First. No, this isn't GBCW. Though I confess, watching the primaries unfold from this side of the blogosphere has given me a new respect for the makers of sausages.
That being said, the diary I just read about rejection stopped me in my tracks. In it, the diarist qualifies his/her with a disclaimer of support for a candidate who is running on a ticket of Hope after going into a piece that sought to explain why he/she is adamantly rejecting other Democratic candidates.
That is the diarist's right...he/she is welcome to do that.
But it and the whole New Year's thing still got me to thinking about the future and the past as well as hope. Not just "Hope" as a idea that sways audiences. But the real feeling of hope that we all feel in our hearts as we step into the voting booth. That same feeling that excites us but fills us with a nervousness about the unknown in front of us.
2008 is right around the corner. There are choices that I regret making. Also some things that I regret not getting a chance to do. And there are decisions I'm glad I made....and some things that I'm very glad I did...even grudgingly.
But when all is said and done, I would hope that my family, friends, and folks I've never even met would judge me on the whole of who I am versus the pieces and parts that they do or do not like. I want to be taken as a whole person...as I try to take other people.
And frankly...looking at this guy...this guy...and this guy...oh--and this guy...and this guy...and the whole of who they are and what they seem to want to do when it comes to running my, your, our country chills my heart in a way that no one of these people could do.
I'm sorry. I've thought. I've been angry, outraged, annoyed...ready to crash my head against the wall over one thing or another. But very little of that actually comes from our group of candidates.
Ultimately, I can't reject any of these candidates.
Hope, and a healthy dose of crashing my head against the wall outrage aimed directly at this guy, won't let me.
Vids to help you bang your current level of frustration out to...
Ramones:
The Clash:
David Bowie:
Sex Pistols: