Today is the day.

I will be maintaining radio silence today.  Not because I’m mute on the status of the election.  I’ll just be busy.

I have planned to go get in line at my voting precinct at 7am.  Then I will check in at the local headquarters (if I have time left over) before I go and work as a Democratic Poll Watcher.  I will pick up my roommate from work and take her to our polling precinct, then, go back to the headquarters and see if anyone else needs a ride to the polls. 

After that, I’ll probably take some medicine (I’m sick as a dog) and a nap before I head to the election party. I’m so excited that we have a chance for CHANGE!!!! It really is a beautiful thing to speak to a woman that is taking care of an 84 year old African-American woman–one who marched in Selma, Alabama and who has waited her whole life for this chance; now, she has validation that her fight during the civil rights era was worth it.  Yes, maybe this is not based on the facts about the candidate, but the symbolism is so important to a dying generation, and I cannot deny their reason for getting behind Barack Obama.

On a serious note, I’d like to see two things happen:

1. No matter which candidate wins, I want us to CONTINUE to hold them accountable.  But I want to also lend the President-elect support as the future leader of our country.  As much as I am a supporter of Barack Obama, ifhe renigs on promises or brings about detrimental changes (doubtful, but for the sake of argument), I WILL BE THE FIRST TO SCREAM LIKE HELL. My hope is that neither of them could possibly be as bad for America as Bush and his administration, so lets all hope for the same thing–and make our voices heard.  This is supposed to be a participative democracy, right?
2. Let’s go back to being neighbors, spouses, lovers, friends, acquaintances–and do it civilly.  If this election is all it took to fracture our nation irreparably, then we need to really re-evaluate what it means to be an American citizen in a geographically vast, intellectually diverse, country.  The distance separates us, but our opinions shouldn’t. The First Amendment not only protects what we say; it also gives us cause to tolerate/encourage others to exercise their right as well.

I AM VOTING FOR BARACK OBAMA AND JOE BIDEN TODAY. ARE YOU?

Hopes & Fears

One day to go, and both campaigns are hammering home their messages.  As I see it, the messages boil down to Hope on the left, and Fear on the right.  For various reasons, we Americans have chosen the basic message that we cling to, and thereby cling to our candidate.

Hope against hope that we are capable of better days. On the world stage and on the homefront, there are issues to solve, but we need to remember that America’s untapped promise is great.
OR
Fear being unprepared for what might happen tomorrow. America needs experienced leadership that will defend our position and be on guard against future threats.

These are both very powerful messages, and they reach to the core of our fragile human psyches.  They are most assuredly interconnected, these two. In mentally reviewing the past year, I realized that many people let a war between hope and fear rage internally and externally–think about the viral e-mails and personal testimony or the inspiring artwork, videos and music. Those of us who really weighed the candidates had to decide between hope for all of us or fear for all of us, and, at least in my mind, there’s plenty of room for bleed-over. I have:

Hope that the United States is on an upswing–we have already reached the bottom, and the only way is up.

Fear that we will be unprepared against a threat–because we will have alienated all allies that might have otherwise cared.

Hope that we really are “the ones we’ve been waiting for”–that America’s great strength lies in the talents of ALL of our people.

Fear that the greed of a few will sacrifice the needs of the rest of us–and that it will continue to be sanctioned.

Hope that the next generation will be the best educated and best prepared we have produced yet–and that the education necessary will really leave no child behind.

Fear that our entrenchment in the bailout will lead to major corruption–from either party.

Hope that we have a bright future.

Fear that we do not.

For me, hope wins, because succumbing to the fear might just paralyze me.

The values that American citizens have will define where on the spectrum their hopes and fears lie, and which ones really “grab” them.  Consider the various amendments on the ballot this time–gay marriage, abortion rights, educational funding–all with supporters and opponents.  It is hard for me to step out of my liberal ideas to try and comprehend why anyone would try to govern someone else and their heart’s choice (in the case of gay marriage amendments), but I’m trying to understand where they are coming from.

Before this election, nothing inspired me to try to reach out for understanding like this.  All to often, I discounted those who had wildly different (i.e., dumbly conservative and closed-minded in my opinion), and shunned their company.  Now I am trying to understand them, and realize that maybe their hopes and fears are simply different than mine.

