So it seems that Tim Russert died today. Can’t say I’m too upset about that–I don’t know much about him, never watched any of his shows, and I am typically uninterested when news figures die (similarly, I didn’t wring my hands overmuch when Peter Jennings died).

That said, Wikipedia very briefly gave me another example of why there are dicks in every corner of the world, online and off.

See the captured screenshot here–I made no modification except to highlight “Ding dong the witch is dead!” and draw a big arrow on it.

Okay, so apparently he was on NBC and MSNBC, was quite likely a liberal thinker, and probably pissed some people off with his personal beliefs. That’s no reason to celebrate his demise. I recall celebrating Jerry Falwell’s death some time back and I was not right then just as whoever vandalized Tim Russert’s Wikipedia page is not right.

The offensive line has been removed, but the larger issue still remains: Are we such a polarized nation that even people who decried Bush’s “You’re either with us or with the terrorists” motif are just as eager to claim the other side evil? Falwell was a bad man who hurt many people, emotionally and psychologically, in his claims of moral righteousness. Tim Russert was a journalist. I recognize that no journalism occurs in this nation anymore that isn’t slanted one way or the other–We the People are simply uninterested in discourse that is not supporting our ideas. Your daily news is merely another echelon of the mighty Infotainment Empire which has insinuated itself into our dinner table conversations as much as it has helped define for ourselves who we truly are. We’re red states and blue states, liberals and conservatives, McCain supporters or Obamaniacs.

I suppose it’s nothing really new. I recall deep divisions between us all as Americans back in 1992 when Bill Clinton first ran for President. It just seems like those things that make us unique (and, as such, have made this a phenomenally successful nation) have become so unnecessarily important without cause that it has driven each and every one of us to stress over things that needn’t be so bothersome.

Take, for example, my glee if Obama is to win the Presidency in November. I will marvel to the sky about my luck in living in this fascinating, world-shattering time. I will shed tears for my future, which will feel immeasurably brighter. Those things might not happen if McCain is elected, but neither am I going to curse the sky about my awful luck and start glaring at anyone who gives me a second glance. I will not cut down my own personal hopes and aspirations just because a white rich guy is in that neat office rather than a rich black guy. Reality will come crashing down on me to remind me that, at the end of the day, my day is mostly unaffected by the President, whoever s/he is. I will continue going to work. I will continue enjoying my weekends. I will continue to cry at sad movies, laugh with my friends, and drink too much.

I will not go to John McCain’s Wikipedia entery and fill it up with “Fascist” repeated over and over and over, despite what I may think. On November 8th, I will deal with whatever happens.

Mostly because I’m not a dick.

I’ve tried really, really hard to not jump the gun in this 2008 election season and support one candidate or another, not so much because I want to see where the cards fall, but because it’s been more important to me to determine a candidate’s efficacy based off his or her prior words as contrast to their current actions, and prior words are always cumulating, as time moves inexorably forward. Hillary has said some marvelous things in the past, as well as in the present. McCain used to be a beacon of moderation in the Senate in the past. And Obama…

Obama spoke at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. I remember thinking to myself, “This man could be the next President. I wish he were running at not the easily-forgettable Kerry.”

The pundits, the pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red States and Blue States; Red States for Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. But I’ve got news for them, too. We worship an “awesome God” in the Blue States, and we don’t like federal agents poking around in our libraries in the Red States. We coach Little League in the Blue States and yes, we’ve got some gay friends in the Red States. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and there are patriots who supported the war in Iraq. We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America.

It was that quote that I was reminded of today. Reading it again, then watching pieces of the address at Youtube, brought tears to my eyes. He wasn’t speaking about Kerry and Edwards in 2004, he was speaking about himself in 2008. And I’ve been saying this since the beginning of this exceedingly long campaign season: If Obama’s handlers would just let him loose, there’d be no stopping him, as evidenced by this speech in 2004.

It’s so rare to think of the candidate with a message of hope actually doing well nationally. And I just might take a chance and hope along with him. When it comes down to it, I’ll vote for Obama, instead of against McCain.