An Historic Election
Well, he did it. After all the fretting over accuracy of polls, possible Election Day shenanigans and fears about deep-seated racism lingering in America, it all came to naught. Barack Obama won and he won big.
And suddenly, it seems that everyone wants to talk about race, which has been the donkey in the room for over a year now. Obama didn’t campaign on it, and the McCain campaign had to talk about it obliquely, by whispering about terrorists and Muslims and real Americans. But as soon as Obama won, the floodgates were opened up, and the historic nature of electing a black man to the most powerful position in the world demand that we all finally acknowledge it.
There’s John McCain, congratulating Barack on breaking through the color barrier, making me happy that the old McCain version 2000 was still in there somewhere. There’s Brian Williams, pulling out a grade school picture of all the presidents, saying finally there will be a non-white one on it. There’s Oprah cheering. There’s Jesse Jackson crying.
And there’s me, looking at my adopted son, who looks enough like Obama that he went trick-or-treating as Obama on Halloween a few times to score a lot of extra candy in my neighborhood. I told him tonight that he could be president one day, and finally it was not just some wild-eyed fantasy. Or my daughters, who are just as cute as the Obama daughters, and now have a strong black woman role model in Michelle to aspire to. These things matter.
But let’s not kid ourselves that racism has been solved. What we proved tonight is that we’ve finally tipped the scale enough that even race won’t keep the best man from winning anymore. And yet we are always one YouTube click away from the vile underbelly that we rejected yesterday.
After hearing Obama’s victory speech, I am struck by how well he wears the hopes and dreams of others. He knows he’s a symbol and he embraces it. Whereas most people seem to reject such a burden as too heavy or too much responsibility, he seems supremely comfortable with it. It seems to keep him humble, since he knows that change and hope are not about him, but about what he represents.
Of course, now the real work starts. There’s a bittersweetness to this election, in that the mess of the last 8 years is not going to be easy to clean up. It feels like we’ve had an abusive uncle in the house for eight years, and carting him off to a nursing home doesn’t fix the holes in the wall or the flooding in the basement or the damage he’s done to our standing in the neighborhood.
But, the work has to be done. In his victory speech, Obama said “Tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope”
Amen, brother.
We’ve now given him the power act on those ideals, and to start the cleanup. But with the power, the corruption clock is now ticking, and not just for Obama, but for the Democratic Party too. We’ll need to clean up the mess of the last eight years quickly before the corruption sets in.
2 comments
PGregory Springer
He did it, as you say, Dan. But as he said in his victory speech, we did it. And we will have to continue to do it, to sacrifice and face the work ahead. Even here in Mexico City, people are aware of the significance of the election. Very nice column.
jjarse2
I thought it was an excellent way to show the world how American democracy is supposed to work. Both sides can fight hard—maybe too hard during the campaign but in the end, it all comes together. I was at the rally in Grant Park and everyone was cheering for John McCain during his consession speech. No sneers or boos—-no hard feelings. That’s the way it’s supposed to be, right?
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hey, if hair ain’t gon’ be over your head, my jokes may as well be.
Okay, almost 24 hours later and I finally got Issac’s Summer joke. I’m an idiot.
Swap the dog for a fire pit and it sounds like you’re writing about my back yard. Very nice.
funny, as your summer begins, another Summer ends.
And that, my friend, is love. Bob, I think I still owe you for my wedding cake, served in 1998. But nevermind.
I believe the kiss between Rob and I was documented on low-quality videotape in the mid-ninties porn classic, Dirty Harry…and Sticky.
“Do I have to sign some forms, or am I just considered ‘in.’” You’re in!
Got damn, Coulter. You are the greatest.
I have no specific memory of it, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I’d kissed Mike, too—once we’d both drunk ourselves gay. And earlier this week I gave Clarence Shelley a back rub. Do I have to sign some forms, or am I just considered “in.”
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High-profile whining. AKA Lobbying.
it’s quite choice. looking forward to seeing how it and its patronage grow and develop over the course of the year. could be a neat little ecosystem.
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Super cool! Excellent track, Excellent band.
Looking forward to trying this place!
I’m in the middle (or the beginning or end, depending on how you look at it) of re-reading Slaughterhouse Five. What a great companion column.
Get yours early. The Rave’s CD will be available at Exile and at The C-U Flea on Saturday. C-U Flea details here: http://www.smilepolitely.com/news/sp_radio_podcast_c-u_flea_arrives/
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Oh nice! I’d totally vote for Matt Campbell!
“Smile Politely sports writer announces candidacy for city government.”
I also got to visit Big Grove Tavern during the soft open and definitely enjoyed the pork belly the most of all the dishes I sampled. The cheesy grits and the vinegary pickled vegetables were a perfect compliment to the rich pork belly.
The Alan Partridge lookalike on the right in the first small photo has nothing to condescend to anyone about. AH HA!
Snell and the little Hitlers of the neighborhood association need to chill out. Legitimate businesses should have the freedom to exist without having to endure the slings and arrows of ignorant and misguided opposition.
represent, Matt.
Yeah, I’d agree that Transporter Room 3 is the worst house venue I’ve ever seen.
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I’m in the middle (or the beginning or end, depending on how you look at it) of re-reading Slaughterhouse Five. What a great companion column.