President Obama has been honing his rhetorical skills for years. This young man just participated in an awful event, has been through the media wringer, and is clearly uncomfortable with his status. Yet he gave this powerful speech without notes, and I thought he did a better job than some of the professionals last night. He has a future in politics if he wants it.
Reader Interactions
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geg6
He was simply amazing. Just…I don’t even have words. That young man spoke without notes. Imagine. I’d vote for him in about half a second. He’s got a huge future, if he wants it.
MoonBatista
I can’t say it any better than that. Very true. Thanks for pointing it out.
JPL
Hernandez did a remarkable job. Sandra Day O’Connor was thrilled to be sitting next to this fine gentleman.
BerkeleyMom
I saw Mr. Hernandez being interviewed yesterday and his poise, sincerity and intelligence struck me. How could he be only 20 years old with this kind of calm, humility and wisdom? Perhaps from being openly gay and hispanic in Arizona in 2011.
I am a fan. And thank you Daniel Hernandez.
WyldPirate
I agree with everything you said. Great speech he made, inspiring story wrt to his actions, loved his humility, etc, etc.
But. But, I’m going to say something here that sounds mean but is not meant to be.
That young man–as he is today–is almost assuredly looking at having serious health problems up to and including premature death by the time he is 40 unless he makes some serious efforts to change his lifestyle (and yes, i realize that there could be underlying genetic reasons for his serious and perhaps borderline morbid obesity).
I’m not saying this out of any sort of spitefullness as I am someone who has been on the receiving end of the health effects of a lifetime of being overweight, some bad familial history and a whole lot of denial. I just hate seeing younger people that have the chance to change the path they are walking down regarding weight-related health issues.
/getting down off my soap box now and looking for overhead cover and concealment
Violet
He was amazing. I was so impressed with him. He’s handled this horrific situation with poise and grace and humility. An amazing individual.
jsfox
@WyldPirate:
Your timing needs some work.
schrodinger's cat
My thoughts exactly. He is a natural!
The Grand Panjandrum
I hope my children grow up and turn out as well as Mr and Mrs Hernandez son.
LivingInWingnutHell
Had the same exact reaction watching his speech. He’s definitely someone worth keeping an eye on.
russell
Some part of me hopes he doesn’t enter politics, because it will likely f*** him up.
Whatever he chooses to do, he certainly has a future as a decent and humane human being.
Compared to that, a political career is gravy.
someGayName
@WyldPirate: But, But, Michael Moore is FAT!1!!1
WyldPirate
@jsfox:
Yeah, I can admit that.
But the timing from the effects of what he has going on from his condition is unceasing and relentless as well. Sometimes, folks don’t get a second chance. I lost a friend a month ago from that same sort of thing who, unlike me, didn’t get a second chance.
That said, I think Mr. Hernandez is a great young man who makes me proud our country has young people like him in it. I would vote for him now as he is more poised and seems way more sincere than many of the people that serve in office now.
Tom Hilton
I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who had that reaction.
Bob
Yes, yes, yes.
gwangung
Damn, let’s celebrate THIS kind of person!
That brings a country together, no ifs, ands or buts!
Legalize
Kinda reminded me of Obama’s 2004 Convention speech – not in content per se, but, sort of in the “wow, promising young fella” kinda way. Of course, the Teabaggers will do their best to destroy him.
TaMara (BHF)
Thanks for sharing that. So refreshing to see him, his grace, intelligence and dignity. I hold out hope that as a country we can celebrate that instead of….well you all know the rest.
Bret
I, for one, welcome our gay Mexican overlords.
Bobby Thomson
@russell: This.
Rey
When the President told Mr. Hernandez that he was a hero like it or not- because he saw past the immediate danger and saved his boss’s life- my first thought about him was he will always have a JOB!
Cris
I’m sorry, the preferred phrase is “without a teleprompter.”
Biff Longbotham
The cynic in me would have once said “A fat Hispanic homosexual have a future in politics? Get real!” But that was before I proudly cast a vote for a big eared, mixed race guy with a funny name…
Chris Grrr
@BerkeleyMom: My reaction to the mistermix’s closing line was, “Only if he leaves Arizona.” But you sk00led me good and proper. Hernandez is a gem.
