In an appendix of sorts to last week’s US election rant, here’s a roundup of related commentary that caught my attention (and might otherwise have been lost in the Linklog):
Simon Schama: Onward Christian soldiers
Historian Schama sees the US as a divided country, positing the existence of two nations — Godly America and Worldly America. If you can get past the bloviation he makes some valid points.
Jason Kottke: How George Bush won the election
Kottke goes the opposite route to Schama, and hits the nail on the head: “Half the country is not stupid. We’re all stupid.” I think that speaks for everyone, not just Americans.
The Independent: Why The Guardian and its readers are still feeling the wrath of Ohio
Bit of a gloat from the Independent here on the Clark County ‘debacle’. I’m with The Guardian on this one. And I don’t agree with the respondent who said “[just] for a second, imagine if The Washington Post sent folks from Ohio to do the same in Oxfordshire”; if Britain’s foreign policy impacted the world as much as the US does, then ‘Operation Oxfordshire’ wouldn’t seem such a silly prospect, would it?
Greasy Skillet: Reflection
“We didn’t vote for a moving leader, but for an alternative – any alternative – to Bush. We don’t think this is what winning elections are made of.”
Mat Honan: Disaster
Shattered and dismayed he may be, but Mat concedes nothing: “There will be a lot of talk about moving to Canada in the coming days. About moving to Europe. Nothing could be further from my mind. I love this country too much to surrender it. I love it enough to fight for it, whatever that takes.”