I like President Obama and feel like I've been candid about that sentiment. I didn't even dislike Mitt Romney; I just disliked what he became when running for President. The Republican Party has been a mess for several years and the primary season forced Romney to embrace a reality of doom and gloom and trying to defend everything that was good about him (universal healthcare for his state, his success at Bain Capital, the fact that he was rich and good with his money). Even though I'm not a Democrat, I feel like they are at least trying to compromise and move forward. The Republicans have offered nothing but obstruction. My choice to vote for Obama really boiled down to something that simple. So that is that as far as the politics of the election.
The most interesting part of the entire process was the collision course of two entirely different views of reality. One side, pretty much half of the country, dismissed fact after fact and insisted reality was based on "feeling". Trickle Down Economics feels like it should work despite every fact that shows it hasn't. Climate Change feels like a hoax and government conspiracy and 95% of the scientists on the planet are on their payroll. It feels like the various rights of women, ranging from their equality in the workplace to their right to control their own body, should be granted by old white guys. It feels like Karl Rove and Dick Morris and Rush Limbaugh should know what they're talking about when it comes to elections and the "effeminate" Nate Silver must be in the tank for the left because he believes in skewed polling. It feels like the government should be smaller and stay out of our lives until disaster strikes and we want the government to step up and save the day.
About three o'clock on election day the first information was released: the exit polling data. It seemed everyone was reporting high turnout for BOTH sides. This wasn't the expected reality of half of the country. They had been promised the left wasn't as excited to vote as those on the right were. They were informed many of the people that voted for Obama in 2008 were disgruntled and weren't going to vote for him again. They were told the younger vote wouldn't turn out this election. They were instructed on the mathematics of the independent voter and how it favored a Romney victory in a landslide. They were shown electoral maps with states painted red even though Obama lead in nearly every swing state. They were given bogus predictions about the election and not one person ever foresaw a blowout win by Obama.
By four thirty in the afternoon I was extremely confident Obama had won the election and was getting giddy about the prospect of a triple digit win. At 4:50pm I posted to my Facebook wall, "49-3. Holy Shit. (wink, wink)". At this time Obama had only gathered three electoral votes to Romney's 49. By five thirty I was extremely confident Obama was on his way to 332. Florida seemed in the bag with the returns that were still out at that time. Virginia was a little scary to me but the scenario was nearly a carbon copy of that in Florida with the only remaining returns coming from huge Obama areas. Anyone that had communications with me during this time frame can testify to my outlook at that time. One text I received from a person very close to me commented about how they were surprised how much red they were seeing and how well Romney was doing. I texted back and explained the election was over and Obama was going to win handily. My favorite text of the evening followed: "What channel are you watching?"
Now I'm going to open up to you more than I normally do. Sure, I share a lot of ideas and jot down a lot of words talking about different things, but I don't normally get too personal with you about things that are close to me. My motivation is almost always to offer sanity and some form of entertainment for anyone that might want to read my stuff. My hope is to prod those that don't think they need prodding and to provide reassurance to those that must feel like they are alone at times and let them know there are others out there in the sea of chaos. Occasionally I will comment in a tongue-in-cheek way and remind my viewers that I have removed myself for pulling for an outcome in regard to the plight of humanity. But the truth is, this is really where I land on most issues. It's not because I'm callus or don't believe love is the answer; it's because it works for me. It's much more peaceful and quiet this way. I have very good friends that root for outcomes and it seems draining to me on the outside looking in. On top of that, it seems pointless. None of this means I abandon being the best person I can be or caring about my fellow brothers. It just means I go with it and speak my piece and enjoy the breeze whichever way it may blow.
Having stated all of that, I can't deny my interest in the outcome of this election. A different result would have affected me at some level. I could have easily swallowed the pill if it were simply accepting Romney as the President. I wouldn't have been devastated by the thought of Mitt Romney running the country like many on the right seem to be by another four years of Obama. I wasn't under the impression our country would fail and socialism would take over if Romney won to begin with. I wasn't under the impression our military would be surpassed by Russia or China or Iran if Romney won. I wasn't under the impression businesses across the country would go under if Romney won. So even though I have different ideas about which direction to go, I wouldn't have been unable to continue going about my normal day to day business if Romney was my President.
However, what would have been very different would be the reality I would have to live in. A reality where facts no longer mattered. A reality where models that successfully predict the likelihood of outcomes are viewed as witchcraft. A reality where religious dogma determined the liberty of an individual and their right to pursue their own happiness. A reality where people can get air time on television and spout nonsense and lies and gut feelings and that trumps truth. A reality where science and faith are on equal footing. A reality that doesn't cherish and rely on compromise when coexisting with one another. A reality that adopts "my way or the highway" as its motto. A reality that would rather demonize than discuss. A reality that is at odds with reality.
For my own personal reasons I found myself really pulling for an outcome. I work so hard to decipher the hidden truths that seem to willfully evade us. I use the best models known to me to help me on my endeavor. I vigorously crunch my own numbers into my own personal happiness model and enjoy the results. Things aren't perfect in the world because of this. Nor are they perfect with my country, the things around me, or even me. But I maintain sanity and happiness a sufficient amount of the time and this means everything to me. You can take everything in my life (everything I have, I do, I am) and walk it right back down to that principle of maintaining harmony.
This election seemed to threaten my reality in some way. I'm sure I would have been able to adapt but I didn't feel the need. I can't imagine my adaptation wouldn't involve a more cynical view of humanity and a further retreat from cheering for the home team. I'm relieved I didn't have to swallow that pill.
Four years ago I found myself teary-eyed on election night. The positive energy, people coming out onto the streets, huge crowds gathering to watch the new President speak, the making of history, it all seemed overwhelming to me. I honestly didn't think I could feel anything like that from this election, even if Obama won again. I was wrong.
Even though the reasons weren't the same, the feeling of being overwhelmed with joy was the same. And even though most of the time I truly don't root for outcomes, I can't help but feel a positive vibe when humanity does the right thing. It still feels good to experience that energy. We didn't do the right thing simply because we reelected our president. We did the right thing because we validated this reality. We can now go forward using the best models we have discovered to this point and don't have to adopt new ones that are pulled from the asses of asses.
No comments:
Post a Comment