Truth, Hope, & Justice were on the ballot. Sadly, all 3 passed!

[-V-]

Some people called this election the most important of our lifetime. Until this week, I disagreed. Election 2000 was the election that profoundly changed the course of history. If we had gotten that one right, this one would have been like any other. Putting it all together now, however, I have to concede that this was the mother of all elections.

This vote was not only about who was the best candidate to lead this country out of a war and a recession. It was a message of:

HOPE
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That the American people still have power in this country, that the next 8 years will be better than the last 8, and that we may restore our standing in the world community.

JUSTICE
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That Bush and the GOP paid a price for 8 years of injustice, that McCain/Palin will not be rewarded for setting a new low in dirty campaigning, and that roughly 200 years after a Black man was a slave in America, and only 40 years after he could not vote, he could be elected as the leader of this nation.

TRUTH
========
That America still has a long way to go. Amidst all the profound messages of this election, that one came through as loud and clear as the rest.

The most progressive state in America, among others, voted to strip away the rights of two citizens to marry based on their sexual preference. Sadly and ironically, in that state, 70% of the Blacks who voted to realize the dream that Martin Luther King Jr. spoke out for and ultimately died for -- for Black Americans, voted to take away the dream for Gay Americans.

Why didn't they recognize discrimination in one of its many disguises after lifetimes of experiencing it themselves? Possibly because being oppressed does not necessarily make you wiser. But it should imbue you with empathy. For now, we can only work harder towards a future election when every citizen steps into the voting booth and listens to their heart. It is only then that they will find their wisdom on every matter put before them.

[Jane of Arc]

Great post -V-,

You say California is "the most progressive state in America"? Nope. Ahhhh ... no. Nah. Not anymore.

As far as the recent election - these states blew CA away:

Hawaii, Vermont, New York,
Rhode Island, Massachusetts

As far as same-sex marriages, updated Wiki says:

Same-sex marriages have been recognized in Massachusetts since November 18, 2003, and in Connecticut since October 10, 2008. Same-sex marriage only has effect at the state level as the U.S. federal government does not recognize same-sex marriages as marriages under federal law, in accordance with the Defense of Marriage Act.

Vermont, New Jersey, and New Hampshire have created legal unions that, while not called marriages, are explicitly defined as offering all the rights and responsibilities of marriage under state (though not federal) law to same-sex couples. Maine, Hawaii, the District of Columbia, Oregon and Washington have created legal unions for same-sex couples that offer varying subsets of the rights and responsibilities of marriage under the laws of those jurisdictions.

Maybe it's time for people to move OUT of California to more liberal states?