Why I Support Barack Obama

As we are now a mere fifteen days away from the election and the campaigns are getting even uglier (especially from one particular side of the aisle), I think it’s a good time to look at why I support Barack Obama in the first place. Of course, his platform is the most important aspect of this since it’s his actual plan for America. However, there are many other reasons why I have been devoting the better part of my time back at home to volunteering locally for Barack. While I could enumerate them all, that would likely just preach to the choir. Instead, I’d like to suggest to any undecided voters out there that they watch one or all of the following three speeches. Sure, the McCain campaign has given Barack a lot of flack for his eloquence, but I believe intelligence isn’t something to be sneered at, especially when it serves to articulate the core of what someone stands for. There are certainly many people out there who don’t consider themselves Democrats and probably didn’t focus too closely on the Primaries, waiting until the real contest we are experiencing now. For those, I submit these prime examples of why Barack Obama inspires me and why he’s the right man to lead our nation into the next chapter of our history.

DNC Keynote Address, August 2004



A More Perfect Union, March 2008


Speech at Apostolic Church of God on Father’s Day, June 2008


Additionally, as part of my local volunteering I’ve been blogging for the Pickerington Campaign for Change office about various events in and around Fairfield County, Ohio. You can find that blog here.

Bad Type Worldwide

It’s now been two months since I left Europe and I’m coming to grips with the fact that I’m not returning (at least not anytime in the near future). I suppose it’s probably also time to hang up this blog, or at least this iteration of it. Therefore, a final post devoted to some of the places I was able to visit over the past two years that will bring us full circle.

When I first arrived in Switzerland I wrote a couple posts detailing my dismay at finding the much maligned Comic Sans font at use in a country known for good design and typography. My silence on this front in the time since may give the inaccurate impression that my encounters with Comic Sans came to an end. Unfortunately, the truth is far more sinister. In almost every country I visited, I spotted examples of the dark side of globalization.

Here, a goodbye to Europe and a good riddance to awful typography:

Geneva, Switzerland


Vevey, Switzerland


Montreux, Switzerland

Note: Italicizing it doesn’t make things any better

Interlaken, Switzerland


Annecy, France


St. Gervais, France


Paris, France


Madrid, Spain


Barcelona, Spain

No, outlines don’t improve the appearance either

Dublin, Ireland

How can a brand as large as 7Up stoop to such lows? And Fido Dido still exists? If you say so, Dublin…

London, England


Budapest, Hungary



Bold, outlined, AND with a killer gradient in the background? Sign me up!

Prague, Czech Republic

Not only do we get Comic Sans (which appears to be squished), but there’s also a second horrifying typeface on display

Hamburg, Germany


Rome, Italy

There is just so much going on here that I don’t know where to begin, so I’ll just let the photo stand for itself.

Athens, Greece

This isn’t Comic Sans, and fortunately I didn’t see any Greek version of the font. However, they had plenty of their own display faces including this exciting example.

Zurich, Switzerland

I was pleased that Swiss design centers Basel and Zurich appeared Comic Sans-free. But I did find this stacked Hobo on display in the latter city.

Change We Can Believe In

One of the interesting things about living abroad for the past two years has been seeing our electoral process through the eyes of citizens of other nations. There is great interest in this election and there is great interest in Barack Obama. The McCain campaign continues to pummel Obama on his perceived “celebrity,” but in my mind, having 200,000 people show up to hear him speak in Berlin is an attribute and a testament to his character, not a detriment. The world is ready to be rid of the Bush presidency and be inspired by something new. I have been following Barack since his famous 2004 DNC speech and as the 2008 election cycle began, I wondered if he’d be able to make it through at such an early stage of his political career. He quickly silenced my doubts with his strong integrity and his inspirational message of Hope. Certain people like to be cynical about this message, but honestly, if you don’t have hope what do you have? It is the foundation of the Christian faith and it is how we should look toward the future – with the hope and belief that things will get better and that we don’t have to be stuck with the way they are now (not just in America, but abroad as well). The more and more I read and viewed, the more I realized that this is indeed the right candidate for America. Barack Obama is a role model, and despite the mud being slung his way this week, I am proud to support him. My hometown of Pickerington recently opened an Obama For America office, and while I’m in the process of portfolio-updating and job-searching, I’m volunteering there a few days a week. (If anyone in the area is interested in getting involved in the campaign, I encourage you to drop by.)

Following last week’s Democratic National Convention, Barack Obama and Joe Biden traveled to Ohio making a stop north of Columbus at Dublin Coffman High School on Saturday. In a Labor Day weekend filled with family, friends, baseball, and other excitement, it would have been hard to top the opportunity to see these candidates in person. Adam and Julie, newly returned from their year abroad in England, joined me in the early afternoon and we made the trip. We arrived around 3:00 and spend a few hours in line and then inside the football stadium before the event got started around 6:30. We were fortunate to be on the field and very close to the podium. The excitement of the event was palpable and the diversity of the crowd was inspiring. There were ages ranging from babies to senior citizens and a wide spectrum of ethnicities represented. Not only that, but the crowd was remarkably courteous, respectful of one another and exhibiting nothing close to the “anger” that the folks at the RNC seem to think defines the Democratic party.

The rally began with the pledge of allegiance followed by a prayer before several of the area’s Democratic candidates had a turn to speak to the crowd. Finally, Ohio’s Senator John Glenn took the stage and gave a fine speech endorsing and introducing Biden and Obama. The candidates spoke about their vision for the country and reprised several of the key points from the DNC. Ultimately, Barack reminded us that he’s running for the people and it’s up to us to spread the message of change and hope.

Ghandi said you must be the change you wish to see in the world. A defeatist attitude helps no one. I strongly believe that we have the power to change the planet and to indeed be part of God’s kingdom breaking through to this world in which we live. While it would certainly be naive to think that this election can fix everything, it is a huge piece of the puzzle. Together we can make a difference and a better tomorrow. Yes, we can.

Some photos taken by the three of us:





Me and Adam, pleased with how close we were to the stage




Senator Glenn









And an inspirational video highlighting the grassroots movement for change:

Venice, Italy: The Final Eurotrip

The weekend before I departed Geneva (and, therefore, Europe) I finally made my way to Venice, a destination I had been wanting to get to since my arrival two years prior. The beauty of the city certainly lives up to the hype, though the prices of everything there do as well. I arrived on a Sunday afternoon and departed on Tuesday afternoon, giving me plenty of time to explore, visit some nice art museums and have a final taste of authentic Italian food. What a place.

Worth a few thousand words:


The Grand Canal


There were plenty of thunderstorms and plenty of sunshine during my visit. The times when both converged made for some amazing lighting.


They love their St. Mark in Venice. His winged lion is all over the place, including the Basilica.


Carnival masks are all over the gift shops of the city.






the grand staircase at the Doge’s Palace


the towers of the Basilica







Arrivederci Italia!

Brussels, Belgium

Back at the beginning of July, I decided to spend a few days in Brussels since I had already planned to attend part of the Rock Werchter festival in Belgium. It was one of my final European mini-vacations and I definitely want to return at some point to do a cross-country brewery tour.

I split my time in the city between sight-seeing and volunteering since some friends of friends were hosting a big “Serve The City” event that week. I had the opportunity to help paint at a refugee center and a children’s daycare. Despite the hard work, it was great to give back and meet some other people while in the city.

Unfortunately, on my first day in town, I got a call from my Californian friend Chris (who had interned in Geneva last summer). He and three friends from home were backpacking through Europe after graduating this year, and I was actually expecting to see them in Switzerland over the weekend when they’d be crashing at my place. However, while in Bruges Chris had his passport, Eurail pass and credit cards stolen so they returned to Brussels to get a new passport at the American embassy. Of course, this meant they needed a place to stay in Brussels and all the hostels were booked due to Serve the City. I mentioned the guys’ plight to the head of this service initiative and in a wonderful example of Christian fellowship, we were able to find volunteers to house the guys for that night which was really cool (plus I got to see them a few days early). Fortunately, the rest of my time in Brussels went smoothly and Chris and the guys were still able to make it to Geneva in time for the 4th of July.

All that being said, how about some photos of Brussels?






Comics are known as “BD” in French-speaking countries and are really popular in Belgium which gave birth to the Smurfs, Marsupialami and Tin Tin among others. I saw several buildings featuring the characters in wall paintings like this one.


Quite possibly the city’s most famous landmark, the Manneken Pis, which is in fact a child pissing.






I found it interesting that graffiti on public monuments is left standing. In Switzerland, this would be gone overnight.


From the city's great art museum: a Hieronymus Bosch detail. What a crazy, crazy man.


The Death of Marat. Even more amazing in real life than in art history class. Go figure.


Inside the brewing museum. It really wasn't much more than a video, but it was a comprehensive video and came with a free pint, so well worth it.


And finally, a gorgeous art nouveau building.

Towers Of Beer

Over the course of my two years in Geneva, I had several occasions to visit Les Brasseurs, a microbrewery with four locations in the region. Not only is their beer great (especially the amber), but they serve it in a way not uncommon in many European nations: by the yard. Yes, Les Brasseurs specializes in towers of beer. I know I mentioned this practice at least once before, when Joe came through last summer, but the sheer glory of it cannot be understated. Thankfully, I had a final opportunity to enjoy one with some friends a few weeks before departing.

Behold, the tower of beer: