Carnage – But Good Carnage?

So, there we have it. Democrats now control the House, and as of this writing, it looks likely they’ll pick up enough seats to give them a 51-49 margin in the Senate. (Let’s pause right now an consider the power of Joe Lieberman – assaulted by his own party, chased out by the nutroots, and now in a position to hand the Senate back to the Republicans with a simple switch to a 50-50 split…bask in it Joe. You could ask for the moon and your former Party would have to swallow their bile and give in. All hail King Joe!, brought to you by the Daily Kos).

A few years ago, I’d probably be suicidal with despair at this outcome. Today, I feel pretty good. I’m actually looking forward to the next few years as an opportunity for the nation. But I can’t resist a little sarcasm at the expense of the nutroots Left.

I woke up today, and the Great Diebold Vote Fraud, promised by the Left, never happened. Bush, frequently compared to Hitler, did not declare martial law or invalidate the election with a South American style decree. No Halliburton-built orbital death lasers vaporized the Democratic Party Headquarters. All the stifling of dissent and free speech gave us a handy Democratic victory.

Could someone remind me if the actual Hitler ever let the opposition party take power?

I wonder if Tim Robbins still feels his ‘chill wind’?

The point is – the system still works. Many of the elections were won with razor thin margins, and it is useful to note the dearth of lawsuits when the win breaks for the blue candidate. Granted, two races are going to be headed to the courts, but they are down to a couple of thousands votes out of a few million – close enough for a worthy investigation. I guess Diebold machines work fine when the right candidate wins?

But enough of that. I hope the ‘fascist Amerika’ meme dies a quiet death on the far Left. And lets not see it put down roots on the far Right either. It is beneath us as a country.

So, my take on the election?

I heard a clip with Nick Gillespe, the editor of Reason. To paraphrase, regardless of the outcome of Tuesday night, the only sure thing is America will lose. Obviously, I’m not too confident in the Democrats ability to govern, but the Republican Congress has proven beyond all doubts their incompetence. As an American, I’m not sure how I could support a continued GOP rule when they’ve abandoned everything they once stood behind.

Another blogger (can’t find it now – sorry) wrote: Both parties ran on how pathetic the other was. They both made a very good case.

In 1994, I was ecstatic over the Gingrich Revolution and the Contract. Serious conservative values (strong defense, less spending, less government, more individual control) were enshrined and the people tossed aside forty years of Democratic big government. We seemed to be on the cusp of something revolutionary.

Now we have a GOP that can’t control spending, can’t control the border with Mexico, can’t take up any serious efforts at social security reform, gave us the Prescription Drug plan, and paraded us through a litany of scandal, both moral and fiscal. How could I hope for this to continue?

The GOP earned this loss. They deserved to get spanked, and I’m glad they did.

The only regret I have is in the timing.

The War (bigger than the war in Iraq) isn’t going to pause while we have this internal debate over what we stand for. The Democrats have inherited the responsibility to confront Islamic Fascism all over the world. I’m not convinced the Republicans had the stomach for it, but I’m pretty sure the incoming Democratic leadership isn’t that interested in confrontation. The next two years, at least, will tell us a great deal about where we are going as a combatant in the war we didn’t want.

Will the 9/10/01 mentality of law enforcement work today? I think we’re going to find out.

Any maybe this is a good thing. The nation has been split right down the middle for a long time, and the Global War has been part of that wedge. It has been pretty easy for half the populace to advocate a different path, but when that path is then tested with results, opinions will change. If the 9/10/01 world brings us even more death and destruction, perhaps reasonable people will accept our role in the War. Should it bring us peace and prosperity, I’ll be the first to acknowledge being wrong about the magnitude of the threat.

Either way, this election will give us time to explore an uncertain path. Here’s hoping the price of this exploration isn’t measured in millions of lives.

I’m hoping a return to power will temper the more extreme ranting from the Left.

John Conyers will head the Judiciary Committee, and in the past he’s pursued inquiries on impeaching Bush. Since then he’s promised he won’t, but Conyers will be the indicator on which path the Democrats want to take.

Charlie Rangle will chair Ways and Means, and he’s already on record talking about defunding the soldiers in Iraq. “You’ve got to be able to pay for the war, don’t you?” Without money, the troops pretty much have to come home. Let’s see what he does with his power.

And then there is the curious judgment of Nancy Pelosi, the new Speaker of the House. When asked if Alcee Hastings will chair the Intelligence committee, she replied yes. This is the same Mr. Hastings who was impeached as a Federal Judge for perjury and corruption, later elected to the House. An impeached judge will now have his fingers in the Intelligence network of a nation at war. Forgive me if I don’t immediately accept that as a reasonable situation.

The Democrats have a chance to govern. I hope they accept the serious issues facing the country on the international stage. Unfortunately, early reports suggest a more myopic agenda –

Halliburton, the CIA and big tobacco companies are among the early targets identified by top Democratic staff to ABC News as likely targets for investigation once the Democrats take control of the House at the beginning of next year.

The staffers say Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), now expected to become speaker, has told top Democratic donors there is a “100-hour agenda” she wants to push through — taking on the minimum wage, drug and energy prices and corruption

As for the GOP – I’ll save my thoughts on their future for another post.

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