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Welcome to Backyard Blog, our group online journal for this election season. We've asked a broad array of people with deep ties to the region to share their views on politics during the 2004 campaign.
Send your comments to bbcomments@seattletimes.com. |
November 03, 2004
| Another result of the election |
| Posted by Stephanie Sanguinet at 11:44 AM |
Speaking as a Republican this morning, my emotions were mixed as the results were announced. Yes, I (like Garrett) am happy that Bush was once again voted into the office he has held for the last four years, but I am sitting on the fence on an issue that was voted into law in several states last night. Many gay and lesbian couples woke up this morning to the stark reality that their marriages may not ever be recognized by the state they live in.
I understand and respect the decision made by those voters, but my heart aches for those who are actually in these relationships that have been deemed “fictionary” by our society. I can understand why Jay would want to leave the U.S. after this voting season, as it’s an emotional response. As much as we Americans try to say that we think and act rationally, emotion and religious beliefs play a large part in the decisions we make; and the results are a clear indicator of this.
Though this may be a window closed in some eyes, I hope and pray that Americans can begin to tolerate, understand, and respect the decisions and lifestyles of others.
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| Not exactly a banana peel, but -- |
| Posted by Libby Liming at 11:16 AM |
I fell down the stairs this morning. Coming down to gather my briefcase and purse and head to work, I noticed my parents had nicely laid the Times out at the bottom of the stairs with the headline “BUSH LEADS” and a very nice little yellow sticky note with a smiley face on it.
I was so shocked that I took a tumble down the stairs and landed with my face smack on the paper (this is not a joke, my aching back and the side of my face being proof…). I thought they were fooling me. If you had told me 2 months ago (amongst all of the anti-Bush extravaganzas and the “He’s destroying the country” cries) that Bush would “win” (with Kerry conceding the race this morning ) I would have laughed in your face and said that there was a quiet padded room and a jacket with nice long sleeves waiting for you in the “other Bellevue”.
But no, looks like 4 MORE YEARS! I’ll get used to this eventually, but it’s still a little scandalous to me for some reason.
And on a funny side note, I took my son with me to the polls last night. Turned out to be not such a good idea – he wanted to help me fill out the bubbles. (Yay for no chads!) He proceeds to announce (in an elementary school gymnasium, packed with people and with great acoustics) every single choice I was making on the ballot. My choice for governor was met with great scowls and grumbling, but my presidential choice (announced in little 5 year old speak, sounded pretty funny) caused the two ladies next to me to start howling.
Also, I was a teensy bit shocked to see so many choices for president. I’ve never voted in a presidential election before (I know, it’s ALL MY FAULT that Bush got elected last time, I’ve already heard) so I was startled to see 7 or 8 names on the ballot, under political parties I had never even heard of. Is anyone a member of these parties? How does it work? I thought you fell under one of three umbrellas the US Government holds over us – Democrat, Republican or Libertarian? (And those anarchists that don’t particularly care for government have a little umbrella all their own)
How do those parties work?
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| The day after |
| Posted by Garrett Ryan Ferencz at 09:44 AM |
That water cooler, for the first time in awhile, was just a water cooler. The fierce voices of passion that decorated the lunch room yesterday now turned to quiet, coffee-drinking whispers. George W. Bush received the highest number of votes cast for any president in the history of the United States.
However, before I could even add a spring to my step, I encountered a really good friend and coworker worried and shaken because her marriage had come under attack last night. This is an issue to her that, of course, is very deep and personal. It's impossible to rejoice when someone you care about looks so sad.
It was at this moment that I had my final thought. Although this morning I have never been more proud to be an American, more proud to be a Republican, I realized there was still work to be done in this country; tolerance, freedom, and hope have not been yet reached. If we are going to get there, we are going to need each other: both the blue and red states.
To everyone reading this I hope we remember that on November 3, 2004, we are all still Americans, and we are all still in this together.
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| The Pottery Barn Presidency |
| Posted by Jay Porter at 09:41 AM |
OK, my Republican friends... you have the White House and strong majorities in Congress.
Do what you will, but please don't carp about obstructionist Democrats. And please tell your President to stand up and start taking responsibility for his actions. Please let the buck start stopping with him.
Just as Colin Powell invoked the "Pottern Barn Rule" in Iraq--as in "you broke it, you bought it" (which is not actually Pottery Barn's policy but you get the idea)--so is it in play here.
There will be nobody to blame the next four years on. So good luck, godspeed--and know that a loyal opposition will be taunting you with our "reality-based" outlook. Unless Bush starts publicly admitting that God is telling him personally how to run the country, a bit of reality might be a worthwhile contribution to the public discourse.
On a final, personal note, I'm sorry that I lost this election for the Democrats.
Watching as ten states banned gay marriage, it became painfully clear that conservative voters who turned out for "moral values" and against the "homosexual agenda" made the difference, just as that blasted Karl Rove said they would. I'm sorry that David and I selfishly wanted hospital visitation rights, protection for our joint property, and the right to pay our taxes together. Apparently, this is so repugnant to Americans it swamped all other considerations. So it looks like our status as "walking, talking wedge issue" is ratified.
At this point, the marriage vow that David and I made is what is holding us together and keeping us here. As we went to bed to bad with the news, we said, "Whatever else happens, we have each other." I would, honestly, prefer to leave the country. Or rather, I feel that it has left me and moving would just be a matter-of-fact recognition of this reality. It would be easy to move to David's native Australia--and my mother, stuck in Oklahoma, is egging us on, with the proviso that she wants to join us.
But David, God bless him, wants to stay. Hearing him talk of his love for Seattle, our home, and our friends here, I realize it would break my heart to leave. Maybe it already is broken. And maybe that's the "Pottery Barn Rule" that really matters--your heart belongs to the country that breaks it.
This is my country, however much so many voters want me to be a second-class citizen. I can still vote, still march, still protest, and still raise my voice in celebration of all that is good and beautiful here. From wherever I go, that's what I will be doing. So this is no end, just a new chapter.
Thanks to the Seattle Times for the chance to write, and thanks to everyone who has been reading along the way. From here on out, my friends and I will be on nonfamous.com trying to make sense of all of this. Because blogging, like politics, is a way of life.
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| 2000 all over again? |
| Posted by Garrett Ryan Ferencz at 12:12 AM |
The pundits are afire with comparisons to the 2000 election. However, when Gore sent in the lawyers there was one difference: he had one the popular vote. If we wake up tomorrow and Bush leads by over 100,000 votes in Ohio, is leading in the popular vote, and Kerry does not concede, it will only serve to further tear this country apart.
I know the Republicans here have not raised the champagne glass in celebration of victory over Kerry. They also hope that in turn Kerry can show enough respect to do the right thing, report for duty, and if then numbers do not change, concede.
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