In which I react and reflect.

A bit wordy for a bumper sticker, and lacking in obscenities.

This campaign season, despite its grueling length and constant barrage of invective, has had a few things going for it.  

For one thing, it was easy for me to make my voting decision — there was no question about it; I preferred Sen. McCain's policies to Sen. Obama's.    The nice thing about that is that it allowed me to ignore a lot of the railing about experience and age and international popularity and Sarah Palin, because — as I wrote before — policy is more important to me than any of those things.

For another thing, I didn't feel conflicted about voting for the good policies of a bad or unqualified man, because I sincerely believed — still do — that Sen. McCain is a good man, an intelligent man, an honorable one, one who speaks his mind, who really does have a record of bipartisan efforts — that's something that's important to me — a man who has earned the nation's respect.   

This is rather a new sensation for me, voting-wise.  

Even better, I could really feel good about voting for Sen. McCain within the Republican party.  The biggest plus:  I like people who don't demonize the "other side."   Also I liked the pushback against some factions within the Republican party. I would rather call myself an independent, and yet I have taken my seat uneasily in the Republican party, ever since I came to believe that human rights have to trump everything else, and that the worst violation of human rights must trump the lesser ones.   So I'm glad to see a strong performance within the Republican party from someone I agree with on issues besides the biggest one.  I hope  Sen. McCain's bid signals a move toward the center, one that still defends the human rights of the smallest of us. 

At the same time, knowing that Sen. Obama was making a good showing and likely to win, I felt a certain consolation.  I believe he's a good man too.  You know I think he's wrong about lots of stuff, including crucially important stuff.   But I do believe he's a good man, with good intentions.  And I believe he's got a good chance of being an excellent head of state, even though he's not the head of government I wanted.  I truly wish him well in that endeavor; head of state is an important role, and I am looking forward to his performance in it.

He's got time to prove me wrong, but he does not have to.  I hope he has trouble pushing through his policies, but I also hope he does not screw up royally.  The man still hasn't done anything yet — that's the bald fact.  He has a chance, and I intend to wait and see what he does with it.  

In the last few weeks my inbox has filled up with prayer requests and novenas, mostly that the election results would serve the cause of life.  You know, what's happened is not necessarily a setback.  It could be one of those things that appears to be a setback but turns out much better than we can know.  What's the drill?  Keep praying.  Turn the intentions to something else, something hidden away but no less real and no less possible.

Hope for change, eh?