America after November 4th

…If Obama is not elected

Yes, it is possible that Obama may not win. It could either be by a miracle or by the folks (republicans especially) just being screwy.

Have you heard of trying to vote for someone electronically, and it says that you vote for the opponent? I think the cartoon “The Simpsons” predicted this first. Below is a very funny clip from The Simpsons - http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6ys05_homer-simpson-vote-obama_fun

That’s funny… not really; it’s happening now if you have not already heard. Some folks tried voting Democratic but it showed that they voted Republican.

This is some crazy stuff
Here is a case of possible voter fraud - folks trying to vote for one person, and another person is selected - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-OKhtv2G00 (sorry, this video is a little messed up)
And if you have time, some Princeton folks studied this machines and…
here are their findings - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=873xuv8u_xo
If you prefer reading, here is a version - http://itpolicy.princeton.edu/voting/

Some comedian joked, asking why these malfunctions always favor republicans.

On a serious note, if McCain wins,
Yes, the blacks might be a extremely upset initially. Although, I doubt it will it will last long. The truth is blacks tend to be naïve and very forgiving. Sometimes it is a good thing; sometimes it’s not. This time it will be a good thing. This will mean that the blacks will be let it slide again (I believe I’m safe to say that). However, it may take a while for blacks to trust whites (this divide, I’ll touch on a little latter). That’s not the only thing.

A lot of dreams and promises will be stifled. What do I mean? There are dreams and promises of hope that parents of all races make to their children. When parents say, “you can be what you want to be,” the children grow up believing it. But, if Obama is not elected, lots will question that promise; minorities especially. “I thought we can be whatever we want to be,” they will think. “Why couldn’t Barack Obama, even after working 4 times as hard (measuring funds only), not become the president of the United States?” Years later, that question will linger still. This might also have a domino-effect.

Yes, lots of first time voters, these young folks mentioned in the previous paragraph, may not vote for another few elections. A generation of young voters will be disenfranchised. A generation…Think about that. It will be hard to make them believe in politics and polls anymore. It will be harder for them to believe that their vote will ever count. That’s no good news. That’s not all.

Also, there will be a tendency for the McCain folks to have a condescending view towards the Obama supporters. Some folks will actually think that they are more Christian, more American, more righteous, and even more right than others. That obviously doesn’t lead to unity.

…Now, if Obama is elected

On the not so good note,
There might be an initial increase in the racial divide also. When a campaign such as the McCain’s fuel such fear, anger and hatred for the other faction, what should we expect? I might be raising false alarms. I hope I am. But, I strongly believe there would be an initial hike in racism; black against white, and white against black. We are already seeing some traces of this.

There was a story in the news the other day about two men that were plotting to kill Obama, along with a sizable number of African-Americans. Here is the article - http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/10/27/obama.plot/index.html

On a more personal note, a friend of mine, who happens to be black, went to a predominantly white club on a beautiful Thursday night (Halloween before election). When he was leaving, a guy my friend had never met before, who happened to be white, stood in front of his truck, and spat on it. After which, he beaconed on that friend of mine to come out of his truck and do his worst. My friend let that slide; he didn’t feed into the “angry black person” stereotype. I thought that was appalling.

There might even be an increase in the divide between those who support McCain, and those who support Obama. Just like the previous segment, there are already traces in this already.

In the city where I live (somewhere in north Louisiana), there is a scarcity of Obama-Biden banners. This is not because there are no Obama supporters, but because, on various occasions, these signs have been taken down. And, you know the obvious suspects – McCain supporters. I’m not saying that without a doubt, McCain supporters took it down.

People will say that he bought the election, because he raised about $700 million outspent McCain by about 4 to 1. But, we refuse to be accurately informed. I will write a not titled “Déjà vu.” In this note, it shows how McCain did the same about 20 years ago.

On a good note,
Many people of numerous minority races in the US will be highly motivated. When folks have always been told that you can be anything you want to be, it seemed like it was always true about everything else except for the presidency of the United States. Now, blacks, reds, yellows, and even browns will truly believe that statement, and will strive to do better. I strongly believe this.

As a result of an initial increase in the racial divide, blacks especially will have to work twice harder than they ever did before (lots of none-blacks would not understand this). They will have to be more accountable. They have to step up to the plate; a higher plate, and be more responsible. This is because they will no longer have any excuses. And, I mean NONE. Lots of folks will disagree with me on this. Feel free to.

[If you are black and you’re reading this, you’ve got to still keep pushing. Yes, it might initially feel like swimming against the current. Keep swimming. Soon, the current will back you.]

In conclusion, I honestly do hope that however the results turn out, folks can deal with it. We’ve got to pray for whoever wins. I hope some of my negative predictions are wrong. I strongly hope.