My first reaction is that I'm not as depressed as I thought I would be. Bush has been immeasurably stronger in this campaign than last time - a much stronger candidate than the gauche loon of four years ago. I still cannot stomach much of what he stands for, but I see signs that he is beginning to understand some of the issues.

I didn't here the Cheney preamble, but the part of the acceptance speech I heard here in the UK gave me some hope that there will be a change of tone in the second term. (It wouldn't be the first time.) Maybe he was just playing to the gallery, but maybe he really does see that the splitting of the US into two nations has gone too far. Maybe he has even lost some confidence in the wretched neocons around him. I won't hold my breath on that, but it will be interesting to see how the Powellites fare viz a viz the Rumsfeld types in the new line-up.

The biggest worry must stil be what happens to the Supreme Court. If Bush takes his chance to stack it with (for instance) Christian fundamentalists, any prospect of reuniting the nation will have gone out of the window for 10 or 15 years.

Bravo to Kerry for the timing and tone of his concession. I assume Hillary will continue the dynastic trend in presidents next time round, or will Edwards be in the reckoning?

One other thought. Why the hell was it necessary, in a developed nation that has done this sort of thing before, for people to queue 5-8 hours in the rain to cast their votes? I've not seen anything like it since the first post-apartheid elections in South Africa, where they had every excuse.