Wednesday, November 5, 2008

a sigh of relief followed by a punch in the face

I woke up this morning feeling as if a great weight had been lifted off of me. It's November 5th and for me it signified the end of number one topic of discussion in my home as of late. Politics. Especially since JQ and I weren't rooting for the same candidate. Add to that the endless political commercials and I've had enough of it to last a mighty long time. Knowing that the race for the top spot in the White House was finally over eased my soul. Of course, now there are other political issues to discuss in the wake of election day, but it won't be as heavy as it has been for the past couple of months. To me that felt good. It even put a smile on my face.

Then I heard the news about Proposition 8 in California. As of right now the ban on gay marriage has passed with 52% in favor of the ban. What the hell? It's 2008 people, chill the eff out. How many traditional marriages end in divorce? Marriage should be about love, not about whether or not you both have a penis. Give me a break. Oh, and California? Don't you think the 4 million absentee votes that haven't been counted yet should be before you go declaring a "winner" on this issue? In my eyes, this is a HUGE loss.

It really popped the bubble of good feelings I was floating on this morning. I thought McCain's speech last night was eloquent and thoughtful—despite the boos from his supporters. I felt good about America.This afternoon I watched Obama's speech (because I suck and fell asleep moments before it last night).

Obama's speech gave me goose bumps and brought me to tears. It made me feel good about America all over again.

"It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled. Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of red states and blue states.

We are, and always will be, the United States of America."

"This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were."

"That's the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we've already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow."

Let's try to remember that.


7 comments:

Christina said...

I was disappointed about the Prop 8 thing, too. I kept rereading the headline to see if I had understood it correctly because I was so surprised.

Fantastagirl said...

Of all places in the world that Proposition 8 should pass you would think it would have in California.

I hope that Obama is able to unite this divided nation. I hope that we are able to maintain our freedoms. I have many hopes, many many hopes, and I also have many fears. Socialism scares me.

Cupcake Blonde said...

The whole Prop 8 has me steaming mad. I feel like someone told people hey guess what, we were just kidding, you can't get what we originally told you you could get and deserve after years of persecution. Syke!

Obama's speech had me in tears too. I ma so hopeful for our new tomorrow.

Holly {ArtistMotherTeacher} said...

christina—I misunderstood a buddy of mine when I asked the status this morning. First I was happy, then I was mad.

fantasagirl—Exactly! Doesn't San Francisco have a huge gay community? It boggles my mind.

vp—You said it sister!

Naynayfazz said...

I don't think the government should be able to change their mind like that. It is like, "Yes, No, Yes, Maybe, Ah, no sorry" But, well, they are the government backed by very powerful anti-gay people and then voted on by other anti-gay people, so guess who wins? It is sad, I agree.

Lisa Armsweat said...

Arizona did the SAME freakin' thing! We had a proposition on the ballot that would limit the definition of marriage to a man/woman union, constitutionally-speaking...and that mother_ucker PASSED. I couldn't believe it! Just two years ago AZ passed something that would have paved the way for gay marriage to be legalized down the road. Now it's overturned and I just feel a weird, intense disappointment and disgust that I live in such a bigoted, red state. Me and Trish flipped out at all the hateful "Yes on 102" signs all over town the last month or so, and cheered when we saw some defaced or torn down. It seemed like a lot of people would be against it, and then... the election comes along and totally surprised me. I just feel so terrible about it. I work with a great guy who has been with his partner for 34 years, and now that they are getting older, having the same rights as a married couple really matters. It really sucks when you not only know something is fundamentally wrong, but have to see it affect people right there in front of you, too.

And then to see this happen with Prop. 8 was the big stunner. What the hell is going on with people? What happened to TRUE Christianity? GRRR, I could go on and on so I will just stop now before I rant for another 1,000 words or so! :)

Anonymous said...

True dat. Both speeches were moving, and I hope Barack lives up to his promise of change.

Also, I like that JQ has a different opinion, and think it's good that you can live together, while disagreeing, and not tear each other's heads off. My sister-in-law and her husband are (D) and (R) respectively and were always arguing about this.