梅森-迪克森線仍然分裂國家

在成人世界中，決心可能更加難以捉摸。

The presidential race results coming in on our Zenith black-and-white television clashed with our bedtime on Nov. 5, 1968.

1968 年 11 月 5 日，我們的 Zenith 黑白電視上公佈的總統競選結果與我們的就寢時間發生了衝突。

My sister wrote: “Who won the election?” on the chalkboard and then put Richard Nixon and Hubert Humphrey’s name below them and a box beside each name.

我姐姐寫道：“誰贏得了選舉？”寫在黑板上，然後將理查德·尼克森和休伯特·漢弗萊的名字放在下面，並在每個名字旁邊畫一個方框。

The idea was that my parents, up late, would learn the outcome and make an X in the proper box, and we, waking early, we would see it and be immediately informed of the news.

我的想法是，我的父母，在很晚的時候，會了解結果，並在適當的框中畫一個X，而我們，早起，我們會看到它，並立即獲悉這個消息。

A child’s eagerness: Tell me now.

孩子的渴望：現在告訴我。

How does the story end?

故事的結局如何？

In the adult world, resolution can be far more elusive.

在成人世界中，決心可能更加難以捉摸。

So while the stakes could not be higher — the politics of fabrication, grievance and vengeance, shredding democratic norms or adhering to big tent Democratic aspirations and respecting the time-honored habits of democracy — the outcome of one the most acrimonious elections in American history is still being sorted out.

因此，雖然賭注再高不過了——捏造政治、不滿和報復、撕碎民主規範或堅持大帳篷民主願望並尊重民主的歷史悠久的習慣——但美國歷史上最激烈的選舉之一的結果是仍在整理中。

The coin has been flipped and now spins maddeningly on the table. Where will it fall? What kind of country are we going to be?

硬幣已經翻轉，現在在桌子上瘋狂地旋轉。會掉到哪裡呢？我們要成為一個什麼樣的國家？

Though it’s not looking good for Harris, we might have to wait days for final results.

雖然哈里斯的情況看起來不太好，但我們可能需要等待幾天才能得到最終結果。

I would never be so glib as to say it doesn’t matter. Though it might be comforting — or terrifying — to look around and ask instead: What kind of country are we now? A Trump or a Harris victory would take us in very different directions. Either way, we’ll still be starting from right here, with all of the conflict and animosity raging today.

我絕對不會圓滑地說這不重要。儘管環顧四周並問自己：我們現在是一個什麼樣的國家，這可能會讓人感到安慰，也可能會讓人害怕？川普或哈里斯的勝利將把我們帶到截然不同的方向。不管怎樣，我們仍然會從這裡開始，今天所有的衝突和敵意都在肆虐。

This is a struggle that did not begin with Trump, who undercuts voting, the press, the courts, civil society while routinely maligning ethnic minorities — as I’ve said for years, he is not a cause but a symptom of longstanding American inclinations — and will not end now no matter who wins.

這場鬥爭並非始於川普，他削弱投票、媒體、法院和公民社會，同時經常誹謗少數族裔——正如我多年來所說，他不是美國長期傾向的原因，而是其症狀——無論誰獲勝，現在都不會結束。

I remember, in 2016, pondering while the vote was being tabulated, looking at the election map, seeing the divide between the blue in the north and the red in the south and thinking: “It’s the Mason-Dixon line. We’re still fighting the Civil War.”

我記得在 2016 年，當投票結果被製成表格時，我看著選舉地圖，看到北部的藍色和南部的紅色之間的分界線，心想：「這是梅森-迪克森線。我們仍在打內戰。

Think about it. The institution of slavery was the central cause of that conflict. To be able to treat people as slaves, you had to deny their humanity and consider them chattel, property you can buy or sell.

想一想。奴隸制是這場衝突的核心原因。為了能夠將人們視為奴隸，你必須否認他們的人性，並將他們視為動產，也就是你可以買賣的財產。

Look at the top Republicans issues — immigration, reproductive choice, trans rights. They’re still busy fingering classes of people whose dignity and integrity can be snatched away.

看看共和黨最關心的問題——移民、生育選擇、跨性別權利。他們仍然忙著指摘那些尊嚴和正直可能被剝奪的人。

The United States has been at an impasse for eight years. Neither four years of a Trump presidency, from 2017 to 2021, ending in the insurrection at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, nor four years of Joe Biden’s administration that followed, has tilted the playing field in one direction or the other. It’s coming down to a handful of votes in a few battleground states. Again.

美國已經陷入僵局八年了。從2017 年到2021 年，川普擔任總統的四年（以2021 年1 月6 日國會大廈發生叛亂告終），以及隨後喬·拜登執政的四年，都沒有使競爭環境向一個方向或另一個方向傾斜。這取決於幾個戰場州的少數選票。再次。

Myself, I feel a certain calm. Say what you will about Trump, for someone who has told thousands of documented lies, he can be very frank, especially over the past few weeks. Very direct about who he is and what he stands for. You can’t say anyone was deceived who didn’t want to be deceived.

我自己也感到一定的平靜。不管你對川普有什麼看法，對於一個說過數千個有記錄的謊言的人來說，他可以非常坦率，尤其是在過去幾週。非常直接地表達他是誰以及他代表什麼。你不能說任何不想被欺騙的人都被欺騙了。

And Harris — like Biden, originally an unexceptional party hack — rose to the occasion. I find myself indulging in sports metaphor: She left it all on the field. Since her boss flamed out on national television in June, she ramped up quickly and campaigned forcefully.

哈里斯——就像拜登一樣，原本是個普通的政黨駭客——挺身而出。我發現自己沉迷於運動隱喻：她把一切都留在球場上了。自從六月她的老闆在國家電視台失聲後，她迅速崛起並大力宣傳競選活動。

The choice was clear. And stark. Regardless of who wins, the hard work is still cut out for us — beginning with thwarting the possibility of a second coup.

選擇是明確的。而且很鮮明。無論誰獲勝，我們仍然需要付出艱苦的努力——從阻止第二次政變的可能性開始。

On Monday, my mother called.

星期一，我媽打電話來。

“Are you moving to Canada if Trump wins?” she asked. “Because we’ll go with you.”

“如果川普獲勝，你會搬到加拿大嗎？”她問。 “因為我們會和你一起去。”

“No, Mom, I’m staying right here,” I replied. “It’s still my country.”

「不，媽媽，我就待在這裡，」我回答。 “這仍然是我的國家。”

Flight is a pipe dream. Would-be strongmen are on the rise the world over; Canada has its own rising strongman waiting in the wings, Pierre Poilievre. You can’t run from trouble. It finds you.

飛行是一個白日夢。世界各地的未來強者正在崛起。加拿大有自己冉冉升起的強人，皮埃爾·普利耶夫爾 (Pierre Poilievre) 正在伺機而動。你無法逃避麻煩。它找到你了。

Besides, people rarely leave. The closest I actually encountered was a former state rep who told me she and her husband had bought a condo in Portugal to sit out Trump 2.0. I made a face.

此外，人們很少離開。我實際遇到的最接近的是一位前州代表，她告訴我她和她的丈夫在葡萄牙買了一套公寓，以靜觀川普 2.0。我做了個鬼臉。

“I plan to be on the last train out,” I said. “Not the first.”

「我打算搭最後一班火車出去，」我說。 “不是第一個。”

Cowardice knows no party. How much can you love America if you turn tail and run when the going gets rough?

怯懦不分黨派。如果你在遇到困難時轉身逃跑，你能愛美國多少？