The Democratic Convention on its first night was dedicated to an inspiring speech from Chappaquiddick Ted Kennedy and a speech from Michelle Obama intended to round off her rough edges.
Teddy’s speech was as simple as you would have expected from somebody who has terminal brain cancer. His appearance is a great advertisement for the ability of drugs to keep a man on his feet. The importance of Kennedy’s speech was not in what he said but merely in his presence. Kennedy is the bridge to the Liberal Democratic past and he served his purpose tonight by reminding Democrats of their glory days in the staged political drama that was orchestrated this evening.
Michelle Obama’s speech however was a bit more strategic for the Democrats generally and for the Obama’s particularly. Michelle, in this election cycle to date, has come across like a bitter and angry harridan. Tonight, was the attempt to give Michelle Obama a personality tummy tuck. Instead of comments about the meanness of America we heard about Michelle profess her love for America. Instead of Michelle’s hard shell we got to see Michelle the doting wife and loving Mommy. Indeed, were we to believe the picture presented tonight by Michelle we would conclude that she’s probably just like Jackie Kennedy was back when Jack was President.
Michelle also spent a great deal of time communicating how much she is like middle America.
Remember middle America? They are the people who cling to their guns and religion when they feel threatened according to her husband. Anyway … Michelle repeatedly communicated that she is just like all those White Blue collar people who Barack couldn’t convince to vote for him in the Democratic primary.
Naturally, the whole evening was staged and produced like some Broadway play. Further, it was characterized by the kind of syrupy sentimentalism that Americans have come to love in place of rational thought. The speeches were given to stir emotions while avoiding the intellect. In this way the speeches were a good deal like the kind of preaching one can find in most Churches in America on any given Sunday at the worship hour. As such the sentiment was not only in content but also in delivery. Several times during Michelle’s speech there were clear indications that she was trying to cough up some tears.
The closest to substance in the speeches tonight was when Michelle Obama, speaking in reference to her husband, said,
That’s why he’s running– to end the war in Iraq responsibly, to build an economy that lifts every family, to make health care available for every American, and to make sure every child in this nation gets a world class education all the way from preschool to college. That’s what Barack Obama will do as President of the United States of America.
Americans should realize the amount of taxation it will take to “make health care available for every American” while at the same time funding a world class education from 3 years of age to 22 years of age. Naturally, if the State attempts to insure these realities we can be confident that America’s health care will become substandard and our education will become worse then it already is. (Yes, I know it is hard to believe that anybody could make our Colleges more imbecilic but never underestimate the ability of the State.) In these statement Michelle revealed once again the Marxist nature of the Obama vision.
The first evening of the DNC was all sentiment and no substance. This is fitting since America is increasingly becoming a nation that likewise is all sentiment and no substance.