This past week was dominated by the Democratic National Convention and the historic nomination of Barack Obama. The morning after Obama accepted the nomination, John McCain announced his selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate. Because of the wide variety of headline-grabbing topics, this week’s roundup of liberal Tennessee bloggers is divided into three sections: the first on the Democratic Convention, the second on Sarah Palin, and the third on other subjects.
We have some great content this week, so sit back, grab a beverage, and spend some time reading what Tennessee’s progressive blogosphere has been saying.
On the Democratic Convention:
• 10,000 Monkeys and a Camera: Brother Bill & Fightin’ Joe and Obama! and Of all people, Pat Buchanan
• 55-40 Memphis: Blew me away (“He topped the Big Dog. He topped them all.“)
• Because I Said So: Obama’s speech
• Cup Of Joe Powell: My Speech to the 2008 Democrat Convention and Talking About Michelle Obama (“A solid image of families whose lives are measured in small and large moments, sometimes historic, sometimes mundane, leaves critics with nothing to fight about.“)
• Don Williams: Hillary supercharges convention with electrifying support for Obama (“Her body language, that sparkling smile, expressive hand gestures, all helped loft her speech to summits of high eloquence as she delivered her crucial, headline grabbing message in wave after wave of galvanizing scorn for the politics of John McCain and electrifying support for Barack Obama.“)
• Enclave: No Way. No How. No McCain. (“[Hillary Clinton's] was a huge speech, and I have no doubt that when I reflect on the more impressive convention speeches that I’ve heard in 30 years, this will rank among the most memorable.“)
• KnoxViews: [Ed. note: No blogger in Tennessee had a better seat than Randy Neal, who was seated with the Tennessee delegation. All of the Denver dispatches from Mr. and Mrs. Neal are collected here.] Unity! Clinton works the crowd (“In walking through the center, from the Tennessee delegation down to Florida, over to New Mexico and New York, everyone appeared to be ready to work together to win the presidency in 2008.“) and Thursday Tennessee delegate breakfast recap [Ed. note: Also see here] and Center stage: Can Democrats elect a rock star candidate? (“The Obama campaign’s masterful job of juxtaposing stodgy, old-school GOP politics and the image of their fossilized leadership with the spectacle of last night’s stadium-rock-fueled 21st Century politics gets one thinking “maybe we can,” which is the first step to closing on “yes we can.”“) and “Women voting for McCain is like chickens voting for Col. Sanders”
• Lean Left: The Speech
• Left Of The Dial: Elvis Obama
• Left Wing Cracker: Remember again why we got on board months ago
• Nashville for the 21st Century: F.L.A.W.L.E.S.S. (“While he didn’t bust out with pie charts and 10 point plans, he laid out in no uncertain terms the choice we as Americans face this year.“)
• Newscoma: MSM Coverage Of The Democratic Convention (“I’m one of those crazy chicks that wants to see what is actually being said in the speeches, not the pundits talking about their impressions of what is being said.“) and An Air Of Unity and First Night In Denver (“I want my own Camelot.“)
• Progressive Nashville: America catches up (“As historic as this event is, America is late coming to the party.“)
• RoaneViews: Did you watch Obama’s speech? (“The folks I’ve talked to in Denver are coming back with a huge smile on their faces.“)
• Russ McBee: Dennis Kucinich and the “Wake Up America” speech (“This man needs to replace Pelosi as Speaker of the House.“)
• Sharon Cobb: Maybe Barack Obama Is The Real Deal (“So now is the time for Presiden Barack Obama. It’s time. We need him. The world needs him. The politics of business as usual has got to end, because it’s killing us, and by us, I mean America.“) and How About That Beau Biden? (“Beau Biden is off to Iraq. I can’t even type that without crying.“)
• Silence Isn’t Golden: Democratic Convention Day One In One Thought and Democratic Convention Day Two In Two Thoughts and Democratic Convention Day Three In Three Thoughts and Democratic Convention Day Four In Four Thoughts
• Southern Beale: UNIFIED!!!
• Tennessee Guerilla Women: Obama’s Mile-High Speech and Tribute to Hillary Rodham Clinton (Video) and Hillary’s Speech: The President We Should Have Had (Video) (“We can’t call her Madame President yet, but at long last, the women of this country have a beloved national leader who is actually a woman.“)
• Tiny Cat Pants: “Liberal” Candidate? (“This is not a “very liberal case” for anything. But it tickles me that you think it is.“) and Hurray, Clinton! (“The main thing about Clinton’s speech last night that sticks with me is how very, very young we still are as a nation and, really, how rapidly change happens.“)
• Vibinc: So Pundits, Where are the Fireworks?
• West Tennessee Liberal: I’m Proud to Be a Democrat (“Although this campaign won’t be easy, we could well be on the verge of a political realignment that could last for years.“)
• Women’s Health News: Planned Parenthood’s Cecile Richards at the Democratic National Convention
On Sarah Palin:
• 55-40 Memphis: OMG I can’t take it
• Because I Said So: The vice presidential debate just got a lot more interesting and And she IS ready? (“His choice of 44-year-old, one-term governor is going to make it a lot harder for McCain to effectively hit Obama on the whole “he’s not ready” thing.“)
• Carole Borges: Palin choice an insult to women (“Hillary supporters were eager to see her become president because of her ideals, not because she has a bouffant hairdo.“)
• The Crone Speaks: McLame Doesn’t Get it: Women Will Not be Insulted
• Cup Of Joe Powell: McCain Picks Who? An Alaskan Perspective
• Enclave: Republicans Resort to Identity Politics with Palin Pick (“If “identity politics” is one of the most heinous mortal sins exclusive to liberalism as conservatives are prone to argue, then why is John McCain banking on gender and genitalia to get him elected in November?“) and Below the Beltway: Wasilla Ain’t Washington
• KnoxViews: Palin is insensitive to drunk driving, domestic violence, and is only recently “Christian” in her politics
• Lean Left: It’s Palin (“So after criticizing Obama’s inexperience, McCain picks someone with even less experience.“)
• Left Of The Dial: Meet Sarah Palin
• Nashville for the 21st Century: Perspective and Palin for Former Veep Nominee? (“[O]nce the novelty wears off, I don’t see women moving en mass to see Roe v. Wade overturned.“)
• Newscoma: Girl Politics (“[W]hy has this entire race become about girl parts?“)
• The Pesky Fly: If Palin can’t handle a roughing up by Joe Biden how will she handle the terrorists?
• Progressive Nashville: Sarah Palin?? (“Can you smell the desperation?“)
• Russ McBee: McCain’s momentous blunder (“John McCain made a stupefyingly wrong-headed strategic mistake today by naming Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential running mate.“)
• Sharon Cobb: Will Any Vagina Do ? (“I knew McCain was going to pick a woman, but I thought he’d at least pick a qualified woman like Kay Bailey Hutchison.“)
• Silence Isn’t Golden: Feel Good Weekend–Sarah Palin Edition (“Hasn’t she ever heard the old adage that politics is show business for ugly people?“)
• Southern Beale: Alaska Is Next To Russia? and Wrong Again
• Tennessee Guerilla Women: Sarah Palin: Let’s Shatter the Glass Ceiling that Hillary Cracked (Video) (“It’s just too effing bad that the job has fallen to the Republicans because the Democratic Party threw women under the bus!“)
• Tiny Cat Pants: Palin (“I also think it’s interesting that [this] election marks the end of a long line of Southern administrations. No matter who wins, there won’t be a Southerner among them.“)
• Vibinc: Playing for the PUMA’s – Updated
• WhitesCreek Journal: A Game of Risk (“With the choice of Sarah Palin as his Vice Presidential candidate, John McCain has done what Democrats could not. This election is now about him and his decision making ability…And how long he can live.“)
On Other Topics:
• 10,000 Monkeys and a Camera: Del Martin
• Because I Said So: Nearly one quarter of Tennessee children live in poverty
• Carole Borges: Metal detectors in schools now?
• The Crone Speaks: Last Executed Witch Exonerated (“Unfortunately, this abuse of power stemming from religious fanaticism and closed-mindedness continues across the globe in many fashions, from shooting up a church to modern day Crusades.“) and Income, Poverty and Health Insurance: Census Report Shows Us the Boom (“Let’s note that if participation in government health insurance programs have increased, that means people cannot afford to pay for private insurance.“)
• Enclave: Eric Crafton V. Metro Taxpayers: The Proper Pronunciation of “Frivolous” (“Crafton is playing around with other people’s money, which pretty much disqualifies him from criticizing “freeloaders who pick the pockets of taxpayers” as he has done in the past. “)
• Fletch: Smoky Skies
• KnoxViews: Sneak preview of new Knoxville Writers’ Guild anthology cover [Ed. note: Go check out the huge list of authors in this anthology. Wow.] and Local Humane Society Refuge for Displaced Pets
• Lean Left: McCain’s Solution to Uninsured Crisis: (“This is, quite simply, a giant middle finger to every American suffering without health insurance. The McCain camp does not think that there is a real problem and intends to do nothing to help correct it.“) and George Will Makes Brief Foray Into Reality-Based Community, Gets Stopped at the Border (“Nothing is lamer than when one of the “reasonable” conservatives tries to make a fact-based argument about politics.“)
• Loose TN Canon: The judgement to be Commander in Chief: John McCain was wrong, Barack Obama was right and The Myth of a Conservative America
• Newscoma: Rural Voting Key In Presidential Race
• The Pesky Fly: The Difference Between Republicans, Democrats, and the Washington Media
• Progressive Nashville: Keep your eye on the ball
• RoaneViews: The Tennessee Conservationist
• Sharon Cobb: Please Join Both Sides Of the Aisle In Asking What Their Plan Is To Stop The Genocide In Darfur. Join New Facebook Site
• Silence Isn’t Golden: Marsha Blackburn–A Living, Breathing Logical Fallacy
• Southern Beale: American Morans, V.2 and Strange Notions Of Public Service (“Here’s a clue: if it’s too easy and money is involved, you’re not doing it right.“) and Sinclair Broadcasting: They’re Baaack (“What’s truly reprehensible is that a corporation like Sinclair will misuse the public airwaves to spread lies and deception to further a political agenda. That’s a violation of public trust. “)
• Tiny Cat Pants: You’ve Got to Walk that Uncanny Valley (“If people can come to believe that a group is almost, but not quite human, they will feel a gut revulsion towards that group and the terrible treatment of that group seems justified and natural.“) and Blues Women
• West Tennessee Liberal: Change Memphis-Volunteer Activities
• WhitesCreek Journal: Privacy? and Will we let John McCain start World War Three? (“Getting shot down on a mission may be nothing more than an indication that he is a bad pilot, and the additional evidence of his numerous other lost aircraft would seem to support that finding.“)
• Women’s Health News: Commenting Now Open on Proposed HHS Regulation
