[First publish in the Clarion-Ledger, Jackson, MS, Feb. 18th. click here ]
What's so cool about the Obama phenomenon, in addition to his Black American Pie, Ritchie Cunningham looks, is how the division within the Democratic Party is turning to one based on age.
Younger Dems, 40 and under, regardless of gender or color, are tending to go for Sen. Barack Obama. It's the older Dems, mostly women and those who want to return to the golden age of Bill Clinton, who are supporting Sen. Hillary Clinton.
The question to the Democratic Party is, does it want to embrace the future and go with the younger candidate, who represents change and signifies the relinquishment of the party to a new generation, or does it stick with the status quo?
When it comes to getting a woman into the White House, I'm certainly not opposed to the idea. And to older feminists, the ones who were truly in the trenches in the battle for equality, who feel like it's their due, I sympathize, but think it's simply and obviously just a matter of time.
We have a serious problem with global warming that the establishment, Republicans and Democrats alike, failed to acknowledge or adapt to. We've been talking about the depleting ozone layer since the 1980s and not enough has been done about it. Who can we predict will have the best judgment, free of lobbyist persuasion, when it comes to addressing this escalating problem?
After eight years of corruption, constitutional splintering, record oil profits and two wars with no end in sight, America could use a new vision, a new direction: Change.
Scott Tyner, Hattiesburg, MS
[Demographic breakdown from exit polls in Wisconsin:
http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2008/primaries/results/epolls/#WIDEM
[Also, I'll admit a 180 degree turnaround since I wrote "Obama runs for V.P." last January. With the MSM and Democratic elites seeming to narrow the field down to two for us, Obama seems the better choice.]
