defective yeti: Convention Liveblogging: Michelle Obama

Liveblogging! Enjoy the typos!

7:20: Commentators are filling up airtime before Michelle takes the stage. They have decided that her role will be to sell the candidacy to "disgruntled Hillary voters".

Two things, here. First, I am certain that the media is blowing the Clinton / Obama divisions waaaaaay out of proportion. Unity doesn't interest viewers, and the news channels have no problem ginning up conflict where none (or little) exists. McCain seems delighted by this, but really, he should be concerned that the media considers him so dull that they are focusing on an imagined rivalry rather than the real one between the GOP and the Dem.

Second, the idea that Michell has to "introduce" her husband to Clinton voters is a pretty insulting, as it presupposes that they selected their candidate without bothering to learn about the alternatives. No doubt that's true of some (just as some picked Obama from the beginning and paid no attention to Clinton's strengths), but the vast majority should be suitably offended.

7:25: Commentators got a hold of a copy of the speech and are now discussing it before Michell takes the stage. OMG SPOILERS!!

7:27: Oh god, a pre-speech "video tribute" to Michelle Obama, complete with soft lighting, piano music in the background, and touching stories about hardship and family. The amount of red wine in my system is now matched by that of estrogen.

7:36: Michelle says she's there as a sister, a wife, a mom, and as a daughter. Hoping she starts belting out Peaches "Sex (I'm a)"

7:41: It's becoming apparent that this speech is going to be about Barack and not Michelle.

7:43: Judging from the applause, democrats are very enthusiastic about: women having the right to vote, the military.

7:44: Hillary Clinton gets name-checked. Also: "Improbable Journeys" would be a great name for a 20's-era science-fiction pulp.

7:50: Whenever they show the people in the stands, it's either enthusiastic black people or listless white people (Biden foremost among them--he looks like he's trying to recall his shopping list)

7:52: Huh, that's it? Michelle is a good speaker, but the speech just felt like a long "About The Author" bio.

7::54: Ooo, big surprise twist at the end: Barack himself comes on screen and boasts about how many times he had to ask out Michelle before she went out with him. Yay, Stalker in Chief!

7:57: Wow, who's idea was it to cut directly from Michelle Obama's lovely visage to that of Jim Lehrer? Like Brussels sprouts after ice cream.

Pretty uninspired, overall. I don't think I and my Y chromosome were the target audience for that tale of family, adversity, and courtship, but I wanted to learn more about Michelle Obama; instead it seems like she just heaped encomiums on her father, brother, husband and children, and did her best to fade into the background. Too bad.

OK, OK, so it was canned and bland. It should get more interesting when they get Cindy McCain in the equivalent spot-light.

"I come from a strong family. I was so proud when my father sold beer to the mail carriers of the world and maintained a 47.6% gross margin! And John was so kind while we courted. He never even mentioned his first wife. Certainly I've overcome difficulties in my life. Do you know how hard it is to find a good manicurist in Arizona?"

Posted by: Andy on August 25, 2008 9:14 PM

7:36: Michelle says she's there as a sister, a wife, a mom, and as a daughter. Hoping she starts belting out Peaches "Sex (I'm a)"

haahaahahahahaaha

that was AWESOME!

Posted by: darcy on August 25, 2008 10:47 PM

PLEASE, do this today as well. I would have loved to have been able to read this last night. In fact, I have several questions that I'd still like to discuss:

1 - If Michelle is 3 years younger than Barack, why was she his mentor at her law firm? Did she graduate early or was there some dilly-dallying during the college years on his part?

2 - How could you not mention the true star of that speech - their younger daughter?

Posted by: Katy on August 26, 2008 6:30 AM

Peaches? Who the hell is Peaches? That's a Berlin song.

Also, if you're drinking red wine, there is probably already estrogen in your system.

Wine = chick drink
Beer = guy drink

Which you'd know if you liked Teri Nunn more than Peaches.

Posted by: Sam on August 26, 2008 12:02 PM

I'm perplexed about why Michelle Obama is even relevant to a presidential election. Unless she's actually a trans-sexual who was once his Imam and suggested he not wear American flag pins or cover his heart during the national anthem.

Seriously, the pointlessness of the whole thing was borne out by the insipid puff-piece cynicism of the whole speech.

Posted by: Lost Poke on August 26, 2008 12:31 PM

@ Katy - Sometimes a superior at work is younger than you are. That's life.

1961 Barack (B) Born
1961 Michelle (M) Born
1981 (M) graduated w/BA from Princeton (cum laude) (she was 20)
1983 (B) graduated w/BA from Columbia, then worked in NY (he was 22)
1985 (B) worked in Chicago until 1988
1988 (B) entered Harvard Law School
1988 (M) graduated w/JD from Harvard
1989 (B) worked as a "summer associate" at Sidley & Austin (where we met Michelle)
1991 (B) graduated w/JD from Harvard (magna cum laude)
1992 (B) & (M) married

So Michelle finished her Bachelors degree 2 years earlier than Barack, despite the fact that she's 3 years younger. She also got her JD 3 years before Barack.

