What a relief that this election is over! Here’s a little known fact –  neither  candidate was as saintly as his supporters declared, and neither candidate was as evil as his detractors swore.  The true evil in this campaign was the money spent to get elected, or lose. Depending on your sources that amount was between $2 billion and $5 billion. That’s $2,000,000,000 to $5,000,000,000. Lots of zeros and lots of obligations to special interests. That box you checked on your tax return for a dollar toward public financing of political campaigns? Worthless!

Just think of how much good even half of the money expended on the campaign could have done for the sick, the homeless, the hungry, the wounded veteran in the US. People not far from our borders lack basic sanitation, minimal shelter, and education. Tell the mother whose child died from a disease eradicated in this country in the early 20th century that spending the money to call someone names publicly was more vital to the fate of the free world than providing a vaccine to save the life of her child.

One thing that bothered me a lot during the campaign was the name-calling. Repugs? Demoncrats? Bullying words. On a playground someone using those pejorative terms would get detention until she was eligible for social security. What did our children learn from this campaign? It’s okay for adults but not kids to act like children?

And what would the Facebook group, “Too Informed to Vote Republican,” do with those who did? Re-education camps? I got the impression that this country had room for only one party because there is only one that had the intelligence to know what is best for everyone. In the case of the Peace and Freedom Party, I’ll have to agree. Roseanne Barr for President? Ewww! However, being so smart is loaded with pressure. There is no room for being wrong. People expect perfection from those who know best. Unrealistic, but that’s reality.

I applaud the churches in the Nashville area http://tinyurl.com/aq28q9s  that held communion services after the polls closed. No IRS regulations are violated when people of faith come together to acknowledge God’s grace extended to everyone regardless of political affiliation. Perhaps in the sacrament we recognize and repent of our part in adding to the belligerence that already fills the world.

My prayers go with Mr. Obama as he enters his second term. I pray for wisdom for him to lead this great country and especially for his health, safety, and well-being. The thought of Joe Biden as president scares the bejeebers out of me. And I just don’t believe I can repent of that.