Great post. Thank you.

"considerable"

Okay, maybe I shouldn't have used that word. "Barack Obama spent a portion of his youth in poverty," how's that?

Because yes, damn it, if your mother has to apply for food stamps to keep you fed, you are poor. You may not be as poor as some other people -- poverty is always relative; most poor people in America are rich by comparison to what passes for the middle class in much of the world -- but you need food stamps, you are not middle class and you are damn sure not rich.

Rich, as in John Sidney McCain III. Who had his Annapolis appointment handed to him on a silver platter because of who his daddy and granddaddy were, who couldn't fly worth a damn and who was only given a flying post because of his lineage, whose incompetent piloting gave him the opportunity for his oh-so-heroic POW experience (after he had already crashed four planes!), who dumped the wife who waited for him through the years of his captivity so he could marry from "comfortably wealthy" up into "obscenely wealthy." Who can't remember how many houses he owns. Who thinks that if you make four million dollars a year, you're middle class.

And yes, any poor or middle-class person who thinks this coddled aristocrat is somehow more like them than a man who worked his way to the top, a true Horatio Alger story of the type conservatives claim to love but clearly loathe (remember what they did to a guy named Clinton?) is beyond hope."

You really do get it. And once again I applaud you for what you write here on Salon.

I grew up in a small town in Colorado, and I am quite serious in saying there was ONE, count 'em, ONE black person in our entire "community" of about 5,000 folks. I'm talking high school, the late 70s, and he was my age, and had been adopted by a white couple. He was "well-liked" but how could he possibly "fit in" given the scenario? No date for the prom. And that stinks.

Ok, I could go on and on. But you already said everything better than I could possibly say it. All I know is that I watched Obama tonight on the forum for service and I thought, damn, I want a smart president!!! I even got into an argument with my husband about "subconscious racism"--as in, find another excuse not to vote for Obama because REALLY I'm not racist. BS.

You mentioned having an interracial baby as being a rapid remedy to racism. And you know what else? The best cure for homophobia is having to admit that "one of your own beloveds" is gay.

"@gill bates

You hit the nail right on the head. Hopefully this type of thought will prevail.

As for these ignoramuses who say "he ain't my kinda paypul", if they put McLame/Failin in, well...they DESERVE them. I guess 8 years of hell wasn't enough. God forbid we should have a president with intellect."

I really want to emphasize what you said: "God forbid we should have a president with intellect."

And hey, a true leader as well? Yowzah.

That was very nice of you to post. I'm rather proud to keep up a fine family tradition. GEH!

Your post was great, and guess what? I'm irritated, too, and I don't always know how to express it. And it *is* depressing trying to reach out to those whose minds are made up or just can't handle seeing another side of things--even if that doesn't mean they have to change sides, but geez...at least consider? Logic. Evidence. I wish those had more weight.

"How dare she think no one gets to critique her record?" You said it. She's up for VP and potentially POTUS, so, yeah, I want--and we deserve--more substance and facts.

You're right that Palin is priviledged, and the media is treating her as such. But you raised a good point about men (of certain areas, which could be vast) not voting for "mean women"---which (only my opinion, but from small town experience too) I related to.

You've written a lot about many different factions in our country. None of it surprised me, but it does make me quake. The point about people not voting their pocketbooks or best interests...it seems like DUH to me because we've seen at least eight years and far more beyond of not doing that, and I can't quite see how to get through.

I'm scared about your paragraph that a black (or 1/2 black) president can't make it through. Maybe this IS a time for faith. I firmly believe Barack ObAma is the best candidate, and that includes Joe Biden as his "got your back."

Thanks for referring me to the Slate.com boards. I'll check that out. You don't have to fret about misspelling my site-name. In fact, I'm "coming out" to you for the very first time about where my "handle" comes from. It's "gehgoeson." "GEH" is for "give 'em hell" (a la Harry Truman, so that goes back to my Grandpa Mahoney, a feisty big Truman fan). And my dad (whose dad wasn't Grandpa Mahoney) adopted the GEH in his constant correspondence to his kids and grandkids, always sending notes & newspaper clippings and whatever and signing: "GEH! Love, Mom and Dad." So, when my wonderful Dad died, I kept the GEH going and decided that GEH goes on!

Again, thanks for your post. You gave me much to think about. But really---I just have to keep positive. So much is at stake!

Best to you. And GEH!

"I may not want to vote for him or feel that I have to vote for him, but I don't want to see him lose. His losing would cost us all too much."

Then why don't you vote for him? I'm just not getting it. I really don't.

Kudos to you--and your family.