Ken Mack - A Unique Perspective on Barack Obama

I was living in Boston during the late 80's when my high school classmate Ken Mack was attending Harvard Law school. I was curious to get a inside look of this famous place so he invited me to one of his classes. That day, Ken pointed someone out to me. It was a young Barack Obama sitting in the front row!

Ken is one of the most interesting people I know and a good friend. He was recently interviewed on CNN about Obama:

KENNETH MACK ON OBAMA: There was a certain quality of maturity that he projected that really impressed people in a place where everyone was quite impressive.

It wasn't just that we had our first African-American president of the "Harvard Law Review." That would have been cause for celebration, but it was because it was Barack that people saw him as somebody special.
(http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0804/15/acd.01.html)

As the world knows, Obama has become an exceptional candidate in more ways than one. He has energized new voters, our youth and even former supporters of the Republican party! It is fascinating to see the Obama phenomenon and very refreshing. The positivity, hope and inspiration that touches so many is much needed at this point in our history.

Ken's success has never surprised me. Like Obama, he is smart, focused and knew what he wanted to do from an early age. That dream has been fulfilled and he is currently a tenured professor at Harvard Law School.

In February, he wrote an insightful article on Obama. A portion is below and you can click on the link for the full text. You will gain a better understanding of a man who could become our next president.
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An op-ed by Professor Kenneth Mack: Even at Harvard, Obama had a knack for bonding with diverse people

http://www.law.harvard.edu/news/2008/02/22_mack.php)

Professor Kenneth Mack, '91

What most of his classmates remember best about Barack's time in law school was his election to the most prestigious student leadership position on campus -- the presidency of the Harvard Law Review. The law review was sharply divided ideologically then, with political conflicts spilling over into personal ones. Like all of us, Barack had his own political views and made them known, but unlike most he usually did it in a way that put people of different viewpoints into a common conversation, and pushed them to get things done regardless of their differences.

As a fellow American said to me recently, " We do need a much better America".

After the last 8 L......ONG years, Obama may be just the person who can get us there.

Happy Gswede Sunday!
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Ken's wife Lisa Jones at an event with Barack Obama