Are We There yet?

FLORIDA WEST COAST  

Opinion by:  
E. Eugene Webb PhD         

By the time you read this the final election results may be in.

As I write this, it's mid-morning on Saturday November 7^th, 2020, and they're still counting ballots believe it or not in at least three major states.

At this point, barring a miracle, Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States.

It's what comes next that is going to be critical in the history of this nation going forward.

I'm sure there will be legal challenges, investigations, charges and countercharges about the election, the voting process, the counting process, and probably a number of unrelated issues. That's all part of our democracy, and all of those questions should be raised and to the best extent possible they should certainly be resolved.

One thing we have learned in this election cycle is that our voting processes, which vary greatly from state to state and the counting processes which are equally convoluted from state to state need a major overhaul. In many instances, we are still operating under premises established by the original framers of the Constitution.

Rewriting these rules, and election procedures, is going to be extremely difficult but absolutely necessary.

It seems that going forward in this country we are going to continue to be a divided nation for quite some time.

As the baby boomers die out,  and the Gen X, Y and Zers and millennials become the majority of the voting pool,  and as our country diversifies and our basic core demographics shift, we are going to need an election system that supports more than just a two-party  view of our real and political process.

So, the answer to the question: are we there yet? It is not answered as of this lovely Saturday morning in South Florida, and it probably won't be for a few more days.

One can only hope that President Trump will exercise some restraint and a modicum of good judgment as the transition process begins. The last thing we need in this country to further divide us is a significant conflict on the steps of the White House or a video of Trump and his family members being physically escorted from the premises.

That would be a searing moment in the history of this country and one that would never be put behind us.

So if you're going to go to church this Sunday morning, or if you're just inclined to say a prayer before you go to bed or first thing in the morning when you wake up, you might say a prayer for your country, for your neighbor, for the person you disagree with politically, and most of all for yourself to be patient to be understanding.  And to remember all that you have now, and all that you have accomplished are a direct result of the political system that we live in.

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