urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:elfundeb Elfin observations bound to obey and serve 2038-01-19T03:14:07Z urn:lj:livejournal.com:atom1:elfundeb:25245 2038-01-19T03:14:07Z 2038-01-19T03:14:07Z I am off to the polls.<br /><br />In the event you read this before voting, and encounter someone today who is still worried about Obama's supposed lack of experience, a two-word response is sufficient:<br /><br /><b>Abraham Lincoln</b><br /><br />After one congressional term and one failed run at the Senate, he became the compromise Republican candidate in 1860. Initially derided as an ignorant back-country "Railsplitter," Lincoln did make some mistakes (everyone does!), but he proved to be brilliant at executing his vision and, at least as importantly, holding together a fractious coalition of advisers ranging from out-and-out abolitionists to border-state, anti-Emancipationists.