Please, Barack Obama, lead us out into the light

Americans have spoken. The tedious, often cumbersome election process that is at the core of our democracy again provides a beacon of hope for our world in this moment of peril.

The courageous acts of so many, for so long muted, can finally attain their deserved respect. Should we not simultaneously salute the efforts of a Harriet Tubman or a Dred Scott, trail-blazers of a perilous path to a better future? And could Mr. Lincoln have envisioned this glorious moment while boldly proclaiming a slave to be free? Certainly Bobby Kennedy's vision and M.L. King's "dream" have inched closer to fruition.

President-elect Obama's victory is a signal to the world that America is capable of accepting change. The engine that powers our train down the tracks to greatness has been slowed to a crawl over the past eight years. The tracks have been littered with the debris of ineptitude and arrogance. Please Mr. Obama, lead us to the light at the end of this tunnel.

DANIEL D. BUTLER

Sandpoint