Where's the hope?

An acquaintance works for the Salvation Army in the Tenderloin, San Francisco's densely packed skid-row-cum-immigrant-tenement-housing-cum-drug-market and human dumping ground, where culture and life struggle against urban neglect. At this season, she is registering families to receive toys for their kids at Christmas.

This is San Francisco -- they are NOT questioning the immigration status of the families, as has been charged about the charity in Houston.

But she reports a huge change among the African-American folks she interacts with (she's Black herself.)

Last year they'd come in. Whatever it was about, the talk would always go round to Obama. They were still on the streets, but Obama was in. Obama meant things would get fixed.

Now it's so different. I think they are in denial. Or afraid they'll feel ashamed for their guy.

The programs get cut and cut. And they never mention Obama anymore, just never.

No wonder Democrats are beginning to wonder where their voters went. There are hurts out there that go far deeper than a smaller disability check or an over-crowded food pantry. And those hurts fester.***UPDATE: Five Thirty Eight highlights a poll that suggests this anecdote may illustrate a widespread reality.

The racial demographics, however, are perhaps even more striking. Whereas 68 percent of white voters told Research 2000 they were definitely or probably planning to vote in 2010, just 33 percent of black voters did.

Although whites have almost always turned out at greater rates than blacks, the racial gap has never been nearly that large, and indeed was at its smallest-ever levels in 2008 with Barack Obama on the ballot.

That's a lot of pain.