Obama --Hope and the Presidency

An African American stranger who saw my Obama sign told me that he was "scared" by Obama. He was so used to being disappointed. He was so used to knowing more in his gut and in his mind than those who make the most important decisions that have sculpted the trajectory of his life and that of his family. He was so used to writing off--and being able to write off--the folks who govern our country as lucky imbeciles. Alienation and dissatisfaction were such long time companions, they were almost his friends.

And he was afraid that his hope in Obama would be proved wrong. He was afraid that, as Stephen Colbert said, Obama's call for change would be significant because it would mean no change at all. Obama would talk the talk-and walk like all the rest.

I share his fear. Who wants to hope and be let down? Still I believe (what an astounding concept--that first person singular noun and that first person singular verb) we have to indulge our hope. We even have to bet on it. Obama himself addressed this issue in a book he called "the audacity of hope."
It is a brave thing to hope. It is a hurting thing.

The alternative is to accept that America continues to lead our world to destruction on scales large and small, needless, petty, overwhelming, tedious, and bloody. The alternative is to believe greed, self interest, and material gain are the only yardsticks by which we measure success. The alternative is to believe that the Reaganites are right.

So I'm crossing my fingers. I'm hurting--but I'm hoping.