Thursday, October 29, 2020

The Times They (May Be) A-Changin'....

There was a guy on the local NPR call-in show today who claimed he'd never gotten his absentee ballot, which he requested having recently moved from Houston to Chicago.  So he flew down to Houston just so he could cast a provisional ballot (it will count if his mail ballot is never received).  And a college student in Houston who never got her absentee ballot from Fort Worth (Tarrant County).  So she's driving back home this weekend to be able to vote.  There were lots of stories of people determined to cast their ballots despite concerns about the mail and where to find the 24 hour polling places tonight (only place outside Vegas to offer it!!!!  Or so the County Clerk's representative said.)

I have never seen such enthusiasm and interest and determination to cast a ballot.  I thought I'd see it after the 26th Amendment was passed.  But 18 year olds didn't flood the polls, hippies turned into yuppies, and everybody thought, within four years of Nixon's last term (Ford was a caretaker), that Reagan would be peachy-keen as POTUS!  And there our troubles began anew.

So I'm feeling optimistic.  It's been almost 50 years, I'm entitled to get my hopes up a bit.  Something sure as f*ck is going on, even if I agree with the retired pastor NPR interviewed this evening, who hopes we don't get complacent.

I hope that, too.  I'm optimistic, but I'm not stupid.  However, turnout in Texas is now at 51%, and early voting doesn't end until tomorrow at 7.  Then there's election day itself.  Total turnout in 2016 was 59.4%.  We will probably eclipse that before Tuesday.  Wonder if it will exceed 75%?  We'll see.

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