obama appears in spider-man comic – yahoo.com

Election spurs ‘hundreds’ of race threats, crimes

i was estatic that barack obama won the election for president of the united states of america. i have a lot of respect for obama because of his history of community activism and being a community organizer. i think it shows where his heart is…for the people. i was watching cspan book tv of a speaking engagement obama was at back in 2006, before he announced his bid for presidency, and he said that he feels the best when he accomplishes something useful for people.

i loved obama’s election night speech, it reminded me of my favorite dr. martin luther king jr.’s speech, “i’ve been to the mountaintop”. whenever i read that speech it makes me cry. in the speech he mentions how he “may not get there with you” but he has hope that america will get to the promised land. the promised land he speaks of is the world he speaks about in his “i have a dream” speech.

this post is a response to some (just some) of my friends’ status updates on facebook and myspace. as i read somewhere, someone had mentioned how the election results have brought out some shocking responses from people. i have seen some crazy stuff this past week.

in my celebration i have not once put down mccain in any way. i think mccain is amazing. i’ve read the account of a fellow prisoner of war of mccain and it was all very heroic. mccain has served his country, and i am thankful and respectful towards him. however, in defeat a lot of people have put down obama in very nasty ways. totally disappointed in some of my friends. sore loser or something else?

the newspaper in terrell, tx. didn’t even acknowledge obama’s win on the front page. what is this “something else” i am talking about? racism. i hate throwing that word out there but it is what it is. racism exist, and i’m about to talk about it. it’s amazing how oblivious people are to their own racism (and knowing a black person doesn’t mean anything!). i have to think it is racism because the haters are not living their lives in some morally high standard, so they couldn’t be hating obama over HIS moral standards. so what it is? it must be something else that is bringing out so much hate towards obama.

within the black community there is a lot of celebration over the president-elect and some people might be asking, “what’s the big deal?” my grandmother was in tears! go back to the civil rights movement, youtube some videos, view pictures and read stories of the struggle that people of color went through just to have the right to vote, and to walk down the street without being spat on or treated like a dog. so the fact that a man of color is president-elect of a country where not long ago black men didn’t even have the right to vote is a big deal.

the civil rights movement and the civil rights act of 1964 made america into a better country. and if someone can’t acknowledge the fact that having a black president elect is progress for america, victory for america, and part of the american dream then perhaps i should start talking about patriotism. i don’t care where one stand on the issues, if you are an american you should be proud that you live in a country where it doesn’t matter if you are white or black, male or female, you can become president. and when the “anyone can become president” statement comes true, as it did on tuesday, one should acknowledge the significance of the event. it’s the american dream unfolding before your eyes. celebrate the dream.

“we have come a long way from the injustices that once stained our nation’s reputation.” – john mccain in his concession speech, recognizing and acknowledging the historic nature of obama’s win. and what john mccain did, acknowledge the historic nature of the night, is what i hoped americans all over would had done. especially my online friends.

then there is the notion that obama is the antichrist. obama have won over a generation with his rhetoric, and because of his attraction people have ignorantly suggested that he is the antichrist. all because someone is charismatic does not mean they are the antichrist. is being charismatic all it takes? ohh, also the antichrist must be black, right? i will not scoop any further, but i had to ask! obama isn’t a saint, but to call him the anticrist is ridiculous.

all politicians say just about anything to get elected. it’s part of the game, they over promise. it’s politics! some people say he is “all talk and no action”, exactly what is that argument based on? he doesn’t have an extensive public office record (remember the experience argument against him?) in order to to make a strong argument that he is all talk and no action.

people say they don’t know where obama stands on the issues. he’s a democrat! it’s pretty obvious where he stands on a lot of issues. not all democrats are created equal, but they are all on the same ticket. besides, look at his voting record and read his website, find out. don’t depend on debates and news bites. he has inspired hope and change and i think that is priceless, it is what a leader should do.

as a christian i don’t agree totally with everything the democratic party stands for, however as someone who has basically spent four years of my life studying social problems i know too much to narrow my vote down to what are considered moral issues. it’s not that simple, there is more to it! what about the child who goes to bed hungry at night? what about the young girl who turns to selling her body because the economy is so bad she can’t even find a minimum wage job? what about all the young black men who are in prison because the education system failed them? what about the people who are dying because they can’t afford preventable health care? a lot of people are in despair! as i mentioned in my last post, i vote for who i think is best for the country. i think mccain would had been a good president, but the country needs some hope right about now (and some prayer!).

and for those who want to go to canada because you are either upset the president elect is black or a democrat, or upset about both, THEN GO. but i think people underestimate canada’s liberalism.

well, this is all i have to say for now.
back to regular programming…

vote. and if you can vote early, do yourself a favor and vote early. i predict mayhem at some polling places on election day. i was lucky to not have to stand in line for more than 5 minutes when i early voted last week, but even if you have to stay in line for hours it’s worth it. take the time to vote.

American Prayer – Dave Stewart (Barack Obama Music Video)