Lessons to be learned

I sit here early on the morning of the Wednesday after Election Day - various pundits chatting about the surprises - who no longer has a job, how many lawyers will be dispatched to which counties, and where the balance of power will ultimately fall. Several years ago, I would have been crushed at the results - a lifelong Republican, and devoted follower of the conservative agenda, it would seem as if the Iraq war and the animosity towards further involvement in the middle east had turned the tide against the Republicans.
For some reason, I am not that bothered by it. First of all, after having controlled the Senate, Congress and Executive branch for lo these many years, what do we have to show for it on the domestic front? Many bills of massive spending and a departure from the Conservative plank of limited and small government. Maybe a little more gridlock is good. Secondly, it seems as if those elected and the Democratic gains are not of the Barney Frank / Hillary Clinton ilk - Heath Shuler is a perfect example - conservative, evangelical christian democrat. I would be interested in seeing the conservative / liberal balance of power in congress....
But probably the best reason that I am not that worried about the direction this country is headed is exactly this change of power. Many influential, powerful, key members of the former "ruling" party no longer have jobs. Many new members of congress will be reporting for work with their own agendas. Yet, this transition will occur without rioting in the streets, looting, bombs going off, or death squads roaming the streets. I think that many of us fail to realize how lucky we have it here. The very separation of Church and State provided by the Establishment Clause of the Constitution, which has been such a pain in the A@# to us over the last few years in the ACLU's attempts to remove the Ten Commandments are removed from every last public forum also prevent planks of our parties from declaring party affiliation to a particular religious figurehead.
Right now in Iraq, there is a political party affiliated with Moqtada Al-Sadr, the radical Shiite Religious leader with a stronghold in southeastern Baghdad. Legislative debates must include a religious viewpoint as well as political necessities....and you thought the debate in the House was politically charged? When one draws battle lines across religious divisions as well as political beliefs, it is a recipe for much animosity, and little agreement. Death Squads roam the street right now in an obscene twist on our version of "get out the vote" drives......Get out the vote or else....
As we awake to a new political environment, the many millions of us will continue on to work, bring our kids to football practice, and run to the store to pick up groceries for dinner. We may grumble, adjust our stock portfolios, or even begin to lobby for changes in future legislation if we are so actively inclined. I guarantee, none of you will be buying body armor or an AK-47 to protect your families. None of you will be staying up until 5AM every night to make sure that a death squad doesn't invade your home. There will not be a single person in the United States that arranges an escape of them and their family to Canada or Mexico to avoid the political fallout of a change of power (hell, it wasn't even bad enough for Alec Baldwin to leave many years ago, even though he promised!!!!)
And still with all of our political stability and the miracle of Democracy proving its worth once again here, I am amazed at the sheer tenacity and determination of the Iraqi people as they quite literally risk their lives and security to make their fledgling democracy work. If we learn nothing else from this election, it should be to appreciate what we have here in the US, and to continue to support those young democracies trying to carve out their own version of the same. Yes, we will change our stance in Iraq over the next few years - maybe not "cut and run" as some had postulated should the control of the Congress changed, and maybe not "stay the course" as some had predicted if the Congress remained in Republican hands. I believe however that whatever comes of this change in political winds, we should make sure that we support those in Iraq trying so desperately to obtain the same luxury of participating in the political process as we do - in peace.