Mark Morford: Is Obama an enlightened being?

[FourScore]

Is Obama an enlightened being?
Spiritual wise ones say: This sure ain't no ordinary politician. You buying it?
By Mark Morford, SF Gate Columnist

I find I'm having this discussion, this weird little debate, more and more, with colleagues, with readers, with liberals and moderates and miserable, deeply depressed Republicans and spiritually amped persons of all shapes and stripes and I'm having it in particular with those who seem confused, angry, unsure, thoroughly nonplussed, as they all ask me the same thing: What the hell's the big deal about Obama?

I, of course, have an answer. Sort of.

Warning: If you are a rigid pragmatist/literalist, itchingly evangelical, a scowler, a doubter, a burned-out former '60s radical with no hope left, or are otherwise unable or unwilling to parse alternative New Age speak, click away right now, because you ain't gonna like this one little bit.

Ready? It goes likes this:

SNIP

Here's where it gets gooey. Many spiritually advanced people I know (not coweringly religious, mind you, but deeply spiritual) identify Obama as a Lightworker, that rare kind of attuned being who has the ability to lead us not merely to new foreign policies or health care plans or whatnot, but who can actually help usher in a new way of being on the planet, of relating and connecting and engaging with this bizarre earthly experiment. These kinds of people actually help us evolve. They are philosophers and peacemakers of a very high order, and they speak not just to reason or emotion, but to the soul.

The unusual thing is, true Lightworkers almost never appear on such a brutal, spiritually demeaning stage as national politics. This is why Obama is so rare. And this why he is so often compared to Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., to those leaders in our culture whose stirring vibrations still resonate throughout our short history.

Are you rolling your eyes and scoffing? Fine by me. But you gotta wonder, why has, say, the JFK legacy lasted so long, is so vital to our national identity? Yes, the assassination canonized his legend. The Kennedy family is our version of royalty. But there's something more. Those attuned to energies beyond the literal meanings of things, these people say JFK wasn't assassinated for any typical reason you can name. It's because he was just this kind of high-vibration being, a peacemaker, at odds with the war machine, the CIA, the dark side. And it killed him.

Now, Obama. The next step. Another try. And perhaps, as Bush laid waste to the land and embarrassed the country and pummeled our national spirit into disenchanted pulp and yet ironically, in so doing has helped set the stage for an even larger and more fascinating evolutionary burp, we are finally truly ready for another Lightworker to step up.

Let me be completely clear: I'm not arguing some sort of utopian revolution, a big global group hug with Obama as some sort of happy hippie camp counselor. I'm not saying the man's going to swoop in like a superhero messiah and stop all wars and make the flowers grow and birds sing and solve world hunger and bring puppies to schoolchildren.

Please. I'm also certainly not saying he's perfect, that his presidency will be free of compromise, or slimy insiders, or great heaps of politics-as-usual. While Obama's certainly an entire universe away from George W. Bush in terms of quality, integrity, intelligence and overall inspirational energy, well, so is your dog. Hell, it isn't hard to stand far above and beyond the worst president in American history.

But there simply is no denying that extra kick. As one reader put it to me, in a way, it's not even about Obama, per se. There's a vast amount of positive energy swirling about that's been held back by the armies of BushCo darkness, and this energy has now found a conduit, a lightning rod, is now effortlessly self-organizing around Obama's candidacy. People and emotions and ideas of high and positive vibration are automatically draw to him. It's exactly like how Bush was a magnet for the low vibrational energies of fear and war and oppression and aggression, but, you know, completely reversed. And different. And far, far better.

Don't buy any of it? Think that's all a bunch of tofu-sucking New Agey bulls-- and Obama is really a dangerously elitist political salesman whose inexperience will lead us further into darkness because, when you're talking national politics, nothing, really, ever changes? I understand. I get it. I often believe it myself.

Not this time.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2008/06/06/notes060608.DTL&nl=fix

[TexasObserver]

1. I have to admit I'm in awe of him, and I gave up hero worship of politicians decades ago

I have never seen any Democrat organize a campaign like he has. It's simply never been seen. His ability to connect to audiences, to enthuse the public, to raise money, to pick good people, to make the smart move, to plan insightfully is simply amazing.

He's something very, very special, this little boy the world tossed us.

[MH1]

133. It's simply competence and synchronicity

plus the fact (luck? his main opponent pissing off a sizeable chunk of the party in 2006?) that some very good advisors signed onto his campaign.

It's just so rare to see it all come together like this, that it's no wonder it inspires awe.

[K Gardner]

2. I'm so glad somebody finally said this out loud ! Thanks for posting !!

[all.of.me]

37. Ditto!

I have been saying this for months. Obama is more highly evolved than any politician I have seen. He is a great example of how we all should be acting - acceptance, tolerance, not stooping to the level of negative people, not fighting back, remaining calm and thoughtful in all scenarios. He is amazing to me. I resonate with the way he treats others. I think the country is in for a huge spiritual overhaul, something we sorely need.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

3. This gets it:

But there simply is no denying that extra kick. As one reader put it to me, in a way, it's not even about Obama, per se. There's a vast amount of positive energy swirling about that's been held back by the armies of BushCo darkness, and this energy has now found a conduit, a lightning rod, is now effortlessly self-organizing around Obama's candidacy. People and emotions and ideas of high and positive vibration are automatically draw to him. It's exactly like how Bush was a magnet for the low vibrational energies of fear and war and oppression and aggression, but, you know, completely reversed. And different. And far, far better.

