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Barack Obama had no chance of getting this far, as a half-black man, with an Arab/African name, against the Clinton political machine; yet he is the front-runner in one of the most hard-fought and expensive primaries in history.

Will the words of one person with whom he associated bring him down? Will the divisions that have crippled us for my lifetime continue to destroy a dream of hope and change for a more perfect union? I hope not. I supported Obama before he announced his candidacy, as someone I was convinced could turn a page in American history, to a new and better way of governing and living together in peace and harmony, in America and around the world.

I never thought he would get this far. If he loses, America loses. If he fails, we fail. While I have no personal animosity toward Hillary Clinton or John McCain, I think they will perpetuate slicing America up into little pieces: Those who support war against those who condemn war; those who promote feminism against those who cling to male dominance, blacks against whites, corporate power against working citizens, lobbyists against middle-class interests, Hispanics against blacks, Evangelicals against other religious views, pro-life against pro-choice, and the list goes on, and on....

Hillary is depending on white, less educated and older women to support her because she is female. McCain is depending on those who support American military dominance of the Middle East and the world. Obama is depending on the support of those who think we can rise above race and hatred, divide and conquer politics and rule by special interest.

Obama gave a heart-felt speech, explaining his position and his friendship with Rev. Wright, yesterday, and for me, he ended the controversy. For those whom the idea of change is scary, they still have something to feed their fears, and will cling to our old ways of doing things, preferring our imperfections over changing, and moving forward. They will use whatever means and whatever criticism they can find to destroy a dream of a better America.

The question is, will there be enough people who want to turn the page to keep Obama's message moving forward or not? I believe there are sufficient numbers of people who are tired of our old ways of division and want a new way to continue the movement to success. America has a long history of seeing the error of our ways and finding new and better ways to proceed forward. I predict we will do it, now, or later; I just hope it's now.

Just for the record, I also denounce, reject, repudiate and condemn the extreme and hateful words of Rev. Wright, but defend his right to say them and Obama's right to call him a friend. If I rejected everyone with whom I disagree, and with whose friends I disagree, I would be very, very lonely. If Obama's words were the same as Rev. Wright's words, I would reject Obama for president, but I am not being asked to vote for Rev. Wright any more than I am being asked to vote for McCain's Christian Fundamentalist supporters. Huckabee did ask me to vote for his church's religious views, and lost.

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