Iowa

I was pleased to see Obama squash Hillary in last night's Iowa caucuses. As much as I respect President Bill Clinton, I can't bring myself to fully trust or invest in Hillary. I don't like her proposals about funding higher education, for one thing, and she seems too invested in D.C. politics to really bring much new to the Oval Office, at least in terms of progressive thinking.

Don't get me wrong. I'd vote for a grilled cheese sandwich over the current Occupier of the White House, but in these initial stages before the Democratic Convention this summer, I am voting more with my heart than my head. Which is why I was also pleased to see Edwards come in second in the Iowa campaign.

Part of me, however, is concerned about what the new President will face upon entering office. Bush's legacy will include the world's largest bed of quicksand in Iraq, a colossal and ongoing national debt, a collective international sneer at what the United States has become politically and ethically, a plunging value on the dollar, a shrinking supply of oil, and a shredded Constitution. As Lou Reed once said about another glorious Republican legacy, it'll take more than the Angels or Iron Mike Tyson to heal this bloody breach.

So I find myself looking at the candidates whose experience might be up to the task. And that means looking at Clinton, or even McCain. Certainly a vote for McCain in Utah might go further than any Democratic selection, I cynically tell myself.

I don't like thinking in practical terms this early in the election season. I want to be encouraged by Obama's words of hope and Edwards' words of conviction. And, for the most part, I am. And yet. The voice in my head mutters, "Will that be enough?" Because our nation is in the shithole and it's going to take more than a glad hand and a winning smile to get us out.

I guess we'll see how things go until the convention. It seems that the Democratic ticket will be pretty much determined by February anyway, so it won't be too long a wait. In the meantime, I'm celebrating the victory of two guys who I desperately want to believe in. At this point, with little over a year left for Bush to keep fucking with us, I want to believe in anything.