I am and have been a proud American my whole life. But I learned something last night, or rather, maybe just confirmed what the rest of the world already knew. Its what the rethugs obviously know very well, and took full advantage of.
You see, we can say with relative certainty now that the majority of our once-wonderful country is too lazy or too stupid to simply find the truth on their own. If it's not pre-chewed and spoon-fed to them, they can't be bothered.
I'm sure many people experienced what I did - how many "smart" people did you run into who bought the bullcrap that Kerry couldn't stay on message or didn't have a plan? Of course, since he couldn't fit it into one paragraph or into a two-minute answer at the debates, they couldn't be bothered. Ignore that it was all very clearly - and consistently - laid out on his website. "You expect me to actually READ!!! G'wan..."
And I'm certain that many buy into that, "if you don't like it, we'll kick your ass" mentality with which we approach the rest of the world, that has naively become ingrained in so many of our "breatheren."
Why did I take the flag off my car today for the first time since 9/11? Long after most people had forgotten to replace theirs? I'll tell you why.
Because the bad guys won. And the majority of the voters made it so. They will control the Supreme Court for many years to come. And my twins, who are four, will bear the brunt of this eight-year nightmare for their entire lives.
And forgive me if I sound defeatist, but it's not going to get better anytime soon. You see, they control the courts. They control the message, the media and the mechanism. And they have four more years to "legally" stack the deck even more.
And all the sheep can watch Faux and cheer right along.
My son has health issues that necessitate us staying, or I would strongly consider the beautiful country of Canada as an attractive alternative.
But I will stay and I will continue to fight because quitting isn't in my nature. Though the hope that was such a key part of this whole election is faint, if it still exists at all.
I hope the day comes that I can be proud to display our flag again. For me, I don't care so much. But God, I pray for my kids.