I would like to explain to the rest of the world why the U.S. majority vote
went to Bush, despite the fact that poll after poll shows that Americans don't
feel that the war in Iraq is such a good idea. As always, the reasons are
five-fold:
1) Religion / Values
This election, this is probably the #1 reason. And I'm not just talking about
the 11 states that banned gay marriage, or the overused line about "we are
better off without Saddam Hussein". I am referring to the issues of abortion
and stem-cell research. There are a lot of strongly religious Americans who
have deep-seated moral resentment of anything involving an unborn fetus dying.
To them, the unborn are lives just as valuable as the citizens in Iraq being
murdered on a daily basis. While you may disagree with them, you cannot fault
them for voting with their heart.
2) Fear Factor
The Republicans made it very clear over the course of the election that a vote
for John Kerry was a vote for having your family beheaded by jihadist
radicals. They wanted the American people to believe that the terrorists were
actually afraid of Bush, who admittedly does have some experience dealing with
them. It worked.
3) Short-Term Memory
Despite the massive, job-sucking recession caused by a variety of factors
(9/11, health care increase, outsourcing), a lot of people actually think
America is getting better. In truth, it is. It's almost now at the point it
was when Bush came into office. Unable or unwilling to think back more than a
few months, the American voter sees the recent economic recovery as a good
sign and credits the executive branch, rather than the legislative branch
(Congress), for that. This may seem horribly short-sighted, but we're talking
about a country that has to put "Incumbant" under Bush's name on the voting
machine BY LAW.
4) One-Trick Pony
Bush pulled a magic trick by making everyone think the major issue for the
U.S. was terrorist attacks. This is a major issue, but somehow all the other
issues were swept aside in its wake. Again, poll after poll shows that on just
about every other issue -- Iraq (not terrorism), economy, health, education,
and world politics -- Kerry had a strong lead over the President. And yet,
that's all he talked about, and Kerry let him.
5) I moved out of Ohio
Wups. Looks like my vote would have made a big difference there. Sorry

Shinarae Lluminus