Born: June 9, 1972
« A journey through the… | Home | Me 'n Maemo... »
October 30, 2008 at 12:38 pm
Why I voted for Barack Obama...
Yesterday, I sat in line for over two and a half hours so that I could vote absentee. I sent the absentee ballot forms in the mail almost a month ago, but I still hadn’t received anything. So, in order that I could vote (since I’ll be in North Carolina next week), I headed down to basement of the Plaza Library and waited my turn.
The waiting wasn’t so bad, but it was annoying that most of the time was caused by the volunteers and not actually the amount of people who were in line. Thankfully, I had my N810, the library’s free wifi, and my Motorola S9s to bide the time with.
In any case, I voted and I feel good about it.
During the course of this campaign, I have often reflected on why I liked Barrack Obama more than John McCain. Of course, most of you Obama fans don’t need to know why. Likewise, most of you McCain fans have probably tuned out already. But, I can honestly say that politics had very little to do with my choice. Let me explain…
Throughout my life, politics have affected me very little. Yes, I know that there are some who are very intertwined with the American political system for one reason or another (whether it be for good or bad reasons). Yes, I know that politics, at some level, do affect my life (again, for good and bad reasons). But, aside from laws (that I usually don’t break) and taxes (that are just a fact of life), politics rarely enter the realm of my present being. Sure, I could stew about all of the ways that politics do this or that for our nation’s people, but usually, I choose not too.
So, if not politics, why did I choose Obama? It’s actually pretty simple, and speaks more of the human condition than any sappy campaign ads could. When I look at the campaigns of McCain and Obama on a purely personality-based level, I see many more things on Obama’s side that I can personally align with than on McCain’s. The funny thing is, I don’t even care if the things I see are genuine — whomever becomes President will surely change a tune or two that will completely take their devotees by surprise. No, what I care about is how the candidates are instigating change in America for the better.
On McCain’s side, all I have really seen is a continuing doctrine of fear: fear of terrorists, fear of government, fear of immigrants, et cetera. Likewise, McCain’s stance, in my opinion, is change from the top down. Regardless of his party’s supposed position on the reduction of government in the United States, I don’t really here that. What I hear (wrong or not) is that change will occur with the people who are in the White House. Lastly, McCain’s campaign ads have generally been about what’s wrong with our world and what’s wrong with the opposing party.
Obama, on the other hand has a different take: idealism, peace, hope, and general prosperity for the working class of our nation. Obama continually seems to be saying that the real change will come from below — from people who take matters into their own hands. And, speaking of campaign ads, Obama’s have generally been about his beliefs; neither pessimism for our world, nor attacks against the Republicans.
Now, as I alluded to earlier, both of the candidates may just be putting up fronts for who they actually are — or may become once they’re sworn into office. But, does it really matter? To me, what matters most, is that people have been inspired by Obama. People have been given a glimpse of what it means to be proud of their country — of what it means to be idealistic and passionate about changing the world. Whether or not the elected President follows through is unimportant when a nation of people have been persuaded to care about what they believe in.
That is why I voted for Barrack Obama. He inspired me. He offered me a peek at the idealism of my youth. He preached a message of hope. He made me feel patriotic — something I don’t know that I’ve ever really felt.
Illustration credit: Drawing #1 of Barack Obama, by mmike2 (© All rights reserved. Used without permission.)
Digg This Story | 
Save This Page
No Trackbacks
Trackback Link: