I sat in the usual coffee shop, using the stirrer to break up the clouds of milk that were swelling to the surface. As the milk spread throughout the cup, the entire mixture lightened in tone, and instead of cloudy, my coffee became overcast. A shadow fell over the table and I heard the familiar voice of my old friend, Rick O’Shea. He pulled up a chair with a look of concern on his face.

“Why so glum, chum?” he asked.

Well, it’s the election. I have to admit that I’m a bit sad about the fact that things in Massachusetts aren’t going to change any time soon.

“What do you mean? This election was all about change. Bush is out. The Democrats are in. Barack Obama. Change. Get on board!”

Right. I’m sure things will be quite different. Just like they are now in Massachusetts since we elected Deval Patrick on his Change platform. Let’s see…a State Rep got re-elected despite skipping a year’s worth of payments on his mortgage and using 50 grand of his campaign account for personal use…a State Senator got bagged on film stuffing cash into her bra and claimed it was a Republican conspiracy…the voters told Beacon Hill to keep those taxes coming…and all of the open seats went to Democrats. Yep, things are different.

“Awww. Poor you. You always give me static about being a Yankee fan in Massachusetts, but you’re just as bad. I mean, a Republican in Massachusetts? Talk about going against the grain. At least the Yankees win one once in a while and have cool hats. Even when you guys get a Governor elected, the legislature just overrides all of the vetoes and then blames the Governor when things don’t go well. I’d bet that the legislature actually enjoys having a Republican in the corner office; at least they can blame someone.”

Yes, that’s true. At this point, with Patrick in there, the state is a model of the Democratic Party system. It’s the liberal Garden of Eden.

“Wow, sour grapes.”

At least one good thing could come of the national election. I’m hoping that John ‘Can I Get Me a Hunting License Here’ Kerry will be appointed Ambassador to the UN. It’s a position he was born to hold.

“Instead of Secretary of State? You’re not a big Kerry fan, I take it?”

No. I mean, I don’t agree with Ted Kennedy’s politics, but at least by all accounts he works hard and gets things done for his constituents. Do you remember when Kerry was running for President, and a journalist, I think it was Jon Keller, interviewed a number of Massachusetts politicians and asked them to name three things that Kerry had done for the state in his more than twenty years in the Senate?

“That rings a bell. I take it the answer wasn’t good.”

None of them came up with a single thing Kerry had done for us. By the way, the junior Senator got about 66 percent of the vote this past Tuesday.

“Now you’re just whining. None of this can come as a shock to you, can it? I mean, you live in Massachusetts. The people grumble about the government and taxes, but when push comes to shove we vote the D and choose not to rock the boat. This isn’t new.”

I suppose you’re right. It’s just frustrating. Of course, it’s not just the Commonwealth I’m depressed about.

“You didn’t think, with George Bush slung around McCain’s candidacy like a noose, that McCain was actually going to win, did you?”

No, I guess I didn’t. I was surprised, though, at how pervasive the political argument got to be in the culture. I mean, everything, even the comics pages, were full of pro-Obama messages; and I don’t mean just Doonesbury. Speaking of that, there is something that needs to change in the way that politics are covered on TV.

“Oh yeah? Only one thing?”

Well, at least one. I heard a caller to a radio show the other day say that he didn’t know that Walter Cronkite was a Democrat until after Cronkite retired. Yet these days, when a news station, say ABC, wants an evaluation of a debate, they turn to a guy like George Stephanopoulos for his opinion. Talk about unbiased - the guy was only a senior adviser to Bill Clinton and now he’s the Chief Washington Correspondent for ABC News.

“You’re not going to start whining about the liberal media, are you?”

I’ll try not to whine, but honestly, these are the best people available to serve as our journalists? There aren’t any young reporters out there who haven’t worked directly with one side who could fill the role? I don’t mind if guys like Stephie, or Paul Begala, or Karl Rove have their own talk shows or whatnot, but they shouldn’t be propped up as unbiased observers.

“Here we go.”

In that regard, I at least respect James Carville. I mean, at least the man Dennis Miller described as a ‘Muppet washed on hot’ has never pretended to be unbiased. He goes on to fight for his position, not to present a shaded view as ‘the news.’

“Are you done?”

Yes, I’m done. I just hope that Obama isn’t Jimmy Carter.

“I don’t think that he could be any worse than the guy we have now.”

I hope you’re right.