Tuesday, November 4, 2008

November 4, 2008. We woke up today telling our kids, who are off from school, that we would all go to the polls today and cast our ballots. They have been talking about this day for weeks. We took our kids to an Obama barbeque/ garage sale fundraiser a few weeks ago. Several kids (and two parents) dressed as unflattering Palin’s for our school Halloween parade and Obama buttons sprouted like weeds on well worn backpacks for months.

The weather was amazingly warm and sunny and by the time we got to the polls at 10:30am, dozens of people were lined up hoping to beat the pre-work crowd and the lunch crowd. Standing in line was fine and felt empowering, we chatted with our neighbors and continued explaining to the kids what would happen once we got in.

The crowds pressed tightly once we got in, but the kids were game. The woman who checked my name on the list gave Sonali an enthusiastic explanation of what she was doing. In the booth, Sonali pulled the lever, flipped the switch, and pulled the lever back for me. I think we are the only state in the union, still using levers—so middle ages. The kids were thrilled all day, asking when we will know who won.


At dinner, we broke out a bottle of Prosecco for us and Fanta for the kids. They toasted to Obama. And then we let them stay up until 10pm as they watched the results roll in harassed each other. Then spontaneously, they decided to make “Go Obama” posters. Sonali and Arjun whipped theirs out and helped Sunam to “create” her own.

And so today, I walked around with a substantial grin, knowing that the age of fear mongering, and leading by gut (not information or logic), and anti intellectualism, and soft (and hard) racism, and rejection of science, and paranoid counter-productive xenophobic foreign policy, and erosion of civil liberties, and suppression of criticism of one’s politicians, and shabbily informed neocons, and corrupt lobbyists, attorney generals, VPs and their staffs, and corrosive campaigns would all come to decisive end. I hope our children will have some even slight recollection of this day, but more importantly, I hope that Obama and this country’s leadership will make their futures better.

11:24pm—I am watching McCain’s concession speech, and there is not a single person who is not white. Weird. Although he did give a very gracious speech, despite the boos in his audience.

I thought this was the funniest thing during the campaign.