Fear and loathing in the 2012 election

I’ll have the last word in the show – and today’s was sparked by the reaction to a blog post I wrote about what I thought was a clever online ad campaign run by a Republican women’s group against President Obama – they’re videos in which women talk about the dreamy guy they fell for four years ago, but who just isn’t working out.

A lot of people really hated the videos, and I realized that we are so emotionally invested in this election that we have a hard time seeing anything about it as funny. And it struck me how often people have said they’re afraid of what tomorrow’s election might bring. Supporters of the president fear that this man who broke remarkable barriers could be turned out because he couldn’t reverse damage from an economic crisis not of his making, that he could be brought down by a ferocious ad campaign financed by unprecedented political spending. And supporters of Mitt Romney fear that this is a watershed moment, a last chance to stop encroaching government control our lives and fight the monstrous debt that threatens future generations. And everyone worries that the economy may be permanently damaged, that we can’t compete in a global marketplace, that there just won’t be enough jobs.

I just hope that when the returns come in, the leaders we’ve chosen realize that they’re going to have to work together on the problems we face, and they’ll consider changes to make our political campaigns less toxic. If you want to hear from me, read my blog Dave Davies off-Mic, and Newsworks.org.