You have been good, honest, liberal Americans for decades now. Here is why I believe you still have it in you:
I am 27 and was born in New Jersey. I currently work at the U.S. State Department and am very lucky to have had the opportunity to attend great schools (while taking on enormous debt, but lucky nonetheless). Both of my parents are from the south shore of Boston; one is from Milton, the other was from Mattapan.
I was brought up a Red Sox fan, I met Michael Dukakis at the Patterson, New Jersey Great Falls during the campaign of '88 when I was just about 6 years old. It turns out he later became a family friend. I believe in Massachusetts. I have been led to believe that the line from 'Wizard's First Rule' by Terry Goodkind is correct and that "people are stupid, they will believe whatever they want to believe." Not the people of Massachusetts.
My dad was getting his Ph.D. in mathematics during the fall of '72. He and my mom were married and living in Hoboken, New Jersey while he was at Stevens Tech. He took a sabbatical to work on the McGovern campaign.
The night he lost was a bad one. More like the night he got annihilated. My parents, my dad said, were in the brownstone watching his 'thank you' message to the staff. McGovern is saying that we fought the good fight, that he was proud of the staff, etc. My dad walks out and sits on the steps of the office. He starts crying.
My mom sees this, and walks outside. She puts her arm around my dad, and says "Honey, don't cry. We did our best. Sometimes you have to be on the right side in politics and lose. We should be proud of our fight."
My dad says the following. (This is going in my acceptance or introductory speech if I ever run or get elected to office):
"I'm not crying because we lost. I'm crying because I'm so damned proud of Massachusetts."
Now, you good people of Massachusetts. Please. My dad was a mathematics professor in New Jersey at a community college for nearly 30 years. He died of cancer in July, 2001. With the health care he had, due to his government position, my dear mom was not crippled financially by his disease. The financial disasters of that year damaged other things like his pension, but this is beside the point. All I am saying is this:
You did't even vote for Mondale in '84
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
But you did vote for this guy in '88
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
without ever voting for this guy, twice:
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
But you did vote for the "Most decent man in the Senate" according to Bobby Kennedy. His brother's seat, if you didn't realize, is the one that's up for grabs tomorrow. That happened in an election where he didn't even win his home state of South Dakota. He won Washington, DC (my current locale) and Massachusetts (where much of my heart, albeit never my residency, will largely always be because of my long-gone father).
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
So...you good people of Massachusetts please, I beg you:
