I want to say a good deal on the subject, but won't promise to, as we all know how such promises always end up.
Let me just say this:
I don't like Bush or his Government. I don't like the majority of his policies. More than that, I believe several of them are disastrous in the extreme (see - Iraq, Invasion of and Policy, Insane Fiscal for two examples).
I think his people and the way they govern engenders needless partisan strife and resorts to the worst of tactics in politics to achieve their goals.
I think their abuses of power for personal profit are unrivaled since the days of U.S. Grant.
I could go on. Suffice to say, I do not like them.
My dislike of Bush and desire to see him replaced by virtually anyone led me to abandon my slowly growing independent streak and support Kerry and the Democratic Party in this past election.
Yes, I'm an independent; increasingly so as time goes by. I despise the two-party oligarchy that runs our country and the abuses said system engenders. Nothing would please me more than to see one or both parties collapse, a third party arise, or a new system come into being that obviates the need for political parties altogether (hopefully I will get around to putting up more on that topic soon as well).
This is not to say I voted for Kerry though. Not at all. I supported his run. Gave money to his campaign (as well as MoveOn.org... will they never leave me alone?!). And talked to people about why they should vote for him (to little effect; I'm clearly not a very convincing debater).
But I live in one o' dem blue states. A very blue state. A state where a vote for Kerry was more of a waste than a vote for Bush (though not by much).
So I was, happily, able to vote my conscience when it came time to actually walk into the booth.
I was torn between voting for Michael Badnarik (Libertarian) and David Cobb (Green), but in the end settled for Cobb/LaMarche. I agree with neither party's platforms in their entirety, but found more common ground with the Greens, and found nothing objectionable about their candidate (apparently unlike most Americans, I don't need to be wowed by a candidate or find them more compelling than most actors in order to vote for them; what a freak I am).
So here I sit, a proud Green Party voter (though not a registered Green).
Ah well. In retrospect it was about as useful a vote to cast as if I had voted for Kerry. Neither of ‘em will be president, after all...
So yeah.
The election is over, Bush won. Though I shudder to say it... he's my President.
Funny thing is, I didn't hate the man when he started.
In 2000, I wasn't overly happy that a moron with questionable allies and even more questionable agendas was elected, but I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. "I mean, how much harm can a president actually do," I wondered?
Hell, I was behind him 100% in the weeks after 9/11. I had family and friends in NY (all safe, thank god).
Hell, I will even admit that I was FOR the war in Iraq when it was first proposed. I bought the arguments for it. I believed the lies about the connections, the WMD, the intent, etc.
The revelations around that were, obviously, what really soured me, though the administration policies in other areas had already done a good job at undermining my goodwill well before then.
So what is this all about?
He's my President. He's yours too (assuming ya live in the US of A).
And what can I do but sit back and watch. Hoping he takes the better of two paths before him. Oh, I know common wisdom screams that he'll keep down this same path of divisive policy and strife; bad economics; cultural and military imperialism.
But hell, I have a touch of the optimist left in me.
But still more than enough realist in me that the actual outcome won't surprise me.
So anyway, in the meantime, at least I can get back to my original political goals.
Oh, and keep an eye on www.openstatesman.com.