Thursday, November 04, 2004

My unique analysis of the US elections: Point 1- It's been said that the biggest factor pushing most people to vote for Bush was moral values. And what issues usually come to mind when we hear moral values in association with politics? Right, abortion and stem cell research etc. But, my view is that the average American who voted for Bush because of moral values, combined Bush's beliefs about domestic policy AND foreign policy. Meaning to say, that they agreed with his policies on abortion, gay marriage, stem cells as well as the perception that he stands up to terrorists and he "tells it like it is." A red carpet to the Presidency was laid out for him because people felt that his foreign policies were connected to his domestic policies. Point 2-The Democrats got trounced, no two ways about it. Kerry's loss wasn't a complete surprise though, because if you pull up a side-by-side electoral map of the 2000 elections and 2004 elections, they are virtually identical with the exception of NH, IO and NM (by the way, do we still not know what the result is in IO and NM). What is a surprise is that the Dems lost seats in the House, lost in the Senate (which is where our best chance was to gain seats) and no governorships. What does this mean for the party from here on out? It means a very difficult time because in order to come back from a defeat like this requires change. And what does change amount to in the political world? It amounts to weakness. So, the Dems are caught in a rough spot. For the present administration, it will also be interesting to see how Bush reshuffles his cabinet, and if he will take this election to mean that he can continue full-steam ahead with what he was doing or if we might see considerable changes in how he conducts business. Point 4-Redistricting is taking power away from Dems. If you go back to the electoral map, you'll see that Kerry continued to carry some very big states. But, in the future redistricting will take the power away from Democrats. I'll break it down for you. Every ten years after a census is released, districts are redrawn to reflect population shifts. If you go back to the map, you'll see that since the last general election, big states like NY and Mass are LOSING electoral votes. This means, that these terrorities are losing population and more power is going to Republican-held areas. Point 4-Vote or Die. Now, I ask Diddy, if I voted and I still die in some terrorist attack, how can that be possible? I mean, the alternative to not voting was dying. You can't do both, right? If that happens, I'll be screaming for the head of Diddy in the afterlife. I think for the '08 elections, he might have to change the slogan to Vote and Die. Point 5 - Maybe someone can enlighten me on this, but how is it legal to claim victory when votes have not been finished being counted? Please don't take this as sour grapes from a Kerry supporter, but if there is an election process that is to be followed in this country, how can one side take a shortcut in that process? And if a politician makes a concession speech, is it binding? Maybe not because Gore took back his concession speech the last time around. Some wrinkles really need to be ironed out in these things we call elections.