President Obama:
A Black Man In The White House.

Edition #103 — February 21, 2008

When Barack Obama becomes president of the somewhat "United" States of America, will his motorcade be pulled over by police officers checking reports of "a suspicious looking black man" lurking near the White House?

Let's face it, Barack Obama needs to win this election to help heal the racist divide. His victory, more than any promise or political experience, will go a long way toward beginning that process.

Yes, this struggle is even more important than gender equality at the moment. Besides, women already run the world, men just haven't figured it out yet. But what remains unrealized is a true acceptance of racial equality. It's time for Americans to live up to their own Constitution.

History Is Changing

Regardless of its outcome, history has already been made in the presidential race of 2008. It is the first time that a woman and a black American have run and stood a chance of winning.

The perfect combination would have been Oprah Winfrey running as both a strong, independent woman and a proud, successful person of color, all in a confident, media savvy package. Political experience doesn't seem to matter, as the Bush administration has made painfully clear. In Oprah we would also find a successful yet truly spiritual business icon with a historically proven record of caring for others. You can't beat that combination.

But with her absence in this race, we must divide the categories of color and womanhood between Barack Obama and fellow Democrat, Hilary Rodham Clinton and then hope that each one cares as much as they say they do. In my opinion, I believe each is a worthy candidate in their own right and their mere presence a victory for humankind, as we shall soon see.

The Old, Rich, Supreme White Guy Syndrome

Somewhere in the annals of time, men throughout the world decided that they would make the best leaders. And usually that dominant male is also the most competitive, selfish, lying and scheming individual in the race. In the United States of America, the winner of that race is called "the President" or "that crook in the White House" in more recent decades.

Since the days of George Washington, only white men of stature or means were deemed suitable for running the country. Only they were qualified to look after the nation's best interests, whether protecing the sick, the weak and the young, or being kind to their foreign neighbours. And thus it was written into law.

The problem was pretty obvious from the start. Most presidents weren't interested in helping others rise in stature, only themselves. There is little sharing in this quest for power, so why change when we have it all? And so, like the European monarchs they'd left behind, today's American leaders still pander to the aristocracy to save their own necks.

Founded on liberty and equality, there has been little sight of either women or blacks in the American political landscape until late in the last decade. But a critical mass has now been reached and change is upon us. Today we sit at the edge of an important landmark in world history: the election of the first woman or black American president, ever.

As for John McCain, he must ride the dead horse left to him by George W. Bush after eight years of breaking its legs. Namely, the Republican party and the long-standing tradition of an old, white man as the only option on the ballot.

Anyone still bitter about Dubya's stolen elections should rejoice that his failure as a leader has directly set the stage for the political rebirth of their country. To know the light, we must wallow in darkness, the kind that has enveloped the United States since this inept aristocrat took the reigns.

John McCain is a sacrificial lamb. He must suffer the wrath of angry Americans for representing everyone who has failed to understand that this is a job for givers, not takers. And that's why things must change. And they will.

Hilary Clinton may suffer a similar fate for her tenure in politics and for lacking that newness smell of first ownership. People wonder who she really represents. That leaves us with Obama as the only viable person who, in all likelihood, has never been sold before. Oh, the irony.

Thanks A Million, Dubya!

We have to be thankful for George W. Bush. Without his help, the next presidential race could have been like all the other ones. Only George's undying arrogance in the face of monumental defeat has shocked and awed voters into considering this drastic and radical departure from a tradition that has typically failed them. Namely, the upholding of a system created by old, rich white guys.

Even the importance of religion in American politics is in question. After taking a constant beating in the media spotlight, many of us are left wondering if the Devil hasn't switched sides.

A Good Start

There may never be a perfect leader — not even Oprah can please everyone — but at least we are finally seeing the beginnings of a long-awaited and necessary change in American corporate and political culture. What is happening now would have been unthinkable even 20 years ago. Why? Fear. Ignorance. Tradition.

Since the beginning, American political candidates have had their gender and race in common. Many were successful lawyers and industrialists, or members of elite families, each seeking ever more power and authority for themselves. Whether soft and cuddly or vile and repulsive, such people only represented about 2% of American society, while the other 98% prayed that scraps from the presidential table would fall onto their plates before the dog got them.

2008 is the first time, ever, that those 98% may have a chance to sit at the head table and dine with their new president. Future generations may again be left to forage through the White House trash bins, but for the next few years, the future looks very bright indeed.

Barack Obama's skin may be darker than those of his opponents, but from him shines the white light of eternal hope.



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