The View from the Meadow
Observations of the Passing Scene
Political and Social Commentary by Dave Satre
Election 2004 (a day that may live in infamy)
November 2nd, 2004 A normal day by any other means, but a critical day in America’s future. With the country heading in so many negative directions and the current president leading the way, it may have been far more critical to the future of America and the world to throw Bush out of the White House than most people believe.
The last-minute polls showed this election as an absolute dead heat: Kerry apparently had as much of a chance of winning as Bush. In watching the early election results on television, a couple of hours before the polls closed here on the West Coast, Bush claimed an early lead in the East Coast results. He never lost that lead.
As the evening progressed state after state on the election calendar displayed by the TV networks was filled in with the color red, representing a Republican win. Kerry lagged behind for most of the evening but closed the gap late at night. Few states went Democratic, but they turned out to be the states John Sperling predicted in his book The Great Divide: the Retros against the Metros. The entire West Coast eventually went Democratic although, since their polls didn’t close until three hours after those on the East Coast, the results didn’t come in until late.
In the end, after Florida had dashed most hopes by going for Bush, the count hinged on Ohio, which was having trouble counting all of its votes. However, the projections showed Bush the winner in the state, although Kerry refused to concede and the nation went to bed (3 o’clock in the morning for East Coasters) not sure who won the election. But the die was cast --- Bush was the winner.
In the morning a huge, swirling, black cloud enveloped Silicon valley in darkness, lightning crackled across the crumbling black sky and booming thunder echoed between the mountain walls before a deluge of cold, wet rain poured upon the people. The Gloom of Sarong closing in for perhaps decades or even centuries of dread for the trodden peoples of the land?
Nah. It rained hard for a short while in some areas, barely wet the ground at our house, and the sun broke through frequently toward the end of the day. Perhaps things won’t be as bad as they seem.
Kerry was finally forced to concede the election when it turned out that he needed more votes to win than there were left to count in Ohio. By the time Bush made his acceptance speech he seemed past the point of elation and was almost cruel in his attitude. Swollen by the power of an election that gave the Republicans clear control of both houses of Congress, Bush claimed this election gave him a mandate to govern the way he sees fit --- a truly scary thought for all thinking people.
The final election map shows almost the entire country in red, with the West Coast (California, Oregon and Washington) being marked in blue and the top right corner of the country joining them (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine). If only Ohio and Indiana had joined them --- John Kerry would be the president of the United States.
John Sperling is right in his theory. If the Democrats are able to unite this entire voting block, including Ohio and Indiana, they can take back the White House in 2008. The thinking people of this country actually outnumber the ideologues, but because of their intellectual curiosity they tend to resist such hard-line organization. However, it will be absolutely necessary if we are to place someone in the White House who is more than a faith-based, hard-headed Evangelist who cannot see beyond the preachings of their leaders.
Unfortunately, this will leave the country split right down the middle. Bush won with a popular majority of just 51 percent. The electoral college vote was 286 to 252 in favor of Bush. At a time when we truly need to unite to keep America strong we are actually fractured right down the middle. While the European Union quietly passes us by in both political and economic strength we Americans will be quibbling over relatively minor social and moral issues that we will never agree on. Outside of the fear of terrorism, which the Bush Regime has actually inflamed, we don’t seem to see the real dangers coming.
My feelings range from severe disappointment to outright fear. Despite the fact that this president seems to be leading the country right into the toilet the majority of the people don’t seem to care. And Karl Rove is in position to realize his dream of consolidating a Republican majority for a generation to come.
This was not a landslide. It was not a mandate by any means. But, Bush and company now have the power to implement their long-range goals, which will include further destruction of environmental laws, more tax cuts for the rich and corporations, the passing of an energy bill which favors Bush’s cronies in the petroleum and energy industries, more money squandered in Iraq and on the military industry, and further alienation from our allies and the other nations of the world, both militarily and economically.
The Republicans may be rejoicing, but the rest of the world is looking at Americans as a bunch of idiots. While the country still enjoys the respect and favor of most Europeans, they fear Bush. If they had been able to vote in this election over 80 percent of them would have voted for anybody but Bush.
Will Americans find themselves in this same position four years from now --- hopelessly divided between ideologue neo-conservatives and everybody else? Will we still be dependent upon the Democratic Party as the only possible savior in this situation?
Most likely. The third party concept is not ready for implementation in this country, despite the fact that it is sorely needed.
The Democrats need to get in gear. And this means now. The Republicans have already started --- Karl Rove’s concept of the “continuous campaign” continues.
The Democrats need to find a leader, a champion for the cause. A man --- no, this will not be the time to run a woman (and especially Hillary) for president, we can’t afford the extra baggage of attempting to elect the first woman president at this time, no matter how good an idea it may be --- who is electable according to the standards currently employed by the voters, which unfortunately seem to indicate good looks and personality trump any sort of intelligence and experience.
However, this candidate must have leadership qualities, intelligence, moral integrity and the will to lead the fight against the Republicans not only in four years but right now as we enter the second term of the Bush Regime. He must be ready to challenge the Republicans continuously on every issue and this must be done from outside the Congress. Attempting change from within the Congress will meet with extreme resistance. The Republicans can be expected to be drunk with power and righteous as well. “Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.” (P.J. O’Rourke)
The Democratic party and its supporters will need to fund this effort. This means combating the president’s bully pulpit and the media’s tendency to broadcast whatever he says on a daily basis. The Bush Regime employs this advantage to manipulate public opinion through “the word of the day”, a tactic commonly applied in the days of communism. The public sees Bush each and every day --- a political opponent generally only has a few months of campaigning to overcome this tremendous advantage.
So, the Democrats need to start now. They need to find this leader immediately, although I don’t know who he will be or where they will find him. This country is sorely in need of competent leaders. If they exist, they should have surfaced by now and we would know who they are. It was this situation that put George Bush in the White House in the first place.
This is an enormous task. It will require outstanding organizational skills, sufficient financing from private sources --- including the Internet, coordination with the media, advertising campaigns, etc. It will require continuous contesting of the hard right agenda on behalf of the Americans who don’t agree with the Bush Regime’s policies.
Americans need to become active in politics once again, as they were in the sixties and seventies when they united to end the draft and the Vietnam War. The people must rise above the mindless pap they are being fed by the news and entertainment media, get out of their comfortable sofas and get involved. They need to become aware of what is actually occurring in Washington and discard their outdated concepts of politics and the presidency. We need to unite to battle more than terrorism --- there is an enemy within us that may prove far more dangerous to the American way of life.
Is this the guy now responsible for GW being in the White House?
Throw
the Bums Out! |
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