Today, I have a renewed optimism in my country, and my normal cynicism has subsided a little. I heard a presidential candidate speak on national television about race in America more candidly, honestly, and with more perspective than I've ever heard before. This is someone I'd want to lead my country.

Before going any further, please watch (or read the transcript of) Senator Obama's "A More Perfect Union" speech that he delivered in Philly this morning. For those who don't know, he was indirectly prompted to discuss race as a part of a public acknowledgment of charged comments of his friend, supporter, and former Pastor, Rev. Jeremiah Wright.

Obama unambiguously denounced the criticized comments.

I have already condemned, in unequivocal terms, the statements of Reverend Wright that have caused such controversy. For some, nagging questions remain. Did I know him to be an occasionally fierce critic of American domestic and foreign policy? Of course. Did I ever hear him make remarks that could be considered controversial while I sat in church? Yes. Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely - just as I'm sure many of you have heard remarks from your pastors, priests, or rabbis with which you strongly disagreed....

Now Obama could've simply distanced himself from the reverend, but instead he respectably distanced himself from only the specific statements that he disagreed with. Unlike the typical American politician, who would've thrown their pastor under a bus (or their mother—if they believed it would save them embarrassment or win them political pointsl), he kept his words as authentic as possible and used the opportunity to actually properly bring up the taboo issue of race.

He went on to publicly admit that he has a a deep-rooted, inseparable relationship with Rev. Wright, and just as with family, the relationship is a complex one. We're supposed to have a separation of Church & State; I feel Obama reminds us here that one's religious adviser is not—and should not— be one's political adviser.

But the truth is, that isn't all that I know of the man. The man I met more than twenty years ago is a man who helped introduce me to my Christian faith, a man who spoke to me about our obligations to love one another; to care for the sick and lift up the poor. He is a man who served his country as a U.S. Marine; who has studied and lectured at some of the finest universities and seminaries in the country, and who for over thirty years led a church that serves the community by doing God's work here on Earth - by housing the homeless, ministering to the needy, providing day care services and scholarships and prison ministries, and reaching out to those suffering from HIV/AIDS.

I respect Obama's candor; it seems so unfortunately alien to modern politics.

I've felt (before today at least) that Obama has tended to navigate around matters of race in the interest of playing it safe. However, I think this speech was anything but a comfort zone. It was courageous and risky. He accurately called out the distinct plights of all races within America and reminded us that these problems, as tough as they are, could only exist in a great, multicultural society with a history such as America's.

Again, please check out the speech for yourself, but I found these to be some of his most profound points.

• About the subtext of comments like those of Rev. Wright that are heard among congregations across this country:

  ...the most segregated hour in American life occurs on Sunday morning.

• On resentment among middle-class Whites and how it has been exploited by Republicans:

  ...they have helped shape the political landscape for at least a generation. Anger over welfare and affirmative action helped forge the Reagan Coalition. Politicians routinely exploited fears of crime for their own electoral ends. Talk show hosts and conservative commentators built entire careers unmasking bogus claims of racism while dismissing legitimate discussions of racial injustice and inequality as mere political correctness or reverse racism.

• On redirecting this resentment:

  Just as black anger often proved counterproductive, so have these white resentments distracted attention from the real culprits of the middle class squeeze - a corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by lobbyists and special interests; economic policies that favor the few over the many. And yet, to wish away the resentments of white Americans, to label them as misguided or even racist, without recognizing they are grounded in legitimate concerns - this too widens the racial divide, and blocks the path to understanding.

• On his challenge to Blacks to identify shared struggles:

  For the African-American community, that path means embracing the burdens of our past without becoming victims of our past. It means continuing to insist on a full measure of justice in every aspect of American life. But it also means binding our particular grievances - for better health care, and better schools, and better jobs - to the larger aspirations of all Americans....

• On ignoring matters of race:

  We would be making the same mistake that Reverend Wright made in his offending sermons about America - to simplify and stereotype and amplify the negative to the point that it distorts reality.

Thanks, Barack Obama, for inspiring one of the laziest writers I know to take some time to get some thoughts out. My hope for you is as strong as my hatred for the current president.