[kentuck]

4. I've been thinking along a similar line...

I was going to post something last night about whether we were looking at Barack Obama or Mahatma Gandhi? But I was too tired to attempt to put it into thoughts and words. Obama will be far from perfect but he is a very introspective, empathetic, and intelligent person. In contrast to the leadership we have had in the last few years, he does appear to be enlightened. But I have an anxiety about thinking such thoughts because there are dangers involved. I wish him the very best and may he always travel in safety and health.

[GreenEyedLefty]

5. The common denominator is "hope."

Hope is an innately high vibe kind of thing.

The Kennedys were all about making the world a better place (heck, still are for that matter) and I haven't seen any evidence of cynicism on any of their parts.

The times, they are a-changin'....

[crankychatter]

6. I don't believe in "enlightenment" and "hipper than thou" attention gurus

most folks spewing newage (rhymes with sewage) are as "enlightened" as the moles in my lawn

Obama's just a bright guy with a good moral foundation, education and ambition

I like him a lot

[ContinentalOp]

32. Amen

You couldn't have said it better.

[FourScore]

112. Perhaps some people responding to this post are unfamiliar with Morford's work. n/t

[The_Casual_Observer]

7. I'd be more apt to buy into this after he actually accomplished

more than winning a primary election.

[otohara]

48. This Wasn't Just Any PRIMARY Election

Gawd damn - he started out against tremendous odds and the most powerful couple in the Democratic party.

He changed the way money is raised and yesterday when he announced the DNC would no longer take PAC or lobby money was a bold move. I'd say he's is off to a hell of a start.

Winning this primary was an amazing accomplishment, sorry to see you can't see that, or is it won't?

[uberblonde]

8. Uh, and people still wonder where the "cultist" label comes from?

I suppose next we'll have the laying on of hands...

I don't like it when anyone brings this sort of thing into politics. It's dangerous. Remember how George Bush thought God wanted him to start a war?

Don't even go there.

[Celebration]

15. well, Obama makes NO such claims, that is the difference

It cannot be denied that he is charismatic. Some people find that offensive (those who say his followers are cultists) and other people find it very positive (me, for instance).

So, for all the anti-woos out there, a better way of putting this is that he is charismatic, and incredibly talented. I have to admit I am pretty amazed at the way he has assembled his team and led them, listened to them, mostly, but also made his own judgments, like the speech on race, when he needed to make them.

His instincts are right on, and he is a real leader.

I think we have an amazingly talented individual here, whether one calls him a "light worker" or not.

[EstimatedProphet]

18. Yes, he is very charismatic and talented

And that's substantially different than calling him a "lightworker". The first is an honest recognition of his abilities, the second is a destructive delusion.

[KittyWampus]

22. what exactly do you think charisma is? It's those who light up a room. Some people

selfishly use their charisma to get what they want to satisfy their own personal ego.

Others channel their charisma to help others- LIGHTWORKERS

This isn't too difficult to grasp. There's nothing "woo-woo" about it.

[EstimatedProphet]

25. And here all this time I thought charisma was an aspect of personality!

[KittyWampus]

33. it is, now you've gotten the point. Huzzah! ANYONE can be an "Enlightened Being"

at any moment.

Many of us exhibit Enlightenment here and there throughout our lives.

A few of us do much more consistently.

A VERY few are constantly Enlightened.

A big part of it is where we find our motivations.

[EstimatedProphet]

36. Good! Then quit trying to call it "lightworker"!

Just live with the fact that he is a person with a lot of charisma and talent!

[MorningGlow]

41. Definition of "lightworker"

Please see my post downthread: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=6300238&mesg_id=6301080

I think this is a semantics argument that needs clarification.

[KittyWampus]

44. thanks Morning Glow, I'd like your little signature emoticon

[MorningGlow]

47. Thanks!

I got it from Ashling.

It's at snitchseeker.com.

[stellanoir]

64. Light = consciousness

In his desire and proclivity to elevate the level of the national discussion and transcend "old politics," his masterful ability to dodge the virtual "kitchen sink," and not leap into the mud of the Rovian gutter, he's brought more consciousness and thoughtfulness for all of us.

Some of the people in my life who've inspired greater consciousness and awareness in me have been very ostensibly simple in outward circumstances, and would never describe themselves as spiritual. They don't have to because they just are.

Real & true lightworkers are generally humble and they are not hierarchical or exclusionary at all. It's not based on the who's who of the chosen few or anything remotely like that.

It's not about deification, It's about the immeasurably elusive substance of inspiration of which we all can strive to create more.

[otohara]

49. Proud Member of The Cults of MLK, RFK, JFK, Jesus Christ

Nelson Mandela. Occasionally ordinary people who come from ordinary backgrounds to do extraordinary things.

Obama is no GWB and will not use the "God" thing to do evil things.

[kdpeters]

66. He warned hopeless burned out hippies to click away, but you read it anyway.

Now here you go seeking company for your misery. Lame, dude. Lame.

[QC]

74. We already have the laying on of hands, and even Apostolic Succession!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=4057783

[Kool Kitty]

92. I think the "cultist" label came from Hillary supporters.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

9. Interesting

It could be, though I always thought of Kucinich as being one of the Lightworkers. It will be interesting to see what happens in the Obama Administration--you are known by your works--even Lightworkers. :)

[KittyWampus]

10. Obama exhibits the POSITIVE manifestation of Ego. He really does serve the Common Good

And that Central Core that all Humanity shares is the Estoteric, Qabalistic concept called Adonai, Krishna, Christ.

