Welcome To the New World, Or Is It?.....

The results of the election surprised me. But I've been wrong before. America seems divided. But it's been divided before, and survived.

Time Magazine from 1972. Or is it from 2016?

Take a quick time trip with me to the election of 1972. To say America was divided is an understatement. The Vietnam War and the accompanying social revolution had driven a wall between a younger generation and "the establishment". These were not good times for America.

Leading up to the election was the Tet offensive in 1968 that signalled our military policy in Vietnam was flawed. The war was televised every night on the nightly news. Then there was the murders of MLK and RFK. The "secret" bombing of Cambodia in 1969. The Kent State massacre was in 1970. There were rumblings about political dirty tricks in Washington at the Watergate complex.

All this was the backdrop to the Presidential election in 1972 that had the incumbent, Richard Nixon running against Democratic Senator George McGovern. The election was very special to me personally. The 26th Amendment had been passed allowing 18 year olds to vote. It was only fair. If they could get drafted into the Army at least they should be able to vote. I had just turned 18. I was just a kid trying to grow a moustache, and this was my first election.

McGovern was the anti-war candidate. He wanted to end the war quickly. Nixon talked about "peace with honor". To me, this was a no-brainer. I was pro-McGovern. All of my friends, acquaintances, and all young people were pro-McGovern as well. On election day I thought there would be a big McGovern victory. Boy, was I wrong.

Landslide victory for Nixon.

Nixon won in a landslide. The electoral votes went 520 to 17 for Nixon. I was totally shocked. How could this be? How could I have been so wrong? What kind of America was I living in?

It turns out that while 18 year olds could vote, they didn't. Must've been a party that night. The election had a record low turnout with only 55% of the electorate voting. The vast majority of voters seemed to be saying I'm for America right or wrong, and the hippies are nothing but trouble.

Later Nixon resigned the Presidency in the Watergate scandal and America left Vietnam with the evacuation of Saigon. So much for "peace with honor".

But I am reminded of these days with the recent election of Donald Trump. Trump hasn't been sworn in yet, but there are nationwide protests already. Too late for that. America seems divided again.

The new American style politics.

Trump seems to have won because, like 1972, there was a low overall turnout by voters. I can understand that because neither of the candidates were attractive. Also, Trump seemed to have had  a very strong and dominant turnout in rural areas, Some people are calling the results a "white-lash". They explain that the majority of white America was tied of the emphasis on diversity in america, and longed for the older, more stable times.

This campaign and election will be analyzed for decades. But the results have me concerned about two issues immediately.

The Mexican border. Soon bigger & better,

• Foreign Policy with Mexico: Trump wants to build a wall. Walls don't normally work. (Ask the French about the Maginot Line in WWI). But it could hurt the Mexican government and fragile Mexican economy. Perhaps they could be bailed out by the Chinese and North Koreans. Never say never.
• The State of American Politics: Future politicians will see that Trump was successful while acting like a rude ass. Will they copy the technique? Will punches be thrown on the campaign trail? Will debates be replaced with a WWE style cage match?

I miss the days when we got to choose between the best and the brightest. But can an intelligent candidate that has a plan succeed in the future? I guess there's a cycle for everything.