Yes We...

Can DID!!!

What an exciting night to be alive to witness history!

I wasn't always an Obama supporter - I voted for Hillary in the primary (I've always liked the Clintons)... but once it was narrowed down to the 2 candidates and the VP picks were made, my choice was clear. I didn't dislike McCain - in fact I liked him more than any other Republican candidate, but he just didn't have that magnetic personality Obama has and I didn't feel he had a real plan for America. I felt like McCain wasn't tuned into Gen X or Gen Y in quite the same way Obama was. And honestly his campaign people ran a shitty smear ridden campaign. Even Bill Kristol of the weekly standard said weeks ago that McCain should fire his strategy people- because of the negative campaign and other tactics they were employing. I did not like the Palin pick. As an independent woman that voted Hillary that wasn't how to get me.

For me, it really felt like finally a candidate who gets where I'm coming from - he's younger, intelligent, passionate, and all around I feel like he gets it. He's in touch with what's going on. Some think Socialist, but I think he's more about doing what it right for the greater good of society. He got the youth excited again! He got them involved - Gen X and Gen Y made the difference in this election. I've been voting for some time now, but I've never been as excited, hopeful, and nervous as I was yesterday casting my vote.

As a person that works in Social Media - I was also amazed at the role it played in this election. Following the coverage on Twitter was awesome. I was getting updates from Twitter often faster than I was on the news (switching back and forth between: CNN, NBC, Fox and Comedy Central). Obama was the first candidate that really reached out and embraced technologies like Twitter, Facebook, SMS etc. To me those things were critical: He got my world, he knew how to reach me. This is what I do every day. My company always talks about the Power of WE and how our product helps businesses harness that to gain insight from their employees, customers, or partners faster. But now we all just witnessed the power of WE nationally. What a shame his grandmother and even mother didn't get to live to see this amazing day.

How awesome was it for America that our young people took to the streets beeping, yelling, screaming, cheering... celebrating the election of a PRESIDENT as if it was a Superbowl or World Series win!!??? I know I haven't witnessed that in my lifetime. Young people as enthusiastic about our electoral process as a sporting event? Americans not looking like the spoiled, apathetic, buffoons the rest of the world has often painted us as (and rightfully so sometimes).

If Obama is as good of a leader as he is a speaker - we just may be looking at one of the greatest presidents of all time, certainly in our lifetime. Wouldn't that be amazing? I'm just so happy I was alive to witness this. He's got a very tough road ahead: 2 wars, a struggling economy, home foreclosures, job loss etc etc... and it remains to be seen how well he will handle those hurdles, but I feel hopeful about it. Now let's all work together as a nation to fix these issues and make this a great country to live in.


* You realize Bostonians will go back to being their miserable selves again in about 2 weeks... ;)

Nov 4th

How long do you think the lines will be to vote tomorrow in Somerville? Why doesn't MA have early voting like so many other states? Not really looking forward to wasting half my morning in line, but there is no way I'm not voting!

I will be so happy (well I hope so) when this election is over. I am sick and tired of hearing the candidates smear each other. And honestly the crap I've heard come out of some of the folks working for McCain is flat out lies. Why lie? Each person's record should speak for itself.

In fact the "attack calls" being made by the McCain camp were so offensive 3 dozen workers in Indiana walked off the job rather than make the calls.

There are reasons to vote for and against both candidates, so why not focus on WHY I should vote for YOU, rather than why I shouldn't vote for someone else? That is far more effective for me. And honestly I was who McCain was trying to reach (an independent woman who voted for Hillary in the primaries) when he picked Palin, but it did the opposite for me - and then his campaign alienated me more with the behavior at the RNC (who makes fun of a community organizer? they got of their ASS and made a difference, doesn't that matter?), attack ads, and rude comments/lies from various people in his campaign.

I found this post that a middle aged white guy wrote about Obama pretty interesting.

getting political for a minute..

So normally I don't talk politics on my blog - as I would rather focus on Fashion, Football, and Somerville... but I just can't help myself today.

I'm a pretty moderate person - there's things I like about both parties. My problem I hate hypocrites.

I don't want to be highly taxed - I personally think taxes should factor how much you make and WHERE in the country you live. Because making 100K in the middle of Oklahoma is REALLY different from making that same salary in NYC, Boston, or San Francisco - the cost of life is so much more expensive in those cites. I think society has an obligation to help people, but don't think people should abuse that help and if they do I think there should be repercussions. I think parents shouldn't look to schools to raise their kids for them. I think people should start stepping up and taking ownership and responsibility for their actions.

I like that republicans don't want lots of big government interfering in people lives. Well rather in theory it's a good idea not to interfere. But in reality they want to tell me who I can marry, and what I can do with my own body. To me that IS big government interfering with my life and telling me how to live it! To me government has no right to interfere with those two things. And it's not because I want to go get an abortion if I got pregnant I wouldn't, but I don't know everyone's situations. Who am I (or anyone) to decide and judge them on that? Who am I to decide who someone can love and marry? Aren't there more important things to worry about?

