And so it is...

The headlines say it all.

The Election is all but over. The Electoral Votes have been totaled. We have a new President Elect. I am proud of Americans, and proud to be one. Not because of who or what they voted for, but because they voted. 66+% of Americans turned out to cast their ballots, a record that has not been broken since 1908. May this usher in a new era of American activism and may the decades of apathy end in Our Great Nation.

One thing concerns me.

There has been much said in the last few months. Pointed, cross, mean spirited, polarized, hateful things have been said. It has been an election year, and so, it was to be expected. What really worries me is that I have seen them continue. On both sides of the isle uncalled for statements are being made.

I have never been a fan of party politics. I like to think of myself as a follower of George Washington's warning against political parties. (really it's because neither party represents what I believe.) Because it's an Election year I have been more tolerant than normal of Statements like the following.

"If [insert candidate] wins the election I'm moving to [insert foriegn country]."
"Wear black to mourn the death of our country."
"If [insert prop, candidate, or issue] [passes, fails; wins, loses] then [insert disaster, super natural occurrence, or violence] is inevitable."

But the election is over. In that light, here will be my statement from now on.

"The election is over! Stop the rhetoric!"

The Nation is not going to hell in a hand basket. The world is not going to end. The Constitution has not been burned, marred or defiled. Fire and brimstone will not be falling any time soon. Americans have exercised their right to vote and another peaceful transfer of power will occur as it has with each inauguration for 200 years now. Stop hyper ventilating.

Here, then, is your home work. Go find a flag. Look at it, study it, ponder it. Remember. Remember that we all stand under that flag. The American Flag. Set aside your party politics, your hatred, your mistrust. Spit out the foul taste of the bitter words and say the pledge, sing the national anthem and remember that we are all Americans.

This is our country. Own it. Be proud American.