Thank God said: Thank God for some body running for office who know what we need. Obama seem real to me. He know both sides (black/white). We all have faults. There is no person is this world that can run for office, can please everyone and don't have something in their closet that they are afraid will come out. There was only one man that walked this earth without sin. Look what was done to him?? Stop hating. Remember 911, I like that change - I saw a difference in people. Very sad that so many people had to die before we could treat each better. Who raised their kids up to hate? I pray, yes I pray that things will get better in my life time. I am 50 and things aren't much better than when I was 5. Every-One have to play a part in this Change. Every one must treat each other with Respect. We are all related, cause we all came from Adam and Eve. Lets stop this Maddness! Blacks treat each other the same way whites treat us, when we think we are better than them. Respect people, Respect! What Would Jesus Do?

Tara in SB said: Racism is alive and well, of that there is no doubt. Stuffing it away in the "American fleeting memory" has only left it to fester and continue on it's negative path. Here we've been given a chance to change that course... to lance the boil and medicate through discussion and, yes, even the simplistic admission of it's existence. Of course the skies will not part and Angels will not sing (at least not right away!) but it removes the insanity of continuing on our current path. Speaking of current paths: I just don't understand how well-educated human beings can begin to believe that putting John McCain in the White House will elevate this country from our current disaster. His plan of staying in Iraq for however long it takes (without any definition of what success is) 100 years; continuing tax cuts to the wealthy; attacking Iran and anyone else who happens to fit into a cute little song-ditty; cutting spending on infra-structure (the current president just cut spending to First Responders by $1 billion for the Second year in a row ~ don't you feel safer?). Our infrastructure is in dire straights; from Homeland Security (how about that border control) to Education to Transportation; States are cutting budgets even further all the while we spend billions of dollars per WEEK in Iraq, give tax breaks to the oil companies and the uber-wealthy. Iraq was an ill-conceived war that continues to suck us dry emotionally, spiritually and FINACIALLY. A vote for McCain is a vote to continue depleting America of our greatest resources - our brave men and women. Obama has laid out his plans.... you just need to listen and do a little research; ie, go to his website. I guess I can understand how inspiration and motivation becomes a negative when you're afraid of change and that change is coming in the form of Masses. Millions of people donating an avg $109 to become the largest funded campaign in the race. With all the passion to facilitate change. Obama has never said he'd do it alone - he's counting on human beings of all walks to join together for the better of our country. Let the masses remain 'naive' and let the small donations of the world reign victorious. Yes We Can! Peace On People

Jannis said: To Lockett: "However, I still don’t see how blacks are still discriminated against. Racial discrimination should STAY in America’s collective “fleeting memory.”" Have you ever been stopped by the police for DWB-Driving While Black? My 24 year-old son has. Have you ever been stopped by the police for driving a new truck with the dealer's tag on it without breaking any laws? My husband has--the police thought he had stolen it. Have you ever been followed around a store by a sales associate, where you were the only black person shopping and all of the white customers were shopping without being followed? I have. If you have children, were they ever told or heard that the reason some people are black is because they are dirty? My oldest son was told this by one of his white peers. Have you ever been called a black b**ch by a total stranger walking down a street for no reason? I have. Have you ever been passed over for a promotion because the all white department didn't want a black person in the position? My husband has. Have you ever been working in a retail store in uniform, walked by a white customer who then moved their purse away when you passed them by? My son has. Have you ever been told that you look too good to be a black person—that you had to be Hispanic or mixed with something? My son has Do you get the picture? I could list even more, but I think the point is clear. The fact that racial discrimination stayed in "America's collective fleeting memory" is the reason that there are the Rev. Jeremiah Wrights in this country. More importantly, this fleeting memory is the reason that honest, open, dialogues between all ethnic groups must take place. Abraham Lincoln said, "A house divided against itself cannot stand." We are still a nation suffering from a racial divide. Until we can look at where we have been, until we confront our faults and failures, until we accept our failure in recognizing that we are the HUMAN RACE, until that time, will we, as a UNITED nation, be able to determine where we are going, and truly become the global super power that we ought to be. Sen. Barack Obama is the only candidate who will lead this nation to its proper destiny.

lila said: dealing with complex issue is not easy... obama did an excellent job tackling these issues head on while providing furthur direction for our nation. away with politics as usual and congrats to obama and all of us supporters for the positive nature of our work and beliefs!

