At least, 56% for Rand Paul and 44% for Jack Conway is not the overwhelming landslide Paul had been hoping for, but it does put him in the Senate. Keep on eye on him, to see which way he votes. Will Mr Tea Party abandon his populist, libertarian platform and play with the big boys like Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), or will he stick to his guns and be the maverick-y kind of guy he said he was during his campaign?

On the bright side, some other Tea Party candidates, like Sharron Angle in Nevada and Christine O’Donnell in Delaware, failed in their election bids by closer margins than the Paul-Conway split. This tells me there are lot of other crazy people in Nevada and Delaware beside Angle and O’Donnell, but at least they haven’t taken over yet.

Sen. Dan Coats (R-IN) kept his seat. No big surprise.

And big spender Margaret Whitman failed (54% for former Gov. Jerry Brown to her 41% ) to buy her way into win the governorship of California.

So it’s a mixed bag. It should make for an interesting end to Obama’s (perhaps first) term in the White House. Maybe the Senate will play with him, but the House will be a free-for-all.

JISHOU, HUNAN — Yeah, I’m several thousand miles away from my polling place in Floyd County, Indiana, but I still voted. So, you’d better not have lame excuse about not being to get your butt out to vote. Just sayin’.

I’ve been watching the political polls closely for the races in Indiana and Kentucky (and California, for entirely different reasons), and I’m worried.

Let’s say you’re dissatisfied with the Obama administration. I know I am, and I voted for the guy. But look it at this, most of Obama’s problems in getting the things done that he promised to get done have originated in the Party of No — the Republicans. It makes no difference what Obama proposes, the GOP will just say no. Bipartisanship has been officially dead in Washington for so long I’ve forgotten when Democrats and Republicans actually worked together on something to benefit the entire nation, and not just their own party’s chances of re-election.

So, you’re disappointed with Obama. Voting for a Republican will only make Obama’s job even harder, since none of the Repubs running for office have even remotely suggested they will work with the Democrats, only against them. Choosing a Democrat may have the same effect, but at least there’s a chance the newly elected Dem will stick with his party.

Of course, if you didn’t support Obama in 2008, none of the above applies. Consider this, in that case. The mess that Obama inherited — two unsuccessful wars, a major economic crisis and a huge federal deficit, to name a few — were not his doing. Eight years of Republican control of (and Democratic acquiescence in) Washington created that mess, and I have not heard anything from the GOP that suggests they will do things any differently than when G.W. Bush was in office. Voting for a Republican, then, is a step in the wrong direction.

What about the Tea Party candidates, such as Rand Paul? None of them, in my opinion, have any viable, logical, or suitable platform. So it makes me very sad to see Paul leading Conway in the election surveys. Conway may not be the best candidate, but Paul will be a disaster as a Senator. He does not have the best interests of Kentuckians in mind, only some la-de-da adherence to some cockeyed libertarian/Christian ideals. Conway is the lesser of two evils by far.

Louisvillians, re-elect John Yarmuth. ‘Nuff said.

In Indiana, Baron Hill has not done a bad job these last two years. And Brad Ellsworth, the Senate candidate, seems like a good choice to represent the average working guy, though I don’t agree completely with his platform.

I have lived in Indiana and Kentucky most recently, but as for California, I went to school with one of the gubernatorial candidates. Yes, indeed, Margaret Whitman and I not only were classmates from kindergarten through 11th grade (she graduated early), but also attended the same university.

If the polls are correct, Jerry Brown will beat her easily. Good. Nothing personal against Meg, but her campaign platform sucks, and the amount of money she has spent out of her own pocket ($160 million, the last I heard) is scandalous. And she ruined eBay.

No matter what side you’re on, get out and vote. At the very least, you will be able to do something that no Chinese citizen can, at least for the foreseeable future.

So, what’s so great about that? The man’s fiancé is also a man.

Of course, even that should be no big deal, since such matters are now legal in Iowa, but to a certain segment of the population, printing the engagement announcement of a gay couple was like inciting everyone in Indiana to fuck their cows and sheep and to sell their children into white slavery.

You think I am joking.

The backlash from groups who oppose marriage equality began 48 hours later. At first the announcement became fodder for local radio station, then the American Family Association of Indiana, according to Indiana reporter Bil Browning, e-mailed an action alert to its membership, suggesting that the paper would also soon print “anniversary announcements for polygamous marriages” and “incestuous birth announcements.” Conservative Indiana blogger Brian Sikma, citing the fact that Indiana law does not recognize same-sex marriages, encouraged readers to contact the The Elkhart Truth’s parent company, Federation Media, to launch a complaint.

Rightwingers responded to the call to action in droves. The reaction of the newspaper was at once professional and sharply critical of the rightwing fear-mongering. It represents what journalism should be. I’ve highlighted the best parts.


We had no idea that people in Fort Wayne, Lafayette, Warsaw, Kokomo, Indianapolis, Fishers, LaGrange, Muncie, South Bend and Syracuse cared so passionately about The Elkhart Truth. Not to mention our burgeoning fan base in Lawton, Okla.

Nonetheless, we appreciate the interest.

We published an announcement Sunday that two men, one a former Elkhart resident, plan to marry this month in Iowa. For more than 48 hours, readers barely uttered a word. We received four e-mails -- two against, one for and one that misspelled "disgusting" -- two phone calls, and no letters to the editor and roughly 10 comments on eTruth.com.

Readers either didn't notice the announcement among the other engagements Sunday or they made their peace with it. No big deal. That is, until a pair of family advocacy groups, abetted by a local AM radio station, organized a protest against The Truth.