Someone that I love very, very much went out and bought a new gun this weekend–because he is afraid of losing the right to own one. Naturally, this is driving part of his decision on a candidate, but I can’t fault him. It is not my place.  Please remember that NONE OF US ARE ANY MORE OR LESS AMERICAN BECAUSE OF WHAT WE BELIEVE in this election and otherwise.  Historically, it is the very freedom to believe what we want that makes us Amereican, and at this point we are so divided, I worry more about repairing the damage in the months ahead than the outcome.  With the Bush years as a reference, division is catastrophically destructive to us as a nation.  So regardless of what happens tomorrow, we need to reach out to those very same neighbors that might or might not have stolen our yard signs, and remind them that we are here with them; as an ally, as a fellow American, and as a friend–just like before the election, or in the best case scenario, unlike anything we’ve ever experienced before.

The era of “Us vs. Them” needs to be over. The central hopes and fears have to be about recreating “ALL of US” for the 21st century.

With my hopes held high…I AM STILL VOTING FOR OBAMA!!!!

Forget about voter registration fraud…

…fake people cannot vote.  The real problem I’m worried about is good, old-fashioned…voter supression.  I suppose I’m not alone in my concern.

Watch this.

I’ll buy it.

Nice info-mercial for Obama.  I haven’t heard this much actual planning from McCain yet.  Perhaps the silence from his end says more about HOW MUCH HE BELIEVES EVERYTHING WE’RE DOING RIGHT NOW IN AMERICA IS A-OK.  Was it too extravagant? Some people will say so.  But it is also a dignified message from someone who has been fighting the B.S. and mud slung about him throughout the campaign–and he really wants you to know that he is for the Progress of America.  Just keep hammering the truth in over and over and over…”America can be great. America can be great! America can be Great!! America Can Be Great!!! AMERICA CAN BE GREAT!!!”

Seems to be working, eh?

I am STILL voting for Obama

The implications of “8 more years”

Barack Obama has consistently used the message “8 more years of failed Bush policies” to discredit McCain–effective, but vague.

Last night, I really got to thinking what this would mean.

8 more years of Banks “gone wild”

8 more years of broken government agencies (like FEMA)

8 more years of “saber rattling” and international bullying

8 more years of real socialism–Corporate lobbying and outright greed

8 more years of international allies and NATO turning away from us

8 more years of empty nest eggs and retirement savings

8 more years of inadequate, inaccesible medical coverage

8 more years of Congressional misdeeds corruption on a grand scale

8 more years of human rights violations, a la Guantanamo Bay and the death of Habeus Corpus

8 more years of rewarding non-intelligence while belittling education and innovation

8 more years of botched “Domestic Surveillance”

8 more years of sanctioned gay-bashing

8 more years of violating women’s rights to their own bodies

8 more years of a Fundamentalist Christian agenda in a country of many faiths

8 more years of legislating through fear

8 more years of cronyism

8 more years of substandard education for ALL children

8 more years of religious and cultural intolerance

8 more years of preconditions

8 more years of minorities falling further behind

8 more years of “lassez-faire” on important domestic issues (not abortion and gay marriage–energy and 21st century education)

8 more years of poor judgment

8 more years of inconsistent facts

8 more years of declining in the world’s ranking system

8 more years of poorly cared for returning war veterans

8 more years of supressing your vote

8 more years of dividing Americans

8 more years of agenda injected into the highest court in America

8 more years of pretending global warming does not exist

8 more years of stomping on the Constitution

8 more years of so much more I don’t even know or can’t remember.  So far, this has been my adult life and I feel completely let down.  All of the previous shortcomings cannot be corrected immediately by just one incoming President, Democrat or Republican. Not in four, eight, twelve or perhaps even sixteen years will we be able to pull ourselves out of a rapidly deepening sinkhole…but we can change direction.  Similarly, some of the previous shortcomings are not necessarily the fault of the administration; rather, they are because of the current administration’s mindset.  After reading the list, I hope you can see that maybe–just maybe–we need a new mindset. There was so much promise for our future while I was growing up, but somehow Americans lost their way.  I hope we can close the chapter on “America’s Decline” next Tuesday, because we can’t afford to fall any further.

