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Post by i move the stars for no one on Apr 8, 2009 15:43:53 GMT -5
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Post by decepticons on Apr 8, 2009 15:56:11 GMT -5
well its not like this guy is making political decisions. hes just a liaison between the white house staff and the asian community and i think it was the arts right? obama is just utilizing kals connections to the community to his advantage.
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Post by i move the stars for no one on Apr 8, 2009 16:31:11 GMT -5
no no,i get that,i just think that to some degree it's odd to throw an actor into a position of representing an ethnic community (or two) to politicians.arts is a small part of the job.
like i said,he seems like a nice guy,i just wonder what made him the person for the job as opposed to someone with,say,an activist background in the community.
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Post by xandra on Apr 8, 2009 18:25:37 GMT -5
Kal Penn worked on Obama's presidential campaign, which helps explain how the job came about.
To his credit he taught a class at University of Pennsylvania last year about representation of asian americans in the media and he's currently studying international defense at Stanford. I don't know, it doesn't really strike me as odd that he was offered the position. Being high profile seems like an asset.
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Post by i move the stars for no one on Apr 8, 2009 19:37:46 GMT -5
ah,that makes a lot more sense.like i said,i only knew that he acted.
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Post by betahat on Apr 8, 2009 20:18:10 GMT -5
He was on CNN a lot before the election. I guess he is just passionate about politics and working for the campaign. Maybe they picked him because they already had a few East Asian (Stephen Chu and Eric Shinseki come to mind - and also Gary Locke , who is the only Chinese-origin governor to date) in his cabinet, and Sanjay Gupta turned down Surgeon General. I wonder if Locke is Eurasian (which would be a first), or whether his father's side just adopted the name "Locke" to blend in?
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Post by TeeHee on Apr 8, 2009 20:39:23 GMT -5
I wonder if Locke is Eurasian (which would be a first), or whether his father's side just adopted the name "Locke" to blend in? from what I've read, he is just full Chinese/Asian, his original surname "Lok" was changed to a more westernized spelling. Additionally about Kal Penn, it says his involvement with politics is a family tradition, for example he mentions of his grandparents marching with Ghandi back in the day, how he's been into public service here and there through the years, and wanted to devote more of his time to it, so it was a no-brainer when the job was offered to him. |
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Post by Roam'n on Apr 9, 2009 0:15:06 GMT -5
There seems to be more then a slight connection between acting and politics; they both require representing a populous character as well as having a certain showmanship about them. It sure worked for Ronald Reagan, Sonny Bono, and Arnold Schwarzenegger (even though all of them were republican)
I know there's been more the a few philippine politicians (even presidents!) that were movie actors. It's hard to tell whether it's a good or bad thing though.
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Post by decepticons on Apr 9, 2009 0:29:35 GMT -5
people can say what they want but i like arnold. he was smart enough to know his weaknesses as a politician and hired a smart sta.f of mixed belief's. he stands up for what he believes in regardless of party and he doesnt just roll over because people want it a certain way. the guy has more than enough money so that isnt an incentive and hes an all around nice guy in person.
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Post by xandra on Apr 9, 2009 0:34:10 GMT -5
I think it's pretty commendable for Kal Penn to leave a hit show to work for the white house. I read an interview with him and he said it was really bittersweet because he loved being part of House and it was difficult to see his character killed off in that manner.
And yeah, that episode was crazy. Shocking is an understatement!
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Post by helles on Apr 9, 2009 0:54:28 GMT -5
*spoiler alert*!!!! i've only just started watching the new season.. i really liked him  |
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Post by xandra on Apr 9, 2009 1:17:46 GMT -5
s***. Sorry, Helen.
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Post by rob on Apr 9, 2009 8:08:01 GMT -5
I know a few 'name brand' people (all tri-state patricians and major campaign donors) who have had offers from the Obama administration to join the kool-aid patrol (had one guy bragging to me about his invite last week) ..... IMO, alot of these appointments are based on reciprocity/blind popularity/form over substance and they're coming at the expense of legitimate community activitists/members who've got the goods.
/rant
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Post by Roam'n on Apr 9, 2009 9:36:03 GMT -5
people can say what they want but i like arnold. he was smart enough to know his weaknesses as a politician and hired a smart sta.f of mixed belief's. he stands up for what he believes in regardless of party and he doesnt just roll over because people want it a certain way. the guy has more than enough money so that isnt an incentive and hes an all around nice guy in person. I actually like arnold for the same reason. Now he's being demonized much of the GOP because he dares to have moderate values. It's a problem when people claim such characteristic as a *strength*.. such as the outgoing speech by president Bush: 'I may not have been popular, but I did what I think is right'.  |
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Post by betahat on Apr 9, 2009 12:41:29 GMT -5
If I don't graduate next year Arnie won't sign my doctorate ^"I know a few 'name brand' people (all tri-state patricians and major campaign donors) who have had offers from the Obama administration to join the kool-aid patrol (had one guy bragging to me about his invite last week) ....." Not you too Rob! I am shocked, shocked that a campaign would reward its supporters or make appointments based on (gasp) politics rather than pure meritocracy of whatever type you support. |
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.he seems likeable enough,but i've never heard of him doing anything other than acting.
.he seems likeable enough,but i've never heard of him doing anything other than acting.
