Thursday, June 23, 2011

Let us take a break from the negative, and reflect on the positive impact our First Family is having on the rest of the world.


As reported by Reuters:

First Lady Michelle Obama urged young Africans Wednesday to fight for women's rights and battle the stigma of AIDS, using her husband's "yes, we can" campaign slogan to motivate youth across the continent.

Obama is on her second solo trip abroad as first lady to promote issues such as education, health and wellness.

But her speech to a group of young women and men at Regina Mundi Church, which played a role in South Africa's anti-apartheid movement, touched on much harder topics: race, discrimination, democracy and development.

Obama, who is traveling with her mother and two daughters, cited the leaders of the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa and the civil rights movement in the United States as examples for the younger generation to follow.

"It is because of them that we are able to gather here today...It is because of them that I stand before you as First Lady of the United States of America," she said to applause.

Often I am even MORE impressed with our FLOTUS than I am with her husband.  Which is not to say that I am not impressed by President Obama, because I most certainly am impressed by much of what he has accomplished so far in his Presidency.

There is still so much yet to be done, but I have every confidence in his ability to do it.

(By the way you can see video of Michele Obama's speech in Johannesburg, as well as some truly amazing photographs, by visiting The Obama Diary.)

But here is one I simply could not resist posting myself.

45 comments:

  1. Anonymous10:08 AM

    how long before sarah finds something about this to ridicule?


    bill in belize

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  2. Can't help but contrast the Obama girls and the palin girls.

    What a shame about the palins.

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  3. Anonymous10:14 AM

    Love the Obama's..

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  4. Anonymous10:26 AM

    I can already hear the screams from Wasilla. Can't wait to see if she can keep her mouth shut for once about FLOTUS. Great story, very heartwarming. Must gall Sara that FLOTUS and family were in the neighborhood of Mandela and were invited over for a visit they never expected. He's as frail as Maggie but when Sara says she wants to visit Maggie she gets a resounding NO. See Sara, it says something when someone else is seen in a good light, with great children and they are truly ambassadors for our country (including you) instead of being a self absorbed media whore looking for a photo op. Kudo's to FLOTUS, can Gryph dig up some photo's of Sara's being welcomed by children with signs from her recent "vacation"?

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  5. Anonymous10:32 AM

    Yes we can!!!!

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  6. Anonymous10:34 AM

    Those pictures were so touching; I got teary-eyed. Thanks, Gryph.

    I contrast these photos with those of the bus.....Oh, never mind. It simply isn't worth mentioning the sharp contrast in style, grace and dignity.

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  7. Anonymous10:43 AM

    What sane person would rather have the half term governor's nasty, drunkard, ignorant family representing the country abroad rather than the beautiful, sophisticated Obama family? Maybe Bristol could tell Nelson Mandela about drinking wine coolers and getting bonked.

    Bill

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  8. Anonymous10:46 AM

    Amen to that . . .

    :")

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  9. Gasman10:50 AM

    Isn't curious how Nelson Mandela isn't seeking out a meeting with Sarah Palin. My suspicion is that Mandela couldn't give a fat rat's ass about Palin.

    He must be some kind of socialist, commie, Kenyan liberal.

    Can't you just imagine the pained look of abject discomfort on Palin's face if she took her "Dumbass Bus Tour" to Soweto?

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  10. Anonymous11:00 AM

    The Obama family is the best family we have ever had in the White House, at least in my lifetime. They are truly a loving, intelligent, compassionate couple that are raising their children with wonderful values and morals.

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  11. Anonymous11:02 AM

    I do love her-- she is really a class act 100%! She carries herself like a Danish queen-- regally, but like one of the people!

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  12. Thanks so much for this!

    The contrast could not be more striking.

    I am so very proud of the President and his family. Even if you disagree on policy, you still have to concede that he is a Good man, good father and good husband and their relationship is real and based on mutual respect.

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  13. Anonymous11:15 AM

    Barack and Michele continue to remind me of Jack and Jackie -- Camelot 2.

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  14. Anonymous11:17 AM

    BTW, where is sarah's tweet thanking President Obama for bringing home 33,000 troops from Afghanistan? ?

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  15. Anonymous11:18 AM

    Cute kids holding the "We Love You, Mrs. Obama!" signs. They are wearing winter clothing because it is the southern hemisphere and it would be similar to our December weather.
    Thanks for taking a break from all of the Palin negativity, Gryphen.

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  16. Anonymous11:26 AM

    Thank you Gryphen for posting this.

