"I happen temporarily to occupy this big White House. I am living witness that any one of your children may look to come here as my father's child has."
Abraham Lincoln, August 22, 1864, Speech to One Hundred Sixty-sixth Ohio Regiment
So, do we all still have a chance to become President if we want?
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Comments: 47
"We have met the enemy and he is us." - Pogo (Walt Kelly)
If you see my widgets it means you got a "10" :O)
On the other hand - perhaps someone like Lincoln could convince every American to contribute $1 each to his campaign. That would mean over $300 million based purely on the power of his/her message.
Or am I dreaming? :)
A more pervasive problem, I fear, is that we set low standards for ourselves because we are afraid to fail...and by not trying we assure ourselves that we will also not succeed.
Did that make sense?
I see know reason why we couldn't have a woman president given that many other countries have had women leaders (including some not known for treating women all that well). Same goes for a black president, hispanic president, veteran president, jewish president, mormon president, etc. For me, the trick is finding a president who is actually capable of collecting information from all sides (not just the ones that voted for him/her), assimilating and synthesizing the information, then making an executive decision that at least attempts to keep the public good in mind. So, not purely ideological.
A broader view of the country and of the world seems much overdue.
I actually seriously considered running for Congress a few years ago. A good friend told me that I wouldn't be willing to do the things I needed to do to get elected. She was probably right.
Then after discussing the world with a friend of mine from Kazakhstan a couple of years ago I decided that Congress was too small a place for change, so started thinking about the UN (another largely dysfunctional organization). In part, this is why I have been working on more international issues, which has led me to be transferred to my firm's office in Brussels starting in March. Who knows where that will lead, but I'm planning to enjoy the ride.
The last several years have shown that the parties are more interested in solidifying their control (and its perks) than serving the American people. This isn't really new (many despised Lincoln during his term because he wasn't partisan enough), but it does seem to have reached a new low.
I agree that a candidate needs to come forward who can inspire and lead. That doesn't mean railing against the "establishment" since there is nothing inherently evil about companies trying to make money. It is what our economic system is built on. But a true leader is not running around with an angry message, it is someone who can spread the message that all things are possible if we only just stopped for a second and thought about the issues themselves, not the opposing partisan spin motivations orbiting each issue.
We shall see if such a person rises to the challenge during this election.
:)