Obama to hold mass rally for acceptance speech at Mile High Stadium

[12th Doctor]

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/national/politics/2008/view.bg?articleid=1105451&srvc=rss

NEW YORK - In a break with tradition, Barack Obama will accept the Democratic presidential nomination at Invesco Field at Mile High, a 76,000-seat stadium, rather than at the site of the party’s national convention across town.

Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean acknowledged the decision to move Obama’s speech on the final night of the Aug. 24-28 convention to the giant open-air football field of the Denver Broncos would raise security challenges, but said he and Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper had agreed such challenges won’t deter the move.

Dean, in a conference call with reporters, also batted away questions about logistical challenges and added costs the change would produce, saying those things would be worked out in the coming weeks.

It won’t be the first time a presidential candidate has accepted the nomination in a stadium. On July 15, 1960, John F. Kennedy gave his acceptance speech before tens of thousands at the Los Angeles Coliseum.

Separately, one official confirmed that Obama’s aides were attempting to arrange a speech at a second dramatic venue: Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate, part of Obama’s July trip to Europe and the Middle East.

The Gate was the site of one of Ronald Reagan’s most memorable speeches. On a trip in July 1987, Reagan stood before throngs of West Berliners and implored then Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev to tear down the Berlin Wall dividing the city. The wall is no longer there.

Ron Perea, Secret Service special agent in charge in Denver, declined to discuss what security precautions the agency would take for the convention’s open-air event, including any restrictions on airspace and traffic.

Most of the convention will take place at the 21,000-seat Pepsi Center. Construction for the convention was beginning there Monday amid concerns about lagging fundraising and cost overruns.

Last month, the convention’s host committee reported it was nearly $12 million short of the $40.6 million it had pledged to raise for the effort. Host committee members spoke openly of needing the Obama campaign’s help to close the gap.

Dean said the convention was operating on budget, and Obama senior adviser Anita Dunn said the campaign was on board to help.

"The fact that the nomination was not decided until the begining of June — clearly many donors would have hung back a little to see if the candidate of their choice was going to get the nomination," Dunn said.

With an influx of younger voters and Hispanics in recent years Colorado, once heavily Republican, is among a handful of states in the mountain West that have been trending Democratic. Both parties view it as a general-election swing state; Republican John McCain kicked off a five-day economy-focused campaign swing in Denver Monday.

Obama is known for drawing huge crowds to many of his speeches. In May, a record 75,000 jammed into a riverside park in Portland, Ore., to hear him speak shortly before that state’s primary.

Obama is scheduled to deliver his acceptance speech on Thursday, Aug. 28, the fourth and final night of the convention. It coincides with the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1963.

The Illinois senator is running to be the first black president.

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Is Obama a megalomaniac?

[12th Doctor]

Heel to Obama now and save yourself the trouble of having to do it later.

No, I'm serious.  Megalomania, unwillingness to accept responsibility for shortcomings, willingness to dispose of his friends whenever it becomes convenient, being "so concerned" about others when his recent choices obviously don't back that up, an obvioulsy casual relationship with the truth, even when it obvious to most impartial observers that he is being insincere, but being ble to cover up his lies by seeming emotionally sincere... he has most of the bad qualities of George W. Bush, just packaged differently.  This is all the more obvious to me, because I am now reading the book Bush on the Couch.

[12th Doctor]

Is he going to wearing the new red, white and black armbands of the DNC?

That was my first thought when I saw this as well.  But, rather than mention that, I decided to go with a more sincere and serious approach.

Guess I forgot who I was dealing with.

[12th Doctor]

Is he going to wearing the new red, white and black armbands of the DNC?

That was my first thought when I saw this as well.  But, rather than mention that, I decided to go with a more sincere and serious approach.

Guess I forgot who I was dealing with.

He is going to be combining the style of Kennedy with a Carter sytled Presidency while in power and this guy's wife sounds at least 20X worse then Hillary!   

We are making reference to the fact that the last group to hold mass rallies in stadiums also brandished the swastika on their banners.  And yes, it is a fair comparison, because I'm sure they will do everything they can to make it as dramatic as possible, fueling the mass delusion, and avoiding the tiniest chance that someone might think for themselves rather than relying on the emotion they feel from being at such an "awe inspiring" mass rally.

Of course, pointing out Obama's personality flaws is pointless since his cult like followers, fueled by emotion, will make any excuse for him.

Hiel Obama!!!

[12th Doctor]

Hitler and the Nazis copied the American way of running electoral campaigns, not the other way round.

