No, We Didn't.

Moveon.org recently came out with a free bumper sticker, "Yes, we did." It's a riff off of Obama's famous slogan, "Yes, we can."

I totally relate to the feeling. Yes, Obama is going to be President- we got him elected! Yes, for the first time in my life, the guy I voted for won. I am so very excited, and millions of us did our part.

But when Obama said, "Yes, we can," he was quite explicitly not talking about getting him elected President. He was talking about something far larger. About changing the way politics is done in Washington. About learning to hope again. About restoring America's reputation throughout the world. About ending war, and bringing in peace. About restoring equitability between the classes in America, and removing the horrible stain where the wealthiest make 400x the salary of the poorest. About bringing in universal health care, so that the poor in America don't go without care, and end up dying. About ending the culture wars, and learning to find common agreement, and that of God in our enemies, whomever they may be. This was what "Yes, we can" was all about.

No, we didn't. But Obama was elected. "Yes, we have begun." That's not as sexy a slogan as "Yes, we did." But it has the benefit of being the truth, and also reminding us all: we still have a very long way to go.