The first thing that occurred to me election night was how easily Sen. Barack Obama won the election.
Once I got over the shock of that, the second thing that occurred to me was that the American people cannot now sit back and trust Obama to fix this country's problems. Let me reiterate that, because it is important: We cannot trust Obama to fix this country's problems.
Now, I voted for Obama gladly, and I'm happy he won, but he's one man. He didn't win the election alone, and he certainly can't run this country alone. He won the election because he was able to motivate people to action. It was the willingness of thousands to work for his campaign; it was the willingness of hundreds of thousands to volunteer their time; it was the willingness of millions to pay attention long enough to make a decision.
It is the motivation to action that brings change. A lot of people, myself included, have spent most of the Bush administration's tenure whining, complaining, being angry, cracking jokes, etc. But this does not improve anything.
"OK," you say, "so we made a change! Obama's got all these policies that I really like! Everything will be okay now."
Well, it's not that simple. Yes, we now have a president-elect willing and determined to avoid the mistakes of the Bush administration. That's great. But he will make new mistakes. Which of his actions you think are mistakes is up to you, but he will make mistakes. And if you think he's doing something wrong, you now have a reason to speak out against whatever it is he's doing. I beg you: Do not hesitate to do that. He has indicated he will listen, and whether he wants to or not, if enough of us act loudly enough he will listen.
It doesn't end there. This also includes whatever it is he's doing right. Again, which of his actions you think are good things is up to you, but rest assured that sooner or later he will do something with which you agree. If he's making a change you like, say so. Support it. Most importantly, help make it happen, because he will not be able to do it alone.
There are a million and four ways to get involved. Contact your senator or congressman, for starters. Be specific and detailed about what you do and don't like. Contact them often -- they have a staff for a reason. Go to protests. Go to rallies. Donate to a candidate. Donate to a political organization. Join a political organization. Petition to get legislation passed or to stop it from passing. If you're feeling bold enough, you can even run for office yourself.
Don't rely on others to make the changes you want to see. It is up to each and every one of us to do the following:1) Pay attention and stay informed,.2) act with or against whatever is happening in whatever way seems best to us, 3) see step 1. Lather, rinse, repeat.
I happen to like most of Obama's policies. Consequently, I will be watching his administration like a hawk. Why was President Bush able to do the things he did? Not enough people acted to stop him. I, for one, am going to hold Obama's administration to a higher level of scrutiny than Bush's. I think he can handle it. If he can't, he doesn't deserve to be the president.
This isn't just about Obama, of course. This goes for anyone in a position of power. Any government official. Any corporate mogul. Anyone. Any situation you feel is wrong.
Lost in all the enthusiastic reactions to Obama's victory is the fact that California, Arizona and Florida have just passed bans on gay marriage, and Arkansas banned gay couples from adopting children. Let this be a wake-up call to those who would leave their fates and the political fate of the nation in the hands of others. If you do not act to preserve your way of life, sooner or later you may find that someone else has already acted against it.
Power corrupts. Those in power act to remain in power and to gain more power. Those actions often come at the expense of those at the bottom. Whether you act or not, change is coming because other people are already working to make it happen. If you want it to be change for the better, you owe it to yourself and to everyone else to act in whatever way you see fit to make it so. Change is coming. Will it be because you acted or because someone else did?
What's the bottom line? Think. Learn about what's going on at the top and think. Don't trust everything you're told, think about it. Continually reevaluate the situation, and if you're not happy about something, act to change it.
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