And So It Goes

You might think that given the results of this election night I am going to let loose with a rant about conservatives and Republicans retaking the first branch of government. You would be wrong. There's not much to say that hasn't already been said on these pages regarding how I feel about most Republican policies and the impact they have on our society, no sense beating a dead elephant.

I'm a firm believer in fighting for what you believe in, for casting your vote based on those beliefs, and then in accepting the results however they end up. The thing about democracy is that the people get to speak, and apparently they have spoken and the message has been received. Yet I take heart in this simple fact, that in politics as in life, things don't remain static.

Two years ago liberals like myself were fired up in anticipation of a new era, and we envisioned policies being implemented that were in accord with our values. I imagine that conservatives must feel that way now, hopeful that the policies they support will win the day now that their party is back in power. But as surely as time moves forward, as certainly as every moment brings us change, even in their triumph the seeds of their demise are being sown.

With very little doubt I can predict that the Republicans elected tonight will not fail to disappoint the partisans on the right, and two years from now when it matters more many who are fired up now will be as disappointed and disillusioned as those on the left are now. For this simple reason, it seems highly improbable if not impossible that one of the two parties as they are currently constituted will ever hold power for long, and given the state of each I can't see that as a bad thing altogether.

The bigger question for me is how long it will take my fellow Americans to shed once and for all the illusion of choice that is presented us, and demand a true choice, not to mention campaigns that focus on issues that actually impact our lives. Perhaps soon, perhaps not, but so long as we have an electoral system and a republican democracy, there is at least in theory a chance that we the people will see reason triumph.

In the meantime, I'll get up and go to work in the morning, I'll still come home to a wonderful family, I'll still enjoy the beauty of a desert sunset at the end of it all, I'll still sleep in the comfort of a warm bed with a roof over my head and food on the table, and kids who are healthy and happy, and take solace in the knowledge that the woman I have loved for 20 years is still willing to put up with me. I'll still root for the Raiders on Sunday, and hold out hope that next year will be the year for the Dodgers. I'll still have cold Guiness in the fridge and a good bottle of vodka in the freezer, I'll continue to read great literature and listen to great music. In short, no matter who controls what political structures, life goes on, what goes up comes down, what once was no longer is but often becomes again. And so it goes.