Election thoughts

Well, I’m glad that’s over.

Congratulations to President-Elect Obama. He seems like a smart guy, so I hope he’s smart enough to govern from a more centrist position than some of his background might indicate. (Remember, I’m as centrist as they come, according to those I’m-sure-entirely-accurate quizzes you can take.) We’ll see.

It’d be nice to think this will squelch some of the deranged nuttiness that’s been coming from the left side of the political spectrum recently (overheard recently: “If Obama loses there’ll be blood in the streets! And that’s what we need! Blood in the streets!” followed closely thereafter by the claim that “It’s scary! Bush has established a private militia!”, though I didn’t hear exactly what he was expected to do with it), but I suppose that’s too much to ask.

I hope the right side of the spectrum doesn’t descend fully into a similar derangement over the next four years, but I suspect that’s too much to ask, as well, political animals being what they are. (Although the right-leaning sites I visit generally were very gracious in defeat last night…far more so than the left-leaning ones were in 2004. Which is why I tend to read [selected] right-leaning sites instead of left-leaning ones [although I read those, too]: I find the level of discourse more civil.)

To my fellow Canadians: try to be just a little less condescending (“The Americans have finally come to their senses!”) and sanctimonious: it sometimes seems Not Being American–along with socialized medicine, however badly it operates–is all that defines some people’s Canadianness.

And to the more fervant Obama supporters: please remember, he’s a politician, not the Messiah, and his election, while significant, is not the most important event in all of human history.

Supporting a politician is one thing: falling down and worshipping at his feet is something else, something…icky.

Best thing about Obama’s win: it’s made a lot of friends and colleagues of mine in the literary and acting communities very happy today. That’s worth a lot right there.

Permanent link to this article: https://edwardwillett.com/2008/11/election-thoughts/

1 comment

    • Janet on November 6, 2008 at 4:13 am
    • Reply

    Well said.

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