Watched the election coverage in the VR with a large group, then in the bowels of Briggs with the Politician and Alan until about two in the morning: a satisfying night.

Well, what can I say.

Unsurprisingly, there was a palpable malaise at Lawrence today. For the most part, this malaise manifested itself in a general lack of energy, but I also heard some rather melodramatic moaning from a few Madison liberals and a rumor (true, as it turns out) that one histrionic art professor cancelled class because of the election results.

Other professors seemed mildly upset. Bo-Fo, our "Intro to Ethics" professor, apologized in advance for his lack of enthusiasm. And I'm told that Goldgar shuffled through Main Hall, spreading the grim news. That man needs a bell.

Everyone seems to have perked up after dinner, though some didn't need perking up.

Jubb and the Politician, for example, were pleased with the election results, though the policies each expects from a lame-duck Bush seem diametrically opposed.

On the other side of the spectrum: Alan, a fan of politics and punditry, was too interested in the drama to care much that his candidate lost — he predicted as much long ago, in fact.

For my part, I didn't vote for the guy who won, but I wasn't too upset at the results.

Well, I am worried that the political center has moved further to the right — in Ohio, white anti-evolutionist evangelicals proved more important and more reliable than young, newly-registered liberals — and that our president could get away with a bunch of theocratic nonsense now that he's more sure of congressional support…

But that's all academic. Who's president doesn't affect my life in any material way, and I tend to think of politics at this point merely as intellectually stimulating entertainment.

That the election could have been more interesting, I'm utterly convinced (read: electoral tie makes McCain president); but it could have certainly been more annoying too, and I'm thankful for that much at least.