The following is string of emails that I sent to family and friends starting with one that I sent on January 9th, followed by one after the South Carolina primary, concluding with the one that I sent today. Might be a long read, but I wanted to share.
This was the first one in January. The longest. Check out my definitive February 5th statement. :-)
1/9/08
Subject: Hope
Hello All,
All of you know me (although I haven't spoken to some of you in a long time) and you know that I normally don't do this kind of thing, but I feel that the future of this country, this world, my children, and yours are all on the line.
Some of you that receive this will disagree with my beliefs and politics in this letter but there is no point in preaching just to the choir, so deal with it and we'll move on as friends and family :)
A brief history of myself is necessary or this letter would lose some credibility and/or validity. I want to be upfront about where I'm coming from.
First off I was born and raised in Queens, NY by parents that did not work paycheck to paycheck, but day to day. Tip to tip. One was a cab driver, one a bartender..We won't delve any further into that.
In January of 1996 I turned 18 years old and I was living in Greenwood, South Carolina. I didn't understand or vote in the primary process that year. However, being young, liberal, somewhat naive (some of you would say very naive ;), and energetic, I looked at my choices in the general election (Bob "Viagra" Dole) and the sitting Democrat President Bill Clinton. Needless to say, I voted for Clinton. That same day, coincidentally, I found out that Miranda (My now 10 year old Daughter) had been conceived and would be coming into this world the following summer. Incidentally, that vote became very personal for me.
In 2000, Danna and I got married and moved to Florida. Our family was strong and growing. I again did not vote in the primary, still didn't really get it, plus their wasn't much of a contest against Gore. In November, I seriously considered voting for Nader because he represented my evolving beliefs better than Vice President Gore. However, living in the Sunshine state that year, a year in which everybody told me Florida was going to make THE difference, I cast my vote (against my conscience) for Al Gore. All of you know what happened next, but I'll try to briefly recap the last 7 years in without boring you....
Iraq
The Environment
Energy and Oil (It's $3 a Gallon for gas in SC at the time of this writing)
Afghanistan
al Queda (Stronger now then ever)
Healthcare
Iran
North Korea
China
....Let's just say; The rest of the world
Katrina
The Economy including The National Deficit and Debt
Human Rights and the lack of Fair Trade
Most of the things on this list were very prevalent in the 2004 election. Discussing the state of the nation with family and friends, and back in South Carolina, I did vote in the primary that year. I cast my vote (conscience in tact) for Dennis Kucinich.
Dennis did not prevail in the primaries that year and did not get the nomination. John Kerry got it. After many more conversations and debates with friends and family, that November I made a decision to once again NOT support Ralph Nader and his third party bid for President. That year I felt that removing the sitting President from office was more important than voting my conscience. (See a pattern developing) Kerry was the most wrenching vote I ever cast, but, put in the same situation I would probably do it again.
Although the sitting President was re-elected and I went into a short depression, something interesting happened to me (and lots of others) in 2004. I was introduced to a person who spoke in a way that I had never seen in my lifetime. He spoke about big things and big dreams. He was a guy running for a senate seat in Illinois that Democrats felt had a future in the party. His name was Barack Obama. He struck a cord with me. I read his book and thought to myself; well, he won't be able to run for President unless their is a huge shift in this country. He's black, has an African name, has big dreams, lots of hope, is honest and inspiring.....
Fast forward to 3 years later: Barack Obama decides he is going to run for President and draws huge energetic crowds everywhere he goes that haven't been seen since Bobby Kennedy. He speaks of Hope and Change, Tolerance and Communication. He has my attention.
Fast Forward to January 2008......
Barack Obama won the Iowa Caucus on January 3rd against one of the best, well coordinated, political machines ever created. Last night, January 8th, he came in 2nd to that machine by a small margin. However, in this insane primary battle that will be all but complete in less than a month, the media will say he has lost some momentum by not defeating the Clinton juggernaut in New Hampshire, even though he wasn't "supposed" to win anything.
What they don't understand is that we, the people that go to the polls and cast these votes, are the one's that control the "momentum".
Let me get to the point and finish this long diatribe (Thank you if you made it this far)
The country's reaction to Obama's message is one that I have not seen in my lifetime. There is a hunger in this country for significant change and it's in our grasp. This is not a candidate that has good ideas and a small support group. This is a candidate that has great ideas, new ideas, and a LARGE group of people that see it, want it, and are reaching for it.
However, what I saw in New Hampshire last night was reservation. Reservation that maybe we're jumping the gun on this guy. Maybe his ideas are just talk and no substance. Maybe he's too inexperienced.....
Well, I'm tired of experience..... I'm tired of Bush, Clinton, Bush, Clinton....I'm tired of Fear and Loathing politics and politicians........I'm tired of voting against my conscience and not getting a damn thing in return......