    The First Lady is an amazing woman; beautiful, intelligent & classy. She is beloved around the world.

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  17. I'm so pleased we can be proud of the First Family... it drove me crazy having the trashy Bush family representing us.

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  18. Anonymous11:32 AM

    They are such a classy family. They both come from working class families. Like most of us real Americans.

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  19. comeonpeople11:38 AM

    You know what strikes me about this post? I know Pres Obama has two beautiful girls, but i actually don't konw which one is Sasha and which is Malia. Because their parents keep them to as normal a life as possible and the girls are not all over the airwaves and internet. All I really need to know is that he has two beautiful young girls named Sasha and Malia whom I assume go to Sidwell. And their grandmom, whose name i do not know , lives with them to help with normalcy. Thats ALL I know. I think this is OK. I voted for Pres Obama, based on Obama's smart articulate self. Not based on his being a father to kids, or on his wife, his MIL, his high school sports history, his appearance or his religious beliefs.

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  20. angela11:44 AM

    Nice.

    I really respect the First Lady. She is a treasure who isn't afraid to be real. We need that. She does amazing work with young people and military families.

    I sometimes feel previous First Ladies were censured too much or maybe I just imagined there was so much more of their personality that they kept private (understandable). As far as being accessible and real-- I consider Michelle Obama and Betty Ford as the gold standard.

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  21. Anonymous11:54 AM

    Anonymous 11:15

    I grew up in the Kennedy era and in my mind the Obama family is head and shoulders above the Kennedy family. The Obamas did it on their own and are real. The Obamas did not have parents laying the ground work for them. Both Obamas are much more educated than the Kennedy's. Jack, especially, certainly had character issues. Jackie seemed to have married for money the second time around.

    There is no couple in the history of the country that can match the Obamas as role models.

    Bill

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  22. Anonymous12:03 PM

    There are so many positive examples out there in the country. There re 15 yr olds getting book deals to writeabout their conservative beliefs and why they love their country. There are people like Bristol who has the integrity to own her mistakes and provide her son with an amazing future. There is Chelsea CLinton, Jenna andBarbara who do so much good for the world in their own way. There are good people finally awaking to the beauty of their country andasking hard questions about the lies told by the current and past administrations.

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  23. Anonymous12:07 PM

    Michelle and her daughters are so classy!

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  24. ManxMamma12:25 PM

    I'm proud to have the First Family representing us anywhere and everywhere.

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  25. Michelle is divine. Sasha's adorable. Malia is going to be drop-dead gorgeous.

    And, they're such good role models for us all. Black, white, Asian, doesn't matter.

    Let's give 'em another four years in the White House!

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  26. Punkinbugg12:44 PM

    I doubt Sarah Palin even knows who Nelson Mandela is, or how significant it is that Michelle Obama and her girls were allowed to visit him. Sarah won't see past the color of their skin, and that's a shame.

    The good news is, MOST American women value the Obama's wholesome family, their class and most importantly: Good judgment.

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  27. Anonymous12:46 PM

    Anon 12:03 p.m.
    "There are people like Bristol who has the integrity to own her mistakes and provide her son with an amazing future."

    I just threw up on my keyboard.

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  28. Anonymous12:46 PM

    I am so very, very proud of President Obama and his beautiful family. We could not have a better family representing us!

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  29. laprofesora12:58 PM

    Anon@12:03

    I think you need to lay off the wine coolers.

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  30. Anonymous1:04 PM

    Thank you Gryphen for reminding of us of the good that is being done
    everyday. The focus, determination and good will that the Obama's consistently demonstrate should make us all proud.

    Michelle Obama is her husbands equal in everyway. She does have the luxury of being allowed to express herself more emotionally than he does. But they both are enormously generous and magnanimous people, and they love and care deeply about all Americans.

    We give to much space to haters, and to much volume to their voices's. They are not the majority of Americans. Let's expand what is good and positive, it's a choice that is ours to make.

    Namaste

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  31. Anonymous1:17 PM

    Anon, 12:03, you are a predictable a-hole.

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  32. Anonymous1:18 PM

    Anon @12:03 WTF.....Bristol Palin is a role model for teen aged girls? Can you begin to realize how others may not agree with your assessment. Can you clarify for me what the term conservative is definitive of. The label itself is significant of nothing to me. I would love to be enlightened by someone who incorporates "conservative" values into their daily life.

    What comments do you have to make about our current First Family? After all nothing in your comment relates to the content of this post? I'ld be interested to hear you express what you appreciate about our First family?

