It’s time for a pep talk. Time to unearth our inner Vince Lombardi and rally the troops, reminding them to give 110 percent and telling them that it isn’t over ’til it’s over — and it soon will be over. Or something like that.
We’re talking to voters, of course, and we come today to note that a glance at the calendar tells us that there is only one week until Election Day. One week until ballots are counted. One week until an election season that has simultaneously been memorable and forgettable comes to an end. Thank goodness.
Let’s face it, this has been a most disturbing election campaign, particularly in the race for the presidency; never before have voters been faced with a choice between two candidates as flawed or as disliked as Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton. For the record, The Columbian’s Editorial Board believes that Clinton’s strengths far outweigh Trump’s, and that her flaws are negligible compared with those of the Republican nominee. We recommend a vote for Clinton.
Yet that is beside the point as we mark the one-week countdown to the election. Because today we hope to find the silver lining in the clouds, to highlight the strength that is the United States and to provide assurance that, regardless of the outcome, this republic will endure. The United States has survived global wars and global depressions and global catastrophes, through it all becoming an ever-brighter shining city on a hill for the rest of the world. We will survive this election — in spite of the assertions on both sides.
We know, we know, that all makes for a cavalcade of clich?s. But that is how football coaches talk, isn’t it? At least that is how they speak in the movies, so you know it must be accurate. And we trust that the American people can endure one more week of this election season and take one for the team.
That’s not always easy. As Clark College psychology instructor Tess Yevka was quoted in an article for The Columbian: “The media tends to focus on the things that are the most riling or disturbing about different political candidates. You’re getting bombarded with the emotionally charged stuff. Which then, of course, seeps into our attitudes, our feelings, our thoughts, because that’s all we’re seeing. We tend to get our emotions wrapped up in politics; it’s difficult not to feel stressed.”
So, yes, it is understandable if citizens feel stressed. A Google search for “depressing election” reveals a slew of articles starting as far back as March, and there has been little since then that has been uplifting or inspirational in an election that has dominated the national discussion. Even the typical Facebook feed has featured an endless stream of inaccurate vitriol in between the ubiquitous cat videos.
Taking a cue from Facebook, we shall attempt to provide the cat video of editorials. Hey, how about those Washington Huskies? And how about those Washington State Cougars? And the Trail Blazers have high expectations this season. And the Chicago Cubs are playing the Cleveland Indians in the World Series; who can’t be excited about that?
And Forbes says that Washington has the second-best economy in the nation. And we still live in a beautiful part of the country. And the rain might be setting records in this area, but that just means healthier trees and more colorful flowers come next spring.
Yes, if we think about it hard enough, there are plenty of things to be positive about as an inglorious election enters the final stretch. Just one week to go; we shall endure.
