I had a couple of other column ideas for this week, but I came across a column in Friday’s Yale Daily News by a Yale senior named Elizabeth Moore (entitled “You made a big mistake, America”), which, in the context of the mostly feel-good nature of American politics last week, was too astonishing to ignore.

It’s not that she doesn’t have the right to say and believe what she wants; she certainly does. It’s just that if what she says is completely ridiculous, we all (Democrats and Republicans) have the right to point and laugh at it.

I’m no political columnist, but below are excerpts of the column with some comments interjected.

“Thank you, America, for making the biggest mistake of your life.”

Though we here at Muckraking for Pennies are delighted to see Obama as the President-Elect, we hope that his massive electoral win will not go to his head. Many a ruler has fallen when his pride and arrogance gets to his head and we would hate to see the man who united the country last night succumb to such follies. But given his behavior up to this point, we have hope he will shift America in the right direction.

But in other news, McCain has already begun repairing his tarnished image, starting with his concession speech last night.

Earlier this week, Cornell’s Survey Research Institute, along with CBS, UWIRE and the Chronicle of Higher Education, released a study examining Cornell students’ political views towards the upcoming election versus students residing in the swing states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina and Colorado. Six days before the election, the survey highlights the unique opinions of students, a demographic often ignored in political polls that rely on landline phone calls.

Students have historically had the lowest voter registration rates in the country. The survey shows that a higher percentage of Cornell students have registered to vote than students living in swing states, but a smaller percentage of Cornell students actually plan to vote.

Next Tuesday, America will elect the next president of the United States and new members of the 111th Congress. Perhaps more than ever scientific issues are at the forefront of the political battleground. The interaction of science and politics exists at all levels from the elementary classroom, to the university laboratory, to the halls of congress, to the oval office.

Cornell and its faculty have long made significant contributions to not only science but scientific policy as well. They have also seen their research affected by policy, and thus have a lot to say about this relationship — its past and present circumstances, and what the future may bring.

Dear Sen. McCain,

As we approach what many will call the final stretch of an historic campaign, I would like to formally commend you for your valiant effort. You may be aware, as it is widely accepted, that I posses a significant lead in all polls, to be the next President of the United States. Now let us not get ahead of ourselves; the race is far from over. However, I believe that the American people are ready for change and that I will soon be elected President of the United States of America.

One of the things that have made this election especially interesting has been the extent to which it has been followed around the world. Even excluding Obama's and McCain’s international tours, worldwide expectations and interest are at an unusual high. This phenomenon can be traced to a variety of factors, but the events of the last eight years under President Bush probably lie at the core of foreign interest. International figures have made their endorsements, from the Mayor of London to Iranian officials, with even Al-Qaeda weighing in.

In this post, potential courses of action in relations between the United States and Iran will be discussed. But first, a disclosure: I would rather the U.S. not bomb Iran. Partially because I feel that military aggression hasn't really gotten us anywhere in dealing with opposition forces (see: Iraq, Afghanistan). But also because—and this is perhaps a more pressing reason—I am Iranian and I have family in Iran. And I'd rather they not be bombed.

On to the post:

In what has turned out to be a particularly volatile election year, there have been a number of issues two opinionated people could argue about and still get basically nowhere on: abortion, gay rights, death penalty and many more.

One of the great debates in politics concerns the merits of tax cuts versus tax increases. Traditionally, the Republican Party has preached supply-side economics and tax cuts as means to stimulate growth and investment, whereas the Democratic Party has claimed that tax cuts for only the middle-class will be effective and tax increases elsewhere are beneficial. While both Barack Obama and John McCain have tax plans that are far from perfect, issue should be taken with Sen. Obama’s plan, particularly his claim that 95 percent of workers who earn less than $250,000 will receive a tax cut.

When filling out my absentee ballot, I checked off every Republican, including a white-haired war veteran from Arizona.

But I’m not going to tell you to do the same or tell you why I think they’ll run the country better than others.

I have a Ronald Reagan poster in my bedroom and a McCain-Palin bumper sticker on my car. I gave Governor Mike Huckabee a standing ovation when he spoke at Bailey Hall last spring.

But I’m not going to advocate that you do the same.

What you do is your business. What you believe is your decision. How you express your beliefs is also at your discretion. And I’m not going to think any less or more of you because of who you support and what you believe.

Who am I to judge?

Before I begin this, I would first like to respond to all my detractors from two weeks ago. Yes, the Ron Paul folks sent me countless emails and left countless more comments on cornellsun.com. Although I was tempted to just print the same column again, to drive home a point, I instead decided to do some research and “oil my gears with the truth.” The conclusion? They have an agenda and I don’t. And who was that guy who wrote to me that, “as a senior citizen and an observer of economic trends over the last 45 years … [more libertarian agenda]”? Was that you, Dr. Paul? I looked it up and 45 years is actually about how long Ron Paul has been claiming to understand the economy. Ron Paulites, you made this personal.