Lockett said: To Jannis: "It seems that you didn’t understand my post. The story that I posted is one from my childhood. The incidents are real. I experienced them. They still haunt me as an African American woman in 2008, thereby making my comments very relevant and a part of the necessary dialogue that must take place to begin healing this nation and transcending the racial divide. Although I do not condone the angry words of Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who is 16 years older than I am, I understand them. I know first-hand the source of his emotional, but very ill stated diatribe on the state of America. My husband, whose black mother was hit in the face by a white man, and who bore the scares of it until her death, is another testament to the roots of the need to bring this discourse form the shadows and the fleeting memory of America—a country that does not want to face the truth in the mirror when its sees it reflection through the eyes of African Americans. I am a fifty-one year old public school teacher, the daughter of a Baptist minister. Rather than preaching from the pulpit about racial equality and saving souls, I have chosen to teach in a classroom, to help young people realize that they can be the primary catalyst in creating an America of the future where race is truly not an issue. Does this make it relevant for you?" Yes, it does. I apologize for my lack of understanding. However, I still don't see how blacks are still discriminated against. Racial discrimination should STAY in America's collective "fleeting memory". To Jeff: [post too long to quote] Yeah! Another sane person! However, while I agree with about 75% of the things that you said, your well-written post still hasn't given me any reason to vote for Obama. You basically said that he'd make it up as he went along - look at where that got Bush. I agree that Clinton would probably screw up everything that she did, but I don't see anything wrong with McCain delegating some of his military command to a few generals - "passing the buck", in your words. He'd do well to implement your idea for a safe military exit("withdrawal" implies retreat, "exit" implies victory - or, at least, a ceasefire) from Iraq - not that it's likely that he's read your post, though. To tell you the truth, given the choice between Obama, Clinton, and you, I'd pick you in a second. Your "two cents" is more like two dollars!

iamdam said: WOW. Barack keep on, keeping on, Brother. You are what I've been waiting for all of my 42 years of life. God bless you and your dream, for you are the embodiment of what Dr. King told us about many years ago. YES, WE CAN!!!!!! Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, 2009 - 2016.

Jeff said: Without reading all of the comments here, I just wanted to throw my two cents in. 1) If Obama wasn't a candidate for President, this speech would still be a landmark statement within historical context. The effectiveness of it, and the truthfulness of it cannot be denied or disputed. Nothing that he says within this speech detracts from the fact that people of all ethnic backgrounds are at odds, and that we, as a country must try to overcome our differences to make progress with real issues that affect us all. If you don't like him, fine, don't, you're not forced to. However, if your ignorance causes you to attack his statements, then you're just not living in the same reality as the rest of us. If you don't like this speech, then what would your interpretation be of our cultural differences? How would you propose to solve them? 2) In terms of our military, I have great respect for any soldier that fights to defend our nation. Now, this is an important statement, "defend our nation", is not a green light to invade a country that poses no threat to us. I will support any military strike that targets terrorism. I believe that the only way to be safe is to be aggressive with extremists. I also believe that we have a moral obligation to use diplomacy, and our military if needed, to stop genocide in any nation. Having said that, Iraq posed no real threat to us, it contained no nuclear or chemical threat, and there were no weapons of mass destruction. It did not harbor terrorists until we invaded, and Saddam, while a cruel dictator, did not use genocide to suppress the population. We invaded so Bush/Cheney could profit through oil and military contracts. The price of Oil is at an all time high, and Haliburton is making enormous profits that cannot be quantified. The administration used our soldiers as nothing more than mercenaries. I am ashamed that you had to spend 5 years in a country with no purpose, and your lives wasted for money. I believe that a strong military is paramount, and terrorists should be hunted down and disposed of by any means necessary. I do not believe that we should use waterboarding to extract information because it clearly and definitively goes against the Geneva convention. Additionally, it creates more resentment against our country as opposed to extinguishing that same hatred. Our own tactics produce more terrorists. 3) If global warming is in fact a fallacy, then what would be the real damage if we converted our energy to solar, wind, hydrogen, and bio-fuel? The emergence of these new industries will bolster the economy and create millions of jobs. It will reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and make the environment cleaner. These are all good things. The only negative would be that some corporations go out of business, or be forced to shift their focus to creating these new energy sources. They have the resources in terms of profit to do it, so they could easily start to invest and stay as powerful as they already are. I agree that ethanol is not an answer to our energy problem, but if we start the transition, it might be a good way to get the ball rolling. The best thing that can happen is that we do in fact see a more stable and cleaner environment, and the polar ice caps stop melting. The worst thing that happens is that we use solar panels and hydrogen instead of gasoline, and exxon/mobil go out of business. I'm willing to make that trade any day. In terms of economics, if there is a limited supply of a resource, it becomes more valuable and more expensive. If oil is mostly found in the Middle East, and we need to invade or bribe countries to get it, then wouldn't it make sense to change to an energy policy that is independent and will be available at all times? The cost to install renewable energy may be high at first, but the long term cost will be far less than oil ever was. 4) The difference between Obama, Clinton, and McCain are not extreme. There will be differences in strategy to deal with our problems, but they all know what the problems are. All we need to do is choose the candidate that we believe will take the right path to solving them. I do not believe that McCain's idea of cutting taxes and relying only on Wall Street is the right economic approach. It creates too many gaps for those people in the middle class to make ends meet. If you only earn $20k - $50k a year, a tax cut isn't going to make an impact on your life. It was the same with Reagan & his trickle-down economics, which in fact was disastrous for many middle class households. I don't believe that welfare was a good idea as well. Parents should not be rewarded for not working, and bearing more children because it gives them more money to remain irresponsible. I do believe however that FDR's New Plan was the most common sense approach to a terrible economic era. Use the government to create jobs by rebuilding our infrastructure. Create new industry through government incentives like Obama wants to do with companies that remain in the US. The housing crisis is not going to resolve itself, and Clinton's plan for a 90 day moratorium is only pushing a deadline. Freezing interest rates creates inflation and weakens our dollar. This is not the right plan to initiate, it does not solve the problem, it only makes it worse. If McCain believes that government should be small, and only propose a tax break, then how does he propose to solve this crisis? Without some agency in place to deal with it, it will never get fixed. The only solution is to create an incentive for banks to refinance all the sub-prime mortgage loans into conventional fixed rates. It may create a huge burden, but the alternatives are worse for everyone, especially when every house in America is depreciating at a staggering rate, and foreclosures rates are at record levels and show no signs of slowing down. All the candidates would be fine as Commander in Chief, I don't think that after the past 7+ years it could get much worse than Bush. However, I don't think Hillary is the best strategist. She fails at every level to accomplish her goals without controversy and resentment. McCain may be too aggressive when it comes to Iran, and will likely never find an exit strategy out of Iraq. I think that he will pass the buck, and decide not to withdraw any amount of troops during his presidency. If he is adamant that the surge is working, then he needs to set realistic goals for withdrawal. We can't wait until Iraq is functional and self reliant because it never will be. We should give them a political plan with hard deadlines, and if they fail to implement it, then we withdraw. I believe that Obama will take into consideration all opinions on the matter when he is in office. Whether they be conservative or liberal, he will make a choice that appeases both parties to the best of his abilities. I think that is real leadership, and that is what our country desperately needs.

