Is the Election Over Yet?
I currently reside in Hell. This used to be small-town Pennsylvania, but the demons of election season have taken over, and we’re all suffering and tormented.
Radio stations are putting song-breaks between the campaign commercials. It’s gotten so bad, I’m thinking I should get cable, where a show’s advertisers get a little cranky if said show doesn’t appear.
I can’t go out in public without hearing about the election, the candidates, the false email rumors (Barack Obama EATS old people; pass it on! Hillary Clinton is behind a rash of DOGNAPPINGS! Pass it on! John McCain is THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS OZ! Pass it on!)
We here in Pennsylvania, especially in Bradford County are thrilled that our votes will count in selecting the Democratic nominee. I can’t say for sure, but I think the last time Pennsylvania had an active role in a Presidential election might have been around 1800. Add on top of that the hot contest for State Senate - with the almost-universally well-liked commissioner, Doug McLinko, on the Republican ticket, and two mostly unknowns (one of whom doesn’t even live in our district) - and all I can say is, thank heavens they don’t serve alcohol at the polling places!
Here’s a few comments I’ve overheard over the last few weeks. (Eavesdropping isn’t nice, unless you’re doing it to gather political information, right?)
These aren’t quite verbatim quotes, except in the case of the fourth one (believe me, that one’s with me till I die) and I’m totally guessing on the ages, but I believe caught the essence of their statements:
That stupid bitch is ruining this race. — From a 30-ish woman wearing an Obama ‘08 pin
That black guy hasn’t ever done anything while he’s been in the Senate or before that in Illinois when he was…whatever the hell he was there. What makes anyone think he will do anything as President? — from an older man wearing a McCain pin
You keep saying he’s going to change things. I just want to know how. – from a 40-ish woman to an Obama supporter
“I don’t want no n*****r or no woman running this country.” — 75-ish male
I’m just sick of men telling us how much they’re going to change. You got an old man running and a young man running, and there isn’t two hairs of difference between them. Men have run this country since it’s founding, and just look at the messes they’ve made. — 70-ish female
Everyone talks about Hillary’s plans, but no one mentions that she wants to let Mexicans take over the country, or make abortions and birth control as easy to get as a soda. I got an email about it last week, and I tell you, it scared the daylights out of me! — 60-ish female
What the hell kind of message is “hope”? I got hope that my kid will get into a good college, and I got hope that I’ll be able to help him pay for it. I hope my job won’t get packed off to India or China. I hope that I won’t be eating cat food or living on the streets when I’m too old to work. I hope my kids don’t get sick because we can’t afford the copays or the medicine. Hope, I got. What I don’t have is a government that’s going to help anyone except the rich, and I don’t see that changing if he’s president. — 40-ish male
I think it would be better for the whole party if Hillary dropped out. She’s a cold, calculating, bitch and the longer she stays in, the more likely McCain is to win. — 20-ish male
George Bush has fucked us over for almost 8 years. McCain is apparently running on a platform that consists of being ‘crazier than Bush.’ I can’t imagine why anyone is voting for him. Of course, no one knows what Obama’s platform is. — high school student
Anyone who says they aren’t voting for Obama is a racist. Period. — 30-ish male
I don’t like Hillary. I definitely don’t like Obama. I loathe John McCain. — 40-ish female
I’m trying to talk my mom into voting for Hillary. We finally get a woman with strength and smarts who’s a real candidate for President, and she wants to throw her vote away on some guy who’s already dropped out? I don’t get it. — my daughter, on the phone to a friend
One thing I find rather depressing is just how prejudiced some of the McCain supporters in Pennsylvania are. These seem like nice old guys and gals, right up until they open their mouths. One can only assume they mainline Fox News and complain about the rotten kids walking across their lawn and worry that the next terrorist attack will wipe out Bradford County.
The Hillary supporters tend to mention her plans and policy positions. Her healthcare plan gets a lot of mentions. Around here, about 20% of the people are uninsured, and most of them are working Americans.
A common complaint from undecided Democrats is that Obama supporters tend to talk about the need for hope and change, but never really say how he intends to change anything.
And, as always, the DC pundits and Beltway types are pissing us all off with their complete lack of understanding about the actual issues that are in play here.
Personally, we’d love to have some of these media people show up in our rural county. It’d be an education and a half for most of them. But then again, what am I thinking? We can’t ask these oh-so-special people to care what blue-collar workers and farmers think. That might make them think they were wrong, and we know Bush’s cheerleaders are never wrong….
