Why can't people get what Obama means by change????

Not always does change mean something drastic, but just a shift in attitude and objectives. The people are shouting that we want something real that represents us. We've all been cavalier about politicians. Oh, "that is just how they are." I think us common folks are asking for something different...

The change is in the attitudes of our leadership.

We need someone that is working "for the people, of the people and by the people." The change is someone that can get things done by bringing Republicanss and Democrats to talk and come to solutions together for the best interest of ALL of us...not just conservatives, not just liberals, not just rich, poor, black or white!!! Our country is suppose to be an example of the BEST way to do things that we know how. Obama represents that, in attitude, in his story, and his type of work. Let's face it, no president can do it alone...we need congress, the pentegon, the judiciary branch...all of it and if there is discord, how can anything get done!

The change is in uniting, not dividing.

He is a uniter and that is the change we need...the presidency is not an expert on everything! He/she is an expert on using good judgement and knowing how to make a decision that is fair and at the best interest of our country! A president should not be a divider. I voted for Barack Obama because he has shown good judgement even when he makes a mistake and he will make mistakes, even as president. All presidents do. His message is that government is for the people not some top level organization that tells the people what to do...its the other way around...from the bottom up. He has already brought the masses to the process! That was his first step to change! That IS the change! Young, old, black, white...we all get a voice... Some of us don't like that and THAT is what needs to change. Some of us are stuck in our egos and convinced we are right in all of our views, compassionless and unmoving for a solution. I watch CSPAN, I've seen the fillabustering...it needs to end! Old politics of egos and righteousness. That is why we don't have universal health care that most Americans want. That is why environmental issues haven't been a priority, that is why we have not had a woman or a black president before...that is why we are the strongest country in the world with poor and hungry children all over the country. We can't fix it all with government, but we can start by getting people in there that think like we (the people) do.

The change is to lead by the will of people not the will of politicians and their egos.

Lead from the bottom up, no the top down. I think people need to check their ego's at the door...and leave the "us" against "them" mind set behind... what happened to one nation? What happened to all are created equal...what happend to standing for right and not just being right? I thought it was gone after the last elections, but Obama's message has renewed my belief in the U.S. and our ability to take it to the world. All things ARE possibilities. Nothing is possible if we won't be open to the idea. THIS is the change.

The change is to live as the home of the brave! Not the home of the fearful.

I don't want to live in fear. Yes, alert, but not afraid. Hope removes so much fear and introduces bravery. For this, we need to change our ideas about foreign states and foreign ways if we want others to change. Lives are at stake and we must be vigilant and open to leading in world peace. We don't want to become that which we are accused of being: oppressive, interfering and dominant in a world that doesn't understand freedom, and individual rights, and unity by will. We need to show the world what freedom is and not force it to suit ourselves only.

The change is to see policy through the needs of the people not as a party's way to be right.

McCain is an honorable man, but he is "old school" politics. It's more of the same. More of the same....more of the same. I guess it can be difficult to go beyond policy. All the candidates have them, but none of them can do it alone...

The change is not just policy, it is us the people of America...we need a personal connection to our leadership that has been lost. Obama has reacquainted us to these ideals. I'm proud of him, I'm proud of our nations ideals and I'm proud of my part that I play in it all.

That's Me in the White House!

I was watching one of the ObamaTV videos, Woman for Obama, and for the first time I actually came to tears looking at his daughters imagining them playing in the white house like the Kennedy children. I was overwhelmed by the vision of a black young girl in pigtales or braides living on Pennsylvania Avenue! I want that. I want my daughter to see herself, someone like herself in the White House so that she can see that all things are possible. I just saw it for myself! Michele in the White House raising their daughters is so exciting! What a family! The thing that really makes me happy is that they belong! Rather than that innocent picture of a young black girl facing desegregation we are going to see young black girls enjoying their innocence as never seen before! The ignored world of young black girls. Exposed and open for everyone to see! Protected by secret service and in the oval office! Like all those warm photos we have seen of the Kennedy children so many times except this time with someone that looks like me when I was a little girl...what a joy! It is Martin Luther King's dream come true. It is the ultimate leveling of the field for black, brown and white people in America. Yes we can!

Hope or Experience? I choose HOPE!!!

What is it that inspires people to believe a change can come? Why does a single-mom like me keep on working so hard, going to school, raising my child, supporting my family, when it seems there is no rest or the light is so dim at the end of the tunnel? Where does the belief come that there is no where to go but up?

Hope

Hope has me. Hope has snatched me into a world of possibilities. Hope has helped me find a voice. Hope has given me strength. Hope is giving me a foundation. Hope is what matters.

Where does this all come from? Why now, and why so certain? Is it possible that an election could re-introduce me to what makes life worth living? Hope has found me again. I was beginning to loose hope that good and decent is contagious, is real and is possible to grasp. I've been challenged all my life with things that make me wonder if I can...just like everyone else. I have a story to tell full of joys and struggles...just like everyone else. I have fears and doubts... just like everyone else. There are far more things about me...that is just like everyone else...far more than what is not...

My struggles have been rooted in covert race issues, self-esteem, complacency, weight, bad choices in men...not knowing how to speak in my own voice. Listening to Barack Obama, listening to Michele Obama has renewed my sense of hope to the point of action. All the fears, self-doubt, struggles, trials, negative thoughts are all so small when I hear the inspiration of hope coming from his way of leading. I feel lead by a calling rather than a man. I'm inspired to do...rather than be done for. I'm 37 and all these years I've believed that a president is a man that knows better and knows best...but with Barack I believe that he is leading by a calling, a message, an uplifting. He has called me to believe in myself...that I can make a change. Never before have I truly believed this. And what brings it home is his message in unity. The solid foundation of success is unity. Whether you whisper it or say it out loud unity is empowerment to all. That is why the United States of America in name has such power. United! One Nation...

I know who ever sits in that office of President will make mistakes, but I trust that his will be out of attempts to make things better for most rather than some. I applaud his message because it is bringing all people together. I've wanted all my life to scream that I don't care what color you are or where you come from or how much money you have or what religion, size, or name you carry. I don't care! What I do care about is are we all getting a fair chance to succeed? I finally don't feel alone in these thoughts. He speaks to me in my core of what I believe...we are all created equal...he has opened my heart to trust that others may too believe these things. I'm not alone! Is it possible that we can unite no matter what we look like or how much we make...can we really be one country? YES WE CAN!

Barack Obama seems full of integrity and character. He is an example of humanity at its best. He has inspired me beyond what I ever thought possible. He dared me to believe and I can't resist the temptation. He makes me feel proud to be American, black, educated and able to overcome. Yes, I can! I am not alone in the discouragement and the division of the last 8 years has created. I was unable to chat with a republican, a conservatist, unable to share my voice. I felt sapped from empowerment, rought with fear, and removed from the process. Not anymore! I will participate and contribute to hope and unity.

I have dreams and hopes... I believe that I can make a difference.