As the title states, I'm depressed about the election. At this point, it seems almost certain that "Billary" Clinton will be on the ballot in November once again, like it or not. There is--if the numbers I saw earlier are right--a slight chance that Sanders could win via Super Delegates. But the chances of that happening seem slim. So...I ponder 4 or 8 years of Billary in the White House. I ponder the very real problems in this country that seem quite likely to be unsolved with 4 or 8 years of "business as usual." Thus, I don't expect much in the line of problems such as the dying middle class to be addressed. I don't expect solutions for helping the poor escape poverty. As stated many times before, I am beyond low income. I've been low income my whole fucking adult life. Now I'm just plain poor. It was so bad that a few months ago I gave serious consideration to suicide, just to escape poverty. (Small loss, I know...) Money isn't everything, of course, but being poor takes a toll. One very real toll: it reduces, if not totally annihilates, any chance of ever having a relationship. Particularly at my age. Most people would want someone who is at last on solid financial footing. Particularly if that other guy is also later in life, but, unlike me, recovering from an ended straight marriage. Someone freshly divorced--who has just lost his house, a chunk of his 401K, and is hemorrhaging cash every month in spousal support/child support--is not terribly likely to be terribly excited at the prospect of moving in with me and barely surviving... At one point, I had hopes with Sanders. He might win. There might be changes, and things might actually get better for people at my level. I am trying to struggle towards optimism. Somehow, maybe hell will freeze, and I can escape poverty, even with Billary in office. Maybe the anger/frustration so many Sanders supporters have will actually influence the Democratic Party to actually take the pain so many of us are suffering under seriously, and attempt to address it. I am also trying to be realistic: I know change does not happen overnight. No matter who wins in November, change would take time. Maybe it's too late for me to escape poverty...
They say that both success and failure are impostors. Living in Montreal, about 50 miles north of the Vermont border, I had a ring-side seat to this man's political career over the years from seeing his Vermont campaigns on US cable television. His message has not changed, his energy has not diminished and I stand in awe at what he has accomplished in this 2016 presidential campaign. Let us celebrate this "failure" for what it is, the first spark in a desperately-needed political revolution. Mr. Sanders has lifted the veil from people's eyes, or as others have said, he managed to lift the hood to reveal the rusty mechanism of a seriously flawed and troubled democracy. He will take on the necessary, and thankless, task of being a thorn in the side of the Democratic party, he will keep them honest and get them to respect the party platform that he will significantly influence, but it won't stop there. Revolutions are neither polite nor pretty; many establishment toes will be stepped upon, but this genie will not go back into the bottle, the young have too much at stake to give up now, their energy has been awakened and a new era in American politics will dawn. The important thing is that this campaign will do something that was hoped-for when Obama won (and never materialized), i.e. mobilize the population to re-engage themselves in politics. Already there are signs that this is mutating into a potential third party, and heaven knows, the false "choice" in this two-party system needs a serious overhaul. In this instance, Bernie's legacy will be so much more important, so much more earth-shattering than just being president.
Hillary will likely win, and she'll be a good President. She's smart, tough, experienced, and she's shown the ability to learn from mistakes and bend to the Left when pushed. It'll be up to us to keep pushing her Left. My bigger hope is actually that the Republican Party sheds their skin like a snake and emerges in the next election cycle more moderate and center-right. They're going to need a course correction at some point, perhaps the Orange Overloard's loss will facilitate that. A guy can hope....
Yes, one can hope... But I'm not holding my breath, as much as I hope for the Republicans to change. If anything, I expect they'll say "we aren't conservative enough!" and find a Presidential candidate who makes Ted Cruz look like a liberal...
