Well, the election is over -- that's something. As things that seem a long coming often do, it seemed over oh so fast. The chance of the end being near is over, and now it's a matter of trying again, and making the best of a bad situation (one not as horrible as some say, but worse than many voters think). Oh joy. Rear guard actions are always so much fun!
A few quick remarks. First, I'm not in the mood to hear about how Kerry did a good job. This is the sort of things you say to losers, who rarely appreciate the sentiment too much. And, not only does it sometimes require more than simply being good, I have from the start found the Kerry campaign an imperfect vehicle. And, I think we need to have a candidate from a Red State or one that is closer enough attuned to their wavelength (given the election again split by area, such a metaphor seems appropriate) than a senator from Massachusetts.
After all, though the additional popular vote is hard to take given what the guy did, the election still was rather close. It was possibly a small state away from a tie, a few percentage points from one state going the other way to give Kerry the win. This should be recalled as the President again gives his "uniter" speech, hiding his glee and smirk while doing so.
Life goes on, and no Andrew Sullivan, the president that people across the political spectrum thought a lousy leader suddenly doesn't deserve our support as if now what he stands for warrants it. President Bush is the only president we got, so we have to hope (pray) he does the best he can, but part of this must be tempering the excesses of his first administration. And, trusting in the rest of the bunch out there to do a better job at that.
Meanwhile, we all have to go on with our lives, luckily aware that the system protects us from certain excesses, and provides us with a lot more to worry about than what smuck is in the White House.