Let me say, however, I don't agree with Barack Obama on everything politically or personally. I disagree so strongly on some issues that I almost did not support him. What I have seen these past few weeks though, goes beyond policy disagreements, party politics, and the usual divides.
In 2008 I am voting not just my conscience, but the collective conscience of a nation that has a desire to be great again.
This nomination will be decided by February 5th. South Carolina's Democratic primary is Saturday January 26th and it will be close. Get to your polling station and vote. The Democratic primary is more important than the general election for South Carolinians.....Really....Why??? Because if Clinton gets the nomination, SC goes RED, and more importantly, nothing changes, no matter who wins in November. If you are working, your job is required by law to give you (unpaid) time to go vote. **If you vote in the Republicans primary (which is first on the 19th), you can not vote in the Democrats.
Those of you who live in other states find out when you vote and what the rules are. Baracks website below has a list of all the states and should be able to guide you.
I have never written an open letter like this before. I have never volunteered for or gave money to a campaign before. I have also never felt like this before.
http://www.barackobama.com/ We need to do everything we can this month for the future of this country. The time is now.
Love Mike
And then this one from after the big South Carolina victory. Check out my North Carolina prediction.
1/28/08
Subject: Yes We Did!!!! Yes You Can!!!!
Hello again,
Greenville News Headline--"Obama Wins State Primary in Landslide"
For the first time in the 12 years that I have been here, I can finally say that I am PROUD of South Carolina, and I am proud to say that I live here. This past Saturday South Carolina showed the country and the world how ready we are for something new, something different, and something inspiring.
It took a lot of work. The volunteers, the contributions, the get out the vote effort; People were talking to each other and staying engaged throughout the process. It was Awesome. I talked to poll workers, who have been doing this for over 20 years, who said they have never seen anything like it. Young, old, black, white, male, female, hispanic, asians, they were all voting on Saturday. They are all hungry for this, and with the HUGE victory we had, we didn't just win here in the south, we showed the country that we CAN win anywhere.
We have to move forward now, there's a lot more work to do. I'm going to break it down for you guys.
Make sure your voter registrations are current and you know where your polling place is.
Aunt Jeanette, Regina, Dan & Kaira, and Bernadette; All of you guys vote on Super Tuesday, February 5th. New York is Hillary country so even if she wins there it's important to get a strong showing for Obama because it's not a winner take all election. He could get a lot of delegates there. And if everybody shows up, HE CAN WIN.
Regina, I think Massachusetts is going to be very critical for us. HE CAN WIN.
Chris and Dana, we've talked about this but North Carolina's primary is on May 6th. It just might be one of the most important states in this primary. It could be a tie breaker. You guys are in a unique position though. You have lots of time to volunteer and make phone calls and Get out the vote.......No pressure though.... :-)....... http://action.barackobama.com/page/s/volunteer
Dane has the coolest experience, he gets to Caucus in Washington state on February 9th.
To John, Mark, and Phil, ( the South Carolina residents) all I have to say is YES WE DID!!!! to everyone else.....YES YOU CAN!!!!
Voting is obviously the most important thing, but contributions and volunteering is what keeps the campaign moving... Millions of people making small contributions have built this movement. $5, $10, $25, $50...whatever you can give will help. And, no, I don't get a kickback....:-)
https://donate.barackobama.com/...
Use the above link to contribute and the below link if your interested in volunteering.
http://action.barackobama.com/...
You guys are the one's that are going to make this happen.....
Love all of you,
Mike
And this is the one I sent today.
6/4/08
Subject: Hope Wins (A Quick Reflection)
All I can say is WOW!
Way back in January I sent all of you an email with one word in the subject line. Hope. I unabashedly expressed my feelings on the underdog candidate for President, Barack Obama. Last night, almost five months later, as most of you probably know by now, Senator Obama secured the Democratic nomination for President of the United States.
Again....WOW!
I have a lot of thoughts and overwhelming feelings on this great moment in history, this great moment for our country, and the great possibilities that lie ahead.
To all of you that helped make this happen....You Rock!!
To those of you who still have doubts (you know who you are :-) let me just say this.
In November, your choice could not be clearer. I'm not going to give a political speech here but when I wrote that email on January 9th I mentioned that in South Carolina gas was at $3 a gallon. Five months later it's at $3.75. And that's low compared to the national average. In January, the US casualty toll in Iraq was approximately 3,905 troops. That number has soared to 4,090.
We have to move forward as a nation. This isn't just about political candidates, this is about us and our kids. Our future and theirs. We need to get away from the policies of the last eight years and make our country great again......
There I go again....sorry
Anyway, like I said, the choice couldn't be clearer. Look at the two candidates and decide for yourself who can lead us forward. Whose policies will make us stronger? Who can renew our standing in the world?
We've come this far, but we still have a lot of work to do, and it all begins with Hope
Hope
Love you guys and will talk to you soon,
Mike
Thanks for reading.