Alright, it is time to reflect after last night. I had to deal with my daughters this morning, they are 13 and 9 years, and they wanted to know the result of the US presidential election first thing in the morning. Especially my older is very curious and she is learning about civics and government in school, so it is my duty to speak the truth in as unbiased way as possible. I try to keep things observation based and factual on my blog always and I do not do prediction.
| Source | Index showing shift |
This is what I said to my daughters this morning. American people voted Donald Trump convincingly for the office for Jan 2025. The election was peaceful and people chose an American President from the Republican party. Come January he will be my president too, even if I have not voted for him. I am looking forward to a peaceful transition of power during the next couple of months, and I am confident that the transition will be perfectly peaceful. I have added that quite a few of our down ballot initiatives were succesful, most notably, we have been able to elect our house representative Lizzie Fletcher from Texas District 7 to the House of Representatives. Also we have been able to block Proposition A and B of HISD bond initiative presented to the ballot by Mike Miles. They went to school happy after that.
Since I do not do prediction, there is nothing to be surprised about. The chart above in NYTimes show the shift of voting in the United States. It shows almost everywhere the Republican party gained vote. It is not just Red state or Blue states, in all states Trump gained vote. I must say this is something I am surprised about. However, it does make life simple, because there is no room for argument with this result because it is so convincing.
A slightly different but more revealing plot above, how big some of the margin of win is in states like Florida, which just a few years back, was a swing state! Now Trump won Florida by 13 points! That is real strength. Even traditionally blue states like Rhode Island and Virginia, Trump gained enormous ground.
There is gain for the Republican party in almost every single voting blocks above and almost every country. There you have it, it is a convincing win.
So it is what it is, and I am glad the election is over with a clear outcome. Now what we do. This is what I am thinking personally. I am from a part of the society and income group that the result of the election matters very little to me personally. In fact, if I am totally honest, based on my location and the industry I work in, a Trump victory will benefit me financially. This morning, my portfolio is up massively, which is full of conventional investments, also likely my crypto investment will do quite well with time. And yet, I am uncomfortable.
That is due to the fact that Trump said that he will do 'many' things to social groups who doesn't have the safety net and resources that I do. Now, how much of those things he will be able to accomplish is a different question. However, his potential treatment of political enemies, or illegal immigrant can put a massive dent on the economy. I am not sure if you are aware, but majority of Texas economy, which is booming, is fueled by immigrants, and some of them are illegal. They are happened to be here for jobs which no American will do for the wages they are willing to do them and they are not criminals.
So I think there will be a real need to protect a vulnerable population. Also it is difficult to fight against lies told by people of power. If the governer of Texas says that they are criminals, it is very difficult to fight that, whether they are criminals or not. Thankfully the governor of Texas understood the problem so far and didn't go that route. But who knows what the future holds. There will be a need to speak the truth for these people, who can't do it properly themselves or rather, they don't have a voice. So some of us have to give them a voice.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said the arc of history is long, but “it bends toward justice.”
I hope many of the vulnerable people have the staying power to come out safe on the other side. I am hopeful. No society stays the same over time. When the society regresses, those who have the staying power wins.
