Mainly a litany of the authors hopes, expressed as confident assertions. I would have liked to see some evidence that, for example, Hillary supporters are really willing to rally around the Democratic nominee, to "come home again" as it were. But the assertions are halfway contradicted by the central question posed, and it's a good question:

Who are we?

Those who saw the movie "Sicko" remember that question, at the last part of the film, as the most powerful part. Is America willing to embrace significant change, or are we still a scared and selfish nation? Will the ghosts of 1968 finally be exorcised from our national spirit? And in the answer we find this November will signal our future too. We are either the hopeless, flailing has-been of a superpower, or we're still the originator of the most powerful energy source of all, new ideas.

God, I love living in these times!

If you're a good political chess player, you think five moves ahead. Realizing that the November coattails of a VP pick are small at best, the real political game for VP is to pick someone who is simultaneously adequate to be President but yet is so obviously problematic that he or she serves as "impeachment insurance". Think Dan Quayle, except not so obviously unqualified. This is more important for Obama than McCain, since we already know the Democrats in Congress won't ever impeach any Republican President for anything.

So the VP, ironically, should not be very reassuring. They should be only comparably experienced as the Presidential candidate. They should not make the DC media happy or comfortable. Their constituency should be dispersed and broad but maybe way outside the Beltway radar. Western governors like Sebelius, Napolitano, Schweitzer, and Richardson come to mind (though Richardson has a stellar resume).

As a Floridian, I hope that McCain picks Charlie "kick-the-can" Crist, a man who never met a problem he couldn't shuffle off to the next poor sap. Crist has a good machine here and might well shore up Florida for McCain, but this is one state that the Republicans can't afford to lose, and so it's a pure defensive play and will be seen as such immediately.

In 2004 I was a Deaniac. Not just any Deaniac, but I spent $1200 in January 2004 to go from Orlando (temperature 60 degrees) to Manchester New Hampshire (max temperature 15 degrees, nights minus 15 degrees, and a fierce north wind that froze over most of the Merrimac River) for nine days and work my frostbitten tail off. To come in second behind Kerry, and ballgame over!

Did it take me time to sort it out afterward and finally embrace Kerry? You betcha. But embrace him I did: canvassed and waved signs and served as event staff for a rally at the Arena downtown. And walked my whole precinct, every last bit of it, twice in October.

Why? Just three words: George W. Bush.

Did I ever like Kerry? Not too much. But I thought he'd make a good president. And the country needed a good president really badly. At a Meetup for Kerry, I was asked why I was supporting John Kerry, and I just pointed to my daughter and said "That's why. Why else care about the future, except for our kids and the ones we love?"

Ok, so here it is 2008. My guy was John Edwards, and once again, Greg in FL is the kiss of death (sorry, Senator). And I know quite a few Hillary maniacs, of both genders. Some have started to come around to Obama, some are still screaming they'll vote McCain, or Nader for God's sake. I hope, fervently hope, that these few months will serve to ice that sore spot and their perspectives will change.

Why? Two words: John McCain. AKA Bush III, only more war.

Did I ever like Obama? Not so much, but more than I did Kerry I'll admit. But Barack Obama will make a good president. And our nation so deeply needs a good president now. So to all you Clinton supporters: take a look at your kids, and the people you love. And think, why else should we care about the future?

Rebecca, the audio in your clip was just awful. Your microphone was too onmidirectional and it was too far away from you. It picked up the hollow "sea shell" sound that comes from reflective (brick) surroundings.

But to top that off, you overlayed that jazzy, finger-snapping tune. Just to make your words all the less comprehensible.

Please get a decent audio tech, a real microphone, and some acoustical panels before doing another recording. And if you want to include the jazz tune, do it as an intro which fades to zero when you start talking and then fades back in when you are done. Don't have it compete with your message.

Thanks...Greg