Once upon a time, I was quite the Obama fan. I read much of his book, blown away by his rhetorical prowess and storytelling ability. It would go down in history, I thought, with historical texts akin to the autobiographies of Franklin and Frederick Douglass. His understanding of drug policy, of the disadvantaged, of minorities and, apparently, of humanity in general, was impressive and scholarly and unwavering in the eyes of a judgmental and conventional public. Why, then, is he now being such a complacent tool?

Yeah, I know why. He has to win. It simply bothers me to have heard nothing new from this man for what seems like months on end, just one carefully crafted, ambiguous, vague and meaningless political statement after another; endless attempts to discredit McCain while reminding everyone how much he respects and empathizes with him. A simultaneous denouncement and embrace of the same old Washington politics.

I support Obama, moreso than I have in my past "lesser evil" preferences. But the way I perceive him has drastically changed in the past few months of pandering and fallacy I've observed him partake in. If he is to win, I'd like to see him revert to the idealist I enjoyed listening to and reading about before the campaign took off.

Sigh. Hope just prepares for eventual and intense cynicism.

McCain '08: "Cambodians Are Taller Than You Think"

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