Monday, November 3, 2008

Rachel Maddow and Voting

New York Magazine has a wonderful feature on Rachel Maddow, the least affected, sanest political commentator this great nation has, in my humble opinion.

Her ability to remain civil in the face of political argument is one I myself could well study. For too long, we've been divided along irreducible fault lines. That may well be a function of the issues dividing us, ones that will never be solved because they go too fundamentally to our basic world view. Issues like gay marriage and abortion, gun control for rural voters vs. gun control in urban areas--these are issues that will never be solved completely. Why then should we spend our political breath arguing them while the country goes down the tubes? Why can't we civilly agree to disagree and get to work on what we can change?

That's the message of Rachel Maddow. That's Barack Obama's message, too. That may be while bookies give him 90 percent odds of winning tomorrow.

I voted via absentee ballot--one advantage of my disabled status is the freedom from standing line at Edgar Road School. At the same time, I miss out on the camaraderie and the chills up my spine I've gotten since casting my first vote for Jimmy Carter.

But I get to see my children do it, and wish another six months on their age so they could do it. That's something. My two voters as children, and their mother with a perm (good gawd).

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