That was a big fricking quake. I felt the whole damn house move beneath my feet, and the water in the pool went all perfect storm... unreal.

So the results were expected, all except the total lack of seats won by the COP. I expected them to win at least 1 seat. I'll need to look out for the EBC's final numbers to see exactly what went on, and by what margins they lost.

I've got a lot to say about this. First off, if you didn't vote, shut the fuck up. Yesterday I saw an alarming number of people going about their business with nary a drop of ink in sight. One can argue that they simply hadn't voted yet, but when said people are leisurely strolling around Valpark or Bhagwansingh's, chances are voting wasn't high on their list of priorities for the day. Even more (downright) disgusting were the tables of people stuffing their face at Trotters, well after all polls were closed, with you guessed it... maybe a splatter of Alfredo sauce on their finger, but certainly no electoral ink.

I hate it even more that it seems (to me) a large number of PNM voters who did not vote are content to call into radio and TV stations alike spewing the same mindless rhetoric, "Great is the PNM, the PNM shall prevail!" or, "Long live the PNM!" I'm sad to say I even have friends of that persuasion.

Fuck the bloody PNM, fuck ANY party for that matter, how about supporting policies you believe in, and people that you believe can best carry out those policies, instead of backing a party because yuh mamie & tantie is PNM or yuh feel Bas is yuh "uncle"?

I still can't stand that Gillian Lucky lost the St. Joseph seat. If it's one constituency I paid attention to it was my own; I looked at all the promotional material from the candidates, as well as the Manifestos & "1st 100 Days" declarations from all the parties, and Lucky was hands down (to me again) the best candidate. Whether she like men or not (and really... who cares), that woman would've done great things for St. Joseph. You know what the incumbent candidate put as his top achievement for being in office for 5 years? "Renovated 1 school." 1 school? 5 years? And you voting HE back? Bloody insanity.

And all these God DAMN UNC-A supporters who were just waiting to use COP as a scapegoat for their failures, go buy some intelligence nah, at least maybe you'll be able to put forth some better arguments; See if "uncle" Jack could sponsor yuh. Instead of blaming the COP for splitting the vote, why don't you examine what YOUR party did to cause a mass exodus of voters from the UNC? The COP didn't steal your votes, your party gave them away; there's a MONUMENTAL difference.

Also, for once and all, please, COP took votes away from the PNM (Diego Martin anyone?) and won votes from the undecided population, so don't go using creative Mathematics and adding COP to UNC-A's votes in order to determine how the vote was "split". And even if you do PNM would still have clearly won the election. Can we never revisit this again? Thanks.

I am just happy the special majority they required to introduce constitutional changes was not met; that at least leaves me some consolation. Although I hear talks of re-counts in Fyzabad and Mayaro that worry me. Funny they're not calling for a re-count in Cumuto/Manzanilla, which was won (according to the Express) by 337 votes. If you're going to re-count close constituencies, re-count them ALL.

The smug tone of the PNM and bitterness of UNC-A supporters are saddening, just read the comments.

As I sat in front of the TV this early morning hearing the final speeches from the losers and eventual winner, the manner in which the speakers carried about themselves--with dignity, or the lack thereof--really begs commentary. Winston Dookeran congratulated all comers, and with great humility left the podium, I believe Manning himself acted with the dignity due his office and held back from rubbing salt in the wounds of his competitors... Kamla and Basdeo however, oh boy. What a disgusting show they put on, in one breath they talked about freedom but in the other condemned the people who voted for the COP... what? Didn't those people exercise their constitutional freedom to vote for a party of their choice? Panday then directly laid the blame of all future murders, rapes and kidnappings squarely on our (COP) shoulders.

The respect and admiration I once held for Panday, for a man that once sat with me as a young boy and gave of his time out of genuine good-heartedness, is all but gone. What I see before me is a hollowed out carcass that once stood for something, now filed with bile and venom. I honestly think a UNC-A victory would've been worse for this country given the cobbled-together nature of the current UNC.

If anyone caught the film "An Unreasonable Man" the comparisons between Nader and the COP party--and more importantly the criticisms laid against them--are startlingly similar. This story has been told before, penned and published. Will the PNM bungle things like the Republicans have, will the UNC--or UNCOP--thus re-emerge as the clear choice in the 2012 elections? Heh, who the hell knows. Right now, a day after the elections with the true futures of the UNC-A and the COP so foggy, it's impossible to say.

What I can say is, we've got 5 more years of the PNM, and for better or worse they are my government. They are going to be the key to true change over this period, and it's up to the voters (as they're the only ones who in my opinion care) to hold them to the promise of change. As my illustrious godfather said on the radio today, "Give them 6 months and see what they do." I think I will. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that for all their missteps they get more right than wrong. It's our country at stake after all.

If Facebook allowed for more than 30 characters I would say: Justin is disappointed but not ready to call it quits yet. However, if he hears one more UNC-A supporter cry down COP for splitting the votes, or another PNM-ite spew out the mindless rhetoric of, "Great is the PNM, the PNM shall prevail!" he's gonna hurt somebody.

Note: The official EBC statistics are not yet available to me, therefore some of these numbers and subsequent conclusions are subject to change.