Post election, let's not rush

There are solutions but they won't come quickly.

I went to bed early on election night expecting Donald Trump to win. It’s not that I wanted the next president to be the convicted felon and rapist who encouraged a deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol because he couldn’t admit he lost the 2020 election. I just didn’t think enough people would be bothered by the fact that Trump has threatened to use U.S. troops against Americans. I sensed more people cared about high gas prices, the immediate threat that Trump says he’ll fight.

In the morning, I skipped the newspapers and went to Facebook, where I’m connected to a wide range of people. (For the record: I don’t recommend getting news from Facebook. I did this as a reporter to check people’s pulse while still lying in bed.)

The first post I saw was from a conservative Christian in rural Maine, my home state:

“At 2:00 a.m., I am THANKFUL”

His relief was echoed by “Amen” in the comments. 

As the day progressed, text messages rolled in from friends. “They hate us” is the sentiment I heard from wo…