Maya's poem for Hillary

Maya Angelou, who is supporting Hillary, has written a lovely poem praising Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign for The Observer. It appears in today's edition of The Observer and was given to the Clinton campaign last week.

Angelou says that she has had many long telephone conversations with Winfrey on the subject of Obama versus Clinton. 'She thinks he's the best, and I think my woman is the best,' she has explained. 'Oprah is a daughter to me, but she is not my clone.'

:puke:

:eyes:

No joke. It's sick.

But that poem is lame-o.

Are The Hillarities so fucking fanatical that they can't recognize true lame poetry when they see it? :rofl:

will whip up another masterpiece for Obama.

I could probably formulate a better response.

:-)

such as Senator George McGovern can be called senile and as good as dead upon his endorsement of Hillary, I doubt there are any depths to which some posters on DU won't go. Sad but true. :(

Instead of reverting into silly fanboy/fangirl nonsenses. I guess I'll have to keep waiting.

I like it just fine. And Maya Angelou obviously likes it well enough to have published it.

So, are you a professional literary critic? You seem arrogant enough.

You like it. Wow.

And Maya Angelou published her own work.

I'm convinced!

:rofl:

Listen, "Still I Rise," on which this paltry piece of contemporary partisanship is based, is a damn good poem. No argument there. Taking a damn good poem and adapting it poorly to address a very local and temporary political issue is, on the other hand, embarrassing.

There may be an argument for absolute standards of literary quality, but you haven't made it. As far as I can tell, you're just one asshole with an opinion.

:hi:

As long as we're discussing the poem and not crying like incoherent babies that I'm somehow attacking Maya Angelou in her revered personhood, I'm fine with that. Fair enough. Asshole with an opinion. Yup. And you as well! You just luuuuurv the ass-stupid and embarrassing poem. Good on ya, champ! I, on the other hand, think it is shite. Good on me!

My point was always that you can call the poem shitty, but there's no basis for it. Or at least, you have offered none. So I can call it great. Just as valid a critique.

But hey, thanks for keeping the thread kicked. More people will get to see what Maya thinks of Hillary.
:hi:

It's a shitty poem because it turns a great poem into a trifling current issue.

It's also shitty in its half-assed imagery.

I like Hillary. And I like Angelou's poetry. So the whole "I'm screwing myself by keeping the thread kicked" thing is very sweet and self-validating on your part, I'm sure, but sadly off-base.

I just think this particular silly adaptation of Still I Rise is embarrassing. I'll say it ten more times if keeping the thread kicked is part of your special little plan for the day. :rofl:

:)

At least you made an attempt this time to explain why it's bad poetry ("half-assed imagery" and what I'll interpret as derivative). That's a first.

You know, I never said "I'm screwing myself by keeping the thread kicked" or anything of the kind. I didn't even mean that -- it assumes that you don't want people to see the thread, and I had no reason to think that. I was only commenting that I WANT people to see it. But if I had meant what you said, it's still a lie to attribute words to me in quotation marks when they were never written or spoken.

:rofl:

Yeah, I'm a big fat liar. You got me.

Amazing.

Your posts say more about you than they do about Maya or Hillary.

The projection of your self-hate onto others makes me feel sorry for you.

That's sweet.

And here I thought the whole "I feel sorry for your self-hate" gambit went out in 1998, internet forum-wise. Thanks for the retro post though. It's very uncool cool, like grunge flannel!

:hi:

:hug:

I call shit shit when I see it.

Doesn't matter who did it.

I'll leave you to your fetish.

Wow. I didn't realize Ms. Angelou was so above reproach that one could not criticize anything she produced. Perhaps we should frame her grocery lists, too...

"Like dust I'll rise." Dust? Oh boy, that makes me want to vote for her. "Vote for Hillary because she's like that dirt in your house that keeps coming back..."

I wish Dr Seuss were alive to weigh in...

"I do not like that Hillary
I do not like her
no siree..."

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/still-i-rise/

This half-assed adaptation of it, on the other hand, is among the lamest things I've ever seen in contemporary letters.

Of course, the fanboy/fangirls will all pretend that I'm somehow attacking Ms. Angelou, largely because they are self-righteous fanatics and morons, and you won't see the least defense of how truly bad the actual poem is. But, so it goes.

it seems to be an appropriatly uplifting message.

One more nimrod to add to my iggy list.:hi:

it's beautiful. I hope that Maya campaigns for Hill in SC.

