In This Together, For Better or Worse

Neal Pollock says:

The Jesus People won.

They're the ones in charge now. And they're the ones who are going to bear the brunt of the war. That's the tragedy of how they voted. So don't feel superior to them. Don't misunderestimate them. They're not going to reach across, so we have to.

I think that's about the fairest, most insightful thing that's been said, on the linky side, about the 59 million Americans who chose otherwise. It's easy to feel superior right now, to wring our hands and rend our garments over the stupidity of the slim majority of our citizenry, but let's face it: they'll have to pay, just like we do -- through the nose! I think Thomas Frank is right about voters not voting their interests, but the thing is this: it comes across as so patronizing, so superior, so elitist ("We know what's best for you") that it was all-too-easy for conservatives to spin until it lost all currency with the very people who might have most benefited from a good, hard look at what really effects them, as Americans and as citizens.