In esoteric circles, all religions are just variations on the One Thing. And they all are quite clear that Christ-Consciousness is attainable by us all.

Although a "lesser" reflection of that energy, one we are more likely to attain or encounter is the Chasidim. Blessed people who practice benevolence at all times and have the power to heal.

So we don't really have to get too "New Agey". We are talking about the energy whose manifestation in the Natural World is the Sun. The energy that our entire planet is made of. And how that crops up in humans.

[Guaranteed]

11. Our culture is undergoing a massive shift, right here and now.

Bring on the Lightworkers.

[Teaser]

12. oh god no...

"low vibrational energies"

please, New Agers, stop appropriating terms from physics that you don't understand...

[Barack_America]

13. There's something to him...

You can see it in the way kids react to him.


But for some reason (and as much as I support him), I don't swoon. But, in general, politicians don't make me swoon. Only my Michigan Dems really make me swoon.

[EstimatedProphet]

14. Oh for God's sake this is ridiculous

Obama is a POLITICIAN. Probably a good one, but still - that's what he is. He's not the Second Coming of Christ, or a manifestation of the Dalai Lama. Set his bar too high and he will fail, guaranteed, and it will be your fault.

People that are placed on too high a pedestal tend to shatter when they fall off.

[AuntPatsy]

16. I wholeheartedly agree, this is dangerous thinking seriously.

[KittyWampus]

19. Who said he was the second coming of christ? You missed the entire point

[EstimatedProphet]

21. No, you missed the entire point

Taking his natural skills and talents and trying to make something supernatural out of them is cultism.

[KittyWampus]

26. there's nothing supernatural about charisma. There's nothing supernatural about those

who use their charisma for the Common good as opposed to those who use it for their own selfish enjoyment.

And it always makes me laugh when people use the terms "supernatural".

Talking about anything other than mere physicality makes some so uncomfortable.

[EstimatedProphet]

31. That's right. There isn't.

Charisma is perfectly natural. So why then try to turn it into his being attuned to higher vibrations? Or claim that Bush used lower vibrations? When you reference things like that, you are putting them in supernatural terms. Plus, you are setting a bar for him that he won't be able to reach.

[Why Syzygy]

58. It is due to

light being the highest visible 'vibration' (energy emissions) and darkness having none.

[Bill McBlueState]

82. Light comes in a variety of frequencies

Violet light has a higher frequency than red light. Blue light has a higher frequency than yellow light.

The highest frequency of visible light is about twice the lowest frequency of visible light, so what you said about light having the "highest visible vibration" is kind of confusing.

[Why Syzygy]

102. I know.

[H2O Man]

119. I agree. We are all

the second coming. Obama isn't super-natural. He is natural. He is part of the ocean of humanity. The OP isn't saying anything other than that with all of his faults and human weaknesses, Obama is a good representative of our human family. His most important attribute is that he conveys the message that everyone in this country can make an important contribution to the human family by working to meet their best potential.

[otohara]

55. You Don't Know That

and on occasion ordinary people come along to do extraordinary things. What better way to do good things in the 21st century than by becoming a powerful politician. JFK, RFK, Mandella, MLK, Mandella, Gandhi and that guy Jesus were/are special human beings. Obviously you don't think so.

[EstimatedProphet]

73. No, you clearly don't understand what I am saying

He may do extraordinary things as president. I hope he does. Calling him an enlightened being is a form of worship. Worshipping people leads to the destruction of both the people and their followers. "Special" has a substantial different meaning from "enlightened".

[otohara]

96. It's Only 8 Years

I'm ready to follow if he leads us out of this mess.

gObama - See you in Denver

[grantcart]

116. he may have an "enlightened" ego and by that I do not mean that he possesses

any spiritual powers but simply the ability to perceive his own relationship to experience and is able to transcend the normal way of looking at things to a more objective point of view.

No new age but actually old age Lao Tzu and Confuscious and ultimately Buddha. Yet I share with you an extremely apprehensive concern about this thread and similar ones because understanding 'mindfulness' is not a flaky comic book spiritualism but a very disciplined way of looking at people and information.

Ironically when we start to apply such labels to individuals we tend to lose objectivity and build up adoration that goes to your point of raising expectations unrealistically.

Obama says it clearly - I am imperfect and I make mistakes. Which is both true and reflects the fact that he is able to look at himself very objectively.

I would say that he is 'enlightened' in the same way that Roosevelt was enlightened. He could think clearly at several levels at the same time and also understood the general sweep of history a couple of years before others do.

There are two points that show Obama has an uncommon level of an enlightened perspective:

1) Three years ago he could see a path to the nomination and election despite no one else would have given him a chance - especially given the Clintons hold on power.

2) Once he got into the campaign he exerted tremendous mental discipline to keep the campaign on track.

These qualities give him special leadership qualities, not spiritual ones.

[TexasObserver]

130. No, you don't understand what YOU are saying.

You think that YOUR labels are valid and those labels others use are not.

Here's a clue: You're one guy and you have some opinions. Those opinions on this topic are certainly not better informed that those of others here, and certainly not more correct.

You continually try to posit a false premise - that being an enlightened being means being a deity or something similar. That is not what anyone here is saying.

A man can be a politician and an enlightened being. Your views and opinions are not dispositive of these issues. They're just your opinions, and you're just one guy who is trapped by his prejudices and limited vocabulary.

