Hillary, have learned from them. Sen. Clinton is a stronger, more realistic, and more capable candidate as a result. I wouldn't have thought her the best candidate for President 4 or 8 years ago (though I think she would have been good). But her additional experience in the Senate (including on the armed forces committee) has helped give her that edge. Now Obama is where she was then - promising, potentially good, very smart. And I think he needs some additional experience and seasoning as well. The ideal scenario for me would be for her to choose him as her running mate. It would keep them from cutting each other's throats and making the Republicans' job easier. It would unify the Democratic party and ensure a strong victory and mandate in November. It would give Obama the additional experience and perpective he needs to go from a good candidate to a great one. And it would likely ensure that the Democrats would lead our country for at least 16 years... which I think we need, for so many reasons....
Thanks for an excellent comment, Tara!
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