02:10
Citizen Kate: The War on Keith
17 year old Keith Smith, a practicing Buddhist from Menomonee Wisconsin, had been beaten up by the RNC riot police and then released without medical attention. His story made me want to find out more. There was so little coverage of the daily protesting at the RNC, that we felt like his story needed to be told.
Citizen Kate scores tickets to watch Barack speak the final night at the Democratic National Convention, and she hunts to fulfill her dream to "find Obama". I can't believe it! Thanks to my good friends at First Data, one of the sponsors of both the Democratic and Republican Conventions, I got tickets to enjoy the inside of Invesco park. I was there earlier today scouting out all the possible locations where I might run into Barack. This is it. This is the moment that I've been waiting for. I'm going to meet Barack. I can feel it. I even ran into General Wesley Clark. And he thinks that I have what it takes...some day. Note to self: If you ask and believe, you will receive. Maybe. It seems there are a lot of "secrets" in politics.
Citizen Kate begs, borrows and steals day passes to Invesco Park the day of Barack’s big acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention, and she has a dream to meet Obama. I did it. I got big media passes to Invesco park. Finally, I’ve made it. Okay. So it’s just for the afternoon, but I’m sure that I’m going to meet Barack Obama. I was empowered by my yoga sharma in the Huffington Oasis of The Big Tent to attract what I need to actually make this happen. She told me breath and envision it. I can see it now. Obama and me talking. I hung out at the tunnel where he’s sure to enter. I found Tom Brokaw, Al Gore, and descendants of Martin Luther King. If only they’ll tell me where I can find Obama... Note to self: You can have a dream in politics, but without the support of others, it will go nowhere.
02:50
Citizen Kate: Big Media = Tent City
Citizen Kate tries to fit in with the “Big Media” at the Democratic National Convention, but some big time reporters from The Daily Show call her bluff. What a lot of people didn’t see on CNN, CSPAN or Fox News at the Democratic National Convention is the large number of tents surrounding the Pepsi Center. These tents were set up primarily for the “big media”. I wanted to see how the other half lives, so I ventured off to the Big Media Tent City in search of free swag and to fit in. I found the Daily Show RV and thought that Jon Stewart was sleeping there. Unfortunately, they were too big time for this citizen journalist. I did find free oxygen. Why would anyone ever pay for oxygen? Shouldn’t it always be free. I spent time with a journalist form ABC News. He said that I should check out “tent city”. But he was referring to the blogger’s Big Tent. Note to self: Big media don’t always get the big perks in politics, but they do get access to the inside.
Citizen Kate runs into Henry Kissinger at the Republican National Convention and gets his "kiss" of approval. I can't believe it. I went to John McCain's hotel the day of his speech at the RNC to have lunch with Cindy McCain and in hopes to meet the maverick himself. Instead, I met a really old time political leader, Henry Kissinger. He may be old, but he's hard to catch up with. Kissinger is a man who has been around for world leaders for decades. Seriously, he's been around the block. Kissinger helped Nixon open the door to China. Now he's helping Sarah Palin understand the world. She hasn't been outside the US that much. But who needs to travel to foreign countries when you have Kissinger in your corner? Note to self: Peace and hugs and kisses can change the world. Well, at least it's a start.
Citizen Kate discovers the true media oasis at the Democratic National Convention in the “Big Tent” dedicated to the “little media” -- bloggers, and she finds her first real fan. I found blogger’s paradise - The Big Tent. Most bloggers really don’t venture beyond their living room. Why bother when you can produce political reports in the comfort of your underpants? But when we do get out, we get the best treatment. Google, Daily Kos and the Huffington Post made this Big Tent the best media spot at the DNC. Filled with massages for the stressed out, Yoga for the mentally blocked, and organic goodies for the media fit. Of course, these weren’t the only sponsors. It really showed me that you don’t need to be “big media” to get the “big treatment". In fact, big media got free Coors. Bloggers got free Fat Tire. Note to self: Being “Big”, doesn’t always mean “quality”. Bloggers have the clear advantage when it comes to politics. We can say what we want.
August 28, 2008 -- Citizen Kate protests with anarchists at the Democratic National Convention and uncovers what it's like to live in a police state. I ran into a group of peaceful protesters in the park near the Denver capital at the Democratic National Convention. We are political prisoners in a police state and we need to vote for the next great leader to help change that. The protesters voiced their opinion of the candidates and the true needs of our world. I realized that politics is not about the glitz or the glamour. It's about the people. Note to self: If you don't like the choices for president, you can write in none of the above.
Citizen Kate attends Sarah Palin's speech at the Republican National Convention and discovers the key to the Republican VP's popularity: Palin Power. I actually made it into the Xcel Center. We totally borrowed badges from friends and were snuck into the real action. The Republicans really had a lot of security. It was like Fort Knox in there. The entire time, I was worried that I was going to get thrown out like the NPR debate that I attended with Mike Gravel. But the Republicans are so into ladies that I fit right in. Nobody even flinched when they saw me. It must have been my conservative outfit and Sarah Palin glasses. She really did knock 'em dead with her speech. I wasn't sure about her at first, but there's no doubt now that she was a strong choice for VP. Heck, her husband's a snow machine champion. That's tough. Note to Self: Political ladies are powerful with the right hair style and fighting words.
Citizen Kate at the Lifetime Every Woman Counts Party for Republican Chicks. They're a go go for Sarah Palin. Cheney's party planner and scheduler tells us he's not the Darth Vader we all think he is.
04:26
The Nader Fight for People, Peace and Freedom
Citizen Kate discovers a political party she relates to, Peace and Freedom, and that we have to fight for the people and third parties at a Ralph Nader event. I didn't get credentials for the first Presidential debate. So, I decided to hang out with Ralph Nader. I can't believe that he didn't get an invite either!?! Unfortunately, Nader didn't have time to spend one-on-one with me. But I was invited to his big University of Southern California event, and his Bill Maher after party in Hollywood. I got to meet his VP pick Matt Gonzalez, who was amazing. But that's another story. The big story? The Peace and Freedom party. I can't believe there are third parties we don't know about. Nader really brings to light some of the challenges with American politics. He makes me want to do something about it. We can't just sit around watching the Inconvenient Truth. Note to self: We should focus less on the parties and more on the candidates and taking action. Although a Peace & Hugs party would be awesome!
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