I'm a white guy, with white hair, born and raised in a working class neighborhood in Western Pennsylvania; The offspring of immigrants that came to America from Europe at the turn of the last century to find a better life on these shores. My grandparents toiled in slaughterhouses and garages to provide opportunity for their children. My father and uncles fought to liberate people of all races and creeds from the ugly grip of totalitarianism in World War II. My mother, who turns 80 this month and has lived her entire life in Pittsburgh, instilled family values that took deep root and I strive to pass these on to my own daughters.

Coming of age at the dawn of womens liberation, the green movement, civil rights battles, and an interminable war in Asia, I worked my way through school at Slippery Rock and Duquesne driving dump trucks, as a warehouse laborer along the Allegheny, and as a night watchman in one of the now vanished steel plants.

Given this description I'm sure the pollsters and pundits would pigeonhole me, assigning me to a particular Presidential candidates base. They would probably be wrong.

Our demographics will not and should not define who we are and how we think, especially in times like these. Just as in my youth we are again in a protracted and ill-conceived war, we continue to pay the price for environmental degradation, and once more we see America's economic foundation eroding before our eyes.

When I graduated from Penn Hills High School police in riot gear lined its hallways. I saw up close how my generation dealt with this experience. This racial tension, together with our disillusionment in government following Vietnam and Watergate forged many of our views. For most of todays voters, their only awareness of these times comes from the history book, but they really weren't so long ago.

For these reasons I am so deeply saddened by the Governors recent comment that there are Pennsylvanians who would not vote for a Presidential candidate because of his race. He would be equally correct to say there are many who will not vote for a woman or a senior citizen; but I fervently hope the number of voters inclined to act that way is small. My reason for hope is bolstered by the experience of this Campaign season.

What I remember today are the lessons of those earlier times and how far we have come. Pittsburgh did so much to achieve its second renaissance. The city worked to build on a foundation of shared values; and while my career has taken me to the far corners of the world, I still feel that bond when I watch a Steelers game (especially when playing the Browns!)

We are fortunate to have a choice this year that truly represents a milestone in our history. We are offered exceptional individuals that span race, gender and generations. Voters across the country have shown we are a nation capable of expanding our horizons and burying prejudice. We must judge these candidates on their policies and proposals. Even as our candidates call for change, I think it has already begun. Nobody can be sure of the challenges ahead, but we all need a leader who can reach across the deepest schisms of American life and bring us together. Because I now reside in Virginia, I've had my say, now it's your turn Pennsylvania to vote for change. I have seen you do it before and wait to see if you will do it again.