It's Over, Or Is It??

The election is over. Senator Obama has turned into President Obama. The country has voted, the world has gasped, and the Republican Party has been dealt a major blow in years. It’s over. Is there anything left? Yes. You. And the millions of Americans who yesterday didn’t give their votes to Obama.

Think about it: years of unpopular Republican presidency, George Bush’s approval ratings hitting all times low, years of war, the global financial crisis, huge troubles with economy, and . . . McCain gets 46% of popular vote against Obama’s 52%. And this is despite Obama’s most expensive campaign in history, despite his unprecedented spending on TV time, despite open pro-Obama bias of every major media outlet, despite McCain’s age, despite Obama’s charm, despite celebrities swooning about him, despite polls predicting 10 point lead, despite all of this — Obama still gets only 52%? If there’s a reason to hope that America hasn’t lost its spirit, it’s the one.

Yesterday, in his acceptance speech Obama promised to be a president for all America. It will be our job to hold him accountable for delivering on that promise. It will be our job to make sure different views are well represented in Congress and in state governments across the country. It will be our job to concentrate on things that matter, to demand accountability from the government and media, to be thoughtful about electing our leaders – first of all the leaders who claim to represent us. The times of hoping that someone somewhere will elect the right people to represent your views and beliefs are over. In democracy only those who are truly involved make the difference. This election has made history and is history. Our reasons to stand up for what we believe in are not.

Source:  Dr. Slogan's Prescriptions

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Voting for Change

The country is tired. The growing global financial crisis has been hitting hard, banks are suffering, unemployment rate is high, the outlook is gloom. The government seems be almost incapable to change things for the better. Along comes a charismatic young leader. He’s a relative outsider, his is a very talented orator, he has written an autobiography which portrays him as a true leader with a strong set of beliefs, he can talk in front of thousands of people and bring hope back to their hearts. He promises change, he promises social justice, he promises hope. Election day is just around the corner…

The year is 1932, the country is Germany and the name of the charismatic leader is Adolph Hitler.

The point of this analogy is not to equate Sen. Obama to Hitler. The point is that in the times of prolonged difficulties, change is absolutely the best platform to run on. Blame everything on the existing government, promise hope and change, add a bit of social justice to appeal to a broad electorate–and people will give your the office, without bothering to look into your past and taking no time to think about consequences. Whether in Germany circa 1932, Italy circa 1921 or modern Venezuela circa 1998, this platform has worked flawlessly. People voted for change–and gave power to Hitler, Mussolini and Chavez. When they realized that they had been mislead by empty promises it was too late.

The right to vote comes with responsibility. Responsibility to see through slogans. Responsibility to look into the candidates’ past. Responsibility to think. Nations that take this responsibility lightly pay the ultimate price: they lose their right to vote.