Nov 05 2008

election round-up

So, we have a new president, people! Yay new president smell! And a new White House puppy coming our way which is something we can all get behind!

I cannot speak for everyone but I felt really proud to be an American yesterday and not because the candidate that I voted for won. (On that note, I want to sock people out who say they are proud of America when America agrees with them. That is one of the stupidest things on Earth.) I was proud because voting, which is normally me and the volunteers in an otherwise empty room, was actually crowded with a line snaking around the entire elementary school gym where I vote. I think it took me a total of 45 minutes to vote (I was reading a book so I wasn’t looking at the time). Now where I live a solid 80% of the people on that line were probably voting against Obama, a fact I add because I am reading a lot of negative blog posts saying that all the people on line to vote were Obama people which I don’t think is true.

But it always used to really tick me off when I went to the polls and no one was there. It’s your country people! A lot of us had to fight (women, African Americans, hello!) for the right to vote and you just blow it off. You piss me off.

Well, I should say that you normally piss me off. This year everyone and their mom came out and went to the polls which is the way Democracy is supposed to work. Thank you. Make it a habit, please! I am completely honest when I say that I don’t care if you are voting for the opposite of what I am voting for. I just want you to actually go and vote!

I am really pleased that the election is over because I was really sick of it and I would love to say that everyone will be happy now but by far the most disturbing part of last night is when McCain was giving his speech and his supporters, holding signs that said Country First and We Love America booed the president elect’s name. That was so messed up. If you love America, dipwads, then you support the president regardless of if you voted for him or not. I cannot stand Bush but I wouldn’t freaking boo him. Are you five?

What makes America great is that we are a Democracy. This isn’t some hanging chads nonsense where there is debate over who “really” won. Obama won by an ample margin and, by that Democracy you claim to love so much, that makes him president by will of the majority. Now I know not everyone who supported McCain is like this (I actually just read a really nice post by a die-hard McCain-er who was basically like, “I would have liked McCain as pres better but Obama and his lovely family have my support”) but that kind of stuff is ridiculous. You cannot claim to love the country but selectively decide to only love it when it agrees with you. Jeez! I could rant about this all day. But I won’t, don’t worry.

On another random note, did you know that now that Obama is president, there is now not a single black person in the Senate? Also messed up. However, record numbers of women so I guess its a wash of sorts.

Now, in the aftermath of the election, everyone is reacting differently but there are a few people that are particularly annoying me. These are the people who are all like. . .

OMG! I’m so excited that Obama is president because now he will pay my mortgage and find me a job and end all wars and end racism and make black people rule the world.

Um, no. He is a human being, y’all. He cannot cure all the ills of the world (Oh and before you say it, neither can McCain). I feel like some people are putting him on a pedestal so high that he has no hope of ever meeting their expectations. These people need to calm themselves.

Then there’s these people:

What have they done! They have ruined America. Now we are socialist/Marxism/insert-your-own-ist here. I hope they are satisfied that he will ruin America with his evil ways! I am going to pray so hard for this country I love that Obama is going to ruin.

I am very sorry to report that some of those above were taken word for word from friend’s statuses this morning. My friend reaction is, holy God, lay off the soap operas. A little over dramatic, are we? The one person whose status was about how she was going to pray so hard for the country because she loves her country and her constitution etc etc I read and actually physically laughed out loud at, it was so Drama Queen Extreme.

Let’s be honest, the president doesn’t have that much power. There is no reason to be this dramatic over your backing the wrong horse, people.

The other big problem with this is the whole “What have they done?” aspect. “They”? I think that is the entire problem with America right there. This is not us versus them, people. It’s not you versus me. It’s individual people making their own individual choices about who they think would be the best choice for the country. Sometimes you are going to agree, sometimes not. It’s the will of the majority, not the will of the people you agree with only. If you are thinking us versus them you have already missed the entire point of democracy and should perhaps consider a dictatorship which might be more your speed so no one will disagree with you.

I know this is a long time coming what with the Fox News (and now MSNBC going comically the other direction) and the us/them liberal/conservation Democrat/Republican nonsense but this is all so anti-American I cannot deal with it. When a crazy person carves a “B” in her cheek your reaction should be “LOL crazy person” not “OMG all Republicans are crazy!” By the same token, if some Democratic leaning DJ makes a stupid comment that upsets the Christians or whoever its not “All Liberals are insensitive and hate God” but rather that only that guy is insensitive and hates God. It’s like everyone is gearing up on sides for a war that wouldn’t be happening if people would stop using mob mentality and start acting like one freaking country again.

Everything is part and parcel too. You cannot be against abortion but for gay marriage or you have no political party. It’s stupid.

I really wish we could just get rid of the political party system altogether and just let individuals vote instead of entire parties, but I know we are a long way away from that. I just hate that fact that people on both sides only vote based on the party, not the issues and candidate individually.

As for the people who somehow think we are going to become Socialist, Marxist, Nihilist, whatever, I reserve a particularly large eye roll for you.

So, yeah, there is still a hell of a lot wrong with this country. There is no amount in the world you could pay me to be Obama right now since not only is every wacky skin head in the country going to be after him but he is inheriting one heck of a mess. I don’t just mean the economy and the war and the fact that we are hated abroad but also this division in this country where everyone is either red or blue and no one actually thinks for themselves anymore.

You guys know he wasn’t my top choice for president but, at this point, a little shake up can’t be bad, we are so far down already and I think the fact that he is young and a nice guy will help us greatly in repairing our image. I’m willing to give him a shot.

Besides, if you don’t like what he does in the next four years, we get to start all this stupidity again in 2012.

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