FLOTUS Gives Her First Commencement Speech
While the MSM was focused on President Obama's comencement speech at the Universtiy of Noter Dame, First Lady Michelle Obama accepted an invistation to speak at UC Merced. The First Lady choose her only commencement speech of the year to be to the first graduating class at a University founded only four years ago.
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Comments [56]
Reply to Julia, somewhere
Reply to Julia, somewhere down thread: Julia, “Leather Queen Lover” is clearly a retro pastiche that's never gonna be a breakaway pop hit.
"When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will." ~ Pollyanna
Ouch! I only say that
Ouch! I only say that because I know how dearly Julia feels about that song. I personally am fonder of "San Francisco" and one of our PA's from the shoot was apparently singing "Sodomy" on the set of "Ready? OK!". I can only imagine what that was like. I suspect that Michael found that far more amusing than his day job on "Lost". :grin:
Dear VPM Friends, I'm tired
Dear VPM Friends,
I'm tired of everyone pissing each other off. I'm taking a break and leaving the site.
Oh wait! I can't leave the site, I've invested 1000s of dollars, both yours and mine. We are in the middle of rebuilding of the entire site. three programmers have just spent the last 6 weeks working on a June roll out. 14 writers continue to turn in stories for your amusement and information.
Yeah sure everyone can get pissed and misbehave and leave for fb or myspace or afterellen or whatever. But I want to remind you they are all run by the man.
You wanna know why there are zero lesbian owned media companies... we all can't get a long. Very sad.
Minn, I hope you know I'm not picking on you or PK for that matter who bid us adieu a little while ago. I've seen all of you commentors as integral members of this community... even AO, who I'm still wondering if you used to be MinnieZ on OC.
Far be it from me to beg anyone to stay or to do anything... well i take that back I've actually asked you for money, I've asked writers to work for free, I've asked you all to be patient while we build the new site. And so I'm asking everyone to see this as your space and take care of it like you would your own ... um... house?... or at least your favorite bar.
If anyone is still in it to win it. Follow my next blog posting this morning.
yours,
Commander Moon
tweet tweet @gracemoon
Personally I like people who
Personally I like people who stretch my comfort zone and actually force me to think about issues I wouldn't otherwise think about and then be able to articulate my views about those issues. People who give me the opportunity to think about why I agree or disagree with something. It wouldn't be any fun for me, at least, to just sit around and superficially chitchat all the time for fear that my point of view about a post would offend someone. I can do that while waiting in line at the grocery store. And further If controversial substantive dialogues about posts are discouraged then why bother to have writers all.
Addendum: My sense of humor
Addendum: My sense of humor tends to be subtle, wry, and absurd. Most of the time I do not use emoticons because frankly I forget to do it. I apologize if I have offended anyone. I don't think any of my comments have been hurtful but if I have hurt someone please call me on it. I believe in free controversial speech but nothing gratuitously hurtful.
I think "gratuitously
I think "gratuitously hurtful" is a good line to draw. I would take it a bit further though and say that it behooves each of us to show the same respect for others that we expect for ourselves. In a forum such as this, that means presenting your views in a manner that enlightens rather than confronts or belittles.
I also have a dry sense of humor which is why I use emoticons. To let people know that my words were meant in jest.
I think your additional
I think your additional comments sum up what I was trying to say. I seriously need a lesson in emoticons. I know that sounds silly but the only ones I know are:
If someone could give me a link to a site that provides a key to the various emoticons I would appreciate it. Thx, Cameo.
Grace, We need that emoticon
Grace,
We need that emoticon link from the prior blog post located on the front page of this site- permanently. Meantime, I didn't save the link myself so I can't point you in the right direction but there is a blog post somewhere here on Velvet Park showing working emoticons. Someone on here surely can find it again...?
Dear VPM Friends, I am taking
Dear VPM Friends,
I am taking a break from VPM because I'm tired of every blog about politics turning into a fight between us and Annie Oakley, who is who she is but I'm tired of it.
I'll see you on Facebook.
Best, Minniesota
Still searching for the right brainy quote.
And while Grace Moon was
And while Grace Moon was focused on the FLOTUS's comencement speech 2 GREAT women gave kick-ass women and lesbian oriented commencement - or were they common cement? - speeches and deserve to be posted here!!
Hillary Rodham Clinton. Scroll down to Barnard College Commencement Ceremony and New York University Commencement Ceremony
http://www.state.gov/video/
Ellen Degeneres!!! See it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPTMyaySoc0
Its curious to me why you
Its curious to me why you assume everything it a politically motivated conspiracy?
I'm pretty sure everyone reads your words here. I hadn't actually seen nor did I know HC had given a commencement speech till you pointed it out. As I've said before we all have other jobs here, Vp is a labor of love. it is impossible for us to keep up with all the news, and we do rely on you the community for tips.
I'd happily repost vid of HC or ED, but to be honest when you frame it the way you have to me, it makes me just want to ignore you.
