The political detritus from an election has never disappeared from the landscape faster. I'd heard rumors of Obama signs being lifted before the election; someone told me it was their second sign to be stolen from the front of their yard in a week - but I don't think the problem was widespread or endorsed by McGruff. At the time, I surmised that it could just as easily have been folks who were trying to grab history-in-a-sign.Yes, there were the few McCain supporters who engaged in yelling socialiste! and there was the large Obama sign with the hammer and sickle painted on it that graced the grand boulevard throughout October. However, it was just hard to imagine that desperate Republicans, regardless of the pending landslide, would drive en masse around in the middle of the night plucking yard signs as though they were opponent's eyes. The zealotry of pranking teenagers, yes, or college students who wanted signs for their dorm rooms, makes more sense for the trickle loss of O signs.
In contrast, after the primaries, the Ron Paul signs were left in street medians and on busy corners for weeks. WEEKS. Maybe Paul's meager 2 percent draw sucked all the energy from his campaign and no one had the wherewithal to pull his trash.
But come November 5th, the ubiqitous Obama and McCain (even the light rail signs) were gone from the landscape. I suspect the Obama supporters wanted to hang on to a piece of history and that the McCain and Light Rail proponents were just embarrassed by the significant pasting they'd just received at the polls. Wednesday, did feel a bit like New Year's Day, as though the country was ready to move forward FROM THIS DAY ON. Let's hope we are.