[EstimatedProphet]

134. It is exactly what people are saying

They are putting Obama's charisma in mystical terms. They're doing it all over GD: P. And at the same time they are trying to claim they are not. I KNOW my labels are valid and yours are fanatical.

[TexasObserver]

135. Once again, you're tilting at straw men.

Here's the reality. You don't know for a certainty whether ANYTHING you believe is true or not. You don't know if any of your spiritual beliefs have any basis in reality. They may all be delusions.

The best you can ever say about such matters is "this is my opinion, but what do I know?"

[TexasObserver]

129. There's no reason he can't be considered at least as enlightened as the Dalai Lama

How is the Dalai Lama any more laudatory than the Pope? They're both old men appointed by other old men, whose job it is to pretend to be something more special than ordinary men.

Both the DL and the Nazi Pope are at the top of fascist, feudal organizations that take advantage of ignorant peasants the world over.

And there's that thing of the DL being on the CIA's payroll.

As so called holy leaders go, the DL is better than most, but he's still simply a man, and like all men, he tends to believe the bullshit that tells him he's more special than he is.

From what I've seen of both men, I conclude that Obama is a much more enlightened person than the Dalai Lama.

[BlooInBloo]

17. There are few things in this world I hate more than Castenada-style bullshit....

But nevertheless, it's obvious that Obama certainly has SOMETHING.

[EstimatedProphet]

20. How about charisma and talent? Isn't that enough?

Hopefully it is, because if it isn't - look what happened to Christ.

[BlooInBloo]

23. In addition to the rest of his laundry-list of good qualities, yup.

[FredStembottom]

24. oh my.....this was too icky for me........ until.............

"But there simply is no denying that extra kick. As one reader put it to me, in a way, it's not even about Obama, per se. There's a vast amount of positive energy swirling about that's been held back by the armies of BushCo darkness, and this energy has now found a conduit, a lightning rod, is now effortlessly self-organizing around Obama's candidacy."

Call it the FDR factor.

The more I read about that most enlightened of all American presidencies, the more I have come to see that it was FDR's personal charm and magnetism that allowed the intense, almost desperate hopes of the Americans of that time to find an outlet that changed everything.

Me? I'm the poster-boy for Good Government types. Just good, fair, egalitarian policies, please.
They can be stated by a little elf of a guy with funny hair (Kucinich) for all I care.... if it's good, progressive policy, I'm excited.

But this Obama thing coincides almost exactly with what I have sensed in my FDR studies.

The right person can help set us free to do the heavy lifting and coalesce into greatness.

:patriot:

[kentuck]

29. Basically, that is the heart of it.

People have been hopeless. Just as they were hopeless during the Great Depression but this time, they were hopeless for other reasons. We have been led deeper and deeper into the darkness and people were looking for someone to strike a match.

[FredStembottom]

38. An important distinction, Kentuck.

I appreciate that small, but significant, distinction you just made.

"this time..... hopeless for other reasons"

It is cheerful to think that this spontaneous response we're all talking about here today can occur for new reasons.
That Americans can rally against new problems we've never contended with before (near-fascism, basically).
That the response to the Great Depression wasn't a one-off (knock wood).

[Shakespeare]

54. Bingo. Those who are icked-out need to re-read that part.

A month or so ago, I posted a link to a long Tikkun piece which makes a similar argument. This is much more about us than it is about Obama.

[asthmaticeog]

27. "spiritually advanced people" = "perilously hubristic woowoos"

[KittyWampus]

43. spiritually advanced people = people working for humanity's welfare

so your slur comes across as really immature.

[knixphan]

45. seconded.

[MorningGlow]

70. thirded n/t

[asthmaticeog]

62. Gazing into crystal balls and shuffling tarot cards helps humanity's welfare how?

And as for your accusation that I'm immature, no child would say "perilously hubristic." So come on.

[MorningGlow]

71. Who said anything about crystal balls or tarot cards?

You're reaching, Asthmaticeog--ascribing way too much to what's actually being said.

However, you do have an impressive vocabulary, I'll give you that! :D

[asthmaticeog]

75. I see a gooey new-age bullshit OP. How am I reaching?

This shit's gonna happen when you guys wander out of the safe confines of your DU group where nobody's allowed to disagree with you.

[MorningGlow]

86. Well, that's just not nice

So much of this thread has consisted of posts explaining that what Morford is talking about, a "lightworker", is a person working for the higher good of all humankind. Nobody mentioned crystal balls or tarot cards until you brought it up; I call that reaching, as "lightworkers" have existed throughout time under different names, and not at all linked to what you term "gooey new-age bullshit".

Asthmaticeog, you don't seem to be the type of person to visit "our DU group" (whichever one you're referring to) so you'd actually know what is discussed there. However, of course you are more than welcome to check out the forums discussing alternate belief systems to find out what exactly is meant when "lightworkers" are discussed.

[asthmaticeog]

90. Or, you could climb aboard reality.

You don't get to keep insisting that Obama is a "lightworker" and a spiritually advanced being all while claiming claiming that you aren't talking a pantload of new-age shit. You can keep playacting like you're some kind of voice of reason on this thread, but you're advocating reason's opposite.

[MorningGlow]

99. Okay, you know what? Not a productive discussion.

Personal insults? Not cool, not a reasonable argument, not enlightened :evilgrin:, and not, NOT nice. I've tried to be polite to you; too bad you can't do the same. Peace.