For the record, I no longer care who Barack Obama has been associated with. It is what can be associated with the United States of America that concerns me.  It’s not that image is everything, but how we believe we are being perceived by the world either depresses us as a nation or makes us extremely defensive (we’ve been both for a while now), and we no longer even know who we are or what we’re made of as a country.  I don’t believe John McCain can restore our sanity; he’ll be too busy promoting fear, as he has in this election.  I don’t believe John McCain can restore integrity to the office; he’s too entrenched in the way things were to step out any further than he already has.  I don’t believe John McCain can restore our belief in ourselves; he’s been so erratic we wouldn’t be able to focus on his message or call to action.  I also don’t believe John McCain is a bad man; I just don’t believe he has a good idea, either.

I’m still voting for Barack Obama.

ONE WEEK LEFT!

I haven’t written much in the past couple of weeks, and I really wanted to write about this sooner, but if you have any free time in your week, go to the Democratic headquarters in your area and volunteer!  I have been working for our local office and it has really opened my eyes–I don’t feel so alone in a Red state anymore.  Volunteer because it doesn’t matter if you’re in a safe blue state or a safe red state (like me), but definitely volunteer if you happen to live in one of the swing states.

With one week left, even in Alabama, Obama is running 34% to McCain’s 54%.  It would be truly amazing if we could get him even closer here.  But beyond that, I know our Dem HQ is sponsoring rides to the polls for those who can’t drive themselves–can you do that?  I’ll be taking a class to learn how to watch the polls this Saturday for the election on Tuesday–can you do that?  I’ve been phone banking for other Alabama Democrats (really good people, too)–can you do that?  If you have a free evening or two during the week, I strongly encourage you to at least call and see what they need.

There is the bizarre assumption that “White Shame” is stealing the vote for Obama–the idea that, because of injustices of the past, voting Barack Obama in as President will absolve white people (who might not even have been born or old enough to vote, etc) of all responsibility.  I have yet to meet anyone who is voting for Barack, overlooking his obvious intelligence, and, as a bonus, feeling better about segregation, Jim Crow, or slavery.  Highly unlikely for a thinking America.  As a black female, I guess that won’t apply to me anyway, but I have another reason that I feel might be shared among all races.

Americans should feel some sort of shame about our apathy–at least eight years of it, and especially in my generation. This apathy allowed me to hear/witness all of the decisions being made and directions our country–formerly a SuperPower, formerly a model for the world, formerly a helping hand (as opposed to a rattling saber), formerly a bastion of sanity and hope–was heading, but made me unaware of the connections that led us here today. I believe Obama knows this too, and will not let it happen again.  Definitely more on this later.

The point I want to make is, please consider volunteering so that we can “seal the deal”.  It has not been so impotant to elect the right people (including Congressional leaders) to offices in the United States in a LONG time, and this is a first in my lifetime.  I’m not advocating a filibuster-proof Democratic Congress, unless these are the sensible, just, concerned people that we need in charge of the nation.  Just remember that Rove-style campaigning has helped many of the most corrupt Republicans in Washington remain there. I’ll leave you to think about that, because this post is too long-winded anyway.

Tips for Alabama Voters!!!!!

The headlines have already been a little scary.

Lawsuit Filed in PA Demanding Emergency Paper Ballots
Vote Flips 5 Times From D to R in Another WV County
Votes Flip R to D in Decatur Cty, TN! Can We Remove the Machines NOW?!
Candidate Names Missing on Final Review Screens in SC
Election Filmmaker Sees Own Vote Flipped From Dem in TN
ES&S Vote-Flipping Seen in 2 WV Counties
FL: Broken Machines, 3 Hour Vote for CNN Reporter
TX: Straight-Party Vote Disinfo Loses Votes
Court-ordered Report Finds Inaccurate NJ Voting Machines

Luckily for us in Alabama, we don’t have this headache of voting early.  But we will vote on November 4th.  What exactly are we voting for on that day?  Not President and Vice President, as most people think.  We’re actually casting votes for that candidate’s electors…the ones with the final say…for that “magic” number, 270 to win.

