A socialist state?

A little more than six weeks into his presidency, there are some people who are concerned that President Barack Obama is a socialist in sheep's clothing. That's mainly due to his massive $787 million stimulus package, and his call for a nationalized health care system.

Personally, I believe these people are overreacting. I haven't seen one thing yet that has me worried that we're headed down the path to socialism. His stimulus package is anything but socialistic. In fact, it has shades of FDR by spending money on infrastructure, which we desperately need. It worked for FDR. We still have many of the buildings, trails and parks built by the Civilian Conservation Corps, and there's no reason to think that the same won't be true once we start rebuilding our infrastructure

As for his call for universal health care, I'm not convinced that this is the answer. What I do know is that our health care system is broken and needs to be fixed. Universal health care may not be the answer, but I'm glad to see him willing to try something new, which is what he always promised.

A day for the ages

I sat and watched the inauguration of Barack Obama this morning. It was a thrilling experience, one I will never forget. From the prayer by Pastory Rick Warren, to the transcendant version of "My Country 'Tis of Thee" by Aretha Franklin (which gave me chills) to the swearing in, to Obama's inaugural address, it was hard to feel anything but hope this morning.

That may be President Obama's greatest gift to this nation, his ability to inspire hope in others. With his calm, self-assured demeanor, it's hard to feel anything but confident in him. He gives off the air of someone who is never unsure of himself, and he makes you believe in him too. He may not have all the answers to our problems, but he has the power to inspire hope in others. That's a rare gift, and a good start.

A historic day

Today is a historic day in the history of our country. For the first time 233-year existence of America, we are about to inaugurate a black man as president. To tell you the truth, I never thought I would live to see this day. It's not that I thought it was impossible. It's that I figured there were still enough racist people in this country who would never vote for a black man to make it impossible.

I don't know how to describe the atmosphere of today, although I think something needs to be said. I can only say that it's electric. Watching coverage on TV, it's amazing. There are millions of people on the Mall in Washington. I can't remember ever seeing anything like it in my life. Many of these people have been there since yesterday. Many have been there since before sunrise. There's a sense of excitement and hope that I can't ever remember feeling.

I feel the same sense of hope and excitement. This is a day that people will be talking about for generations. This is a day that my children will remember. And while I believe that Obama will ultimately get our country back on the right track, I hope that people will give him a chance before they judge. I hope that they will realize that he is only human, that he is unlikely to fix every one of our problems, although I think he will ultimately be a powerful president and make a difference.

A new era dawning

Hooray! Barack Obama will be our 44th president in a little under three weeks. I'm really excited about his victory. Not only was it historic in terms of race, but it feels like the torch has finally been passed to my generation. Technically he's a baby boomer, of course, but he's much closer to a Gen X-er than anyone we've ever had in the White House.

If I'm worried about anything, it's that people expect too much out of him. People think he's going to come in and fix all of our problems. Maybe he helped contribute to that impression. I don't know. What I do know is that he's just one man, and a fallible human at that. I'm excited about the possibilities presented by an Obama presidency, but I'm realistic enough to know that he won't be able to solve all our problems right away. He probably won't be able to solve them in one term, maybe not even two. What I do think is that he can get us pointed in the right direction as a country and restore confidence, much like Ronald Reagan did almost 30 years ago. And that's a good enough start for me.

This election is over, and not a moment too soon

I've come to the conclusion that this election is over, and it couldn't come a moment too soon. This election belongs to Obama. Unless he does something really stupid, in less than two weeks, we'll be calling him "Mr. President."

To tell you the truth, I think we could do worse than Obama as president. I don't think he's a socialist, as has been charged. And I don't think he'll do a lot of damage to our country. That's because, he's going to have Congress acting as a check on his ambitions, even if the Democrats win solid majorities in both houses, as expected. And given the state of our economy, I don't think he'll have a lot of money to start a lot of new programs. I think if he accomplishes anything, it will be to calm our country down, and maybe restore a measure of optimism.

To tell you the truth, I don't really care who wins this election anymore. Like everyone else, I'm tired of the whole process. I think two years is too long for any campaign. I think campaigns should be limited to a year, maybe six months. Maybe then, people would actually care and get out and vote.

Is McCain's Campaign DOA?

With three weeks to go before the most important election in this nation's history, I'm beginning to wonder if McCain's campaign is DOA. It's not just that he's behind in the polls. It's not just that he has failed to take advantage of two presidential debates so far and hit a homerun. It's that the stock market continues to tank. So far during this crisis, the stock market has lost almost 40 percent of its value, compared to its high-water mark of more than 14,000, set just a year ago. It's that President Bush has no credibility left with the American people. When he spoke Friday to try to reassure Americans, the stock market immediately tanked.

People almost always vote their wallets, and as long as the economy is in the toilet and people are panicing, I think we can write the political epitaph for McCain's campaign. I agree with Pat Buchanan on this one. If Obama wins, it will be more a verdict against Republicans, not necessarily a mandate for Obama.

Holding his own

I sat down and watched Sen. John McCain's acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention on Thursday night, Sept. 4. Truth be told, I wasn't expecting much from the Republican candidate. After all, public speaking has never been his strong suit. That's why I was pleasantly surprised.

McCain did exactly what he needed to do Thursday night. He kept his shots at Obama above the belt. Instead of taking useless personal shots at Obama, he contrasted himself with the Democratic candidate. Instead of mocking him, he told people what to expect from a Democratic administration vs. a Republican administration. He showed a lot of class, and earned a measure of respect from me.

What I liked about McCain's speech is that he separated himself from the Bush administration. He showed a good measure of the independence that made him such an attractive candidate in the first place. The question is, now that he's the man, will he continue to show that independence, or will he pander to the hard-right Republican base?