On the Election

I'm absolutely thrilled about the results of this election. Not because I believe that Obama is some kind of messiah that will magically fix everything that's wrong with this country. I don't think that. I don't even think he'll do everything he said he will, no politician does. I have several reasons though for being thrilled about these results.

For one, he's black. I've heard a lot of people say this election was not and is not about race. Some of them seem offended even at the celebration of our first black president. I think that's silly. Of course it's about race. The fact that he's black is not why he won, or why he deserved to win, or why I voted for him. But it's huge for this country. We cannot be so quick to forget our history. Our recent history even. The fact that we elected a black man to lead us is amazing and wonderful. It's a gigantic milestone in our history. Parents of black children can really honestly tell their kids that they can be whatever they want to in this country. They can look up to this man and believe it. I feel so proud of our country because of it. I really honestly doubted that our country would be able to elect a black president. I'm proud that people were able to see through attacks on his background and vote for him because they thought he was the best candidate. I hope that even those who voted for McCain can celebrate this moment in our history.

I voted for Obama because I tended to agree with more of his policies and opinions than with McCain's, and because I respected his campaign tactics more, and because I would be terrified at the prospect of Sarah Palin becoming president, but those are not the reasons I'm feeling proud and excited.

I'm excited about the prospect of an Obama presidency. I think he's a great man. (to be clear though, I think McCain is a great man too, or was at one time, but he made it hard to continue to respect him) I'm being careful not to expect too much out of Obama. I know that he's a politician. As Schuyler puts it, I'm "cautiously optimistic". But after all we've gone through with the last administration, I'm really ready for some actual change and I think that most of America is as well. Beyond being a great man, Obama seems like a really good man, and a thoughtful man, and that means a lot to me too. I have a lot of hope that even if I don't agree with him on everything (see the FISA bill and war with Iran), Obama will be making decisions from the heart, based on what he thinks is right for this country, and after giving it a lot of careful thought. Maybe I'm being naive about that, but I've got a good feeling about it.