Bergamote: Earl Grey liked it well enough

My evening cuppa. from photographer David Wilmot

Earl Grey liked it well enough  to infuse his tea

I like it well enough to sip and savor,

It excites my tongue and interest 

My senses with its sweet fragrance 

And the caress of its exotic taste

You'll see, he said

Soon, we'll joke about it, he said

She did not want to laugh it off

She did not want to cry about it either

He shrugged, gently pulling a tear 

Off her cheek with his thumb

You'll see, he said

The political is personal... really

Warning, all: this is one of the rants I promised you, not a poem....

To me, the hope and change in this election is in the details. Rabid anti-government, quasi-libertarian candidates from the self-proclaimed "reform" Tea Party tanked Republican chances in many races across the country.

I would say, even in the race for the White House, which the "real" Mitt Romney might have had a shot at winning without the coattails of the far right.

This is good news because a big country actually needs government. Our  315million citizens in 50 states and countless counties and municipalities need governance. More importantly, we need our goverment to help us stay safe, to assist us after a storm devastates our shorelines.

It is the government, local and national, that keeps us out of harm's way. The goverment runs our military, our police, our infrastructure, our educational systems,. Goverment regulates our industries, our railways, our financial institutions.

Government is how a country manages to keep things going. Goverment is here to protect us, its citizens. It is there as part of the contract we have as a society with each other.