Election
2004
By Talat G. Hamdani
Bayside, NY
The campaign and elections
of 2004 maybe over, but the resolve of the people
to restore democracy and re-unite a deeply divided
nation lives on. This election will go down in
history as the awakening call to the complacent
Americans. The nation is divided in two solid
blocs: the Reds and The Blues, each with its own
ideology, thus creating a deeper schism along
numerous paths, ominously reminiscent of the Civil
War era.
Chris Matthews of Hard Ball stated that America
geographically resembles the map of India and
Pakistan at the time of partition, 1947, India
being embraced with West Pakistan and East Pakistan
on either coast. I hope you all saw America on
Ice at The Democracy Plaza. Have you ever seen
such a symbolic statement before in the past few
decades? Why the need now? Is it that New York
was celebrating democracy, or is it that democracy
is in jeopardy in America? Let’s pray America
does not meet with the same fate as that of Pakistan.
It’s scary to understand the demography
of our nation. All the Central States and the
South voted red or Republican, while the North
East and North West voted blue or Democratic.
The difference is not only in the visual colors;
the divide is much deeper, more profound and entails
serious consequences.
The total electoral votes are 538, and a candidate
needs 270 or more electoral votes to win. President
Bush won by winning 286 electoral votes, but only
51% of popular vote. And this is significant and
has rung an alert signal for the nation. The Republicans
won and so did their values and opinions.
The Republicans won on the issues of fear, terrorism
and the conservative values of the Christian beliefs
and the Evangelicals. It’s disconcerting
and alarming to see that 51% did not agree with
the 48%. The trump card for the winning party
was terrorism and the Bin Ladin factor. Talking
about Christian values, what happened to the value
of love thy neighbor as you love yourself? I guess
we are not their neighbors. How can one be Christian
and yet advocate war in the name of democracy
and liberty?
The Democrats or the Liberals lost on their progressive
values. Paradoxically, the losing party still
won morally: on the grounds of peace moral courage
and humanity. They lost because they advocated
stem cell research to benefit mankind and save
lives. They lost because they advocated peace
versus war. They lost because they advocated life
versus death. They lost because they advocated
hope versus despair. They lost because they advocated
civil rights versus the Patriot Act. And this
is a victory, not a defeat. The elections may
be over, not the campaign. The campaign has just
begun.
A nation divided almost equally along cultural,
religious, political and ideological beliefs is
standing on thin ice. As the famous Republican
President Abraham Lincoln said, “A house
divided against itself cannot stand.” So
let us all unite in the best interest of our nation.
Let us all forget our political, cultural, ethnical
and religious differences and stand together to
achieve the American Dream.
Let us keep working towards achieving a better
America, a fairer America, a more just and tolerant
America. In this campaign of 2004, seeds have
been laid for a vision of America, a country with
liberty and justice for all. As Senator Kerry
expressed, “In an American election, there
are no losers, because whether or not our candidates
are successful, the next morning we all wake up
as Americans. That is the greatest privilege and
the most remarkable good fortune that can come
to us on planet earth. With that gift comes obligation.
We are required now to work together for the good
of our country. In the days ahead, we must find
common cause. We must join in common effort, without
remorse or recrimination, without anger or rancor.
America is in need of unity and longing for a
larger measure of compassion.
Our fight goes on to put America back to work…
to achieve equality, to push the frontiers of
science and discovery and to restore America’s
reputation in the world.”
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