[asthmaticeog]

106. Fine. Nice chattin'. Enjoy all the pretendin' you can have your cake and eat it too. nt

[Phillycat]

77. A-motherfucking-MEN.

[blindpig]

98. can I recommend this post? n/t

[tbyg52]

28. I don't care what you call it or how you explain it - I like it! nt

[info being]

30. It isn't so much whether or not Obama is or is not like this...

...I think he is. I think he's a good person. I think anybody, around the world, would agree with this sentiment.

But if he is actually able to accomplish anything in a sustained way, over the long-term, I'll seriously have to start re-assessing my political views and my understanding about how our world works.

What we are looking at is the battle between human goodness and systemic reality. Today's legal and corporate systems are designed in a way that they naturally lead to certain ends. If someone tries to get in their way, they are designed to destroy that person and keep on going.

So I don't know...I still think that humans are living as a type of cancer on this planet, and it isn't so much that we are inherently evil as that we are governed by amoral systems which are designed to achieve ends that are not consistent with life. If Obama can change any of this, if he can stop the murder and destruction, then everything I've learned will have to be re-learned.

I'm in there with the rest of you, willing to give this a try. But I think that somewhere deep down we still know the reality and we know the outcome.

[MorningGlow]

34. Makes sense to me

My guard was up about Obama for a very long time, because I was worried that he was all smoke and mirrors, and behind that we'd see that he was Just Another Politician. Since then he has proved me wrong, and I truly believe that he has the nation's best interest at heart.

The bottom line is that it's now time for this nation to choose which path it wants to travel in the future: that of darkness, fear, and dirty dealings (in other words, business as usual) with McCain, or the enlightened path, with Obama. And that's not "woo-woo", it's what we talk about every day here on DU, what Democrats stand for: taking care of others--in our own country and around the world--and helping everyone, not just ourselves, to acquire a better, more peaceful, more comfortable, more peaceful lifestyle.

So...have we tipped the balance? Are enough people ready to take that leap? Fingers crossed that we are. If we end up with McCain and business as usual, our country, and indeed this world, won't survive for very much longer.

[BuelahWitch]

61. I wish I could rec a post MG

:hi: I was skeptical about Obama too, but now I'm thinking he's the Real Deal. Have no problem seeing him as a Lightworker.

[MorningGlow]

63. Thanks so much, CFF!

:hi:

[iiibbb]

35. I'd be careful about such characterizations

Obama is a man. A smart man. Someone who's probably right for this country at this point.

But try to deify him and you'll get people thinking he's the Anti-christ.

[MorningGlow]

40. Nobody said "deify"

The term "lightworker" is used to denote any REGULAR person who has the world's best interests at heart and tries to act in a "Christlike" (or Gandhi-like or Buddha-like) manner. In "New Agey woo woo" circles, it's acknowledged that there are millions of lightworkers throughout the world. Think "nice people whose actions reflect the compassion in their hearts".

[ContinentalOp]

39. Obama is sooo NOT woo woo.

If you've had any experience with those people (and I have) you can clearly see he's not one of them. He's certainly no cult leader or guru. And if he were he would hardly have the broad appeal he has now.

Obama is practical, down to earth, and realistic. He has a great instinct for what Americans are feeling right now and how to tap into it. In that sense he's more like the kind of person who would make a great, timely artist, writer or musician. He uses a lot of upbeat inspirational language but beneath that he has a strong understanding of the practical realities of politics and what needs to get done. In that sense he's the direct opposite of Clinton who frequently used a negative and even pessimistic tone while being somewhat politically tonedeaf and displaying a surprisingly naive understanding of the mechanics of a political campaign.

[otohara]

42. I Believe He Is Special - Thanks In Part by His Feminist MOM

and loving grandmother who must be quite a woman to have raised such remarkable people.

[knixphan]

46. the match is struck!

Bring the kerosene.

GOBAMA!

(and go Mark Morford)

[anonymous171]

50. I usually despise new age stuff, but this is an exception!

:thumbsup:

[harun]

51. Enlightened? I don't know if I would call it that. But it does seem he has

a good sense of who is on the right side of the issues.

[SalviaBlue]

52. Morford did add this caveat:

"Warning: If you are a rigid pragmatist/literalist, itchingly evangelical, a scowler, a doubter, a burned-out former '60s radical with no hope left, or are otherwise unable or unwilling to parse alternative New Age speak, click away right now, because you ain't gonna like this one little bit."

Perhaps he was speaking to some here who reject his terminology (lightworker, enlightened, higher/lower vibration).

[Eurobabe]

53. K&R

[RandomKoolzip]

56. "Lightworker"?? Dude, that's fucking woo-woo up the wazoo.

Gawd, I hate that soft-headed new age bullshit. Obama is a skilled, handsome, articulate politician who is in the right place at the right time. "Lightworker," my ass.

[MorningGlow]

60. Sigh. Semantics.

Please see my post upthread regarding the definition of "lightworker": http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x6300238#6301080

[RandomKoolzip]

67. The whole concept is woo-woo.

If one were a retrograde Eurocentric elitist, you might call the whole concept the "Great Man" theory. In fact the "lightworker" notion seems like "Great Man" elitism dressed up in crystal-rubbing new age garb. Either way, it's nonsense.

I wish DUers and many other liberals were more open to materialism, i.e. seeing the universe as it really is (y'know, that whole 'reality" thing). This soft-headed new age crap alienates so many voters and undergirds an unfortunate liberal stereotype.

