Politics From a 4 Year Old

“Hey, Barack Obama!” – my daughter points to a flier.

“And who is that?” – I say pointing to a photo of McCain.

“I have no idea.” – my daughter replies.

Once Upon a Time

In 2002 I was just about to begin my career in the Christian book business. Yeah, I know. Anyways, one of my first assignments was to go to a Christian book tradeshow. I remember walking into a large convention center auditorium, littered with thousands of Christians, and being completely surprised by, not just the amount of denim dresses I saw, but by the amount of Christians trying to run bookstores across the country.

I sat down and listened to speaker after speaker, singer after singer (Michael W Smith graced the stage!) when it ended with a very well known author/speaker/political dignitary who was very close to the newly (18 months prior) elected President George W. Bush. “I have prayed with the President, and he is a man of faith!”, he bellowed from the stage. “This is a new era in Washington – God has put President Bush in the white house to make this nation pure again – to wipe away the blemishes of the moral depravity of this once great country!” (this is paraphrased, but accurate).

People began to stand. People began to cheer. To Shout and cry! Sobbing. Praise hands raised. I remember deciding to stay seated. But it was very convincing at the time, that yes, this man would be our political messiah for white evangelicals. I believed it…for a short time (see, war in Iraq).

I began to think about this time in my life when the media and people starting talking about Obama in a savior-like manner. It sounded so familiar. Much like my evangelical booksellers convention, there have been shouts and cheers, sobbing, praise hands in the air. I too believe he is a great man. But I am done putting the hope of an entire country on one man. I have no doubt that Obama will do great things, but he will also disappoint.  Usually, the term ‘messiah’ has been used by Republicans to tear down Obama, but once upon a time, they had a savior of their own. And in these last few days until the election, they wish they had one now.

(praise hands)

Things My Children Said Today

“Fee Fie Foe Fum, I smell like an English bum.” – my daughter singing and stomping around the living room…by herself.

“Me privacy.” – my two year old son telling me to leave the bathroom while he poops.

“Me see Spiderman.” – my son wanting me to put his underwear on backwards so he can see the bigger picture of Spiderman.

“Is that guy dead?” – my daughter asking me while watching a guy get tackled during the KU/OU game on TV.

One Question That Needs Answering

What do you want to be when you grow up?

Storenvy.com

New web startup Storenvy.com offers bands and other companies the chance to make selling merch easy. Not only do they have customizable webpages for each store, they can print and fulfill the orders as well. The site is still fresh and will be growing tremendously over the next few months. It will be interesting to see how the social-side of the site takes off as well. If you are a wanna-be-rock star or an indie tee shirt designer, Storenvy.com needs to become your next best friend. Cheers to Scott and the rest of the team for their hard work!

Random Thoughts, Part 1

: I am slowly being able to talk to women, with really bad botox treatments, without grimacing. I’m kind of proud of myself. It was really hard at first. So sad.

: I guarantee you I hear the word bunion more in one day than you will hear in your life.

: I want to build a house.

The Whole Team, and Nothing But the Team

For the first time in any election that I’ve been able to vote, I have been thinking more about the other players, and potential influential players, in the lives of the presidential candidates, such as the Vice Presidents and First Ladies.

I can’t get my mind wrapped around Palin. I know that the debate will help me figure things out, but I just don’t understand the choice McCain made. I also think about the fact that there is a 1 and 6 chance that she could become President solely based on McCain’s age. That’s not sitting well with me.

As for First Ladies – I think Michelle Obama would make a killer First Lady. I honestly believe that she could have more of a positive impact on our nation as First Lady than as Palin as VP. Mrs. Obama brings so much more substance to the White House culture than McCain’s wife too, who just seems really good at putting on teas, and not getting down and dirty with some of our nation’s problems, such as working with the poor.

So, as of today, I can honestly say that these things are weighing heavily in my decision than just the candidates themselves. Call me crazy, but I’m thinking big picture. I know I’ve been flip-flopping a lot over the last year, but I’ll say that if Palin bombs in the debate tonight, then Obama will probably get my vote.