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  33. Anonymous1:23 PM

    12:03 ... Bristol Palin is not in any way in the same league with any of the presidential children you mentioned. She completely lacks integrity, bumping and grinding on the DWTS stage, using foul language online, blaming her former boyfriend for her own failures, three years later desperately needing to trash the McCain family in an effort to blame them for her mother's role in the loss of the election ... Bristol doesn't even begin to compare. She is her frustrated mother all over again.

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  34. Anonymous said...
    There are so many positive examples out there in the country. There re 15 yr olds getting book deals to writeabout their conservative beliefs and why they love their country. There are people like Bristol who has the integrity to own her mistakes and provide her son with an amazing future. There is Chelsea CLinton, Jenna andBarbara who do so much good for the world in their own way. There are good people finally awaking to the beauty of their country andasking hard questions about the lies told by the current and past administrations.
    12:03 PM
    -------------------------
    First, this thread is about our wonderful First lady. Why did you not mention her? How disrespectful of you and you clearly don't care about our country or you would recognize and acknowledge the wonderful things our FLOTUS is doing for this country and its people!

    Second, how dare you put Chelsea, Jenna and Barbara in the same group as Bristol, who did not "own" her mistakes but painted Levi as a cad who took advantage of her. And unlike the First Daughters mentioned above, trashy, slutty, foul-mouthed Bristol and her trailer-trash parents will never be anywhere near the White House.

    The Bush girls both matured into college-educated young ladies with careers and families who have stayed out of the papers since their father left office. They had a few rocky moments in adolescence, but their parents never tried to exploit them, rather they did their best to protect them as parents should, unlike Sarah.

    Chelsea of course has a world-class education and career; again she had caring, protective parents who protected her from the media glare and gave her every important advantage in life that they could.

    Bristol, like the rest of her loutish family, places no value on education, and has proven to be a lazy, stupid, foul-mouthed skank, who put her gross sexual escapades, including low-class prostitution into print, with no regard for the effect on her son.

    Also, try to recognize that all the people who see your stupid, ignorant remarks, also see the responses. You might be educating people to the truth about the Palins, but not in the way you think you are.

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  35. Anonymous2:32 PM

    Nefer

    Love your comment at 2:05. You also have a terrific list of blogs.

    Bill

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  36. Gryphen, I am really glad you posted this.

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  37. Anonymous2:55 PM

    I heard a report this week (I think on NPR) from someone who is traveling with the First Family. She mentioned how these trips are always learning trips for the 2 daughters who are often given "home work" to write reports on what they are learning.

    Quite a difference from Palin's bus trip....where even when they are supposedly "learning" about our own history, it's never really about learning anything!

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  38. Michelle Obama is by far the classiest woman I have ever seen. How do.we know the POTUS is smart? He marries HER!

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  39. Anonymous4:52 PM

    I am so proud that the Obama family is representing me and my country as they travel around the world.

    And as a teacher who works with inner-city children, I am so proud to hold this family up as role models for what hard work, perseverance and values can accomplish.

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  40. Anonymous4:53 PM

    What a couple of cutie-pies holding up those signs!

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  41. Anonymous5:16 PM

    I LOVE THE FIRST FAMILY!!! OBAMA 2012!

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  42. Mrs. Obama is one amazing woman! She has a brilliant, well-educated mind. She has presents as a warm, loving, caring person who is totally in synch with herself. (By contrast Hilary Clinton is also brilliant and well-educated, but sometimes comes across as a bit sharp edged.)The fact Nelson Mandela reached out to her is very significant. Mr. Mandela started a group called the Global Elders. This group of highly accomplished world leaders is focused on humanitarian efforts to benefit all of mankind. Jimmy Carter is the only American. I wonder if Mr. Mandela is seeing Mrs. Obama is a future member of the Global Elders in her own right. She has a very good start.

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  43. Anonymous8:14 PM

    She's exqisite, poised, intelligent, beautiful, enthusiastice, charismatic, and a very satisfied wife, mother and role model to many. She gave up so much to raise her daughters and support her man, and she's one of the best flotus's since Jackie Kennedy.
    Caught an interview when she was talking about Malia and Sasha while a clip was being played of them reading Seuss to the other kids.
    She was proud, beaming with delight, and felt blessed to have such wonderful children.

    No WONDER Sarah Palin loathes her!

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  44. Anne In DC10:49 AM

    The Obama family does us proud with their class and dignity, especially our First Lady. She is the perfect antidote to the likes of Simple Sarah and Moron Michele
    (Bachmann).

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