Update: President Obama seems to have walked back his courageous words from last night to the tepid centrism he's clearly more comfortable with. *SIGH*
Dear Mr. President,
Thursday night, two friends and I stayed out late to watch the Perseid meteor shower. Though we were not far from the city, a local park provided enough darkness to witness the truly impressive show the stars were putting on that night. It was an unusually chilly August night, and we huddled in blankets and sleeping bags to keep out the cold. At times it looked like the sky was being torn, the meteors were so bright. I've been an amateur astronomy geek my whole life, but I've never seen anything half as amazing as the Perseids.
While lying there, we were discussing your impending visit to Seattle. We'd like to come see you, but we're not exactly in a financial position to afford a plate at Patty Murray's fundraiser. (That being said, I hope your presence draws a considerable crowd. If Murray loses to either of her Republican challengers it will be a sad day indeed for Washington voters and the Senate.) We thought about trying to find a place in the crowd outside to catch even a glimpse of the President we admire and helped elect. Perhaps the light show in the sky contributed to my very small, powerless feeling at that moment. I joked that I should bring one of the form letters the White House has sent me, to see if I could get you to sign it for real. Inside, I wasn't quite so amused at my own insignificance.
It isn't that I think I'm important enough to deserve your attention, Mr. President. It's the helplessness of knowing that so few people like me will ever have any hope of catching your ear, let alone being heard. When I say people like me, I mean the non-wealthy, non-swing-state-voter, non-elderly. That class that isn't middle class enough to make a good all-American photo op. Just a little too far left to be taken seriously. You might tape a message to Netroots Nation, but talking at us and listening to us are worlds apart. There's no power to be gained in taking my generation seriously, I suppose, but we are the next leaders of this country and a significant factor in your re-election.
Shortly after Robert Gibbs' remarks about the professional left, I got an e-mail, (ostensibly from you, but clearly written by an intern,) asking me to commit to vote in 2010. To sign my name to promise that I'll be there. This transparent scramble for reassuring data was probably the most offensive OFA e-mail I've ever received. You want me to commit to supporting your candidates? After your press secretary trashed the ideological left? While your administration acts like we're nothing more than a shrill pest? I'm sorry, Mr. President, but you're going to have to do a lot better than a form e-mail to re-engage your base. I'm not asking for an autograph, a seat at the table, or even a new press secretary; I'm asking for an administration that actually empowers the people it asks to show up on election day. A White House that feels less like watching a barely-comprehensible cosmic event and more like a group of people who have the interests of voters (and not just donors) at heart.
Anyway, Mr. President, maybe it's just been a rough week. I wish there was some way I could show you how much I want to believe in you, and in this country again. I wish there was some way of reaching you at all. Even if it's just as useless as shouting at the sky, I'm going to keep writing, keep blogging, keep pestering you about the things you promised us. If you never respond to a single letter, if you never know I exist at all, that's fine. I just hope you find a way to hear the parts of this country you're ignoring, before you realize they won't be coming out to vote in November.
Respectfully yours,
Kelsey
Showing posts with label form letter. Show all posts
Showing posts with label form letter. Show all posts
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Day 69
Dear Mr. President,
While it is gratifying to see that Vice-President Biden has condemned the announcement of new settlements in East Jerusalem, it would be nice if this condemnation carried with it any tangible consequence. If even some of the estimated $2.5 billion dollars we give to this already wealthy and economically stable country were contingent upon respect for human rights or international law.
I've written you many times about my views on the way Palestinians are treated by their occupiers. I may be just an ordinary citizen, my experiences admittedly limited to a single trip to the region, but I am not the only American who feels this way. It is so easy to maintain the close relationship we have bought and paid for. Is is easy to talk about mediation and negotiation and fairness while signing the checks that buy the instruments of oppression. It is so easy to condemn policies while we continue to fund them. But you didn't run for President to do what is easy. You did not come to perpetuate the status quo. You ran on a platform of change, you demonstrated your willingness to speak frankly about tough issues and to explore, thoughtfully, their nuances. Why have you abandoned these principles entirely in Palestine? Why is a verbal and practically inconsequential reprimand from the VP all that comes from this latest encroachment on Palestinian land? Why are we silent on so many other, even more grievous offenses?
Don't send me another form letter about this, Mr. President. I'll forgo the talking points. I want you to say something, anything, that helps me make sense of it. Tell me why Palestinians don't deserve basic rights, free movement, and freedom from oppression. Tell me why a person's religion should determine where they are allowed to live. Tell me why we're funding this occupation at an increasing rate each year, why criticism and questioning are equated with sedition and betrayal. Tell me when we decided that a Palestinian life was worth less than an Israeli one.
