A few more thoughts on the election and race

First of all and very quickly I want to give a big congratulations to the Ray's for all that they have accomplished this year. While they lost last nights game you have to be pulling for these kids. It is fun to watch.

Now please indulge me for yet another politically themed post.

A close friend of mine is deeply concerned that Obama poses a risk to nation in the event that he is assassinated or loses by a close margin. I strongly feel that this should not be a factor in choosing a candidate. However I can't completely cast this argument aside as pure fiction either. The unfortunate truth is that my friends fears are backed up by some of our nations most tragic historical events. There is no doubt that in much of the country racial tensions are still alive and well. This is why McCain and Palin's comments about Obama "paling around with terrorists" and "who is the real Obama" are not only reckless, but also dangerous. Comments such as these only serve to fan the flames of racial bigotry in the end making my friends fears much more realistic. Let's face it, racism (and sexism) has (have) played a huge role in this campaign. The reality is that if Obama was white and had a more "Christian sounding" name this election would have been over before it even stated. So my friend is right to a certain extent. There is no doubt that there would be a massive sense of frustration, bitterness, and anger among the African American community in the event of a loss given his current lead (barring some game changing event) or if the unthinkable were to happen. But to use that as the only catalyst in making a decision is a missed opportunity to move forward. The fact that this could even be a factor tells us that while we have certainly come a long way, we still have a long way to go. In the end I really just wish this campaign was more about the issues and not about black / white / man / woman but that isn't the reality of our society. I'll be glad when this is all over.