Rather than simply assume that Obama is unable to survive untethered to a teleprompter, we have to at least consider that Obama meant what he said, and that he genuinely believes the country to be not only badly broken, but unmoored from its essential nature: "No longer what it could be. What it once was." It is the sort of critique that cannot be classified with a simple rejection of George Bush and his policies or even of the general conservative direction the country has been moving in since 1968 and especially since 1980.

Obama's verdict --delivered in a few words to a very young American-- is that America has gone radically wrong.

And that it will require radical change.

Perhaps we had an unscripted moment of candor, a declaration from the most radical nominee of a major party in history that he is not about a gentle turning towards the left, or even a major shift in legislative priorities or security policy.

Let's take Obama at his word to a child: If he is elected, Obama sees his job as reshaping America in a fundamental way.

In a radical way.