In this oval bumper sticker, an Orwellian all-seeing eye is incorporated into the classic icon of Barack Obama’s presidential campaign. The message: we may have a new president who ran on hope and change, but under his new administration, Big Brother is Still Watching. The Patriot Act is still in effect. The Military Commissions Act is still in effect. The FISA Amendments Act is still in effect. Barack Obama has committed to continue using tools of warrantless surveillance in contravention of the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

The election is over. It doesn’t matter whether Barack Obama was on “your team,” or whether you campaigned as part of “his team.” As of his inauguration, he will be the principal executor of a surveillance state. As long as the president and the agents of the president are watching, it is incumbent upon defenders of liberty to watch back.

Pain rhymes with McCain too. Is that an accident? Oh, no, I don’t think so.

It’s not McCain-Palin 2008. The Republicans are running McCain-Pain 2008.

In either case, the polite response to this request for a vote is No Thanks 2008.

Eight years of pain under the Republicans in the White House has been long enough for me.

I’ll put this in another way: John McCain is history.

It isn’t just because John McCain is old. A person can be old and still remain relevant and be able to contribute meaningfully.

It has to do with John McCain’s place in time. John McCain has failed to update his ideas.

John McCain is a politician of the past. McCain embraces ideas and attitudes that are two generations out of date.

John McCain has no vision for the future of America. His agenda is one of defense, trying to delay progress, to fend off hope, to desperately cling to the old ways of thinking that he and his supporters are fond of.

John McCain is a relic of time gone by, of plans that didn’t work out, of limitations that most Americans have transcended.

The way of John McCain is the way of the failures of America’s past.

John McCain is history. Now is the time for America to do better than it has done. Now is the time for a candidate of the future. Now is the time for Barack Obama.

Now is the time for Democrats who have supported Hillary Clinton for President to reconcile themselves to the fact that their favorite candidate will not be the Democratic presidential nominee. Barack Obama will be.

Clinton supporters of good will can now help in the effort to ensure that John McCain does not become the next President of the United States. It’s time for a show of support for Barack Obama by people who have supported Hillary Clinton. Putting this Clinton Supporters for Obama in 2008 bumper sticker on your car can help.

You also might encourage the Clinton Supporters for Obama blog to continue its efforts.

It’s time to take that back, and reclaim the local identity as a relevant force in national politics. That’s one of the reasons the Irregular States catalog was created – to bring items like campaign bumper stickers to people that connect national issues to local identity.

Too many people grab a generic Barack Obama bumper sticker with a message that could apply anywhere. They put it on the back of their cars, and if you didn’t see the car’s license plate, they could be from anywhere.

It’s essential to remember that though the position of President of the United States is national, the election is actually an affair of the states. Unless a constitutional amendment is passed some time in the future, the Electoral College will be the group that actually elects the President – and delegates to the Electoral College will be elected in statewide popular elections.

That makes a statewide focus especially important, and state-level bumper stickers important too. Thus we see that bumper stickers like this one, proclaiming Florida is for Obama, may not be as prevalent as other Barack Obama bumper stickers, but they pack an extra punch.

Let’s take this localization of politics one step further, then. If the state level, Florida for instance, is what establishes the Electoral College vote, then it’s the local neighborhood that actually facilitates the Electoral College vote on Election Day. People don’t all go to one place in Florida to vote, after all. They go to a designated polling station in their city or village.

If you live in Miami, say so. Display a Miami for Obama bumper sticker.

So, support Barack Obama nationally, yes. Support Barack Obama in Florida, sure. But also support Barack Obama in Miami… or in whatever state and town you happen to live in. Focus the lens of progressive activism to affirm where you are in 2008.

In order to create that view, bloggers need to look themselves. Bloggers are some of the most dedicated seekers of information there are. Bloggers look for a new angle, for a subject other people haven’t written about. Bloggers question. They challenge.

As they gain experience doing so, bloggers get a special kind of training in detecting weak arguments and bogus claims of truth. Bloggers are some of the best people at finding deception. They pierce the veil of lies that covers the federal government in Washington D.C. Whether anyone else cares to look through the veil with them, they show the way to see.

That’s why I’m proud to be a blogger. In a time when many Americans have surrendered to apathy, bloggers are vigilant. Watching defeat after defeat, they get back up every day and give it another try.

Bloggers oppose politicians who act like bullies and try to squelch small voices. Bloggers oppose politicians who try to keep government secrets shut away from public view. Bloggers oppose politicians who consistently deceive American voters, but claim to be on some kind of “straight talk express”.

Bloggers can see through the hype. Bloggers are against the campaign of John McCain for President.

The bumper sticker is for Miami Against McCain, and it just wouldn’t seem right for the bumper sticker, designed for McCain as it is, wouldn’t seem right if it were in plain old patriotic red white and blue, or in alarming black and yellow.

This cool, serene Miami combination of pink and green seems just right for Miami. It’s an important lesson for people who design activist gear: Politics is global in its impact, but local in its expression.

Of course, it’s also not like Miami to be merely against things. So, here’s a link to a local activist group for those who support the best alternative to John McCain: Generation Obama Miami: “an unconventional merging of young donors and young activists”.