I voted! You can read my [short account of the experience](http://nyc.metblogs.com/archives/2004/11/my_election_sto. phtml) over at the NYC Metroblog. (That’s right, I joined a group blog.) Now we wait. I am really amped up.

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I’ll be adding to this post all day. Here’s an excerpt from an chilling post by Juan Cole, a history professor at Univ. of Michigan, called [What's at Stake: the Revolutionary vs the Statesman](http://www.juancole.com/2004_11_01_juancole_archive.html# 109933183557665580).

> A second Bush administration will continue to pursue iron fist policies in Iraq, which have obviously backfired. If Bush overstays his welcome in Iraq, he risks creating a new kind of pan-Islamic nationalism. It is not impossible for the Shiite leadership to join hands with the Sunni clerics if both decide it is crucial to expel the Americans. I would put the odds of an anti-American mass revolution in Iraq during a second Bush term at 50/50. The aftermath will be further instability in the oil rich Persian Gulf.

>[...]

>Kerry is not a revolutionary, unlike Bush. He recognizes that al-Qaeda is a real threat and needs to be the main focus of US security thinking. Kerry will capture or kill Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri because he will put the resources into that endeavor that Bush instead wasted in Iraq.

>Kerry is worried about Iran’s nuclear ambitions, but is highly unlikely to resort to military force or connive at a coup in Tehran. He will use diplomatic methods and more subtle military pressure.

>Kerry will rebuild the alliance with Europe, which is crucial for fighting al-Qaeda. He will attempt to improve the US image in the Muslim world, which Bush has completely shattered. His approach to China will be measured.

>So the choices are clear. Those who want a revolutionary who will risk further wars and instability, should vote for Bush. Those who want someone who will use diplomacy to manage the status quo and roll back asymmetrical threats should vote for Kerry.

Here’s another one about a willfully false, misleading translation of bin Laden’s latest speech that’s been put out by hard right Israelis and neo-cons: [Bin Laden's Audio: Threat to States?](http://www.juancole.com/2004_11_01_juancole_archive.html# 109938356137329197)

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11:47 pm. We’re going to bed soon. Here’s why. Earlier in the evening, we watched some of the network news coverage as we ate, enough to make me thoroughly sick of it. I resolutely switched stations to C-SPAN, choosing simple reportage over spin, long location shots over Monday Night Football drama cuts, and no advertising over advertising. We saw a very moving, very troubling live speech by Ralph Nader. It is time to crack the whip on our representatives for campaign finance reform, fellow citizens. More on this tomorrow, probably.