Comments on: I Hear You, Crazy Old Man

By: Maryemma Graham

Maryemma Graham — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 16:07:06 +0000

Marona,
You know how much I identify with all of this. Exciting to read and see your thoughts. Your style really is a great fit for the commentary.

MEG

By: Dean Clark

Dean Clark — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 17:56:33 +0000

Marona, that crazy old man and I have a lot in common. What a fresh approach! What talent you have! Reminds me a bit of Rick Bragg’s piece on Dale Earnhardt’s death as captured in a Wal Mart.

Dean Clark

By: Drew Dixon

Drew Dixon — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 15:57:53 +0000

Amazing article. Your ability to pull in the reader to your environment is incredible. I really enjoyed your connection between the people around you–the Wal-Mart employees, mostly–to what Obama was saying, proposing, for the next four years. Good job.

By: Kathryn Boyd

Kathryn Boyd — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 23:13:02 +0000

This was one of my favorites of all the articles because you can actually feel a personal connection with the employees there and the situation they are in. It was a really great location that I wouldn’t have thought of. Great job.

By: haynes.brittney

haynes.brittney — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 16:10:49 +0000

What an interesting perspective! You did a great job relating the content of his speech to the people around you…

By: Seth McKelvey

Seth McKelvey — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 15:49:57 +0000

I really liked this, I thought it was really well done. I think you did a great job illuminating the parallels between Obama’s campaign and the lives of the Wal-Mart employees, how they connect and how Obama might, or might not, influence their lives in a dramatic way.

By: Rachel Bailey

Rachel Bailey — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 02:37:52 +0000

Marona,

I liked the detail about the price of the TVs, the static and all the other noise that interfered with the reception of the speech in Wal-Mart. You really captured the reality that Americans’ consumerism (and therefore the working conditions of folks like Amanda and Co.) never stops. Nice job using their names, too. But in AP Style, it’s $134, not 134 dollars.

I think going to Wal-Mart was a great idea. Did you overhear the employees speaking at all during the speech? I know we weren’t supposed to conduct interviews, but it would have been interesting to get a glimpse of whether they shared the doubts you express in later graphs.

I like the way your piece reminds us that Obama’s election is not going to fix every problem our nation faces overnight. In all the election fervor, you did a good job of keeping the reader grounded without sounding cynical or pessimistic.

Rachel

By: Troya

Troya — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 02:14:42 +0000

Great job! This was a great location choice, and it was surprisingly very thought provoking. One more reason to boycott the place.