Originally Posted by Sheriff

Many have said recently: "It is good to hear from you why we should not vote for McCain. But this is not enough for us to vote for Barack. Tell us why we have to support Barack in GE, instead of keeping on trying to make us not vote for McCain."

I have heard you, folks. Heard you. But, sadly enough, I am not an expert in politics. This will be my third participation in the general elections, which means I don't have yet much experience in supporting/advocating a candidate. In fact, in the past two elections, I was just a university student watching the campaigns from a safe distance.

Why it is different in this election period? That's must be because Barack has somehow been able to mobilize many like me into the politics to some extent. Otherwise, I am not a election guy. I am not one of those who believe that this country could be straightened up through politics conducted from the top. But I feel, this time, the fierce urgency of now. And with Barack, for the first time, I have the faint anticipation of a change from bottom up. A change conducted by "We, The People."

Barack gave millions that very opportunity and anticipation: That you might be an active agent of change in this country... That you might do something constructive for yourself, your family, your neighbourhood, your city, your state, your country and for the whole people that you share a planet.

For the first time, with Barack, people young and old, white and black, rich and poor, have the unique opportunity of gathering aroung a common cause of hope, instead of a common cause of fear.

For the first time, with Barack, people feel responsible not only for themselves and their personal interests, but also for the children, women and men in Iraq, in Israel, in Palestine, in Somalia, in Ethiopia, in Georgia, in Cambodia, in India, in Pakistan, in Afghanistan.

For the first time, with Barack, the American people feel connected with the world around themselves; with the world, with the nature, with the natural sources and other creatures that they have long forgotten to live in harmony.

Barack mobilized many, including me. These people are not experts in politics; they don't know the dirty game of politics. They just believe strongly and hope sincerily.

That's why this campaign has been so successful, so convincing and so formidable. Because people who believe in Barack participate this movement with all their heart, all their good will. They are not in a machine like Clinton's, not in a lobbyist-swarmed platform like McCain's. Most of them are interested in politics only after Barack showed them a way of changing this country for the better.

Many of us feel instinctively that Barack's change promise is not an empty rhetoric, in spite of the very fact that these concepts, such as change, hope, dream, are mostly considered as cheap baits for the voters. Somehow, Barack have convinced us that change is imminent, hope is real and dream is true.

Change: Maybe it was a real empty rhetoric forty years ago. Forty years ago, you would have to cling to the mainstream, to the established, to what was already decided. But time has changed a lot and now it is mature for a real change. Because America is a different country now. We are a more diverse country. Minorities have been actively taking part in every possible phase of public life. It is not a WASP country anymore. It is a diverse country. America is no longer a Judao-Christian country. All is mature for a change-- a drastic, deep and lasting change. America and the American Dream are most commonly shared by the minorities: There are two Muslims in the Congress -- more coming soon. Administrations are more diverse; take Bush administration for example.

Barack seems to have calculated the time for a change in America to the point; because America is ready for a change, even though there are many who are fearful of a transformation. The old people are mainly scared of a transformation but they have little to do: There will be no McCain, Bush, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Armitage, Clintons in the world in the next 20-30 years. America will pass into other hands... This unprecedented resistance against change is understandable. But they are destined to fail as destiny and life's most basic rule will leave them alone: That they are old and have to leave this world.

Hope: If there's change, there's lots of hope around. Barack's campaign is heavily powered by hope. This hope have made people donate and participate and give Barack enough ammunition in the face of his strong rivals. But hope cannot be measured. It can only be felt.

Dream: A common dream called the American Dream... Dream for everyone. A dream that can be shared and augmented not only by the few in the top, but by the millions and millions in the bottom. Barack has revitalized this dream and mada it a common one for the men in the street. A dream that is not shared not only by the elitist McCain and his lobbyists but by the common men like Barack himself. Because Barack's his own story is a shining promise to the ordinary people.

Maybe you want to hear something more concrete. Well, there's enough out there; you can easily find both pros and cons. Time will show us which of us is right. Six months to go. You can ridicule, belittle, despise this movement. You are free to do so. Sure there will be people like me who play by the Clinton's, McCain's book. There's no harm in doing so. At the same time, there's no harm in your love or hate for Barack. America has been undergoing a major transformation right now. Some will like it. Some won't. Some will cling to the old rules and old faces. Some will run towards the freshness. But America shall change whatever happens. Because change that many despise has already begun.

Barack changed America. And we are living witnesses of this great moment.