If you can tell me these things, Mr. President, I'd love to hear from you. Otherwise, please save the paper. Vice President Biden earned my respect today for speaking frankly to the Palestinian audience alongside Abbas, but words are so cheap in such situations. 1600 new settlements will be built in East Jerusalem; another piece of the future Palestinian state lost because Israel is already powerful enough to take whatever it wants. How many words do you think Vice President Biden's condemnation would have to contain to rival the financial, political and military support that come with it? Maybe 2.5 billion?
Respectfully yours,
Kelsey
While it is gratifying to see that Vice-President Biden has condemned the announcement of new settlements in East Jerusalem, it would be nice if this condemnation carried with it any tangible consequence. If even some of the estimated $2.5 billion dollars we give to this already wealthy and economically stable country were contingent upon respect for human rights or international law.
I've written you many times about my views on the way Palestinians are treated by their occupiers. I may be just an ordinary citizen, my experiences admittedly limited to a single trip to the region, but I am not the only American who feels this way. It is so easy to maintain the close relationship we have bought and paid for. Is is easy to talk about mediation and negotiation and fairness while signing the checks that buy the instruments of oppression. It is so easy to condemn policies while we continue to fund them. But you didn't run for President to do what is easy. You did not come to perpetuate the status quo. You ran on a platform of change, you demonstrated your willingness to speak frankly about tough issues and to explore, thoughtfully, their nuances. Why have you abandoned these principles entirely in Palestine? Why is a verbal and practically inconsequential reprimand from the VP all that comes from this latest encroachment on Palestinian land? Why are we silent on so many other, even more grievous offenses?
Don't send me another form letter about this, Mr. President. I'll forgo the talking points. I want you to say something, anything, that helps me make sense of it. Tell me why Palestinians don't deserve basic rights, free movement, and freedom from oppression. Tell me why a person's religion should determine where they are allowed to live. Tell me why we're funding this occupation at an increasing rate each year, why criticism and questioning are equated with sedition and betrayal. Tell me when we decided that a Palestinian life was worth less than an Israeli one.
If you can tell me these things, Mr. President, I'd love to hear from you. Otherwise, please save the paper. Vice President Biden earned my respect today for speaking frankly to the Palestinian audience alongside Abbas, but words are so cheap in such situations. 1600 new settlements will be built in East Jerusalem; another piece of the future Palestinian state lost because Israel is already powerful enough to take whatever it wants. How many words do you think Vice President Biden's condemnation would have to contain to rival the financial, political and military support that come with it? Maybe 2.5 billion?
Respectfully yours,
Kelsey
Friday, February 26, 2010
Day 57- A response
Dear Mr. President,
Thank you for your response to my letter. In it, you declare that "the Israeli-Palestinian conflict demands our immediate and continued attention." I appreciate this, sir, and while I have no doubt that the issue receives your continued, even constant attention, I feel that you do not often reflect this in your public statements. Every time I have heard you speak publicly about Israel and Palestine, you have spoken with the same platitudes you include in this letter. This is not normally your style, which is why it bothers me so much. You've often been willing to engage in sustained conversations about your positions on issues, explaining your reasoning and exploring the nuances and complexities. I've seen you discuss health care, immigration, abortion, gay rights, the economy- I've seen you engage with your political opponents and dare them to leave behind the talking points to have a real conversation. I have never see you do this for Palestine and Israel.
Your letter suggests I visit the White house site http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/foreign-policy to read more on your administration's approach to what you call a "critical issue". The section of the site that deals with Palestine says;
The President believes that we cannot afford to wait to work for peace in the region, so he appointed a Special Envoy for Middle East peace on his second day in office. In the Middle East, we share the goal of a lasting peace between Israel and its neighbors. The United States strongly supports the goal of two states, Israel and a Palestinian state, living side by side in peace and security. The President has committed himself and his Administration to actively pursuing this goal.
This is lovely, but in no way informative or illuminating. It does not explain, for example, how you can be in support of Democracy but not the democratically elected leaders of Palestine. It does not explain how you can oppose the needless suffering of civilians and remain silent about the blockade of Gaza. It does not explain how you can defy the wishes of China with regards to human rights in Taiwan and Tibet, while never daring to challenge Israel with regards to its expansion of illegal settlements, or its secret assassinations, its mass arrests of peaceful protesters, or the continuing barrage of bombs being dropped on the Gaza strip. If this issue is really so critical to the regional stability and to America's long-term security, as you acknowledge in your letter, than why are you not publicly addressing it, publicly condemning Israel's inhuman and reckless behavior, publicly assuring the Palestinian people that we don't want to see their state won't be eaten up by illegal settlements, isolated by a wall, and deprived of all its natural resources?
I appreciate your response, Mr. President, and I want to emphasize that I am happy to accept you having a different perspective on this issue than I do. I just wish you'd explain your position, engage in a real discussion of the complexities of the issue, and not just hide behind the same polished platitudes. Now, in a period of relative calm, is the time to be talking about this issue. Now is the time for real progress, and the same old speeches will simply not suffice any longer.