That runs contrary to pretty much everything I have ever read, or heard, which indicates that politicians all over the world have copied Hitler's methods, to some extent... the question is, to what extent?  This seems pretty blatant to me.

[12th Doctor]

Wow, it seems that the Republicans are this years Democrats. All they seem to be doing is b!tch and moan about everything.

And the Democrats have become this years Republicans... flagrantly ignoring the short comings of their candidate, even though he is almost exactly like Bush in terms of personality.  The difference is that I have learned my lesson.

[12th Doctor]

Waaah!!! My candidate is dull and behind the polls so I'm going to compare yours to Hitler!

Well, the Obama zombie clones have made it obvious that having an open, honest, sincere discussion about their candidate is all but impossible.

[12th Doctor]

Waaah!!! My candidate is dull and behind the polls so I'm going to compare yours to Hitler!

Well, the Obama zombie clones have made it obvious that having an open, honest, sincere discussion about their candidate is all but impossible.

Comparing Obama to Hitler is having an open, honest, sincere discussion? Who knew?

If you will go back to the start of the thread, instead of languishing in willful ignorance, you would see that I started by attempting a serious discussion and was immediately met with a "well... what about McCain" style response that attempted to deflect criticism away from Obama.

[12th Doctor]

Waaah!!! My candidate is dull and behind the polls so I'm going to compare yours to Hitler!

Well, the Obama zombie clones have made it obvious that having an open, honest, sincere discussion about their candidate is all but impossible.

Dude are you f***in serious here? Isn't it pretty obvious Obama/his campaign chose the location due to it being a bigger and better spectacle than the Pepsi center? What did he exactly do that was wrong? He did not follow tradition? You seriously do sound like a little cry baby.

20,000 people isn't enough... so we need 120,000... and fireworks, special effects... make it as dramatic as possible so that people are so wowed that they will forget the fact that the speech itself has almost no real content.

[12th Doctor]

Honestly, this is ridiculous. Obama wants more people to see his speech and for it to be open to the public = megalomaniac. (btw, hardly a rational "discussion starter")

SEE WHAT?  Over 80% of the people in the stadium will barely be able to see him.  That's why they invented TV.  They want to hold such a mass rally as a demonstration of force to the people watching at home.  They are holding a huge rally, under the pretense that more people will be able to see it that way, but for the purpose of putting on a more impressive show to the people watching at home, and with the effect of generating mass hysteria for the candidate.

[12th Doctor]

It's like when Bush landed on the aircraft carrier.  The only purpose is to show everyone how awesome Obama is... its no different from George W. Bush's need to show how awesome his penis is.  It's the same mentality.  It's ego.  Nothing but.

[12th Doctor]

Alright... you know what, I'm just going to shut up.  Apparently, I'm just insane.

[12th Doctor]

Whoever started this thread and whoever is continuing the meaning of this thread needs to talk about this with their therapist. Seriously. I am not trying to "censor" you, I just think that this is not what rational adults talk about.

Yeah, ration adults sit around and shout meaningless slogans at the top of their lungs to be just like everyone else around them, while they manage to forget that this is supposed to be an election for President of the United States, not the pep club.

[12th Doctor]

Whoever started this thread and whoever is continuing the meaning of this thread needs to talk about this with their therapist. Seriously. I am not trying to "censor" you, I just think that this is not what rational adults talk about.

Yeah, ration adults sit around and shout meaningless slogans at the top of their lungs to be just like everyone else around them, while they manage to forget that this is supposed to be an election for President of the United States, not the pep club.

Yup. Bitter.

Yeah... I am bitter, because I hate black people, and young people, and popular people.  That's what this is all about.  It has nothing to do with anything other than that... obviously. 

[12th Doctor]

Whoever started this thread and whoever is continuing the meaning of this thread needs to talk about this with their therapist. Seriously. I am not trying to "censor" you, I just think that this is not what rational adults talk about.

Yeah, ration adults sit around and shout meaningless slogans at the top of their lungs to be just like everyone else around them, while they manage to forget that this is supposed to be an election for President of the United States, not the pep club.

Yup. Bitter.

Yeah... I am bitter, because I hate black people, and young people, and popular people.  That's what this is all about.  It has nothing to do with anything other than that... obviously. 

There's nothing wrong with being upset that Obama is winning, or with opposing him.....now you know how we felt in 2004.

But comparing him to a Nazi is a tad over the top Chris; you must admit.

Please... go back the the begining of the thread and note that I attempted to start by having a serious conversation about Obama's mental state.  Then look at the reaction I received.

