O-Train swings through Tampa

We joined 2,000 folks yesterday in Ybor City (the old Cuban / Italian district of Tampa) to see and hear Barack Obama. Very cool. Obama is certainly an engaging speaker. Earlier in the day, we had quite a bit of driving rain and gusty wind. But by the time we had all gathered and Senator Obama was speaking, the sun was shining and it was truly a beautiful day.

Among the things Obama said:
- By the end of his first term as President, the United States of America will have universal healthcare for all Americans
- The war in Iraq was a huge mistake (Barack Obama is one of the few in office who has been saying that since before we invaded). He said the troops should be brought home, and that needs to be complete within a year (personally, I think we should get out now, but it's nonetheless positive to support the troops and bring them home, rather than continuing to escalate).
- The men and women who have served overseas deserve our support while they are away, and they deserve our support and absolutely the best care when they return home injured.
- We cannot allow our children to be the first American generation to inherit a country in worse shape than it was when our generation took the scene. We need to address climate change and global warming and energy policy now. It does not make sense to have energy corporation executives making energy policy.

We're not among the folks who can afford to pay thousands of dollars to hobnob with the national political candidates. Barack Obama's visit - the local visit of the O-Train - reminded me of the whistle stop train tours we've heard about from earlier years, when ordinary folks could hear the candidates speak. And the crowd did look like a cross-section of Tampa, which was very cool: all ages, ethnicities, at least one person I know to be a local millionaire, plenty ordinary schmucks like me, gay, straight, folks who looked like they just came from church, and some who looked like they just got up. A true cross-section, and that is the kind of base that will get a candidate elected to the White House!