Attention Kerry supporters, liberals, and all those downtrodden: Don't move to Canada. The country will not turn inside out because your candidate didn't win. The country will not turn upside down because my candidate did. Last Tuesday and Wednesday, we all survived the crux of democratic rituals, exercising the duty to vote. It was peaceful, contained and above all legitimate. Regardless of how desolate you are, or how angered and vitriolic you cry, please remember that our nation has spoken, no matter how much you think that is a clich?. If you don't agree, work to fix it. Don't declare you're leaving, don't protest the unfairness of the system, and don't lash out against the American people. Above all, don't despair.
You might be scared that a Bush Supreme Court would overturn Roe v. Wade. You may be beside yourself that Social Security will be reformed and improved. You can simper that Republican tax policy is unfair. You could lament that we will continue to promote democracy in the Middle East. You might think there is nothing you can do to stop the onslaught of religious thought and morals upon U. S. society. But I challenge you in the next four years to do something unbelievable and unprecedented. No, I don't think you should spend hours and hours poring over exit polls to determine from where the religious vote is derived. You shouldn't become a Michael Moore or Kitty Kelly. Don't try for a recount, or try to get the South to finally secede from the Union. I don't want you to give up or despair. You can cry if you wish, but get over the whole election business before Thanksgiving.
I understand that Republicans won the popular vote, the Electoral College, gained seats in the House and padded the majority in the Senate. If I were na?ve or interested in gloating, my ruminations would center on how much the social conservative foreign and domestic agenda had resonated with the public. Instead, I put myself in your place, and can easily understand that you believe your entire belief system has been torn apart by strangers who you don't know (this is coming from the girl who sobbed for hours when Clinton won the election, and then reelection - we won't even discuss my emotional state when President Reagan died). That is not the case. Your beliefs and values are yours, lock, stock and barrel. Just because people chose our candidates doesn't mean yours should be decimated.
This is where my challenge comes in. In lieu of screaming, protesting or withdrawing, continue your fight. We as students of politics must stick together, even if we couldn't be further apart in our ideals. We as students of politics have the potential to improve the quality of policy discussion. We as students of politics must get past disappointments and setbacks, and continue on our way. Even though I probably don't believe in the details of your aims, I believe you need to voice them and work for them, not as sound bytes and slogans, but as thoughtful statements. Learn from the election, and take the knowledge with you to better the country. As the political philosopher Friedrich Hayek observes, "It is knowing what we have not known before that makes us wiser men." It is in the best interest of the nation for you to keep going and keep educating yourself. Who knows - one day, you may even see the light and come to our side (just kidding, of course)!
Continue your fight thoughtfully, without thought of violence or revenge. If you feel the vast majority of the American people and their traditions are wrong, convince them of it. In classrooms, don't glare at me, but tell me why you are upset and how you can fix it. Be willing to make concessions in your arguments, and I will as well. Perhaps, if we both honestly and openly discuss the issues of the day and are cognizant of flaws in our own opinions, we will be able to reach the consensus and coalition that we all so desperately need.
We can hardly expect each other to change ideals, and I am certainly more than elated that George W. Bush and the Conservatives have had a ringing victory, but I care more about the country than I do my party or my ego. You should feel the same way. I promise not to gloat if you'll promise not to pout. Let's get to work and find solutions. Pick your battles, I'll pick mine, and then together we'll fight the war against ignorance and apathy. For the next four years, I'm not going to rest, even though some would say my party's work is finished. I will fight to keep America safe, to ensure fairness in the tax system, to find solutions for a society of ownership, and to safeguard American traditions.
If you are upset and believe that since Kerry didn't win, or Tom Daschle is finally gone, or you worry Justice Ginsberg will be lonely on the Supreme Court, take this saying by C.S. Lewis to heart: "The more often he feels without acting, the less he will be able ever to act, and, in the long run, the less he will be able to feel..." So don't give up or move to Canada; we need someone to argue with here.
Heather Blandford is a senior in the School of Public Affairs.
