Letter from a friend about Obama's first pick for his staff

Now the hard work comes for Obama. I am incensed about his choice for Chief of Staff. It's the same ole politics as usual that he so scorned during his campaign.

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Dear friends,

Below is a series of notes via e-mail, between myself and a former boxing student of mine. He is a veteran educator whose name iis Neil Zagorin. Nevertheless, the recent victory by Barack Obama came up, quite naturally. With his permission,, I would like to share these ideas with you, as I feel that Neil had some very poweruk things to say.

Cheers!

G. Djata Bumpus
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Dear Djata,

I appreciate your keeping me on the mailing list for djatajabs, and just want to say hello and wish you well. It's been a while since I've been in your gym. Life is busy. My beloved son Korie is in 1st grade. I'm still teaching. I still skip rope and shadow box, and hit a bag sometimes.

After training with you, it's possible to work out like this with more intensity. It's a good thing. I'll always appreciate your letting my son tag along to the gym, where he could see strong young men and women training to be tough but not mean.

Here's hoping that you and yours are well. Your blog is informative and stimulating. I'm not sure if you write with a particular audience in mind, but your posts are thought-provoking to a person who by virtue of European descent finds himself in the category of "white" (I appreciate the distinction you make between the two.) In your current post, you clarify that Senator Obama's election is not ground-breaking, since African-Americans have always contributed immensely to this society. This insight is an important one, one that I will share with my son.

Anyway, just wanted to drop you a line.Take care.

Neil
P.S. Still and all, it was very nice to vote for a winner last Tuesday.
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Hey Man,

What a wonderful note. Thanx for taking so much time to carefully articulate your feelings and ideas.

The blog is for everyone. Rarely do most people get to see or hear the outlook of an African American. Usually what they hear is sycophancy to "White Supremacy".

Now the hard work comes for Obama. I am incensed about his choice for Chief of Staff. It's the same ole politics as usual that he so scorned during his campaign.

Everything at the gym is coming along. Thanx for all of your kind and encouraging words. Remember, the ultimate job of the teacher is to get your charges to follow your ideals (e.g., hard work, care, discipline, and so forth). Obviously, you got that message from me, regarding your workouts. Of course, that is quite a reward for me, and shows why the idea of "merit pay" for teachers is foolish, since what one learns from a teacher may not necessarily sink in during a particular semester.

Much love to you and your family,
Djata
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Hi Djata,

I agree with you about the choice of Rahm Emanuel as chief-of-staff.

The mainstream Democrats are as wired in to Wall Street and the war industry as the Republicans. The Democrats have a legacy from the 20th century of attempting to represent people at the bottom of society when demand comes strongly from the bottom. I'm thinking of the Great Depression before the war, and the Civil Rights Era and anti-poverty campaigns after the war. There were good accomplishments and flawed accomplishments, but much of the effort was sincere.

Now there is no real demand coming from the bottom, although there's more than ample reason for it. But, Wall Street and the war industry still have a tight hold on the government's lapels. The Democratic Party retooled itself long ago to succeed in this environment, to forego attempting to balance the interests of the mighty with the needs of the many in order to wield power. President Clinton is the great success story of this tradition. Rahm Emanuel, though he may be a formidable political operator, looks to be cut from the same bolt of cloth.

This will be a challenge for President-elect Obama. I believe that he is one of a number of individuals high up in the Democratic party who would be willing to lead in the tradition of the New Deal and 1960s Democrats. But, they need something to come from the citizens to pull them in that direction, so they can get away with it politically.

Despite our nation's many problems, I feel it still has the potential to be a better place for many. So, I'm thinking about how I can play my part, though I don't know what that will be. Many hands will have to be put together. I'd like to keep in touch.

Have a good weekend,

Neil