Moving Forward After the Contentious Elections

Moving Forward After the Contentious Elections

After what seems like a never-ending presidential race filled with vitriol, sniping, Face Book rants and arguments, polls, commercials paid for by anybody with lots of money, finger pointing, the threat of sequestration, accusations of voter intimidation, and disgust by the general population, the votes have been counted, the winners have given their speeches, and the runner up has conceded.  Now what?

Now it is time to put away our boxing gloves and accept what is – at least until the next election cycle. (which will start in , what?, two weeks?) While we may be celebrating the thrill of victory or suffering the agony of defeat or just giving a sigh of relief that it is all over, it is our duty as American citizens to come together to support the governing individuals we have chosen. The Founding Fathers did not intend for this to be an easy process. Instead, they erected barriers to individual power to avoid the crowning of a new Caesar. Whether we like the process or abhor it, it is what we’ve been handed. And it is far better than the systems of other nations. 

We should celebrate the fact that so many millions were able to vote without fear of being shot or families being threatened or intimidated. While there has been some discussion of voter intimidation, nobody was prevented from voting who had a right to do so. People in this country are not tortured for their political beliefs. We are not rounded up by militia and jailed unceremoniously for disagreeing with the government. We are not threatened with treason for voting against the ruling party.  We are not jailed for saying what we believe or for espousing unpopular opinions.  We Americans celebrate our independence of thought and expression that others only see in their dreams and fantasies.  Those that hate us also envy us our freedoms.

Yes, we are divided politically and ideologically; however, we come together at times of difficulty. We believe in supporting our communities, our states, our people, and our way of life. We may differ philosophically in how we achieve our goals; but in principal our goals are the same – opportunity for all to be all that we can be. Whether we support President Obama, we still celebrate the dream that anybody from any background can work hard, achieve an education and be elected to the highest office in the land. We love a Horatio Alger story.