This "Election Day" post was delayed until Wednesday morning, November 9th. No self-respecting, retired teacher of US history, government, and international relations could write without the latest post-election news. Other than the obvious, these are this week's topics: student views; real Americans; last minute election machinations; early voting; an economist's fitting summation; earworms; traffic nightmares; lost something important?; late snow.

The People have spoken. Obviously, the pundits and general public did not grasp the depth to which so many Americans were disgusted with what was NOT being accomplished by their national government. How else to you explain the election results: victory of a much disliked non-politician, who will govern with a Republican-controlled Congress?
     Personally, the impending situation calls to mind a phrase from the Catholic liturgy: "Lord, have mercy."

The students' views. After the ballots have been counted, you might want to consider this link to CBS's Monday morning program about how one teacher's 7th grade students viewed the election campaign. It should be required viewing for each of our so-called pundits who were part of Tuesday's post-election parade. Charade?

The real America.  Fred Hiatt, the Washington Post's editorial page editor, writes eloquently about "The America that Donald Trump doesn't get." It's worth a read because we all know and deeply appreciate these kinds of Americans.

Down to the wire. As the clock ticked down, the news stories abounded about last minute campaign  machinations and celebrity-studded appearances in the so called battle-ground, must-win states. For election coverage, I guess "pick your poison" is the best admonition. With two such unpopular candidates, it seems outrageous to say, "may the best person win."

Vote early? I, for one, will be watching the analyses that focus on the probable effect(s) of early voting. The first presidential contest I followed was 1952, Eisenhower vx. Stevenson,  even though I was far too young to vote. In that bygone era, voters gathered at the polls where voting was a community, as well as a political, event. Pleasantries and family/community news were exchanged; no doubt there was also a modicum of quiet, illegal electioneering.
     Now, on November 8, 2016, an astoundingly high percentage of those eligible have already voted. In some states well over 50% of those eligible have already voted. Here in CO, every registered voter received a mail-in ballot; if you want to vote in person, you have to take your mail-in ballot to have it appropriately cancelled before you can vote. In some areas, more than 50% have voted. Many votes were cast before FBI Director Comey issued his latest (final ?) pronouncement on HRC's email controversy.  

An economist's overall summation. The headline for Washington Post economic columnist, Robert Samuelson,  perhaps said it best: "The real national embarrassment." Samuelson opened, However this election turns out, the 2016 campaign for the White House will undoubtedly be remembered for its vulgarity, mean-spiritedness and mendacity. It has been a national embarrassment. But a parallel failing is less noticed: the unwillingness of both candidates — Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump — to come to grips with national problems that are staring them in the face but involve unpopular political choices. I refer, of course, to an aging society and immigration.
     His election-day column continues the same theme. No one wants to confront these twin problems, nor talk about where will all of the required money come from? As for a national embarrassment, the students perhaps said it best.

Earworms. These peaky things are not from the ground, but from the air! You know that song that keeps going through your mind, over-and-over. If you have ever wondered, read  this article about research from Durham University music psychologist Kelly Jakubowski and her colleagues. "After conducting a statistical analysis of thousands of earworm submissions from an online survey, [they] found that songs that are up-tempo, with a familiar melody set apart by a catchy, unique interval pattern, are especially persistent."

Traffic, the south FL and NJ approaches. A novel, mostly unspoken approach. One that could "catch on" elsewhere? An official in Miami, "One way to ease traffic: Let it get so bad that motorists give up." Think about the next time you are sitting, steaming in traffic.
     In a Monday morning interview with Charlie Rose, NJ Governor Chris Christie vehemently denied any involvement in, or knowledge of, the so-called bridge-gate events. Like Hillary's numb skull decision to use a private email server, it appears the Governor's hirelings were simply poorly chosen or suffered some sort of political breakdown.

Found: the lost nuc, you have never heard about. Now the Canadian navy is searching for what a diver says he has found: a long lost US nuclear bomb. While stationed in West Germany in 1966, I played a very small role in arranging support for the search off the Spanish coast for a nuc that had been lost when a B-52 and its refueling plane collided.

Snow anyone? At 6:15am, election-day morning, the TV banner announced that Independence Pass and Trail Ridge Road remain open and will not be closed until the first snowfall. Independence Pass (12,095-feet) is the highest paved through-road in CO, one of the highest in the nation. Trail Ridge Road is the highest continuous through-road in the nation. Traditionally, Independence Pass, Trail Ridge Road, and the Mt. Evans and Pike's Peak highways are closed on/about November 1st. However, this year's lack of snow means that only Mt. Evans and Pike's Peak are inaccessible. The front range ski areas are most definitely already lacking. Snow dances are in order!