I don't watch Saturday Night Live, but I'd heard they opened Saturday with a scathing anti-Obama skit. THAT was scathing? Goes to show you how liberal the show really is where a relatively mild (and wholly inaccurate) skit earns such shocked oooohs. I mean, there's a decent point there that on quite a few issues the movement has slowed down. Perhaps President Obama takes too long, or just cannot "Get 'er done." On the other hand, whether you were happy with the actions taken or not, was anyone else around the first four months? The Federal government spent like six-hundred trillion dollars. They committed to more debt than in the history of debt - not the history of American debt - the history of all debt put together. I'm not saying that was good or bad - that depends on your view of what was done, and how much it might accomplish in the long run. (And of course it also depends on what actually gets accomplished - something no one can be sure of at this point.)
Anyway, whatever you think of all that, you can't say it was nothing. Still, the skit was decent. One final note: the actor playing President Obama does his best, and once you get used to his style you can tell where he is trying to match Obama's cadence in certain situations. However, as much as the guy tries, he just doesn't sound like Obama. If you didn't know you were listening to an Obama parody, it would take awhile to figure out.
There are two types of ways to play a real person. One is dead-one mimicry, and the other is to exaggerate a well-known physical or behavioral trait of the person. With mimicry the humor comes from the context of the words, where as exaggeration gives you leg up going in. The problem with copying Obama is that he has a modulated medium-sounding voice. He does have a somewhat distinct cadence, but his voice is relatively devoid of emotion. That's kind of who he is, kind of just cool under fire.
I don't know what the solution is, but any show who wants to do parodies of Obama - their best bet is not to have the resident black cast member give it a shot - but find the best person to get the voice and physical tics - white, black, or miscellaneous, and work on "coloring" from there. Just a thought. Here's the skit.
B) A satire of what the the far Right supposedly thinks Obama represents?
C) A satire of the Far Left, for thinking the far Right can be reduced to simplistic notions of what Obama represents.
D) A satire against people who read The New Yorker (and their ilk), pointing out their hypocrisy, since there have been repeated jabs against right-wing politicians (including the sitting president), with the outcry we see now.
Christopher Beam wrote this on Slate.com this morning. I was going to just post a link, but I think we all know that most of you are too obnoxious to click on links, so here is the article. I even left in their ads, so they cannot possibly get mad at me.
The Barack Obama presidential campaign introduced a new site last week, FightTheSmears.com, that it hopes will debunk persistent myths about the senator: that he's a Muslim, that he won't say the Pledge of Allegiance, etc. As we have argued before, restating the myths often reinforces them, no matter how persuasively they've been refuted.
Rather than restate untruths about Obama, the campaign would do better to start some rumors of its own. Here's a template e-mail the Obama campaign might consider disseminating.
From: [Redacted] To: [Redacted] Subject: WHO IS BARACK OBAMA?
There are many things people do not know about BARACK OBAMA. It is every American's duty to read this message and pass it along to all of their friends and loved ones.
Barack Obama wears a FLAG PIN at all times. Even in the shower.
Barack Obama says the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE every time he sees an American flag. He also ends every sentence by saying, "WITH LIBERTY AND JUSTICE FOR ALL." Click here for video of Obama quietly mouthing the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE in his sleep.
A tape exists of Michelle Obama saying the PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE at a conference on PATRIOTISM.
Every weekend, Barack and Michelle take their daughters HUNTING.
Barack Obama is a PATRIOTIC AMERICAN. He has one HAND over his HEART at all times. He occasionally switches when one arm gets tired, which is almost never because he is STRONG.
Barack Obama has the DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE tattooed on his stomach. It's upside-down, so he can read it while doing sit-ups.
There's only one artist on Barack Obama's iPod: FRANCIS SCOTT KEY.
Barack Obama is a DEVOUT CHRISTIAN. His favorite book is the BIBLE, which he has memorized. His name means HE WHO LOVES JESUS in the ancient language of Aramaic. He is PROUD that Jesus was an American.
Barack Obama goes to church every morning. He goes to church every afternoon. He goes to church every evening. He is IN CHURCH RIGHT NOW.
Barack Obama's new airplane includes a conference room, a kitchen, and a MEGACHURCH.
Barack Obama's skin is the color of AMERICAN SOIL.
Barack Obama buys AMERICAN STUFF. He owns a FORD, a BASEBALL TEAM, and a COMPUTER HE BUILT HIMSELF FROM AMERICAN PARTS. He travels mostly by FORKLIFT.
Barack Obama says that Americans cling to GUNS and RELIGION because they are AWESOME.
First, Hyperion called, saying things were picking up, and then Dragon called saying some nonsense about Pirates or Ninjas. I do not know if you have realized that I have not talked to Dragon since I had to bail her out of jail for throwing bleach on Bobby Flay, screaming about fraud.
Does this diary realize I had to tell George Clooney and Eddie Vedder to go away? They called for me to produce a Barack Obama campaign song, featuring Eddie, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton and an old tape of Kurt Cobain somehow singing Betterman. And shit, I had to say know. Sometimes I wonder what my life would be like if Hyperion did not save me from a shark off the coast of San Diego. Damned loyalty!
"I think it's time we had a national conversation about Despair. We need to get past all the Gossipers and recognize that we are our own best hope for overcoming Nazis. We need Cheeseburgers, not Rapists. Cheeseburgers are our Tolerance. And we need to have change in Despair."
I created this on the Barack Obama Quote Generator. Try it and tell me what you came up with. (There are three versions. Try them all and see which is best.)
Rebels who have stepped up attacks on Nigeria's oil industry in the last month said on Sunday they were considering a ceasefire appeal by U.S. presidential hopeful Barack Obama.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has launched five attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta since it resumed a campaign of violence in April, forcing Royal Dutch Shell to shut more than 164,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd).
"The MEND command is seriously considering a temporary ceasefire appeal by Senator Barack Obama. Obama is someone we respect and hold in high esteem," the militant group said in an e-mailed statement.
