Legal Commentary

NBC's Luke Russert (Tim's son) had a great analogy, about racial bias crumbling last night like the Berlin Wall.

Most of you know that I carefully stay away from partisan politics, because my readers are of all political colors ? but you all know that I'm rabid about diversity, a goal which I believe ? and hope ? crosses all political spectrums.

So whether you voted blue or red yesterday, our legal community can take great pride in the fact that a black lawyer soon will be president of our country -- something that in 1964, when I was naive freshman at Notre Dame High School in Belmont, Calif., sitting in an American history class, I never thought I would see. When Brian Williams pulled up one of those classic American Presidents charts (the kind that is in every grammar school room) and showed the 43 white male faces, it drove the point home more than the many words. In January, the presidency will, for the first time, reflect the fact that the United States of America isn't just the terrain of pale men.

And kudos to John McCain, whose concession speech was gracious and intelligent. We were so lucky to have two strong candidates in this fascinating contest.

Now comes the hard part ? but we are all ready.

The only sour note of the day was from California, with the passage of Prop 8 (re: marriage), but hopefully that, too, will change (quickly, please) as our legal community continues leadership efforts to work towards a truly diverse world ? where everyone has equal footing on this good earth.