Raising the Flag

It's finally over.  The U.S. elections are done, and we can now all go on with our lives.  Thank God.

Even though America is as divided as ever, we have some things to be thankful for:

1.  120 million people voted!  That's the highest voter turnout since 1968, according to the AP.  For the States, a country with one of the lowest voter turnouts in the industrialized world, this is amazing.  And it's a good sign that people actually want to participate in the outmoded political porcess the country has.

2. Election Day didn't get too ugly.  2000 was rife with mistakes, bad planning, and blacks being obstructed from voting in Florida.  This election had problems, and still was pretty embarrassing relative to other First World countries, but still went a lot smoother than last time.  Who wanted another court battle?  Not me.

3. Both candidates were gracious about the result, and both insisted that the country needed to heal the divisiveness that has grown over the past 2 years.  This was a good sign.  Whether you believe it or not is up to you.  I'm hoping that republicans, democrats and non-partisans will go back to being able to have civil conversations without wanting to strangle each other. 

As you can imagine, reaction in South Africa (and in many other countries) was disbelief and anger.  There were some exceptions, like Italy, Russia, and Latin America.  I don't really understand why.  Ever since I got here, I've been telling people that Bush was going to get re-elected.  I even explained the reasons. 

He's an incumbent with a war going on, so you'd have to be pretty damn impressive opposition to oust him.  People are scared, and he provides them with a sense of security (whether justified or not).  His government, through the Patriot Act and near-censorship in the media, has created an environment of domestic fear.  In terms of choosing leaders, the United States isn't much different from anyplace else.  It's a popularity contest. 

Most importantly, his opponent was thoroughly unconvincing.  Some of my liberal friends claimed that Kerry did take solid stands on issues, but that they were being drowned out by media hype and talk of terror.  That may be true, but the bottom line is that few people, either in the U.S. or abroad, knew what Kerry stood for.  I've never been a hardcore Kerry supporter for that reason; I wanted him to win because I don't like the path the country is headed down.  I thought he could correct some of Bush's mistakes -- particularly the international ones.  In the end, Kerry was exactly what I called him two weeks ago: a cardboard cut-out.  And that's a big reason that he lost.

Oh, and here's another reason. 

What's that?  You still can't believe it?  Wake the fuck up.  I don't like Bush, but there have been plenty of elected leaders over the years possessing the same flaws, and worse, in other countries -- Russia being a prime example.  Yes, it's scarier because he runs the most powerful country in the world.  But he's George Bush, not Satan.  He's a shitty president -- no more, and no less.  The country has survived worse.  We just have to live with it for a while longer and hope he doesn't continue to screw things up massively. 

For those people, whoever they are, who are horrified that Bush won again and dread the consequences, I suggest you get over it.  Sure, it's disappointing.  But I'm not going to let this event paralyze me into a stunned stupor, and neither should you.  There's no use crying over spilled milk.  Get up, brush the dirt off your shoulders and move on.  I was mentally ready; I have faith that things can get better no matter what, and I leave it in God's hands.  If you can't do that, well, sucks to be you.  It's a personal chioce, but I've found that it makes life easier for me.

I've heard plenty of comments over the past two years from people saying things like "I'm gonna leave the country!"  I've heard it from random people that I barely know, starting about the time Bush invaded Iraq.  Most of them -- at least, my close friends -- were joking.  But, amazingly, some people aren't.  My friend Andrew (who is left-leaning, by the way) brough this up to me a couple of weeks ago, when I was bitching about how hard it is to live in South Africa.  He said, "Don't you appreciate America so much more now?  People who say they are going to leave the country are ridiculous." 

I couldn't agree more.  To me, America is the greatest place to live in the world.  Sure, it has some flaws.  Sure, the president sucks.  But it's probably the cheapest developed country to live in.  The quality of life is possibly the highest of any country in the world.  You can experience a vast array of people and cultures.  The natural beauty is almost unsurpassed by anyplace else.  In most places, you can walk down the street any time of day and feel safe.  The public works actually work.  It's one of the few countries where you can make something from nothing, and millions of people go there every year chasing that dream.  If you don't like it, then bail already.  And don't let the door hit your ass on the way out. 

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