DENVER - On August 28, 1963 in Washington, D.C. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his memorable "I Have a Dream" speech on the steps of the Washington Monument and he proclaimed that one day, we would live in a world where we would be judged not by the color of our skin but by the content of our character.
"I accept your nomination for presidency of the United States."
Fast forward to August 28, 2008, 45 years later Dr. King's vision has taken form in a way that many Americans young and old never could have imagined seeing in this country. A black man has accepted the nomination for President of a major American political party. The history of tonight's nomination by the Democratic party has penned a mighty stroke toward fulfilling once and for all the promise that we are all equal, regardless of our race.
"ENOUGH""This moment, this election is our chance to keep (in the 21st Century) the American promise alive. On Nov 4, we must stand up and say that eight is enough" Obama says to thunderous applause.
How can we elect John McCain who said, "We've become a nation of whiners"? He has voted with President Bush 90 % of the time. This man a POW and Vietnam veteran, if elected would continue the failed Bush tax cuts and continue the war in Iraq for an indefinite time. As an Army veteran I am strongly against the war in Iraq and liken it to the Vietnam failure but I am encouraged that Barrack as President, will bring our troops home and before we face the same failure in Iraq. There is no reason we should have our service members endure unnecessary harm and separation from their families for a war on terrorism, in a country that did nothing to harm America.
Let's get real people we need, no we yearn and thirst for change.
"CHANGE" "We can't meet 21st century challenges with 20th century bureaucracy."
Barack quoted his grandfather comment after seeing astronauts go to the moon and returned back to earth. He said "Americans, we can do anything if we put our minds to it" and if elected Barack Obama promises he will do just that. He says, "I will stop giving tax credits to companies that send jobs away from America and start giving them to companies that create jobs in our country and I will lower the taxes of middle-class Americans by 75%, create 5 million new jobs that pay well and can't be outsourced, to invest in early child hood education and recruit an army of new teachers and pay them higher wages."
I don't know about you but that is what I call change for the better.
I'm overjoyed to have had the opportunity to witness such grand black American history in my lifetime with my children. Their America, thankfully has been much different than the America of the turbulent 1960's when Dr. King gave his famous speech. But the profoundness of this occasion was too important to me to let them to miss it and I had them sit and bear witness to the symmetry of this evening with me. Their appreciation of the history was low despite my explanations of Dr. King's dream speech and Barack's accepting the nomination on the anniversary of the speech given 45 years ago. Still it gives me such a feeling of pride to see my country grow and finally begin to tear down the racism of our society and our past. Now we are seizing the moment to change Washington by bringing change to Washington, a black man. Although the prospect of it all seems like I'm dreaming but Martin, I know you're up there in heaven smiling down on us tonight as your dream inspired the people of this country to dream and tonight we took a major step toward realizing your dream of equality.