@Bret: for reals.
lovable liberal
Unlike many politicians, he has already learned to be brief, which is a very important lesson. He made his points – memorably – and sat down before anyone’s thoughts could wander.
bobbo
Tears in my eyes. Don’t care so much right now about his political future.
mightygodking
@WyldPirate: He’s not nearly so obese as you claim. Yeah, he’s a big guy, but he’s less fat than, say, Chris Christie or Haley Barbour. “Premature death at 40” is definitely an overblown diagnosis.
Peter
@WyldPirate: What the fuck has to be wrong with you to make a comment like this, in this thread.
PeakVT
He has a future in politics if he wants it.
Quite possibly, though in the Arizona of today and probably the next 10-20 years, I don’t know if I would want one, if I were him. Elsewhere – winner.
Alex S.
Hmm, i don’t know, as a gay hispanic he’ll have a certain disadvantage in every race he’s in. I wish him well, though.
TR
@BerkeleyMom:
That’s brilliant. Yes.
TR
@Alex S.:
Hard to say, really.
Rumors about Napolitano’s sexuality didn’t hurt her in her successful runs for office in Arizona, up to and including the governor’s office. (Hell, even Houston just elected a gay mayor.) And at the rate attitudes are changing, if he runs in 10 years it’ll likely be a non-issue.
And on the Hispanic issue, the state is over 30% Hispanic already, and again, the sweep of demographic change is only on his side.
Bottom line, though, he’s a hero, he’s smart, and he’s humble. I don’t even think the most racist homophobe would get very far in trying to drag him down, even in Arizona.
catclub
@Peter: “What the fuck has to be wrong with you to make a comment like this, in this thread.”
Yes, naturally, a comment that expresses a hope that the subject will be able to avoid the misery that Wyldpirate fears will overtake him, has no place here.
Nope, Wyld was pretty reasonable. You, not so much.
AC
Sorry, dude. You’re a hero and you’re just going to have to get used to it.
Nice try, though.
Jill
Couldn’t agree with you more! While I was watching him I couldn’t help but think “this man has a future in politics and boy do I hope he pursues it.” He is a remarkable guy.
Tim
@jsfox:
Yes, because all the commenters on BJ are always extremely considerate of the feelings of everyone being discussed, and of each other. Please…facts are facts. If you can’t say what your’e thinking on a blog chat thread, what good is it?
WyldPirate
@mightygodking:
I seriously disagree. Young Mr. Hernandez is about 6’0″ and he’ll top out at 300+ lbs is my bet. If that is true his BMI is over 40 and that is classified as morbidly obese Christie is close, but I don’t think he is quite as big. Barbour, I don’t know about as I haven’t seen him standing up
I also didn’t make a diagnosis. I just speculated on the range of outcomes of the well-known and well-documented health effects of morbid obesity. I know first hand what they are. I had/have them and they nearly killed me at the age of 50 and I was never, not even close, to being as large as Mr. Hernandez and I certainly wasn’t at age 20. Then you have the fact that he is Hispanic and the incidence of diabetes in Hispanics is higher than it is for white folks. And the incidence of diabetes is sure as hell higher for obese people than people of normal weight. Moreover, the young man is 20 years old. I don’t know what Barbour or Christie were like at 20, but generally, that is the age in which one is at the peak of their physical health and fitness. The damage from obesity (effects of hypertension, pre-diabetes, the beginnings of atherosclerosis, etc) accrues over time and it happens systemically and insidiously for years.
I just hate to see someone with so much promise and who appears to be a genuinely good, decent person, have those sorts of issues looming in his future when the effects of his condition can be ameliorated before too much damage accrues.
@Peter:
Delicate sensibilities much or are you the board’s self-appointed Miss Manners? Either way, get over it.
I didn’t degrade the young man or his character. I’ll guarantee you, though, that a whole hell of a lot of people wouldn’t vote for him because of his appearance and not have one bit of concern for his health.
Obesity is the biggest health issue this country faces next to the issue of health care availability. It is also the one that we as people have the most control over preventing the deleterious effects of it on our health. Ask Michelle Obama about it. Seems like she is trying to do something about the very condition I’m sure Mr. Hernandez suffered from as a child for the very seem reasons I briefly touched on.
Tim
@Peter:
Oh, the tender sensibilities of the BJ commentariat.
