On Hope

In my last post I promised to discuss the Iowa caucuses, which are already over. In fact, Tuesday (tomorrow) is the New Hampshire Primary. It blows my mind how quickly these things happen, primaries start while people are still cleaning up from New Year's parties, its not supposed to be that way. But the problem is we have ethanol in gasoline.

Allow me to explain. Its no real secret, corn ethanol is a really poorly thought-out fuel additive. It costs a huge amount of money to produce and it requires more energy to produce than it returns. In short, consuming a liter of corn ethanol is implies also consuming roughly 1.2 liters of dino juice, there is little value to car drivers and no good environmental arguments to use it. So why is there corn in gasoline? Because a lot of corn comes from Iowa and Iowa is the first state to vet potential presidential contenders. Every person who runs for President in the United States takes a pledge, committing to more ethanol in gasoline, after all winning the Iowa caucuses means at least a few cycles of good news for that candidate going into New Hampshire and South Carolina. A candidate has a really good reason to promise ethanol, the reasons against ethanol, not so relevant.

Of course other states have seen what craziness is happening, the prestige conferred on Iowa for a few winter days every fourth year is a big deal, as a result every state wants their primary earlier, the result is what we have now, a primary season that starts over a year before the general election and a political party who's entire composition is decided by the end of Super Tuesday.

Personally I'm rather a conservative person when it comes to traditions, I don't see the harm in mandating that certain states will have their primary on certain days thus halting the ever lengthening election cycle. Given that from the day a congress person is elected they need to raise ten thousand dollars a week just to get reelected I can see why mandating campaign spending limits might also make some good sense, give congress a chance to govern.

Anyway the reason I bring up the Iowa caucuses is not because of the scheduling, it is because of the results. Before I continue I'd like to direct anyone who is still reading this to two different YouTube videos, the first one skip the opening bit and just advance to 2 minutes and 45 seconds. (Well watch the opening bit, seeing a Democrat get sworn in always makes me feel warm and fuzzy, every time I get hopeful, maybe this one can clean up the mess the barbarians - read: Republicans - left behind.) The second YouTube video I add just because I like the line at the 4 minute mark, although it is not actually relevant to today's topic.

By now I hope that you have watched the video and recognize President John Fitzgerald Kennedy's Inaugural Address, a cold Friday on January 20, 1961. If you want to feel really warm and fuzzy, and probably a little creepy too, read the text of the speech here, among the sections of interest, paragraph 25 has the famous "ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country." But I would like today to look at paragraph three:

Let the word go forth from this time and place, to friend and foe alike, that the torch has been passed to a new generation of Americans—born in this century, tempered by war, disciplined by a hard and bitter peace, proud of our ancient heritage—and unwilling to witness or permit the slow undoing of those human rights to which this Nation has always been committed, and to which we are committed today at home and around the world.

I've always been a sucker for Ted Sorensen's writing. But that is some pretty stirring stuff, let the word go forth from this time and place... the torch has been passed, & cetra. Wow! I wish I could write that well, the imagery is amazing.

Kennedy was the first President born in the 20'th Century, he was the youngest. He was a symbol of change in a vibrant democracy. In retrospect, he was the wiser choice.

Today America has a new choice in front of it. I will take it as a foregone conclusion that the Republicans do not stand a snowball's chance in hell of getting elected after eight years of disastrous mismanagement. This narrows the field to three contenders, John Edwards, Bill Clinton's wife (lets be honest, that is the only way she'd ever get elected) and Barack Obama.

I believe Obama represents the best possible option, I believe Obama is as close as America gets to the embodiment of hope. I believe that while John Edwards may be a good man, Obama represents a clean break from the past, a clear denunciation of the policies that have landed America where the great arsenal of democracy ought never find herself. And I am not alone.

Tomorrow a review of Republican election "tactics" (probably better referred to as Rat Fucking).