Obama will name Duncan as his education secretary

From the New York Times: Schools Chief From Chicago Is Obama’s Choice for Education

In the next four years, education reform is going to be kicked into overdrive! Obama, you have made an excellent choice.

OBAMA!!!!!

Elise --

I'm about to head to Grant Park to talk to everyone gathered there, but I wanted to write to you first.

We just made history.

And I don't want you to forget how we did it.

You made history every single day during this campaign -- every day you knocked on doors, made a donation, or talked to your family, friends, and neighbors about why you believe it's time for change.

I want to thank all of you who gave your time, talent, and passion to this campaign.

We have a lot of work to do to get our country back on track, and I'll be in touch soon about what comes next.

But I want to be very clear about one thing...

All of this happened because of you.

Thank you,
Barack

YES WE CAN!

VOTE!

Some Barack Obama videos I'm loving right now

This is what an inspiring ad* looks like:



Here's a video I found while searching YouTube for the above ad:
Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel want you to vote early. Visit http://www.VoteForChange.com to look up your early vote location.



* Greg Kuehn composed the music... God, I love that music.

A Conservative for Obama

If you want to read a well-written piece about why you should vote for Obama, this is it. Wick Allison is the Editor in Chief of D Magazine (the D stands for Dallas). His article begins, "The more I listen to and read about 'the most liberal member of the U.S. Senate,' the more I like him."

A Conservative for Obama has many great points. Here's my favorite paragraph:

Barack Obama is not my ideal candidate for president. (In fact, I made the maximum donation to John McCain during the primaries, when there was still hope he might come to his senses.) But I now see that Obama is almost the ideal candidate for this moment in American history. I disagree with him on many issues. But those don’t matter as much as what Obama offers, which is a deeply conservative view of the world. Nobody can read Obama’s books (which, it is worth noting, he wrote himself) or listen to him speak without realizing that this is a thoughtful, pragmatic, and prudent man. It gives me comfort just to think that after eight years of George W. Bush we will have a president who has actually read the Federalist Papers.

Who is Wick Allison? Wick Allison is one of the founders of D Magazine. According to the magazine's website, "D Magazine has been named the 'Best City Magazine' in the nation three times in the past five years by the City and Regional Magazine Association."

Tim Wise on white privilege and the presidential election

Since I have now seen this twice in the last few hours, I thought I'd pass the following article along. In it, Tim Wise talks about how white privilege is impacting the 2008 presidential election. Tim's points made me think and I hope they do the same for you.

This Is Your Nation on White Privilege

Who is Tim Wise? According to his website, Tim "is among the most prominent anti-racist writers and activists in the U.S., and has been called, 'One of the most brilliant, articulate and courageous critics of white privilege in the nation,' by best-selling author and professor Michael Eric Dyson, of Georgetown University. Wise has spoken in 48 states, and on over 400 college campuses, including Harvard, Stanford, and the Law Schools at Yale and Columbia, and has spoken to community groups around the nation."

Gloria Steinem speaks out against Palin

This Los Angeles Times Opinion piece written by Gloria Steinem is worth a read.

Why should you listen to Gloria Steinem? She is one of the most well-known feminists and women's rights advocates in the United States. Google her and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Women Against Sarah Palin: From Lauren C. in San Francisco

I am a woman against Sarah Palin. She does not share my views and I do not want her leading my country. There are some very eloquent women who do share my views and one of them is Lauren C. in San Francisco. Here's what she has to say at http://womenagainstsarahpalin.blogspot.com:

"In my view, as both a woman and a citizen, the choice of Sarah Palin as candidate for Vice President is anti-feminist. As a woman, I do not blindly support women first. I do not believe any woman will do. I believe that it is the rare individual who can lead this country. I want someone exceptional. I want someone smarter than I am, more judicious than I am, and more knowledgeable. I look forward to the day when that person happens to also be female. Until then, I do not support promoting a woman just because of her gender. For all that Hillary Clinton proved to us this year, the selection of Sarah Palin demonstrates that there are some who know only to respond with tokenism, to continue to look at women as women first and people second. We should all apply the same scrutiny to Sarah Palin that we would any candidate for our highest offices. It is our duty to question her and judge her, not on her parenting or family, but on her intellect, knowledge, experience, and viewpoint. And on these matters, she is not fit for the office of Vice President."

If you agree with these sentiments then you might want to buy one of these shirts.

Are you articulate?

My friend Lana just sent me a fabulous NY Times article called "The Racial Politics of Speaking Well." I'm having trouble articulating* my points about Lynette Clemetson's piece but I think she sums things up pretty well with her tag line: "Maybe it’s time for a national therapy session on the word 'articulate.'" I strongly encourage you to read the article and will leave you with this excerpt:

"The word perfectly conveys, to quote George Bush, the soft bigotry of low expectations. It literally comes down to that. When people say it, what they are really saying is that someone is articulate ... for a black person."
~Anna Perez, former deputy assistant to President Bush and communications counselor to Condoleezza Rice when she was national security adviser.

* Ha!

How is this man leading in the polls?

"Too many good docs are getting out of business. Too many OB/GYNs aren't able to practice their, their love with women all across this country."

Preparing

In preparation for the March for Women's Lives that I will attend on April 25, I've been looking for Pro-Choice slogans to put on a t-shirt. Here's what I've found so far:

* If you can’t trust me with a choice, how can you trust me with a child?
* How can you be pro-life and pro-war?
* If only closed minds came with closed mouths
* Just say no to sex with pro-lifers
* Use Condom Sense
* U.S. Out Of My Uterus
* Condoms are easier to change than diapers
* Be a voice for choice, every child a wanted child
* A world of wanted children would make a difference
* Against abortion? Don't have one
* Against abortion? Have a vasectomy

Anyone have any suggestions or like a particular slogan?