Everybody Senses Impending Doom

So I was watching FOX News the other day - and they had a commentator on there who was saying that he would be extremely surprised at this point if McCain came out the winner on Tuesday. Frankly, I'm with him - and not just because Obama is up in the polls. Truth is, McCain has not been running his campaign in a very effective way. I know, I know... they didn't ask me. But consider the fact that McCain got a serious boost from his choice of Palin. People were excited. So what does McCain do? He hid her away for a while... then threw her to a couple of interviews with unfriendly news anchors. Now, when the polls are beginning to tighten a bit, he throws out two new ads - one on global warming (not even sure where this one is airing), and another one (airing in Pennsylvania) showing Hillary and McCain all cozy. Apparently, he's trying to gather the Hillary-ites to his fold. The problem is, he still hasn't gathered his own base. 

But I open up my NYT mail today to find an article titled, "Obama Is Up, and Fans Fear That Jinxes It." It appears that it's open season on doom and gloom. I guess this is proof positive that it's another tight election. 

I just love what passes for "news" at the NYT. A two page online article... all about how liberals cope. Mr. Downs is 53 years old and a "confirmed liberal and profound Obama fan." I had no idea that liberals went through confirmation now, too... Interesting. But Mr. Downs says, "Look, I have this sense of impending doom; we've had a couple of elections stolen already. The only thing worse than losing is to think that you're going to win and then lose." Patricia Kihlman, 54, says, "Oh, God, I'm optimistic, but I can't look at the polls. I'm a PBS/NPR kind of person, and, O.K., I do look at some polls. If he doesn't get this, I'll be crying so hard." (Everybody, quick - vote for Obama to keep Patricia from crying.) Shana Rosen has apparently told her boyfriend that their love life is on hold until after election day. (So now liberals are going through confirmation and fasting. They're beginning to sound downright religious.) Lisa Sirizawa, 44, says, "I'm cautiously, cautiously optimistic. Though I worry: Am I going to be hurt again?" And Lucy Slurzberg, a psychotherapist, reports that 90 percent of her liberal patients speak to her of their electoral fears during their sessions. 

According to the same article, conservatives are not "immune from the worry vapors." But the psychotherapists are reporting that, "Wealthy Republicans are very anxious about taxes. They are not pretending to vote for the black man." Really?? So it's down to liberals needing to feel the love and not have another election stolen from them while the only conservatives out there sweating it are the rich folks who sit on the therapists couch and talk about how the thought of higher taxes sends them into paralyzing fear?

But one of my favorite paragraphs in the article was this:

Many liberal Democrats watch MSNBC, but some say it sounds too much like comfort food. CNN serves its election coverage with a stiff little chaser of doubt for Democrats, and many liberals say CNN and NPR are their regular evening companions. If they really want to rub the sore tooth of worry, they dial over to the "Obama's radical friend Bill Ayers" channel, otherwise known as Fox News.

I finally get it. I know now why the liberals are so positive that any time a conservative wins an election, it's been stolen. The liberals generally live in concentrated areas. They are densely located in particular patches... and they don't get out of their bubbles of liberalism much. They don't connect with the population at large, nor do they wish to. They're better than that - and besides, watching a news network like FOX just drives them crazy. So they're better off sticking to MSNBC and CNN. One liberal put it this way, "We live in a bubble. I drove to Monterey recently, and I saw my first McCain placard ever."

To hear the NYT tell it, liberals and conservatives everywhere are so distressed about the election they're all seeking therapy. And I thought I was obsessed with politics. Guess I'm not that bad. I guess blogging is my therapy. That and telling all the news I hear to my husband (who is occasionally not so appreciative of my informative efforts). After a long day at work, I guess he doesn't want to come home every day to, "Guess what Obama did today!" All the more reason to vote for McCain, I guess. If Obama isn't elected I can't possibly do that to my man for the next four years.