I sunk into a bad mood today. I think it may have been the weather. Perhaps a combination of that and poor sleep. I'm doing better now though. What's it to you anyway?

Well, let's dip into politics a bit.
I voted for Bush and he won. Yay. Actually I felt like I didn't care too much until I saw how close the race was and thought that Kerry might win. I didn't want to deal with the stress so I went to bed and tried to sleep. I shoved earplugs in my ears because my room mate had the TV on pretty loud and I didn't feel like yelling at him to turn it down. I can't say I slept well that night. It was warm in the room and I guess the stress dealt with me. I drempt that Kerry won 278 to 273 electoral votes. Of course, the numbers don't add up in reality so It didn't take too long for me to realize it was just a dream. Even with the win, I'm somewhat ambivalent. I'm not very passionate about politics. I'm kind of wary about the notion that we can steer the country's moral health from the top rather than the bulk. Still, that doesn't effect how I vote. I thought it was kind of funny on the Daily Show Wednesday night, when John said that "maybe we are the media elite they say we are". He was surprized to learn that maybe he and his friends don't share the same beliefs as the rest of the country.

Another thing that's been crawling around in my head the last couple of days is the thought that government shouldn't be directly reponsible for the success of it's citizens. John Kerry repeatedly talked about 5 million americans not having health insurance and 5 million Americans not having jobs (or perhaps that was 5 million Americans losing insurance or jobs). Is it the government's job to eliminate poverty? Is the government responsible for me being hired at a privately owned business? Can the govt invest be the reason for my financial success or failure. Well, I guess in a lot of instances yes. The govt's fingers are in so many areas these days it'd probably be catastrophic if it pulled out. On the other hand I don't think we can blame the govt if we get knocked around in life and just give up. I was watching a tv show about Stalin. At one point 5 million tons of grain were being exported while 5 million people in the Ukraine were starving. They had opposed his taking over their farms and other property and he punished them by letting them starve. He actively prevented them from leaving the country. That was an evil, evil man. That was government controlling wealth. I don't really have a nice, tidy conclusion for this thought. I'm still sorting through it. Should govt provide health care for everyone? Can govt provide quality health care for everyone? Should govt be involved in health issues on the individual level? I tend to think no, it should not. Just because someone is suffering doesn't make it the government's job to try and fix it. This is life. Bad things happen. Bad situations happen. Hopefully someone will help, but I don't think it's the govts job. Of course, it's easier to say that when one is in good health and privately insured. I guess the closing thought is that I'm uncomfortable with the government of a country being involved (and therefore controlling) in an individual citizen's life... providing food, shelter and health care to the individual. I don't know.