Why Kerry gives me hope

It's tough being a Democrat these days.\nUnlike most students, I am not young and most of my friends who live in suburbia with me do not share my political views anymore, if they ever did. Nor do most of my coworkers, fellow worshippers or even my wife. Some might say I am an odd ball or misfit, at least here in Indiana. Some might say they don't know what I am thinking or why. But I have my reasons.\nMy political views come from somewhere deep inside, a place where faith in God, love of history, patriotism and love of my fellow man meld into something some would call my core values. \nSome of these words may sound strange to someone who has bought in to the popular line that Democrats are godless, short-sighted, unpatriotic and self-serving. \nPerhaps that is a frustrated and cruel assessment of some people's viewpoint, but it does not come without some evidence, the most tangible of which I saw on Thursday evening when I watched Sen. John Kerry accept the Democratic nomination for president.\nIn that speech and the introduction to it, I witnessed a man, a lawyer in effect, answering all of the above indictments that have been hurled at Democrats for several years. \nI have to say it was refreshing.\nFirst up was Max Cleland. His introduction stirred me because it not only revealed the enduring friendship of two men that served their country valiantly (both winning Silver and Bronze Stars, as well as being injured in service), it also revealed two men that share a faith in God. Cleland told the story of how he gave Kerry his childhood Bible when Kerry announced his candidacy. \nCleland, as you might or might not know, is a former senator from Georgia. He was defeated by then-Rep. Saxby Chambliss in a hotly contested 2002 race that featured television ads that, with the aid of images of Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein, insinuated that Cleland was unpatriotic. Cleland did not support President Bush's national security policies.\nAfter the very eloquent introduction from Cleland came the candidate. \nAs I have stated, Kerry rebutted many of the themes Republicans have assailed toward Democrats. Kerry spoke of what patriotism really is, to have open dialogue about the fact that we can do better than we are doing right now.\nHe spoke of American family values and how important it is that America value families, children, adults and senior citizens, over the needs of corrupt politicians, corporate heads and managed health care.\nHe spoke of seeing the complexities of many situations and how he has been criticized for it. But he then said, "Some things are not that simple. Saying there are weapons of mass destruction in Iraq doesn't make it so and proclaiming mission accomplished certainly doesn't make it so."\n"I will be a commander in chief who will never mislead us into war," Kerry said, and then spoke of when it is necessary to go to war and when it is not. He vowed that he would not send us into a war that was not a necessity.\nToward the end he appealed to President Bush directly, saying, "I want to address these next words directly to President Bush: In the weeks ahead, let's be optimists, not just opponents. Let's build unity in the American family, not angry division."\nWhat could be more American? What could be more Christian? What could be more patriotic?\nI'll admit I have had reservations about Kerry, but that night he made me proud to be a Democrat.\nAnd more importantly, he made me proud to be an American.