[MorningGlow]

69. Really?

So if the columnist had described Obama as having "Christian values", would you call that "woo woo" and "softheaded" as well? Because it's the exact same thing: concern for all humankind and embodying compassion and acting on it. A kind person by any other name, in other words. (Talking about true Christianity as opposed to the twisted version espoused by so many churches.)

Being a Democrat doesn't mean we have to eschew anything and everything spiritual and label it "weak" and "unrealistic". But if you feel that way, then never our twain shall meet, RKZ.

[RandomKoolzip]

76. I'd call it a "compromise."

Like it or not (I don't), espousing Christian dogma WILL shore up support for a presidential candidate in America. As an atheist, I thin k the whole thing stinks, HOWEVER, I'm talking pragmatism here: presenting Obama as a church-going regular guy helps working-class and middle-of-the-road voters relate to him, while putting the "lightworker" robe on the guy will assist in reigning in the crystal-licking astral travelling chakra-aligning vote. The former voter bloc is much larger than the latter and hence more important. Again, talking pragmatism, not intellectual consistency. Both of 'em are full of shit, IMO, but I understand it's necessary to appeal to one of the two, and to distance oneself from the other, in order to get votes. That's just how it is.

Apart from all that, though, I seriously think new age stuff is just damn silly. I can be compassionate without having to believe in God, Allah, Shirley mcClaine, Ramtha, etc. Empathy does not flow exclusively from any received cosmology - it flows from an honest materialism as well.

[ContinentalOp]

80. You hit the nail on the head RandomKoolzip -nt-

[MorningGlow]

85. And that's one of the problems with this country

Even though we're supposed to be nondenominational, only Christianity seems to get a pass, sometimes to excess, like with the Repubs.

Regarding talking about Obama as a lightworker--you have to realize that this is what Mark Morford is about. He understands what "lightworker" means, as does his regular audience, and many of his columns talk about similar things. That was why he included his disclaimer for eye-rollers to bail out early before reading the entire column. So it's not like we're all running around telling the general populace that Obama is a lightworker or anything, but instead that he's the best person for the job. And I think in the long run that's all we need to focus on.

However, I know what a lightworker is, and I personally believe he is one. However (again), that does not mean that I am going to hang all my hopes on his magically fixing this country, because, as Morford says, he can't, won't, and shouldn't be expected to do that.

Also, nobody said compassion and empathy is exclusive to people who have a particular belief system. In fact, lightworkers are not exclusively a New Age concept (see Ghandi reference again--and "a kind person by any other name"). IMO, you are perfectly within your right to feel free to think New Age stuff is silly; I'm a witch, and our main tenet is "An it harm none, do (and believe) what thou wilt"--live and let live, in other words--which I've found to be a very healthy attitude to take (reduces blood pressure, that's for sure). All I ask is that you respect my (and others') belief that Obama is a higher-thinking person who is the best person to lead this country.

[Solon]

78. No, but I would call that an offensive slap against all non-Christians...

Here's a newsflash, you can be a moral person who embodies compassion and NOT be a Christian. Anyone who uses Christian as an adjective to describe kindness or generosity is basically saying that Non-Christians act the opposite. Its a bigoted statement, but I'm not surprised people use it, even on this board.

[MorningGlow]

87. ...What?

Can you explain your post, please? I hope you don't mean I was being offensive. I'm not a Christian (as you can probably tell from my sig pic), and I was using the standard "acceptability" of Christianity as an example of how lopsided acceptance is of various religions. :shrug:

[Solon]

88. Its the religious equivalent of using the phrase "How White of you."

Which was, of course, a racist remark, even though it is used as a compliment. The implication being that behaving like a white person is some sort of positive in itself.

[MorningGlow]

89. I hope you understand that I didn't use it that way

But I used it as an example of how calling someone Christian IS acceptable in this country, while calling someone a lightworker is not. Because I'm a witch, that double standard turns my stomach, just as the lie that this country was founded as a Christian nation, as if Christians are the only decent people in the world.

[Solon]

95. I think I understand, I disagree about Obama being a "lightbringer" however its defined...

simply because its not proven yet that he is anything other than a typical(Moderate) Democratic Politician. I don't see much that is endearing about him.

[ContinentalOp]

110. your claim...

that "calling someone Christian IS acceptable in this country, while calling someone a lightworker is not" is ridiculous. If somebody is a self proclaimed "lightworker" then you're free to call them that. On the other hand a Muslim might take offense if you told them "that's mighty Christian of you." The point is that Obama is not a "lightworker." He doesn't claim to be one and he's not, like you, a witch so why would you use this language to describe him?

Personally I think Obama is the Übermensch.

[arikara]

105. Just because you can't see something

doesn't mean it isn't there.

[RandomKoolzip]

107. Just because all facts, science, and empiricism dictate something's non-existence

doesn't mean it secretly exists.

Wow, I didn't know living in a wish-fulfillment fantasy world was so "rebellious!"

[EstimatedProphet]

108. Just because you believe in something doesn't mean it is there, too

[Qutzupalotl]

136. Except when it comes to concepts.

Concepts are mental constructs, but they exist. Liberty, justice, freedom -- these exist, as ideas. The ideas are formed from a shared belief in the concept. So in this case, believing in these ideals brings the into existence, as thoughts. The converse is also true, that believing they do not exist causes them not to exist in one's world.

