What Do Kanye West, Rush Limbaugh and Joe Wilson Have In Common?

Whatever happened to the notion of a kinder, gentler America? This is certainly not the utopia of America the three aforementioned stooges ascribe to.  Is there not anything Barack Obama can accomplish without the backlash and hatred that seem to follow any and all of his accomplishments? This morning when I heard that the president won the Nobel Prize I could not have been any happier. I’ve made no secret that Obama is a hero to me, but my excitement has nothing to do with “hero worship” and neither does this unexpected victory. I am proud of this country; I’m proud of this past election; and I proud to be an American. I feel that I did not just witness history but I was a part of it. I waited too long and worked too hard for these moments to allow anyone to steal my joy; I’m taking my moment. I am smiling hard - breathing deep in an effort to suck it all in.

Apparently the magic, hope and change that have engulfed this country have not escaped the rest of the world. When it was announced that Barack Obama won the prize many people questioned if the decision was unanimous. Republicans are talking about how this award was undeserved and how this will be part of Obama’s downfall. Why not use your 15 minutes to figure out how to bring things like peace and doing away with nuclear weapons into fruition? Why are people so determined to bring down the man over having real conversations about healthcare, the poor, civil rights and the violence that seems to be massacring our children? I’m taking my moment. This year at the MTV awards we were all appalled by Kanye West’s disrespectful treatment of Taylor Swift. The sheer rudeness of the act left a bad taste in all our mouths, white, black, gay, straight, country music lover, r & b fans. Do we need Beyonce to go up in front of Congress and remind us to be kind to one another and respect people’s moment? Why do we have to hate on each other and turn something hopeful into something hateful and spiteful? I’m taking my moment.

If you are one of these people that can’t get passed November 4, 2008, have someone you trust slap you a few times, throw ice water in your face until it registers that the election is o-v-e-r and Barack Obama won and is now our President. Republicans lost and so now instead of being good losers they are ready to take their marbles and go home. For almost a decade, Democrats had to be gracious losers and show unbelievable sportsmanship in the face of two unsuccessful elections, one of which we were robbed of in 2000. People in our country are going to continue to need healthcare, government assistance, more job opportunities and economically sound ways to go to college, despite Republican efforts to derail Democrats in Washington. The issues are not going to suddenly disappear; these are problems that need to be solved and cannot and will not wait until Republicans feel they have had sufficient time to mourn their loss.

This is a country where Africans were brought here as slaves and treated like animals. This is a country that denied blacks the right to an education (writing and reading), a country that made it illegal for minorities and women to vote. This is the same country that gave birth to the KKK and made lynchings in the south, a sport. But this is also the same country that gave life to the civil rights movement, emancipation proclamation, Fredrick Douglass, Langston Hughes, Hemingway, Harvey Milk, Captain Sullenberger, Oprah, Gloria Steinem, Betty Friedan. This is a country that after decades of oppression elected an African American president of the United States. We cannot change the past but we can chart a new course for the future. We can learn from past mistakes and don’t let the mistakes made by our ancestors be our mistakes as well. This is our chance right here and right now.

And now I turn my finger back towards myself; how many of us supporters jumped in completely committed to change and getting Obama elected and then after the inauguration have yet to do anything for our country? What is wrong with us? Things have gotten to the point where the GOP applauds when Chicago loses its chances to host the 2016 Olympics. Some people are donating enormous sums of money to Joe Wilson’s campaign not in spite of or despite his shameful antics, rather because of them. He is now some sort of GOP hero; seriously. how did we get here? People are dying in ridiculous war masterminded by a ridiculous man. The job market is continuing to decline, healthcare still needs to be dealt with. Silly Republicans are intentionally stone walling any progress that Obama is trying to make in Washington even if it is in the best interest of our country. What is it that we (Americans) want? In my mind these pressing issues taking a back seat because of juvenile antics. Do we want to fix the country or stick it to Obama? President Obama is not the only person suffering from the divisiveness that is so prevalent in Washington. Obama told us from the beginning that this could not all be done by one man. Let us remember the state our country was in prior to Obama taking office. Some people (GOP) believe that these things can be done overnight. It took George W. Bush eight years to turn this country upside down yet some people expect our president to fix 8 years worth of problems and stupidity in 10 months with conservative doors continually being slammed in his face. For all the people against Obama and all that he stands for, how were you all feeling about George W. Bush in the waning months of his presidency? Now let me ask, what did you do about it? My guess is nothing aside from complaining and severing any traceable alliances to Bush. I feel I suffered for 8 years waiting for the majority of this country to wake up and see and know what I had known from the beginning. After each crushing blow and Republican victory I was crushed, downtrodden and wanted to give up on politics and my hopes for the world but I didn’t, I couldn’t. I believe in what this country is currently and in the possibility of what it can still become. We are letting racism; ignorance and good old fashion hate block our potential. Some of us may need to close our eyes and just listen to our president, just listen and then decide that we want to help and build up instead of tearing down. How many times have we heard that the real work is in the building? It takes nothing to bring someone or something down. Let us do away with all the Monday morning quarterbacking and put our money, time and energy where our mouths are. I’m taking my moment.

The Nobel Prize can be awarded in the areas of Literature, Medicine/Physiology, Chemistry and Peace. Here is a little information on the Nobel Peace Prize that Barack Obama was awarded this morning. “The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish, Danish and Norwegian: Nobels fredspris) is one of five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel. According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize should be awarded "to the person who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses."^[1] Alfred Nobel's will stated that the prize should be awarded by a committee of five people elected by the Norwegian Parliament. Norway and Sweden were at that time still in union, and with Sweden responsible for all foreign policy; Nobel felt that the prize might be less subject to political corruption if awarded by Norway. The Peace Prize is presented annually in Oslo, in the presence of the king, on December 10 (the anniversary of Nobel's death), and is the only Nobel Prize not presented in Stockholm. "In Oslo, the Chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee presents the Nobel Peace Prize in the presence of the King of Norway. Under the eyes of a watching world, the Nobel Laureate receives three things: a diploma, a medal and a document confirming the prize amount^] The Nobel Peace Prize Ceremony is held at the Oslo City Hall, followed the next day by the Nobel Peace Prize Concert, which is broadcast to more than 450 million households in over 150 countries around the world. The concert has received worldwide fame and the participation of top celebrity hosts and performers. “ I must say that Europe has been on the ball with this Nobel peace prize selection and with the arrest of Roman Polanski (that’s another article). Many times, I receive feedback suggesting that my rants are angry, biased and partisan. Usually I find exception with only the first charge and replace angry with passionate. Today at this moment I will go one further and say that I’m pissed.

Can we agree that peace is better than war? Can we agree that this was a historic event? Can we agree that hate kills? Can we agree that ignorance breeds violence and more ignorance? And for all of you still refusing to take in these moments, no worries I breathing deep enough for all of us.

Gonna lay down my sword and shield
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Gonna lay down my sword and shield
Down by the riverside
Ain't gonna study war no more.

refrain

I ain't gonna study war no more,
I ain't gonna study war no more,
Study war no more.
I ain't gonna study war no more,
I ain't gonna study war no more,
Study war no more.

Gonna stick my sword in the golden sand;
Down By the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Gonna stick my sword in the golden sand
Down by the riverside
Gonna study war no more.

refrain

Gonna put on my long white robe;
Down By the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside