Accountability-central.com AC Alert for November 7, 2012 Sandy's Impact Felt ... Again!

By now everyone is familiar with the terrible death and destruction caused by Superstorm "Sandy" in the northeastern states of the USA and especially in the New York region. We're ten days past the storm and portions of the region are still without electric power; tens of thousands of residents find themselves homeless, their houses destroyed by Sandy's fierce winds and flooding, or temporarily uninhabitable because of storm-related damage.

On the first day after the 2012 presidential election, there's discussion of another impact from Sandy which is gaining traction among social, political and business commentators: The timing of the storm appears to have blunted the final days' drive to the presidency by (candidate) Governor Mitt Romney, while permitting President Barack Obama to "act presidential in the response to the super storm."

We noted what political polling data Guru Nate Silver had to say before the election: "If President Obama wins re-election on Tuesday, the historical memory of the race might turn on the role played by Hurricane Sandy. Already, some analysts are describing the storm as an “October surprise” that allowed Mr. Obama to regain his footing after stumbling badly in the first presidential debate and struggling to get back on course.

"Some Republicans seem prepared to blame a potential defeat for Mitt Romney on the storm, and the embrace of Mr. Obama by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and other public officials. The theory has some appeal. The last three days of polling have brought what is almost certainly Mr. Obama’s strongest run of polling since the first presidential debate in Denver. Mr. Obama led in the vast majority of battleground-state polls over the weekend. And increasingly, it is hard to find leads for Mr. Romney in national surveys. (Full report at the Source: The New York Times)  Information online at Nate Silver blogging.

Many of us were glued to the TV as the votes cast on Tuesday were counted. At 8 pm on Election Night, November 6th, as early returns trickled in, Fox cable commentator Bill O'Reilly voiced the same theory. We can expect to hear more as the week progresses. The lesson in all of this: Major events can have unanticipated, lasting ramifications in a wide range of areas. Sometimes those effects are seen immediately; other times it can take months, even years, for the full impact to be recognized.

We think this is going to happen post-election -- many societal, economic, political and cultural issues were not resolved to the satisfaction of one side or the other in this election and will remain hotly debated issues for months or years to come.  The White House occupant will be the same; the Senate and House will have roughly the same alignments.

As issue managers, we know that it is important to go beyond the headlines of the mainstream media to gain a better understanding of the major issues facing our country -- and the world.

That's what we work to do every day here at Accountability Central. Our editors focus on news, commentary, research, trends, and actions of key players shaping "accountability" and the impact on individuals, business organizations, public agencies and social institutions on societal issues. These "stakeholders" are shaping these issues -- and the response to these issues.

This is just a sampling of the information in our Accountability-Central.com Alert. Go here for the full text of this alert, and more information on Sustainability, and other Accountability related topics.