I was considering using an image of "Big Bird" from "Sesame Street" with a thought balloon reading "Whew!" for today's blog, but out of respect for the owners of that character and their desire to separate Big Bird from politics, I will refrain. So I borrowed a line from an old Ronald Reagan campaign ad for my headline instead.
I have to admit I feel good this morning. It's cold outside -- around 30 degrees, by the thermometer outside our kitchen window, the sky has the look of imminent snow, and I dread that I must soon perform the yearly ritual of the putting away of the motorcycles -- but there is a suffusing inner warmth as I consider the fact that the majority of my fellow Americans have, for the second time in four years, soundly rejected bone-deep Republican stupidity and fear-mongering. I speak, of course, not of the vast majority of Republican voters, who are decent people and as truly American as any Democrat, but of the Republican leadership, the upper echelon of the party which still seems to believe that you can get into power through lies and manipulation.
Well… maybe that is still possible… but let's all give thanks that their fervent efforts to take our great country back fifty years (or more) didn't succeed this time.
And I would be remiss if I didn't give a tiny tip o' the hat to two men who -- in their small and apparently completely clueless, unintentional ways -- helped to give us this victory: Todd "legitimate rape" Akins and Richard "pregnancies from rape are a gift from God" Mourdock. These two fools (who both went down in flaming defeat yesterday in their Senate races) pretty conclusively proved -- to my way of thinking, anyway -- that (a) displaying gross ignorance of science and medical realities and making it a part of your political platform, and (b) trying to legitimize hateful stupidity by slapping "God" onto it are not really great strategies these days. Thanks, guys!
Time to get back to my breakfast. Congratulations, President Obama -- I look forward to seeing what you can accomplish in your second term. -- PL
