Perspective after the election
I debated even posting this story because it would seem like a repeat of things so many others have said, but this is my story and worth telling.
I'm so glad I meditated so much after the election. It helped me stay calm and relaxed. I did my part in the election and checked the results every hour. Between glances at my news feed, I spent time with the cats after Hal went to bed early. I stopped watching the results because I had a terrible feeling where things were headed.
I've spent 60 years on this Earth and fought for Democracy for 40 years. I'm tired. I have invested so much time and effort into politics since I was in my teens because my parents taught me that it was important. I stuffed envelopes with election information for Carter during the 1976 campaign when I was only 12 years old, and I did the same in 1980. After that election, my parents told me that they sensed a darkness creeping over this country, and they were right. I voted for Mondale, then Dukakis, Clinton, Gore, Kerry, Obama, Clinton, Biden, and Harris. More often than not, it seemed like I was on the losing side.
I don't think I can survive another election in 2028. Who knows? I might not even be alive at that point. I have fought for so many years for the cause of freedom, but I need to pass the torch on to others. If no one takes it from me, then we are truly doomed, but I have done my part for so long. I deserve to enjoy my life while I still can.
I lived through the 2016 disaster. I was not totally surprised by it because I had never seen a worse-run campaign in my life. People took for granted that she would win. I correctly predicted that name recognition would doom her, and it did. The common denominator between HRC and Harris was that both are women. Harris ran an outstanding campaign, but she was doomed by her association with Biden and the fact that she was a woman. Americans proved that we prefer a convicted rapist and felon over a woman. Doesn't that make you feel proud?
I dealt with the results realistically and refused to analyze them until I could sleep on things. Unfortunately, the election sickness will be with us for a long time. Although I felt a sense of deja vu, I knew that this time was different because the Nazi had publicly revealed himself this time, and there was still a close race.
Instantaneous reactions are never helpful. I prefer to take the time to think things through rather than jumping in without all the information I can gather. I didn't try to go into the granular details about why this election turned out the way it did. I wont assign blame to any group, we all share in this equally. Those who don't want to admit this are a part of the problem.
I needed time to decompress and process my emotions before writing about the election. I was emotionally drained and depressed. I saw the posts filled with anger, bitterness, hatred, and revenge seekers. This is not who I am. I crawled out from the pit of rage before and won't fall into it again. I sacrificed my health to rage and anger in the past, it nearly killed me.
Assigning blame accomplishes nothing good, and I don't have the time or the desire to assign blame. Let others single out this group or that group. Sow the seeds of division and discord, precisely what the enemies of freedom want.
So, I decided to take my time and write carefully. There's no need to rush anymore. The damage is done. I deliberately tuned out after the election and haven't watched the news since then. I feel more at peace than I have in years. I'm not writing to make money, thank goodness because if I were I would be a complete failure.
I am disappointed and sad but not hurt and angry. Anger is never the solution to any problem. I know from experience that anger leads to self-destruction because it is a cancer that destroys you from within. Revenge doesn't solve anything either; it just perpetuates the cycle that created the problem in the first place.
I won't vent my feelings toward those I love. I can't lose them now. They are too precious to me, and I will love, cherish, and protect them with all my strength. My focus now is on my life and happiness, in being Kind to everyone that I can.
I won't be a victim anymore. I won't get swept up by the subsequent political tsunami, which happens every two years. Americans are nothing more than test cases for the corporate powers to manipulate every election cycle. They try convincing us that our votes really matter because Democracy is on the line when, in fact, the powerful control everything and won't relinquish power to ordinary people. After all, they have too much invested in the status quo. Instead, they watch gleefully as they run the people through a maze of confusion and monitor the results, like a fucked-up version of MST3K.
I behaved myself on election night and didn't overeat, so I controlled my blood glucose. The last thing I needed was to lose control over it due to elation or dejection. I woke up the following day, already knowing the news. I simply accepted this and moved on with my day. I haven't spouted any election manipulation theories because that is pointless. We got the result that the majority wanted, which says much about the American people.
The first thing I did was drop off excess baggage at the emotional lost and found counter and then walk away. I won't look back, and I won't look forward to the next election. Instead, I will look forward to each day and live it to the fullest with Hal and the cats. Happiness will be the most essential thing in my life from now on.
