It’s another crummy Christmas commercial

It’s like going from one form of punishment to another – while still enduring the first punishment. I thought we typically had a few days of respite between the political “vote for me” commercials and the onslaught of Christmas television commercials that started this past weekend. Are these starting a bit early this year? Or is my memory reverting to my younger days when Christmas marketing started during the Thanksgiving holiday instead of at Halloween.

At least we’ll be losing one of the two culprits with Election Day on Tuesday. By the time you read this column, we could know the results of the mid-term election. More than likely, we will not know. The chances are good that several races will be too close to call on election night and we will have to wait a few days – hopefully not weeks – for the results. Unless you happen to live in the bayou state. Wait, what’s this you say?

In a somewhat odd set of election rules – the state of Louisiana will have a run-off election on Saturday, Dec. 10, to determine who is elected to the Senate IF no candidate receives a 50% plus one vote majority on Nov. 8. Currently, there are two Republican Senators from the state with one up for re-election this year, U.S. Senator John Kennedy (R). The top two vote recipients will advance to the runoff election. You might think, well, that’s easy. There should only be a couple of candidates on the Nov. 8 ballot, right?

Wrong. There are – according to Wikipedia – at least 13 people running for the office. The total number of votes are tallied, and to win outright the candidate must garner 50% plus one vote to win on Nov. 8. Difficult to do with 13 people running. Otherwise, as stated already, the top two are in the Dec. 10 runoff election. Interesting, but Louisiana is not the only state with some election oddities. Shouldn’t every state follow the same set of rules?

Oh, yes, I know. That could be considered infringing on state’s rights. But since the election affects things at the Federal level, it seems logical (and therein lies the problem?) that each state should adhere to the same rules. Won’t happen.

Locally, remember that the Coshocton Kiwanis Pancake Day is Thursday, Nov. 10 at the Elks Lodge in Coshocton – from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. You can get tickets from a Kiwanis club member or at the door. It’s always a delicious time!

Let’s remember our Veteran’s as we observe Veteran’s Day this Friday, Nov. 11. It’s great to see restaurants that are willing to serve up a free meal to a Veteran on this special day across our great land. Thanks for your service.

Now it’s time to start thinking about what I want for Christmas. Those television commercials started my wheels spinning over the weekend. It’s always a difficult decision – I don’t find it too hard to shop for others, which is a good thing. Oh well, I guess I’d just like some tinker toys.

Category: Mark's Musings