Respectfully yours,
Kelsey
Thank you for your response to my letter. In it, you declare that "the Israeli-Palestinian conflict demands our immediate and continued attention." I appreciate this, sir, and while I have no doubt that the issue receives your continued, even constant attention, I feel that you do not often reflect this in your public statements. Every time I have heard you speak publicly about Israel and Palestine, you have spoken with the same platitudes you include in this letter. This is not normally your style, which is why it bothers me so much. You've often been willing to engage in sustained conversations about your positions on issues, explaining your reasoning and exploring the nuances and complexities. I've seen you discuss health care, immigration, abortion, gay rights, the economy- I've seen you engage with your political opponents and dare them to leave behind the talking points to have a real conversation. I have never see you do this for Palestine and Israel.
Your letter suggests I visit the White house site http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/foreign-policy to read more on your administration's approach to what you call a "critical issue". The section of the site that deals with Palestine says;
The President believes that we cannot afford to wait to work for peace in the region, so he appointed a Special Envoy for Middle East peace on his second day in office. In the Middle East, we share the goal of a lasting peace between Israel and its neighbors. The United States strongly supports the goal of two states, Israel and a Palestinian state, living side by side in peace and security. The President has committed himself and his Administration to actively pursuing this goal.
This is lovely, but in no way informative or illuminating. It does not explain, for example, how you can be in support of Democracy but not the democratically elected leaders of Palestine. It does not explain how you can oppose the needless suffering of civilians and remain silent about the blockade of Gaza. It does not explain how you can defy the wishes of China with regards to human rights in Taiwan and Tibet, while never daring to challenge Israel with regards to its expansion of illegal settlements, or its secret assassinations, its mass arrests of peaceful protesters, or the continuing barrage of bombs being dropped on the Gaza strip. If this issue is really so critical to the regional stability and to America's long-term security, as you acknowledge in your letter, than why are you not publicly addressing it, publicly condemning Israel's inhuman and reckless behavior, publicly assuring the Palestinian people that we don't want to see their state won't be eaten up by illegal settlements, isolated by a wall, and deprived of all its natural resources?
I appreciate your response, Mr. President, and I want to emphasize that I am happy to accept you having a different perspective on this issue than I do. I just wish you'd explain your position, engage in a real discussion of the complexities of the issue, and not just hide behind the same polished platitudes. Now, in a period of relative calm, is the time to be talking about this issue. Now is the time for real progress, and the same old speeches will simply not suffice any longer.
Respectfully yours,
Kelsey
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Day 42- Form letters and recess appointments
I received my first letter from The White House today! It is a form letter, one which is neither surprising nor particularly interesting. Still, it was lovely hearing from the office of the President.
Dear Mr. President,
Today I write to express my support of your threat to use recess appointments to fill the critical positions still waiting on Senate confirmation. I think that, should the Senate continue to demonstrate such enthusiasm for holding up the business of the government by blocking your perfectly qualified nominees, you should continue to publicly redress their behavior by any means necessary.
I appreciate the history and the tradition of Senate rules, but this is absurd. To hold up the appointments of qualified individuals for critical positions in government for legislative pork is truly an example of the worst kind of partisan politics. I'm all for respecting the separation of powers, but there is a point where the majority has to be allowed to govern.
Anyway, Mr. President, since the State of the Union it seems as though the administration is doing a much better job of communicating to the public, especially when it comes to pointing out just who is holding up the agenda. I'll admit this may be a matter of perception- certainly my decision to write to you every day has required me to pay attention to the daily communication from the White House- but even among my peers there seems to be a general consensus that your administration has had a new surge of energy and focus in the last few weeks.
I'd like to applaud the political maneuvering that today got 27 nominees confirmed. I think that, in the event the others continue to be held up, the public would recognize recess appointments as the right thing to do.
Respectfully yours,
Kelsey
Dear Mr. President,
Today I write to express my support of your threat to use recess appointments to fill the critical positions still waiting on Senate confirmation. I think that, should the Senate continue to demonstrate such enthusiasm for holding up the business of the government by blocking your perfectly qualified nominees, you should continue to publicly redress their behavior by any means necessary.
I appreciate the history and the tradition of Senate rules, but this is absurd. To hold up the appointments of qualified individuals for critical positions in government for legislative pork is truly an example of the worst kind of partisan politics. I'm all for respecting the separation of powers, but there is a point where the majority has to be allowed to govern.
Anyway, Mr. President, since the State of the Union it seems as though the administration is doing a much better job of communicating to the public, especially when it comes to pointing out just who is holding up the agenda. I'll admit this may be a matter of perception- certainly my decision to write to you every day has required me to pay attention to the daily communication from the White House- but even among my peers there seems to be a general consensus that your administration has had a new surge of energy and focus in the last few weeks.
I'd like to applaud the political maneuvering that today got 27 nominees confirmed. I think that, in the event the others continue to be held up, the public would recognize recess appointments as the right thing to do.
Respectfully yours,
Kelsey
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