Comments on: Coming Soon: The O’Bama Heritage Center

By: Mauimom

Mauimom — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 21:18:59 +0000

The Irish–never missing an opportunity to cater to American tourists!

Or an opportunity to lift a glass?

By: freepatriot

freepatriot — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 21:17:36 +0000

Obama’s Irish ???

let’s hope it shows soon

he don’t LOOK Irish

(wink)

By: tejanarusa

tejanarusa — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:56:10 +0000

The attributes of the current prez’s and the incoming prex’s mothers couldn’t be more different, either. And that probably explains some things, too.

By: emptywheel

emptywheel — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:53:25 +0000

Hey

I even know a very Scottish MacKenzie–I think we voted his the nicest tartan at the Scottish wedding in May.

By: bobschacht

bobschacht — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:35:26 +0000

Several things about Obama’s Momma are instructive, I think:

As a math major, she was capable of the kind of rigorous mental discipline and logic that are a mathematicians’ stock in trade. Furthermore, in order to solve the kinds of problems you are given as a math major, you also need patience, insight, and creativity in grappling with problems that most people would give up on (However, ending a sentence with two prepositions is something mathematicians may put up with. *g*)

As an anthropologist, and as a woman who first married a Kenyan, and then an Indonesian, Obama’s momma was not only comfortable with cultural diversity, but she found it interesting– without any condescension whatsoever. Given her dissertation topic, she also valued culturally different ways of thinking and doing.

Since she home-schooled Obama and his sister Maya for some of their elementary school years while they were living in Indonesia, you can bet that they had ample opportunity to learn from their mother.

The contrast between Obama’s Momma and the attitudes of the Bush-Cheney government over the past 8 years is, I think, instructive. We are fortunate, I think, that our President-elect had such a mother.

Bob in HI

By: tejanarusa

tejanarusa — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:25:31 +0000

Heavens – I can’t believe I missed that!

By: skdadl

skdadl — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:25:20 +0000

I think the Irish are cannier about these things (luring back the tourists from teh colonies) than the Scots are, or maybe the Scots just take it more for granted that so many of us will be going over hunting clan roots. I have been asked whether there are still MacKenzies in Canada, which is one of the funniest questions I’ve ever had to hold a straight face for as I answered. Any MacDonalds would have been even funnier.

By: emptywheel

emptywheel — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:14:20 +0000

An old colleague of mine actually met Obama and his Momma in the UH Anthro program back in the day. Obama was just a kid, but the friend says nothing he’s seen from Obama has surprised him since.

By: bobschacht

bobschacht — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:04:51 +0000

Speaking of heritage, here’s a nice piece on O’Bama’s Momma:
Legacy of the President’s Mother. [I have been SO eager to find an excuse to write about “Obama’s Momma” in a comment, on grounds of euphony alone!]

It turns out that Obama’s Momma and I have a few things in common:
* We both got a degree in Math
* We both got a Ph.D. in Anthropology
* We both lived in Honolulu and were associated with the University of Hawaii

Of course, there are many differences, but the similarities give me a bit of insight into Obama’s Momma that many people don’t know. And I like to think that Obama benefitted greatly from having such a mother. As did his sister Maya, who is a force to be reckoned with in her own right.

Bob in HI

By: emptywheel

emptywheel — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 20:00:32 +0000

Yup. It had been in the press and mr. ew’s family still lives in the county (in the county seat, actually). So mr. ew and his parents and I hopped in the car to go take a pic of us at Moneygall.

I actually wanted it for this post–Obama basically sealed up the nomination on the same day as the TD (representative) from Offaly became Taoiseach (Prime Minister), so I was making some noise about how it was a big day for “BIFFOs” (the derogatory term they use for men from Offaly).