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therieb pleads with the victors...

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I must have stared at that mail-in ballot for an hour before I made up my mind. I would take a risk and vote for Barack Obama. Having made my choice, I decided I deserved a break and turned on some clips from the Sunday talk shows. There was Obama's campaign manager, David Axelrod, or was it Plouffe, on Meet the Press, telling the country that owing to the financial crisis we would have to "adjust" or "scale back" our expectations on health care. And that was enough to change my mind. I mailed my ballot in with the president's race blank. I do not care for a repeat of 1992. Hate me if you want.

So now we wait while the champagne corks pop around the world at the prospect of the end of the Bush Presidency. Clearly that's something to celebrate. I find it difficult to imagine a scenario where Obama won't become president, and I know many of my friends are ecstatic. Congratulations. In addition, the Democratic party will doubtless expand their majorities in both houses of Congress as well as in State Houses nationwide. All I ask of my Democratic friends is that they not suspend their critical thinking for the next four years. By delivering a super majority to the Democrats you have rehabilitated a power center in the American landscape. Now they owe you. They owe you big. They owe you health care. They owe you financial regulation. They owe your kids the chance to go to the same colleges you went to.

As the results start to trickle in I'm wondering about who these political parties represent anymore. To some people, the Democrats represent a chance for revenge. I sincerely doubt this expectation will be met. My old man insists that the Democratic party has become the party of the rich in America. There is some evidence that this view is correct. The investment bankers who just received over $1.3 trillion of our tax money gave to the Obama campaign at a rate of 2 to 1 over the McCain campaign. The reverse sentiment, that the Republican party has become the party of the working man, however, is dead wrong. Sure, if you're interested in Jesus or shipping Mexicans back across the boarder you will find ideological comfort among the Republicans, but the fact is that the rich are represented by both parties equally. If you are middle class in America, you have no representation whatsoever. Financial giants fared just as well when Clinton ended the regulation of investment banks in 1998 as they did last month when Bush's Treasury Secretary spent our generation's Social Security money to bail out Wall Street. What is to be done?

I think the answer is actually fairly simple: critical thinking. Liberal voters should be less interested in "war crimes" trials for Dick Cheney and more interested in whether or not Obama's Secretary of the Treasury also comes from Goldmann Sachs. Do not succumb to the idea that you shouldn't rock the boat, or that your candidate, party, or government are above criticism. Of course there is room for compromise, but you voted for this ticket with certain concrete expectations, you have a right to see progress toward your goals. Think back. After all, your vote helped accomplish a most improbable feat. I'm not talking about putting a Black man in the Oval Office. I'm talking about putting a candidate from the Kennedy wing of the Democratic party in the Oval Office. That's hungry work! If there's no progress, you are not being represented, and you should withdraw your support, just like I did.

Or maybe you voted for Obama because you are ready for "change." Perhaps you don't have any goals in mind for America other than beating up on the current Administration. If this type of voting describes you, you are a tool and the powers that be are laughing at you. Republicans, Democrats, East Coasters, West Coasters, bankers, lawyers, everyone. The idea of revenge, the idea that you will finally laugh last when you get rid of the opposing party, is pretty ridiculous when both parties are working for the same interests.

Instead, why not demand what you want? I mean what you really want. No one really cares what happens to Dick Cheney. You care about whether or not you can afford to see the dentist this year. There will be solid majorities in both houses of Congress and a Democratic president. They will have the opportunity and the power to enact "change we need." Will they do it? Or will you be asked to swallow the story of demon lobbyists from the insurance or financial or defense or religion or oil world coming and magically screwing up everything, just like in 1992. You have given Democrats the power. Celebrate tonight, but for the love of God, hold them accountable tomorrow!