The spiritual world is simply another name for the realm of moral choices we make every day. We don't "see" it, but we experience it.

[PATRICK]

57. Shows transparent

thoughtfulness and REASON with all the right values if not the godlike right solutions. That often shows up in televised debates, how Dems value internal reasoning before simple-minded sophistry, even if they get get tripped up for it. That is genuineness and its brave, open "weakness". What you see is most often what you get, no operative deception to the contrary.

A real debate and interaction with the presidency is now possible, the few points of opinion obduracy or choice notwithstanding.

Starry eyed, false flag mythic Dictatorship is over. Democratic open government begins.

[undeterred]

59. Yes, he is a 'lightworker'.

And the fact that children/young people picked up on it early is a testimony to this.

[calmblueocean]

65. This is just as terrifying -- maybe more -- as fundies thinking Bush was sent by God.

When you start making our presidents and other political leaders into quasi-religious figures, you put the country at risk. It doesn't matter whether it's Christian fundamentalists believing Bush talks to God, or New Agers believing Obama is a "lightworker". All it serves to do is allow people to excuse them when they do bad things, because how could God's chosen president/lightworker ever do something to harm the country?

Freedom requires vigilance, not faith.

[RichardRay]

68. The term 'Enlightenment'

A ways back up there a posted kvetched about using terms from physics without understanding them. I would also suggest that using terms like 'enlightenment' and 'karma' without understanding them is no less fraught. Those are not random terms, but because so few people know what they do mean they tend to get bandied about with great enthusiasm, and then rejected with at least equal enthusiasm.

'Enlightenment' is a much more modest concept than people want to make it out to be. Buddha's repeated advice to to reject teachings if the only reason given for acceptance was their being his words. Buddhism, in general, cheerfully abandons its explanations for physical phenomenon when science comes up with a better explanation. There is no personal benefit to managing to experience enlightenment, and the impact of 'enlightened' thinking on George Bush, while real, substantial and, indeed, inevitable, would likely not be what politicians or political workers of any stripe would expect.

I don't now where the term 'lightworker' comes from, I do know that there are a lot of folks around who at least attempt to behave with the altruistic intention to support an end to suffering. I don't see any specific evidence that Barack Obama is working from that perspective, but he's not working to promote suffering, so he gets my vote.

Let's not even start on 'karma' - it's a real handful :-).

[LeftyMom]

72. Drugs are bad, mmmkay?

:wtf:

[Phillycat]

79. WTF? "Lightworker"? Is he an electrician?

This is so very stupid. :rofl:

[ContinentalOp]

81. Obama is clearly a Subgenius

Clinton and McCain are as pink as they get.

[asthmaticeog]

83. But did Obama send in his $30? 'Cuz if not, he's still pink to "Bob."

QED.

[ContinentalOp]

91. Evidence:

[asthmaticeog]

94. I love it.

So is that pipe packed with hope, or just 'frop?

[ContinentalOp]

104. I'm sure it's packed with the kind of shamanistic ethnobotanicals that lightworkers prefer.

Or, you know... sweet sweet cocaine.

[Book Lover]

113. I have had my epiphany!

Holy shit! That is effing ... perfect.

[blogslut]

115. Ack!

Yoink! Mine!

Subgenius since 1984.

PS: It is bigger than Obama. We are ready and we have found our catalyst. That is all.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

84. Enlightenment is like a box of chocolates

except it's invisible and you can't eat it.

[madaboutharry]

93. I think that there are people who are

more evolved than others. I don't know what to think of Obama sometimes. He sometimes reminds me of an old wise man. Someone who has lived a thousand years and understands humanity more than others. He is a rather calm and centered man. Who knows. I think he has the qualities of a great leader.

on edit: No one is perfect. It take him a long time to pay his parking tickets.

[undergroundpanther]

97. I think obama

knows what an abuse of power is,and it's toxic effects on society culture and individual lives..

I think he knows colonization process is painful and wrong.

I think he has really good social skills.

I think he knows exactly what he is up against.

I think he also has a plan to stop the abuses.

He has a vision based in his understanding of how the world IS,and how it shouldn't be.

To some they might call that"light-work" or say Obama is an "enlightened being".


To me it says he sees the problem knows what is behind it's"mask" of sanity and he isn't going to let the abuses go un-accounted for. He is a person with an INNER locus of control,(a rare thing these days )He has a sense of what integrity MEANS to his own understanding and how it may effect the world,and he has a grasp of the meaning of CONTEXT when it concerns bad or good things for the country.He knows his limits. .He is a person who IS in touch with the suffering inside himself and all around himself,and he doesn't seem to hide in fantasy land or cynic land.Obama does not have the just world hypothesis operating in his mind or his actions(like many "light-workers" do without realizing it and how dangerous such beliefs can be when it comes to issues of justice) Obama isn't afraid to STAND UP ,speak out loud the pain he sees in others and feels for ,and say it skillfully against the colonialists,corporatist and bully thugs in this world and say no YOU don't..DO that ,it is wrong,abusive..

In other words he is intelligent so he THINKS,and he seems to have a empathy so he FEELS at the same time he experiences and he tries to understand it without cutting off one or the other or going into denial..

This makes him appear "enlightened"to some I guess.
But it's not enlightened, it is a deep awareness, of ones inner landscape,inner locus of control, will,passion,all coupled with the realistic assessment of the way the world is.

