“It ain’t over till it’s over” (Yankee legend Yogi Berra)
Many a competitor has made the mistake of easing up and celebrating a victory before they’ve actually completed the task of winning. I had plenty of choices of track and bicycle races where someone eased up so they could make a “show” in the final part of a race only to be overtaken by someone who fought till the very end and crossed the finish line first. You’d think people would have long ago learned to wait until AFTER to celebrate. I grew up playing sports and competing in other ways and learned to focus on doing all I could until it was over. Only then, if I prevailed could I ease up, smile and accept congratulations.
That’s where we are at the moment. Kamala Harris likes to say ‘When we vote, we WIN!’ but here’s the thing. We have to actually cast our freaking vote. And, just as importantly encourage (and help, a ride to the polls, making last minute phone calls, knocking on doors etc.) OTHER people to vote. I admit to having significant apprehensions but I feel a bit encouraged lately. I’ll write about why later today. However what is crucial is that every single person who wants to see Harris as our next President, or at least wants to make sure Trump never again sets foot in the WH has to make damned sure they cast their vote. Or, if like me mailed in their ballot that it was accepted for counting. (Yes, mine has been)
Only after the polls have closed in the western time zone can we ease up/slow down. Only then will we have done all we can do. Just keep in mind that enthusiasm is meaningless if we don’t ALL of us actually cast our freaking ballots! And be prepared to overcome (and help others do so) last minute GOP voter f**kery which we KNOW is coming. Yes, we know there will be attempts at intimidation. Or robocalls and/or flyers on doors and cars with incorrect information about same day voting. Those are the telegraphed punches but don’t assume that there aren’t some dirty tricks ready to go that Republicans have managed to keep secret.
I want everyone to remember a couple of things. If you’re old enough to remember 2000 the state of Florida was called for Al Gore mid-evening. Then the call was retracted and we had that agonizing wait until SCOTUS awarded Florida, its Electoral Votes and the election to Bush. By a margin in Florida of 537 votes. Here’s something else from that to think about: Republicans complained that the early call by the networks affected turnout out west where polls had yet to close. That’s what I want to talk about now.
I live in an east coast state. Most of our results will be available (except for Pennsylvania) by sometime after nine pm and in most cases before ten pm. That will give a strong indication of how the night will unfold, especially if Georgia and Florida are too close to call but Harris is looking good in those states. (Pennsylvania too for that matter) If the “blue wall” appears certain to hold what I fear is that people out west will decide it’s not worth standing in line to vote. That it’s a done deal. After all we know the west coast states will vote blue. We also know mountain and west states that will vote red.
However not one but TWO states that could be critical are in the western time zone. Nevada and Arizona. Harris could well need at least one and maybe both of them. I’m haunted by the prospect of folks out west looking at reports of exits polls, early voting number and such in the eastern states and thinking “Harris has got this” and with local news showing lines at polling places deciding to not bother heading to their precinct and voting. Or worse, both there and everywhere starting to celebrate. No, we need to be working right up until polls close on the west coast to turn out every single vote we can. NO letup until then.
You wouldn’t know it to watch me trying to get around now but once upon a time I was an awfully good athlete. Like any competitor I loved being in a big game against a tough opponent and that feeling of being in control during the final minutes. Not assured of victory, because things can turn around in seconds for all manner of reasons. But it was fun knowing that IF I and/or my teammates kept doing what we’d been doing that it would be a good outcome. I also knew damn well the dangers of relaxing and easing up before the game was over. I also, being an old fart have seen plenty an athlete “show their ass”, sometimes on the biggest stages as karma took a HUGE bite out of it.
Even if you’re not a football fan you know how huge the Super Bowl is. Former (long since retired) Dallas Cowboy defensive lineman will forever be known for two huge gaffes in nationally featured games. One was a bonehead mistake but not an early celebration. The other? It was in the freaking Super Bowl and he cost himself glory and his team a touchdown. He’d scooped up a fumble and ran it back almost sixty yards, and nearing the goal line couldn’t resist doing some “look at ME!” showmanship. He slowed down a bit and held the ball out for all the fans to see. And a member of the other team caught up to him and knocked the ball from his hand. It rolled through the end zone and the play was ruled a touchback. NO touchdown for Lett and Dallas, and the Bills got the ball back on their own 20 yard line (sorry, the video won’t embed):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqGNTUQSuPM
Harris is doing her part. She is out there on the campaign trail making appearances and has terrific surrogates doing the same. Her campaign is making and putting out new ads from TV ads to social media stuff. She’s raising money for the legal battles we know are coming from Trump. We voters have to do OUR part. It will take more than a village. It will take an entire country of us to help the Harris/Walz campaign (and other Democrats) over the finish line in first place.
If you’ve already voted, then thank you. However until the polls close out west you can still work to convince others to do so, so please, PLEASE make the extra effort. It can make the difference between winning and losing the WH. And the Senate and the House. But it can do more. Imagine by the end of next week when most of the votes have been counted Harris not only having a solid margin in the electoral college, but a popular vote margin of ten million or more votes! Or states like Florida and Texas which should be solidly red only going to Trump by a few points. That my friends will make all but the true crazies think twice about the kind of crap we saw back in 2020.
My new fantasy is giving Trump and the GOP a thrashing that conservatives will finally realize Trump can’t win. And worse, he’ll keep taking down other Republicans with him. Only then will the GOP start to remake itself into something at least semi-sane, or a new conservative Party will form with their eye on 2032. Again though, that only happens if we “run full speed past the finish line.”
Conservatives will finally realize???? that will never happen. they aren’t conservative…they are phucking child killing nazis. Nothing they do conserves any goddamn thing.
If she wins by 10 million votes plus the electoral college, he will.just say Dems had so.much cash raised they could afford to buy votes and that will prove somehow it is a “stolen election.”
Hell, I’d send him homemade .stollen just to celebrate his loss along with a bottle of Irish whisky to drain his worries with. When the election is called for Harris, we have champagne to open.