I am telling you this right now, I am not bitter.  I have noted many disturbing patterns in Obama's behavior over the last few months.  I don't know why some people are so willing to shrug them off, but I am not.  I'm not crazy.  I'm not bitter.  I'm not joking.  I am being serious.

I don't think most people know why they actually support Obama, except that he is "cool".  Obama reminds me of Bush, as do his avid supporters, albeit younger and "wide eyed".  That disturbs me.  I made a huge mistake by supporting Bush, as did the country.  I don't want to see that repeated by putting in another person who is of the same mind-set as our ing insane current President.

[12th Doctor]

Even his kids remind me of the Bush kids.  They act like they have never been told to do anything.

[12th Doctor]

Even his kids remind me of the Bush kids.  They act like they have never been told to do anything.

wtf is your problem? Your off your kilter

They do.  They made Obama make a promise that if he won the nomination the kids get a dog... WTF?  Kids extracting things from their parents.  They also seem to say whatever they want, which might be cute to some people, but I personally find it a little odd that they seem to have no idea that some behavior is a little unacceptable, even for a 10 year old.  Even worse, Obama trouts them out in front of the cameras with impunity, which isn't good for little kids.

[12th Doctor]

Obama could be assassinated at this event. Remember what happened to RFK?

Thanks, because when you chime in and say stupid sh**t like that it really helps my case.

[12th Doctor]

The Nazi comments were overboard... on purpose.  But I don't care, I am sticking to my guns and I continue to maintain that I honestly think Obama has some deep-seated psychological issues, not dissimilar to those of our current President.

[12th Doctor]

I thought it was when the election was over. If he won or not. Good, those kids deserve something after having to be without their dads for long stretches at a time.

Actually, that is not psychologically healthy for children at all.   And I'm not sure how it works, but either way it was in exchange for something.  Giving children something as a replacement for a father's absence is, in and of itself, damaging to a child, as it teaches them any number of lessons, none of which are positive.  And the very fact that they thought they could make this demand is telling in and of itself.  That is my point, and by God its a valid one.  I don't care how crazy people think I am for bringing it up.

[12th Doctor]

I've now come to the conclusion that I might as well stop posting altogether because I am never going to be taken seriously on this forum ever again... not that about 40% of the posters already didn't take me seriously.

[12th Doctor]

I thought it was when the election was over. If he won or not. Good, those kids deserve something after having to be without their dads for long stretches at a time.

Actually, that is not psychologically healthy for children at all.   And I'm not sure how it works, but either way it was in exchange for something.  Giving children something as a replacement for a father's absence is, in and of itself, damaging to a child, as it teaches them any number of lessons, none of which are positive.  And the very fact that they thought they could make this demand is telling in and of itself.  That is my point, and by God its a valid one.  I don't care how crazy people think I am for bringing it up.

My Dad was absent a lot on business - a lot. However, when around, we loved him, and admired his personal qualities and character and his three sons wished to emulate him, and largely did. He gave us everything, but it didn't spoil us, because we didn't want to disappoint him. That would have been totally beyond the pale.

In short, it is a bit more complex than you might suggest. The point is, if you really admire a parent for who they are as a person, and know that when the going gets tough, they are there for you, the numbers of hours around becomes less significant. Just my two cents. I suspect Obama over time might be in that category for his kids, although obviously I don't know the interplay with his kids up close and personal.

Yes, I know its complex, which is why I said "any number of things".  Long absences of a father aren't good for children anyway, but giving them something for it, even if its lovable, and cute, and seems like it loves you back, really isn't the way to handle the situation.

Believe me, I know all about paternal absence... my father was absent... oh... always.  As for my step-father, well, the only time I knew he was around was when he was yelling at me and telling me how worthless I was, so.....

[12th Doctor]

I thought it was when the election was over. If he won or not. Good, those kids deserve something after having to be without their dads for long stretches at a time.

Actually, that is not psychologically healthy for children at all.   And I'm not sure how it works, but either way it was in exchange for something.  Giving children something as a replacement for a father's absence is, in and of itself, damaging to a child, as it teaches them any number of lessons, none of which are positive.  And the very fact that they thought they could make this demand is telling in and of itself.  That is my point, and by God its a valid one.  I don't care how crazy people think I am for bringing it up.

My Dad was absent a lot on business - a lot. However, when around, we loved him, and admired his personal qualities and character and his three sons wished to emulate him, and largely did. He gave us everything, but it didn't spoil us, because we didn't want to disappoint him. That would have been totally beyond the pale.

