Wiping the tears of disappointment from my eyes, I fix my unwaveringly patriotic gaze upon the soon-to-be 44^th President of our great nation, the United States of America. Stunned, I rub the blur from my eyes as I realize that he is different from any President I have seen.

Did we really just elect a black man to the office of President of the United States of America for the first time in our evolving history? Yes we did! Congratulations President-elect Barack Obama.

It is not that I’m not caught up in the charisma of his candidacy, or in the planks of his platform.  I am instead captivated by the momentum of the moment. I’m proud to be an American. The American in me drives me to ask, “What does this mean for us now?”

Does this mean that we can finally move past the hateful divisions and repulsive rhetoric that have shaped our discussions about the color of a person’s skin in this country? Does this mean that the race baiters are left baitless? Does this not emphatically evidence that this nation has moved away from the bleak shacks of our past into the marvelous mansions of our future?

Personally, I despise hearing it described as a racial divide. Why? There is no white race. There is no black race. There is no tan race. There is only the human race! We are all uniquely and supremely human.  And the more, we are uniquely and supremely American!

While I still have my reservations about how this man will govern, I have no such reservations about the ability of the American people to carry this nation forward. Leaving behind the hatred of the past, straining ahead to the homogeneity of our future, our generation is the one privileged with witnessing this awesome feat.

Indiana (11 EVs) - Polls are showing this as a toss up with McCain leading by 1%. Dubya won this state by 21% in ’04. If this state remains close, as Georgia, it is a negative indicator for McCain. However, it if and Georgia hold to form, McCain may be doing very well tonight.

Kentucky (8 EVs), South Carolina (8 EVs), Vermont (3) -  Polls seem to be holding to form and I believe these states will do so tonight. Kentucky and South Carolina to McCain, Vermont to Obama.

Ohio (20 EVs) – Polling shows a reverse of ’04. This state should be close 1-3%. If it gets bigger either way, it will be a good night for whomever it is going by a larger margin.

Are you noticing the parallel between what we see happening in the baseball playoffs and what we witness occurring in the Presidential campaign? I wasn’t until I heard Bill Kristol compare the Red Sox/Rays series to the McCain/Obama race. Kristol asserted that the Rays represented Obama and the Sox represented McCain. I spent some time pondering this and I think he was close, but not quite right.

In the spirit of discussion, let’s imagine the American League playoffs as the Democrat Party primaries and the National as the Republican.

Certainly, this equates the Rays’ campaign to the Obama campaign. Young, exciting, inspirational, great story, came out of nowhere to get past the older, experienced favorite…Boston…to play for a title. So, who does Boston represent? The Clinton campaign! The Angels as the Edwards campaign…flashy, sexy, but not able to get the job done. What about the Sox, you know, the White Sox? Ozzie Guillen, their manager, reminds me of Joe Biden. I think they both are equally gaffable.

So the Phillies become the McCain campaign? McCain lost to Dubya in 2000, Phillies lost last year. McCain sank last summer while supporting the surge strategy in Iraq and was considered dead on arrival in the primaries. The Phillies needed a comeback/swoon to make the playoffs. The runner-up Dodgers become the runner-up Huck, surprising everyone, especially after swinging a major player in Manny. Huck swung the conservative support of the conservative radio syndicates and rode that momentum as far as it would take him. This makes the Cubbies and the Romney campaign synonomous…all the money spent, the favorite heading into the primary, and nothing to show for it. Finally, we have the Brewers, hard-working, hard-fighting, fundamentally sound…yet just not good enough to compete…this is the Ron Paul campaign.

Patriot Pondering…Ron Paul’s endorsement of Chuck Baldwin (Constitution Party Presidential Candidate) will impact the more conservative voters as they head to the polls. Don’t be surprised if he gets 1 or 2% on election day. Imagine the difference that can make in one or more of the swing states?

Theory: If the Phils win the series, McCain wil win the White House…if the Rays succeed, Obama is the next President. Guess that makes McCain a Philly fanatic and gives Obama plenty of reason to “show some love” to the Rays.

Patriot Pondering…The polls you are seeing are weighted to a 6-8% Democrat advantage when the actual difference over the past two elections has been closer to 2%. How much should you trust the polls?

Patriot election prediction coming soon!