Here is a copy of the letter I sent in for the superdelegates, with some minor modifications which I am solely responsible for. I think it covers the ground pretty well, and I don't have time to retype it.
Dear Super-delegate - and all women and men working for a grander vision for America!
Want to be a 'super hero' in the eyes of the American people? Support (Senator) Barack Obama in the Democratic Party's nomination for President of the land we love. This is not hype or paid for advertising; it is based on my thoughtful attention to his positions and my delighted appreciation of his intelligence, insight, foresight, and humanity -- not to mention honesty, sincerity, good humor, and indefatigable energy and consistency of position and purpose.
Here are a few personal notes that motivate and sustain my support for Obama, and impel this urgent appeal to you for your support as well:
1) I am a retired (I use the term advisedly but my pension finally started arriving so it must be true, even though I still struggle with getting the bills paid) military reserve officer, and I know first had through experience, training, and knowledge of Constitutional provisions that there is an awesome trust placed on the civilian control of the armed forces -- one that says our military will NOT be used except as a last resort, when diplomacy fails and our country (or by extension, our allies) is in immanent peril. While President Bush used this argument, it was 99% fabrication (as we have now learned though many suspected even then) and 100% sophistry. While I understand that we do not want to take 'use of force' off the table, the circumstances of its use in the present Iraq situation is unconscionable. Barack is the only candidate running who recognized the matter for what it was, and he is the only one who will maintain/restore the trust adhering to the Commander in Chief.
This status alone is enough to earn my unequivocal respect and support. But there are other ones as well.
2) My dad taught history and political science for nearly 20 years. At home we often had discussions of current events, and I think from that I gained an appreciation for our democratic system of government and the need for open discussion and a collective agreement on how we can best solve issues in society. While I was not old enough to vote when JFK was running, I was old enough to appreciate what he said; when he was shot, it was devastating to the country and to my generation's morale. No other candidate since then has had the kind of grasp of the psyche of America, its promise and its mission, as this lanky lawyer from Illinois.
It is no stretch of imagination to have him remind me of Abraham Lincoln, and no breach of rationality to think that he has the same gigantic heart and mind that will put together an administration of thinkers which put the whole of our country in the fore. Kennedy said: Ask not what your country can do for you. Ask what you can do for your country. Elected officials need to understand that it is not what their elected titles can do for them, but what that title enables them to do for the country as well as the folks who elected them [in contrast to thinking they are beholden to lobbyists, loyalists, or one another. I have looked for a leader who not only can talk about these values, but who lives them from his or her heart. [It is true that Jimmy Carter did and still does think intelligently and wisely about our national and international concerns, but the party let him down. Barbara Jordan was another one whose statesmanship excelled beyond personal ambition; but we lost her too soon for her to prove it.] I am not willing to see this good man not get the opportunity to prove that our government is not croniesville and doomstown; that it is a viable, grand, and imminently wonderful form of government 'of the people, by the people, for the people.'
Furthermore, he has the intestinal fortitude and moral courage to see that this is the principle by which he will govern -- nothing short of it will do.
3) Obama's position, plans, and principles in the development of his policies -- from education and economy to Iraq and immigration, and everything between and around -- show that he is thinking about the diversity of interests and needs of his fellow countrymen/women.
On health, for instance, his plan allows for real independent choices on what and when health providers, insurance, and the individual citizen can make. Any plan which does not recognize that the current medical system is a monopoly which forces the insurance premiums higher, should not be rewarded by having insurance costs subsidized by the government; it should be given incentives to lower its costs and keep the cost down to where the citizen can afford it without insurance! Furthermore, if I am well and do not want or need insurance -- if I am a Christian Scientist perhaps or adhere to a different form of medicine than the allopathic drugging and surgical variety or for any other reason I can be 'self-insured' or afford insurance on my own -- then I should not be forced to subscribe to an insurance which will never benefit me and federal and state governments should not interfere with my religious or elective practice. And I certainly do not want any mandory, garnisheeing of someones salary, particularly my own.
Again, only Obama's plan incorporates that freedom of choice and addresses underlying issues.
He is equally informed and thorough on immigration, the economy, education reform, better care for our returning active duty, reservists, and vets, and the other vital civic and humanitarian needs of our citizens and our communities.
4) Last, only because I am running out of time and space, I am supporting Barack Obama because of his (as we say in the military) 'can do' attitude, and his unselfish commitment to the ideas he espouses. They come from inside, as core reality of who he is, not from some imagined political necessity or gerrymandered scripts (borrowed in pieces from others perhaps or used with opportunistic alacrity, without a shred of genuine personal saliency, like a chameleon who blends in but will dash off some place else as soon as the current threat goes away).
He has waged a positive, inspired, and intrepid campaign. And his followers that I have met (in person or on line) are all patriotic, wonderful, caring, daring, and energized that at last the nation can be built with them -- not on their backs and broken hearts, dreams that have died and hope that is in despair of a better future. My mother, teethed on a farm, raised during the depression, and now active but living on a fixed income was the first in our family to pay attention to him; I have come along more recently, when I could finally spend some time thinking about the race rather than where my next buck was coming from. [Dad alas is not longer here to see this candidate in action, but I have no doubt that he would be excited and pleased.]
When Martin Luther finally came to the conclusion that the issues of his day needed to be discussed in the open, he put his conscience into a declaration, nailed it to a door in public view, and closed with the immortal words which reforms since then have echoed: Here I stand; I can do not otherwise -- so help me God. In greater and lesser degrees I see this all around me in this campaign for America; it resonates with me, and I would be remiss if I did not take these moments to share with you my reasons for supporting Barack Obama for President.
Now it's your turn. Will you put America and her grand native son first? If you do, the present hour will blossom into a new renaissance, and our future will be freer, more secure, and prosperous. Do not turn your back on this achievable hope. We are all counting on you to put away the old outworn garments of 'status quo' and put on the regal robes of a fresh democratic spirit. You will become part of the solution, and we will all rejoice.
cpr//
Since this was written, the campaign tactic of HC have gotten petty and malicious. This would be pathetic, if it were not such a breach of civility and common justice. That kind of thinking is dangerous in anyone, and makes the necessity of voting for and supporting Barack Obama that more urgent. This is the time for us to choose a leader who has the character, and the savvy, to be a great president. Words change history, move mountains, and unite people to do extraordinary things.
Yes WE can. Ō KĀKOU HIKI !
Phone banking is vital; keep it positive and focused on our candidate - follow his lead, it works.
On superdelegates [I almost wrote: super-heroes*], let me just say, that if we do well in the voting, this should take care of itself. I also understand that these folks (most anyway) have been around for a while, and the campaign manager and his staff, with Obama, are in the best position to influence them at this point. If they need our calls, etc, they will be more that generous in giving us the opportunity to pitch in!
Yes we can!
*The superdelegates will be super-heroes when they understand what is at stake and look beyond the gender or race, and consider first the scope and integrity of the candidate and the office we are seeking. Let's give them a chance to really consider this without undue pressure at this point.///
