The United States of US!

We won.

I don't mean me. I don't mean my liberal buddies. I don't mean democrats.

I mean us. We.

We won.

I know not all of you like what happened last night. I know that some of you are quite upset. But no matter who you voted for, you have to understand that we all won.

America won last night.

For the first time in American history, we have a black president. Do you understand how big this is? Whether you like it or not, this is huge. And this is good.

Your children will learn about this in school. They will ask you about it. Where were you? What did you think?

What will you tell them?

Will you tell them that you were upset that the old white guy didn't win like he has won every single election since the United States was born?

Or will you tell them that it was a great time to be an American. A great moment to have watched, to have participated in, no matter which side the winner was on.

This is a big deal kids. This is history.


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I cried last night. I couldn't stop smiling and I cried so many times. This is a big deal. This is huge. This is great.

For the first time in my life, I am proud to be an American.


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Obama will be sworn in January 20th, 2009. It will mark the 100th anniversary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Obama got his start in politics in Springfield, Illinois. It was a race riot in Springfield, Illinois that led to the creation of NAACP.

For African Americans, when their children said, "I want to be a doctor, I want to be a lawyer, I want to be a politician, I want to be an astronaut." They always could point to an African American who achieved it. But whenever a kid said, "I want to be president," I literally saw black parents saying, "Son (or daughter), you might think of being something else." I have nine nieces and four nephews. When I talk to them, I can actually say that and mean it.
-Roland S. Martin

I AM VOTING IN MY FIRST PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION TOMORROW AND I AM SO EXCITED OMGOMGOMG.

I am sick and tired of polisci kids thinking that because they are a polisci major they somehow are more worldly and knowledgeable than I am. That they are somehow better than I am.

And this not voting shit? WHAT THE FUCK.

I don't care if your hippie ideals don't fit with the world you live in. You live here. I'm sorry your dreams are being crushed but this is the real world.

For fuck's sake, you're a woman! I hate to pull the starving children in China routine but you are damn lucky you even have this opportunity. I don't care if you think your vote is supporting some corrupt system. If your vote doesn't count, as you say it doesn't, how could it support anything.

Sitting at home not voting and thinking about how the world could be better does nothing. I'm not saying voting will but at that point, doing anything will.

The world won't change in a day. It won't change with your increasing polisci knowledge, it won't change with my vote. But maybe the person I vote for will change something small.

Even if that doesn't happen, I can do something. You can do something. Wars aren't won as wars, they are won as battles. My vote changes something. In that decision, universes split off.

I just don't understand how someone as intelligent as you are can be so stupid.

"Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy."

Every presidential candidate should visit one of Michigan's unemployment offices.

Oliver lost his job last week. Katti and I accompanied him to the unemployment office Michigan Works!. I can only assume the office was named by someone who actually has a job in Michigan. Not the 25+ people I saw who didn't.

In the ten minutes we were there, I saw three different people who represented what is happening today to average American citizens.

One man was on the phone with his bank (or trying to be on the phone with his bank...no one was answering his phone calls) trying to figure why his house was being foreclosed. The bank he had his mortgage through went under and another bank bought it out. He was upset that he didn't have a say in what happened with his money and his house.

Another man was wondering why he needed his birth certificate for his new job.

And then there was Oliver. Oliver worked for two and a half years at the same job, was making $14 an hour plus commissions. He was not allowed to take time off when his niece had a funeral for the baby she miscarried. He almost couldn't take time off for his sister-in-law's wedding and rehearsal dinner. Then he slowly got crappier and crappier shifts as they brought in new people who they could pay less and the company went under. He was just an average unemployed guy and like every average unemployed person in that room, he had no idea how to apply for unemployment.

The unemployment website and process is confusing. He did everything that he thought he needed to do, and they told him he was okay but he still had no idea if he was done, getting unemployment or if he still needed to do something. And he's pretty smart.

How can a system help people when the system can't even explain itself well enough for those who need it to understand what they need to do?

Instead of going to big rallies and stupid debates where they repeat the same things over and over, someone needs to see what's happening here. Someone needs to talk to us, to find out what we need.

Because we need help.