Maybe the world isn't completely going to hell after all

It was nothing, it seemed, nothing, that is, that affected my life in any discernible way. Surely nothing Earth-shattering. But still, there is was: Agence France Presse reporting that

[v]ote counting began in East Timor Monday after a peaceful presidential election which saw long queues at polling stations and raised hopes for an end to the cycle of violence that has gripped the nation.

East Timor has certainly had its share of pain and violence. The invasion by Indonesia in 1975 initiated 25 years of repression and mass murder that killed over 100,000 people, perhaps as many as 200,000, in a nation with a population considerably less than 1 million. Another wave of violence swept the country when in the wake of a 1999 vote for independence, militias loyal to Indonesia "went on the rampage, murdering hundreds and reducing towns to ruins," as the BBC put it.

Then, about a year ago, fighting broke out again in a dispute between parts of the army that lead to months of violence and instability, echoes of which rang as recently as February and March of this year.

East Timor has a long way to go. There are persistent divisions and unresolved enmities. It has economic potential but lacks the infrastructure to take advantage of it and so will need outside help for some time.

But still, look again, and there it still is:

Vote counting began in East Timor Monday after a peaceful presidential election....

The words "East Timor" and "peaceful" in the same sentence. It's a moment to be savored - especially by the people there who have lived through the things they have seen.