It is no accident that the Obama campaign has been the most successful campaign (popular vote, pledged delegates, states won, individual donors, total funds raised) of the 2008 primary. The campaign has been managed superbly. Yes, there have been stumbles and mistakes. But there have been many more successes. Yes, Barack is a highly qualified candidate, gifted orator and speech writer, and a natural leader, and without him and his family heading up this effort, we would not have a campaign to support. But without the team that Obama organized to assist him with managing this effort, and the active supporters (the movement) that are the heart and soul of this campaign, the successes would not have been possible either. This campaign is, and always has been, about each of us doing our part. And our part involves being informed and knowledgeable, as well as being good and respectful listeners. If we want to change people’s minds we need to understand their concerns and issues and to help them to see possible paths toward resolution.

So, if you want change it’s up to us to make it happen. Get engaged. Join up. Spread the word.

Yes we can.

I also came across a recent interview with Pete in the Rolling Stone which was quite interesting. He talks about some of his experiences with Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and Lead Belly, and shares some thoughts about the current American political landscape and the presidential race. See what he had to say about Obama below.

What do you think of Obama?
I guess if I had my choice, he’d be the one. I would’ve liked Kucinich. However, what I am for is I.R.V. Most people don’t even know what it is: Instant Recount Voting. When you vote, you vote for your first choice, your second choice and your third choice. I went to a school where we had proportional voting and that’s the way we voted for the student council. If your favorite already made it onto the council, then your second choice counted.

So you’d vote first for someone like Dennis Kucinich first?
That’s right. And if he didn’t make it, I’d vote for Obama and if he didn’t make it, I’d vote for Hillary. If she didn’t make it, I’d vote for Huckabee. Huckabee is a good speaker! He’s the most radical speaker of any of them.

Do you think America is on the verge of leaving these dark times with the impending election?
I’m absolutely convinced that the extraordinary tradition in America of speaking your mind has saved us decade after decade after decade. Right now I’m more optimistic than I was after Hiroshima. I felt then that surely it would only be 20 or 30 years until another of those bombs would be dropped and if we weren’t killed, we’d be poisoned by the fallout.

So you think the pendulum is going to shift back after eight years of Bush?
Well, I describe it this way. You know, if you bounce a ball on the sidewalk, the harder you throw it down, the higher it bounces. So, we may have some very good things happening. But who knows? There could be dirty tricks still tried.