(I know, I get tired of these "ADS OBAMA MUST DO!!" diaries, but this one popped into my head and won't let go.)
The Republicans were hitting Barack’s work as a community organizer last night, portraying it as some sort of dodge or waste of time. Rudy practically blurted out, "How can you trust this guy? He could have gone to Wall Street and become rich!!" This HAS to be addressed, and as it happens, it would be great to introduce who he is. Here’s how:
They need to get the people whose lives were touched by Barack in his Community Organizer days into commercials. Show that community, how it was and how it is now after his work. I would imagine that there would be LOTS of people who would jump at the chance to speak on his behalf. Here’s one idea:
Funereal dirge music plays as we see a Black and white montage of post-industrial apocalypse, burned out steel mills, gates closing with a padlock put on, shuttered stores, etc. ending on shots of broken windows. Urban distress, weedy lots, kids sitting around on street corners, then fifth graders running in a group from police rollers in the unfocused distance, then gangsters under a street light. (Voice over of Strunkner Smzyuzcyk, classic south side Chicago ethnic white guy with his Viet Nam vets hat.) "When the chairman got a big bonus for closing the mill and moving their operations to China, they didn’t just throw ME out of work, they threw my whole family, my whole community out of work." (Mrs. Clasnor Smzyuzcyk, sitting next to him.) "It didn’t take long for the whole community to break down, as people moved away, people I’ve known my whole life. What was going to happen to our community?"
Black and white montage of scenes of Barack doing his community organizing thing, (pictures of him in front of a mixed race crowd.) Voice over of Barack saying "If we work together, we can make our voices heard. We are in charge of reclaiming our community. No one is going to do it for us, WE have to do it." You get the idea.
The Smzyuzcyks again. (Mrs.) "Barack Obama came to our neighborhood and gave us hope. Starting in church basements, he showed us how to organize, (montage of people planting trees and flowers, talking on front porches, etc.) how to get help from our government. We began the work of putting the community back together, getting stores re-opened and getting the streets and streetlights fixed, improving the schools, building community centers." (Mr.) "We got government help, sure, but we paid our taxes for a long time, and because of Barack Obama’s leadership, people haven’t forgotten us. We got help from the government and now, (cut to color pictures of a sunny day, kids playing in a new park, shops opened, neighbor greeting neighbor, etc.) this community is vibrant and paying taxes again, and that money is going to help other neighborhoods in trouble, like ours was." (Mr. Smyuzcyk looks straight at camera) "We’re all in this together, folks, we’re all just trying to make a better life for our children and grandchildren. Barack Obama’s smart and educated enough to do anything, but he chose to help us to make that happen."
"I’m Barack Obama. I’m a community organizer and I approve this message."