He isn't "enlightened" per se,he found his own inner locus of control and learned how to balance it. Obama knows deeply what his own intention and will is.It is important he use his intentions and will skillfully when he acts with power , to do it without abusing power,He becomes an anti colonization force through his own self awareness ,experiences and awareness of how the world is,and how it hurts.This way he can become a catalyst of change for the positive if he stays true to his will, and is magnified in the public sphere.It will be as is any trait can be magnified in a candidate who is in politics and using media to get his messages out there..Obama from what I see is wisely moving his will in a self aware way within a distrusting,cynical,hurting abused society living on a fractured dying planet.I think Obama can do alot of good changes if he keeps his inner locus of control tight with his will. I for one welcome these changes..

[burythehatchet]

100. It is truly fascinating to read the replies and comments

One can readily determine those who aspire to common good, and those whose lives will be spent in the spiritual darkness.

[ContinentalOp]

103. Your comment is funny...

because it could be interpreted either way!

[burythehatchet]

109. Of course. We each live in our own realities, after all.

[dougkeenan]

101. Leave it to Morford to disturb a few crackpots n/t

[FourScore]

111. I take it most of those responding to this post are unfamiliar with Morford's work.

BTW, dougkeenan, welcome to DU!

:hi:

[2rth2pwr]

114. Bookmarking thread for time capsule.

[NightOwwl]

117. Magical

That's the word I used to describe him the other day when I was talking to my mom.

It seems I'm not the only one who feels this way.

[Kaleko]

118. Obama acts as a catalyst.

A unique combination of talents and wounds makes him into a powerful galvanizing force.

As they say, those who have eyes to see and ears to hear...

they will pick up the call to come together over him, not under him,

and do whatever it takes to make this old sinking ship seaworthy again.

[kentuck]

120. This part concerns me...

"Those attuned to energies beyond the literal meanings of things, these people say JFK wasn't assassinated for any typical reason you can name. It's because he was just this kind of high-vibration being, a peacemaker, at odds with the war machine, the CIA, the dark side. And it killed him."

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

121. That's Some Creepy Shit. Some People Need To Get A Grip.

Looooooooooonyyyyyyyyyyyyy

[Shakespeare]

127. Don't read Morford much, do you?

It's just his vernacular. Don't read so much into it.

[BigBluenoser]

122. Seriously.. you are going to be dissapointed...

As president, Obama will play the game of political realism. Military and intelligence covert (and "illegal") ops will continue, wars will continue (and no doubt involving the USA), people will continue to die. Obama WILL approve or produce these orders. Sure we all hope that under President Obama's reign that such things will be diminished in comparison to the last 8 years, but this stuff is still going to happen.

Obama will continue the path of US economic & military dominance. He can do nothing else.

Lets face it. If you want to call him a "lightbringer" (edit: lightworker... so silly of me) or whatever, fine. But he will commit acts that are considered by many to be evil and immoral and harmful to life. He will will not transcend the system, nor will he revolutionize it from within.

As an atheist who is pretty much a single issue voter (keep your God away from me) I find this article to be as frightening as a lot of the stuff I see from the right. Sure you can say I do not understand the "terminology" and so on, just like the thumpers can tell me I have not fully "understood" the bible. I reject spirituality of all forms in favour of the material human condition. Sorry.

PS... none of the above is a critique of Senator Obama. While as a recent immigrant, I cannot vote in this election, I am hoping to hell he wins so we can undo the damage the fundie thumpers have done to this country and so that we can repeal all the acts Bush put in place limiting human freedom.

Cheers.


Edit: yes I did read the article all the way through where the author sweeps the concept of compromise under the spiritual rug so that we realize we can not achieve nirvana via Obama. But lets face it... It is just a necessary "of course" paragraph so that the author can claim some tie to the planet earth.

[Arkana]

123. Obama's not the Messiah, he's not Jesus,

and he's not God.

But he sure as hell is a step in the right direction--and if he puts his mind to it, he can be a lot more than that.

[rug]

124. Stop it. I'm still trying to accept CFC bulbs.

[JoFerret]

125. No

He has a great deal to learn.
I am not sure he gets even close to understanding the the generation that came before him. (That's the generation that dreamed and worked for the possibility of a black person as president. Or a woman.)And I base that in part on his own writing.

And to anyone who might construe this as an attack on Obama or a desire not to see him win and succeed let me say this: You are wrong and you don't get it either.

[eShirl]

126. how is this any different from the fundies believing Bush was working for God?

this kind of hero-worshipful gushing is embarrassing and unhelpful

[OzarkDem]

128. He's a good public speaker

and people often confuse that with something more.

As someone posted earlier, Obama is an empty vessel. Like Ronald Reagan, people project their own feelings and thoughts into him.

[woo me with science]

131. Maybe he was an Indigo Child,

or a Crystal Child, or.....bbbbbb

Can't....continue.....the....light....is....blinding....me.....

[TexasObserver]

132. Obama is an enlightened being. The rub is in parsing what that means.

I believe there are beings more enlightened than most, and that they do have some connection to the cosmos that many lack or have undeveloped. They're not magic and they don't have superpowers. They have highly attuned ordinary traits and characteristics.

It's not a stretch to believe Obama is such a person. It's also not a stretch to believe he is more spiritual than the religious figures who make a living pretending to be leaders, like the Pope or the Dalai Lama. Whatever Obama is, he's not a old man who was picked by other old men to head a fascist, feudal organization which treats him as spiritually transcendent.