A day that will go down in history

Aaron, Adi and I got up early and trekked to our local precinct, where the line was about 45 minutes long. I was thrilled to wait because it meant what forecasters have been predicting: People are coming out to the polls in record numbers. Given I live in a dense Democratic area, it was a pleasing sight.

Fortunately, my paranoia paid off. The voter registration rolls indicated that I had to show an ID to vote because I was a first-time voter in this precinct. Of course I am not a first-time voter here; I voted here nearly one year ago! But my paranoia had prompted me to tuck my driver's license and a paycheck stub as proof of my address in my pocket right before I left the house -- and it turned out I needed them.

Words escape me when I try to think about the momentousness of this day: Of what it will say about this country if we actually elect a black man as our president; what it will mean to our economy if we can stop pouring $341 million dollars a DAY on the war in Iraq and actually start reinvesting this money in our ailing nation; what it will mean to our civil liberties to have an ultra-right-wing Christian fundamentalist finally stripped of his power.

It's been eight v-e-r-y l-o-n-g years.

In closing, I'd like to share this email from my brother's girlfriend, who, along with Brad, left her job three months ago to volunteer for the Obama campaign. In recent weeks, they both have been overseeing the campaign in rural Red areas of Pennsylvania, and giving us fascinating updates from the field.

Talk about naches! I'm so proud of both of them and everything they have done! I have removed identifying details but the spirit of her message remains:

I just got "home" from the office, after a weekend with very little sleep. Looks like I won't get much tonight either, as I have to be working at 6. I figured, I'm getting so little sleep, why don't I send a message.

As exhausted as I am, I am so happy that I followed my heart and worked on this campaign. I will be very sorry to see it end - it has been such a great experience.

Our office in XXXX, our PA state co-workers who support us so well (you've NEVER seen an IT "help desk" like this one, I promise you), the entire campaign, and everyone who has invested something in this campaign share a common purpose of taking back our country. I am so honored to contribute just a little bit to the effort, which I believe will change the direction of our country and the world. The feeling being on this campaign is hard to put into words, but however it is described, it is overwhelming.

I think I'll take a little nap now and try to recharge my batteries to at least 1/4 full, which hopefully will power me through 8:00. Well, after that -- when our polls close, we'll be making Get out the Vote calls to support the campaign in Colorado and Nevada. I'm not sure I'll be able to watch the returns, but for some reason, that doesn't seem as crazy as it sounds.

Happy Election Day,
"M"

Source of the statistic on the cost of the war: www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home