K&R

Maya in her wisdom demonstrates a pure heart. She understands Hillary has the best qualifications for the presidency at this time. I'm sure she made Oprah aware of the possible ramifications IF she supported Obama based solely on race and running true to form, Oprah has once more has backed away from active visible support.

Yeah, that would be great...Maya campaigning for Hill in SC.

it would make my day!

January 20, 2008

Women turn on ‘traitor’ Oprah Winfrey for backing Barack Obama

Oprah fans leave a barrage of negative messages on her official website in response to the talk show host's support of Obama

AMERICA’S favourite television presenter is paying a painful price for her intervention in the US presidential campaign last month. Oprah Winfrey has been dubbed a “traitor” by some of her female fans for supporting Barack Obama instead of Hillary Clinton.

Winfrey’s website, Oprah.com, has been flooded with a barrage of abuse since the queen of daytime chat shows joined Obama on a tour of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina in mid-December.

Her intervention was widely credited with broadening Obama’s national appeal - especially among women - and with helping him to an upset victory over Clinton in the first vote of the election year in Iowa.

Yet a backlash by Clinton supporters appears to have prompted a rethink by Winfrey, the African-American media titan who is routinely described as the most influential woman on television.

She did not reappear in the final days before the New Hampshire primary - which Obama lost to Clinton - and has been absent from the most recent campaigning in South Carolina, which votes next weekend.

Obama aides believe that Winfrey will return to the campaign. Her own staff noted last week that in addition to her daily broadcasts on television and satellite radio, she has also been busy negotiating a multi-million-dollar deal with the Discovery cable network to create her own television channel, the Oprah Winfrey Network.

Yet Obama’s rivals suspect that Winfrey has been startled by the virulent reaction to her previous campaign appearance.

It started with a message on her website entitled “Oprah is a traitor” and rapidly expanded to include several discussions that attracted hundreds of comments.

In the original post, a reader called austaz68 said she “cannot believe that women all over this country are not up in arms over Oprah’s backing of Obama. For the first time in history we actually have a shot at putting a woman in the White House and Oprah backs the black MAN. She’s choosing her race over her gender.”

In a subsequent comment, 2nurselady wrote: “I don’t think Oprah is a ‘traitor’, but I do think she may be alienating a lot of her fans.”

Others have accused Winfrey of racism for siding with Obama when such a well qualified woman as Clinton was running.

Winfrey has built her career on empathising with women’s issues and offering a daily diet of redemption and hope. Her show typically focuses on women who have suffered but survived.

So hostile has the response been that some suspect dirty tricks. “All the rude and hateful messages on here can’t be from Oprah fans,” another visitor noted. Winfrey received a rapturous reception when she campaigned with Obama last month. Yet several analysts warned that she might adversely affect his chances.

Steve Ross, a history professor at the University of Southern California, said: “The moment a star opens their mouth and endorses one candidate, they alienate half their viewership.”

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/us_elections/article3216586.ece

I posted my thoughts last night on a similar thread posted by Journalist3072:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=2723078&mesg_id=2723102

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

I read your horrific posts last night against the Clintons. "Burn their house down"...and the over the top, "Put the Big Dog to Sleep" suggestion that got your thread locked.

You are a disruptive operative here to create nothing but hatred and violence. Enjoy your stay and hopefully your remarks will get you tomb-stoned sooner rather than later!

Do you know who that is or what that means?

Is this that sniffa person hiding behind a new account?

sniffa

and he made a damned good choice when he endorsed Hillary Clinton. I never doubted that he was right, but my enthusiasm for her has increased enormously because of her performance, her policy statements, and the platform she's running on in this primary.

and staying on point with the issues and airing her proposals for fixing the damage done by the Republicans..

Hillary's audience leaves her knowing there is a light at the end of the tunnel and she is prepared to shine that bright light as our next president! Love it!

Enjoy your stay on DU.:hi:

:kick:

DemEx

I still remember the poem she wrote to mark the occassion of Bill's inaugural - On the pulse of morning. Read it here at http://poetry.eserver.org/angelou.html.

"So say the Asian, the Hispanic, the Jew
The African and Native American, the Sioux,
The Catholic, the Muslim, the French, the Greek
The Irish, the Rabbi, the Priest, the Sheikh,
The Gay, the Straight, the Preacher,
The privileged, the homeless, the Teacher.
They hear. They all hear
The speaking of the Tree."