OBAMA

Last night was truly a historic event. After 151 days, 56 primaries and caucuses, and 8 Democratic candidates (remember Mike Gravel), The Democratic Party has chosen Barack Obama as the first African American Presidential Nominee in the history of our nation. A man who, if successful, will usher in a generational change in power in this country. As the nomination ends I am feeling very nostalgic. This has been a strange and wild ride and it's also been pretty exciting overall. When this campaign started, Hillary Clinton was expected to win easily and quickly in a boring campaign because of her superior money, organization, and positive name brand. I never imagined Obama could pull off a political upset.

For me, the fascination (some have described it as a man crush) with Obama began on July 27, 2005 when Obama delivered an electrifying speech to the 2004 Democratic Convention to nominate John Kerry. I became an Obama supporter when I heard him deliver these words:

For alongside our famous individualism, there’s another ingredient in the American saga. A belief that we’re all connected as one people. If there is a child on the south side of Chicago who can’t read, that matters to me, even if it’s not my child. If there’s a senior citizen somewhere who can’t pay for their prescription drugs, and has to choose between medicine and the rent, that makes my life poorer, even if it’s not my grandparent. If there’s an Arab American family being rounded up without benefit of an attorney or due process, that threatens my civil liberties. It is that fundamental belief, I am my brother’s keeper, I am my sister’s keeper that makes this country work. It’s what allows us to pursue our individual dreams and yet still come together as one American family:

E pluribus unum. Out of many, one.

With this speech, Barack Obama changed everything. He helped restore faith in our American Political System and offered a new vision. A vision that saw the divisive politics of gays, guns and God as only a distraction from what we should really expect and demand from our leaders. These words serve to incite all that is good within us--a living portrayal of our purpose in life. They challenge us to re-prioritize our values and re-shape our worldview. Shifting from attitudes and policies that erect walls around us--walls made up of apathy, judgement, and fear; to living with a passion for personal relationships and community responsibility.

We need a President to lead America into a new direction where our policies are shaped with the understanding that we can't subsidize the poor, rather we should empower and instill within them the tools needed to lift themselves out of poverty. And that we need for the Government to partner with us as individuals and as a civic society in providing these tools, and ensuring equality and justice for the oppressed. We need a President that understands we need a more humane and effective health care system based on the principle that health should be a human right and not a commodity for sale, and that wealth should never dictate one's ability to treat and heal from diseases and illnesses. A President that understands war only serves to escalate global conflicts over culture, religion and power. A President that understands we are called to be stewards and protectors of God's creation, and that money, profit and our addiction to consumerism are NEVER an excuse for the degradation of God's creation. A President that understands poverty is not okay in a land of so many luxuries, wealth and comforts. These are a few of the many examples of the leadership qualities I believe are best embodied within Barack Obama.

The General Election season has officially begun. I must admit as a political junkie this has been one of the most entertaining 6 months, and I expect the next 5 to be just as entertaining.