Reaction to Reactions

Having just finished reading the thread on Ian's blog, having seen Lisa's post on her own, and having had several political discussions the last couple days, I feel compelled to put some of this here. However, knowing me as most of you do, don't be surprised that the views contained herein will probably not be as stong as you might want them to be. I do play the middle ground, that's my haunt, and if you don't know this by now, well.... I don't know what to tell you.

First, yes, I was disappointed that Bush won. I dislike and do not approve of many of the things that have been going on in our country over the past four years. And I do not necessarily look forward to another four years of him in office. However, I feel many of the reactions that I have seen are extreme in their own way. The posters that appeared on the third that said something to the effect of: "Wear black in mourning for the country that we could not save" and the general reactions of the country's going to die, we're all going to die, and I'm going to move to England all strike me as overboard. I in fact dislike them more than I dislike having Bush in office. In a few conversations I've had, I've come to realize that perhaps this view is due partly to the fact that although I voted for Kerry, and although I did hope he would win, I also had a very strong feeling that he wouldn't. Why, I can't explain to you exactly, I'm not the best informed on politics, but it just seemed that it wasn't going to happen. Apparently this view is different from many people, they had much higher hopes that Kerry would win, and in so having, were sorely disappointed when Bush won again. Be that as it may, I don't think that our country is going to spontaneously combust because Bush is in office. Doomsday is not here. We're not going to die. At least, I certainly hope not. And if I am wrong, well, that'll be a very sad day for everyone. Perhaps this is just me being the eternal optomist that I am, but I feel like we made it through four years of Bush without completely collapsing, and yes, many bad things happened, but, if we made it through that, I think we can make it through another four years. It can be done, it will have to be done, and perhaps when these four years are over, America will be more ready to take on someone as its leader who will not cause such aversion among people.

I also feel that, if that many people around the nation feel that Bush would be the best man to lead the country, perhaps there's something to that. Our electoral system is set up the way it is for a reason, so that the majority of the people get what they want. That, however, is the majority of the people who vote, and not everyone does. This I do have issues with, although it is most likely better that voting is not required because while I am not the most informed person when it comes to politics, there are certainly people less informed than I am, and it would be a bad idea to have them vote if they had no idea what was going on. Anyway, more what I'm trying to say is that I don't think Bush can be as absolutely horrible as he's often made out to be.

The colleges are a very liberal environment, I realize that. And I suppose I should have expected the vehement reaction that the re-election of Bush would initiate, considering I basically expected him to win. However, it was unexpected, and while I agree with the reaction in general, I disagree with the extreme to which it's been taken, and it makes me sad. Perhaps I play the middle ground too much, try to make too many people happy when politics isn't something that can really make anyone very happy, but I feel that things are often taken a bit too far. But then I read the, for the most part, logical arguments on Ian's blog, and it makes me realize that people are still discussing things rationally, and that perhaps the actual reaction is not quite as extreme as it seems. That's what I hope. For no good ever came of extreme reactions, only in moderation can things be accomplished.

Anyway, enough of my semi-political rants and rambles. Have a good night everyone.