If you're an Obama supporter then the last several weeks have infuriated you. You've seen your candidate smeared beyond belief. You've seen him pushed down by the Clinton campaign, kicked by Fox News, and then spit on by Sean Hannity. To many of you, your political hopes have continually been marked by screams, swiftboating, and madrassa-ing. Well my fellow progressives, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we ain't seen nothin' yet. In this age of google, facebook, youtube, digital cameras, cell phones, and all other related technologies, the dirt will only fly faster and further in the future.
More on Obama, culture, and human integrity below the fold:
So here we are: blessed with a brilliant, introspective, articulate, inspiring, and honest candidate, but oh-so haunted by the fear that our culture will never catch up to our technology. And let's be honest with ourselves - we've all danced with the devil, and as a new generation of leaders - the iPod generation - start to emerge, we're likely to see more pictures, more sounds, and more videos that confuse us. I for one am tired of it and propose that it's time to get back to the kindergarten-basics of life and start trusting, loving, and believing in each other again, and there is no better person to lead this charge than Barack Obama.
Deep in the minds of most Obama supporters is a pressing thought: If Barack Obama - a person of great insight, integrity, and reason - can be attacked so ruthlessly, then anyone, including babies and puppies, can and will forever have their good names destroyed. But exaggeration aside, we all know that Barack Obama is not perfect. Not only did he write a book or two about his mishaps, but he's human, and as such, is destined to make mistakes. Yet, somewhere along the way, we as a people stopped gauging mistakes for mistakes, and began equating lies and illegal murders as mistakes. It's more than strange; it's horrifying.
When I think of my own life, where I've gone, what I've done, and who I've surrounded myself by, I realize that if I was being investigated like Senator Obama, I'd be doomed. Not because I'm a bad person or because I've done bad things, but because I'm relatively young, and I have been surrounded by cameras, tape recorders, web cams, instant messages, and blogs much of my life. A quick google search and you can find plenty of less-than great things about me. My point is this: we're not bad people, but given the mediums we've built around ourselves, we can all look ugly very easily. So, at the end of our searching, even the best of us (Barack Obama) can have his or her image tainted in a matter of clicks.
The good news is that hope is not dead. We can continue to bury our best until the cows come home, but in the end we're really only burying ourselves. It is clear that we must begin to change this witch-hunt culture, and recognize that this trend will only get worse unless we accept that we're not perfect. We're humans. Human beings - with eyeballs and hearts and mouths and feelings. We do drugs and have sex. Some of us go to church and others like hockey. Some like to jog, and still others enjoy travelling. Only when we recognize that garbage (or normal life experience) is bound to be found on all of us, will we begin to restore our integrity.
In this election we have a series of choices. Two candidates that supported and voted for the war against one that didn't. Two candidates who are funded by lobbyists against one who is not. And two candidates who have forgotten the fundamentals of life against one who does onto others as he wants done to himself. If Barack Obama is not the next President, then - in this, the age of Google - our culture is failing us.