OK, let me try this again. Is Obama the JFK of this generation?

[Beausoir]

He seems to be inspiring people to turn out in droves.

It is definitely something more than politics.

[emilyg]

1. Not even close.

[Perky]

2. No

He is however the RFK of his generation.

[origin1286]

70. I concur

[annie1]

3. I wasn't alive during the JFK generation, but i am unimpressed with Obama...

and i am not a cynical person.

[FrenchieCat]

40. Be cynical.....It's Ok. Obama warns us about the Cynics.....

Barack Obama and the Kennedy legacy
http://www.swamppolitics.com/news/politics/blog/2007/10/barack_obama_and_the_kennedy_l.html






Each pic is from a different campaign rally!

[annie1]

43. Obama warns us?? lol! that is frightening onethink speak if i ever heard it.

[FrenchieCat]

49. Warns us of the cynical naysayers......

that are saying that what he is doing can't be done, etc....

[CarbonDate]

68. Sorensen vouches for Obama? SORENSEN?

It's too much. I can't take it anymore.

Obama '08. I'm paying out.

GAWD! I wasn't even going to donate this year.

Author of the friggin' Kennedy Peace Speech. Unbelievable.

http://www.american.edu/media/speeches/Kennedy.htm

Read it. Sorensen wrote that. That's why this, and this alone, sold me.

Happy to be on the same team with you again, Frenchie.

[KennedyGuy]

4. No Effin way

not even close..

[maximusveritas]

5. He's something completely different

I don't think it's ever really helpful to make comparisons to people in the past.

[Adelante]

6. He is the Obama of this generation

Comparisons to past presidents by candidates' supporters is pretty commonplace, though.

[hedda_foil]

7. I was a JFK volunteer and YES, Obama is the JFK of this generation.

It's been a wait of two generations, but this is what a truly inspirational and effective leader looks like. We haven't had one in so long that some find it hard to believe that such a thing is possible.

[Cha]

15. Wow, hedda!

Good to see again, and very good to have your views on Obama!

[hedda_foil]

55. Hi zidzi! I've been around but not posting much.

It's great to see you too. :-D

[cali]

8. Who knows if he'll generate that kind

interest or inspire people at that level? It's early days yet, but it's clear that something big is happening, and what he did in Iowa was pretty amazing.

[ClericJohnPreston]

9. NOT!!!!

[Cha]

19. Go start a thread about

how good John Edwards is and quit shitting on Obama threads. It's obnoxious and annoying and you're not doing Edwards any favors whom I really like.

[cali]

27. oooh, that was just brilliant commentary. Thank you so much for it. n/t

[Dawgs]

10. YES. Because the people I talked to that were inspired by JFK are also inspired by Obama.

It also might be a generational thing.

[peace13]

11. No.

He is simply the recipiant of media coverage. Look out.

[Armstead]

12. No, he's not Irish and doesn't have a rich family

As for whether he will be a historically inspiring figure, it's way too soon to tell.

[msongs]

13. if he can put george w bush on the moon in 10 years :-) nt

[XemaSab]

61. *snap*

:D

[sandnsea]

14. Absolutely n/t

[hedgehog]

16. Not only that, but the people who didn't get Jack or Bobby made the

same sort of comments that some people are making about Obama. Note that I said the same comments, not the same people. Some people who got Jack and Bobby don't get Obama.

[Fed_Up_Grammy]

22. I never liked the Kennedys because of the way they got

their political power.. Their father was truly evil.

Obama is his own man.

[Honeycombe8]

I wouldn't say the pa was evil...but he certainly was cutthroat. He made sure JFK won. nt

[no name no slogan]

36. Old Joe Kennedy was a pimp, a bootlegger and a Nazi sympathizer, too

The success of his kids shows that you can still do good, regardless of what you come from

[Hippo_Tron]

62. I've got no moral qualms with bootlegging

Prohibition was a stupid idea then and it's a stupid idea now.

[mtnsnake]

17. He might be, but that won't be determined until his first term, or at least his first thousand days

So it's all just speculation right now.

[jackson_dem]

18. Obama is the Bill Clinton of this decade

[mtnsnake]

20. I would agree more with that, at least in the sense of their rise to stardom

[featherman]

21. Take it from an old guy (63) - it's a good comparison

I'm getting the same feeling of hope and inspiration that I had then.

