Nothing brings more joy to my heart than hearing these words spoken just a few hours earlier today:
"Democratic Senator John Kerry conceded the White House race to President Bush in a phone call on Wednesday, ending the drama of ballot counting in Ohio and cementing Bush's re-election to a second four-year term."
Now those who know where I stand politically, I didn't deny nor did I brag about which party or candidate I stood behind. I've been given the opportunity to vote in three Presidential Elections and I've taken advantage of that opportunity twice.
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Four years ago I missed the opportunity to vote by merely not realizing how popular it would be as well as being spoiled by the ease of voting back home in California. Large populations allow more voting polls to access. I was able to vote at a community center located just outside my neighborhood within walking distance from where I lived.
When I moved to Tennessee, I registered to vote soon after 2000 to make sure that I didn't miss an opportunity. But when that day came, I under-estimated the turnout crowds and thought that I could get my vote in before going in to work.
Yeah, right!
The poll was at an elementary school about mile and a half away from my apartment complex. When I drove my truck around the corner, slowly approaching the school, I started to pass an extremely long line of people standing and waiting. I thought to myself "You've got to be kidding me! There's no way that this is the line for voting." Well, I was wrong, and the estimated time it was going to take to punch a card went from less than 10 minutes back home to an average of two and a half hours. I was schedule to work in less than an hour. I was extremely disappointed so I drove back to my apartment and got ready for work.
This year I took advantage of early voting in Tennessee and I was able to cast my ballot two weeks before November 2nd. Now I don't care whether or not you like early voting, but for me it was like a sign from above. I went down to the Election Commission Office in downtown Murfreesboro and took care of things in less than 10 minutes.
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Anyways, back to the Presidential Election...
After all of the hatred towards President Bush as well as several inside and outside forces trying to unseat the man (including the recent terrorist tapes, the hoards of Hollywood actors and music artists chanting "follow me to the polls" and the "Fat Slob" also known as Michael Moore and his propaganda filmmaking), the President prevailed with gaining the majority by more than 3.5 million votes. He wins the electoral college as well as the majority. Four more years. The Republicans now control the White House, Senate, Congress and possibly the Supreme Court. Alright, that's me gloating. Enough said.
I'll leave this post with the wise words of Penn Jillette quoted in Maxim about the engagement of voters:
"I think the real heroes in this country, the true patriots, are the ones who aren't voting. Clinton had, what, 23 percent of the population voting for him? If you can go in there and actually pull a lever for either of those two scumbags, what kind of piss-poor human being are you? I haven't met one person who says, 'I f**king love Bush. He's the best person in the country to be president.' That guy, please vote. The person that says, 'Kerry's the best. I agree with everything he's done. I like him shooting Cong in the back.' Vote for him, then, please. The whole 'anyone but Bush' thing is the biggest horror. It's the most cynical point of view possible. Your saying, 'I don't even need a president who means anything to me.'"
