On all of the most-discussed issues -- health care, climate change, Iraq, etc. -- all three of the major Democratic candidates have basically the same positions. Sure, there are differences in the details -- e.g. health insurance mandates -- but frankly the details of any legislation are going to be decided by congress anyway, making these differences moot. The important thing is that they're all headed in the right direction.

But here's something that I think is critically important, but, to my knowledge, no other candidate has proposed: Transparent Democracy.

http://www.barackobama.com/issues/technology/#transparent-democracy

In short, Barack Obama wants to take everything that government does and put it on the internet, where everyone can see it and scrutinize it. I believe this sort of approach is not just beneficial but necessary for good governance: the only way we can hold our government accountable is if we know what it is doing. We need to set a precedent of open government. The Bush Administration has been one of the most secretive administrations ever, and we can see where that has lead. I see no reason to believe Hillary Clinton will be much better: she has refused many requests for information about her campaign finances, earmarks she has authored, records from her years in the white house, and other information which should be open. Barack Obama has, on the other hand, striven to be open and honest about everything, and I believe he will continue to be so.

In general, I find that Barack Obama's policies are simply smarter than other candidates'. His entire technology platform is full of great ideas that no one else has even talked about, and I think they show he has a much better understanding of the information age than any of the competition. And on many other points -- for example, explicitly eschewing corn-based ethanol in favor of cellulosic ethanol, a smart policy but one which is probaly not popular among corn farmers -- he shows that he's interested in doing the right thing, not simply what voters want to hear.

Going beyond policy, though, I believe Obama has a unique skill which no other candidate has: he inspires people. His speeches are moving; they give me goosebumps. Some have dismissed this as just fluffy words, but I think this is important. I really believe Obama will be able to use this skill to unite the country -- perhaps even the world -- and lead in a way we haven't seen in a long time. Most of our greatest presidents were those who had this skill. Both John F. Kennedy's brother (Ted) and daughter (Caroline) this week endorsed Obama while drawing direct comparisons between the two.

It's unfortunate that the media has been obsessed with reporting on petty conflicts between the Clinton and Obama camps rather than reporting on any sort of real issues. The debates have been full of questions that have no relevance whatsoever to either candidate's ability to be president. CNN actually asked Barack, "Was Bill Clinton the first black president?" -- an obvious attempt to create meaningless conflict between the candidates. I have had the privilege of seeing most of the candidates in person, at Google, where they answered real questions in front of an audience of smart people, and it was based on these events that I decided that Obama was the best candidate. If you have time, watch the video of his visit; it's quite good:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4yVlPqeZwo

And here's an excellent video of Obama being interviewed by the San Francisco Chronicle editorial board, going into tons of deep policy details:

http://cdn.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2008/01/18/MNSNUH7GC.DTL&o=0

For something less cerebral but more uplifting, I recommend Obama's South Carolina victory speech:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iVAPH_EcmQ

And even less cerebral but more uplifting, here's a video created by singer will.i.am without the Obama campaign's knowledge:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjXyqcx-mYY

Here are some other arguments for Obama that I liked, from people who, like me, don't do this for a living, but felt strongly about this one:

http://blag.xkcd.com/2008/01/28/obama/
http://www.math.ucdavis.edu/~mduchin/a-case-for-obama.html
http://fclbrokle.livejournal.com/155861.html

Again, I feel this is important, not because I believe Hillary Clinton or John McCain would be a bad president, but because I believe Obama has the potential to be a truly great president. I don't think candidates like this come along often, and I think it would be a huge disappointment for our country if we missed this chance.

Remember, in the primaries, every vote counts: in most states, it doesn't matter who "wins" or "loses" the state, because delegates are awarded to each candidate in proportion to total votes. So even if you are in a state that is strongly leaning one way or the other, get out there and cast your vote anyway.

Thanks for reading, and feel free to pass this on to others.