From the time that Barack Obama walked out on stage at Invesco Field to the strains of U2's "City of Blinding Lights" to the conclusion of his speech some 45 minutes later, I was beyond inspired. What struck me by contrast was how long it had been since I'd felt that way. Not since Bill Clinton have I listened to a politician so clearly give voice to the frustration of an entire nation...and at the same time offer a way out from the malaise and morass that have come to characterize the past eight years of the Reign of Error ©.
I realize that a speech is little more than a collection of words strung together into complete sentences and then brought to life by a gifted orator. Words merely reflect the ideas of the person voicing them. What I heard and felt last night was different, though. For the first time in eight years, I felt...optimism. I felt that there's finally a way out of the war, the criminality, the rampant self-interest, and the thuggery that have been the hallmark of the past eight years. Finally, here's someone in Barack Obama who recognizes that not only can we do better, WE DESERVE BETTER. No, Barack Obama is not "The One", but what a true leader does is to give voice to his vision and then offer to lead us in that direction. Barack Obama did that last night in front of close to 80,000 people. John McCain is struggling to fill a 10,000 seat arena this morning as he announces his (yawn....) Vice Presidential nominee. Talk about your inspiration gap....
No, words aren't going to change anything by themselves, but what they represent is the recognition that this country has jumped the tracks. It's time to be doing something different, and not only because what's been happening over the past eight years clearly is not working. John McCain represents nothing if not an extension of the failures and ineptitude of the past eight years- yes, a third Bush term...and isn't the definition of insanity doing the same thing while expecting different results?
We're a better country than this...and we can do better. Even despite the naysayers who somehow managed to find something in Obama's speech to knock him down for, those of us with our eyes open recognize that America is a far better country than we've demonstrated over the past eight years. Because of our own sloth, ignorance, and inattention, we've settled for the lowest common denominator, with more than 4000 dead young Americans to show for it. If you've voted for Our Glorious and Benevolent Leader ©, you've got blood on your hands. The bad news is that we cannot bring back those whose lives have been wasted in Iraq. The good news is that we have an opportunity to take this country back. Or we can continue down the path of ineptitude, ignorance, and thuggery.
Your choice, America.
As for me, I'm going to err on the side of hope. I'm going to hope that the path presented to us last night can and will lead this country to become the better place I believe it can be. I believe America can be a place where we look out for the poor, the sick, and the disadvantaged. I believe American can be a place where we regard our neighbors with respect, honor, and dignity, and where we treat each other as we would hope others might treat us. America is, and should be, about more than getting yours and leaving you neighbors to get theirs. Doing the right thing isn't really all that difficult when you think about it...and I believe that America is still a place where doing the right thing is important.
WE DESERVE BETTER...and if you share that belief, I hope that you'll join me in voting for Barack Obama on November 4th- because anything less represents settling for the status quo.
