You voted? You finished getting out the vote? Polls are closed? Then go home, or if you are out of state, go to your hotel room or other accommodation, kick off your shoes, break out the beverage of your choice and relax. Your job is done.
Don’t obsess watching the election results. All that will happen will be endless talking heads speculating for at least two hours, with the occasional race called that you may or may not care about. Instead watch a favorite movie or read a book.
If you can’t help yourself, check in occasionally online at any of the numerous news and blog sites (like this one) that post voting results or news updates. Don’t bother with the TV coverage until 11:00 pm EST at the earliest, unless you really, really want to see Rachel Maddow anchoring MSNBC’s coverage. I admit it is nice to hear an intelligent person speaking on TV on nights like this, so I understand that temptation.
Personally, I plan to watch “I am Number Four” or “The Departed,” which I picked up at the library. Whatever the result, it is now out of our control. If by some strange turn of events (i.e., vote theft, electronic voter machine “malfunctions” or simply the polls being off by a large margin) Romney wins, I’ll worry about it and plan my life accordingly tomorrow and each day after. If Obama wins, as the polls indicate he should, I’ll do the same.
In either case, as Scarlett O’Hara (a nasty fictional heroine, but occasional speaker of truth) once said, “Tomorrow is another day,” regardless who wins or loses. Don’t be the anxious, crazy person screaming at the TV or the one who celebrates wildly. A Romney victory won’t be Armageddon. An Obama win won’t bring about a utopia.
The outcome of a single election will not solve all our problems of Obama wins, nor will it mean the utter destruction of our nation if Romney pulls off the upset, buy hook or by crook. Either way, you and I will still have to fight for our progressive values and for policies that address our nation’s most important concerns. Either way, we will all need to pull together to continue to fight for our families, our constitutional rights and for justice.
Tonight, though, take it easy. You did your job. Thank you.
