Electoral Nirvana

With Election Day just over a week away, I have reached a Zen state of mind about the outcome. I call it my survival strategy for living with the final results. Both alternatives offer opportunity and risk and, while I very much want to see John Kerry win, a Kerry loss will not be the end of the world. George W. Bush, in a second term, is likely to discredit his ideas and the Republican Party for years to come, a latter day Herbert Hoover, if you will. The disastrous results of his military adventurism and fiscal irresponsibility are only now becoming painfully obvious (the latest: 380 tons of very high explosives gone missing in Iraq right under America’s nose) but, lost in the presidential campaigns’s intense, final days, their import will not be noticed in time to affect Bush’s re-election prospects. Those results will, however, haunt a second term as the administration attempts to control an increasingly difficult military situation and economic chaos. It won’t be pretty but it may well destroy Bush and his neo-conservative ideologues.

These same circumstances could also destroy President Kerry. If he wins, he must perform and, for all his talk of “better plans”, those plans are only good if they address reality, which is often obscure and constantly changing. Kerry will need to be strong and forceful in order to extricate the US from its Mid-East quagmire. He will have a hostile Congress and the screeching heads of the Republican disinformation network challenging him at all turns. A Kerry victory on November 2nd (or whenever this election is settled) comes with some real risk. But it also offers opportunities for a more responsible government, better judges and economic policies that support and assist average Americans. As much as I want to see Bush go down in flames, I am not willing to deny my nation the benefits of better government, so I can live with a Kerry victory.

Reaching this Zen state comes at just the right time for me. The election is too close to call. Absent some major gaffe or event, the polls will continue to see-saw. Today’s lead will evaporate tomorrow only to return the following data. Never before have I had some much data available to me. I can find poll results, electoral vote talllies, predictions, trends, war chest balances, every thing but certainty. None of the data mean much anymore other than to say, “you can’t tell”. So, it’s best to be prepared for either outcome and hold on for the ride. I’ve already voted, so all that’s left to me is volunteer work, phoning, canvassing and whatever else the Arizona campaign needs in its final days. It’s actually fun at this point. I have a project, a goal and a deadline. I get to meet and talk to people and I am a small part of history. If we carry Arizona for Kerry, I am sure he will be elected president, so my efforts could well make a difference.

The Washington Post reports today on anxiety disorder (PEAD) that terrorizes supporters of both candidates. They simply cannot abide the idea that the Other will win. All they can see is chaos and destruction in their opponent’s victory. The possibility that the outcome may not be decided until after November 2nd terrorizes them further. I hope they can come to terms with their fears. I have. There are only a few things I can do to affect the outcome and I’m already doing them. I’m not going to stress myself about things I cannot control.

For perspective, I have Vietnam. I survived combat. I can surely endure the remaining days of this campaign and whatever it brings. The Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail had it right. After losing his arm to Arthur’s sword, he said, “I’ve seen worse.” So have I. And like all horrors, this, too, shall pass.