can he? can we?

(Bowery & 4th • photo by me)

Who knew that the “B” on the sign for the Bowery Bar actually stood for Barack?

There were a handful of things I could quibble with in last night’s Obama infomercial (Barack’s word, not mine)—I thought several of the transitions went “bump,” his office setting was ambiguous to me, and I swear if I hear about “clean coal technology” one more freakin’ time, I’m gonna lose it—but I’m not in the hatin’ mood. . .

. . . and in part that is because of that infomercial.

You see, I can excuse the overly dramatic score and the unfortunate idea that the entirety of the “real America” seems to live outside of America’s biggest cities; I am not the target audience, after all. But, that said, at times, this thing still hit me. I mean it got me, I dunno, a little verklempt.

I’m not sure it was any one thing; it was more like the everything of it. The idea that just maybe this guy is smart enough to get it, if only a little—get that everything is sort of interrelated. If you want to stimulate the economy, you have to restore tax equity, and solve the healthcare crisis, and move away from hydrocarbon-based energy—and I’m hoping that he holds fast to this understanding when, come January, all the serious people in the village start telling him, “It’s too much,” and, “It’s too expensive,” and “America isn’t ready,” and “Just do a little test something first. . . then we’ll see,” because you know they will.

For me, I’m just trying to adjust to the idea that I might have a president, for the first time in my memory, that actually teases me with the idea that he might grow into a better leader once he gets to Washington. . .

. . . that is until he brings me right back down to earth with more “clean coal,” or more FISA “compromises,” or more reasons why we can’t completely leave Iraq or completely close Gitmo, or. . . no, no, no, not today, no. . . . Today: Yes we can!


(cross-posted on The Seminal)

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