Tuesday's Election (Cont'd)

Friday, November 7, 2008

Nov. 5 was a beautiful autumn day in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

But the elation and patriotism I felt for America after witnessing the election of the first African American president was overshadowed briefly by the sight of two huge Confederate flags on each side of a pickup truck traveling through the small town of Crozet. The flags fluttered defiantly in the wind as the two teenagers in the truck raced down the main drag.

Maybe those teens go around town like this all the time; it is, after all, their constitutional right to do so. Or maybe, as I suspect, their display on this particular day was their way of saying something far more odious than I care to describe. They went under the railroad bridge, turned a block later and drove out of sight. And hopefully out of history as well. Glory hallelujah, America's truth marches on despite a few who choose to live in the past.

TOM TRIGO

Crozet, Va.

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As a supporter of Sen. John McCain (and President Bush), I resent E.J. Dionne Jr. ["A New Era for America," op-ed, Nov. 5] implying that people who voted for the Republican ticket this year were anti-hope, among other things. His initial, single-sentence paragraph set the tone: "Yes, it's time to hope again." As if, if Mr. McCain had won, it would be time to, what? Despair? Again?

This disparagement of Mr. McCain's supporters was inconsistent with, and thus undermined, Mr. Dionne's later nods to the transformational, post-partisan and progressive nature of President-elect Obama and his supporters. I, as a very small part of the 46 percent of the electorate that voted for Mr. McCain, hope not only that Mr. Obama leads this country in the right direction during the next four years but also that Mr. Dionne understands that the Democratic Party and its supporters have not appropriated "hope" only for themselves.

BRIAN BURKE

Arlington

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After the much-heralded victory for "values voters" four years ago, it was a delight to see in Tuesday's election a vindication of the authentic, timeless and shared American values and ideals that President-elect Obama highlighted in his victory address: liberty, opportunity, and, yes, both self-reliance and national unity.

Instead of permitting our politics to sow fear, mistrust and mutual disdain, we have collectively repudiated the politics of division. Mr. Obama's victory reaffirms my conviction that the real "values voters" in America are not the culture warriors, with their parochial definition of "values," but rather the majority of Americans who have affirmed both our collective beliefs and "the enduring power of our . . . unyielding hope" as a force for positive change.

PHILIP WALSH

Washington

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How short-lived was the Obama campaign's promise of a new kind of politics. One of Sen. Barack Obama's first acts as president-elect was to ask Rep. Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, to be his chief of staff [front page, Nov. 6]. Yesterday, Mr. Emanuel accepted the job.

Mr. Emanuel has a reputation as one of the crudest and most profane politicians on the national scene and is known for extreme partisanship. However, he did back President Bush on the Iraq war, being the only Democratic member of Illinois's House delegation to support the resolution authorizing the use of force. He fervently denounced Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) when Mr. Murtha came out against the war. Mr. Emanuel could be Mr. Obama's Dick Cheney.

If this is a harbinger of how the Obama administration will do business, millions of Americans who voted for Mr. Obama are going to be sorely disappointed.

WILLIAM SAMUEL

Silver Spring

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On Election Day, I volunteered at our local precinct, handing out sample ballots and thanking people for braving the long lines.

When a charming older African American woman approached, I asked whether she wanted a sample ballot. She said yes and took it from me. Then she asked me what to do next: "This is the first time I have ever voted, you see."

She said this in a matter-of-fact tone, but my reaction of obvious surprise moved her to say, "I was too young to vote for Kennedy, and he was the only other person who I wanted to vote for until now."

We gave her the basic instructions, and she got in line. A half-hour later she emerged, smiling, with her "I voted" sticker affixed to her coat.

DONALD O. GRAUL JR.

Washington

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I was disappointed that the D.C. public school system did not treat Election Day with more significance this year. It doesn't appear that teachers and staff members were allowed enough time to vote during the morning. It was understood by staff members that they had to be at work at their regular time.

Given the city's predominantly African American population and the presence of the first African American nominee of a major party on the ballot, I would have thought that school system employees would have been allowed to arrive late if they needed to vote in the morning. With decisions such as this, it's no surprise that the city's public school system continues to be held in low regard by others in the area who see the school system's hierarchy as out of touch.

Maryland and Virginia schools were closed Tuesday because so many schools serve as polling places. Let us hope that D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee will have more sensitivity to such historic events.

BRIAN S. JONES

Washington

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As a lifelong "Demopublican," I was prepared to vote Republican this year.

Then John McCain insulted the intelligence of the electorate by picking Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, and I was easily swayed to vote for Barack Obama.

Now I find that the voters of Alaska appear to have reelected Sen. Ted Stevens (R) [news story, Nov. 6].

Holy cow. We might as well let the polar bears vote.

JOHN HAYES

Williamsburg, Va.

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Now that carbon levels in the atmosphere are rising above 350 parts per million, drastic changes will occur in the global climate, as environmental activist Bill McKibben has noted. The world needs a leader who will recognize and face this problem. A U.S. president who effectively addresses climate change and the environmental crisis will not only be taking action on the most important international issue of our time but will also be taking huge strides toward improving America's image around the world.

President-elect Obama ran on a platform of change, and this environmental challenge will demonstrate the extent to which he intends to keep his promise. Reduce carbon emissions; increase funding for research on renewable energy sources; sign on to the Kyoto Protocols. Yes, he can.

KATIE SIEGNER

Chevy Chase

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The reference to Wall Street vs. Main Street in Barack Obama's victory speech on election night [news story, Nov. 5] may have spooked the market, causing a sell-off. The campaigning is over, and the time is coming to do something about the financial crisis. There is no need to pit sides against one another in this campaign-style way. Both streets are part of the United States of America.

There just needs to be a better balance.

SUSANNE HUMPHREY

Wheaton