The day after the American Presidential election has brought forth a slew of comments from friends and thoughtful leaders. Thanks for sending these reflections. We have a new-normal and some of us must pause to collect our thoughts. Many of us during the campaign decried the toxic words of the new President-Elect. I note many of you have compared this election to the Brexit vote last June in the United Kingdom.
And it is disconcerting that for the second time in 16 years, the winner of the popular vote in a Presidential election is defeated by the peculiar American Electoral College system.
Now for the sake of children and grandchildren, we all must wish the new President wisdom and the grace to govern this nation and to keep the world safe. - Glenn N. Holliman
November 10th - The Comments keep coming, so I list them below in which they come. Thank you all.
Again from our Educator who spent his childhood and career in Alabama....
Alas, Glenn, my heart is heavy, as I cannot think of anyone but you, that I could send Terry's blog to that would understand or much less, believe it. For such is the life of life in medieval Alabama, which has actually taken a step BACK form the Age of Enlightenment! I am truly a Poor, Wayfaring Stranger, traveling through a barren land. Barren of reason, thought, and pursuit of knowledge for such a long time.
From a Pennsylvania Art Teacher....
Hi, Glenn. We are wasting way too much time wringing our hands over what the Europeans think of our election. We have sustained them with our blood and treasure for a hundred years. They have made their choices and we have made ours. The whining is becoming a bore.
From a Tennessee Clinical Psychologist....
Conservatives seek freedom, liberals justice, goals that are incompatible in their absolute forms. We liberals sought absolute justice in the early 70s and produced a terrorism aimed at power and privilege (now we would settle for a decent minimum wage).
The right now seeks absolute freedom. Since freedom is built on personal power, its excesses aim at license, and license leads to cynicism and nihilism, which is where we are. Nihilism means there are no values but power, and words no longer engage and reveal what is real. Instead, language is a means to excite (usually toward anger) and need not have the first thing to do with whatever is real.
The politics of nihilism has won a big victory and is not yet done.
From a Pennsylvania Businessman....
Glenn, Thank you for sharing the comments of your many friends. What now? George Lyter
Again from Ontario, Canada....
The worst day in American history was 9/11.From Another Learned Correspondent in Australia....
The second was 11/9.
Glenn, pardon me if this has already been said and I missed it.
I wonder if this whole thing is a dreadful accident. It’s by no means unknown for voters to ‘send a message’ - in this case to The Establishment - to let them know they’re running out of patience, but without actually voting them out. But tinkering with the Collective Unconscious is a most imprecise instrument. Perhaps in this case resulting in an unintended consequence of Homeric proportions.
From Steph in Australia, Biographer and Playwright....
Hi Glenn
The photo of earth is uplifting, which we needed!
I read the blogs with interest, and it disturbs me to hear so many contributors lump all Trump voters with Brexiters (and I’m sure they would include Pauline Hanson here in Oz). The Brexiters, Trumpers and Hansonites are stereotyped as ‘racist’, ‘haters’, ‘red-necks’ etc, yet I know many people who voted for Britain to leave the EU, and have seen many Trump supporters interviewed, and spoken to many Hanson followers, and none of these people deserve any of those labels.
They voted for radical change rather than the person. They want action. They are fed up with politically correct spin re. controversial problems such as border control, immigration of people who are perceived as either taking jobs or further burdening their welfare system, foreign ownership of land and industries, lack of protection of locally produced steel, immigration of a culture which is seen as threatening because it has values so opposed to modern western ones, the fighting of wars on foreign soils, etc etc. They wanted someone with the guts to say what many of them have thought for many years now and have been too afraid to say.
So while I felt as sick as most of us when Trump trumped Hillary, and am terrified of the damage he might do to the international climate treaties and aims, and his encouragement of the gun lobbies, and of his unpredictable, reactive and erratic character, and his admiration of Putin, it really is very non-constructive and simplistic to lump ALL of these people as ‘deplorables’ or ‘morons’ or the names listed above.
