Votey McVoting Vote Vote ~ Blog 13

Absolutely no line to get this sticker; also, what the hell is that in the
foreground? Is that a fleshy chair?

The BBC was all about our election this morning. Why was NPR broadcasting the BBC instead of Diane Ream at 9 a.m.? No idea. But their analysis was spot-on. America's politics are deeply divided.

That's absolutely true. Today, I reflect on my political caterwauling four years ago. I was in Salt Lake City and felt like a flaming liberal. I supported Obama enthusiastically in the primaries; argued with my Mom, a Clinton backer; and yelled about my voting on Facebook.

Living in an extreme state is polarizing. Prior to moving to Utah, I might have said I was Republican-leaning. In Minnesota, it's possible for Republicans to be open on social issues while fiscally conservative.

In my first Utah election, a candidate for mayor delivered a flyer to my house stating that he would outlaw all abortions, if it was possible. Never mind that mayors don't have anything close to that kind of responsibility. That's how conservative that candidate wanted you to know he was.

Republicans own the state of Utah. They hold super majorities in both the state senate and house. Though I have voted for Republicans before, voting in Utah became an act of protest. It was a way to say, "I'm here and I really disagree with how extreme you are."

And so, in 2008, I was pretty obnoxious. It might explain why about 75 friends of mine on Facebook have blocked me. How do I know they've blocked me? If you do a game invite, it asks you if you want to invite your 650 friends. Wait, I thought I have 725 fri ... oh. I get it.

The result of all the political yelling that we're all guilty of is we tune out dissenting voices. Republicans don't want to hear their idiot liberal friends. Democrats don't want to hear from their jerky conservative friends, so they block them. Independents roll their eyes at all of us.

We're not talking to each other. We're only talking to people we agree with. Then, we wonder how it's possible for Obama to be re-elected (which he will) or how Republicans can hold onto the House (which they will for at least another election).

Our politicians are a reflection of us. Mitt Romney talks about cutting taxes, which liberals vehemently oppose. Liberals talk about cutting defense spending, which causes Republicans to vomit a string of expletives. Moderation is dead.

Or it's almost dead. New England has Republicans I like. Scott Brown is running for Senate and is the kind of guy I could vote for. Olympia Snowe in Maine would have gotten my vote had we stayed in Portland and had she run. But those options are few.

At our local polling place, in an elementary school like so many others around the country, I walked right in and picked up my ballots. After Romney, Ryan and Brown, there was a sum total of one Republican on the ballot. Every judge, every board position, every councilor, was a Democrat. It was pretty much the opposite of Utah.

It was even worse than Utah. At least in Utah there were Democrats to cast opposition votes for. I voted for an independent for U.S. Congress as a protest vote. I did no research on this except for right now. She's a former Miss Massachusetts and I can't really find any positions on any actual issues on her website. A vote well spent, I'd say.

Democrats will pick up a few House seats and hold onto the Senate (even increasing their margin slightly). Obama will likely win re-election. And absolutely nothing will get done for the next two years because we can't talk to each other. It's slightly depressing.

It's comforting to know that elections shouldn't really affect your life. My dog will still be my dog tomorrow. I'll still live in a great city in a great state and have my same computer. But it would be nice to talk to those 75 Facebook friends, even if just to get yelled at. At least we'd be talking.