It’s now up to us, folks

By John M. Fisher
Published: June 10, 2008

Now that the Hillary campaign drama is finally behind us, it’s on to the general election campaign. Believe it or not, the election is five months away.

One can only hope that from here on out, we can actually begin to hear about actual issues and not just distractions.

Did you know that Barack Obama was an “African-American?” Some pundits seem to make a point of not letting you forget that. These are the same people who insist on reminding you that he seems to have trouble with what they call the “less-educated, white working class voters.”

If you listen to this constant harping, one might assume that these experts think all white voters are racists by nature, and uneducated by design. If I were one of those “working class white folks,” I would be insulted. I imagine that some of them are, as well they should be.

These same folks also are good at reminding you that John McCain is old. They suggest that he is too old to do the job as president. Age and wisdom generally go hand in hand, but in this case, McCain’s age seems to be an issue with some, though it really should not be.

The problem is that traditional journalism has been replaced with opinion and spin that calls itself reporting. Even if they label it as opinion — which they usually don’t — most folks don’t know the difference. Whatever you read on the Internet or in newspapers or see on television or hear on talk radio is absolute fact. The only problem is that it’s not always the truth. Instead of telling us what they saw or heard, too many “reporters” are telling us what they think.

The news media needs to learn when it is useful and when it needs to get out of the way.

After all of the madness up until this point, some of you still may not get the real point that needs to be considered. This election does not need to be about Obama’s race or McCain’s age or any of the other nonsense that has dominated the debate so far.

What this election needs to be about is selecting a leader who can fix this broken and failing nation.

To admit this is not unpatriotic as some might suggest. Look at the economy, look at what you’re paying for gasoline, look at food safety, look at mortgage regulation, look at the response and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

The once powerful federal government is falling on its face, and for the past seven years, those at the top have placed themselves above the law, exhibiting outright contempt for Congress and the Supreme Court.

We now have two candidates, both men of vision and integrity, but they can only function with all of us by their sides.

Nowhere in recent political history have we seen such political passion and involvement in our electoral process. We can no longer afford to make choices based solely on political party labels, prejudice or outright lies and distortions. The future of this nation hangs in the balance. The issues are far more important than the gimmicks and the personalities involved.

Now that the candidates have been selected, it is up to us to shape the debate and focus on the real issues. Mind you, both Obama and McCain will be surrounded by strategists and handlers who will urge them to do and say whatever it takes to win.

One can only pray these two will stick with the integrity that has brought them this far, for only someone with integrity will save this government — and this nation.

This election has to be about ideas, not about popularity. We can’t afford anything less. If you think we can, just look where we find ourselves now — at the edge of a cliff hanging by our fingernails and our grip is slipping away fast ... much too fast.

• John M. Fisher of Danville is a businessman, documentary filmmaker and freelance writer, and is the former bureau chief for KDFW, a CBS affiliate in Fort Worth, Texas. You may contact him at .