What Matters to Me, 1 of ?

I'm proud of Obama. It feels funny saying that because I'm really in no position to be proud or un-proud, but no other word fits when I think of all that he has done and plans to do.  For all of us, I think he inspires pride because he represents an underdog--whatever personal underdog we have. Most obviously, he has become the empowered African-American who breaks barriers and changes stereotypes. On other levels, however, he also represents a break from [literally] old thought to [relatively] new thinkers. For me, he has forwarded the movement of intellectuals, of educated and eloquent people who may not be your best bar buddy but are certainly people qualified to run a nation.

The keyword is educated. Educated not only applies to Obama but also to his ideology. He encourages people to educate themselves on what matters to them, and he incentivizes this by showing how their values can have real-world impact.  Change.org, for example, is not just a promise of governmental transparency. It's the enabling of people, compelling them to care to know. Even if they don't yet know what they care about, Change.org shows them everything so that when something strikes them, they'll know.

I particularly like this website because it's not necessarily pro-Obama.  Its healthcare blog, authored by Tim Foley, denounces Obama's single payer system over The Healthy Americans Act, and his argument makes sense.  It is a direct, budget-neutral approach with a timeline and bipartisan support, and it has the customization ability to fit every particular state's health needs. All of this makes sense, which makes me wonder why we haven't thought of it before. The problem is its low profile. Written by Senators Wyden and Bennett, its list of sponsors are largely junior senators with little public pull, miniscule compared to big players like Obama and Ted Kennedy.  While Foley is quiet adept at showing the pros and cons (and even the pro of the con) of this plan, I wish he could be more optimistic. Is there a way to get these junior

 senators a little more face time? Maybe the plan is there and just subtle: educate and inform [you], and maybe a public outcry will pressure the balding know-it-alls into listening.  I also wonder how this piece of media is failing against Change.org's voting. I presume they cater to the same audience, and yet, 3876 people are still voting for the Single Payer system. Maybe the magic word is "FREE"?