Look, I'm all for change, as long as it's change for the better, and I don't see how it could be for the worse at this point unless... well, let's just not go there for now. Anyway, Obama talks a lot about change, and I like that. It's rhetoric -- I'm supposed to like it. That's what makes me a little suspicious.
The thing is, we're going to have "change" no matter what. Even McCain would be a change. The question that begs for an answer is this: What kind of change?
Change is coming, make no mistake about that. If you could fast-forward a couple of years, you probably wouldn't recognize the America you see. We're not going to be driving SUVs 20 miles to pick up a few Chinese-made items at a big box store. Those days are on their way out. The dollar is collapsing, and oil is becoming more scarce in the world even as more people are demanding more of it. That's just the reality. The American lifestyle is about to change, big-time. Don't be scared -- it could be for the better.
We will need substantive change in leadership and policy to deal with the material change in the state of the world. Will we get this change in Obama or even in Hillary? One can hope. McCain scares me more than Bush ever did, especially at this juncture in history. The last thing we want is a military-industrial suckup for a leader at this point. That would not be a good thing in the time of crisis that is only now beginning. Connect the dots.
The next leader will need to embark on a literal transformation of the American landscape. We need fast trains. We need walkable towns. We need locally generated non-polluting power (solar panels on every roof) and lots of it. We need to rein in the gargantuan money sucker of war and its tools. We need to figure out a lot of ways to economize and become more efficient. We will either be a leaner, cleaner America or a leaner, much meaner America. But we will be leaner -- make no mistake about that.
I'm backing whomever gets the nomination on our side, but it will ultimately be up to us. That's why I'm leaning toward Obama -- he has the power to inspire, and that is the most intense and necessary power of all in times like these. But it won't be enough to change the color of the drapes in the Oval Office, and the jury's still out on whether Obama represents the kind of deeper change required. Even so, he seems to be the best bet at this point.