As you said Glenn, now Trump must go to work, and he may find many of his own simplistic ‘slogans’ come back to bite him. If he doesn’t deliver, his former fans will eventually turn on him. If he does deliver on issues such as encouraging all Americans to bear arms, I fear greatly for America. If he delivers on some Democratic-type policy such as a workable and fair Health system, I’ll be as thrilled as I’ll be surprised.
Let’s obey Hillary’s magnanimous directive, and for now at least, keep an open mind.
Steph Mc
From an Anglican Priest in Northeast Pennsylvania....
I’m no poet and, as you might expect, Fran and I were literally astounded by the news that Trump had been selected via the Electoral College as America’s next President; regardless, here are some words that came to my mind in a feeble “poetic” manner:
Trump, the master of con,
felt the pulse of downtrodden others,
thus gaining the majority votes of male and female whites.
So now, those who supported the one who received a popular vote advantage
fear the loss of their human and constitutional rights.
Peace to you and Barbara
From a Nurse and Election Volunteer in Texas....
I couldn't read paper or watch news. My son and his wife did not want to go to work. They have lots of gay friends. i keep hopingw ill wake up from nightmare. I never want to work election polls again, too many rude people. sad day.
From a Distinguished Pennsylvania Judge....
I couldn't read paper or watch news. My son and his wife did not want to go to work. They have lots of gay friends. i keep hopingw ill wake up from nightmare. I never want to work election polls again, too many rude people. sad day.
My blood pressure was high at the foot doctor and she asked if I was stressed. I said after last night and she agreed without being to vocal. Guess they had been told to not comment. She said noticed your Hillary sticker on your iPad. She said the whole staff was sad.
Facebook groups recommend a boycott on January 20, 2917 (Inauguration day) economically and to not watch the ceremony. Knee jerk reaction but gives us something to control. Most of the women at my women's club tonight were trumpeters. They approached me and said they never thought he would win. Well, why did you vote for him? I They replied with let's see if he can live up to all us promises, oh he has the first 100 days planned and he is surrounded by good people. I walked away.
From a Distinguished Pennsylvania Judge....
I've observed the decision process play out in jury trials--hundreds of them. Whether I agreed with them was not important; only that I saw to the correctness of the process. The result was stated through our system of law, accepted, acted on in accordance with the decision and the body politic embodied in our constitutional legal system moved on and survived.
Such is our republic and it will continue to survive.
Take a break, look out the window and be thankful we live in a beautiful world.
We are stunned and horrified too.
I got up at 5.30am expecting to see President Hillary announced and could not believe my eyes and ears.
As many of your other UK correspondents have said it feels like Brexit all over again and we simply cannot understand how it happened.
So we send you our sympathy but suggest that after a stiff drink or three it's time to shake ourselves down and plan for the future because in four short years America can elect someone far better from a huge wealth of talented people.
From an Ambassador of a European Nation in Europe....
What a surprise this result! I woke up at 4 am, checked the news in my cellphone and saw that the election results were heading towards something else than was predicted in the latest polls last night. By the way, I was last night at the election night event the American Embassy organized ...TV. The event was mainly for all the (local) politicians. The (American) Ambassador described in his opening speech that the event was mainly to celebrate the US election system and to celebrate that in the US that “a man in power gives up his post every four years”. And of course, I only stayed for the first couple of hours, so the results started coming in much later.
We don’t yet know what this new era will be. I’ll gladly continue reading your commentaries!
From a Physician in California....
Glen:
Comments below from my youngest daughter who is a vice principal of an elementary school in north Los Angeles area.
I'm still in shock but I have to believe that our America will unite out of this. It's how we come together and treat one another on a daily basis. Working in schools, I see my role now more important than ever.
Kindness trumps hate. Character trumps hate. Knowledge trumps hate. Culture trumps hate.
I'm going to continue spending each day focusing on developing kind students who display character and who will use their knowledge to positively impact our world. I will continue to develop a culture of unity, and acceptance. A culture where we value diversity.
