November 3, 2008
noah's ark vs. the moral arc
11/3/08
And so we have made it to Election Day.
When I was a little kid, my Uncle Chuck used to visit, and he'd tell stories of his days in the Marines, and subsequently protesting the war in Vietnam. He was on several government bad-guy lists, wrote an anti-war underground newspaper in the Bay Area, and got so despondent after the 1972 election that he found a place in British Columbia to move. Fortunately for us, some land opened up outside Telluride (way before it became "Telluride") and he built a house, worked the fields, and became that uncle that changes your perspective on everything.
He was always something of a Buddha, very equanimous about all subjects, but when he talked about Nixon, veins would bulge on his forehead, and he got genuinely scary. He loathed that man so much you could feel the bile rising across the room. As kids, we were always like "geez, Uncle Chuck, chill out!"
And now I know: I became my Uncle Chuck. I turned into the guy who is so perpetually angry at a political philosophy that I risk not being understood by a future generation who doesn't understand – and further, doesn't care – about my overwrought hissy-fits. They will not know the visceral reaction of seeing a venal numbskull like Sarah Palin call Barack Obama a terrorist and distinguish "real America" from the one I live in. They won't feel any of the rage I feel when John McCain constantly questions Obama's patriotism. These questions will have been settled.
And so I will try to salvage my wits, and make it simple for them: that we lived in interesting times, and nothing was for certain, but I was honored to check the box next to the first African American with a fantastic shot at running the country. We think the madness may be abating; the tide is coming in, the falcon – left for dead – returns to the falconer.
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and if you have any thoughts from your polling center, please share!
Amen Ian
What a sweet boy you were - of course that boy is still there just below the skin - he is the best part of you
All the best
Rob
Well, I never got around to voting early (new job, new baby, new house, new city, new nanny, etc.), and as a result, I ended up having to drive about an hour and a half to my original polling site to vote today. Fully expecting a long-ass line, I brought some reading material for work. Imagine my suprise when I walked into Jones Dairy Elementary in Wake Forest, NC, voted and left - all within 17 minutes. Kudos to Wake County - they had their shit together, opened up dozens of extra polling sites, had plenty of volunteers, booths, etc. Now I'm anxious to see the results!
I had heard there were lines snaking from our local polling place when it opened at 7 am. When I strolled in at 8:15 am, there was no one ahead of me. Voting took me all of five minutes, max. Yay.
Drawing a prosaic line with a black marker on a piece of paper did not seem momentous enough to honor the significance of this presidential election (and my vote for Obama). I drew over the connecting line a few times to make sure it was definite and unmistakable. Now comes the waiting.
Whoever is elected, I pray that US citizens can come together for our country and our children's future. The red/blue dichotomy isn't working so well.
This is family fact check.org -- Chuck was in the USAF, and was one of the Air Force guys punished for marching in a Viet Nam War Moratorium Parade.
He didn't build the house on Wilson Mountain that they lived in, though they built an amazing house 50 yards away that Kent & Patty -- their partners in their back to the land adventure.
I could tell stories, but they'd be off topic for this entry ;-)
i waited a half hour to vote this morning in arizona. (i just moved here from maryland last month just in time to register to vote)
the two people behind me were talking about how obama is nothing more than a sociali$t (had to spell it that way as i was getting blocked for questionable content) ...bla bla bla. i turned around to look at them to let them know i heard them - hoping they would shut up but they continued on....how is this country going to come together with a sociali$t spreading the wealth, and who really knows who obama is...bla bla bla.
i flagged one of the poll monitors and said "isn't talking about the candidates prohibited at the polling place?" (this being a state where you can't wear a political t shirt or whatnot to the polls) he said yes and the guy behind me then piped up and said he wasn't talking about politics he was just commenting that the lines were long. (whatever) the woman said she thought it was a free country! they were admonished by the poll worker to not discuss candidates.
after he walked away the woman said to me "hey if you don't like what we are saying don't listen!" i then calmly told her that she was free to vote for the candidate of her choice but that if she wants to discuss the candidates with her friend she needs to leave the line and go where the signs are out on the street. she huffed and puffed and left the line! amazing.
i of course stood there for an additional twenty minutes or so to get to the front of the line. when i finished voting i took an extra look at my ballot and realized that regardless of the outcome today will be a day that i remember forever.
here's to an early night. and for those of you in california please vote no on 8.
"Whoever is elected, I pray that US citizens can come together for our country and our children's future. The red/blue dichotomy isn't working so well."
Well said, Anne!
Unsurprisingly excellent turnout here in Brooklyn. I waited about an hour and a half. May the best man win; I will support him, whoever he is.
I took my 6-year old son with me to vote on our way to drop him off at school. It took me longer to get out of the parking lot than it did to verify my address, get my ticket, wait in the small line, and complete the touch screen items. My son got to press the final, big red "vote" button so that he can say he had a part in what I assume will be a historical day.
Ballot #3 at St Matt's AME Church in Raleigh!
drizzle, hell.
now, I need to wait and see if I will have to go out and buy a speedo before the inauguration...
