Election Day!

Here in New York City, there has been a palpably festive atmosphere everywhere, all day. This is unlike any Election Day I've ever experienced before.

I voted early this morning (6:30AM). I've been voting in the same place for 18 years, and there are never more than 5 or 6 people there when I go to vote. Today the line was down the block, and the wait was over an hour and a half long. No one complained: It was a community happening.

As I was waiting in line, I thought of some of my earliest, and most vivid, current events memories from my childhood; of watching, on the news, the injustice of US government officials using police dogs and fire hoses on peaceful civil rights protestors who were trying only to get black Americans the right to vote. And today, I got to vote for a black man for President. And not just any man, but someone I believe to be a once-in-a-generation inspirational leader, who has maintained the dignity of the high road despite all the low blows and bigotry coming at him from the other side.

Back in September, one of the best essays of this campaign season, one that I think best summarizes how I feel about Barack Obama, and how he has handled this campaign, was published on Huffington Post. It was titled, 'Who is Barack Obama? Atticus Finch', by Eric Lundgaard, and you can find it here.

What an amazing day! (Now the anxious wait for the results to come in!!)