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1/13/2011
Unbefitting a memorial - but Obama was great
Unbefitting a memorial Neither my brain nor my heart could handle the juxtaposition of University of Arizona students (apparently?) cheering and screaming for President Obama and Nancy Pelosi at what was billed as a memorial service. It was weird.
I could swear the title public television used for its special presentation was “Tucson Memorial Service.” But its official name was “Together We Thrive: Tucson and America.”
A pep rally, with t-shirts and all. (Classy, they’re handing out tee-shirts at the memorial service.) Standing in line since the day before. A pizza, delivered in line. Dr. Rhee cheered as he ran down the line to find his family.
Maybe the celebration was to bring healing. I can see the people of Tucson, our country needing that. I’m not sure a lack of gravitas on the part of a screaming, cheering audience was the way to do it.
Was it a memorial service – or a celebration? Weird.
Michelle exemplified the contradiction. A little white sweater. What? Weird. (I can picture Laura Bush in a modest, respectful black suit.)
Did you compare the cheers for Governor Brewer and former Governor Napolitano? (At a memorial service? Weird.) Just for the record, audience screams and cheers lasted about twice as long for the Secretary of Homeland Security than for today’s controversial governor of Arizona.
Also for the record, Janet Napolitano and Eric Holder did a tremendous job quieting, focusing the crowd with serious readings from Isaiah in the Old Testament and Paul’s second letter to the people of Corinth in the New Testament.
President Obama was fantastic. His countenance from the moment he entered the venue was just right, appropriately stern almost. Not artificially mournful, but serious (unlike Michelle who couldn’t stifle what seemed an inappropriate smile), moving to grateful and celebratory in moments of his speech.
For once in my life I agree with leftie Jim Rowen – Obama’s speech hit all the right notes. It was well written, well delivered, brilliant. Pollster Nate Silver at the New York Times hedges a bit, but thinks the speech will only do good things for Obama in 2012.
If you didn’t hear the president’s speech, the transcript and video are here, courtesy of the New York Times. You’ll see a few moments of opportunism. But mostly very good stuff.
Many memorable lines. I wouldn’t choose just one.
If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate, as it should, let's make sure it's worthy of those we have lost.
.... Our hearts are broken by their sudden passing. Our hearts are broken – and yet, our hearts also have reason for fullness. Our hearts are full of hope and thanks for the 13 Americans who survived the shooting, including the congresswoman many of them went to see on Saturday….
How can we honor the fallen? How can we be true to their memory?
You see, when a tragedy like this strikes, it is part of our nature to demand explanations – to try to impose some order on the chaos, and make sense out of that which seems senseless. Already we've seen a national conversation commence, not only about the motivations behind these killings, but about everything from the merits of gun safety laws to the adequacy of our mental health systems. Much of this process, of debating what might be done to prevent such tragedies in the future, is an essential ingredient in our exercise of self-government.
But at a time when our discourse has become so sharply polarized – at a time when we are far too eager to lay the blame for all that ails the world at the feet of those who think differently than we do – it's important for us to pause for a moment and make sure that we are talking with each other in a way that heals, not a way that wounds.
.... But what we can't do is use this tragedy as one more occasion to turn on one another. As we discuss these issues, let each of us do so with a good dose of humility. Rather than pointing fingers or assigning blame, let us use this occasion to expand our moral imaginations, to listen to each other more carefully, to sharpen our instincts for empathy, and remind ourselves of all the ways our hopes and dreams are bound together.
…. If this tragedy prompts reflection and debate, as it should, let's make sure it's worthy of those we have lost. Let's make sure it's not on the usual plane of politics and point scoring and pettiness that drifts away with the next news cycle.
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.
President Obama was indeed presidential. Pep rally or not, the speech will do him well.
Jo Egelhoff, FoxPolitics.net
COMMENTS
Jo,I totally agree with you that the cheering was wierd. As if some people didn't really realize what event they had stumbled into! Also appreciated the serious demeanor of those who did the readings and remained serious. Michelle's dress may have reflected the more casual style of the southwest. Obama did a fine job. I keep thinking that perhaps the prayers of an entire nation, millions of people, have swayed our God to grant Ms. Giffords apparent slow progress.
Now, both as a nation and in our own communities, we MUST address and establish protocols for helping those who are slipping into mental illness before they hurt themselves or others. Can we please do this to honor the pain and deaths of those shot in Tucson? Perhaps to consider: more education and training, more "hot lines", more public service advertising.
JeanMarie (Thu Jan 13 08:14:57 2011)
I thought the entire "pep rally" was an enormous mistake. Sorry, Jo, you may think Obama was presidential, and maybe I could agree a very tiny bit, but I think he was campaigning...and to hear Janet Napolitano speak words from the bible was hard to take. Who orchestrates these events anyway?? This was certainly not a time to hold a pep rally disguised as a memorial service. I cannot fathom sitting through all that when I had just lost my precious nine year old daughter. We must pray for the folks that lost their loved ones for strength to endure their loss. I wonder if Obama took the time to look at things along the border.
