When I decided to support Barack Obama, I did so because he inspired me. I was overcome with that same feeling I had in college that anything was possible. No, I am not that far removed from those oh-so-coveted years, but my experience in government has unfortunately taken me far away from that time. I have become, to a fault, numb to the possibility of what can be in our nation.
Barack Obama has revived me.
Let me first be clear that I don't support Obama because I believe he has all the answers. I know he doesn't. And, I don't support him because I think he is right on every issue. Because I know he is not. There is not one candidate that I agree with on every single issue. I ask you to make the same consideration.
I do support him because he forces us to analyze who we are as individuals, as a nation, and consider what we can do to restore our commitment to each other and revitalize our standing in the world.
Using this rationale, I have been accused of being unrealistic. I have been told to think more with my head, and feel less with my heart. But this feeling of hope is not hokey, it is not mushy. It is real. I experienced it the weekend I drove down in the middle of the night to South Carolina to volunteer alongside folks from every walk of life: young, old, black, white. I also heard about it from my mother, who as a retired teacher, has every reason to sit down and not give a damn. Before the California primary election, she mobilized citizens in the Republican red center of California to stand on street corners with Obama signs. All of these people will tell you that it is not about Obama the individual that is driving them to engage. It is the sense that Obama is leading America on the road to recovery and we each have a stake in it.
I think it is important to consider the stubborn fact that regardlessof who wins in November, Republican or Democrat, our nation will stillhave a host of issues that need OUR attention. No, I do not believethat Obama is capable of curing all these social ills from his seat in the Oval office. To think otherwise would be idealistic..or naive.
What I do believe is that in this election it is important to understand both the possibilities and limitations of government and know that it is ultimately up to us, as individual Americans, to form a more perfect Union. Barack Obama has forced me to think about my potential as an individual and consider my role in the restoration of our country. He will continue to inspire me and I hope you will give him the chance to inspire you as well.
Fired up and ready to go!
