ARGGGG!!!

I hate college! I am forced to listen to the horrid music of others, techno, rap, etc. I have no idea what the guy across the room has on his iPod but I'm sick of hearing it! It's terrible! Worse than sitting here listening to people talk about how horrible the Republicans are. (No not a republican, not in a party. I don't think). I love having other peoples political ideals stuffed down my throat.

Yep, I'm going to rant about the election.

I didn't care so much who won, but I do think we're in for trouble. One political party controls the House, the Senate and the Presidency, or at least they will come January. I would think this was a bad idea no matter which party had control. But in this case it could cause serious problems for anyone who likes to hunt or has a small self owned business.

Why?

Because the House and the Senate are going to be able to pass just about anything they want into law. The president will sign it, cool right?

Not so much.

With one party in control of every thing, the people who support any other view point aren't represented fairly.

"But the vote decided it". This is true. But that doesn't mean that the vote has ever been particularly fair.

To the victor go the spoils.

Great system. Except history is written by the victors. So, while our system seems to work, perhaps that's just because we only hear one side.

"But we hear minority stories all the time."

True but there's a difference between a political minority and a social minority. Sometimes they're the same thing. African Americans used to be both. Now I don't particularly see them as either. In a few short months one will be president, for better or for worse only time will tell. Hispanics could still be considered a minority though right? Not so much. Not when you almost have to know Spanish in any number of professions. And call just about any number for a government office and you will be asked to "press x 'si habla espanol'". Wait a second. "si habla espanol"? what happened to "English"? My ancestors had to learn it when they came here, why can't the people who are coming here now learn it? Why couldn't my German ancestors continue to speak German? Why did they have to drop so much of who they were to be welcome here, while people who are, at least some illegal immigrants get to determine anything about the country I was born in, while my opinion matters not at all?

Why am I on a political rant? Not because of the election, that's over nothing can be done about that. No because of the fact that sitting here in the lobby of a campus building I've over heard conversations about the election.

All but one were about how wonderful it was that McCain lost. No comment on that one I'll let the next four years make up my mind. No my problem was that irrespective of skin color, every one was giving McCain a hard time about what was being yelled as he gave his concession speech (no I didn't listen I was watching House.) But they were blaming him for it quote "he let those racists in". Whatever. He can't control what the people there yelled and the one piece of his speech that I heard this morning he tried to make them stop.

So why am I ranting about the election? Despite the fact that as I've mentioned, I didn't care?

Because I do care. I love my country. I love the place I grew up. Even though I deliberately picked a major that is going to, within the next year in fact take me far from home, I love that stupid farm. I love my sister for wanting to take over, freeing me to dig up dead people all over the world. I love my baby brother for loving the animals enough to go into a major that may make him a Game Warden, and put him in danger just to enforce laws on hunting. I love my mom for telling me that she was going to miss me, but that she wouldn't stop me from leaving. I love my father, just for being his irritable self and not understanding why I can't stay.

What does that have to do with music in the lounge in this building and a political standpoint and agenda?

Every political choice that is made by myself, by my professors and fellow students, the dude down the road with some issues (he thinks his dog works for the government, he's also a figment of my imagination) has a ripple effect on everyone today and every one tomorrow and through the rest of human existence.

Think about throwing a pebble into a still body of water. Ripple radiate out from in until they hit the shore then they bounce back, and change the ones still coming. If you throw another pebble even more ripples and more changes, eventually, you can't tell where you started tossing pebbles in.

And every one who is looking at that water with you is throwing their own pebbles in. And eventually you end up with all pebbles and no water and your feet are wet. That's what government is to me, a good way to ruin nice shoes. We keep adding more and more pebbles to the pond and the pebbles spill more and more water on our shoes but we're so fascinated by the ripples and the reflections in the water that we can't stop. We're addicted, and we're going to be our own downfall.

Over the years, the leader ship in this country has swung, conservative. Then liberal, and back and forth, each level of government and each election leaving it's own layer of pebbles and ripples. Right back to the earliest elections, no matter how murky and overlaid the ripples are now, you can still trace them through to the modern day.

I can't help but wonder what 200 years from now, yesterdays and the next two t four years ripples will look like?

We're in for a change.

For better or worse.


Next time you do something, think about your ripples.


But for those of you depressed by yesterdays election, keep heart, we can always vote the other way next election... Should be a midterm election right? House of Reps? Two years from now?

I think maybe I should become a political scientist wouldn't that be fun.

Unfortunately, I think regardless of all else, I'm suddenly going to be following the government very closely.

I'm not sure this is coherent enough to get my point across it's long rambling and touches on a lot of stuff, but truth is, I'm scared of what's coming. Not because of the president elect's skin color or the various rumors about his religion etc. No I'm scared because my family's way of life may end in the next four years. More gun control could cause my brother's chosen field to become obsolete (if no one has guns very little hunting will go on), farming regulations could cause and probably will cause my sister's much adored farming plans to circle the drain and disappear (more expensive regulations and taxes... yikes).

Fortunately I think my major is safe. There will always be dead cultures to dig up.