President-elect Barack Obama opened up the Governors’ Global Climate Summit (see how they split the difference on what to call it) with a video address today. The speech kicks off California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s international climate change summit in grand style with soon to be President Obama saying all the right things regarding this undeniably enormous issue confronting our world. Check it out below:

The first thing that strikes me while watching this is the absolute relief of being on the verge of getting a President that actually gets it. We have gone so long in this country with such poor leadership on this matter (and many, many others) that I practically need to pinch myself to believe this guy is the for real next President, with real power, and not some commentator on Billy Moyers show on PBS. But for real it is, and man does it feel good .

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Radio Commentator Rush Limbaugh has one-upped even himself by calling the current economic crisis “The Obama Recession” on both his radio program and website. Before Election Day, when poll after poll showed Barack Obama with a considerable lead in the Presidential race and the Democratic party poised to gain seats in both houses of Congress, I often wondered what conservative voices such as Limbaugh and Sean Hannity would say once it became clear their dogma simply wasn’t working on the electorate anymore. It didn’t take long to find out, and the strategy is unfortunately not surprising. Lie, make excuses and rewrite history seems to be the only recourse left to folks like this to whom being wrong is simply unheard of.

Now let’s be honest, if we did a post around here every time Rush Limbaugh said something patently absurd, we’d have run out of space on our servers about three days after our launch. But this particular nugget is a telling example of the sad state of the “conservative ideals” Limbaugh claimed to steward. Limbaugh blaming the current economy on Barack Obama is about as disingenuous as an arsonist blaming the firefighters for the fire he’s been setting, kindling and adding fuel to for over 20 years.

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Many many months ago, we told you that the incredibly-bearded Chuck Norris had asked Congress to drill here and now.  Well, Norris is back, and has posted an open letter to President-elect Obama (if you recall, Bush has, oh, let’s say…three months left?), giving him some advice.

It seems Norris is concerned that “Democrats have a virtual monopoly over our land, with control of the White House, both houses of Congress, a majority of gubernatorial positions, state legislatures, the courts, the news media, the unions and the entertainment and educational fields,” and wants to make sure this doesn’t ruin the good thing going we have called AMERICA.  And so he says,

It’s no big surprise that I don’t see politically eye-to-eye with you. Actually, I stand in stark opposition to most of your politics. Still, even in our differences, I realize that we must learn to work together if we are to see our country get back on track. After Election Day, I asked myself, despite the outcome, how can I work for our new president to help better America? Then the thought occurred to me, the first question that should be answered is: How will you work for me? After all, it is “We, the People” of the Constitution for whom you are employed, correct?

It’s kind of like what JFK said upon inaguration, except the exact and complete opposite.  Anyhow, Norris outlines four points for Obama to follow to be a good president:

1. Use and cite the Constitution. What does this entail, Mr. Norris?

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Even if it’s just the beginning of the end of Guantanamo, what good news! It’s nice to know that even though Obama is focusing on the economy he’s still paying attention to the war and all things related.

From the Huffington Post:

“President-elect Obama’s advisers are quietly crafting a proposal to ship dozens, if not hundreds, of imprisoned terrorism suspects to the United States to face criminal trials, a plan that would make good on his promise to close the Guantanamo Bay prison but could require creation of a controversial new system of justice.”

The article goes on to to classify how all levels of prisoners would be dealt with, with some prisoners needing a new court system that could deal with their entanglement with highly classified issues.

I have to say that this makes me super excited. Even thought it might be slightly controversial and something new, it is something that takes into account people’s rights (something the current administration didn’t seem to care very much about).

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Race and politics, two topics that can ignite extreme passion and rage. As I mentioned in my blog post last week, politics can make people stupid. I am afraid of the hate that is being expressed by a few ignorant, racists who are angered to have a black leader. It scares me that in the year 2008, race is still such a damn issue. And my fears were confirmed when following Barack Obama’s win last Tuesday, 17-year-old Ali Kamara, a black Muslim, was brutally assaulted by four white men while walking home on Staten Island.

“I see the car coming. They looked at me and said, Obama!’ They were not happy.” Kamara said. “They had hoodies on. They started hitting me with bats and my body started vibrating.” -NY Daily News

Really? Really? What the f*ck did this poor kid do to deserve such a violent attack? What does anyone do to deserve a violent attack? The only time I want to kick someone’s a** is when i hear stories of meaningless, hateful a** kicking. Violence, it’s a terrible cycle. I just hope, hope, hope, and pray that people can see our new president as simply our new president and not a color.

Kamara’s family moved to Staten Island from Liberia in 2000. The NYPD Hate Crime Task Force is currently investigating the incident as a bias crime. And Kamara says he heard his assailants scream the word “Obama!” but not any other racial or religious slurs.

Making racism disappear begins with educating future generations about equality. Looking for a great forum where young people can express their views on racism and connect with others interested in solving this world wide issue? takepart and check out www.takingitglobal.org. TakingITGlobal is an international non-profit organization headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, connecting youth around the world. TakingITGlobal provides a portal for young people to find inspiration, access information and get involved in improving their local and global communities. Topics covered include not only racism but also global poverty, war and conflict, HIV/AIDS, the environment and more.

Following the success of his viral hit “Yes We Can”, Will.i.am released his latest Obama-supporting single “It’s A New Day” on Wednesday on the Web site dipdive.com.

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As President-elect Obama said in his acceptance speech on Tuesday night, he and his family will be bringing a new member with them when they settle into the White House-a dog.  And, news stories report that the dog will be lovingly adopted from a shelter.  How great is it that the Obamas are already making an exemplary choice as the soon-to-be first family by adopting a dog?  Hopefully this will spurn national interest by  families across the country to skip breeders and puppy mills and instead choose a beautiful mutt or pure-bred from a local shelter or animal rescue group.  Coincidentally, this happens to be National Animal Shelter Week and the Obamas’ choice is probably the best PR ever for this movement. I don’t need to remind everyone of the millions of dogs and cats that are annually killed by shelters because of the unmanageable number of animals they receive. TakePart by visiting the Humane Society’s Animal Shelter site today to find your local shelter to adopt a pet or volunteer.

Is there really any comparison?

(also I know I’ve posted the Obama speech a bunch now, but I’ve also watched it at least 10 times today and think it’s OK to rewatch it )

Which one inspires you? Which one do you find more presidential? Which speech is really about a “season of hope”? And most importantly did Bush live up to anything he said?

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Also, John Lennon’s Imagine just came on the radio.. sigh I’m getting a little sentimental. I think I might need some sleep (Go after the jump for your own John Lennon moment)

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This morning, November 5th 2008, I find myself in a small coffee shop in Cleveland awaiting a ride back to Brooklyn, NY.  Everyone around me seems a bit tired but throughout the room you can hear genuine excitement and people discussing last night’s historic election.  It’s an exciting day to be an American, and an even more exciting day to be an Ohioan.

I may not have been able to watch the election with my peers and dance in the streets of Brooklyn after Obama’s victory, but I was able to watch the election in the state I grew up in and I was able to see the people I grew up with change their course.  I was able to cheer on Obama with my parents and grandparents, together representing 3 generations who spoke out for change.  I was able to know that in my county, amongst all of the people I spent 15 years of my life with, that I made a difference.

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