You may call the title of this post cheesy and I agree with you, it is. Or you may choose to label it corny, and by golly, I concur. But don't you dare call it cheesecorny, because, well, frankly that just sounds downright nasty. Like something you get at a carnival tent from an impish vendor whose presenting hand is disconcertingly small and discolored.
But you'll have to excuse the sloppy sentimentalism because the truth is that I'm finally genuinely excited about something. As President-Elect Obama (actually that sounds like total shit - let's just agree to call him President Obama from now on) trumpeted last night, his election represents the triumph of hope over fear, of democracy over tyranny, the coming of change instead of the faltering of grinding gears.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. As the old adage goes, Easier Said Than Done, and President Obama is and always will be a marvelous speaker whose sonorous and oh-so-pleasing-to-the-ear oration can transport many, but can also at times carry little in the way of substance. He has talked the presidential talk, and now he must walk the presidential walk. And while I have no doubt that the Obama administration will be an instant and remarkable improvement on The-Administration-That-Must-Not-Be-Named, the political pragmatist (read as: pessimist) within demands that I consider the challenge of surmounting such extraordinary hype. Indeed, only so much is possible. In his own words, we are confronted with "two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century," and that's merely naming the obvious. As I said before, I have no doubts about his sense, strength, or skill, but (and I apologize if this bursts anyone's bubble; the last thing I want to be is a bubbleburster) in all probability, Barack Obama is no seraph divinely sent from beside the lord's celestial throne to restore American values and standing, although that is the Herculean task with which we've charged him.
This all being said, I told you that I was excited, and so far, admittedly, my tone has been rather grounded. Allow me to continue and it is my hope that you will follow the direction I'm headed.
I've voted in the only two elections for which I've been eligible. By most people's definition, and indeed according to my own (please indulge me, or else I'll be inclined to punch off your nose), I am a young man. As such, I am a member of the generation that is poised to take over, to assume the hefty and Atlas-like responsibility of holding up the world. For better or worse, each generation inherits the mantle, and each relies not only on its own unique creativity and talents, but on the experiences and history from which said creativity and talents are derived, to carry the weight.
In the nascent and crucial stages of our own worldly awareness and reckoning, we've forcibly grown accustomed to an abominable aberration. They may be the current status quo, but I contend that The Bush Years are not the norm, much as they may seem to us. Simply by the accident or providence of timing, our views and thoughts have been sculpted by the frustrating and stifling environment in which our consciences developed. There are many of us, I believe (myself included), browsing for an excuse for our indolence and apathy, and I think we need look no further. Our generation, the I-generation, as I would call it (for what may perhaps be obvious reasons, but I will save that lecture for another time), has often, it seemed to me, been characterized by the unique jadedness and insouciance that are the product of an age of instantaneous information and shameful, alienating politics.
But with the election of President Obama and the dissemination of his message (even if it be somewhat trite or a bit contrived) I, for one, believe I've experienced a moment of awakening. It was one of those internally exciting moments - like the first sprout of hair on your chin or being confused for your father on the phone - when you realize that you are on the inexorable path to manhood. Just as those constitute signs, I believe this was the summoning. And while the "Yes We Can" cliche would be off the charts in Disney Points were such a thing to exist, President Obama has authentically galvanized us, and his moment is ours.
It would take a cynic (and one with a predilection for breaking hearts, at that) to suggest the possibility that last night might have been the high point of the President Obama era. That after so much time spent campaigning and so much money and hope raised, the Obama movement has reached its apex and will abide by the Newtownian, tried-and-true rule - what goes up, must come down. That President Obama will merely be ordinary. That despite all his talent and promise, he will ultimately disappoint. And if we chose him, and he represents us, what does that suggest about us? Was our hope misplaced? Will we disappoint as well?
Personally, I don't believe such cynicism. But even if it were true, if it were the case that last night's coronation will be our most glorious moment for the next 4 or 8 years, if all that Barack Obama has accomplished has been to spark a glimmering flare of possibility and shepherd in a new generation - our generation - isn't that more than enough? The fulfillment of his promise - the prospect of change - is up to us, just like it always has been.
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