I was speaking to a friend last night. She informed me that her children were very intense McCain supporters. Not because they felt he could do a better job than Obama. But because he was not black! They pointedly felt it their right to say that a black president was going to cause problems because then black people (and those are not the words they used) would expect to be treated like everyone else. They would expect to have rights!

I am so ashamed that there are so many people in Montana who feel that way!

Having a black president opens up all kinds of wonderful new possibilities. Young black children can look at President Elect Obama and believe that they can have a decent future. They will see that if they stay in school and stay in focus that they too may one day be President.

The rest of the world has shown by their celebrations that our nation can once again be a nation to be proud of the world over.

I would hope that those who voted merely on the color of the candidates' skin would give our future president the respect he deserves. He has a tough job ahead of him. This is your country too. It is your responsibility to be a good American. Give him your support.

We are no longer black Americans, white Americans, Hispanic Americans, etc. We are all simply Americans. We are all in this together.

It is your responsibility to be a good American. Give him your support.

Sorry Kacey, while I would agree with you regarding the stupidity of that family (and others of like mind) but I totally disagree with you on the above. Yes it's our responsibility to be good Americans but I'm not blindly giving Obama my support.

As Obama himself said last night, he's going to have to earn it. I respect him for becoming President and congratulate him for it, but I will not automatically be throwing my support behind him.

We are no longer black Americans, white Americans, Hispanic Americans, etc. We are all simply Americans. We are all in this together.

I've always thought so myself. It seems that some of the hyphenated crowd doesn't want to move beyond though. All I've heard is that he's the first African-American to become President. Why not simply say he's the 44th President of The United States? It seems to me that if you're already adding race to mix you're not moving beyond something you want to move beyond.

[This message has been edited by Kyle L. Varnell (edited 11/5/2008).]

Now you know how us liberals felt the last 8 years Kyle. We were expected to blindly throw our support behind the shrub. Follow him into an insane war, screaming patriotism all the way. Learn to live with your disappointment dude. It's your turn.

Matt,

I'm not disappointed in the least. I'm proud that once again we've had another peaceful transition of power. I'm proud that people got out and voted for whatever candidate they voted for and made their voices heard.

I'm not disappointed at all.

[This message has been edited by Kyle L. Varnell (edited 11/5/2008).]

This would have been an historic election no matter who won. Yes, Obama is the 44th president, but you can't ignore the social implications of him being part African. Had he come onto the scene forty years ago, he would have had trouble just voting much less running for elective office. This is a major milestone in the developement of a culture that, until attacked personally, ignored the murder of millions because they were Jewish. We, as a people, condoned prejudice and segregation and the resulting lynchings. We, as a people, value less certain jobs because they are done by women and denied them the vote for hundreds of years. Now, we, as a people, have overcome a prejudice that has undermined the ability of certain citizens to rise above their beginnings, i.e., slavery. This is huge!

Not to say that it gives Obama a pass. He now has to prove that he was the right choice. These next 4 years will be difficult. But I voted for him because I think he can perform better than McCain would. Now we'll just have to wait and see.

gvc's wife

I'll just back up what Kyle said. My goal is to respect the office Obama holds, and support him when he makes decisions I'm able to support.

I hope BDS does not immediately mutate into ODS. Obviously, there will always be those who don't feel the same way.

Bitterness is so unbecoming.

black kids could have a decent future if they stopped trying to kill each other

Nice to put it in such a black and white way Chips.

ABC

Black kids wouldn't kill each other if they had a decent future to look forward to

"Black kids wouldn't kill each other if they had a decent future to look forward to"

ANY child, be them black, white, indian, asian, etc etc not given the fundementals of good parenting, strong leadership, and the teaching of the knowledge they don't yet possess, has nothing to look forward to. Unfortuantly society as a whole has taught these people to say "poor me" instead of "help me."

Change THAT and then you can say the world has changed