Politics, part 1

Never before have I been interested in politics. It was always something that happened outside my weekend plans and school activities. I didn't see how the president impacted my daily life and therefore didn't care too much. 

I don't know if it's getting older, the media, or meeting a few people consumed by it, but I care now. In fact, I'm hooked and it's making me both mad and scared. It's making me mad because I see how little America seems to care about the real issues and focus on whether Obama wears a lapel pin or how funny his name sounds. More interested in whether community organizer is something to be proud or ashamed of rather than his stand on the issues or his ability to improve things domestically and internationally. More concerned about what his pastor has said or a particular sound bite wasn't "gracious" or implied people were "bitter" regardless of what he meant. We're a bunch of sensationalist 4 year olds with no real grasp on evaluating candidates on who's best to lead the country. 

And at the same time, this election makes me sad because there is a whole generation of young people who have found someone that inspires them. Gives them hope (the audacity!) in something bigger than their world. Provides for a whole new group of people a path to see how they could be proud of their country again. What we need more than anything is a leader. JFK was like that. Reagan (like his policies or not) could pull people together. And I think that if Obama isn't elected. If he's too black or too muslim sounding or too whatever and people elect McCain so we can fight in Iraq for a dozen (or 100) more years, that whole generation is going to give up believing in politics at all. Give up believing that a person can make a difference and the country is indeed just a place to make as much money as you can and take what you want and fuck what that means to everyone else. It scares me that we'll revert back to the 90s gen Xers who just don't care any more. 

I'm so wrapped up in this election now it's crazy. Regardless of what happens this election, I'm thankful that it helped me care about the world outside of Lakewood.