| Nov. 5th, 2008 @ 08:41 am YES! NOW there is hope again! |
|---|
YES WE CAN!!!
The battle cry of millions who still believe that this country can be turned around. The fulfillment of Dr.King's dream. The steadfast believe of Democrats of all shades and colors that this election could be won! The cry of a nation trying to rediscover it's purpose. The birth of a myth that will be told to generations to come. The core belief of an American people facing historical tasks of monumental proportions. The election of the first African American president despite still rampant racism and bigotry. And the answer to the future generations asking us if we will finally get our act together and save our planet.
All of that and so much more is included in this short sentence. Yes we can!
Today is a day to celebrate a historic event. A once in a lifetime shift of epic proportions. The era of Neocon and Neoliberal rule has finally come to an end. With the economy in shambles and the world burning up as a result of the greed and recklessness of the creed we had to suffer through for decades and with a stock market crash of monumental magnitude showing even the most obtuse American the fruits of this creed the American people have finally said 'Enough!' to the madness that ruled the world for way too long.
Today is a day of hope for the world. And some day we will look back and realize just HOW BIG this first step on our new journey was. I am deeply honored to have been allowed to be in this country during one of it's finest hours and to live through the birth pains of a new dawn for mankind.
If all of this sounds too grand and enthusiastic, too black and white, too simplistic, then so be it. I believe there are moments in history that are simply grand and good. The defeat of the Nazis, Mr. King's 'I have a dream' speech, the world uniting right after 9/11 (before all goodwill was destroyed by Bush) and yes, the election of this man to become the next president of the United States. An event which, to me, rings in a new era that will most importantly be marked by the will to say 'Farewell' to a world order that was built on oil and the military power to control access to it.
Apart from my exuberance and the pride I feel of just having been allowed to be a witness of this historic event there are many other feelings I have in my heart. I have no illusions about the fact that Mr. Obama is a politician with all the good and bad that this entails. I have no doubt that it was the darkness of the Bush era that culminated in the Black Hole of the recent Wall Street crash that made Obama's light look just so much brighter. And I have no illusions about the fact that this election result was at least as much a 'No' to Bush and all neocons and neolibs as it was a 'Yes' to a man of outstanding character and balance.
I have no illusions about the steepness of the path ahead. A people addicted to the availability of cheap oil, addicted to worthless chunk shipped in from all over the world, addicted to the power that an overbloated military industrial complex ensured and addicted to the notion that might makes right as long as the intentions are good. This people is a people of addicts and the time of rehabilitation, of growing pains and of cleansing itself will not be easy. But just like the pains of birth are the start of something that will eventually lead to new life, this monumental political event is a start and in witnessing it my heart is filled with joy and happiness and a sense of relief and hope that I have not felt in years.
Yes, there is much I want to say about my distrust of politicians and my belief that without the easy-to-understand Wall Street crash this people might have voted differently. And there is much to be said about powers greater than the presidency still trying to hold on to an era that has passed. But today is not the day to do so. Today is a day of joy and of hope, of singing and dreaming and believing that mankind has woken up just early enough to ensure the future of civilization.
As my beloved wife Betsy just said 'Yes we did!' and that sums up everything I feel at the moment.
Today is the day that the world has come out of the dark ages and seen a new light. The dawn will be long and the climb will be hard and steep but from now on the world has hope again and when asked whether mankind can turn this world around and start on a new course that bids farewell to mankind's war on this planet then from now on I will hear a still faint but unmistakable answer in the new battle cry of this era...
YES WE CAN!!! |
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif?v=92.1){kind=small}
richhope's journal