[Beausoir]

51. I appreciate your reply.

I am trying...really trying to warm to Obama. But it is a hard slog for me after his southern tour with the gaybashing preacher.

Perhaps I am just too cynical to believe in hope anymore.

[Honeycombe8]

23. Too early to tell. Plus, let's not forget: JFK wasn't very popular while he

was alive. It was only after his assassination that he got more popular and the effects of what he did in his short office term came about. But while he was in office, and during the campaign, there were a LOT of people who didn't like him.

And now we know that his dad somehow "arranged" his son's slight win. Had it not been for that, we would've had Nixon during those years instead of later.

[Luminous Animal]

24. No, I don't think so.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAGyT-z9SlA&eurl=http://www.digbysblog.blogspot.com/

Kennedy on Democrats working with Nixon.

[minnesota_liberal]

25. In terms of experience, no

But possibly in terms of GOTV ability and ability to draw voters from many groups.

[Honeycombe8]

29. JFK was new, young senator when he was elected Prez. Less experience than Obama,

who has had 8 years in state senate, plus two in U.S. Senate, as well as having been the editor of the Harvard Law Review - a prestigious honor given only to the best and the brightest - and JFK was not known for being the best and the brightest. But he was an excellent author, as it turned out.

[Honeycombe8]

30. Obama is an excellent writer, too, as it turns out. Like JFK. Both write their own speeches. nt

[minnesota_liberal]

74. Both are/were young, but Kennedy had 14 years in D.C. vs Obama's 3 years

Obama's time in his state Senate count for something, but Illinois isn't D.C.

That said, I like Obama and acknowledge that he and Kennedy are similar in several ways, primarily their youth and ability to inspire.

[tishaLA]

26. I can't say, but I do know

that we are far more cynical now than we were even 20 years ago. I would imagine 1960 was a completely different time. And we would do well to remember that, despite the way we imagine the nation coalesced around Kennedy--largely because of Jackie's efforts after the assassination--Kennedy barely eked out a victory over Nixon in '60. I may be wrong, but my sense is that Kennedy became "Kennedy" more posthumously than he did when he was alive. From what I can tell, and again, this is only from reading, not from being there, RFK was the more inspirational figure.

[no name no slogan]

28. No. But JFK was the Obama of HIS generation

[mtnsnake]

39. Not bad, maybe in a pre-presidential way, although JFK was a war hero & huge sports & outdoorsman

For similarities, lots of people thought a Roman Catholic could never be elected President at the time, and like Obama, he was young and he excited voters.

There were tons of differences, though.

[Beausoir]

46. OK. That is an interesting take on it. Thank you.

[OHdem10]

31. Obama is doing very well but times are different, circumstances

are different. I do not see comparison. This takes nothing from
obama's ability in his own right.

[styersc]

32. JFK had led men in war and survived combat, he served in the

US House of Representatives for 6 years and then in the US Senate for 8 years. Obama was in the Illinois State Senate for 6 years (one and a half terms), the US Senate for one term and has no military, security or international relations experience.

I love Obama and believe that he will be a boom for the future of this party unless he wins the nomination. He is too yong and inexperienced to be president. More so, the presidency is the only office with a "shelf life" 8 years and that's it.

On the slim chance that Obama were to be elected, the gift of his potential would have been squandered when he could have waited to age, mature, gain experience and wisdom. Imagine the president this talented man could make at 60 rathern then 49. Rash decisions and impatience are a sign of immaturity.

Sorry, I love the man, but he is squandering a gift and his potential.

[NCarolinawoman]

47. Agree. JFK was a war hero, 3 term Congressman and re-elected a 2nd term in the Senate.

He was nevertheless dubbed,"A Young Man in a Hurry". Heh! Obama and Edwards both started campaigning BEFORE completing a single term in the Senate.

There is really no comparison.

[Sulawesi]

33. yes. Kennedy was in a well-connected family, part of the establishment, Obama would

have overcome more...and if he can keep it positive, and attract a broad segment of the electorate, yes.

[LucyParsons]

34. No, JFK was Establishment

JFK was the philandering, election-fixing, mafia-deal-making, elitist son of a Nazi-appeasing bootlegger.

