2020 election: This fight ain't over

What an interesting seven days it has been, wouldn't you say? I could stop right here and everyone would know exactly what I mean. And I do mean "everyone" -- in your house, your city, your state, the country, the globe. And, 'xcuse my bad English, but it's 'bouts to get int'resting-er. The Trump-Biden showdown is just heating up.

The media have called this thing a done deal, but the media don't really get to do that. The pro-Biden masses, or maybe they're just anti-Trumpers, are dancing in the street, gloating on the Internet and denying the truth that not everything went as it should in an election. The investigations must play out, of course, but even now, we know there were technical irregularities, a lack of transparency at polling places, dead people voting, ballots found under rocks, in a post office worker's car, in backrooms of post offices and more. We know people, such as myself, had the opportunity to vote in more than one state. (Yes, unless you follow me on social media, you haven't even heard the latest on that. Long story short, I'm still an "active" New York voter, so I could have voted there and in Missouri.)

Look, I'm not the one who will make the decision as to how this thing comes down, but as an honest individual, I can tell you that taking a hard look at this stuff is the right thing to do. And all the calls for President Trump to concede or accusations of "sore loser" are disingenuous at best because we all know if the shoe were on the other foot, the fight would be on. In fact, it would likely be manufactured even if there were no shoe and no foot. Don't think so? Think "Impeach" and "Russia." In other words, think "Obstruction" and "Never-ending Hoax."

It's fascinating how these things go. Biden's calls for unity would be admirable had he not spent his campaign calling Trump a racist and comparing him to Hitler -- just as Sen. Kamala Harris's affection for Biden would also be admirable had she not accused him of racism during the presidential debate while she was running against him. This stuff is why good folks like me are fed up with politics and typical politicians. It's like this saying: "How do you know a politician is lying? His lips are moving." I always resisted that charge because I do believe honest people exist in all walks of life, but it seems more and more that the ones who are honest are the atypical politicians, the outsiders, whose honesty rubs people the wrong way.

We all know President Trump is a fighter. So I expect him to continue this fight not because he's a sore loser, although, let's face it, no one wants to lose. But I expect him to fight because this is a fight worth fighting. Much is on the line and votes are close and mess went down and the American people deserve this fight. And, let's not forget, our veterans, whom we honor Wednesday, also deserve it. They sacrificed for our rights.

So I say fight on. It's not over, nor should it be. When it is over, it is, but not until then. The sad thing in all of this is that no one will really trust the outcome either way. If Trump loses the battle and Biden officially becomes president-elect, doubts remain. If Trump wins the battle and remains president for another term, doubts remain, and God help us face the chaos that could ensue. Remember, we live in an era in which protesting and tearing down your own community are en vogue. So we need to be praying now. As for me, I want to be able to trust the process, to know my vote counts, to know we're doing things in the light and not shrouded in darkness/evil. After that, I can handle the results. I may not like those results, but I can handle them.

I'm a competitor. I don't like a loss, but I despise a fake win. It's why I've never been a cheater and why in a game of basketball, say, if someone accused me of lying about the score, I was livid. I want to win, not pretend I won by cheating. People who pretend they won are not competitors; they're only interested in appearances. Competitors want to actually win and would rather lose than fake it. Some may not like the rules he plays by, which state, "Hit back and hit back hard," but President Trump is a competitor and a fighter, and, yes, he wants to win, but he wants to win legitimately. And if he loses, he wants to make sure it's legitimate. That's every competitor. Before this virus hit, by the way, he was winning "bigly" or "big league" or "yuge." His accomplishments with the economy and Black employment were historic, for example. That may have contributed to his receiving more of the "minority vote" than any Republican president ever -- despite the Racism Hoax. And, you know, those numbers may get even higher if we count the ballots found under, you know, rocks and such. Just sayin'. America could stand more of that winning, regardless of his abrasive personality.

As I said, this will all get int'resting-er one way or another. Let it play out. It's the right thing to do. In the meantime, it's too late to ask everyone to keep it classy; we can't control the masses. But how 'bout we just control ourselves? This is still America -- the greatest country God ever gave man.

Adrienne Ross is owner of Adrienne Ross Communications and a former Southeast Missourian editorial board member.