I'm in New York City, and the talk here is not of Thanksgiving or Christmas. Instead, the topic of discussion concerns the threat of partisan violence. Many shopkeepers here boarded their windows, police are prepared to don their riot gear, and everyone is awaiting the inevitable drop of a lit match into the national powder keg. I'm well above 55 years of age, yet I've never before seen anything like this on a national scale, and it's horrible.
Everyone's focus is on keeping or removing our president. Every conversation is filled with polarized takes on the current situation, and all the seasonal joy is drained away like water from a pool with a gaping hole at its bottom. All of us know that when a winner is announced, something will happen. We don't know when or where, we don't know how many incidents will happen, but we do know that when the ballot counts are finalized and a winner is announced, there will likely be violence. This, my friends, is the sad state of modern America. One of my biggest concerns is not one of who will win, but of a flaw in our electoral system. That is, if either candidate gets the exact number of electoral votes to win (270), then the current situation could become even more unsettled. How? Well, the US is a Representative Democracy, so our votes translate into electors--actual people--who represent the voters. Normally, electors follow through and vote for the candidate they were assigned to vote for, but if one elector for the winning candidate changes their mind and votes for the losing candidate in defiance of the people they represent, the action of that one "faithless elector" would prevent the true victor from actually winning. If that happens, then I'm not stepping foot out of my house for a month since I'm allergic to riots. I can only hope that everything ends smoothly and calmly. Whether you agree with my political stances or not, I wish you well. It's so easy to hope that others do well, yet few of us do it. We need to be united in a common quest for a better tomorrow, not divided in pursuit of factional gains. Unfortunately, some predict this could be the start of a new type of American Civil War, and as I wrote in my previous article, I fear they may be right. Please, America, prove those who predict a national descent into chaos wrong. Please do it for your fellow Americans. Please do it for the world. Please do it for the future all of us hope to see. Please. Wishing the best for us all, -Keith V. Note: The above was adapted from comments I made on the MeWe social network.
Belinda Morgan
11/6/2020 08:30:30 pm
I was just pondering that the other day! Sigh... 11/7/2020 03:12:00 pm
Great minds think alike! Yes, considering that the electors don't meet until sometime in December, there is plenty of time for any number of them to "break faith" and vote for the other candidate. 11/8/2020 12:18:08 pm
Thanks for a little more insight into how the voting works. I didn't realise there was another vote with electors representing voters (Brit with limited political knowledge over here). I hope things are calm and you stay safe if any violence does happen Comments are closed.
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AuthorI love to write! I'm a Technical Writer by day and a blogger by night. On My Mind Today is my creation, and for me it is a true labor of love. Whether the subject is a current issue or a historical matter, I'll try to address it here. I look forward to writing quality content, and I'm open to topic suggestions. I value your feedback! Archives
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