TAKING IT ALL IN....ALABAMA AND THE COMING YEAR

Whew...it was a close one Alabama, and more to the point, America, but somehow, Doug Jones has won the Senate Seat.  Whew... how many of us were drinking going into that count, eh?  I can tell you that when the tide turned and the heavily blue counties suddenly shot Jones ahead of Roy Moore, I glanced outside to see if I could actually see the falling meteor that was about to knock Earth off it's axis.

In Vegas, this bet was a no-brainer.  Republican voters actually outnumber Democratic voters in Alabama by nearly a two-to-one ratio.  A Democrat hasn't been a federal representative of Alabama since back during Bill Clinton's time.

Yet it's still no time to pat yourself on the back Alabama.  No giving yourselves a hug congratulations here.  A little more than forty-seven percent (48.4%) of you voted for Roy Moore, despite the incredible contradictions from Roy Moore himself about what women he knew, didn't know, whether he did used to like younger girls, or did not, etc.  His colleagues acknowledged that people knew about Roy and his affinity for teenage girls.  In this article, he acknowledged knowing his accusers whereas in his recent television interview denied such knowledge.

That's right, almost half.  It took a lot of minority votes, which is the ultimate irony when you think about it, since racist whites have almost always referred to blacks with contemptible terms like 'monkey' and 'coon', implying a lack of civility, yet they were the ones voting for a man whose values claim to be biblical and yet cross over into all kinds of hateful and bizarre behaviors.

Moore isn't conceding, which shouldn't come as a surprise.  I mean, come on, how many times does the bully back down in front of his supporters, even when he's taken a brutal shot.  No matter how much face Roy Moore has lost, he's doing everything he can to save what's left.  Trump has written the playbook on how to be uncouth and disgraceful in defeat, so why should a man he threw the entire weight of his Presidency behind be any different.  As magnanimous a figure as Roy Moore believes he is, we'll see the true meaning of that once the Secretary of State of Alabama certifies the results.  I doubt it'll change much but I'm willing to wait and see.

I don't take any solace in the fact that things could swing back to the Dems in 2018 by a large margin.  I don't think any of us should.  The communication gap (and better word might be canyon) between the two parties is a parallel representation to our society as a whole.  The inability to communicate effectively has lead us down this rabbit hole, and there's only one way back out; to stop behaving like petulant children and talk and listen to each other with understanding and kindness.

The people of Alabama who took to praying on Roy Moore's behalf so it would be ordained that he win this seat should really go back and read the Bible again, particularly the New Testament to which they cling so dearly.  There are many conflicting messages in it, but in the end, the reason the New Testament was such a change to religion was because it took away the idea of a vengeful, parental and punishing G-d and replaced it with a loving, more compassionate one.  It replaced eye-for-an-eye with love thy neighbor.  It replaced stoning individuals for crimes to blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.

Lots of terrible things happen on this earth daily we never get to see thankfully.  And we live in a country where those things are limited further because our forefathers were seeking not just tolerance of everyone, but acceptance.

So even while I seethe in torment at the idea that a majority of white women voted for Roy Moore based on their Christian values, I also try to understand that if I had grown up in their world the way they did, I probably would see things the exact same way.  It's a hard thing to admit, because I have two eyes, a brain, read a lot and constantly reexamine my positions on things......but still.  To understand another, you must be willing to walk a mile in their shoes.

As for Roy Moore, the fact one of his spokesmen thought the law was that you had to swear on a Christian Bible to be sworn in as an elected official tells you all you need to know about the recognition and acceptance of others this campaign was espousing.  That's right - he wants to get back to "Merry Christmas" as he put it so delicately that he forgets many of us in this country don't celebrate it because that's not our heritage, yet are American.

I'm an American too.  Third generation American.  And I have no problem wishing you a Merry Christmas.  No one wants to take that away as much as Fox News and their cronies have led you to believe.

To all of you who do celebrate Christmas, a very merry one to you.  For those who celebrate Chanukah, Hag S'meach!  And to those celebrating any other holidays or none at all, may this season be a joyous one of the closeness of family or friends or both.  May you know only peace and calm, and find a renewed sense of purpose for the year 2018.