Yes, we can. Yes, we can. Yes...

Ok, folks, I am terrified of this election. I've been trying to avoid the news media all day out of fear, but the bits and pieces that keep coming through on my radar seem to be promising. Obama seems to be doing fine. And yet, I am still a ball of nerves. I woke up this morning knowing that I'd been dreaming about Obama losing and America giving up and losing all hope for a better future.
And then I woke up the whole way and realized that I'd been dreaming. But the fear still won't go away. All my friends who know anything about economics keep telling me that the past few months have been nothing compared to what's going to happen over the next few years. And the thought of being under the supposed guidance of one more war-loving, hysterical, fear-mongering Republican who uses the world "nucular" during a time when we desperately need level-headed leadership sends me into a panic.
This makes me sad. Because in years past, I remember praising John McCain and saying that if he ever managed to get the Republican nomination, I would be happy to see him voted in as President. Back before he started towing the oil-slurping Good Old Boy party line. Back when he actually was, in some small way, a maverick. He once stood up to the GOP for their ridiculous right-winged-ness, making himself a regular guest on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to ridicule President Bush. And when McCain gave his acceptance speech at the RNC, I remember having a vaguely warm and fuzzy feeling and saying aloud, "For the first time in my adult life, I'm not scared of the Republican winning." Seriously. The man has been around, he knows how the government (and foreign governments! shock!) work, and he seems like a generally ok guy. I wouldn't have been too sad if that McCain, the McCain who spoke out against an all-inclusive abortion ban, or the McCain who publicly criticized most Bush administration policies, had won. I'd have been disappointed, but not heartbroken. Because I kind of trusted that guy. But over the past six months, he's proven just how much of a yes-man he can be. He'll say yes to anything that will get him a vote. And then, within a week of winning my heart just a little bit, he decided to run for President with a Vice Presidential nominee who could almost be mistaken for Rush Limbaugh except that her breasts are a little smaller.
And now I'm absolutely terrified. If he were to win (to those of you who may be saying "Of course he won't win, how could America possibly be so stupid?" I reply: Bush has been in office for eight years. I was relieved in 2004 when I was certain he'd be ousted because, really, how could America possibly be that stupid? Well...) today, I would start making plans to move to Europe immediately. The man has been through a lot in his time, and I believe him to be the survivor he says he is. He's lived through multiple plane crashes (of his own doing, mostly), torture in a POW camp in Hanoi, and several bouts with melanoma. But even a cat only gets nine lives, and after a certain number of miraculous escapes one begins to wonder about deals with the devil. And all that aside, after all he's been through, the man is 72 and not in the best of shape. If he were to pass... we'd be... left in the clutches... of... Sarah Palin.
There are so many arguments against her that I won't even begin to list them. But let me put one plain and simple fact before you: her children's names are Bristol, Piper, Track, Willow, and Trig.
This is not a person we can trust with our nation. I do not want her anywhere near anything that sports a big red button. Ever.

And so, dear friends, I am absolutely terrified to read the news. Bush has been able to win two elections (one somewhat illegally, but still), despite my desperate desire to believe in the brains and hearts of the American people. After the last two elections I have completely lost any belief I had in them, and so I will quiver in fear until this day, and the Election Aftermath, which seems to have become an integral part of the process, are over.

But in parting, let me quote this bit of wisdom from Margaret and Helen, whose blog I've just been turned on to and whom I love as dearly as my own grandmother:

"when was the last time a politician brought a tear to your eye… moved you deep in your soul? Honestly when was the last time you really felt that Americans could do anything if we put our hearts and minds to it? I am an old lady. Most of my life politicians have moved me. Most of my life I have felt that Americans can do anything if we put our hearts and minds to it. It’s been 8 long years. I had almost forgotten what that felt like. Thank you Barack Obama. Thank you."