This isn’t a Georgetown cocktail party, or a church service. Unclutch your sensitivity pearls please. Thanks.
TooManyJens
All the good stuff has already been said, so I’ll just add: Imagine being 20 years old and getting (and earning!) a standing ovation from the President of the United States. I wouldn’t even know how to begin to process that.
Tim I
FiredUpInCA posted this in a comment on DKos today. It’s a photo caption from the website of the Arizona Daily Star.
Tim I
Mr. Hernandez has a bright future in whatever field he pursues. He is a born leader.
Nutella
@Tim I:
Yes, not only brave but also sensible and sensitive.
And trained in first aid.
We should all be like that.
asiangrrlMN
Daniel Hernandez has impressed me from the outset at how calm, rational, and stalwart he’s been. His speech last night was even more impressive. Trite as it sounds, he gives me some hope.
TaMara
@Tim I: That is fucking amazing. Unbelievable. More of this please, less caribou Barbie please.
Peter
@catclub: There is nothing reasonable about turning a thread about his eloquence and poise in the wake of a tragedy into a digression about his fucking BMI. It’s out of place, out of nowhere, and if the bulk of your reaction to that speech is ‘yes but he’s faaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat’ there is something wrong with you.
Kewalo
What a terrific young man. I agree with everyone who thinks he could have a big future in politics.
Does anyone else have a tee hee moment of glee that the person that saved Gabby’s life is a gay man of Hispanic origin?
I just keep thinking this must really outrage some of the haters and I just love it!
Herbal Infusion Bagger
I was wondering why the media was focusing on Hernandez rather than the folks who tackled the shooter.
But today I heard on NPR one of them make the first statement to the media about pinning the gunman down and coming close to killing him, and that being a dark place. Then I understood – some of those who stopped the shooting are still in shock, and Hernandez is being their spokesman.
Skepticat
The epitome of grace–well, grace, guts, good sense, and amazing clearheadedness–under pressure.
This also reminds me that I ought to renew my EMT certification, and I urge each of you to take a first aid/CPR course. With minimal training, you could make as great a difference in an emergency situation as did this admirable young man.
Atomiota
anyone who has voluntarily invested time at a young age getting a nursing certificate and EMT training is saying to the world, “save lives, yes. take lives, no.”
joe from Lowell
I can’t believe that kid is 20. When I was twenty, I thought it was cool to shave off all the hair on the left side of my head and wear these combat boots I found on top of a newspaper box.
You think Barack Obama drives the wingnuts crazy? Wait until we elected a fat, gay Mexican president.
@Tim I:
Wow. That kid really knows how to keep his head.
agrippa
Truly an outstanding young man.
He is too good for politics. He needs to go into an honorable profession.
Mnemosyne
@Herbal Infusion Bagger:
I’ve noticed that the names of the two men who tackled the gunman have not been released, and the president did not refer to them by name in his speech. I’m assuming they’re not ready to talk about it publicly or deal with the media.
Ecks
Gotta love this kid. Not sure if I see pol written all over him, but with that kind of ability to keep his head when everything is going to hell, and to maintain that human touch when doing it, he clearly is made of extremely impressive stuff. It’s going to take some deep thinking to find this guy the right job, where he can use these gifts to the fullest, but when he gets there he’ll be a star, and no doubt about it.
And no, wyldpirate isn’t crazy here, when they show the side view of him, he does look like he’s cued up for some pretty dramatic health problems unless he gets his his body a little better sorted out. And that is a tragic waste at the best of times, but even more so for someone exceptional like this. I’m really hoping that some very together people are going to take him under their wing now (and I have some hope they actually will), and get him on the fast track to all kinds of good places, including the healthy and very long-lived kind.
tkogrumpy
@Peter: Peter, I have lots of things wrong with me, but I don’t consider my concern for Mr. Hernandez’ BMI to be one of them. Despite my concern I probably would not have mentioned it in this thread. I also would not have made an issue out of it if any one else had. This guy has a future. It would be a shame if it were cut short by the obvious problems associated with that level of obesity.
Tim
@Peter:
Peter, are you one of the BJ thread etiquette, tone, and subject matter police?
If so, could you please direct me by link to the page on BJ where all the rules and regulations are posted?
Thanks.