People wrote and called from throughout Indiana. Many expressed their sincere belief that homosexuality is a sin and that marriage is between a man and a woman. Others quoted straight from the Fred Phelps playbook, excoriating "fags" and "perverts."

Most asked the same questions -- why did you publish a same-sex engagement announcement when it's illegal in Indiana and why are you promoting the gay marriage?

Same-sex marriage is legal in Iowa, where the couple lives and plans to marry. Since one of the young men is originally from Elkhart and his family still lives here, we did the same thing we'd do for any other local family with a child getting married -- we published the couple's engagement announcement.

We fulfilled our role as a paper of record. We documented an engagement, something we do hundreds of times each year.

Protesters asked why we would publish a story about something illegal in Indiana. Basically, it's because an informed citizenry, a citizenry capable of thinking for itself, needs uncensored news from a variety of sources. That includes states and nations where the law does not conform to Indiana's.

Because after all, how would Hoosiers who oppose gay rights even know about Iowa's same-sex marriage ruling in April if news outlets hadn't reported it in Indiana -- where same-sex marriage is illegal?

Now, to address the accusation that we're promoting gay rights.

Protesters believe that every news story amounts to an official endorsement of its content. Nothing could be further from the truth.

We publish announcements every week about babies born to unwed mothers. Does that mean we approve of births out of wedlock?

It doesn't mean that we approve or disapprove. It's news.

If we ever decide to endorse gay marriage -- or to oppose it -- we will argue our case on this page in a clearly labeled editorial. This is where we state our opinions.

But our personal beliefs about homosexuality did not influence the decision to publish Sunday's announcement. They didn't even enter into the conversation.

We received an engagement announcement, and we decided to treat it like every other engagement announcement. We treated it as news.

Imagine, a newspaper staff that knows the difference between opinion and news, and the requirement that a news source be unbiased, regardless of the staff’s personal opinions.

News is news. Facts are facts. A newspaper is supposed to print them for the public to be informed, to form its own opinions. That’s really what, “we report, you decide,” should mean.

So, as soon as the moment of silence started, David Lynch, 70, started praying loudly in the council chambers. When he was told to be quiet, he got louder. Eventually, the chief of police had to drag away him in cuffs.

Lynch had earlier told the Indianapolis Star that “a moment of silence is not prayer.”

While I doubt that Lynch reads my blog, I will nevertheless quote some Scripture — some of few words in the NT that scholars believe Jesus actually spoke.

[5] “When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Most assuredly, I tell you, they have received their reward.
[6] But you, when you pray, enter into your inner chamber, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.
[7] In praying, don’t use vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their much speaking.
[8] Therefore don’t be like them, for your Father knows what things you need, before you ask him. – Matthew 6

Silence has worked for Quakers for more than three centuries. Too bad more people don’t try it out.

James Brown could sing it better than I can, but that’s how I felt this afternoon after I sent in my absentee ballot, all the way from Hunan, China. I had this mental picture of sticking it to Bush and Cheney, McCain and Palin. I hope it hurts. Ow!

An ex-pat, I discovered a few weeks ago that I could cast my vote in Indiana (my last US place of residence) by mail, fax or e-mail. All the necessary forms and instructions are right there on the Indiana state government website.

I want to extend a public thank you to Linda Moeller, the Floyd County Clerk, who in a very friendly manner immediately responded to my emails and faxes. (Linda’s a Democrat, by the way.)

While I could have preserved the secrecy of my vote by voting by mail, I chose the fax method. I wanted to be sure my vote arrived well within the Nov. 14 deadline. If Indiana is going to be a close race, I wanted to help decide the contest on Nov. 4.

Here’s the nuts and bolts, for anyone interested. If you are an ex-pat or someone in the uniformed services and are already registered to vote in Indiana, you fill in and fax form ABS-12 to your county clerk’s office. This form requests an absentee ballot be faxed back to you.

For whatever reason, Linda could not fax the ballot successfully earlier this week. Instead, she emailed the ballot and the secrecy-waiver cover sheet (ABS-9) to me on Monday. The cover sheet is an affidavit that you are waiving the secrecy of your vote. Without it, your ballot cannot be counted. No witnesses are needed; just fill it in and sign it.

I also had trouble faxing my ballot back today, because of a cranky multi-function printer/scanner/copier/fax in our office. I sent Linda an email, asking her to let me know if my ballot had arrived. It had. Case closed.

Because of the time difference, my faxes and emails arrived in her office in the wee hours of the morning today. I knew by the evening my time that all was well.

Since my vote is not secret, I don’t mind telling everyone that I voted for Obama-Biden. I will confess that it took me a while to warm up to Barack Obama. Hillary was my choice during the nomination run. Obama was eloquent, a gifted orator, but I wasn’t really sure he had the experience to be president. He could talk the talk, but could he walk the walk?

It may be hard to believe now, but the only Republican I had any respect for was John McCain. So, the choices before me were Obama and McCain.

To make a long story short, my respect for McCain quickly tanked after he picked Sarah Palin as his veep and sold out to the neocons and wingnuts in his party. Some frickin’ maverick he is.

Meanwhile, my estimation of Obama skyrocketed. His composure under pressure, his smooth handling of the debates, and most of all, his overall message of hope for a better USA, clinched the deal. I watched his half-hour program on YouTube after faxing my ballot in. It only confirmed that I made the right choice.

So, fellow ex-pat Hoosiers, warm up that computer and that fax machine, and GOTV! Modern technology has deprived you of all those lazy-ass excuses about sending in your paper ballot. It feels nice! Like sugar and spice!

Cross-posted on The Daily Kos