BARACK OBAMA---- The Making of History

Full text of President-elect Barack Obama's victory speech

Wednesday, November 05, 2008 11:39 AM (Chicago, Illinois) President-elect Barack Obama's victory speech in Chicago as released by his campaign.

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.

It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled - Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.

I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and he's fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nation's next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the White House. And while she's no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod, and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics - you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you've sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to - it belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn't start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington - it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.

It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation's apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.

I know you didn't do this just to win an election and I know you didn't do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime - two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage, or pay their doctor's bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America - I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you - we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers - in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, "We are not enemies, but friends...though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection." And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America - that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my mind tonight is about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing - Ann Nixon Cooper is 106 years old.

She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons - because she was a woman and because of the color of her skin.

And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America - the heartache and the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.

At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand up and speak out and reach for the ballot. Yes we can.

When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs and a new sense of common purpose. Yes we can.

When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved. Yes we can.

She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "We Shall Overcome." Yes we can.

A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own science and imagination. And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106 years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can change. Yes America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight, let us ask ourselves - if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have made?

This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time - to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth - that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people:

Yes We Can. Thank you, God bless you, and may God Bless the United States of America.

Mithun Chakraborthy---- The Legend

Kamal in CHAKPAK.COM
Jan 31, 2008
Mithun: A paradoxical Phenomenon
India is a very mysterious land and it is also just as varied. You have more than 100 languages and as many racial equivalents. In a land so rich it is absolutely impossible to find any chance of agreement on any single issue. The query here is who would be crowned the best star actor in this culturally rich diversity. The names that spring to your mind are many. There is Sanjeev Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna, Kamal Hassan, Dilip Kumar and finally Mithun Chakraborty, not to exclude Uttam Kumar the predecessor king of Bengali cinema. Now no one can deny they need to see how the racial question divides India. The northern Indians have never accepted either Bengali or Southern male stars, whatever the persona or talent. While Hema Malini,`Vyjanti Mala and Sharmila Tagore have ruled the box office, no one other than Mithun from regional cinema has ever made into the top three coveted male star positions, as far as box office is concerned never mind the artistic merits of Pyar Jukhta Nahin and Disco Dancer, they were super hits. Mithun Chakraborty defies this so called bigotry as he was born of regional cinema and then despite his Bengali accent and looks, became one of the top most star in mainstream Bollywood without having to resort to the charity or support of Yash Chopra or Ramesh Sippy. Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan made their super hits and all the quality movies with Sippy’s or Chopra’s. In this way Mithun is a paradox and enigma, as he was labelled a poor man’s Amitabh, despite Jaya Bachchan saying in 70s that he was more talented than Amitabh Bachchan and that is on record. Now looking at the resume no other actor has a movie like Mrigaya-The Royal Hunt, and no one ever will have the courage either in Hollywood or Bollywood to attempt that, in fact it seems to have inspired Apocalypto, it’s a tribute to Mrinal Sen, Mithun Chakraborty and Mamta Shanker, which is unique in the world of cinema, even if you disregard the three national awards he won on the basis of his talent, rather than by influencing the jury’s like Hum Tum and Black, which has become rife today, in fact national awards have become a joke in last few years, but he and Sanjeev Kumar won them when they were genuine. Hum Tum was a second rate version of Harry Met Sally done by a second rate Sharukh Khan copycat Saif Ali Khan, who landed a national award just as Amitabh Bachchan did in Black, a copy of Miracle Worker the great movie about Helen keller from the 60s, if anyone deserves an award in black it’s the child artist who some how managed a natural performance despite the pretentiousness which engulfed black. How this award was attained only god can answer that question or the jury. Mithun Chakraborty has proven himself in multi-starrers like Ghulami opposite Dharmendra and Naseer Uddin Shah and in Hum Paanch too, where he was the best again. But also he has the versatility to play a romantic hero as in Prem Pratigya one of the best romantic movie on Indian screen opposite Madhuri Dixit, and that is what deserves to be called a love story, not the designer monstrosities that the Chopra’s make in the name of love. I have yet to see Amitabh Bachchan play a romantic lead himself convincingly. In Kabhi Kabhie and Silsila all he did was frowning and brooding over lost love, in Bemisaal and Jurmana he was angry , name one love story like Aradhana or Amar Prem or Safar where any emotion of love has been ever been expressed by him convincingly in any movie. He was the angry young man of the 70s and had comic timing and his physique suited action roles, which were very popular in the 70s and 80s, but name any great love movies and you, come up with zilch; Kabhi Kabhie belongs to Rakhee, Shashi Kapoor, Sahir and Khayyam. There is no doubt whatever anybody says about Mithun Chakraborty’s dancing talent. He was the best and still is the best dancer Hindi screen has produced. Whether it is ethnic or disco dancing he has always been superb. Just watch him in Zeehale Muskin the song from Ghulaami or song from Disco Dancer. They are all done by him stylishly and flawlessly. Kamal Hassan can dance but Rajesh didn’t even try neither did Dilip sahib, as for Amitabh Bachchan he copied the steps from Albela and Mootilal in every movie, at least he has the grace to admit it, but look at it today, Hrithik is the best now and he can do about five steps which he repeats in every movie hilariously. Mithun chakraborty was never cast by big movie houses he had to content himself with the so called B- grade cinema, yet he made gems like Ghulaami, Prem Pratigya, Gudia and Jallad. His bilinguality is another asset, while no one can deny the richness of Bengali cinema and its diversity, no Hindi actor has contributed to that, but Mithun has to Hindi cinema, that’s a compliment to him and an asset for Hindi cinema. The only other actor from India to rival him is possibly Kamal Hassan with Sadma and Ek Duje Ke Liye but his movies have never got the popular Bollywood appeal and he only appeared in a handful, unlike Mithun Chakraborty who is still working in Hindi mainstream like Elaan and Chingaari, despite Mani Ratnam and Amitabh Bachchan trying to discredit him in Guru he still managed too give the best performance in the fist half. The second half is comprehensible to only people who have no clue as to how a screenplay should be written as the journalist of Madhavan and Mithun chakraborty totally disappear in the second half which was a paradox in itself, as the script seemed to indicate the movie was a battle between the immoral industrialist Guru and the honest journalists Madhavan and Mithun Chakraborty. To glorify Abhishek Bachchan, Amitabh Bachchan had to dub this incompetent actor very shabbily, in an awfully unrealistic speech from a stroke ridden man, Amitabh Bachchan didn’t even give any consideration to the fact that a man suffering from a stroke would be dysphasic or stutter or stammer, he went on his Baghban like sermonising while Mr Ratnam, the director has been left to be a laughing stock at the expense of the Bachchan's, I wonder what Mr Ratnam’s got to say for himself as I believe Mithun Chakraborty has raised some serious accusations about his role being ripped off, which is obvious as he and Madhavan are absent from the court scenes all together, what an idiosyncrasy and how convenient for the Bachchan’s. I feel more sorry for people like them rather than Mithun who has a rich resume with movies like Gudia which were in competition in Cannes (not a single other stars has that merit,) and Titli which again won numerous international awards world over. While Gudia and Titli might not set the Indian box office on fire, their artistic merit like Mrigya-The Royal Hunt is unquestionable. Finally can I inform you that in 1987 a Russian magazine voted Mithun Chakraborty as one of the sexiest men on the planet, I think the only other actor is Dharmendra who was voted so by Italians in the 70s. So much for the North Indian bigotry as to Mithun as a second rate to Amitabh Bachchan, in fact I would think Mr Bachchan should take a bow to Mr Chakraborty and learn a few things from Mrigaya, Gudia and Titli rather then keep making second rate remakes of Hollywood classics like Miracle Worker and godfather as Sarkar and Black, after all it is originality which is immortal rather then even a master fake. I hope this is not taken as a racial or linguistic comparison. I am talking of the talent of an individual rather than creed or religion, language or age.