More reactions.

I'm kind of collecting reasoned reactions from around the blogosphere.  DarwinCatholic has one worth highlighting for its thoughtfulness.  I especially agree with his admonitions to the GOP:

There is still a constituency (even in "blue" states) for social conservatism, but a significant number of those who hold traditional views on social issues are Hispanic or African American. The GOP would be especially wise to find a way to appeal to socially conservative Hispanics. The best way of doing this would probably be getting behind an agenda of massively simplifying the immigration process, increasing immigration quotas (especially for Central and South America), and at then enforcing the law rigorously.

Conservatives need to find a way to seem like they care (and the amounts of time and money conservatives put into social issues show that they do care) without advocating big government solutions to local problems. Bush simply went the big government route, with programs like No Child Left Behind and the Prescription Drug Benefit. What we need is instead an approach to a range of "safety net" issues which, like charter school and vouchers have done for education, can be a national issue yet a force towards localization.

As an aside, on this other line:

I must admit, as a 29-year-old who grew up in the working class suburbs of Los Angeles, I've figured for basically all my life that it's simply a matter of time till we had our first black president, our first hispanic president, our first female president, etc. 

I'm 34 and I've always figured the same way.    I think it's really important, though, to acknowledge that older Americans have a longer experience of relative color-sensitivity and a shorter experience of relative color-blindness.   When you expect discrimination, you have different inputs into your moral calculus.  (My own very liberal mom, who came of age in the mid-60s, told me once that interracial marriage was a bad idea, because society would not treat the children of those marriages justly.)  And there's a difference between "figuring it's simply a matter of time" and "expecting to see it in your own lifetime."  I suspect that a lot of the celebration has to do with the latter.  I mean, it's simply a matter of time till the next New Year's Eve or till my tenth wedding anniversary, but I'll still raise a glass to toast each when it comes.