How You Feeling, Teacher James?

I'm very confident that Biden is going to win the U.S. popular vote in record-breaking numbers -- both his overall tally and in seeing the largest voter turnout (Democratic and Republican) ever.  The early voting alone shows that people on both sides are motivated, and in particular younger folks who will guarantee a Biden popular victory.

But of course, it's 2020.  2000 (Gore vs. Bush) and 2016 demonstrated that Electoral College shit-sandwiches are only for Democrats, and never Republicans.  The Supreme Court is now packed with folks who literally worked for Bush in 2000 so he could rat-fuck his way to a contested election.  The same goes for the state-level.

So once again, for the fourth time (!) since I moved to Korea, I'm waiting until tomorrow morning my time to find out what happens.  If all goes well, we should know by nine or ten p.m. U.S. time, which will put me in my office at 11 a.m. or noon Wednesday.  (I'll be teaching an adult conversation course, actually).

I really doubt I'll get any decent sleep tonight.  (Not like I've been getting more than three or fours at best lately.)  My adult students continue to be flummoxed at how such a strong and rich nation like America can have such an unnecessarily complicated (and racist!) system like the Electoral College.

That said, as with early voting mentioned above, there are some real Biden advantages baked in already.  I think the number of Trump 2016 voters who either sit this one out or actually pull the lever for Biden will not be insignificant.

So there's my optimism.

Here's my pessimism -- a defeated Trump will still Tweet at us.  A solid 30-35% of America will remain deplorable at best, and violent at worst.  The Republican Party has abdicated any pretense about maintaining a functioning democracy.  Indeed, the sooner we collapse into a Putin-style kleptocracy, all the better for them.

Oh, and the economy is fucked due to COVID, which is only going to get worse.  There's no guarantee it won't last until 2022 or worse.

From day one Biden needs to think and act big.  I'm not sure he's up to it.  Obviously better than the fascist alternative, but still -- does even a big win tomorrow just delay the inevitable Tom Cotton "Use Tanks Against Peaceful Protesters" 2024 campaign?