Listening to the news and reading about the reactions to Obama's victory has opened my eyes to a world that I didn't realize still existed.  For some strange reason I thought that racism was "a thing of the past".  I don't know.  Maybe all the time I spent overseas serving my country in a military that would bleed its soldiers dry in order to protect the rights outlined in the Constitution and uphold the ideals of the Declaration of Independence has disconnected me from some of the harsh realities here in the United States.  It's tough to know that I'm dedicating my life to the Armed forces of this great country and its citizens don't even uphold or respect the rights that we as soldiers are supposed to protect.  It really saddens me.  It saddens me that it is unacceptable for a Black man to be the president of the United States.  What saddens me even more is that it is okay for a black man to go to prison.  It's acceptable for black men to have a thuggish and untrustworthy demeanor about themselves.  It's okay for black men to have the highest high school dropout rate in the country.  It's okay for white people to have hip-hop (Lil Wayne, T-Pain, Usher) blasting out of their SUVs and Beamers but walk past black students on campus as if they don't exist.  And then have the nerve to call them the n-word because they're happy that the person they voted for won.  It's okay for blacks to entertain whether it be basketball (Kobe Bryant), music (Usher, Beyonce, Jay Z), or tell jokes (the late great Bernie Mac) but be president?  Of the United States?  #&LL NO!  I thought that people were better than that.  When I have to go to other countries I see little kids begging for the scraps from me and my fellow soldier's lunch.  I see mothers begging for two dollars because two dollars can feed her family for about two or three days, sometimes a week depending on where we are.  So many people in this world are just trying to live.  And over here in America people are being threatened and/or attacked and assaulted for doing just that - LIVING.  Living the American dream.  It's called the American Dream for a reason.  It's not applicable to just one race or certain races.  As a matter of fact, it's not applicable to any race.  It applies to Americans.  All Americans.