What also makes no sense to me is this whole pro life, but pro death penalty. How can a person be pro life, but then pro death at the same time? To me that just doesn't add up. Because if you truly think that everyone deserves life - doesn't that really include EVERYONE?

And this whole gun thing.. surely folks that are responsible gun owners and hunters should be able to have a gun and hunt. Do I like hunting? Not at all, but if someone hunts for their food and eats it - who the hell am I to judge? I don't like it if people are just doing it for sport and not using the animal for food. And I find it pretty hypocritical if someone is super pro life but then shoots and animal for the hell of it and sticks it's head on their wall- what about the animal's right to life? People have to see that having a gun in Alaska is VERY different from walking around with one in the middle of a city! And it's also clear to me not everyone is a responsible adult, or has good intentions - so you need some rules around guns for the good of society. Otherwise it's just chaos.

Folks always quote the constitution and the right to bear arms, but that was written over 200 years ago - the world was different then. Then the world was much more rural, people probably hunted more for their food. People had to protect their property from large animals and probably other people (especially during a war!) But in today's world can you imagine if every single person living in a large apartment complex in the middle of a city had a gun? It that really necessary or a good idea? It all depends where you live - the farmer in Montana living on hundreds of acres of land is quite different from me living in a Condo in Somerville where my neighbors are on top of me. I don't need a gun - he probably does.

But what I mostly don't like about this election - the twisting of words. I hate backstabbing and mud slinging. Stick to what YOU are going to do - don't tell me how much the other person sucks. That is just ridiculous and not helpful. If anything it makes me less likely to vote for you. These republican strategists have somehow gotten it into many people's heads Obama isn't like them. He grew up with a single mom - how is that really elite? How is he really so different? They say he doesn't have small town values, but then when asked in a poll at the RNC what small town values were - no one could answer it!! NOT ONE PERSON!

I mean if you are going to say someone doesn't have small town values - you should be able to define what that means and why they don't have it. One woman said 'it's sitting around the kitchen table talking'. Does she REALLY FREAKING believe that Obama has never sat around his kitchen table talking with his family??? REALLY?????? Are you fucking kidding me? To me small town values means that I should treat others how I would like to be treated - which means I am not going to judge people or want to put discrimination into our constitution or society. But clearly their word twisting propaganda has worked - yesterday I was out and heard someone talking politics and how Obama is: an elitist, a muslim, was going to raise everyone's taxes and more. He's not a muslim (and really it shouldn't matter if he is - he's an AMERICAN - that's what matters!!!!!) but those words have been put out there enough there are people that believe it! I can't even believe there are, but there are - I heard it with my own ears!!!!

And really that is just sad. I want to know all the information I can possibly know. I want to make a decision I feel comfortable with and be able to explain why I made that decision. I watch NBC, CNN, Fox, and more to make sure I see all sides. Each network has a different slant and from that I hope I can take away the truth. How can people not be interested in trying to find out all the information? It's out there - you just have to look for it. Why be ignorant?

is he kidding me?

Romney suspends his campaign.

"If I fight on in my campaign, all the way to the convention, I would forestall the launch of a national campaign and frankly I would be making it more likely that Senator Clinton or Obama would win. Frankly, in this time of war, I simply cannot let my campaign, be a part of aiding a surrender to terror," he said.

Really? democrats aid in surrendering to terror? Give me a break.

I voted, did you?

I went to my polling place and voted this morning. Pretty uneventful by the time I got over there. The screaming and beeping seemed to have died down. Everyone must have gone off to work.

I don't care who you vote for (well I kind of do, but whatever) just get out and vote and make your voice heard! :)

People are going crazy

I live across the street from one of the polling places - and omg people are going crazy. There is screaming, beeping of horns, chanting... it's nuts!

I don't remember any other election getting this many people yelling in front of my house. Most of the screaming seems to be for Obama. And it's pouring rain out - I don't know why anyone would stand there in the rain like that.

Even people walking out of the building after they voted are cheering. This is going to be an interesting election.

OK seriously the beeping and screaming are excessive now... shut up! It's been almost non-stop for 2 hours. I'm still too depressed over the Pats loss to be excited about the election.

I hate election years

It's just too much. My bf has been watching CNN, MSNBC, Meet the Press, etc etc etc for hours.... days... weeks.... months... I can't take it! I will be happy when bozo is no longer in the white house of course, but I get so sick of listening to a bunch of bloviators argue about the same 3 issues.

Then when whoever it is that gets elected, gets in office, nothing really changes. Or in Bush's case, the changes that started to happen were really, really scary. Making me question if I did still live in the Free World. My taxes are still really high for a middle class single chick, schools don't seem to be getting so much better, my roads are still a mess filled with potholes, the world is angry with us, the war, etc etc etc......... I'm not rich enough or poor enough to actually benefit from anything.

Maybe I should just put out there what I want for me and my country and let politicians bid to get my vote.. HA!

Thank god I got control of the clicker and now we're watching Project Runway ;)

and now I've lost again :(