Fear +Anger=Scott Brown's Victory

To all who is reading this,

When the state of Massachusetts became the first in the country to legalize same-sex marriage in 2004, I remember muttering "yes" under my voice (mind you, I was not out to everyone, so I basically celebrated on the DL). I was also thinking that other states would follow suit in becoming as smart as Massachusetts in extending rights to their citizens (and since then, there have been a few to do so). Since then, I've always considered the home of the Boston Celtics to be one of the states that would continue to be a historical blue state.

So it truly kills me to see that Republican Scott Brown won the Senate seat that once belonged to the late Ted Kennedy. This is a blow to Senate Democrats because his victory places President Obama's health care plan in jeopardy of being filibustered. In the meantime, people throughout the country--sick and well--are still living without health care.

It's not Brown's win I have a problem with because, if it were meant to be, then that's how the story ends for now. What bothers me is the fear guiding the citizens of not only Massachusetts, but America. The only reason why this man won almost effortlessly is because he possibly played on the anger and frustrations of many who have lost hope in the Democratic party. President Obama won the state based on the belief that he was going to make profound changes in the U.S. (though he stressed that he could not do it on his own, but needed the aid of the U.S. citizens. I guess that part got lost somewhere). But as time wore, people were still being laid off. Jobs were still being outsourced to foreign countries. Families were losing their entire livelihood to creditors and--in their minds--there was no end in sight.

In other words, most of the American people--people who are so used to getting instant gratification--began to grow increasingly impatient, especially when it came to the issue of health care. "When are we going to get it?" they asked. "Who's going to pay my $12 gazillion hospital bill and when?" These people started coming after President Obama when actually he's up against Republicans determined not to see this long awaited universal health care bill leave the voting table. And as a result, the Americans who want fast answers aren't getting any and--because of that--they became angry and frustrated at the wrong people (i.e. President Obama and the Democratic Party). This was the case for the residents of Massachusetts, who ran to the polls and voted for a Republican, even though the state had been blue for decades until recently.

Beneath the two emotions that drove people in that state was pure powerlessness. Let's face it--no one wakes up in the morning and say to themselves "You know, an anxiety attack over a high hospital bill with coffee sounds really damn good right now." When a person has no job, no insurance and just found out they need surgery, chances are they're not going to walk into the kitchen with a smiling face. They're going to pace the floor because--though he/she needs to go to the hospital--they may or may not due to the ridiculous cost. I know people who plainly choose to stay home and would rather suffer in pain than see the doctor because they can't even fathom themselves paying the bill. Take that mentality times 100 and you have the thoughts of the average American. When people feel powerless over this issue and many others (jobs, the war in Iraq, the deficit, etc.), they want answers from what ever party has power at the time (it's the Donkeys this time). They didn't get them, so they did the next best thing: pointed fingers.

What am I trying to say here? We need to stop being afraid. We as a people need to take our power back instead of giving it to a government filled with those who have their own agenda. From a grassroots level, we need to educate ourselves about our rights and what we can do to exercise them. We don't have to take this as a nation and voting Republican is certainly not the answer. Scott Brown may have won, but what is his win going to go besides make situations worse.

And that's enough from the Unknown Planet.