I have to ask, is it possible for you to simply make your point without the incendiary tone?
thanks,
G.
tweet tweet @gracemoon
Grace, the Hillary
Grace, the Hillary commencement speeches are in plain sight on the government's SOS video page. You should check it out - she says a lot of interesting things, much of it caught on video.
Guess I am disappointed because you, who has a blog dedicated to dykes (thank goodness), posts Michelle instead of women I personally consider more deserving and more relevant.
I said nothing about a conspiracy, btw. You are a bit defensive...
Grace is damned if she does;
Grace is damned if she does; damned if she doesn't. I posted the link to Ellen's speech Tuesday afternoon. If she puts a story up after a reader posts a link there are some who accuse her of "stealing" our ideas.
Also, you want to "acknowledge those women who really are moving us forward…"
Michelle Obama fits that category for many people. Even some women. Even some lesbians.
"When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will." ~ Pollyanna
Rusty, I used your link and
Rusty, I used your link and enjoyed it immensely.
I can't catch everything...
I can't catch everything... its just me and kelly perusing the news to try and keep up with stuff.
I will do a commencement speech post and try get these and other speeches in there.
yeah its true, I be damned.
tweet tweet @gracemoon
Yup! You're too damn patient
Yup! You're too damn patient with all the people who keep dumping on you around here. You, Gracie, are a much better woman than I.
Thank you!
Grace, anyone who rises from
Grace, anyone who rises from the crowd in any way is damned. By some, at least. Here - I'll repeat my last comment:
That all said, this is “your house” so to speak. I will watch my manners in the future.
PS. I did not mean to come
PS. I did not mean to come across as insulting. I am simply impatient; I in general want ppl to try harder, dig deeper, think things out more thoroughly and acknowledge those women who really are moving us forward...
You should repost those speeches. Great is great regardless of who pointed you to it!
No. There is impatient, and
No. There is impatient, and then there is insulting and aggressively condescending abuse of a community site, which by its very nature invites you to add to the discussion constructively.
Just once, Annie, I would like to read you offering more information on a topic without attacking anyone. There are times when you actually have some good links, but some days I just can't bring myself to risk another negative and unwarranted attack on anyone who does not anticipate and mirror your own interests, thoughts, and views in exactly the way you would like them presented. If you want to have a discussion with yourself, Annie, try a tape recorder.
woohoo you go girl
woohoo you go girl
PSS I am very tired of the
PSS I am very tired of the media's incessant fawning over the Obamas. We see it everywhere: Michelle's arms, the new dog, the pres's abs...all as we nosedive into a depression.
And as gays are fired from the military as we write because Obama is not keeping his promises, Ellen is the only gay speaking up for us at commencement ceremonies.
And as girls' faces and female genitals are disfigured by radical islamists, as women suffer insufferable tortures and deaths at the hands of men everywhere, it is only Hillary speaking up for women's rights around the world at commencement ceremonies, urging young American women to be aware of and help stop the misogyny.
'Only Hillary' who is
'Only Hillary' who is speaking up at commencement for women's rights around the world? I think Eve Ensler and many other lesser-known women activists who have really been down in the trenches would take umbrage with that statement.
I just got back from a few days in NYC and was fortunate to see Michelle Obama re-open the American Wing at the Metropolitan Museum. There were huge numbers of kids, particularly girls of color, in the crowd who were SO excited that I couldn't help but be buoyed by their energy and hopeful for the next generation of girls (and boys). Like it or not, Annie, Michelle--by virtue of her race and relative youth--can reach women and girls that Hillary cannot.
And why do we have to choose? The task is so large, can we really afford to be divided? Can't you see the pettiness in that? And the misogyny? .
I think Eve Ensler and many
I think Eve Ensler and many other lesser-known women activists who have really been down in the trenches would take umbrage with that statement.
Really? this year? Please post links - I'd love to see/read the speehes.
My gripe was not against Michelle per se. Although I don't like certain things she's done in Chicago. But I digress. I think she's great with kids. But we can see all-thing-Obama everywhere. Literally EVERYWHERE.
PPSS Grace (I liked the other
PPSS Grace (I liked the other format where you could change what you wrote...)
That all said, this is "your house" so to speak. I will watch my manners in the future.
Darn that Michelle Obama for
Darn that Michelle Obama for not talking about the issues AO thinks are most important.
On May 8th, Obama spoke at the at a meeting of Corporate Voices for Working Families:
"Absent personal assistants for all, Mrs. Obama said workers should have paid sick days, schedules that give them time for their family responsibilities, such as picking up children or taking them or parents to doctors' appointments, and quality child care on the job.
Also needed is paid leave for the birth or adoption of a child, or to deal with serious illness, she said.
"These types of policies can be the key to whether a family remains economically viable or slips into financial uncertainty," she said.
Some 22 million working women don't have one paid sick day, Mrs. Obama said, meaning they lose money anytime they have to skip work because of an ill child. Current law, the Family Medical Leave Act, provides unpaid leave for birth, adoption or serious illness."
http://www.kansascity.com/437/story/1184684.html
As far as the media fawning over her, she's smart, young, funny, attractive, vibrant, and devoted to her family, the first African-American First Lady. Nope nothing to talk about there.
