Many people in the Jamaican and Black American community are praising Colin Powell for his endorsement of Barack Obama. I smile at this because I remember on many occasions where I was “shouted” down by friends and family for defending Colin Powel. I have heard terms like “he is a traitor”, “he should have stood up to Bush”, “he calls Bush massa”, “He should have resigned early” etc. One of the reasons I defended Colin Powel was because he was a “moderate”. He was the voice of reason. I believe that Bush would have started the war in Iraq the day after 911 if it were not for Colin Powell. I think the articles and many books are now showing that he was one of the dissenting voices in the administration. He seemed to be the devils advocate that asked “what if”. The person that said your actions will have a consequence. You need someone like this is on every team. You need someone like this especially in the Republican Party that has ran away from its origins as the party that formed due to its opposition to slavery (I know this may shock many of you). I had other selfish reason for defending him. He was of Jamaican descent. He could have been an advocate for Jamaica and the Caribbean. Imagine having someone who had the ear of the US president who can “mention” the plight of Jamaicans in the Diaspora and at home. We never got this opportunity because many of us shunned him because he was a Republican. We let partisan politics cloud our judgment and we have lost out on the “perfect advocate for Jamaican” during the Bush years.