Obama won and I'm still disappointed

For those of you who didn't know I can knit, you're mostly right.  Back in the day I used to knit sweaters, scarves and mittens, but not much else.

This project will be a color-block afghan, all 99 five-inch squares of it.  I'm about 20% done, so this will take a while, but I like the muted fall colors.

This afternoon I'm going to drop in on a church knitting group where I hope to get some ongoing help throughout the year.  I don't know how to stitch these squares together, or make a final edge around the entire project.  I have always wanted to learn how to knit socks and every now and then I think of how great it would be to crochet a traditional granny-square afghan like Steve's mom used to have.

I didn't dare start a knitting project before the election was over because the tension was so high I figured I'd put bubbles throughout all the flat places and rip the threads into pieces.  But we made it past that, thank heavens, and life can settle down with much less fear.

Seventy percent of Sonoma County supported President Obama for re-election, one reason I am so happy here.  Politics didn't used to be a factor in where I would choose to live, but it certainly matters to me now.  It was hard enough, during the campaign, to hear friends of mine say stupid things like questioning Barack's nationality or religion and my respect plummeted when I realized these folks had brains but were refusing to use them.

The truth is, the Republican Party is a racist enclave - and if you don't believe that, explain to me why only 2% of its membership is people of color.  By deciding to be a party of white men, the Republicans lost an election.  As close as that election was, it wouldn't have taken much reaching out to others to completely change the outcome.  I don't know what it would take to pry a Republican away from Fox "News" channel, which isn't even good entertainment these days - but it certainly isn't news.  It a channel based on fear of black men - or "others" in general - and perpetuates nonsense to people who don't read and refuse to think.  When you have a party actually believing that Russia is our worst enemy, that rape is "legitimate" and the results of which are endorsed by God, that the military needs to be reversed to the standings of 1916, that IDs need to be checked at the polling place when there is no history of fraud, that FEMA should be undone - need I say more?  What frightens me is that the vote was so close.  Has the 49% set their brains on the floor next to the Fox telly?

It's going to take me a long time to process the election of 2012.  Although the final outcome was favorable to me, it was too close, too hateful, too bigoted, too sleazy and nasty.  Before the campaigns began I knew that there were lots of folks in this country with whom I simply disagreed.  Now - and it hurts me to admit this - there are 49% of my countrymen that I don't even like or want to meet.  Never have I felt that way before.  It's one thing to have a different opinion;  it's another thing to foist hatred on the poor, those of different backgrounds and races and to take delight in assuring that that there will be two classes in this country - the rich and the poor - and to set up policy to make that happen.

I'm glad the weather has shifted to cold and rainy.  It's a good time to sit quietly and knit it all out.