I saw Senator Barack Obama on the David Letterman show last night (Monday, April 9, 2007). I’ve got to say that each time I see this brother speak, I become more and more convinced that he would be such a great leader for this country, if he becomes the Democratic nominee (as he should), if all eligible voters are allowed to have their votes counted, if the election is held fairly and if no one is allowed to manufacture excessive votes using those electronic voting machines…..you know, the ones that leave the voters no record whatsoever of how or for whom we voted.
I’ve always tried to be a person who encourages and motivates those that I know to participate in the political process, no matter how disillusioned we might be with the current state of that process, especially those of us who are Black (or African-American, if you prefer). My feeling on the subject of voting is this: as a Black American, there is absolutely no way in the world that I would not exercise my right to vote, even if I did doubt the validity of the process and whether my vote would actually be counted on a national level.
After so many people who looked like me endured the things they did just a generation ago in order to exercise their hard-earned right (police dogs, tear gas, fire hoses, jail, and even death), the least I can do is take my behind to the nearest precinct that is usually less than a mile from my home and vote, if for no other reason than to honor their sacrifices and the courage it took for them to make those sacrifices.
I have to admit that my decision to vote in quite a few recent elections was only because I did not want to discount and disrespect those who lost so much in order to gain the right to vote. However, the Candidate who is the subject of this post has me genuinely hopeful and excited about the upcoming Presidential election (even though it is still a full year and a half away) and even more motivated to get my friends and family to join in that excitement.
I am going to try and post the video from last night’s interview within this blog. If I am successful, I will post part two of the interview first because that part of the interview was more entertaining. 
I might also try to post the video of Senator Obama’s speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention for anyone who might not have seen it and who might be interested in viewing it.
(It’s probably easier to post a link to the videos, but I don’t want to be responsible for exposing others to the ignorance that is clearly displayed in a lot of the comments underneath the video.)
Speech at 2004 Democratic National Convention
