An Election Thanksgiving

In two days, the United States of America is going to hold a general election. In this election, seventeen gubernatorial races will be decided. One-third of the seats in the Senate will be decided. And, of course, every member of the House of Representatives will be up for (re-)election.

Yet, there is one race that has an overarching importance to every American, the race for the presidency. I have already voted, and I cast my vote for Barack Obama and so have quite a few people I know. Many other friends and colleagues will vote for Senator McCain.

This election process has been divisive and difficult for the country. I don't think there's any way to judge the impact that the campaigning has had on the psyche of the nation, but I think that it is fair to say that this election cycle has been negative enough that it will hamper whomever gets into the White House from ruling effectively – or at least as effectively as either of these Senators would have been otherwise.

For the theme of national politics, therefore, I am not thankful. But, there is much to be thankful for in this country when it comes to elections.

The Sitting President

Say what you will about President Bush, I know that it would never cross his mind to stay in office. To virtually any American, this is an obvious statement. Of course an American president is going to step down at the end of his (someday “her”) presidency. But this is not the 'norm' in many parts of the world. What has become the absolute outcome in America is not nearly certain in three-quarters of the countries in the United Nations.

So, to President Bush, and the forty-two presidents before him, I am thankful.

The American People

I believe that if a sitting president ever tried to stay in office after a four or eight year term, that president would simply be ignored. He would get a pat on the head, and bemused look, and all of us would ignore him. From the military, to the highest elected and non-elected offices, to the men and women on the street, a tyrant would never be allowed.

To the American People, I am thankful we would never allow this to happen.

County Elections Offices

Elections in the country are not carried out by the federal government, nor the state government. Each and every time we vote, that elections runs smoothly because of dedicated men and women in each and every county in this nation.

Sometimes we hear about something unjust or problematic about a county elections office. But, we don't hear a peep from the thousands of elections office that do everything right. We never hear about the offices that are politically neutral, efficient, and honest.

I am thankful for the men and women who make our elections fair.

The Candidates

I would never be willing to run for elected office. Frankly, I don't think my skin is thick enough to deal with the lies and half-truths that are continuously slung at the candidates. The truth I could handle, but time and again, we see that the truth is rarely used to castigate the candidates.

Sometimes I imaging myself in a politicians shoes (briefly), and I cannot image having the restraint that they always seem to have. I understand, in the abstract, that one must put the office above oneself, and that one must maintain a high level of decorum despite being lambasted by everyone. But, I know, that if I was in office, I don't think I would refrain from lashing out.

To the candidates, then, I am thankful for your ability to put the office above your personal feelings.

Voters

I always get excited when I think that tens of millions of Americans are doing the same thing – voting! After all, we are an incredibly diverse nation. Very often, besides being American, we have little in common. So, if you think about it, voting is brings us together unlike almost anything else as a country.

Each of us, with few exceptions, eats, sleeps, drinks, breathes, uses the toilet, and pays bills and taxes. Outside of that, there is very little that you might be able to predict about a random American. You can be American if you are from another country, or if your ancestors came over on the Mayflower. You can be an American if you speak only English or Spanish. You can be an American if you were born in Alaska, or if only one of your parents was an American and you were born in Morocco. And on the first Tuesday of November every four years, each and every one of us has the right to decide who shall govern this nation.

Two-thirds of us make the choice every four years to be a part of this process. In other words, we voters beat the non-voting community in a landslide!

I am thankful to all of the American who cast a ballot.

Our Ancestors

Today we have the oldest and one of the few stable democracies in the world. Though we may have struggled with Universal Suffrage, Jim Crow Laws, and the meaning of the phrase “All men are created equally...”, we are here. We are about to vote. In no small way, we owe this privilege, this right, to those who fought and sometimes died.

I am thankful to our ancestors for this Democracy!