Well, the message from yesterday's carnage, like anything else, depends on who you talk to. Was it the economy? Was it 9.11? Was it that the Republicans just fielded a better slate of candidates? Or that they just did a better job of fooling the American electorate? All of the above? Some? None?
Does it really matter? In the short run, or even in the long run, probably not. The Republicans have lost their scapegoat if the economy goes south. No longer can Democrats be accused of obstructionism. It WILL be interesting to see what Shrub and the newly-Republican Congress will attempt to foist upon the nation. All in all, though, the last two years will quite probably be like the past two years (politically speaking)- rather benign and meaningless.
It did not escape my notice that, even though the Republicans won just about everything in sight yesterday, the sun still rose in the same place and is about to set in the same place tonight. The moral of the story is that the more things change, the more they stay the same. While I'm disappointed that Americans couldn't bring themselves to see through the fear-mongering that was a hallmark of most Republican campaigns, day-to-day life will likely continue much as it ever has. Few politicians truly make a difference. This is equally true whether the politician in question is Republican or Democrat. I doubt that will change much over the next two years.
