Obama...

This is an amazing set of photographs of Obama, dating from his Illinois senate campaign to the presidential campaign. (Thanks, Marvin.) This view of him, the view of the people attending his rallies, and the access the photographer, Callie Shell, had to him is amazing and intimate. Looking at these photos reminds me of why I admire Barack Obama as much as I do.

I have a lot of thoughts relating to the campaign bouncing through my head. I am still cautiously optimistic, but I am not taking anything for granted. Despite that, I am not only excited about the prospect of a Democrat taking back the White House, but I am ecstatic about this particular Democrat. I have admired Obama since his DNC speech in 2004, and I truly believe that his 2004 speech will go down as one of the watershed moments in US politics.

I'm a fairly pessimistic and cynical person. Yet I do have hope and I do believe Obama can make a real difference in Washington. It's not youthful naivete--I'm well past that part in my life. I honestly, truly, in my gut believe Obama will make a difference. I believe he can change things.

I met a couple of hardcore Palin supporters the other day. We got into a "discussion" about the campaign where I got to hear all about how Obama lets babies die and other various bullshit that is out there. I got really angry, but what upset me the most was how one person was trying to downplay my belief in Obama as being stupid. I don't know if the stupid part was actually believing in any politician or believing in this particular politician. Honestly, I felt myself getting demoralized because I began to wonder if they were right, if having this much faith in one leader is wrong. Or dangerous. Or is believing in a leader the piece that has been missing from US politics for all these years?

I read a story on CNN the other day about an African-American man, a Republican, who voted for Obama. Not because he was black, but because, as Martin Luther King Jr. said, you don't judge a man by the color of his skin, you judge him by his character. I read that and I got teary-eyed. How long has it been since this country was able to vote for someone based on their character?

So, as this long, drawn out election cycle comes to an end, I am, as I said, cautiously optimistic. I want the Democrats to take back Washington. It's time. I want a person with strong character in the office--and if Obama is elected, we will. And then there is the part of me that looks the events of the last two years, and that part of me cannot believe that there is a very good chance this country will elect a black president. That is something I never thought I would see, ever. Sometimes I am in awe of what might happen on November 4. I think about it, and I am proud, seriously proud to be an American. And it's been a long time since I have been able to say that.