It's done

El Burrito and I went to our new polling place on the way home from the library, and got that done. We have the option of an electronic ballot, but I prefer the paper ballot and filling in the ovals, especially with a squirmy Burrito along for the ride. (Plus, I think the Scantron type ballots are probably both the easiest to use, and the least likely to have issues - most everyone's been filling in ovals since grade school, no hanging chads or other weirdness to worry about, no possibility of computer glitches.)

I'm not sure who will end up winning anything, local or national, other than the uncontested local races. I'm cynical enough to think that in some cases, neither candidate was a clear "best" or "better" choice. Sometimes, it feels like flipping a coin will be just as valid a way to pick who to vote for, especially when candidates spend more time slinging mud and accusations than they do convincing me why I should vote for them.

I occasionally wish that we had a "none of the above" option - a way to confirm that I didn't skip that race accidentally, and it's not that I couldn't decide who to vote for, it's just that I believe that neither clown was worthy of my vote. (Not talking about specific clowns here, just in general.) Sure, you don't have to vote in a race, but there's no way to tell if a non-vote was an accident, a moment of severe indecisiveness, or a "pox on you both" sort of thing.

Now it's just a waiting game. While I hope (really hard) that we don't have the long drawn-out agony of the 2000 election, I also kind of hope that it's not a landslide victory in some cases. Somehow, I think a closer count might help remind the winner to work with everyone, not just the people on the "winning" side. And God, I'm so sick of the divisiveness going on, the idea that if you don't vote a certain way, you're un-American, that you're either A or B, with no room for any other options.

I'm not sure where all this garbage is coming from. I don't remember elections being this crazy when I was in high school. Maybe it's just an unfortunate by-product of 24-hour news channels, Internet information overload, and the fight for ratings. When I was in high school, most people didn't have satellite or cable (rural area, folks - 3 broadcast channels, 4 if the weather was right), and I don't think the big news channels had hit their stride yet. Or maybe I've just been suffering through too much Fox News.

(Fox is usually DH's news channel of choice, being a Republican/conservative. He says his family conservative, I say Republican, based on the opinions I've heard. They won't touch a Dem with a 10-foot pole, no matter who's running against them. Personally, I'm registered as "independent" and tend to vote both sides. I'm more liberal on the environment and related things, but financially conservative, and mostly believe that the government should keep their noses out of a lot of things. I've rarely seen any governmental entity that could work within a budget. I'd probably be more Libertarian, if there were any to vote for around here.)

And thus ends my political ramble of the day.