Let that sink in.
If you voted for Hillary, and if you're reading something I post chances are good that you did, you're probably feeling a lot right now. Shock, confusion, sadness, anger. You'll grieve in your own way. Just remember that the final stage of grief is acceptance, and you have to accept this. The democratic process is a wonderful thing. And if you care enough about this country, about democracy to have voted and to have these feelings then you have to accept the outcome and understand that the result isn't always what you hoped it would be.
I have always found politics fascinating, but more fascinating is the way people react to politics. I remember, as a very young man, my grandfather ranting and raving when Bill Clinton was first elected. He was a staunchly conservative man, my grandfather, but he was as complex as any of us. I remember when Bush was elected, the way people almost immediately started insinuating, implying, outright stating that he was a complete moron. In the last eight years I have seen President Obama, the first president for whom I was old enough to vote, called a communist, a nazi, a nigger.
The time has come to stop that. The vitriol, the hate, that unwavering rage that has been spewing forth only creates more of the same. This election has seen so many unprecedented things, things that get overlooked when we only focus on the things that make us angry.
If you voted for Hillary, know that your candidate actually won the popular vote, although not by a tremendous margin (otherwise she would have almost certainly won the election). Know that the things you really stand in favor of, women's health and equal rights and sensible gun control, are the things that the majority of this country also want. This was the closest election I can recall (without looking up figures). That alone should give you some indication that the status quo has changed, must continue to change and evolve with the times.
If you voted for Trump, know that I get it. I understand those things that frighten you. Those things, like jobs and safety, that are important to you. While I don't believe that Donald Trump is the man to help you with those things, I hope that I'm wrong. Truthfully, I hope that he is the right person for the job. Know that the change that you see won't stop because progress isn't something that can be stopped with an election. Progress, real social progress, is a natural outgrowth of people. And while I think that fiscal conservatism and small government are wonderful things, I believe that you have overlooked the major social changes that brought us all to this place. The national identity that allowed a man with no political experience to challenge the multi-billion dollar political machine and win. Please don't simplify this for yourselves or others. Trump didn't win because he made himself louder and more confrontational over and over. He didn't win because he's a billionaire racist and that's what the people want to follow. He won because America's national identity demands that we challenge the establishment and that's what he did. He challenged two hundred years of politics and we wanted someone to do it. He was the man with the ability, the person in the right place at the right time to take advantage of what we, as a people, wanted to see.
For both sides, know that the next two years will not be easy. Any president faces challenges, disasters, hardships. That's the job description. There are hurdles in every facet of our country from education to healthcare, foreign policy to infrastructure. Don't simplify the issues and call them fixed. Don't make this a party line. Hold your elected officials accountable. Seek out new, stronger candidates. Mid-term elections are two years away. Give them two years to make good, to show you that your votes weren't just sustaining a system that is already rusted and rotted. And God help them if they don't. Continue the momentum this election has created and keep pushing for change, but remember that hate never changes anything for the better.
If you didn't vote, or if you chose to vote for Harambe or a write-in, then do us all a favor and shut your fucking mouth. The adults are trying to make a better world. When you're mature enough to handle that responsibility then you can join the conversation. Until then, sit the next couple of years out and think about your actions.
For the rest of you, allow yourselves the time to process everything that has happened over the last year and a half. Think about the social unrest, think about the people all clamoring, in one way or another, for things to change and understand that, whether it went in your direction or not, we accomplished exactly that. Things are changing, because they must change. Every change is scary, new things have always been frightening for humanity. Don't lose hope that these changes will result in something better. We built civilization from the ground up, with tools and systems that we invented. Not every idea has been general relativity or Shakespeare or the wheel. Not every plan comes to fruition exactly as it was laid out. The real work is in the small pieces, the little tweaks and compromises we make as we strive toward a better future. A future we can only reach together. United.
Please remember, too, that people are complex. Donald Trump may be a lot or negative things. Hillary may be a lot of negative things. We all have negatives. We all make mistakes. In places of power, in times of crisis, in private moments when we hope no one else will notice, we can all look back and see things we aren't proud to see. Overwhelm the negative with positives. Look for the good in people and nurture that, rather than attacking the negative things about them. I don't personally like this man, but I don't personally know this man. I didn't vote for Hillary because I like her. That's absurd. I have some very dear friends, people I know intimately and love unconditionally, but I wouldn't fucking vote for them. I know every stupid thing they've ever done. I know how they would handle, say, immigration by just passing out beers until everyone was too drunk to remember why they were concerned about it. You don't vote because you like a person you've only ever seen on s television screen or a You Tube video. You don't know them well enough to like them. You vote because you believe they stand for the same principles that you hold dear.
So be hopeful, and be attentive. You elected these people, and you have the power to continue to change this country and world for the better. Hold your leaders accountable, challenge the preconceptions of how things are and push to make them how they should be, how they can and will be when we, as a people, come together and decide that our differences are as much a part of our strength as our similarities. With challenge comes change, and with change will come progress.
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