I worked the "polls" at my son's elementary school for 2 hours this morning. We count the ballots as we go. I predict a 60-40 margin of victory for obama. The lady in charge said the kids usually get it right.
The closer and more exciting ballot was between ice cream sandwiches and ice cream popsicles as the 30000 AR point reward party.
Voted early a week ago on a sunny Saturday fall afternoon in downtown Wichita. I know Obama won't win Kansas but I still felt happier about my vote than any I've cast in the preceding five Presidential elections.
I took my daughter Bailey with me to vote early last Wednesday night and cast a vote for Barack Obama. We waited over an hour and a half, and I hope she'll remember when she's older the lesson I hoped to teach her: voting is a right, a responsibility and a gift.
Here in Vienna, VA it was easy. But that was because I was home sick so I went at 2:30 in the afternoon. I was aiming to miss the pre-work, lunchtime, and after-work rushes and I did. I didn't have to wait AT ALL. Now I'm just sitting here biting my nails!
Great post Ian. I didn't have an uncle Chuck, but I did have my dad. Now I have my husband who has been so anxious about this election that he hasn't slept through the night in weeks!
Writing from the Obama Headquarters in Chapel Hill--the old Breadmen's for those of you Tar Heels--in the middle of a bit of last-minute phone banking. Got up at 5:30 am to poll-watch in Hillsborough with my pal Ali--along with 2 other Obama volunteers, and alongside a surprisingly friendly McCain volunteer, we handed out sample ballots in a heavily Republican area. My layman's assessment: close to half the voters went Democratic, which surprised me--I was expecting less. It was gratifying to see the awkward gaggle of Obama supporters show up at this old-fashioned white country church to vote.
No interfering shenanigans as far as I could see--there's been steady rain all day--don't know how that might affect turnout, but a SHIT TON of folks have voted early in NC. I am planning to hula hoop to entertain long voting lines with my blinky LED hoop--hoping the rain recedes enough to make that possible!!!
Now that's a great omen---Obama HQ in the old Breadmen's. Thanks Annie for the warm fuzzy. I feel full now, and no results are even in yet.
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=1109985&l=5bf1f&id=713193058
me in my election garb...i got asked to stop electioneering, and i had to cover my t-shirt up. WOOHOO!
I voted here in Park Slope and when I got there at five-freakin-thirty, there were probably forty people ahead of us. When we finished voting and left at 6:10, there were probably a couple hundred people in line.
I love, love, love politics, and I love to vote, but I have never been more excited about an election. I'm so full of emotion I thought I would leave my body at work today. I'm so grateful to be home in my pajamas watching the returns.
Happy Election Day!
I have only read your writings in the GWB era. Looking forward to moving on.
NC Senate Race--called for Kay Hagan!
Barack Obama is the President-Elect of the United States of America
HOLY COW!!!
YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great Day! I wanted Lillie-Anne (my 6yr old) to be a part of the first Presidential Election she will remember, so we volunteered to canvas in Atlanta. We were sent to the Baker Rd. headquarters where we received our map and address lists. She was a little disappointed that there were no kids games at the headquarters.?!? They had stickers and it doesn't get much better than that for a six year old. When we hit the street, she started to get excited. I had to hold her back from jumping up collapsed porches to knock on doors. (We were very careful and worked with a Mom and her 13 yr old son.) As we finished with an apartment complex, a big man with a warm smile thanked us for coming by. His smile, all but erased the effect of his...well, intimidating visage. He walked with us as we crossed the street. "Y'all are down with the team. You know, folks would call this a bad neighborhood. It's a good thing your doing. Looks like you know what you're doing...you know as long as you don't show any fear." I explained that we were more afraid of Sarah Palin than we were his neighborhood. He thanked us again as we crossed the street, saying "You know this is a special election for me. Being a convicted felon, it took a while for me get back my right to vote. It's been a long time and I get to vote for Obama." Lillie-Anne looked up at him when we reached the other side of the street and asked him a direct question. "Um, excuse me, Why are all the sofas on the side walk and over there? We found a T.V. on the sidewalk over there." He smiled, and reminded us to finish before it got dark. I'm glad my child saw a man, not a black man. I'm glad she is powerfully observant and engaged,yet she never responded negatively to a side of life she had never seen. I hope it will be a day she remembers and a side of life she never forgets.
I ran for the State House as a Libertarian here in Caldwell County, western NC. Got 8% of the vote, which was the highwater mark for Lib in a three-person race in NC. EVERY Republican won every race in my fair county, from President (2-to-1) to Senate (2-to-1 Dole over Hagan), to Governor, on down to County Commissioners. So my county isn't really in touch with the rest of NC or the country, to say the least. Some of the Repub pollworkers exhibited the worst signs of right-wingers. If you weren't a Republican, they figured you were in favor of roasting fetuses over an open flame.
But at least Dr. Mike Munger, the Lib gubernatorial candidate, got 3% statewide, so my party stays on the ballot for the next four years. That will save us countless hours of work and a quarter million dollars.