Babs (Thu Jan 13 08:20:27 2011)
Jo, as usual you are spot on in you commentary. Permit some additional thoughts.
Janet Napolitano and Eric Holder read extensively from Scripture, and Pres. Obama referred briefly to it. I suspect they would be among the first to posit that this same Scripture should not be referenced in our public schools (separation of church and state, you know!). Isn't the University of Arizona a public school, and are they not government officials. It strikes me as disingenuous -- not from the heart but for political gain. Right out of the Alinsky playbook.
And regarding the President's call for measured words, did you sense he was challenging himself here? Who is it that recently said, "If they bring a knife to the fight, we'll bring guns." And, "Yes, they won the election, but they will need to sit in the back of the bus."
All excellent words on paper, but ruined by insincerity.
Ronald Zahn (Thu Jan 13 10:07:29 2011)
I too was put off by the cheering but after a while it had a sort of comforting rhythm. I believe the families of victims felt honored. Given the atmosphere it was even more difficult to give a somber and thoughtful speech but Obama was up for it. He exuded genuine concern. I appreciate your opinion Jo.
(As for Babs who said "and to hear Janet Napolitano speak words from the bible was hard to take" - that kind of comment perpetuates the mean spirited pettiness that the country is trying to dampen. Unfortunate words and attitude.)
Tina Haffeman (Thu Jan 13 10:14:23 2011)
A pep rally for the murdered dead. Something we almost expected from the Community Organizer.
Sorry, too Wellstonian for me.
Duke (Thu Jan 13 10:14:51 2011)
Having produced many dozen similar events, I was interested to see how this ceremony would be pulled off. It was, as has been noted, both strange and stirring--an odd event that combined elements of a funeral with those of a pep rally.
If anything was handled awkwardly by the event producer(s) it was protocol. I thought Gov. Brewer--who did a very nice job with her remarks--was upstaged by the speaking positions of Holder and Napolitano. Gov. Brewer is the governor of this state and, as such, was the second highest ranking dignitary in the hall. She should have been seated immediately next to the president and she should have spoken immediately before him. That said, this event involved challenging protocol issues and was probably cobbled together by a committee compromising along the way. If anyone (White House? Arizona Governor? University of Arizona?) had overall responsibility for the event, it wasn't evident.
Highlights:
1. The president was very good. Perfect tone.
2. Janet Napolitano was surprisingly effective as a scripture-reader. Well done, Madame Secretary (and I'm not a fan of hers).
3. Gov. Brewer did a better job than I would have expected. Well written, well delivered.
4. Copeland's "Fanfare for the Common Man" set the tone of the event perfectly.
Lowlights:
1. The opening prayer. Did this guy really talk about HIMSELF for two minutes before the prayer began? Yes. He did.
2. Cheering.
3. The fat guy singing the National Anthem with his sport coat unbuttoned. Next time wear a suit. And button it.
4. Dignitary seating. This didn't make protocol sense and was greatly disrespectful to a governor in her own state.
Overall, though, this was a pretty good event. But I hope we don't need to repeat it.
TD (Thu Jan 13 10:26:04 2011)
Yeah, the medicine man. Definitely a turnoff. Protocol. Very interesting. You all make great points. Ron - good stuff. And no Bibles in our public schools. It's a travesty. Babs, I surely could see the community organizer - made me ill at two points in the speech, including the "she opened her eyes" schtick. A political speech, yes. Effective politically? Yes.
Jo (Thu Jan 13 13:47:47 2011)
Jo, one cannot worship in a school. I think that the bible can be referenced and studied for a class. Tell me if I am mistaken.
Dean Weichmann (Thu Jan 13 16:21:40 2011)
Jo, I agree Obama gave a good speech but I wish he would stop using generalities. He should have named those on both the right and the left who have poured gas on this fire. Ron Zahn is right in pointing out the hypocricy. The Dem's use the Bible whenever they can to co-opt Christians into believing in the Dem's. What would happen if conservatives got up on a national stage like this and read these same scriputures? They would be immediately scourged and denunciated with bringing "their" Christian religion into the matter. When the Dem's do it, the national media pats them on the back - no separation of church and state here! I truly believe we must look beyond their words here and look at their past actions to properly interpret what they are doing and why.
Edward Perkins (Thu Jan 13 16:27:24 2011)
The point made by Ron, I believe, was that the Bible was used last night in a public university. Imagine. (Well, I think they were on the University campus - ?) I didn't hear anything said about worshiping. The words were referenced as comforting, I believe.
Jo (Thu Jan 13 16:34:54 2011)
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