In short, it is a bit more complex than you might suggest. The point is, if you really admire a parent for who they are as a person, and know that when the going gets tough, they are there for you, the numbers of hours around becomes less significant. Just my two cents. I suspect Obama over time might be in that category for his kids, although obviously I don't know the interplay with his kids up close and personal.

Yes, I know its complex, which is why I said "any number of things".  Long absences of a father aren't good for children anyway, but giving them something for it, even if its lovable, and cute, and seems like it loves you back, really isn't the way to handle the situation.

How do you know that is the only thing Barack and Michelle are doing/have done. The fact of the matter is that you are in no position to judge their family situation. Sorry...

But has anyone stopped to think that, for all the seems to separate Bush and Obama on the surface, they actually have quite a bit in common.

They are both the product of situations where the father was almost completely absent, though being a very successful individual, and where the mother was anything but nurturing.  Bush's mother was totally self-absorbed in her own grief following the death of Robin, while Obama's mother seems to have been quite the thrill-seeker... eitherway, neither of them provided the kind of attention a younger child should have.

Neither of them could escape being reminded of their father's success... even bearing the father's name.  And neither could escape being reminded of the absence of that father.  This has a tendency to foster confused feelings in a child.  Often times, many children will, on the surface, idolize their father to an extreme degree, but if that father is very successful, they could then in turn adopt a subconscious desire to destroy their father (and his "penis") by out-succeeding them.  This leads to extreme egotism and megalomania... essentially the child fails to successfully navigate the phallic stage, in otherwords.  Often times, these people adopt an extreme fear of having their own "penis" destroyed, and as such they will resort to anything, lying, grandiose claims, taking on a external appearance of extreme personablity, to avoid being exposed as insecure.   

For his part, Obama seems to acknowledge that he was insecure and emotionally confused, and in that regard, he at least seems to be more introspective than Bush.  That's a good, thing, but Obama resorted to drugs to ignore the pain he felt... now he smokes like a chimney.  Bush went to drinking and drugs, and now he copes with an extreme belief that he is guided by divine providence.  Both are trying to deal with the anxiety left behind by their childhoods.

Now, it is in no way certain that a person will end up like this, if they have a similar background, and certainly, there are some big differences in those of Bush and Obama, but recently, Obama has shown many of the personality qualities that are most disturbing in Bush, such as his tendency towards making claims about his own abilities and experience that just don't match with the facts, and exaggerating their own potency.  Making implausible denials and trying to change the facts afterwards.  Obama also desperately wants people to view him as one of them and as someone who can be trusted by all and in everything, and this is particularly unseemly given recent events.  Both show a disturbing tendency to "throw people under the bus" when that person becomes in the slightest way inconvenient.

Something that Obama does that Bush doesn't, that can be disturbing, is his tendency to refer to himself in the third person.  It's a sign that someone is trying to distance himself from himself.  Bob Dole started it during the 1996 campaign, because he knew he was adopting policies more conservative than his own beliefs in order to appeal to the base.  And now we get to hear "Obama will bring an end to the war..." coming from Obama.  "Obama won't do this"... "Obama will do that"....

I do have real concerns here, I'm not being crazy or trying to bring down Obama.  And I certainly could be wrong, but I think its worthy of discussion, is all.  Obviously some people would rather mock me that discuss that matter.

[12th Doctor]

Wow, that is quite a post, SS. You must be a psych major, or something. I am suspicious of reducing individuals however to the point that they fit into psych boxes based on what we think we know from the public square.

I trust my more prosaic metrics myself. They are more tangible.

Actually, I'm not a psych major, I just dabble... and alot of what I offered there is similar to my own life experience.  And as I said at the close of my post, I am not offering this up as a be all and end all, but when I say I note some disturbing patterns in Obama's behavior, I'm not just responding with a whistle, a leap, and a fart... I'm trying to have a serious conversation.

I don't believe people fit into boxes either, and I hope I have dealt with a number of my own issues, but acknowledging these things, rather than just sweeping them under the rug might be helpful.

[12th Doctor]

The thing that bothers me the most about Obama is his tendency to disregard his friends and supporters so blatantly when they become inconvenient, specifically because that is so contrary to his public image which he himself so carefully crafts.

It reminds me of a quote from the movie Nixon

"John, sooner or later... sooner, I think... you are going to learn something that everyone who has gotten close to Richard Nixon has figured out.  That he is the darkness reaching out for the darkness.  And eventually, its either you or him."