Girl’s Death Hits Home for Obama

[RamboLiberal]

WASHINGTON — President Obama is not known for showing a surplus of emotion in public, but toward the end of his speech at the University of Arizona, he paused for 51 seconds and appeared to gather himself.

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It was a stark moment for Mr. Obama, both as a president and as a father. This is a man who introduced himself to the nation with a memoir that explored how he was shaped by the absence of his own father, and it has been clear that he takes his role as a parent seriously.

On Wednesday evening, he made no explicit mention of either Sasha or her older sister, Malia. But they have been on his mind as he has grappled with how to respond to the shootings.

They have been on his wife’s mind, too. On Thursday, she posted an open letter on the White House Web site that said: “As parents, an event like this hits home especially hard. It makes our hearts ache for those who lost loved ones. It makes us want to hug our own families a little tighter. And it makes us think about what an event like this says about the world we live in — and the world in which our children will grow up.”

The president, friends said, was initially hesitant about calling Christina’s parents, Roxanna and John Green, after the shootings, saying that if it had happened to his daughters, he would not be capable of talking to anyone. He eventually did call the Greens, who buried their daughter on Thursday, and then met with them before his speech.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/14/us/14obama.html?_r=1&hp

[mucifer]

1. I think the situation was personal in the sense that President Obama probably

gets some very scary mail on a daily basis.

[JoePhilly]

5. And his daughter's have to have some awareness of the

hateful things the right wing says about him and Michelle.

[Pirate Smile]

2. Photo with the article:

[Raine1967]

3. ...

[eomer]

4. I wish he would pause and think about the children being killed senselessly because of his orders.

Those deaths say more, in my opinion, about "the world in which our children will grow up".

[impik]

6. Congrats. You just won "DU's Best Demagogy BS" award.

[eomer]

9. Civilian deaths from Obama's Predator drone program are real.

The children killed are real.

Meanwhile, the use of drones in this way was never considered by Congress and the use of any military force of any kind in places like Yemen was never authorized by Congress, unless you believe (which they didn't at the time) that they authorized endless war everywhere.

Further, the secrecy of the drone program prevents accountability mechanisms that are required by the laws of war and so it constitutes a war crime.

Finally (for now), the program creates more terrorists than it eliminates, because of the high level of civilian casualties. So the deaths are senseless.

[Autumn]

8. I agree, there are a lot of Fathers and Mothers

who are suffering the loss of a child.

[lunatica]

7. I'm sure the Obama's are no different than all parents in that regard

It would be shocking if he and Michelle didn't feel what all of us have felt.

[cags]

10. Except for Palin...she didn't even mention the girl... I really think her heart is black