McCain's Concession

McCain's concession speech was eloquent, it was gracious, it was kindly and well-delivered. But, my friends, I didn't care. Because his supporters, with their booing of Obama and their chanting of Palin's name, were what his campaign sowed. It was such an awful campaign that the valedictory remarks of the right-wing pundits rang hollow. Yes McCain had served his country valiantly, but then he ran a small, mean-spirited campaign built on the premise that you do whatever it takes to win and you say with a straight face it's all true and right and honorable. Usually, I feel bad for the person who loses a big contest. Sometimes, I've felt a kind of sadness for McCain. But last night, looking at the crowd of white people on the lawn of an exclusive hotel in Phoenix, hearing them boo the President-Elect, I felt no sympathy. John McCain may be many things, but his personality, not to mention his inner moral compass, did not match the demands of a presidential campaign. Imagine if he had won. No, I felt no sympathy at all, even as I was glad for his elegant words.

Polling

This on the polls from Nate Silver via Sullivan. Good news.   I won't be able to blog much more today since I'll be with my kids and worrying.  

Let's Go Change the World

 Go ahead. Indulge.

Yes We Can!

I got to my voting place at 5:45 and there was already a line.  By the time 6 AM rolled around, it was all the way down the block. Once the doors opened, things moved along, and I got more and more nervous.  I double checked my vote three times, and I felt, I don't know, a lurch as I pulled the red bar to record my vote.  Even now I'm a little worked up.  It'll be a long day, but hopefully, a good one. Good luck to us all.

McCain the Remake, Part 2

A while back, I blogged about what I thought was the very, very beginning of John McCain, revised. This was the man who'd write the memoir and say the mea culpas and insist if it had only been for the town meetings and if only he'd relied on his higher instincts the election would've gone so much better and he wouldn't have to completely rebuild his reputation.  James Fallows (via, who else? Andrew Sullivan) points out that McCain on SNL was a signal that he'd accepted defeat.  I hope he not only accepts it but lives it. And if he does, the show was probably step 2 of his 20 step rehab.  If he doesn't lose, though, I'm never watching SNL again, even though my husband assured me no persuadable voters were watching.

A Take on A Real Obama

Andrew Sullivan posted a quote and the link to an essay he wrote for the Sunday Times of London about Obama as president.  It's worth taking a look at.  But when you're done, throw a fistful of salt over your left shoulder to chase away any evil spirits who might nest in your comfortable idea of an Obama victory and ruin the world with McCain/Palin.

The Actual Voting

Today, I asked my husband if he knew where we were to vote. He did.  Then he uttered this horrible, horrible sentence:  "I put the voting acknowledgments on your desk."

I can not tell you how dark this is.  I've started cleaning, I've found one.  His.  Hopefully, mine is just under this next pile.  This is Not Good.

I'm So Exhausted But There's This Thing

I can hardly take it anymore. The election, the hate mongering, the hoping,  I'm so tired! I'm ready for the election to be done -- but what will happen then?  But I can't wait for it to be over?  But what do we do with all the pins?  

Plus, this week is another crazy, busy week with a (kind of pretend but nonetheless emotionally real) deadline at the end of it. 

But here's one thing: Today, I got licensed by the city of New York to perform weddings, because on Saturday, I'm going to perform the wedding ceremony of my dear friends Nicole and Louis.  So Nicole and I went down to the marriage bureau and we waited on line with the paperwork and I checked the computer screen with my information and it was OK and then, when it was all done, the clerk took out a ledger. Seriously, it was a big, honest to goodness book in which one hand writes one's name and the date and one's title.  Nicole and I were, like, seriously geeked out.  This is the stuff of historical records!  A handwritten ledger!  Next to getting the power vested in me by the state of New York to marry two people I've known for almost twenty years, writing in that ledger the coolest thing about my day.

The Three Ashleys

This is really moving and a reminder that we can find the best in ourselves with each other and that's where we start when we're trying to do concrete things to make the world better. 

Callers Walk Off Jobs

Ever wonder how cold-callers with a script do it? Turns out, if the script is bad enough, they won't. Once again John McCain has brought us to a new low. Actually, this time, he just tried and other people just wouldn't let him. 

McCain and Bush and Iraq

Guess what? He was for it before he was against it! Surprised?

Did the Great Schlepp Work?

Check it out: Jews who vote will (mostly) be voting for Obama.

Larry David

My friend Natalie sent me this since she is as obsessed with Huffington Post as I am with Andrew Sullivan.  In any case, she claims she's Larry David.  Of course, I think I am.  We may both be right.  How about you?

Blogging Overload

There's so much I want to blog about right now, from Sarah Palin's wardrobe (this guy is so wrong I don't even know where to start) to Playmobil (don't ask), from Kindergarten to the night my kids were born four years ago and I pulled their little selves out of the bassinet they were sharing (they were tiny beans) and onto me with a ferocity I can't quite describe, but I can't blog about any of it. I'm too overwhelmed and sleep deprived. I'm in one of those phases where I'm barely keeping up.  But I'm about to read this article about Palin and have a big cuppa. Should help me out, right?

I'm pretty sure this is crazy

But I guess it's worth considering...it says McCain will win because the polls are wrong because they all take place in Blue areas.....but then again, what about all the polls all the other years?

The Deep Panic

With all the "good" news about the Dems, everyone I know is still in a pitch of fear. (Everyone except my husband who understand Pennsylvania politics from the inside out because he worked on several statewide campaigns there.  He says McCain can't win PA.  But he also said he thought you could just "guess-ti-mate" a third of a cup measurement for cupcakes.)  last night, my friend M. said to me, "I'm dreaming about it! It's so weird! I dreamed Palin was trying to convince us Obama's an alien!" So I said the obvious: "That's not a dream, that's Fox News!"

Some History, Thanks

My husband brought me the Washington Post editorial page yesterday. Richard Cohen's op ed is a useful reminder that this Republican party is not the first to trade in fear. That somehow made me feel a little better.

It Was On TV!

If only Sarah Palin had watched John Adams  on HBO then she would know what a VP does. As it is?  Not so much.

Between Hope & Fear

I've been with my kids all day (it's their birthday! but it's also Tuesday....) so I'm just catching up on the blog-election news and I am now back to full on terror when it comes to this election. This story on Andrew Sullivan about racism, the Jon Stewart clip on the previous post, really, I not only fear the unthinkable loss but I also fear what cycle after cycle of election rhetoric that cultivates divisiveness and fear will mean to this country in the next phase -- no matter who wins.  

A Trip to Wasilla

Everyone needs to watch this.  Jon Stewart correspondent Jason Jones goes to Wasilla and leaves no stone unturned.