A very interesting graphic showing the breakdown of voting areas based on religion:

[Via Dual Coasts]

Heh. Here’s a chart that shows the average population IQ and how that state voted in the 2004 U.S. Election.
[Via del.icio.us]

I’m sick and tired of the talk about how the Democrats are “out of the mainstream” and how this is a mandate of the people. This is all divisive bullshit. If you look at the standard electoral map, you get this sense of overwhelming red with pockets of blue. The truth is that there are “red” and “blue” people everywhere. America is purple.
This map shows how we voted, county by county, instead of state by state.

Revealing, isn’t it?
[Map via Robert J. Vanderbei]

Like many liberals out there, I watched the polls last night with anticipation and steadily growing disappointment. I share the sentiment of disappointment in having worked so hard only to fall short of victory. However, I do think it is vitally important that we not lose sight of this election and what it means for our country.

Already there is talk of the liberal base and the young voters giving up on the political process; as if those of us who aren’t on the right can’t take a minor set-back. We are supposed to just give up. Our despair and apathy are supposed to get the better of us. I think that is flat out ridiculous. Sure, we might be down, but we are sure as hell not out.

Now is not the time to give up, now is the time to fight harder for the values that we believe in. Conservatives don’t have a lock on moral values. I don’t need to remind Christians that Jesus was the ultimate liberal. The religious right claims this election as a moral victory, but I just cannot bring myself to view this election in those terms. There is nothing moral about Bush’s war. There is nothing moral about a thousand of our troops dead and thousands of innocent Iraqi civilians killed. There is nothing moral about destroying our environment for the almighty dollar. And there is certainly nothing moral in thirteen states denying the rights of family minded, upstanding members of the communities on the basis of their sexual preferences.

I never in my life thought I would quote Al Sharpton, but he’s right: it’s time for us to stop being elephants in donkey jackets. The Republicans try to speak of a ‘mandate’ from the people, but the race was 51% to 48%. That’s not a thrashing. That’s not a blow-out. That’s not a decisive victory. And it’s a long, long way from a mandate. Nearly half of voting America sent a clear signal to the President last night: we’ve had enough of you.

Now is not the time for us to slink away, with our tail between our legs. It’s time for us to stand tall and have our voice heard. It’s time for us to work hard to make sure our concerns are addressed and to keep this administration honest. And if the last four years should have taught us anything, keeping this bunch honest is going to be hard, hard work.

There’s a lot of speculation about why the Democrats weren’t able to rally America to defeat this President. I do not believe it has anything to do with not being able to appeal to ‘middle America’. I believe it has everything to do with trying to kowtow to the Republican platform. This fear of liberalism has gone too far and it’s time we stood together to put a stop to it right now. This is not a debate between the ‘liberal’ and ‘moderate’ wings of the party; it’s about liberals letting American know what it means to be a liberal, instead of the conservatives bad mouthing us to the American people.

What does it mean to be a liberal in America today? If you let the right define it, liberal might seem like a scary word. But for me, liberal simply means compassion — compassion for our fellow man.

Being a liberal means believing that everyone in America has the right to the education they need to build a better life, to feed and clothe their families. Being a liberal means believing all Americans should have access to healthcare. It means those who can afford to pay a little more do, because it benefits us all. It means reaching out to those less fortunate than us. It means fighting for the rights of the common man, to make sure that those in power don’t forget that America is by the people, for the people.

Being a liberal means defending the constitution and the idea that all men are created equal. All women are created equal. And those rights don’t just extend to those in power, those rights are universal. Being a liberal means fighting to protect those rights for all Americans.

Being a liberal means working hard to ensure that we don’t leave our children a worn out, used up earth. It means not abandoning our future, destroying our planet, and sticking our children with the bill.

Being a liberal means being an idealist with ideals. Liberals are the true moral leaders of America; being liberal means fighting to make sure those in power hear the voices of the people they are meant to represent.

So, take a moment. Lick your wounds a bit. Pause. Reflect. And then gather yourselves together and prepare for the next battle. This one is shaping up to be even longer and harder than the year leading up to this election; our next battle will rage for at least four years, but there is just too much at stake for us to give up.

