stop the bickering, children

I would be remiss not to mention the most historic election day I've experienced (and probably will experience again....until, that is a woman becomes president!). In the midst of these troubled times, I can't help but delight in that little trill of hope that is radiating throughout the nation, and I am excited to see how "change," a term that is in my opinion overused as it is elusive, will be embodied and enacted by the Obama administration. Lord knows we need it.





...and perhaps this makes me a bit of an apolitcal anomoly, but I'm also relieved that the election is over. While I'm looking forward to watching and experiencing the dynamic shift in policy-making we're all hoping this administration brings, I'm so tired of reading about the election. I'm tired of hearing about Sarah Palin's jacket collection (if I wanted to read about fashion, I'd be reading Vogue not the New York Times, thank you very much), or psuedo-Marxist comments made by Obama's pastor's fifth cousin twice-removed, or what a sexy silver fox Joe Biden is (OK, I just made that one up!). I'm excited and proud that this election finally engaged and provoked Americans--and my apathetic generation, in particular-- but I despise the moment when thoughtful arguments about important issues regress into petty bickering and an endless tirade of "he said, she said." It seems as though, during a particularly heated and protracted election cycle that included hard-fought primary races, that moment occured eons ago.

Indeed, a recent article in the Washington Post, while admitting a liberal bias that came as a shock to no one, also shed some light on the media's sensationalization of bickering and diminishment of issues:

(By Washington Post Ombudsman Deborah Howell, commenting on the frequency and kinds of stories published since Obama's candidacy was finalized in early June)

"The count was lopsided, with 1,295 horse-race stories and 594 issues stories. The Post was deficient in stories that reported more than the two candidates trading jabs; readers needed articles, going back to the primaries, comparing their positions with outside experts' views. There were no broad stories on energy or science policy, and there were few on religion issues."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/07/AR2008110702895.html

Thus the public were forced to search to find straight-forward and reliable information about the issues at hand, unadultered by scathing barbs or catty remarks uttered by one candidate or another. Maybe I'm just a wuss. Admittedly, I refuse to watch Olympic ice skating because it pains me to see the athletes stumble or fall on a jump- I hate watching failure or humiliation, however minor and in whatever form. I'm not non-confrontational (as anyone who was around me from ages 15-19 would tell you in a heartbeat!), but I think this country and our problems are messy enough without exacerbating the issues by meaningless bickering. Productive, constructive conflict I am all for. Name-calling and rumor-spreading, I am not. Kindgergarten recess time is over, and it's time stop pointing our sticky, jam-coated fingers and move on.

Now that the election's over, I'm glad there's a ceasefire, however temporarily, between our rivaling parties. I'm even more hopeful that my morning paper will begin to illuminate what "change" really means for us as a nation as we move past the bickering and begin to witness the policies, actions, and political climate this new administration will create.

I am less hopeful about one thing, however: that SNL will continue to be as entertaining as it has been in recent months. Buh-bye, "Sarah!"