Jannis said: To Lockett: It seems that you didn't understand my post. The story that I posted is one from my childhood. The incidents are real. I experienced them. They still haunt me as an African American woman in 2008, thereby making my comments very relevant and a part of the necessary dialogue that must take place to begin healing this nation and transcending the racial divide. Although I do not condone the angry words of Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who is 16 years older than I am, I understand them. I know first-hand the source of his emotional, but very ill stated diatribe on the state of America. My husband, whose black mother was hit in the face by a white man, and who bore the scares of it until her death, is another testament to the roots of the need to bring this discourse form the shadows and the fleeting memory of America—a country that does not want to face the truth in the mirror when its sees it reflection through the eyes of African Americans. I am a fifty-one year old public school teacher, the daughter of a Baptist minister. Rather than preaching from the pulpit about racial equality and saving souls, I have chosen to teach in a classroom, to help young people realize that they can be the primary catalyst in creating an America of the future where race is truly not an issue. Does this make it relevant for you?

Ken said: I am glad that Dave had a chance to take his blood pressure pills and calm down. Part of Obama’s message is that everyone must take responsibility for their environment/community. I have served 14 years in the military. I have been a state employee for 10 yrs. I have just re-enlisted in the Army Guard. I serve my country…period. I serve my community. Can someone explain this to me? In the past when a tank was built the steel came from an American steel plant. Everyone was taxed for $50, let’s say, for the war machine, and actually 30 goes to the war machine. $20 was re-circulated into the economy. Thus the war machine stimulated the economy. We all understood what our contribution was for and gladly participated. Now, some of the steel still does come from American steel plants but the nuts, bolts, and electronic components come from Korea lets say. Our middle class is cut out of the circle of revenue re-circulation. That means from the $20 return from the war machine only $5 dollars actually gets re-circulated into the economy. So essentially, the $20 circle of the re-circulated revenue now becomes a $5 spiral. I am sure you can find similar examples in our education system and subprime mortgage market. We all understand how we got to this point. We all understand the current situation. The hope is that voters and the elected officials together can fix this. We can blame each other all day or we can just fix what is wrong. Obama just speaks to what is really going on in the lives of ordinary people. I just know that I don't want anymore of what America has had to endure. I don't get the feeling that Billary or McBush have America's best interest at heart. So, that is why I am giving Obama my vote.

Pam said: WOW! Amazing what anger is out there regarding our physical and cultural differences. Thank God I live in Hawai`i that is one of the most diverse places in the United States and it does you so much good to experience life here that is filled with the Aloha Spirit. I have lived here for 20 years and my son was born here 14 years ago. He does not understand racial divides or cultural ones for that matter. Even though he is white with blonde hair, he mixes it up with all "colors" and cultures. Obama spent many of his formative student years here on O`ahu and reflects much of what that Aloha Spirit means. Much of who he is reflects all of us in some form. Here is a link to learn about it: http://www.geocities.com/~olelo/alohaspiritlaw.html . If we all practiced these principles, our world would be a much more peaceful and loving place. Blessings of Aloha to all of you! A Haole Lady in Hawai`i.