Election Election Election

I'm more worried about this election cycle than any other I've been through, because I've seen the devastation that can come from a president who doesn't have a firm grasp of consequences.  And it's not just that there's still a small possibility that the US might elect a president that sends us off the rails.

It's the high level of rancor over the election campaign.  How do we get past the divisive rhetoric that we're seeing today?  I want my candidate to win, but I want them also then be able to govern, to rally the people of the US to do better, to be better people.

I think of it this way--the election on November 8 is the gateway to a new beginning.  I'll take what happens, whatever it is, whatever my worries.  But I want a functional government.  My worry is that politicians will see opportunity in the vast divide to rally a portion of the populace to their side and demonize the rest, leaving us at odds with each other, prey to forces that loom.

Abraham Lincoln said, "A house divided against itself cannot stand."  Today's rancor seems to me to be a crisis similar to the one Lincoln faced, a country divided by an issue that still hasn't healed.

It isn't one issue that divides our country today; it's many.  The multiple challenges our country faces--mounting and crippling debt, threats from abroad, political gridlock, and environmental devastation--together present a crisis that needs decisive action.

We must face this crisis with seriousness and purpose, forging a way forward with respect for differing opinions and positions.  And we want a leader who will inspire us with the values that the founders of the country did.