It's what we do on a daily basis that will lift our country out of this sadness and continue to move us forward.
From Business Tech in South Africa....
What implications does a Trump presidency hold for South Africa?
According to Professor André Heymans from the School of Economic and Business Sciences at the North-West University, the consequences may be dire.
“When the news broke, the rand lost approximately 3.7% of its worth, but since then it has stabilised a bit. Although Trump has mentioned speech that the USA want to do business with other countries, his focus will be on his country’s fledgling middle class by bringing jobs back to the US and keeping them there,” said Heymans.
“That means that the US will want to be more self-sustaining, resulting in less manufactured goods being imported to the US from other countries – including South Africa. The main concern is that Trump will want to accomplish this by raising import costs as to make it cheaper for Americans to buy locally produced goods in comparisons to imported ones. The USA is one of South Africa’s single biggest export destinations and to implement such a hike in import costs will severely hurt South Africa’s economy,” he said.
here is, however, a flip-side to the coin should government decide to exploit it, said Professor Melville Saayman, director of the research unit TREES (Tourism Research in Economic Environs and Society). He said that the former reality television star’s abrasive attitude may hold a benefit for South Africa’s tourism sector.
“When one looks at what Trump has proposed during his campaign, then it seems that traveling to the United States will become a lot more difficult now that he is president. He is a proponent of stricter measures of control and in the past South Africa has been able to exploit such situations. I think with some creative marketing we will be able to do so again because we are still one of the best value for money destinations.
“I think that until he does some positive things over an extended period of time the country’s reputation and image will suffer. He will need to foster a sense of trust and confidence and that will be hard to do seeing that a lot of the mainstream media will focus on the more negative aspects of his speeches and his actions,” Saayman said.
Beautiful autumn pix! Thanks.
Yes, we must listen to one another ... right now, I need a grief counselor!!
From a High School English Teacher in Tennessee....
I can not think about what happened....as you well know, this is how I deal with unpleasant things...I don't think about them! I have not turned on the television at all today...usually it is on MSNBC all day, but I can not bear to look at that man's face, his family, his people, etc. George and Abraham and William Henry and Thomas and Teddy and Franklin must all be turning over in their graves...how does he even rate the name "President"? It is unbelievable to me that in 2016 someone of his intellect and moral depravity could be chosen...just shows you the stupidity of millions of people....I'm scared for our country and the world...
How could so many people...pundits, media, etc. get it so wrong....
From Engishman Terry Field who watched the campaign from Florida....
Hello Glen, Hello Barb.
This is a dreadful result.
I hope so much that the election does not badly affect your children, their healthcare, their place in society in any way. Let us remain hopeful.
As you are aware, for me, there is an overwhelming matter, one that dwarfs all others.
Climate catastrophe now looks likely to be unstoppable. All else pales to significance compared to that.
Universal suffrage is the real cause of this.
Think about it.Glenn,
I see Hillary gained 2 million more votes that him.
Clearly it is not only a universal suffrage matter, but also a matter of your constitutional structure.
God is not mocked.
Gore gained more votes, and we experienced war and failure in the Middle East
Now, the disaster will be environmental and climate, as well a social and medical.
God is not mocked.
Hillary was the answer. He is the problem. God help us now.
From a Legal Scholar in Pennsylvania....
Glenn, I was up this morning and noticed that the sun came up...Great new....and, as I predicted, it was in the east.
I am not as pessimistic as many of my friends although last night's results were depressing, but remember...... in a republic all political victories are temporary as are all political defeats. What I find depressing is that the public has no idea of what the winner's policies will be and those who voted for the winner were willing to ignore some personality traits of a very despicable individual.....Trump is certainly a long way from Honest Abe Lincoln or Dwight Eisenhower or Ronald Reagan or George H. W. Bush or John McCain or Mitt Romney. Oh, well.
Dan S.
From Scotland, a successful Business Family....
