Apathy, Hope and Hypocrites

I never thought I’d live to see this day.

I never thought I’d live long enough to see the winds of change sweep through my country as they have today. I’ve never seen the world around me move so far in such a short time. I never thought things would change this much, in that we would be forced to look at ourselves different than we ever have before.

Of course I’m talking about the complete and total indifference toward the Nebraska football program.

Oh sure, there are a few other things going on in the world this week. And yes, who the hell is going to think about everything else going on? But has there ever been a sliver of time where Husker football meant less? I’ve lived here 23 years, and even when things were dark in 2004 and during the bowl losing stretches of the late 80’s, we never got to the point of complete and total apathy.

How do I know?

It’s the little things. Wearing red on Fridays. Filling out scores on schedule posters; Bringing up this week’s opponents in everyday conversation 35 times an hour; Continuous stories on the news about how the a Husker grad assistant overcame the trauma of ADD to live out his life’s dream of handling the balls of his favorite football team.

All of that…is gone, just as I told you it would be when the atom bomb of apathy was dropped last October. So what is the Husker hating movement to do? What can we do going forward to make sure Husker fans realize they are getting exactly what they deserve? I look at it as an old battleship that has fought it’s battles, and now is being retired to dry dock where it can live out it’s years in peace.

For those of you thirsty for Husker blood…who are looking for me and others to bash on every digression made by Mad Bo and his merry band of walk ons…I apologize. The battle is won. The enemy is beaten. Nobody really cares anymore. Although it is liberating to celebrate their demise, the strength to care is simply too great. Perhaps after vacation I’ll feel differently.

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Speaking of the election, I may as well throw my two cents in as well…basically because well…breaking down the Husker pass rush against KU seems daunting and far too much work at this particular point. I will break my election opinion down in two parts, because I believe the stirring victory by Barak Obama last night deserves to be broken down much more than just celebrating the smashing of a once unbreakable color barrier.

First off, last night was an amazing moment for the country, and an amazing moment for our society. It was only 40 years ago when the Civil Rights movement attempted to mend an ugly fundamental flaw woven within the fabric of our entire nation. Last night served as one of the great milestones of that movement, and will endure as a lasting tribute to what we have become as a society. Whether or not you agree with the politics behind the election of a president…and trust me, we are further apart than we’ve been at any time since the Civil War….you must admit that last night was one of those moments where you knew you’d be thinking 20, 30, 40+ years from now, “I remember when Obama was elected.”

On top of that, I am of firm belief that no matter who the president is..and no matter what your stance on his/her positions, the office demands respect and support. I’ll never know it myself, but I cannot possibly imagine what it would be like to have that much power…that much authority…that much responsibility that I literally held lives in my pen.

I for one will give Barak Obama a chance to lead this country to whatever destiny lies ahead of us. By winning the election, he has been chosen by the greatest democracy on earth to lead the greatest country on earth. That job requires support and at the very least…requires your support and empathy.

“Requires support and empathy”……Hmmmmm

Here’s the second part of my thoughts..the part that is absolutely disgusted by the hypocrisy and double-standard of a large portion of President Elect Obama’s base of supporters. As a voter from the middle of war of ideology, two things turn me against a cause more than anything: People (celebrities) telling me how to think and hypocrites who act one way, and then expect you to act another.

I understand that Matt Damon, George Clooney and Oprah all have the right to use their fame to express their political ideas. However, the great thing about elections is the fact that my vote equals Oprah’s vote. Despite the fact that I don’t have a TV show, a fleet of cars and a private jet…my 1 vote equals to just 1 of Oprah’s votes.

But worse yet, is the raging hypocrisy that lives within those who have whined and cried and bitched and moaned for the past 8 years. I’m all for gloating after a win, and expressing my views wildly without caring who’s eyes they find. But when an a close friend and Obama supporter tells me that it’s my patriotic duty to get behind the new president….it instantly takes me back to the endless months and YEARS of complaining, crying and bitching about things they know next to nothing about.

Even worse are those who preach to me that “America did the right thing to make such history”. That statement very much may be true…and it 100% is true. But if you think the same people would be dancing in the streets to celebrate the first female vice president…another barrier that has never been broken…you’re crazy. Impromptu celebrations would not have broken out in Times Square and Chicago and Pennsylvania Avenue…but cars would burn, rocks would be thrown, and people…both guilty and not guilty would be hurt.

So in the end, this great moment…this wonderful notch in the course of our country’s history brings out not only the best in us..but some of the worst. The election of Barak Obama will not bring people together, but in fact may pull them further apart. It's possible that through no fault really of his own, Obama’s tenure as commander in chief will be compromised by those who wish to wage a class war on others. Madonna, Susan Sarandon and Chevy Chase will continue to express their disdain in a public forum toward anything they don’t agree with…whether their choice of party is in power or not. And that very hypocrisy and double standard is what is going to continue to drive a wedge between Americans of all ages..all sexes and all parties.

I really hope that I am wrong, and like I said...I am 100% behind the new president. I will give him every opportunity to deliver the change he has promised, and see for myself whether or not it is best for the country and my family. But the divide that was once separated by color is now separated by ideology. Unless Barak Obama becomes one of the greatest unified leaders the world has ever seen, that gap will only become wider, in an age of instant information, instant blame and instant denial.

Time to move on.

Change has come…let’s see what it can do for all of us.