Preworkout Notes 3 February

Almost off to the gym; there is still lots of snow on the ground.

Update: Workout note 3 x 5 mile; first one was 1:05 on the track, quick break, then 0:59 (one lap “quick turnover”, one lap “ultra pace”), then to the treadmill to do 1:05 (mild inclines). 15 total; reasonable quality (3:09).

I do need to get a couple of 20’s in the next two weeks; I am hoping for dry roads so I don’t get bored to death.

Non athletic stuff.

Obama picked up some endorsements: the Peoria Journal Star and The Austin American Statesman. I’ve posted those endorsements below.

One comment: McCain came to Illinois. There are photos of a McCain rally here. Check them out. Note how homogeneous the audience is; you can tell at a glance that isn’t a Democratic rally.

In all honesty, even if a Republican came along that had ideas that I might agree with, there is no way in hell I’d ever dream of supporting them; I just wouldn’t fit in with their supporters.

Endorsements

Here is what the Journal Star has to say:

No matter which way Democrats go in choosing their party’s nominee for the White House, it will be historic. Call it a Jackie Robinson moment or an Amelia Earhart one, the November ballot will be unprecedented in having either an African-American or a woman topping a national ticket.

We think that political first – eventually the other will come, as well – ought to belong to Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, the last viable candidate still standing next to Hillary Clinton, herself a native Illinoisan now representing New York in the U.S. Senate.

It’s remarkable how far Obama has come since first visiting the Journal Star some five years ago to introduce himself as a backbench state senator from Chicago who had grander political ambitions and wanted to learn a bit more about central Illinois before acting on them. Whether events have swept him along in a nation whose citizens crave change or he’s created his own wave is hard to tell, but what impressed then is what impresses now – the intellect, balance, seeming sincerity and self-confidence; the courage to invite challenges to his ideas, the desire to seek solutions no matter who gets the credit.

Obama as a Democrat can say that Republican Ronald Reagan was a transformational president, because in fact he was, for better and worse. You’re unlikely to hear any acknowledgement of Reagan’s impact coming from Clinton’s lips. Let us suggest that Obama’s willingness to read history honestly, free of self-serving constraints, is part of what makes his candidacy appealing to independents and young people who are fed up with government inertia.

Certainly Obama has a way of inspiring people, not just with words – though he is gifted in that regard, as evidenced by his coming-out speech at the 2004 Democratic convention and again following his victory in South Carolina last week – but because of who he is: a man of mixed race and modest upbringing who closes the gap between how we Americans like to think of ourselves and what we actually are. Race is this nation’s festering sore. Our enemies fuel the fires of their contempt with our contradictions. In America and abroad, Obama’s nomination would be no small thing on a symbolic level, which can have very real implications.

Of course, Clinton is an important symbol, too. She has broken through multiple glass ceilings. At 60, her government experience is longer, deeper. She has often bested the 46-year-old Obama in debates. She is detail-oriented – “both CEO and COO,” she says – more confident in her grasp of the issues.

On that score, Obama is more inclined to exhaust diplomatic measures before firing shots and dropping bombs. From the get-go he took a stand against the war in Iraq, and stayed there even when it wasn’t popular. Clinton went along with the crowd. He’d bring the troops home faster. Beyond that they don’t differ much, from their embrace of universal health care to repealing the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans to building a fence along the Mexican border.

If this were a vote to fill one of 100 U.S. Senate seats, Clinton would be the better choice.

But the presidency is about intangible leadership qualities – solid judgment, the ability to comfort Americans in times of crisis and motivate them in times of both prosperity and peril. It’s about vision – FDR’s “New Deal” and Eisenhower’s interstate highway system and Reagan’s “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” And it’s about articulating that direction, that road map, in a way that makes Americans rally to it.

On those measures, we think Obama is the right person at the right time – a risk, perhaps, but no more so than the status quo. The big-picture presidents who surrounded themselves with high-quality advisers have been the most effective.