Because I think Kerry has lost. However, the official website for the Ohio Secretary of State shows that Bush’s lead is 136,483 votes. They also show that there are currently 135,149 Provisional Ballots out… and there are still 10 counties that aren’t included in the Provisional Ballot Total. So, while it is highly unlikely that Kerry would take Ohio, it is not “statistically impossible”.

Some general observations about the current U.S. Presidential Election:

1. Wolf Blitzer is retarded. And I mean no disrespect to the retarded, but seriously, why in the hell is Wolf the lead CNN anchor on this? How many times can we watch Jeff Greenfield shake his head in the background as Wolf fumbles yet another fact? Someone give Anderson Cooper one of those big hooks so he can pull Wolf off stage.

2. CNN has reverb “Spacial Logic’ reverb. And what, might you ask, is “Spacial Logic”? Why, it’s a color coded map. Holy shit! That is some truly, truly amazing technology. A color coded map of the state, broken down by county. I hope someone has patented this modern marvel.

3. Is Larry King senile? He can’t seem to grasp simple math. Larry’s quote of the night, “So why are we here?” Good question, Larry, good question.

4. Okay, what the hell is with these analysts who say that this is a decisive victory for Bush??! American politics has become so perverted that a 3-4% margin is now “substantial”? Where did the Democrats “go wrong”? Apparently, about 50% of American voters which is, um, roughly half don’t think the Democrats did go wrong.

5. Thank god J. Kenneth Blackwell knows how to dress and not come off like a hysterical partisan hack. Even though I’m a “liberal,” after seeing him on CNN, I actually believe that he will carry out his duty as Ohio Secretary of State which integrity, which is exactly what America needs.

6. In case you wanted some official numbers:
Ohio County Breakdown

Ohio Provisional Ballots

Of course, I found this in a single Google Search. CNN can’t figure out how to find out the current number of provisional ballots.

7. At least Bush will have to deal with his own Iraq mess. I hope he realizes that if you try to stomp out that burning bag on the porch, you get shit all over your shoes.

8. Come on… when James Carville is down, I think it’s pretty much over. Now, I would love to be proved wrong, but I just don’t think so.

9. Seriously, Jeff, the Democrats didn’t “Do things wrong.” A sitting, war time President won (apparently) with an approximately 3-4% margin. That’s not exactly a mandate from the people nor a shocking condemnation of the Democratic platform. It is a reflection of just how divided the country is and how torn we are as a nation about terrorism vs. the economy. David Gergen keeps talking about this being a “clear mandate” but I just don’t see it. 10% difference, we’ll start talking. 25% difference? No question. 3-4% difference? Um, I don’t think so. Geesh. Get over it.

10. Robert Novak: Douche Bag of Liberty.

I am. Are you nervous? I am.

I’m sure that everyone has seen this or a reference to it someplace, but I wouldn’t be a good blogger if I didn’t pick up the meme and run with it.

Jon Stewart was on Crossfire the yesterday, and he ripped Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala new ones… it was pretty sweet. My favorite sound bite:

CARLSON: You need to get a job at a journalism school, I think.

STEWART: You need to go to one.

Check it out:

• Wonkette
• Salon
• The CNN Transcript
• Watch it on iFilm

What more reason do you need to love The Daily Show?

I’m not exactly pro-choice and I’m not exactly pro-life. I’m one of the vast “middle grounders” out there in America, who are just kind of sick about the whole thing because it’s an un-resolvable issue. I believe:

1. Women have to carry babies and often they bear the greatest burden raising children, so who am I to force a woman to have a baby she does not want or cannot afford?
2. Adoption is a great thing, and I would certainly encourage anyone I knew who was pregnant but did not want the baby to consider it. There are a lot of good people who want children and can’t have them.
3. I think abortion is killing. But there’s all kinds of *justified* killing in our world: war, self-defense, accidents.

Just because it’s taking a life and *I* think it’s morally wrong doesn’t mean that I should hold everyone else to my moral standard. I think war is wrong. I think capital punishment is wrong. Obviously, I’m not doing to well on the fight to end those either.

