Expat Living: "Share some of that wealth -- with me!"

Obama and Family

February 10, 2007, Springfield, Illinois

". . . the start of a loooong campaign."

(Image from Wikipedia)

On this past Tuesday when I was away from my blog and my news sources, the Korea Herald published my most recent Expat Living column, so today's Gypsy Scholar post is a belated one.

Doubly belated, actually, for I submitted my article about a month ago, in the immediate wake of Obama's successful election -- an edit in the first line reflects this delay, and the column was retitled from "Yes, he can campaign!" Anyway, here it is, and regular readers of this blog will recognize "The Campaign Song" and a few other details:

Share some of that wealth -- with me!

With the presidential election now a month behind us, congratulations are surely overdue from this Expat Living language columnist to that other excellent orator and noteworthy wordsmith Barack Hussein Obama for overcoming the long-shot odds that he faced at the beginning of his long, long, loooong presidential campaign. And while some critics claim that Obama lacks experience, I would argue that he now has a lot of experience in campaigning and is therefore well prepared to wind down the U.S.-led military campaign in Iraq, to pursue the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, to undertake the U.S.-led "war-on-poverty" campaign in the global financial sector, and to assume control of the various other U.S.-led campaigns currently underway worldwide.

Yes, the U. S. of A. is engaged in various campaigns, but Obama is ready for yet more campaigning, and if there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all campaigns are possible, who still wonders if the dream of our founding campaigners is alive in our time, who still questions the power of a continuing Democratic campaign, then I propose the following campaign song as your answer:

The Campaign Song

Oh, I think we may maintain
that Obama can campaign!
We hardly need explain
that he's got a campaign-brain!

Yes, he can campaign!
Yes, he can campaign!
Yes, he can!
Yes, he can!
Yes, he can campaign!

Oh, conservies, don't complain,
for Obama can campaign!
Why, he out-campaigned McCain!
Even Clinton felt his pain!

Yes, he can campaign!
Yes, he can campaign!
Yes, he can!
Yes, he can!
Yes, he can campaign!

Oh, we might sound not quite sane,
but Obama can campaign!
He'll prove each bane-foe vain
in an eight-year campaign-reign!

Yes, he can campaign!
Yes, he can campaign!
Yes, he can!
Yes, he can!
Yes, he can campaign!

Now, if only President-elect Obama will adopt this little chant as his theme song, I shall be able to make scandalizing scads of money from the royalties and retire in luxurious style.

Not that some ill-disguised lust for luxury is my ulterior motive -- no, not at all. Any reader of this language column should certainly be able to perceive, from my very own words, that a life of carefree luxury is in fact my explicit and unambiguous aim.

Let there be no uncertainty about that.

Yet, I have other aims as well. Like Obama, I desire to bring people -- all kinds of people -- together.

Also like Obama, I believe in spreading the wealth. I especially urge wealthy readers to share their wealth with me, as much as they can afford -- which is likely a large amount -- but I am willing to have even poor readers share their poverty with me, for every little bit helps. And if every reader would just expend the modicum of effort required to write out a check, put the check into an envelope, paste a stamp onto that envelope, and post that envelope to me in care of The Korea Herald's Expat Living editor Matthew Lamers, then by all of our collective efforts, for I will also send a check, we would manage to make me a very rich man.

Or as yet another charismatic statesman sort of phrased it, "And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you -- ask what you can do for one of your countrymen."

And not only Americans, for I believe that each individual in this entire, globalized world deserves a "vote" toward sharing the wealth with me.

Big bucks -- or even small change you can believe in. Either way, together, we can make me rich.

Chant with me: "Yes, we can!"

Jeffery is a professor at Ewha Womans University and can be reached through his blog Gypsy Scholar at gypsyscholarship.blogspot.com - Ed

Since some folks might be the proofreading sort, I ought to explain an error that appears in the Korea Herald's version. I've corrected it here on my blog, but in the editorial process of changing my participles to infinitives, the the published version ended up with one participle unchanged (which I've red-fonted):

Also like Obama, I believe in spreading the wealth. I especially urge wealthy readers to share their wealth with me, as much as they can afford -- which is likely a large amount -- but I am willing to have even poor readers share their poverty with me, for every little bit helps. And if every reader would just expend the modicum of effort required to write out a check, put the check into an envelope, paste a stamp onto that envelope, and posting that envelope to me in care of The Korea Herald's Expat Living editor Matthew Lamers, then by all of our collective efforts, for I will also send a check, we would manage to make me a very rich man.

The original article that I sent the paper had this:

Also like Obama, I believe in spreading the wealth. I especially urge wealthy readers to share their wealth with me, as much as they can afford -- which is likely a large amount -- but I am willing to have even poor readers share their poverty with me, for every little bit helps, and if every reader would just expend the modicum of effort required for writing out a check, putting the check into an envelope, pasting a stamp onto that envelope, and posting that envelope to me in care of the Korea Herald's Expat Living Editor, then by all of our collective efforts, for I will also send a check, we would manage to make me a very rich man.

The editorial changes are generally fine, but as close readers of the published version would have noted that the word "posting" doesn't fit the string of infinitives, I thought that I should clarify the point here on my blog.

I'm not complaining, just explaining. Mistakes happen.