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dongtan314-blog · 8 years ago

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Thanks, Obama

When President Obama was inaugurated (the first time), Twitter wasn’t quite three years old. Facebook had only been open to the general public for two and a half years, and Tumblr had just celebrated its second birthday.

In a self-described effort to become “the most open and accessible administration in history,” the @whitehouse started to use these platforms to talk directly to their constituents. And Tumblr got to be a big part of that. Over the last eight years, the Obama administration launched more than 20 different Tumblrs for different departments, agencies, and outreach programs. Here are some heavy hitters:

Official Government Tumblrs

The White House (@whitehouse)

Most notably, The White House’s official Tumblr, which launched on April 25, 2013. For almost 4 years, it has been their informational hub for current political events and activations. In keeping with the Tumblr tone, their very first post promised that “yes, of course there will be GIFs.” And yes, there were. We could not have been more excited or proud.

NASA (@nasa)

NASA launched nearly two years later. They’ve spent 59 years exploring the universe and dropped the most amazing information and visuals right to your dashboard. They also knew how to use GIFs. It’s not rocket science.

The U.S. Department of State (@statedept)

The DOS was actually one of the first official government Tumblrs, quietly launching in April of 2011. With a more serious tone, they kept their followers up to date with the world of foreign policy. And yes, they even had GIFs for that. We cannot stress just how good this administration was with GIFs, Tumblr. Much better than Taft’s.

Letters to President Obama (@letterstopresidentobama)

Typed and handwritten letters to POTUS scanned, uploaded, and answered by the President himself. There are thank yous to and from President Obama, there are people disclosing their fear for the future and hope for their community, there are tears in your eyes within the first five minutes of visiting this Tumblr.

The Department of Interior (@americasgreatoutdoors)

Maybe not the most well-known department, but the DOI has the most beautiful photos of any official government blog on Tumblr. This will remain true unless Joe Biden releases a Tumblr full of selfies within the next three days.

There was also the US Fish and Wildlife Service-Pacific Region (@usfwspacific), the National Archives (@usnatarchives) , the IRS (@internalrevenueservice), the Peace Corps (@peacecorps), and so, so much more.

Top Posts from the Community

This scientific trinity received over half a million notes. Say hello to these buddies:

And these uh, unverified photos of President Obama making the new $100 bill in MS Paint garnered over 650k likes, reblogs, and replies.

You want to click through to see the rest.

This one is particularly timely. With over 300,000 notes, user @cognitivedissonance thanked Obama for ACA. Without it, they would not have been able to receive treatment for bronchitis.

Mic (@micdotcom) posted a GIF set of a girl who sort of represented all of our feelings about President Obama not being able to run for a third term.

Neither are we, kiddo.

One more time, while we still can: Thanks, Obama.

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dongtan314-blog · 8 years ago

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It’s a long-standing tradition for the sitting president of the United States to leave a parting letter in the Oval Office for the American elected to take his or her place. It’s a letter meant to share what we know, what we’ve learned, and what small wisdom may help our successor bear the great responsibility that comes with the highest office in our land, and the leadership of the free world.

But before I leave my note for our 45th president, I wanted to say one final thank you for the honor of serving as your 44th. Because all that I’ve learned in my time in office, I’ve learned from you. You made me a better President, and you made me a better man.

Throughout these eight years, you have been the source of goodness, resilience, and hope from which I’ve pulled strength. I’ve seen neighbors and communities take care of each other during the worst economic crisis of our lifetimes. I have mourned with grieving families searching for answers – and found grace in a Charleston church.

I’ve taken heart from the hope of young graduates and our newest military officers. I’ve seen our scientists help a paralyzed man regain his sense of touch, and wounded warriors once given up for dead walk again. I’ve seen Americans whose lives have been saved because they finally have access to medical care, and families whose lives have been changed because their marriages are recognized as equal to our own. I’ve seen the youngest of children remind us through their actions and through their generosity of our obligations to care for refugees, or work for peace, and, above all, to look out for each other.

I’ve seen you, the American people, in all your decency, determination, good humor, and kindness. And in your daily acts of citizenship, I’ve seen our future unfolding.

All of us, regardless of party, should throw ourselves into that work – the joyous work of citizenship. Not just when there’s an election, not just when our own narrow interest is at stake, but over the full span of a lifetime.

I’ll be right there with you every step of the way.

And when the arc of progress seems slow, remember: America is not the project of any one person. The single most powerful word in our democracy is the word ‘We.’ ‘We the People.’ ‘We shall overcome.’

Yes, we can.

And if you’d like to stay connected, you can sign up here to keeping getting updates from me.

President Barack Obama

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dongtan314-blog · 8 years ago

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How to call your reps when you have social anxiety

When you struggle with your mental health on a daily basis, it can be hard to take action on the things that matter most to you. The mental barriers anxiety creates often appear insurmountable. But sometimes, when you really need to, you can break those barriers down. This week, with encouragement from some great people on the internet, I pushed against my anxiety and made some calls to members of our government. Here’s a comic about how you can do that, too. (Resources and transcript below.)

Motivational resources: There are a lot! Here are a few I really like:

Emily Ellsworth explains why calling is the most effective way to reach your congressperson.

Sharon Wong posted a great series of tweets that helped me manage my phone anxiety and make some calls.

Kelsey is tweeting pretty much daily with advice and reminders about calling representatives. I found this tweet an especially great reminder that calls aren’t nearly as big a deal as anxiety makes them out to be.

Informational resources: There are a lot of these, as well! These three are good places to start:

Find your representative at house.gov

Find your senators at senate.gov

Use the “We’re His Problem Now” scripts when calling (or write your own!)

Keep reading

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