I just heard an extraordinary comment on a radio call-in show in Massachusetts. I was driving home after spending the evening at a friend's house watching the national results, so didn't hear the Deval Patrick acceptance speech. But the caller had heard the speech, and was moved by it, even though he had voted for Patrick's Republican opponent.
"I voted out of fear, and I should have voted out of hope", he said, after hearing Patrick speak. "I am jaded, I haven't been moved by a political speech for many years, but in Patrick I see another Martin Luther King Jr. I feel sorry that I wasn't in on the movement from the start. I feel that history is happening here." (Of course, I am paraphrasing to the best of my memory, as I was listening to this as I was driving and couldn't take notes.)
When questioned by the host for more details, the man explained that it was Patrick's message of civility and inclusion that moved him. Yes, he had heard him say those things during the campaign, but he hadn't really believed it then, thought he was just saying it to get elected. But now that Patrick had won, and still had the same message, he felt he was speaking from the gut and really meant what he said.
I know this is a small thing in the sweep of what is happening tonight, but for me it symbolized the depth of the change that we are feeling.
"I should have voted out of hope..."
I hope that Patrick's speech will get posted on YouTube or elsewhere. It sounds like something really special, to get this response from someone who didn't even vote for him.