A reader makes an important point:

I'd like to add a thought to your post "The Winner," about the Will.I.Am video. You mentioned that it resonated because of eight long years of shame and drift and failure - and no one could disagree with that. But I would add to that reason another - one that may seem hokey to some, but one that is central to the success of this campaign: patriotism.

The McCain campaign and far right detractors have questioned the patriotism of Obama and his supporters from the very beginning, when in fact, patriotism is the very basis for his success.

Obama's campaign simply could not function without an abiding, strident belief in the American people, the American dream, the American way.  With two ongoing wars and a coming economic crisis that rivals the Great Depression, what can explain this fervor, this pure optimism, if not patriotism? 

Without patriotism, where is the passion, the determination, the conviction that we, in fact, can? Without patriotism, we are left with only fear and cynicism. That video resonated because millions of people (young, disadvantaged - those with more reasons for despair and cynicism than hope and optimism) believe strongly enough in what their country stands for to stand up for it.