There is one other thing: It may not be fair, but many Americans view Hillary Clinton through the prism of her husband, Bill, the nation’s 42nd president over two controversial terms. This powerful couple – and they are very much a team, as Bill is everywhere, not always appealing to Americans’ better natures – remain among the most polarizing political figures in America, running neck and neck with the Bushes. For a generation the Oval Office has been occupied by just two families. Many Americans simply want off that Bush-Clinton-Bush-Clinton merry-go-round, because it hasn’t always been so merry.

This nation will never confront its chronic problems unless it bridges its divides and eliminates its petty and partisan distractions. BARACK OBAMA is best-suited to that calling. He is the Democrats’ best hope in November, and he is endorsed.

And the American Statesman:

Look closely at the two Democratic front-runners for president and you will see similarities in how they address challenging problems confronting the country.

Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois both talk about strengthening the middle class, expanding economic growth and lifting sagging wages. Both offer solutions for the crisis in our health care system and global warming and support ending the war in Iraq. So the key differences between the candidates are in their leadership styles and visions for the country.

Obama presents a view of governing that is inclusive and relies on Americans to work with their government to solve sobering problems at home and abroad. Obama’s familiar refrain on the campaign trail is, “Yes, we can.”

By contrast, Clinton promotes a self-centered governing style that drives home what she would do as president. She asks little of Americans and discourages opposing views. Clinton has moved from her position as first lady that it “takes a village” to solve problems to it takes only Hillary (and maybe Bill).

Those contrasts offer a clear choice: Barack Obama. His optimism, unifying vision and ability to inspire are the kind of healing balm the country needs at this moment in history.

In two days, on “Super Tuesday,” 22 states will hold Democratic primaries and caucuses. The outcome of those contests might determine a winner. If not, the battle moves to Texas on March 4. Obama is the best pick Democrats could make.

Resolving the big issues confronting the nation requires a leader who can attract support from independents and Republicans. Of the two front runners, only Obama has shown the ability to bring divergent interests together. He did that as a state senator in Illinois and as a U.S. senator in Washington. And he has staked his presidential campaign on doing that in the White House.

In endorsing Obama, the Chicago Tribune recently wrote this about his tenure in the Illinois Legislature: “In the minority party for all but his final two years in the Statehouse, he tempered a progressive agenda with a cold dash of realism, often forging consensus with conservative Republicans when other liberals wanted to crusade.”

Obama brought that style of leadership to Washington. He worked with Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., to sponsor and pass legislation that would assist taxpayers in tracking government spending – including earmarks and federal grants – with a Google-like search engine.

Obama showed courage in opposing the Iraq war in 2002 as a candidate for the U.S. Senate, years before that was the popular position. He backs aggressive diplomacy in dealing with America’s adversaries, including talking to our enemies.

But he isn’t against the use of military might and continues to support the war in Afghanistan. We also believe that Obama is more electable than Clinton, who would no doubt energize dispirited Republican voters. That makes Obama a stronger nominee for the Democrats going into November.

In another election, we might look for the kind of experience Clinton brings from her role as a U.S. senator and tenure as first lady. But these are different times. Abroad, the country is at war. The terrorism threat remains alarming. America’s moral standing has been diminished by Guantánamo and the Iraqi occupation.

At home, we’re divided into red and blue camps. Democrats and Republicans have stoked divisions to advance their party’s interests. Meanwhile, Washington is stumbling along with its red leg moving right and blue one lurching left.

Along the way, elected officials – and the public – have forgotten that those legs are part of the same body. It’s not surprising, therefore, that we’ve danced in place, failing to make progress on the big challenges that confront our country. Young people, disillusioned and disheartened with their government, have tuned out.

No other candidate except Obama offers a way out of that rut. He has articulated a vision that would allow the legs of government to again move fluidly in a natural motion that takes the country forward.

Young people hungry for purpose have flocked to Obama rallies in rock concert numbers. They’re not just cheering but volunteering. Older people, especially African Americans, send small donations and passages from Scripture as they look to him to fulfill America’s promise.

Like a veteran slugger on deck, Hillary Clinton has campaigned principally on the logic that it is her turn at bat. Democrats must resist the instinct to select the next in line and grab instead the best hitter on the bench. That is Barack Obama.