This year’s election has elicited some pretty interesting emotions from me. The excitement of having a new head of state since W was contractually obligated to claim free agency at the end of the year had me paying attention to the election process far earlier than I normally would (when I would pick up the newspaper the day after the election). At the same time my personal perception of the two political parties have changed over the years. Having been raised by Democrats, it has been quite a shift to my new stance on party preference. In short, I tend to vote for Republicans for local government and Democrats at the national level.

But as the race was whittling down to the three prospects that are present today, I found myself willing to make a change again. The Democratic candidates were increasingly scratching their fingers on my mind’s chalkboard. All I could see was increasing belly-aching from both sides, building a campaign based on pointing out hurt feelings and sour sentiment. Qucikly, McCain was rising to the top of my draft list, and I was convinced I was going to vote Republican for president.

Then this whole Reverend Wright ordeal came about.


Be sure, I’m not one who is going to be an apologist for what he said. In fact, his words represent one of my greatest annoyances being a black American. Attitudes like his continue to perpetuate perceptions that, I believe, hamper the very advancements that he seeks. It casts too large a net in characterizing our interpretations of white America’s views on race. Instead, we should recognize that quite a bit of progress has been made over the years, and there are many out there with whom we can have trusting relationships.

As I began to accept the realization that McCain was going to be my choice in November, the conservative voices of America, in short order, shook the sense back into me.

The outrage they have exhibited over the past few weeks has been nothing sort of amazing. The very people who over the years have tried to assure us that are little to no issues with race relations anymore, and that this country has eliminated in 45 years the 200 years of hate that established it…were beside themselves! I have never heard race become such a paramount issue with them. And not over Barak’s views, but over his pastor’s. They didn’t have this much emotion when Dick Chaney was against voting for the dismantling of Apartheid. Their impression of William Rehnquist tends to disregard his history on civil rights. And I am sure that I don’t have to mention David Duke or (how dare I?) Strom Thurmond. Mention these points to most conservatives even today, and you’ll get a lot of rationalization and selective memory. Yet, somehow, the fact that Barak sat in the congregation of the church where certain statements were made (not necessarily on the day they were made) is the greatest insight into character since the discovery of Strom’s illegitimate child…oh, wait….

So for all of the conservatives out there, thank you again for awakening me from my stupor. You almost had me there. Now I just need to get a bottle of Pepto and a Pergocet in order to prepare myself in case I have to vote for yet another Clinton.