Posted by: Zeekster on August 27, 2008 8:56 AM


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Convention Liveblogging: Michelle Obama Liveblogging! Enjoy the typos! 7:20: Commentators are filling up airtime before Michelle takes the stage. They have decided that her role will be to sell the candidacy to "disgruntled Hillary voters". Two things, here. First, I am certain that the media is blowing the Clinton / Obama divisions waaaaaay out of proportion. Unity doesn't interest viewers, and the news channels have no problem ginning up conflict where none (or little) exists. McCain seems delighted by this, but really, he should be concerned that the media considers him so dull that they are focusing on an imagined rivalry rather than the real one between the GOP and the Dem. Second, the idea that Michell has to "introduce" her husband to Clinton voters is a pretty insulting, as it presupposes that they selected their candidate without bothering to learn about the alternatives. No doubt that's true of some (just as some picked Obama from the beginning and paid no attention to Clinton's strengths), but the vast majority should be suitably offended. 7:25: Commentators got a hold of a copy of the speech and are now discussing it before Michell takes the stage. OMG SPOILERS!! 7:27: Oh god, a pre-speech "video tribute" to Michelle Obama, complete with soft lighting, piano music in the background, and touching stories about hardship and family. The amount of red wine in my system is now matched by that of estrogen. 7:36: Michelle says she's there as a sister, a wife, a mom, and as a daughter. Hoping she starts belting out Peaches "Sex (I'm a)" 7:41: It's becoming apparent that this speech is going to be about Barack and not Michelle. 7:43: Judging from the applause, democrats are very enthusiastic about: women having the right to vote, the military. 7:44: Hillary Clinton gets name-checked. Also: "Improbable Journeys" would be a great name for a 20's-era science-fiction pulp. 7:50: Whenever they show the people in the stands, it's either enthusiastic black people or listless white people (Biden foremost among them--he looks like he's trying to recall his shopping list) 7:52: Huh, that's it? Michelle is a good speaker, but the speech just felt like a long "About The Author" bio. 7::54: Ooo, big surprise twist at the end: Barack himself comes on screen and boasts about how many times he had to ask out Michelle before she went out with him. Yay, Stalker in Chief! 7:57: Wow, who's idea was it to cut directly from Michelle Obama's lovely visage to that of Jim Lehrer? Like Brussels sprouts after ice cream. Pretty uninspired, overall. I don't think I and my Y chromosome were the target audience for that tale of family, adversity, and courtship, but I wanted to learn more about Michelle Obama; instead it seems like she just heaped encomiums on her father, brother, husband and children, and did her best to fade into the background. Too bad. Posted on August 25, 2008 to Politics Comments OK, OK, so it was canned and bland. It should get more interesting when they get Cindy McCain in the equivalent spot-light. "I come from a strong family. I was so proud when my father sold beer to the mail carriers of the world and maintained a 47.6% gross margin! And John was so kind while we courted. He never even mentioned his first wife. Certainly I've overcome difficulties in my life. Do you know how hard it is to find a good manicurist in Arizona?" Posted by: Andy on August 25, 2008 9:14 PM 7:36: Michelle says she's there as a sister, a wife, a mom, and as a daughter. Hoping she starts belting out Peaches "Sex (I'm a)" haahaahahahahaaha that was AWESOME! Posted by: darcy on August 25, 2008 10:47 PM PLEASE, do this today as well. I would have loved to have been able to read this last night. In fact, I have several questions that I'd still like to discuss: 1 - If Michelle is 3 years younger than Barack, why was she his mentor at her law firm? Did she graduate early or was there some dilly-dallying during the college years on his part? 2 - How could you not mention the true star of that speech - their younger daughter? Posted by: Katy on August 26, 2008 6:30 AM Peaches? Who the hell is Peaches? That's a Berlin song. Also, if you're drinking red wine, there is probably already estrogen in your system. Wine = chick drink Beer = guy drink Which you'd know if you liked Teri Nunn more than Peaches. Posted by: Sam on August 26, 2008 12:02 PM I'm perplexed about why Michelle Obama is even relevant to a presidential election. Unless she's actually a trans-sexual who was once his Imam and suggested he not wear American flag pins or cover his heart during the national anthem. Seriously, the pointlessness of the whole thing was borne out by the insipid puff-piece cynicism of the whole speech. Posted by: Lost Poke on August 26, 2008 12:31 PM @ Katy - Sometimes a superior at work is younger than you are. That's life. 1961 Barack (B) Born 1961 Michelle (M) Born 1981 (M) graduated w/BA from Princeton (cum laude) (she was 20) 1983 (B) graduated w/BA from Columbia, then worked in NY (he was 22) 1985 (B) worked in Chicago until 1988 1988 (B) entered Harvard Law School 1988 (M) graduated w/JD from Harvard 1989 (B) worked as a "summer associate" at Sidley & Austin (where we met Michelle) 1991 (B) graduated w/JD from Harvard (magna cum laude) 1992 (B) & (M) married So Michelle finished her Bachelors degree 2 years earlier than Barack, despite the fact that she's 3 years younger. She also got her JD 3 years before Barack. Posted by: Zeekster on August 27, 2008 8:56 AM [correction to above: Michelle was born in 1964.] Posted by: Zeekster on August 28, 2008 8:53 AM Post a comment Name: Email Address: URL: Comments: Remember info?	Home Archive Favorite Posts About Contact Search: