In the 12th installment of his 4-part series, Fled the Asylum tells us why he might be about to flip-flop…as if anyone is still reading his crap.

After deciding to attend the Hillary rally last weekend, I also committed that if the opportunity should arise, I’d try to see Obama before the primary circus left Texas, sweeping away all of the attention that we in the political hinterlands of Houston so desperately crave.

So when I saw that Senator Obama was making a Monday night appearance at the Convention Center, I immediately submitted my RSVP and then rushed an email off to the most influential person in Texas politics that I know, who will still take my calls.

“Hey Eileen, I know I told you not to call me anymore, but I was wondering if there’s a special ‘guest blogger’ or ‘I know someone who knows Paul Burka’ handshake you could tell me about that might keep me from having to stand in the cold for two hours to see Obama on Monday night. Call me! Thanks, Fled.”

No response.

So I queued up at 6:00PM for the 8:00PM event, and between rounds of head-to-head cell phone Tetris with strangers from all over the globe, I had a number of small conversations with various Obama supporters — a woman who went to the already-legendary Toyota Center rally with only a standby ticket and was thrilled to get a seat in the nosebleed section; a grandfather and Obama precinct captain, who moved to Houston from Brooklyn to be with his grandkids a year ago.

Very much middle-class voters, who are energized about the process. African Americans for whom the “black enough” question could not be further from their minds.

The demographics of the crowd, for that matter, differed significantly from the Hillary rally. I’ve been “the white guy” in a room full of not-white people, and this wasn’t exactly that, but it was small refresher course on being in the minority. We crackers need that every now and then.

Although I steeled myself to stand outside the Convention Center for two hours, after 30 to 45 minutes, the doors opened and we were let in. Ah! Sweet, stale conditioned air. From about 7:00 until around 8:00 we stood inside in tidy rows, waiting for the opening of the doors to the hall where Obama would speak.

Even though this was a Monday night, people were generally feeling good, and I noticed the absence of the sense of panic and suspicion which hung over the wait for the Hillary rally. We were all ticketed; we were all in line. No one was going to steal anyone’s spot, or cut in line and no one really appeared to care if you did.

After the doors opened at 8:00, we passed through security — staffed by uniformed TSA officers — and into the hall where Obama was to be speaking. There were concessions, and seats and, while maybe not a “rock concert” vibe, a relaxed and friendly environment. Good thing too, because we had another 90 minutes to wait.

The vaguely inspirational pop songs (Petty’s “Won’t back down”, Van Halen’s “Right Now” etc.) playing in the background helped. The purpose of Crowded House’s “Beds Are Burning” on the playlist, I found less obvious.

I overheard relative strangers bumping into each other, and getting organized for primary and caucus ride shares. Lots of apparent friends, neighbors, fellow churchgoers getting caught up. No shoving. No hostility. It was different. The folks weren’t fearful, and the feeling wasn’t negative — not about Hillary, or McCain, and barring one “Buck Fush” t-shirt (Get it? F*uck Bush!? Cuz the B and the F are mixed up! Get it!? OMG LOL), not even about the current president.

It really felt good. I wasn’t surprised, though. You know the old hackneyed stand-up routine “White people vote like this. Black people vote like this.” It was different, but overall nothing really shook me from my assumptions.

Senator Obama’s speech was, I think, standard fare.

“Yes we can.”
Can what?
Whatever! We CAN!
Uhm kay.

“Fired up.”
“Ready to go.”
Go where?
Dunno, wherever!
Uhm kay.

I have to admit, there was as much meat, though, as I heard in Senator Clinton’s speech. Even if his plan doesn’t pledge it, Obama talks about achieving universal healthcare. Hillary admitted early on that progress toward universal coverage would be incremental.

If I’m holding real world expectations against Obama, I have to do the same to Clinton. Nationwide coverage on day one is not really what she’s talking about.

One thing that really stuck with me was the challenge that Obama presented to the crowd. All too often, political speech is either “I’ll get government’s hands off of your uterus/ wallet” or “My plan will provide your family with healthcare/ your tax money back.” Whatever the candidate’s political persuasion, few have had the courage to say, “Ask what you can do for your country.”

In fairness, Obama’s way of doing this essentially called for an expansion of Bill Clinton’s AmeriCorps program, but whereas Obama said that the movement which has propelled his candidacy is in part an expression of the people that they are hungry to be engaged, Hillary has, in what I have heard, trended more toward the “give me the chance, and I’ll fix your problems” approach.

All in all, I enjoyed the speech, but alas, no goosebumps. I’m old beyond my years, I guess, and I’m probably over “chills.” Besides, ever since Albert Pujols hit that homer off of Brad Lidge in Game 5 of the 2005 National League Championship Series, I don’t think I’ve even been close, as a spectator.

Game 6 did little to bring me back, and certainly the Astros have not helped since then, but I digress and Eileen is about to ban me from ITPT altogether, for talking baseball and potentially leaving her alone with Hillary, all in one post.

In any case, I walked outside as a planned caucus-goer still in play. Obama didn’t finish, as far as I was concerned, but he did sew doubt, and maybe that’s all he had to do. Besides, the caucus is only a third the vote. I’ve made my primary bed, and the caucus is just the duvet. Right?

But wait… As I walked outside I realized that’s completely wrong. I know all sorts of people who voted in the primary who have no plan at all of caucusing. There’s no way that more than half of the people who voted early, and who are going to stand in line between 7:00 and 7:00 on Tuesday, are going to come back at night to caucus.

Holy Crap! I have more say in the caucus than I do in the primary! If, say 5 million people vote in the primary, which counts for 2/3 of Texas’ delegates, and 1 million people come back to caucus, selecting 1/3 of the delegates, that means that being one of the one million is like, I’m not a math guy, but MORE influential than being one of the five million. This is not comforting.

As I continued down the sidewalk, I was hit in the face with the realization that being a former Democratic governor in Texas may not be all it’s cracked up to be as I see Obama supporter Mark White also walking toward the free-after 6:00 curbside meter parking.

I walk just past him, as he stops to shake a hand. A second later, I hear him behind me talking to, I guess, his wife as I slow my pace, and he slightly quickens his. “What really surprised me was how well-executed this whole thing was. If he’s going to run the country as well as he runs his campaign, he’s already off to a great start.”

He’s right — and they usually do run their administrations like they run their campaigns. Obama’s organized. This event went off without a hitch. His campaign anticipated how many people would be attending. They got an appropriate room. They controlled demand by use of stand-by tickets. They used technology to help them anticipate logistics.

He has the money to do something like this, because he has broad buy-in from donors. They thought of the practical needs of the attendees — expensive bad pizza and bottled water — and they let people take care of themselves.

Hillary’s campaign did none of this. At her rally, there were no tickets, no clear lines, no water for folks who needed it, but hadn’t yet passed out. It was a mess, only kept in control at one point by the threat of blunt force by HPD.

Hillary wasn’t ready. Obama was.

So, while I would still like some assurance that Obama is going to be able to compete with the VRWC; while I think his political life has been largely charmed; while I think McCain may well chew him up and spit him out in the October debates, in true Democratic style, my flip is officially flopped, and I’ll be caucusing for Senator Obama.

However, if any single Obamaniac today makes one condescending remark, about how I’ve “seen the light,” so help me, my vote is back in play.