$0.02

[H2O Man]

35. clown

[Chasing Dreams]

37. Obama is much, much more.

He's Black and White, Red and Blue, Urban and Rural.

Obama has the cadences and rhythms of MLK, the vision of JFK, and the passion of RFK.

He will win NH with more than 40% of the vote and at least a 10 point victory.

The Democratic Race is over

[NoBorders]

38. He's the Obama of his generation n/t

[depakid]

41. "It is definitely something more than politics."

Yep, you got that right.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071227124619AAFcvwE

[bpeale]

42. no and he never will be

[Bluebear]

44. I have yet to see what his fans love about him, except for "change"

Seriously, this is said in the spirit of learning. All I hear is that he is about hope and change, but it's never a policy-driven statement, which worries me. Would Obama be as popular if he were white and 63 years old?

[TankLV]

45. No - but I can see why some are pushing this...

not even close - he's a lightweight and we'll rue the day he's in office because of his mistakes...

but he's a damn sight better than ALL repukes...

[Thrill]

48. RFK

[Blue_In_AK]

50. No. n/t

[LVZ]

52. JFK's reputation was overblown

JFK was a fairly conservative President. He escalated Richard Nixon's (under Eisenhower) disastrous occupation of Vietnam. He also never stood up to J. Edgar Hoover's fascist tendencies and civil liberties abuses, possibly at the ultimate cost of his own life.

His reputation mostly grew "after" his assassination. In fact, polls taken a year later would suggest that 66% of Americans voted for him, while in reality, he barely got 50%.

Give JFK credit for his visionary "Peace Corp" and "mission to the moon" goals for this country but I can't think of any other major accomplishments.

[TankLV]

53. wow - spoken like a true obamabot...

unfuckingbelievable...

[Zynx]

66. It was also factually correct.

[candymarl]

71. How about the Cuban Missile Crisis?

He did manage to avoid a nuclear war. Without threatening to blow up the USSR and the rest of the world along with it. How about Operation North Woods? The military and CIA wanted to stage a domestic terrorist attack for political/propaganda reasons. JFK went nuts when he found out. It didn't happen. JFK was far from perfect. He was no saint. My grandmother knew all about old Joe Kennedy. She told me about him and couldn't stand him. But she didn't hold it against JFK. Myths sometimes grow up around a president slain in office. JFK is no exception.

[peoli]

54. yes

[lisainmilo]

56. uhhhh.......NO!

Definately not.

[Zynx]

57. Kennedy did not transform politics.

I was not alive at the time so maybe I am jaded on this point, but I do not see evidence Kennedy transformed politics. Obama actually, for all of his faults, seems like he has a chance of doing some real change.

[Hippo_Tron]

63. He also had less than 3 years

It takes a lot longer than that to transform politics.

[Zynx]

64. Looking at objective standards, I see no evidence he was going to.

FDR was a transformative leader and was within a matter of just a few years.

[Hippo_Tron]

69. FDR got a lot done in his first few years, but it took him a while to transform politics long term

I'm not sure the New Deal Coalition would've lasted as long had he not run for a third term.

[balantz]

58. One example of something to compare to a Kennedy

would be to measure the passion in Obama's delivey at the debates. He gives exciting and charismatic speeches to justice starved crowds like a Kennedy might have, but how would Jack or Bobby have issued their passion and conviction at the debates?

[oasis]

59. JFK was a hero of WWII. He walked the walk.(eom)

[XemaSab]

60. According to my mom, he's the RFK

:shrug: :(

[loveangelc]

65. yes. well, the RFK.

[Occam Bandage]

67. I don't believe JFK deserves half the credit he's given. That said, no. No, he isn't.

Obama, you're a special candidate. You're a once-in-a-decade transcendent force. I hope you take this thing all the way to the White House--and for all we know, in 50 years we'll be talking about "this generation's Barack Obama."

But, Senator, you're no Jack Kennedy.

[mnhtnbb]

72. No. But I think Edwards embodies RFK with his passionate support

of other than the 'haves and have-mores' base of the Republican Party.

[Perry Logan]

73. The right doesn't hate Obama enough. They hate Hillary the way they hated JFK.

[MethuenProgressive]

75. Only to those unaware of history.

Revisionists, however, see what they want to see.