And we're off to the races.

At just past midnight, Eastern Standard Time, the town of Dixville Notch, New Hampshire convened as they have for decades, under a New Hampshire Law that allows townships of under 100 eligible voters to vote and report their vote any time after midnight. As always, they raced their worst rivals, the town of Hart's Location. And this year, Dixville Notch won.

For the first time since 1968, the town of Dixville Notch has chosen a Democrat. With a vote of 15 to 6, Barak Obama has defeated John McCain in this precinct.

The 2008 United States General Election has begun.

Your second return of the night!

Hart's Location has reported. Obama wins, with 17 votes to John McCain's 10... but the UNSMILING BEARDED MEN HAVE SPOKEN! That's right, with 2 write-in votes, RON FUCKING PAUL has entered the national landscape.

So what, you ask? Hey, there's 50 votes currently cast. Which means Ron Paul has 4% of the vote to date. All he has to do is maintain that percentage and inch it up just a touch, and he'll get matching funds! Really!

Bed now. Voting tomorrow.

I should explain the Unsmiling Bearded Men

See, I live in New Hampshire.

And in New Hampshire, the State Primary is a big freaking deal. As you can probably guess.

And when I swung in to vote in the primary, there were all our various activists standing right at the legal limit line away from the polling place (no politicking within X feet). They had their signs. All were enthusiastic in their own ways, pushing their various candidates in all parties.

All, that is, but one small coterie.

They were men.

Unsmiling men.

Unsmiling bearded men.

For Ron Paul.

They stood, with their sign, solemnly and without joy. They watched us. They judged us. They had their duty and they were following it. For indeed, they were the Unsmiling Bearded Men for Ron Paul.

I anticipate I'll see them at the polling place tomorrow. They may have a Bob Barr sign. They might even be going out for McCain, though it seems unlikely. And of course, they may be supporting Ron Paul. But I expect -- and hope -- to see them, expressing themselves. Trying, in their own quiet way, to show us the proper path. To save the community. To save the nation.

For they are the Unsmiling Bearded Men for Ron Paul, and this is what they do.

Is it wrong of me...

...to want to write a book or six detailing the adventures of the Unsmiling Bearded Men for Ron Paul?

All I'm saying is I'm pretty sure they're armed, and if Moon Men or unfrozen Nazis came at them, I'm betting on the Unsmiling Bearded Men.

Voting has been done.

I have voted. The place was packed, with a line out the door, but it was orderly and fast for all that. The volunteers told me that at the start of the day the line circled the parking lot. For a town that's not all that big, that's pretty amazing.

There were no ballot initiatives, which I knew going in. That seems amazing to me. I grew up in Maine, where there are always ballot initiatives. We have ballot initiatives on the years when there's no one running for office. And people go vote in them. They have three -- a Casino in Oxford County, a repeal of the tax that funds the Dirigo Health Plan, and a Bond for drinking water and wastewater treatment. I have no idea what the breakdown of these are or which is the right side, though as someone who likes to drop twenty bucks a night in a Casino, I'm entirely down with having one in the county closest to us. However, the fact that I would enjoy it doesn't mean it's a good idea -- I have no idea, for I have done no research other than to see what ballot initiatives there were.

But New Hampshire had no ballot initiatives this year. Just offices to vote on, from the Presidency down to the Registrar of Deeds.

The Unsmiling Bearded Men for Ron Paul were out. Their sign was for Rod Cool for County Commissioner. Apparently, they weren't happy with any choices in the Presidential election -- not even Bob Barr. I can nurse a private hope that they wrote in Ron Paul. And I can't fault anyone for supporting any man named "Rod Cool," regardless of his politics. I fully expect him to perform activities on behalf of the County Commission from the back of a Harley with a shotgun over his shoulder, should he win.

The ballot had no surprises. Ralph Nader was on it, as he always is now. He's listed as an Independent. Every time I see his name on a ballot in this late hour, I'm stunned at how little self-understanding the man possesses. Still, he is essentially irrelevant this time out. Bob Barr was on it for the Libertarians. One expects, though many Libertarians aren't happy with Bob Barr, that he will do okay here. New Hampshire is relatively kind to Libertarians in philosophy and affiliation.

It is a beautiful, sunny day here. Crisp but not cold. I have a sticker that entitles me to a free cup of coffee at Starbucks, though it's unlikely I'll get down there. Tonight I will drive to Maine, have dinner with my folks, and sit in their living room and watch results come in. I have always loved Election Day, whether my candidate was likely to win or not.

It's Election Day in the United States of America. This is our most sacred, most defining institution. This is what our entire culture has been founded on -- the right to choose for ourselves. And win, lose or three month recount cycle, I'm going to enjoy it.