"When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will." ~ Pollyanna
How is telling Grace that she
How is telling Grace that she screwed up by posting Michelle Obama's speech on a dyke site NOT insulting her? "you, who has a blog dedicated to dykes (thank goodness), posts Michelle instead of women I personally consider more deserving and more relevant."
"When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will." ~ Pollyanna
So according to AO, Grace
So according to AO, Grace doesn't try hard, dig deep, think things out or acknowledge those women who really are moving us forward?
What a load of crap. Why not get your own site so you can post only those things you deem deserving and relevant? (And then re-write the comments like other PUMA sites.)
"When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will." ~ Pollyanna
Rusty you seem to have some
Rusty you seem to have some kind of obssession with puma stuff. Why don't you take your gripes to them?
Hmm... Rewriting the comments
Hmm... Rewriting the comments actually sounds like fun. Let me try one.
Annie Oakley commented on FLOTUS Gives Her First Commencement Speech
Hi Grace. Thanks for keeping us mindful of the important part women play in encouraging our daughters as they leave the sheltered environs of academia and journey into a world that may not greet them with the open arms we all enjoy here. I found the following links to commencement speeches made by other intelligent and influential women very interesting as well. Feel free to re post them in a prominent place and/or expound on them if you want to.
Thanks again for providing this wonderful place for us to exchange ideas and keep each other abreast of important issues and events.
;)Ahh... Now that is refreshing!
Taem? luckily we all speak
Taem? luckily we all speak with our own voices! Of course you could get a job with the MSM and contrive whatever you will there...
:lol:
Taem?...or you could go into
Taem?...or you could go into scriptwriting where, I fear, you would be a miserable failure. Not because of grammar or writing skills, but simply because no film can survive without conflict.
Conflict is a part of life. If we would reconstruct each other in ways that soften the edges...hmmm. What would we be? Amoebas? unhatched eggs?
I have said I would watch my manners in the future. But I am who I am. I'm probably just wrong at this site, which appears so often to be an Obama fan site.
Annie, First, I wrote this
Annie,
First, I wrote this in response to your response before I read your comment on manners.
Second, it helps to have a sense of humor. This is the result of mine.
Third, if you read back a bit, you will realize that I have come in on both sides of the Obama debate depending on the topic.
You can try to make it personal hon, but I'm not taking the bait.
PS: Some have actually enjoyed publishing me, and more than a few have made it profitable.
life is conflict. it's all
life is conflict. it's all how you handle it. what you channel. it's very hard to speak with your own voice. it takes some people a lifetime to find that voice. it's much easier to repeat other people's voices without understanding what's said.
that's where manners come in, a prophylactic against gratuitous injury.
See, now this is just an
See, now this is just an example of how you insult and put down people on this site. I AM a screenwriter and yes screenwriting requires conflict. But this site is not a screenplay and no one is writing fiction. They are writing their own truth and for the most part they are trying to do it while showing respect for each other's often differing opinions. And then there's you, Annie, and a couple of others who come on here and insult, put down, accuse, shout, lecture, etc.
Conflict is a part of life but it's whether or not one creates conflict or just responds to it in a healthy manner that defines what type of person you are. You create conflict. Taem tries to smooth things over and be understanding. Personally, I'm glad that most of the women are more like Taem and less like you on Velvet Park or I'd jump ship.
Didn't I say I wasn't going to respond to this woman anymore? I must be in a mood this morning.
It is tempting, isn't it?
It is tempting, isn't it?
Thanks, Robin. 
ok, i just googled you guys.
ok, i just googled you guys. that is so awesome! fuck cannes!
so you're a screenwriter.
so you're a screenwriter. lucky you. are you following cannes?
how? where? keep us abreast!
how? where? keep us abreast!
STM :lol: I watched it. Cute!
STM
I watched it. Cute!
ok, as your editor, julia, i
ok, as your editor, julia, i want you to do an Interview-style interview of robin or vice versa. it'll serve as advance pub for LQL i mean STM
Thank you, Erin for the kind
Thank you, Erin for the kind words. Correction to Julia below- "Sodomy: The Musical" is screening as part of FilmOut San Diego. The San Diego Film Festival occurs in the fall. We actually weren't accepted to that one last year. Their loss.
please write the blog of the
please write the blog of the writing of the song
Me, of course. I really think
Me, of course. I really think "Leather Queen Lover" is going to be a breakaway pop hit.
you mean you or your gfriend?
you mean you or your gfriend?
Erin, Robin's latest short
Erin, Robin's latest short film Sodomy: The Musical! is premiering at the San Diego Film Festival next weekend. She hired the world's best composer to write the songs!
Taem...... I don't even need
Taem...... I don't even need to say it, do I.
Did you just say..... a-breast?
Dear Grace, if you feel so
Dear Grace, if you feel so inclined, please give Taem? admin power and the capability to re-write any "excessive" comments of mine. (She has a definite knack for editing.)
"When you look for the bad in mankind expecting to find it, you surely will." ~ Pollyanna
:lol: Thanks, Rusty.
especially the abreast part.
especially the abreast part.