Facebook statuses marked by exultation

filed at 3:30 a.m.

More than 65 percent of the nation's voting populace between the ages of 18 and 24 voted for President-elect Barack Obama in this election—and that same demographic also comprises the generation for which Facebook is a part of daily life. Facebook, the original bastion of social networking, and Twitter, its modern reincarnation, have been absolutely abuzz with political talk over the last 24 hours—and as soon as the clock struck 11 p.m. EST and the major networks called the race for Obama, chatter became even more intense.

Of the 25 statuses on my newsfeed of updates right now, 22 are inspired by tonight's results, and 20 are pro-Obama.

Search Twitter for "Obama"—let alone "Barack Obama" or "President Obama"—and what comes next is more astounding: In the time it took to type that sentence, there were 33 more mentions of the 44th president's last name. Wait, stratch that. Nineteen more. Make that 17 more. And there's another 19...