The Tipping Point

I am taking a break today and not talk about Photography for a second.

I wanted to take this time to relish this moment in history, when America voted its first African-American President in the true sense of the word. Although I am not a citizen of this country, I feel indebted to it because it has provided me with a lot of opportunities and memories.

I have to admit, if I could vote I would've voted for the old warrior John McCain, because being a martial artist all my life I do have an affinity for the warrior and the code that embodies a warrior. But there was no question change is coming. It all pointed to it, 911, the Iraq war, the failed Bush administration and the worse economic downturn since the great depression. A Tipping point has been reached. All that is needed is a catalyst to facilitate that change.

Tipping points are "The levels at which the momentum for change becomes unstoppable.

- Malcolm Gladwell, from his book, The Tipping Point.

Back home in the Philippines in 1983, after years of brutal dictatorship under Ferdinand Marcos, the assassination of Senator Benigno Aquino, the killings of innocent lives and the suppression of freedom. The country had its Tipping Point. Masses of people stormed the streets, stood against the might of the government and eventually toppled it. They clamored for change and they got it.

Last night was the same it was a people powered revolution, albeit in a more civil and peaceful way. Americans young and old, black and white got in line in record numbers to cast their vote. Red states were turned blue as the evening moved on. The change was underway.

Obama's strategist recognized that the Tipping point is almost upon us. Like Clinton's slogan on his campaign "It's the economy stupid"! Obama's rally cry was "Hope and Change" and it worked, he made the people understand his message and the strategy was perfect.

What started as Rev. Martin Luther King's dream culminated last night and it was a moment to remember.

Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. And so we must straighten our backs and work for our freedom. A man can't ride you unless your back is bent. - Martin Luther King, Jr.

America truly is now, a country of Red, White and Blue. White being…"The absence of color".