Glenn, Barb,
Awakened to this news, similar feelings to when we awoke to our departure from Europe news.
This of course is on a much bigger scale, so unexpected.
Will keep watching all forthcoming events intently, the world will be a very different place.
Margaret and Bill
From the Midlands of England, retired Educators....
The same dark, populist, anti-representative democracy movement which led to Brexit has triumphed again. On the bright side, the voters of the US will have a chance to think again in four years time; we in the UK, however are totally, irrevocably, stuffed.
We must hope that, during these four years, we avoid the Third World War and survive the world recession.
Keep drinking the vodka.
D&M
From a Banker in Toronto....
Glenn, I love the vodka line!
In trying to understand what happened yesterday, I found this story in the Guardian of interest. Its headline is: Donald Trump is moving to the White House, and liberals put him there. It was written by Thomas Frank. In particular, this line struck me:
"The American white-collar class just spent the year rallying around a super-competent professional (who really wasn’t all that competent) and either insulting or silencing everyone who didn’t accept their assessment. And then they lost. Maybe it’s time to consider whether there’s something about shrill self-righteousness, shouted from a position of high social status, that turns people away."
It reminds me of the Brexit situation.. Elites out of touch with the common person. People fed up with being ignored by elites in media and politics. Perhaps it is time for politicians everywhere to climb down from their high horses and pay more attention to the average working stiff.
- David
From a Gay Business Woman in Florida....
She (Hillary) was talking to the baby boomers who are already living a very settled comfortable life. She's lost touch as well and that is a shame for ALL of us! Trump tapped into the fear of the uneducated and won the vote based on fear and ignorance! Hillary is so smart she missed that totally! Bad move on her part!
So Trump just scammed the working class uneducated sector as they are looking for any tiny ray of hope! Hillary missed the boat on this topic TOTALLY!
We can only hope there's enough people in GOP with different agendas than taking rights away!! Neither Hillary or Trump are even remotely able to understand the life of the average folks like us. People living check to check. Folks like you are NOT the norm! Then gen X and millennials work to pay bills... we do not have the extra income for retirements, and pensions are a thing of the past! So NEITHER of them are qualified to help the average American's plight of daily financial struggles. Because they have no clue what it's like to have to "put things back" at a grocery store just to be able to pay!!
From a Concerned Citizen in Greater London....
Hi Glenn
Deepest sympathy from us here. I guess you will be needing to fortify yourself with something a bit stronger than coffee today. So, you will have a President who is a misogynist, racist, ignorant, with no proper joined up policies – deep joy. But it could only be for 4 years, if you are lucky. His protectionist stance will not help the U K, which is stupidly about to commit an act of national suicide by cutting itself off from its largest market. One of the things I heard on U K radio was that the gun lobby was a factor (surprise!)
I just hope that the depression that has gripped me since 24 June will not happen to you. But it has lifted a lot with the High Court ruling.
Best wishes, Sue
From a Cat-Loving Woman in Pennsylvania....
My hope is that his narcissism will keep him under control. It seems Kelly Anne (his campaign manager) was able to do it and helped him win. I hope his statement on making health care better is true. But the GOP Senate and House will destroy women's rights health care and rights for gays. It is like 1930 again.
From Educators in Ontario, Canada....
Dear Barb and Glenn,
I am numb. This is beyond belief. It's as if we have entered an alternate universe, in which reason does not exist. I just want to crawl back into bed and pull the covers over my head.
It was a terrifying victory of fear and hatred.
God bless America, indeed.
From a Business Woman in High Wycombe, England....
I stayed up till 01.45 our time but couldn’t stay awake longer. At that point Florida was still going back and forth with most pundits predicting a Democrat win. How things can change in a few hours! I can send details of properties for sale in the Cotswolds if you like! 
From Helen Philpott's Texas Blog....
Dear Hillary - Dear Hillary,
We are so proud of you. Take some time off, dear. We’ll take it from here.
