The things I fear

I've had this nagging thought for a few weeks now. I wanted to get it on e-paper, in the hopes that the loyal readers of this fine blog can allay my fears. The source of my fears are as follows;

Barack Obama is currently leading the race for President of the United States, and by a comfortable margin. Like any campaign in a similar situation, the McCain campaign is going to do what it feels necessary to win the race, which at this point means going negative. That need became greater after last night, when Obama (by most objective measures) won the second presidential debate.

Ordinarily, this would be fine. The leading candidate would get his name dragged through the mud for a while, the election would happen, and everyone would go about their lives. But this year is different. The candidate is black, and we've never done this before.

America has made great progress in the last 50 years. But in pockets of this country there remain bastions of hatred, intolerance, and racism. Most of them are in the South, but that isn't the only place where hatred exists. And as the attacks on Senator Obama become more focused, I fear that some will take away a dangerously misinterpreted message.

For the record, I don't for a second believe that John McCain is race-bating. But some of the comments from his camapign, and especially from Sarah Palin, have taken the tone of "he's not one of us". He pals around with terrorists. He attends a dangerous America-hating church. He sees America less favorably than you do. And it's already started to take hold. People at McCain (and Obama) rallies are shouting things that are initiating Secret Service investigations.

The three outcomes I fear from here are;

1)The attacks work. McCain manages to bring Obama back in the polls, and he defeats Obama on election day. Black society gets PISSED; in their opinon, they've seen their brightest light in a generation doused by tactics of fear. Bigots nationwide feel vindicated and validated, and another generation of politics is defined by divisive politics.

2) The attacks fail, and McCain is 6-8 points down approaching election day. Intimidation of black voters ramps up. Voters are harassed and assaulted by angry good ol' boys. Perhaps a homemade pipe-bomb blows up a polling place in Savannah. Race relations are set back a decade (probably to pre-LA Riot status). And if McCain somehow wins as a result? The nation would riot. Atlanta burns. New Orleans consumes itself again. Detroit loses any progress its made in the last 20 years.

3) Nightmare scenario. The spectre raised by Senator Clinton near the end of the primaries. A lone hate-filled man with a twisted sense of morality destroys the morale of a nation with a single shot. And that nation turns on itself with hatred, fear, and anger. I shudder to think.

In general, I am afraid that the genie that has been kept in a bottle will be released, and segments of America will cry havoc and let slip the dogs of racial war. Someone, please tell me I'm exaggerating.