Hands Across the Political Divide

Response to my “Keys to the Universe” post was so passionate, and so diverse, that I am proposing we reach across the opinions that divide us in search of common ground.

I invite you, beloved members of this debate community, to accept this challenge:

With less than two weeks to go before we elect the next President of the United States, it seems clear that most of us have made up our minds about where we stand on the issues. So, instead of debating each other in hopes of changing minds, let’s get real about the hopes and fears that drive our opinions.

Please list in the comments you post your single greatest hope, and single greatest fear, about EACH of the two candidates. (It has to be just one hope and one fear… listing them all would defeat this purpose.)

I hereby restrain my Virgo impulse to search for the clever turn of phrase… I’m just going to share my honest hopes and fears to get things started, and hope this will encourage you to do the same…

Yak’s Greatest Hope for Obama: That he will help Americans call a truce on our culture war, so we can connect first on areas where we agree, and progress from there to a state of tolerance for areas in which we disagree.

Yak’s Greatest Fear about Obama: That he will fail to accomplish this, dimming the hopes of all who yearn for a spirit of cooperation and equality in America.

Yak’s Greatest Hope for McCain: That he will live up to his maverick claim and infuse his administration with transparency, ending his predecessor’s assumption that the President is entitled to make and execute his policies in secrecy.

Yak’s Greatest Fear about McCain: That he will set back women’s rights (and the entire progressive agenda) by packing the Supreme court with conservative judges.

OK… now it’s your turn.