I resolve to stay positive about life and people, at least those people who, like me, are struggling to break free of the information exploitation traps that exist all around us. I want to meet like-minded people searching for peace and tranquility in their daily lives instead of those who want to relive that past and repeat it every two and four years.
I will observe the 10-second rule when writing and responding to people online. I will see what I have written, read it, and think about it for at least 10 seconds before deciding if it is worth the time to publish or respond.
I will ask myself three questions: Is what I want to say Kind? Is it helpful? Is it simply parroting what everyone else says? If I cannot satisfactorily answer those questions, I won't bother to go any further.
It is time to readjust my information intake and become less of an exploited consumer and more of a complete person. The first thing that I'll do is start paring down my social feeds. Living primarily with politics will kill me if I don't go. I'll probably lose a few friends, but my priorities have changed. I started that process on Wednesday after the election. I deleted many sources because I knew that they served no other purpose than triggering me.
I started detoxing my life. I deleted all news apps from my phone and Mac. The temptation to use them was too strong and would ruin what I want to accomplish now with my life. One voice wont be missed, there are plenty of people out there more articulate than I to make arguments about why we should "stay motivated."
An important lesson from this election is that hate wins, no matter what the optimists say. When will we ever learn this lesson? Time after time, this has proven true, yet we still go through the same motions repeatedly.
America won't accept a woman President, let alone a Non-White woman. Racism, sexism, and hatred are a part of America. There is no use denying it any longer. We will never move forward when so many people want to move backward.
The masses prefer their opinions to be prepackaged and ready for immediate consumption without any thought process. We live such hectic, frantic lives that thinking is a luxury we don't have time to indulge in. Religion provides the spoonful of sugar that helps the poison go down.
Republicans replaced education with indoctrination. Critical thinking is not taught anymore. Questioning authority is frowned upon. Obedience is preached, and "wrong thinking," as Orwell described it, is punished. Differences of opinion are classified as subversive. Deviation from the expected norm is dealt with in a brutal manner.
Greed is overpowering. How can we spend $10 BILLION on an election, and this is what we get? We are fooled repeatedly into believing that we make a difference when, in reality, we are only a revenue stream for the already rich and powerful. We get exploited time after time without realizing that nothing truly changes. The names and faces change, but the system remains unchanged.
The craving to find and exploit "others" is still with us led to this result. This is a Nazi playbook action that always finds its followers amongst the poorly educated and superstitious. "Others" can be blamed for everything without verifying those claims. People will follow because it is so much easier than thinking for themselves.
People are afraid because they know deep down inside that their opinions and hopes mean nothing to those in power. Fears manipulate public opinion and control the masses. Again, religion is the most hateful of these control mechanisms.
It is time to focus on myself for a change. I can not drag this nation into the light when the majority prefer the darkness. I will be my own light, and hopefully, I will find others who share my views without politics being the main factor.
This election ripped the mask away and revealed the ugly truth. Americans are genuinely hateful. Any shred of human decency is just a facade. Americans aren't truly happy unless they are oppressing someone. When I hear white males talk about "oppression," I have to laugh. The only "oppression" they re familiar with is the type that they exercise against others without fear of any repurcussion.
There are dark times ahead., but we already know that. Survival is the best option because hate is on the march. People prefer a criminal. Integrity is just a word, it means nothing anymore. The rich can commit crimes anytime they want, they won't suffer any consequences.
The Great American Experiment failed. It was on life support for forty years. 2024 proved that America is lost and on its way to becoming a totalitarian state. My parents are rolling in their graves because the Nazis they fought to conquer are taking over this country without any opposition, in fact they are being greeted as heroes.
The Republican plan for control is a work of Machiavellian genius. It was instituted over 40+ years ago and now bears its bitter fruit. America now exists solely for the rich and powerful; no one else matters.
Truth and the Rule of Law are irrelevant now. Legalities no longer apply to those in power. Criminal acts are not prosecuted in a timely manner, so people get away with crimes, but they will lock up a common person for the most trivial of things.
The role and threat of violence and terror will only increase as time goes on. The Republicans poisoned the minds of our youth, and this is the most unnerving news of all.
John Guthrie
Be Kind to one another.