On a recent and rare sun-filled spring afternoon, my daughter was playing with a friend at our home. These two pre-schoolers did the things that little kids do: dug holes in unfortunate places in the garden, ran through too-tall grass while making noises that most closely approximated a whistling teakettle and they also played ‘house’.
To my surprise and with admiration, I noted that neither wanted to be the baby. So, imaginary baby had two mommies. Then my daughter decided it was time to do what adults do:
‘Okay, it’s time to talk about Barack Obama.’
I guess we discuss politics a lot in our house and kids sure are perceptive little buggers. I have actually been feeling a bit guilty about exposing the youngun to what has been a pretty nasty primary. But one afternoon this week, over lunch, I happened on a CSPAN interview with Robert Shrum as he appeared on their Distance Learning Class series.
What particularly caught my attention was his response to one of the last student questions. I am paraphrasing here but in essence he said that Democrats could be more successful in national elections by understanding that voters are not necessarily selecting candidates on a bundle of issues but rather are making a choice about themselves and the kind of country that they want to see.
You can see the whole class here.
Sounds elementary doesn’t it? But his words helped to solidify a lot of the thoughts that have been floating around my brain since I started getting serious about this election stuff. I don’t mean to imply that Obama can create an American Utopia in a few years but I do believe he, more than the other candidates, can move us closer.
We are a single child family because since the start of the Bush second term we have not felt very hopeful about the prospects for the economic future of this country in the near term. Having lost the battle of finding quality child care, we are now a single income family holding on as tight as we can to carve out a happy existence. I already know that our child will have to compete with neighbors and friends very early on for a ‘free’ quality grade school education. Flashing forward, I don’t want her to have to resort to nefarious means to pay for her college education. I want her, as well as those aforementioned friends and neighbors, to someday be able to pursue their interests in science, music, art or education without having to sacrifice their passions in the interest of practicality. Or necessity.
Mr. Shrum nailed it for me. I want the kind of country that rewards hard work and innovation, that fosters creativity in many forms, that shows proper respect and gratitude for the service of those that volunteered to defend and protect our nation, and that supports the civil rights and liberties of all its citizens. And issues? You bet I have issues! This immoral war, the health care crisis, our spiraling economy, the continuing spoiling of the beautiful places in this country. You get the idea. My kid does too.
So it looks likely that my candidate of choice will be the Democratic nominee for POTUS. It has been a tough primary season and the coming GE will not be a cakewalk. So as I try to engage my friends and neighbors on the value and necessity for a change to the status quo my topmost question will be: ‘What kind of country do you want to see?’
What is your vision?