Election Observations in Real-Time...
...from the standpoint of a Really Ignorant White Guy...
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...and so it's come down to this...Election Night is upon us. I was watching the election returns roll in, so I wanted to jot some things down here in order to attempt to achieve a sort-of 'real time' type of effect...

As I type this, the Election Returns show that Barack Obama is Leading John McCain by a margin of 207-135, in terms of Electoral Votes tallied so far (at about 7:30pm on Election night). "It ain't over 'till it's over", Yogi Berra once said...and true to form, the state of Florida is holding out on us...they haven't reported in yet, although all the other states on the eastern seaboard have been accounted for.

If Barack Obama wins this election, several things, in my estimation, put him over the top. He's carried himself with an easy sort of grace throughout the trials and tribulations of this fairly horrific Prezzidential campaign. To my eyes, Obama was "nice" throughout the whole thing, no matter how nasty the McCain campaign became. He showed respect and deference to Mr. McCain, which accommodates the part of me that believes one should respect his elders. Yet, Obama was clear and definite about the things he wanted to do, and has already shown us that he wants to be surrounded by qualified people; his selection of Joe Biden, a grizzled political veteran, will (hopefully) enable his administration to function with (again, hopefully) smoothness and gracefulness in dealing with all the things Congress can throw at a Prezzidential administration.



If John McCain loses this election, (and he certainly seems destined to), there are several things to blame. First of all, McCain is an Old-Guard guy who's a Republican, who wants to be elected Prezzident, who would have to follow a soon-to-be Former Prezzident who just happens to be one of the Worst Prezzidents This Country Has Ever Had. McCain came out swingin' in the debates; he was throwing so much stuff out there that I was afraid Obama wouldn't be able to land any punches of his own. In the end, McCain appeared to hope that something, anything, would "stick" in his numerous diatribes against Obama. It got so bad that McCain had to actually come out and tell Us All that we didn't need to be afraid of Obama, because Obama is not an 'Arab', after all, and he basically had to say that his opponent was a nice guy. Talk about a strategy that backfired. There was a sort of simmering sense of Desperation in McCain's campaign...say something, do anything to get elected. I won't mention Sarah Palin, his extremely dubious choice as running mate; for that, you can read the post below this one.
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...at around 8pm, I paused to look up from the computer; that was when the California returns had just come in...and, Barack Obama had just become President-Elect...so I began typing again:

Barack Obama has just now been projected to be The Next Prezzident of the United States of America, as of 8:00pm PST. It just happened; I was watching MSNBC as it happened. It looks like, right now, at this very moment, as if we're all entering a new age. We have a Black President-Elect. We now have a President-Elect that is younger than ME, which is a first. And it looks like The Torch Has Just Been Passed, from something "known" to something "unknown". Things have been shaken up. I really hope that, under an Obama administration, that we, as a nation, can Get It Together. Maybe Barack Obama is a man for these times. All he, as Prezzident, has to do is show us that he CARES about us; show some compassion, concern and feeling, and be a CONSCIENTIOUS President. That's all I want. If his heart is in the right place, and I think and hope it is, he just might be a good leader. So, there it is...we have leapt off the cliff and into The Great Unknown. There Is Hope. I hope This works.
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Finally, not that my viewpoints are all that essential, but I wanted to write a little about myself, and how I, an Ignorant White Person, can try to relate to this occasion, upon seeing History made this evening...

I grew up in a place where there were almost No Black People. I was born in 1954; the first time I had ever spoken to a black person was when I was in Junior College in 1974. I'd seen blacks in Rock Groups, in some Movies, on "The Jeffersons" (an old TV sitcom), and of course, on some major league baseball teams and in the National Football League. If anyone is Racially Ignorant, It's ME. But for some reason, I always took offense whenever I heard someone utter race-baiting comments...certainly all the world's races have their inherent differences, but we're ALL people with our various incongruities, emotions, hopes and dreams, and in God's eyes, we're all EQUAL. I hope we can all just GET ALONG. Can we? This is really a Momentous time. I have seen History Made tonight. I just saw Jesse Jackson on TV, with Tears In His Eyes. As much as I've been alienated by Jesse Jackson's polarity, I can appreciate the struggles he and other Blacks have suffered through the ages; whether black, white, red, or whatever, our views and passions are deeply ingrained, and in spite of that, maybe this can be a Time of Unity for ALL of us.
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I've written a lot of crap in this blog, maligning politicians and the things they do; I've become bitter and delusioned with the Entire Political Process, and I am STILL skeptical of Everything that comes out of Washington, D.C. But at times like this, there's always hope. Do I dare dream? I think we all hoped for the best when George W. Bush first became Prezzident. And now, on the eve of another new Prezzidency, we can all hope once again. So here we go...into a new era...