Red wave or a red tide, and Christmas

Shannon Bohrer

(12/2022) The elections are over, but for many people the results were disappointing. One side expected a red wave that would benefit their party. The red wave that many predicted quickly turned to disappointment. Instead of a red wave, what occurred resembled a toxic red tide. When the premise of what one thinks will happen, is based on the idea that everyone should think like them, the probability for failure increases. The democrats were just hoping for minimal loses that could indicate support for their party. They were not as disappointed as it was predicted and have concluded that more people do think like them, which is also not necessarily true. The republicans immediately blamed Trump, ignoring their own unhealthy proposals. Both sides are neglecting the idea that sometimes people vote against ideas and issues, not necessarily for something, or someone.

Simultaneously, no matter what each side wanted or predicted, both sides are touting victory in some way, which can seem strange to any normal thinking person. At least my idea of normal. The Republican party that did not experience the red wave, now believes it was the former president’s fault. So, if they can distance themselves from him, they believe they can win in the next election. What they are ignoring is their own deplorable proposals. Examining social Security and Medicare every five years, to see if the country can afford these entitlements, is not very popular. Another unpopular idea is reducing and eliminating taxes on corporations earning billions. This is the same party that embraced the Supreme Court Dobbs decision, against a woman’s choice on health issues. They also have promised to repeal the recent legislation that reduces prescription drug cost for seniors. These ideas do not sound like a party working for the people.

On the Democratic side, they believe the election results are a validation of their management of our government and the laws they have passed. Most people, according to surveys like the laws they have passed, but what they are ignoring is how bad the competition was, or still is. The Republicans ran on the economy, inflation, and a high crime rate as a reason to vote for them. They never said how they would reduce inflation, which is a worldwide problem. And while touting a high crime rate, they ignored some obvious facts. "According to 2019 FBI data, seven out of ten states with the highest per-capita rates of violent crime voted Republican in the 2020 election. In contrast, seven out of ten states with the lowest rates voted Democrat." The national crimes rates are based on the number of crimes per-hundred thousand people. Accordingly, violent crime rates in Oklahoma are higher than violent crime in New York and California. It is amazingly easy to blame the other party for a problem, and yet not have an answer for that issue. Yes, the party that expected a red wave, was not offering much, except to return them to power.

One large clue that the Republicans knew they had a problem with the early results was when they ignored the present and began talking about the next election cycle. Blaming the former president and talking about the future, while not offering much for the future, again, does not sound like a winning approach. However, many of the races were close, some very close. When elections are won with small margins, 50.1 percent to 49.8, that is not a wave for either side.

The good news is that the election, including the volume of political ads and the plethora of political campaign signs are gone. Adding to our good mood is that Christmas is upon us. At least for a brief time we can forget the divisiveness and enjoy our good cheer, wishing for peace on earth and enjoying family gatherings. Maybe the Christmas season will heal our wounds, allow us to be more understanding and have more empathy for others. That may be asking too much of Christmas.

The good thing about Christmas is that we get to see our families, of course the bad thing is also that we also get to see our families. The differences, even in our own families is often difficult to understand. You would think that we could tolerate other family members for several days, just by ignoring political talk. We can talk about our common beliefs of what we want, safe neighborhoods, good schools, public parks, and libraries, meaningful work that pays a living wage and good health care. There is a lot of topics on which we can agree.

One topic you might think we could agree on is the celebration of Christmas and the birth of Jesus. However, even celebrating the birth of Jesus can sometimes be challenging. While attending a family camp meeting, Congresswoman Boebert was questioned about her love of assault rifles, she answered, "They like to say, 'Ah, Jesus didn’t need an AR-15! How many AR-15s do you think Jesus woulda had?'," She added, "Well, he didn’t have enough to keep his government from killing him, so…" Does she know that Jesus died for our sins. Following those remarks she said, "I do want you to know I pray for our president," following with ‘May his days be few and another take his office'." from Psalm 109:8. So much for the holiday spirit and loving thy neighbor.

Two years ago, after the 2020 election, it was said that the "election seemed to amplify our differences more so than previous elections." Amplifying our differences has become a standard custom and practice, as well as both sides believing, and implying that we are heading in the wrong direction. Looking forward from our current election, many are saying, again, that they would like to get back to normal. We seem to hear this after every election cycle, and yet our normal – has been anything but normal. The question we should be asking is - what is todays normal?

When I was young, the "Twilight Zone" was believed to be science fiction, yet we seem to be living in a world that resembles the "Twilight Zone." According to both sides, we as a nation have been traveling in the wrong direction for several election cycles. Of course, each side blames the other for moving in the wrong direction. Who are the good guys, and just as important, who are the bad guys? I guess that depends on who you are talking to.

Merry Christmas