Dear Readers of Margaret & Helen,
Our greatest work starts now. If you have a neighbor who has been targeted this election, hug them and remind them that this is still their America too. If you have a neighbor who voted for Trump, congratulate them on their win and then move on.
In their wisdom, the Founding Fathers prepared us for this. Call your local Democratic office today and ask them how you can get involved. Washington moves mercifully slow. We have two years to take Congress away from this man and four years to restore our dignity.
Our Democracy is stronger than one man and one election. This grand experiment we call the United States has not failed. It has just begun.
Today we heal.
Tomorrow we act.
2018 we correct.
2020 we redeem.
We broke it and now we must fix it. The world is counting on us. I mean it. Really.
From a Concert Organist in Florida....
I think many of us will be in a state of shock for quite a while!
Question for the day - "Why does God hate the United States?"
M
From Suffolk, England....
I hardly know what to say.From an Educator in Georgia, USA....
Without trying to sound too dramatic the world as we know it is coming to an end. With Brexit and Trump I simply do not understand what is happening any more. All I can say is 'be careful what you wish for'.
Evidently there are more Americans who HATE than I thought. On another note, I have closed the book with the organized Protestant religions of my upbringing. They are hardly what their founders wanted them to be, nor are they in line with who are what I am anymore. In my 72, and close to 73 years on this planet, I have never worried about the future of our country until today, November 9, 2016.
" Democracy...while it lasts is more bloody than either aristocracy or monarchy. Remember, democracy never lasts long. It soon wastes, exhausts, and murders itself. There is never a democracy that did not commit suicide." (John Adams)
From an Englishman who Lives in Wales....
That's that then Glenn, therefore you Democrats must now endeavour to smoke the pipe of peace and unite with the Republicans and Independents, no matter how unpalatable that will be, in a common just cause for the future benefit and prosperity of your great nation both at home and abroad and put aside petty squabbles.
The pendulum has swung to the right, and Trump's proto-dynastic role as the next Commander-in-Chief has now superseded the inherited dynasties of the Bushes' and Clintons'.
It's certainly been "The Greatest Crazy Show on Earth."
When David Cameron monotonously bombarded us almost every day with pompous rhetoric against Brexit, he got on people's nerves whom he took for granted; then he was shocked when we basically told him to get stuffed.
He just couldn't understand the common people as he lived in his fantasy world of an "untouchable" glass bubble of an ivory tower.
After the euphoria and dejection has dissipated, Glenn, things will hopefully settle down.
From our Writer in Australia....
Just finished watching HIS speech. Mmmm, how magnanimous he is in victory, how low would he have stooped in defeat. Makes us shudder to think. But we no longer have to watch Hillary being crucified, and he will try to curb foreign ownership and might put at least a filter on Muslim immigration, and also we won't have to witness him calling the election rigged and putting his people on the streets armed to the teeth. We'll see. He'll find out that words are easy. Action is difficult and needs care.
I'm off to get out the vomit bowl. Love and condolences.
From David Lott in Normandy, France....
Dear Glenn and Barbara,
I woke this morning for the second time in 2016 to find that, the' underclass' as we are called here or the 'deplorables' as Trump voters are looked upon by the establishment in the USA, that we have won. For Kathy and I the predominant feeling is one of immense relief ,despite having felt he would win all along in the face of poor polling to the contrary and I remember I said so in one of my posts on your blog.
The parallels with Brexit are now obvious to one and all. One side had the broadcast media in its pocket and the other side did not. One side had enthusiastic passionate new voters and the other did not, along with doubtful polling loaded against the eventual winners. Each of the winners had a controversial charismatic person leading the charge.
Both results followed constitutional democratic process and both results are valid and reflect the will of the people. Both results must be accepted if peace is to reign. Here in the UK judges are trying to pick our success apart, I do hope the courts in the US do NOT follow suit as the potential for dreadful civil unrest will be very serious indeed.