Change IS Good

Change IS Good, and the Costs Are Worth It

It is time for a new kind of politics.

I have heard it said by my favorite politician, among others.  It is a call to battle with more far-reaching effects and implications than our call to attack Afghan insurgents and the Iraqi dictatorship. To have a new political sensibility might mean that our leaders will inform us instead of working us into a frenzy of propaganda-fueled patriotism.  To really need to ask for this small, but indispensable feature in a leader would let us know that our democratic system is floundering and in need of help.

Our generation and those in the upcoming voting generation, by and large, are not as interested in voting or politics since we distrust those figure heads already in place.  As Americans, we have grown up privileged and cannot even begin to know the liberties, defining issues, and forgotten ideals of our nation.  It’s easy to see how we take for granted our upbringing and leisure activities.  We don’t remain glued to our radios for news on the war in Iraq—we’re too busy listening to personal playlists on our iPods and performing our roles as “Me Generation” adults—so it comes as no surprise that Americans inside and out of our generation are classically disaffected.  If the common tie of the citizens of the United States was WWII in our grandparents’ and great-grandparents’ era, then ours must logically be the War on Terror.  But how many of us truly see this as a defining moment…a turning point for our nation?

There are some changes that we desperately need before we don’t even notice that our country has become too socialist, too capitalistic, too racist, too liberal, or what have you.  First, I propose a new kind of political party—either within the existing parties or a totally new concept—where the superficial and petty politics of today don’t exist. Long shot, I know.  In addition, we need a media that is truly responsible for what they say—and must be as thorough as possible without distorting the facts or showing undue bias.  The last change should come first in the series.  This will not be a change from Washington, but in fact, we need a fundamental change from within all everyday American citizens, from the oldest to the youngest. Let me start with the media of today. 

They wonder why the printed newspaper is dying, when they are bought by media moguls, often combined with television and radio networks. They choose allegiances and defend their journalistic opinions with a partiality that borders on unprofessionalism.  And their antics merely serve to generate ratings and promote agendas, which Americans should be aware of when looking for facts in current events.  I do have an opinion, and I am sharing it here…but…I am a regular citizen and not held by the standards that we should have for our running “historians”.  Pan American Flight 103 in 1988, The L.A. Earthquakes and new awareness, The Oklahoma City Federal Building bombing, the shootings at Columbine, and that most tragic September day in 2001—all have shaped my perception of and feelings about events, and I never was present for any of them. 

How else could I have known about any of those tragedies but for the media’s omnipresence?  If events of the last twenty-five plus years were only accessible to me through the media, think of many other Americans who depend on the nightly news, cable networks, and newspapers for their information.  Journalists (and their bosses) owe us a brand of truth unsullied by partisan agendas or propaganda.  We are not so dumb as to need a hand-packaged opinion about our world—the facts should suffice. In order for the mindset of this nation to progress, we need the whole story presented neutrally and in detail. If not, a 1984-esque future awaits, where instead of journalists and others retelling the news in the context of their opinions (or those of their networks) it could easily become one where our opinions and beliefs are being dictated to us. Sadly, there are those of us who are content to be told opinions on issues, but theses people need to be reminded that they live in the United States of America, where they have the right to their own.

Closely tied to this idea is the public awareness of the actions of our national leaders, and television journalism, especially, is the medium.  There is a need for a new political party, or a vast reformation of existing party ideas.  Highly shaped by popular opinion, candidates of this years’ election are prime examples. I have a favorite (Barack Obama), but with the way even his campaign has changed since securing the Democratic nomination and the public attention from the 2008 DNC.  But I get an uneasy feeling every time I sense that McCain, Obama, and other center-stage politicians are saying or doing something only to sway favor.

