It has been a rough 4 to 8 years to be an American, and a time of incredible anger. I think that has become the predominant emotion, replacing pride and apple pie.

Many of us were angered by the way the reign of W began, not with a mandate of the majority but instead with allegations of voter suppression in predominately white regions of Florida, a recount procedure that seemed more akin to a cartoon with then Florida Secretary of State Kathleen Harris serving the role of goofy, and in the end the appointment of Bush to the Presidency by what many perceived as a partisan Supreme Court. The net result for the more than 50% of voting Americans who voted for Gore and not Bush was anger and frustration rather than stubborn acceptance of the will of the majority of their fellow Americans.

During the first term of W, we did not realize the promises made by W to be a compassionate conservative and to bridge the gap of bipartisanship that seemed to overtake Washington during the second Clinton administration. Certainly 9/11 provoked anger (and of course a great deal of fear) in any American who was paying attention. Initially the anger was directed at the “evildoers” – Bin Laden and Al Qaeda. That anger, in some quarters, became displaced by anger directed within – first toward fellow Americans who had the misfortune of being Muslim or having the appearance of anyone from the Middle East or northern Asia, much like we treated Japanese Americans during WWII, and then toward the Bush administration once we learned about the warning signs it ignored about the 9/11 attacks, either due to incompetence, denial or vacation. Anger and more anger.

And of course fear. I was living in New York City during 9/11. In fact, like so many others who have a similar story to tell, I should have been in Battery Park or at least on the Broadway subway line during the attacks but for the intervention of my oversleeping. Thereafter we were consumed with reports of suspicious white powders and plans to bomb the subways. We were subject to random searches of our bags on the subway. And we all know what happened with air travel because some schmuck known as the “shoe bomber” – it is now easier to break out of prison than it is to get on a plane. Don’t get me started on air travel.

The point is, we were living in fear after 9/11 – how could we not when we were under a barrage of warnings about imminent threats and living under Code Red or Orange crush or whatever it was called. FEAR. And while I am no Freud, I think anger is the normal reaction to fear as a method of self preservation.

And then, of course, we have Iraq. So as not to get further sidetracked, let me just say Iraq has been divisive. For many of the majority of Americans who agree it was a mistake, Iraq has given us great cause for anger over the last 6 years. Even those who were convinced invading Iraq was so integral to national security that it justified the incredible loss of American life (easier to justify with someone else’s sons and daughters), and the burden it will impose on our limited resources and fragile economy for God knows how long, I suspect have been angry at everyone else who opposed them.

And because of Iraq, the ensuing ratcheting up of hatred towards America and persistent threat of terrorist attacks, the W administration took steps that eviscerated our civil liberties and indelibly altered the very fabric and soul of our democracy. No longer could you borrow books from a library or make telephone calls without wondering if Big W would be taking notes. I am not doing justice to myriad ways in which W negatively impacted the core values of our nation.

W’s reign has taken its toll on America. We gave him the keys to the car – or rather he and his operatives took them – and he had it chopped up to the point of bare recognition. We are loathed around the World for good reason. I am not afraid to admit I have been consumed with Anger during the last 6 plus years, and anything but proud to be an American. What was there to be proud of? That we wasted the good will generated by 9/11 by violating the sovereignty of another country under the excuse of WMD, or was it deposing a dictator? That we ignored the plight of millions of Americans – most of them minority – devastated by Katrina because of incompetence or simple lack of care, and then fought those same people when they tried to obtain basic benefits guaranteed to them by Federal law as a first step towards regaining some dignity? That we made prisoners of war in Iraq perform stupid pet tricks for all the world to see? That we allowed poverty, and our health care and educational problems to fester? That so many of our elected officials are corrupt or sexual deviants? That Congress spends more time investigating Steroid use in sports, trying to keep alive a women living in a vegetative state because of some misguided notion of “life” and seeking to embarrass one another then trying to solve serious problems?

But miraculously, nearly all of my anger dissipated on Tuesday when we elected Barack Obama as the next President. To be honest I am not sure why. A big part of it is the fact that we took the keys away from W, before he did any more damage, but that is not all of it since I would still be angry if McCain, and God forbid Palin, were elected, in large part because of their platform of fear and hatred and anger (and of course Palin is no more prepared to be vice president than she is to impart advice to her children on the birds and the bees). It may be because of the fact that Obama is part black (that’s right, he also is part white and the grandson of an American veteran), and what that says about our growing up as a people (but lets not forget the more than 52 million of us who voted against Obama, many of whom I would venture to guess hate the fact we elected a black president and are prepared to leave this country – good riddance, I will buy you a ticket!). But I think there is more, and although it sounds mushy, I think the reason I am no longer angry is because there is Hope, and for the first time, in many years, a reason for optimism. I haven’t figured out why exactly, and it is not just because of what Obama looks like, or where he comes from. And I don’t believe that Obama can solve all the many problems that now plague us, but I believe that he has the smarts to focus on the bigger issues, and not be distracted by less significant ones. He has an understanding of what we need as a nation to heal, and I believe he will try to achieve that healing for us without sacrificing our fiscal responsibility. I believe he will try to return this country to its place as a world leader – not through shear force or fear, but by example of moral and human excellence. Obama is the best and brightest of what America has to offer and for that reason I have hope, and hope is a therapy for anger.

takepart and learn more from the office of President-Elect Barack Obama

Photo from AFP)