06 Mar John Edwards
On Sunday I had the opportunity to meet Senator John Edwards, Presidential Candidate. I truly enjoyed how BLUNT the man is about politics and the world.
He opened with a great story about being on the Daily News with John Stewart. It seems they put him in a chair and asked a tough question, “Had you became VP, who would you have accidentally shot in the face?”
Edwards quipped, “Dick Chaney.” The only arguable point would be the accident part.
That sort of humor is rare. I watched the folks around Edwards look around the room to see if other people were shocked that he just made a comment about the VP. Great opening. It made me like him right away.
I like the guy. He talked about race, religion … all the taboo subjects.
A friend asked him where he stood on gay marriage. He said (this is not a direct quote) “I have had a very long personal journey on this issue and I have come a long way. I am not as far as you want me to be on the issue, and maybe I am not as far as the American people need me to be. I support civil unions. I can tell you the day I take office I will do away with the “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy as it is ridiculous….” I appreciated his answer even though I do not agree with him. Very thoughtful and honest.
He has a tough road ahead. His opponent, Obama talks of hope. Edwards states he talked of hope in his first election and realized hope isn’t enough. Overhaul needs to happen.
America is seen as greedy and short sighted. For good reason. Examples he gives: We told the world there was a genocide in Darfur last year. The richest and most powerful nation in the world says there is a genocide going on and has done NOTHING about it. This is why the world mistrusts us.
We have 4% of the population and 25% of the greenhouse gas emissions. How can we tell China what to do with their environment?
His message is powerful- he digs us into a dark scary hole. What he needs to do at the end is give us a rope to climb out of that hole. Audiences will accept the negative facts when we give them a light at the end of the tunnel. (As long as that light isn’t an oncoming train.)
(insert photo here) I am sorry. I am not a real blogger. I didn’t have my camera with me. I do not have a fancy photo for you. I will get on that soon. Promise.
I told him after the speech how much I appreciated how blunt he was. He seemed uncomfortable. Didn’t quite know what to say. He seemed to almost doubt himself for an instant.
I said, Senator Edwards, that is a GREAT thing- it matches your brand and is something you need to do MORE of. He laughed and in a very grand southern style, winked and said, “Good. Being blunt is the easy part.”
Easy for him maybe. Harder for the rest of the world. I may start walking around with a picket sign reading, “More bluntness. More bluntness”
Oh, if only that could be a trend.. like mini-skirts, or pants worn below the hips… or the pet rock… BLUNTNESS.
That’s all.
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