History in the Making

Better (a week) late than never. I'm was so impressed and excited about the Democratic Convention last week, especially culminating with Obama's acceptance speech. I really wished I had planned my trip better & could have been in Denver a few days earlier.

As somebody who has always voted Republican & never really dove very deep into the issues or the political world, I wasn't sure what to expect. I was very happy with the organization & management of the convention- everything was smooth & looked wonderful. I'm more certain now than ever about voting Obama in November.

Now, onto Obama's speech. I can honestly say the first half was a bit boring for me to watch. I've watched just about all of his other major speeches, especially after key primary victories. Much of it was the same sort of thing, and nothing can top his "Yes, We Can!" speech in New Hampshire.

But during the second half of his speech, I was nearly in tears. I'm really terrified about many of the things that have been happening in the last decade, and the general direction things are headed in this country. Weather it's our declining education system, the abuse of executive power, the inability of so many to obtain basic medical care without falling into financial crisis, the trampling of our basic rights & the Constitution or the identity politics that have ruled, I am sick of it.

In Obama, I see a person who is willing to sit down at the table with all sides of the debate. The battle of "us vs. them" has only made our problems worse while we squabble and bicker over partisan politics. He highlighted that there aer many hot-button issues that sides vehemently disagree upon, but there IS a middle ground and we need to start working on our solution there.

We need to focus our energy on building a better America, rather than seeking to simply beat the other side this election. There are too many enemies, too many problems to solve, too much at stake for the tone to be so filled with hatred and anger. I really do believe that America is a better place than it has been in the last 8 years.

Everybody asks me "What's the change?" What does he really think he can. It's my ferverant hope that he can bring a change in the tone & attidue of politics to Washington. Somebody that will see the good in the other side, give them the benefit of the doubt, work earnestly to move the long-stalled problems toward solutions. I think he can bring a sense of decenacy back to politics, and an end to the cynacism that has ruled the political landscape and ended forward progeress on the difficult issues of our age.

If you are not following the elections, I really hope that you will take the time to start following the candidate. Please learn about the issues and decide what's most important to you. I know that everybody says *this* election is the most important one in a generation, but I truly feel that way about Election 2008.

You can read the full text of the speech here or watch it here.

There was also a fabulous intro video you can watch it here. Also, to see some of the newspaper front pages from around the country on Friday, click here.

GOOD NEWS OF THE DAY: Back from Colorado, going through hundred of photos, getting ready to head to Canada next week! Back to regularly scheduled blogging!