Today I Voted

I've done it. The absentee ballot has been marked, placed in the affidavit envelope, sealed in the manilla envelope, and on it's way to Richard Arrington BLVD., Birmingham, AL. I have for the first time voted for the guy who is no longer running. If Iowa and New Hampshire have too much influence, it is because we allow them that influence. The field has narrowed since those early states, but all candidates remain on the ballot in Alabama, so I am not confined to deciding between the only two officially left in the race. After much reflection, I find that I cannot endorse either of the remaining Democratic Candidates over the other. Obama promises hope, but to what end. he has run his campaign as a centrist, hoping to engage Independents and even Republicans. But when November comes, Republicans will support their Candidate and the Independents will determine their choice based on an issue, or a clever campaign. Most concerning for me is that I am a Democrat, and Senator Obama, regardless of what letter may appear next to his name, has not been running for the Democratic nomination, but for the nomination of the non-existent Independent Party. Any candidate can spin a tale of hope, but to what end is it for if his or her policies will not bring the possibility of hope to those who need it most. Senator Clinton brings with her history and experience. I have lived through the Clinton years, and like many Democrats remember it fondly. but these memories are shped more by what has happened since than by what occurred during Bill Clinton's Presidency. The Clinton years are this country's past, not it's future. Today my hope is that regardless of the nominee, the Health Care proposal placed on his or her desk originates in the office of Sen. Ted Kennedy. It is my hope that the economic policies of the next four years are written for the benefit of those of us who do not have the luxury of investing our money, because after bills and food are paid for we have nothing left to invest. I still believe that we can be one nation in which all of us work for the benefit of one another. It is for this reason above all that this morning, though he may have withdrawn from the race, I cast my vote for John Edwards.