For what it's worth...

There's something happening here. What it is ain't exactly clear.

I've never intended to be a political ranter in this blog; but something's going on, and I want to say that I've noticed it before it's too late. There's a shift in the air somewhere, and it's mystifying me. Is it that the parting on the left is now parting on the right? There is something different in the streets, and I think it's the fact that hordes of young people are getting involved in the presidential campaign.

I've been appalled for years by the political apathy of the young, particularly the people who say that no decision they make could possibly affect them. Until, of course, they want to marry whom they choose, make their own decisions about the size of their families, get care for their elderly parents--the list goes on.

But now I see that one candidate has electrified the young, and I'm finding myself rooting for him. At first I worried that Obama didn't have enough experience to run this country. Neither did W., and look what happened! But as I've grown old and cynical, I've come to the conclusion that it's really more about personality and passion than experience. Some people have a gift.

Clinton does not have this gift. I will not die or vote Republican if she wins the nomination, but I truly hope that the unwieldy Clinton political machine can be stopped. First of all, she's unable to inspire those who just need a spark to get them going--she's all business. Second, she's got 42 wrapped around her like the Ancient Mariner's albatross. Third, I can't stand the thought that she and people like Mitt Romney (and yes, John Kerry) seem to think they can try to buy the White House. A friend of mine well into her 30s pointed out that she's never voted on a presidential ballot that didn't have a Clinton or a Bush on it. Once torn about the upcoming primary, I knew then what I was ready to do.

She's voting for Obama, and so am I. And so is the die-hard Clinton supporter I work with. And the co-worker who, just like me, was totally on the fence until about a week ago. And possibly the dear friend in a red state who's not so liberal as she used to be but who's open to new ideas. And the young relative who's always been a Republican. And the young liberal in Maryland who clued me in to Dennis Kucinich years ago.

The ages of the women range from 27-65. The only thing we all have in common is our gender. I want someday to vote for a woman, but it must be the right woman. I can't support Clinton now because she represents too many things to me that are ancient, established, and tired. I want somehow who can inspire young people to care. I want 18-year-olds to be as excited as Laura and I were, rushing down to the courthouse to register to vote the minute we became old enough. Clinton is not the people; Obama is not the people; Bush certainly is not the people. We are the people, and it's time to do our job.