Written by Ryan Keen

This isn’t what everyone else is saying and it’s not what I expected to say, but I thought John McCain’s acceptance speech was better than everyone else’s. Better than Biden’s, better than Palin’s and even better than Obama’s. How can I say that McCain’s speech was better than Obama’s? Two reasons: it was about the right kind of change and it was far more inspiring.

When Obama first came on the scene, his threat was his message of change and his denunciation of politics in this country. I assumed that the change Obama was talking about was a new style of politics, one that sought reform before power, one that put country above party; in short, one that strove to rise above politics as usual in our nation. Obama and those around him have made it clear in the last two weeks that this is not what change is about. From “eight is enough” to “more of the same” to “I don’t want to take a 10 percent chance on change,” his mantras revolve around politics not in terms of how it should be beholden to the people of this country, but in terms of political supremacy. The change promised is not something new, it is not something historic, it is a four to eight year shift in the battle over the balance of power that has grid-locked our country for generations. It’s not a promise to move above, but a promise to move back, back from the right toward the left.

Last night in his acceptance speech, McCain took up the message of change that I thought had made Obama special, the message that Obama no longer promises this nation. In his speech in front of party faithful, the party leaders, the nation, and the world, McCain had harsher words for Republicans than for Obama, as he rebuked the party he stood in front of, saying, “We were elected to change Washington, and we let Washington change us. We lost – we lost the trust of the American people when some Republicans gave in to the temptations of corruption. We lost their trust when rather than reform government, both parties made it bigger.”

McCain was right, and right to point out the utter failure and disgracefulness of our party over the last 14 years. It comes not from anything intrinsic to the Republican Party, but from putting power ahead of people. The change we promised failed to materialize because we lost focus on reform and made change about us controlling Congress instead of them controlling it. When Obama talks about change he does not mean that he will put people above politics as much as he means there will be a Democrat in the White House instead of a Republican.

In terms of inspiration, I want to be honest. When Senator Obama ended his speech, linking his campaign and his supporters to Dr. King’s dream speech, I was impressed and inspired. But that inspiration pales in comparison to the way McCain’s speech moved me. McCain’s theme is country first. As his speech drew to a close, McCain told the story of his life. In his youth, he was the center of his world, a hotshot who put himself first, and as the Vietnamese tortured him, they broke him, they broke his spirit, and inadvertently taught him that there are causes in life greater than that of your own, that there is more to fight for than that which promotes and empowers you, and one of these causes is country. As he promised to fight for Americans and fight to put country before himself, he ended with these words:

“Fight with me. Fight with me.

Fight for what’s right for our country. Fight for the ideals and character of a free people.

Fight for our children’s future. Fight for justice and opportunity for all.

Stand up to defend our country from its enemies. Stand up for each other, for beautiful, blessed, bountiful America.

Stand up, stand up, stand up, and fight.

Nothing is inevitable here. We’re Americans, and we never give up.

We never quit.

We never hide from history. We make history.

Thank you, and God bless you, and God bless America.”

I was speechless, I became choked up, and this challenge of greater causes, probed my soul as I went to bed last night. It still moves me and confronts my own selfish desires.