I thought Obama’s speech at the memorial for the Tucson shooting victims was a good speech, better in writing than in delivery, which is unusual for him.
The pep rally atmosphere was strange, but I learned long ago that people grieve in their own ways. And one cannot blame Obama for unsolicited cheers and shouts from the audience.
Some key passages seemed to be a rebuke to the fingerpointing and accusations that right-wing political speech — and Sarah Palin — caused the shooting.
A key passage in the speech was as follows (emphasis mine):
“The loss of these wonderful people should make every one of us strive to be better in our private lives – to be better friends and neighbors, co-workers and parents. And if, as has been discussed in recent days, their deaths help usher in more civility in our public discourse, let’s remember that it is not because a simple lack of civility caused this tragedy, but rather because only a more civil and honest public discourse can help us face up to our challenges as a nation, in a way that would make them proud.”
In other (my) words:
“Matthew Yglesias, Markos Moulitsas and Paul Krugman should be ashamed of themselves.”
Obama kept the focus on the dead and injured, as I wish everyone had in the hours and days after the shooting. Good for him on this.
Update: I probably should have included Sheriff Dupnik in the quote. That’s what happens when you rush a post.
A lot of people on Twitter are saying it was cynical for Obama to wait several days to make this point about the fingerpointing, since by now a lot of the damage has been done. That’s a fair point; my review is of the speech, not the overall political situation.
——————————————–
Related Posts:
Person Tweeting Death Wish For Palin Now Wants Privacy
Blood Libel
Hijacking A Massacre
Follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube
Visit the Legal Insurrection Shop on CafePress!
DONATE
Donations tax deductible
to the full extent allowed by law.
Ron Coleman
Comments
None of this will stop the left from being uncivil because they don't think of themselves as the ones hate-mongering. They'll read this speech as Obama coming down hard against Palin, and Rush Limbaugh and other right wingers.
"better in writing than in delivery, which is unusual for him."
Oh, I don't know about that. You need to listen to his speeches on the radio or at least audio only. He's really not that good. Sure he'll always have a line or two which will be replayed in the MSM to make it sound like a great speech. But seriously he's just not that good.
Bravo, Mr. President, from someone who would rather chew on a toilet brush than vote for you.
I'll lay the blame for the T-shirts on the memorial front-men and the pep-rally atmosphere on immature college students. The President could have delivered either another Ground-Zero-Mosque teachable moment or a solemn, moving (if a little run-on) remembrance, and, good-on-him, he delivered the latter.
Okay, okay, I take back what I said about opening her eye/s, now that we have verification. Dear Lord, I can't imagine what those people are going through and I'm quite jubilant that she's making a remarkable (we hope) recovery.
The other stuff stands though. I thought in general it was a tasteless display, through no fault of The One. Well, who printed those tshirts? That was tasteless too.
Leave a Comment