two-thousand-and-eight.

This is the story of a little boy who didn't believe in "no".
This is the story of a man who didn't understand "me before you".
This is the story of the candidate who could, who didn't look like the other candidates, who had a name that no one could pronounce.

But more than that, this is our story.
This is the story we'll tell our children, our grandchildren, our great-grandchildren.
This is the story of you, and me, and America in its purest form.

Congratulations, Barack. There aren't enough ways to say "thank you."

-e

let's see how far we've come

Well, folks, it's the moment.
Here is where we get to see how far we've actually come, how progressive we can be, how in need of change we really are.
If Obama wins, there'll probably be another update from me tonight or tomorrow. If McCain wins, well, it was nice knowing you.
This is the exact point in history where we will trace all of the country's ensuing actions to. This will be the textbook event that we teach schoolchildren about, that we credit with the sharp and sudden turn of our nation.

Will it be good, or will it be bad?

Will this be the moment when the ugliness of prejudice was officially declared "defunct," or the moment when we all looked down at our hands and tried to make sense of why we resigned ourselves to four more of the same?

It's a choice. Some of you may disagree with my political views, but either way, it's a choice.

It's time to hold our breath and step.

-e

New stuff

New article about the DNC up on Teen Voices...
check it out.
-e

Palin in comparison (pardon the bad joke, it's late.)

Hey everyone--
I'm not trying to become one of those infamous "eleven P.M." bloggers who insight online riots and rant uncontrollably, letting their emotions run wild.

Keywords: not trying.

But I've just seen Sarah Palin speak... and quite frankly, I'm a little confused.

Is the republican platform based on being anti-stage decoration at their conventions? Are the "styrafoam pillars" from the Obama speech really the main thing they stand in opposition to?

And, to a more bi-partisan extent: How do other veterans feel about John McCain's role as a POW being exploited as it is? I mean, I'm in no position to speak about service in the armed forces. But I can't help but feel that, if I had endured something that terrible, I would not want my suffering to be marketed for a single candidate. In the same way that I do not believe all women should have voted for Hillary, all African-Americans must vote for Obama, etc., I do not believe that something as painful and personal as torture should swing full-scale for McCain. All Americans feel remorse for those who have endured such horrible experiences. I wish that Palin would not imply that voting Republican is the only accurate way to demonstrate this remorse.

But what do I know? I'm just one of those crazies out in the blogosphere.
-e

Change I can believe in...

My article's live on AdAge.com. (Click above...)
Feelin' groovy, for lack of a more accurate description.
Also, was on Family Values with an Oy Vey a few hours ago...I'll hit you up with the link when it shows up.
Also also-- all the pics from the convention are up, so if you're looking for that whole unlikely opus as seen through my eyes, complete with blurries, "not sure what i was photographing here"'s, and more, check it.
-e

Home.

Well...
Back home. The plane got in at about two, got home at three-ish... slept till noon. All I can say is I'm totally exhausted, but I'm about to call in to WCPT 820 AM... "Family Values with an Oy Vey" to talk about the experience of the convention. I'll let you know how that goes.

The major news here is that I totally miss everyone from JSA...and the buzz of Denver...and the cool Obama swag on every corner. And I pose this question to you: Should I keep blogging through the election? Or am I only useful for providing the inside scoop when I'm following around the major players? Really, I'm not being facetious. Comment and lemme know.

Oh, and I feel the need to give you the scoop based on the Obama speech coverage I saw versus the experience there: They cut about 98% of the crowd participation. I totally get why, though, because we started chanting, cheering, screaming after about every three words he uttered. Talk about fired up/ready to go.

There was also a little rash of "Where's Colbert?", and the wave (I am proud to say) was started by the row in front of me. :D

-e

Oh,bama.

Hey all-
Well. There are not even words to describe the effect Obama's acceptance speech had on all of us (myself included) at the DNC. I think the best thing I can do is attempt to describe the moments following the speech. Obama was met onstage by his beautiful family, then Joe Biden, and then the fireworks really kicked in. And then, for about ten minutes, Obama simply walked around onstage while more fireworks went off, music played, and confetti fell. The stadium was weirdly quiet: not the tense quiet that we had endured in anticipation of the speech, but a new, calm kind of quiet, as everyone attempted to process the sheer enormity of the event that had just taken place. Personally, I just leaned back and stared up at the sky, alight with bursts of red and white, and watched the tissue paper confetti float down. It was basically a beautiful moment, and judging by the reactions of my peers, I think everyone in the stadium was reeling from the excitement. We all just watched the pieces fall from the sky and tried to catch them, already fantasizing about telling our children about this night. This night, in history. As cheesy as it sounds, the moment was all-encompassing, and I can't think of a single person who didn't give in to it during the course of Obama's speech.

So, with that, it's off to the airport tomorrow and then back home. It's been surreal.

-e