John Edwards is pretty cool

I went to a John Edwards rally at lunchtime today. It was cool.

He told a story of hope. Of hard work ahead, but of a commitment to each other and to the entire world, of problems but also of solutions. It was inspiring. I felt good about the future of our country again, if only for a moment. Not confident, but hopeful.

His only real misstep was his wishy-washy non answer on the question of gay marriage. He ambled around the topic, saying he supports civil unions, but "today" he doesn't support gay marriage. But his 23 year old daughter thinks it's ridiculous and will all go away some day. It was a weak answer, remarkable given how strongly he stood for his ideas on every other issue he addressed. He respectfully disagreed with people on questions about health care policy, spoke honestly about the complicated issues in education, and said what the union audience wanted to hear on labor issues.

The audience loved his criticism of the Iraq war, and I was deeply moved by his promise to close Guantanamo on his first day in office as President.

He is not the only candidate I support. But there are few like him, where I would vote FOR him, rather than against the lousy opponent.