All,
There's no way yet to say anything fully comprehensive or intellectually coherent in the very short period of time since Barack Obama officially became the 44th President of the United States last night. The event is far too monumental on a multitude of different levels for that. So I'll just say for the time being that Obama and his extraordinary staff led by 'the two Davids'--Axelrod and Plouffe--ran without a doubt the most intelligent, most disciplined, most politically sophisticated, and most mature campaign in American political history and it should serve as an important wakeup call for all progressives and radicals throughout this country and as a genuinely new template and strategic/theoretical paradigm for how to properly educate, organize, and mobilize millions of people from a truly mass-based grassroots perspective. The work that has to be done to transform this country has only just begun of course but if we're all truly focused on what really matters and are finally able and willing to reject the far too comforting illusions (and delusions) of cynicism, nihilism, solipsism, and self aggrandizing apathy that have paralyzed all forms of leftist political activity since 1968 then we really do have a chance--a chance--to create a fundamentally new society. Needless to say it will--as always--require a huge and unrelenting struggle on our part collectively to move this society in that direction but it's very clear to me that the election of Obama represents one of those very rare historical opportunities and most importantly openings to create and develop clear ideological, cultural, economic, and political alternatives to the dominance of a political economy and culture deeply rooted in and distorted by capitalism, racism, sexism, and homophobia. As even Obama himself always formally recognized the key to this change remains-- as it always did-- not with Obama himself or any other individual politician or 'leader' but with the masses of the American people. Revolutionary change and radical reform of any kind in society is based and can only be based in the general population itself. In a beautifully ironic and even necessary way this election reminds us once again of precisely that fact. It is indeed left up to us to see to it that we not lose sight of this reality and what it really means. So in properly holding Obama accountable and responsible we also have to remember that in the long run it is even more important for the rest of us to initiate and deliver on these changes. In the meantime heartfelt congratulations to President Barack Hussein Obama. His victory is well earned and well deserved...
Kofi
There's no way yet to say anything fully comprehensive or intellectually coherent in the very short period of time since Barack Obama officially became the 44th President of the United States last night. The event is far too monumental on a multitude of different levels for that. So I'll just say for the time being that Obama and his extraordinary staff led by 'the two Davids'--Axelrod and Plouffe--ran without a doubt the most intelligent, most disciplined, most politically sophisticated, and most mature campaign in American political history and it should serve as an important wakeup call for all progressives and radicals throughout this country and as a genuinely new template and strategic/theoretical paradigm for how to properly educate, organize, and mobilize millions of people from a truly mass-based grassroots perspective. The work that has to be done to transform this country has only just begun of course but if we're all truly focused on what really matters and are finally able and willing to reject the far too comforting illusions (and delusions) of cynicism, nihilism, solipsism, and self aggrandizing apathy that have paralyzed all forms of leftist political activity since 1968 then we really do have a chance--a chance--to create a fundamentally new society. Needless to say it will--as always--require a huge and unrelenting struggle on our part collectively to move this society in that direction but it's very clear to me that the election of Obama represents one of those very rare historical opportunities and most importantly openings to create and develop clear ideological, cultural, economic, and political alternatives to the dominance of a political economy and culture deeply rooted in and distorted by capitalism, racism, sexism, and homophobia. As even Obama himself always formally recognized the key to this change remains-- as it always did-- not with Obama himself or any other individual politician or 'leader' but with the masses of the American people. Revolutionary change and radical reform of any kind in society is based and can only be based in the general population itself. In a beautifully ironic and even necessary way this election reminds us once again of precisely that fact. It is indeed left up to us to see to it that we not lose sight of this reality and what it really means. So in properly holding Obama accountable and responsible we also have to remember that in the long run it is even more important for the rest of us to initiate and deliver on these changes. In the meantime heartfelt congratulations to President Barack Hussein Obama. His victory is well earned and well deserved...
Kofi
