That Queasy Feeling

Today tens of millions of Americans are experiencing a queasy feeling in their stomachs. This nagging uneasiness started a while back, but as we get to the last day before the election, the unsettled feelings in their gut have intensified exponentially and try as they might, they cannot shake it.

I am not only referring to those who have decided to vote for McCain and fear America will instead elect the most inexperienced, most liberal, most dubious, and the least vetted candidate to ever come this close to reaching the office of President. I am also referring to those who have decided to vote for Obama who are also now worried that they are about to cast a vote for the most inexperienced, most liberal, most dubious, and the least vetted candidate to ever come this close to reaching the office of President.

There is a reason why after outspending his opponent many times over, and after having the media openly campaign for him and cover up his questionable past, America is still not sure about Obama. They are unsure because as much as they are told that Obama is the one we have all been waiting for, he still gives them that queasy feeling in their stomach. It has nothing to do with the color of his skin, but with the color of his ideology. For all his flowery doublespeak, the core message behind his rhetoric is not lost on all Americans. Most are savvy enough to recognize that his promises, although pleasant to the ear, require drastic and dangerous changes to the political system that has made this country the greatest country in the world.

Of course, there are Obama supporters who look forward to the Orwellian measures promised by their candidate. As one supporter put it recently at a campaign rally, if Obama is elected she will no longer have to worry about putting gas in her car or paying her mortgage. “If we take care of Obama,” she enthusiastically said, “Obama will take care of us.” Americans like these, however, are but a minority of the Obama supporters. They may be the most vocal, but nonetheless, they are the smallest group. The majorities of Americans contemplating a vote for Obama are not looking for a government handout, but are doing so either due to party loyalty, or to the natural human desire to try something new. The Democratic candidate is definitely new, and his eloquent speeches and calls for the end of divisions in this country strike a chord in these voters. But still, they cannot shake that queasy feeling they get after the speech is done and the emotions of the moment fade away. There is something about Barack Obama that just does not sit well with them.

Tomorrow millions of Americans—Democrats, Republicans, and Independents—will vote for the next leader of this great nation. They will stand at that voting booth and their only companion will be their conscience and their gut. At that moment they will either listen to their gut, or decide to entrust the future of this nation and the world into the hands of an unknown quantity. There will be many of Americans who will choose to take a dangerous chance, but there will be more Americans who will follow their gut. On November 5th, we will all know who America chose to be the next president, and we will all know that America chose to go with its gut feeling.

Obama’s core supporters will not be happy with the outcome, but they should keep in mind that it could be far worse; they could be living in a country where their candidate’s radical policies are the rule of law.

Posted by Alberto de la Cruz at November 3, 2008 08:02 AM