I bring this all up because I often hear self-proclaimed “pro-life activists” say that they are voting for Bush, based on that one position alone. But tonight Rain Man posed a very interesting essay by a Christian ethicist, entitled Pro-life? Look at the Fruits which quotes some interesting statistics that show that under the Bush administration, in spite of “faith based initiatives” abortions have actually increased. Why? The economy. It’s certainly worth considering. If you really want to make abortion your issue, as the article claims, it is not just a moral issue separate from the candidates other policies.

Recently, an American ex-pat I know suggested that the majority of Americans were “close-minded, conservative, and prudish,” and expressed regret at the possibility of returning.

This got me thinking a bit about how I feel about America. I’ve always been interested in politics, but over the past few years I’ve become progressively more involved, and more interested in the American political process. I have to say, that participating in it more actively has actually had the opposite effect to what I might have suspected — I’ve actually become less jaded.

I think that only someone who is not in America would ever make sweeping statements about the “majority” of Americans. This country seems to be very polarized these days, on a host of issues. I also am not so sure that this is a bad thing, necessarily. Certainly, being so bitterly divided that we cannot engage in honest discourse is a bad thing. However, engaging in dialog is a good thing, and so long as we are free to engage in that dialog, I think there is hope. It is when we stop allowing the expression of ideas – even those we despise — that we run the risk of truly becoming close-minded.

As Churchill said, “Democracy is the worst form of government, excepting all the others.” Democracy, and especially American democracy, is rife with problems. All governments of men are flawed. What is wonderful about democracy is that it gives us all a voice to stand up and to point out those flaws so we can work on correcting them. In fact, I think it’s our duty in a democracy. As Benjamin Franklin noted, our founding fathers gave us, “[a] republic, so long as you can keep it.”

So are we close-minded? You tell me. The people I know aren’t. Even most of the conservatives I know are not. Sure, I have met a few neo-cons who tow the party line. I’ve also met a few socialists who tow the party line. But more, I’ve met honest people, who care about their lives and their governments. These people have real, honest differences about what they feel is best for our country. Having honest differences of opinion is not being close-minded. The key is to keep our minds open to discourse, willing to look at – and consider – evidence from the opposing view which may change our own opinions. The common fallacy on the left (disclaimer: I’m a self-declared liberal) is that being close-minded is somehow limited to those on the right. In reality, I’ve met a great deal of close minded people who couldn’t even consider the conservative view-point. In fact, true conservatives — not necessarily the neo-con style of the current administration — have a great deal in common with liberals. The ACLU fights vigorously to stop governmental abuses of the Constitution through vehicles such as the PATRIOT Act. And so does Bob Barr. Conservative isn’t dirty word anymore than liberal is.

I’m also skeptical of the label of “prudish,” mostly because it seems to just be salacious, without really raising any actual point. I can easily generate examples of “prudish” America: we allow naked females in our movies, but full frontal nudity of a man is likely to draw a stiff rebuke from the MPAA Ratings Board (pun intended). So what? We also host the largest adult entertainment industry in the world. Or is it that our nation was shocked and titillated (I’m on a roll!) when Janet Jackson shows us a bare breast? I think it’s just another example of just how diverse America is. Yes, there were a number of Americans who felt that was a horrible incident. But again, a number of Americans just plain didn’t care.

It’s easy to some sweeping generalizations about the population and then infer that America is X or Americans are Y. The reality is that America is complex. There are a diversity of lifestyles and a diversity of opinions. We don’t often agree on the issues, but that is one of the greatest aspects of America; we don’t have to agree with everyone. And we are all free to participate in the system, which is, I guess, the entire point of my rant. Instead of grousing about America and Americans, if you are one, participate. Work for change. Right the wrongs. Correct the injustices. Or work to preserve a traditional way of life. Whatever issues matter most to you, pursue them, support them and tell others about them. That’s what it really means to be an American: the idealism that ideas are good things, and that no matter what we do, we are free to think and consider whatever ideas we want. For now. So do what you can to encourage and participate in discourse.