Statistical data and polling have shown that voters already go for a more aesthetically pleasing candidate, so by default, some very genuine people are out of the running based on looks.  Voters also tend to migrate to a candidate with the same morals/religious beliefs/upbringing as themselves. Then, there are the “hot-button” issues of abortion, gun control, the war, race, gender, etc. In this case too, opinions are a**holes, because we can be swayed because of opinions.  The difference however is that politicians’ opinions are the most important because it is they who decide our national course of action.  When they have a position on an issue that has been influenced by special interests or personal ambition, and we follow like sheep—then we play into their hands. When presidential, gubernatorial, mayoral, or PTA presidential nominees are not genuine, we suffer even more.

What if we had politicians that wouldn’t manipulate sometimes fragile emotions?  Could U.S. voters be enamored with a politician that not only remained true to their core beliefs, but would be more than willing to reconsider positions if current actions were detrimental or not particularly helpful—despite any criticism? Could Americans adjust to a politician without artificial glitz and hype? Could the next thinkers, policy-makers, and true leaders be recognized for their merit as the best representative of our nation instead of what we have now?  Even I am not sure what to believe in, although I am prepared to take the ultimate gamble on my candidate because I feel that he is closer to that genuine person I want to see in office. 

Actually, I am impressed with the overall quality of candidates this election season. I have spent my days since all the candidates have been publicly known hoping that no real dirt is being dug and that, even unintentionally, no dirt is being found.  The revelation of Palin daughter Bristol’s teenage pregnancy, was sensationalized from the very start, based on a rumor that Palin’s last son, Trig, was actually her daughter’s.  This was due in part to not only the media, but a new element…the blogosphere…where the issue was first raised.  The rumor actually began as a benign fancy, if there was no valid truth to it—then, was discredited by revealing the truth that she is currently five months pregnant, which ideally would have rocked the conservative base to the core.  In this instance, however atypical, this did not really raise any eyebrows in an election season where republicans are grasping for straws.

All I can hope is that the Obama campaign had nothing to do with it, and I am slightly reassured that he has condemned such tacky actions and promised swift dismissal if it is being propagated by any of his staffers.  We have known since the 2000 election that George W. Bush was excessive in his drinking habits…but the general population didn’t know this when his father ran for office.  Barack, after all, does have two young daughters that he and Michelle would like to keep out of the close scrutiny of the political spotlight. Senator Biden is the only one I’m not sure about, because I don’t know very much about him, except that Jay Leno cracked on the senator for butting into a conversation to brag on Obama.  Troubling comments from Moscow surrounding the Russian involvement in the Georgian conflict, comes from Medvedev and others—the belief that the pot has been stirred from Washington—have me very worried about what is really going on in this election.  After all, who is best prepared to face issues reminiscent of the cold war?

If these four, very prominent politicians can find some way to be ultra genuine, and give this country a fighting chance at an unknown future.  The United States cannot afford to once again have more trouble created than we can get out of (remember the war in Iraq?).

But we voters are fickle.  The biggest change must come from within.  We must DEMAND a level of truth from the media and politicians, because the United States is built upon the principles that every man, woman and child has inalienable rights.  That dream has been marred by lack of power for women, finally extended in America in the twentieth century; even then there was a pervasive belief that women would vote with their eyes and feelings—something that politicians count on today.  That dream had been denied to minorities until nearly one hundred years after the end of slavery; seen as backwards and somehow intellectually less than the white majority, African Americans reinforced these truths in the desperation of our shared “cultural conduct,” even though the best of us are the same as any other person of comparable class and education…but now, when we have the best chance to see eye to eye as Americans and push for the promise that our nation still holds, we wallow in old wounds and mistrust. 

Government is going to be much more comfortable with a population that is too complacent and dumb to question the questionable.  The call to action is for us as an entire, unified nation to use those inalienable rights—to question, to never settle for less than the American ideal, and to get more comfortable with the fact that not every idea, belief, practice and policy will please us as individuals…but that there’s a chance that tolerance and present discomfort will benefit our children’s future. For these same reasons, we must have political leaders with integrity. For these same reasons, we must only accept a media presence that is committed to fact-telling for the public good. A truly intelligent America will become a threat unless we ensure that the right people are pulling our national strings.

Change is good, and it is time for a rebirth in the United States. Both candidates are currently talking about their versions of change, and enough of us are dissatisfied with the current state of affairs to really get that much-needed change this time. It may very well be our last chance for a while.