Like many Americans that voted and supported John Kerry, I am stung by the polling numbers. I knew this was going to be a tough race but I harbored the hope that Kerry would win in a landslide. I saw the lines of people waiting to vote and that hope grew. I thought all of these people were plugged in to the same motivating force that I was. I was wrong for the most part. If you watched the election results as they came in last night you heard the words over and over again "too close to call." If you check the statistics, this is true for many of the states. In some states like Utah for example, Bush won by an overwhelming 71 percent.

Another thing I keep hearing on the television is the words "cultural differences and moral values" as well as differences in "idealogical alignments" as MSNBC is calling it. For a well written, informative article analyzing the statistics of the vote, check out Four years later, voters more deeply divided. Although I must say that I am VERY dissapointed with NBC for being the first to call Florida for Bush, which boggles my mind because there are still over 1 MILLION absentee ballots to be counted and Bush's lead was only by about 300,000, and for calling Ohio for Bush because as Tom Brokaw said this morning, "even if it went to John Kerry it wouldn't make a difference in the outcome anyways." Oh really, Mr Brokaw? It's hard to tell how many true electoral votes go where because the media is not on the same page, there are different counts done by different people. I briefly watched Fox News last night and one of the anchormen discounted the democratic voter registration drive in Florida saying that all of the people registered were probably just "inmates" who said sure I'll vote, I'll sign up. So then Florida has a population of 2 million inmates that couldn't vote? Disgraceful. But expected.

Getting back to the cultural differences in America, I am stunned that there is a country that is less like me and more like President Bush. 11 states voted against gay marriage. Is that what it comes down to? Hating gay people? I understand that there are a lot of people in this country that have religious beliefs and although I consider myself a very spiritual person, my "religion" is not defined by an institution that tells me what I should believe in a cookie cutter type of way. I don't have those same allegiances as many people do. I don't look down on them for having it, but it is hard for me to understand. If we are at such odds on moral issues, maybe it's time we start discussing what those moral issues are. So that I can have a clue where I stand. Because right now, it's lonely here. I look at this country and it feels foreign to me. I don't understand how people can see George W. Bush as a "moral" man.

On the website Mobilization 2004-The Prophetic Justice Principles it gives a list of moral values that were agreed upon by people of faith across different religions. It is worth looking at and then reflecting on, comparing to your own personal beliefs. If we are a nation of religious people than we really have to decide which religion that is and how much of it we want infiltrating our government. As it stands now I am frightened of the reaction fo the world. How will they see Americans now that Bush will be declared the winner? Is there hope? In what? In whom? If the American people have spoken and we are pretty much split down the middle, is civil war far away?

Maybe that big chunk of red in the middle believes in a Bush-Cheney election. Where does that leave the rest of us that find this administration stifling? I am looking at Canada, England, New Zealand, Australia. Maybe it is time for many of us to think of a mass exodus to a new promise land.

Or maybe it's time for a revolution, old school style, circa boston tea party era.

1 Comments:

Hey Scarlet Pimp! Mobile Alabama here!

I just wanna say I am sad with the election results. As you know, I am a registered democrat, but to me Joh Kerry was too flakey. He didn't have that same spark in his style, I think for the most part,americans are weary with hollow promises. Not to say Bush is true to his word...yuck...no way. But I Kerry was way too wishy washy.

I'm really unhappy with my party. No real leaders anymore =(

By  Anonymous, at 7:51 PM  

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