The smoke from last night is starting to clear, and it looks like we’re going to have a Democratic president, 56 Democrats in the senate, and 256 in the house. The last time there was a Democratic mandate like this was 1993. We must take advantage of this opportunity by getting DC congressional representation. (After all, we may not get another chance this good for another 16 years).

Last year, HR 1905 passed the house, and then stalled in the senate as S 1257, failing to meet cloture by 57-42. With an even larger Democratic majority, the house is likely to pass it again if asked. The problem is the Senate. Last time 8 senate Republicans supported the bill:

*I’m assuming Coleman will win the recount since he’s winning right now. If he doesn’t he’ll be replaced by Al Franken, who will probably support the measure.

So we have 56 Democratic senators, plus the 8 Republicans. Even without Robert Byrd (who had no vote the last time), that’s 63 yes votes in the senate – enough to gain passage.

I bring you the most obscure magazine ever – Orbital Debris Quarterly. The magazine for people who really care about orbiting space junk.

Rosa Parks sat so Martin Luther King could walk.

Martin Luther King walked so Obama could run.

Obama’s running so we all can fly.

–Jay-Z, at an event in Philadelphia. (Text, audio about 4 minutes in)

 

I think Leon Wieseltier said it best when he commented that Obama was not the seed of the civil rights movement, but its flower. It is amazing to think that barely a generation after Martin Luther King marched on Washington, an African American has been elected to the highest office in the land – not, as Mike Huckabee points out, because of his race of even in spite of it, but with indifference to it. I wish Obama’s grandmother had managed to live just a few more days to see what happened today. I can’t possibly imagine what it must feel like to see the child you once raised chosen to be president of the United States.

Listening to Obama’s acceptance speech I am reminded of the first thing that attracted me to him – he speaks not in sound bites and one liners, but in a more traditional (and less media friendly) oratorical style. His sentences are sometimes long and involve multiple dependent clauses, but they have the ring of sincerity and reflect the deliberate thought that goes into what he says. He gives off the look that he was born to lead, and he has the ability to inspire like few other politicians do. More than any other contemporary leader, he makes me proud to be an American. Let’s see what the next four years brings.

Last week in practice, Oakland Raiders interim head coach Tom Cable had his players practice touchdown celebrations. Apparently he thinks practicing giving out high fives and patting each other on the rear would be more beneficial than working on the Raiders woeful passing, running, blocking, tackling, and defense. Did it work? Well let’s see – the Raiders were playing the mediocre Atlanta Falcons this week, who came into the game having given up more points than they scored. In the first half Oakland racked up -3 yards of total offense, and Atlanta jumped out to a 24-0 lead. In the second half Atalanta decided to play nice and do nothing but run the ball up the middle to avoid running up the score. For the game Oakland managed a 77 yards of total offense, no points at all, had the ball for only 15 minutes all game (compared with 45 for the Falcons), and had an average of less than 1 yard per completed pass.

Perhaps Tom Cable wants out of Oakland?

This time of year, with the end of the election so close you can almost feel the attack-ad free television shows, everyone is busy trying to make sure to remind everyone else to vote. Why bother?

• You are more likely to get injured in a car crash or other accident on the way to your polling location than you are to have your vote be the deciding one in the election, therefore voting is dangerous.
• You are more likely to win the lottery than you are to have your vote decide the election.
• Voting will likely take a lot more time than buying a lottery ticket, especially given the long lines, record turnout, etc.
• If you win the lottery, you should have enough money to influence the next election, possibly even using your “nest egg” to start a foundation, nonprofit group, or other political organization which could have serious pull. You could also use it to bankroll your own election to a low level office, which you use as a springboard to the presidency.
• With a lot of money, or you as a candidate, you almost guaranteed to get a candidate you like better than the current two.
• In other words, instead of voting, just go buy a lottery ticket – you will actually have more impact on our electoral system that way. (Those of you who vote are actually not doing your civic duty, etc. etc.)