In order to draw the electorate together in both countries you must give Trump and the Brexiteers led by Nigel Farage and his followers in the Tory Party a chance. Only by doing so can one preserve our democracies. After four years you can judge Trump upon his record which is exactly how it should be.
All those on the losing side really must make a real effort to understand the motives of the winning side electors. They are not evil in any way and you all should disabuse yourselves of such prejudice. They have not voted in this manner without good reason and I outlined in two earlier articles entitled Truth and Trust what is behind this successful movement. Please do not fight the result but endeavour to understand why it has come about even though you may not agree with the policies.
For your interest here is a take on the objectionable intervention of the High Court in frustrating the will of the people concerning the activation of Article 50 of the EU Lisbon Treaty. This Treaty Article merely starts the process of leaving the EU. At the end of the process Parliament will vote upon the Great Reform Act that will put all EU legislation into UK law in order for Parliament to deal with it at its leisure.
UKIP London MEP Gerard Batten who sits on the Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee of the European Parliament said, “This judgement is a political decision by part of the establishment that wants to thwart the will of the British people in the Referendum.
“Part of the reasoning of the Court is that triggering Article 50 “will inevitably effect the changing of domestic law”. However, this is precisely the argument for why they cannot make this ruling. Treaties are merely agreements between governments. The courts cannot rule on them until they become part of domestic law by means of Acts of Parliament.
“All previous treaties have been entered into and signed by British governments using the Royal Prerogative without a vote in Parliament first. Only when parts are incorporated into law by Act of Parliament does Parliament become involved, and the courts have jurisdiction over their application.
“This argument is clearly set out in a judgement of the House of Lords in the case of Rayner v Department of Trade and Industry (1990) 2 AC 418. This judgement.”clearly states that the Government may repudiate or terminate a Treaty". Triggering Article 50 may indeed inevitably affect domestic law but until it does the courts have no jurisdiction.
“The Supreme Court meets on 7th December to confirm or set aside this decision. If they confirm it they will be setting themselves against the democratic will of the electorate and will precipitate a constitutional crisis. The outcome of which cannot be foreseen
We also have worries concerning the inclinations of the Judges involved. A number have been involved in an EU funded examination of the compatibility of EU law (Corpus Juris, largely the Napoleonic code) with English Common Law. The latter is largely used in the USA and many Commonwealth countries and was developed over 1000 years. The EU has stated that Corpus Juris should apply throughout the EU. For this reason we do not trust the impartiality of many of the judges.
I am sure you will not mind if Kathy and I have a glass of champagne tonight.
Best wishes
From a Pennsylvanian who Describes Himself being from the Backwoods....
Thought you might get some "interesting" comments from your email.
Touchy subject.
And much to learn from the outcome of the election.
You, as an historian, might well reflect on the Great Depression and
how two themes emerged: creation of jobs via the New Deal
and the fantastic growth of isolationism. Globalization was
certainly not part of the mind set.
Never mind that some historians feel that our isolationist posture
of the 1930s helped to lay the foundation for the emergence of WW II.
We just went through a Great Recession. Some folk lost
over 40% of their retirement income. Yes, we have recovered
those loses but many are still looking for jobs, feeling left behind,
and wondering why the borders are so open to people who are "taking
their jobs away" from hard working American citizens. That may be
perception rather than fact.
But isn't it amazing how we experience such similar cycles in our
corporate history! We do seem to be back to where we were in
the mid to late 1930s; the need to create jobs and the growth of
isolationism! Let's hope that we are not setting the stage for a major war?
Yes, I am not giving you a statement of my own political belief but my perception
of how others are viewing the situation and why they voted as they
did.
A professor from F & M commented about what he was hearing
from his own polling. He said, "Many feel that this is no longer their country.
Indeed, they feel as if they are strangers in their own country even
though they were born here, have been citizens all their life,
and have lived and worked here for fifty, sixty or seventy so years."
Pro or Con, my thanks to all for this civilized discussion. May we continue to listen and ponder the human condition together. GNH
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