After every election, the losing party does a little navel-gazing and finger-pointing, and then starts short-sightedly wondering, “What should we do differently in the next election?” Well, at least in most places.

Review-Journal columnist Wayne Allyn Root is on a roll, riling up the right wing and infuriating those who still appreciate a few facts with their commentary.

At least I’m not a Republican. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not like Libertarians had a ton of electoral success in Nevada this year. None of our statewide candidates cleared 1 percent, and there wasn’t a single Libertarian candidate in Nevada who beat Gary Johnson’s 3.32 percent in 2016.

With the 2018 election for governor, attorney general, the Legislature and Clark County Commission now in the rear-view, I have a few thoughts on the uncertain future of criminal justice reform in our state. This vital area of concern was sidestepped by virtually every candidate during the campaigns – winner or loser.

Like many of you, I have grown increasingly concerned about the political system in our country over the past few years. Last week’s election results have done nothing to inspire optimism. Not because one party bested the other or because a ballot question didn’t get the support I had hoped it would.

Before we leave Election ’18 behind and slide right into the presidential cycle, here are my Top 10 observations about what just happened:

They were the best financed candidates the Nevada Republicans offered in the 2018 midterm election. One was undefeated, another heralded as the party’s rising star. Two others had been around the track enough to run competitively. They’ll all be remembered as Trump’s Chumps.

Four years ago, when Nevada voted Republican up and down the ticket and swept the Legislature and every constitutional office, I posted this on Facebook: I'm happy to see all the Republican wins tonight. But I'm remembering all the premature celebrations, predictions of permanent dominance, and chest pounding displays of hubris by various partisans in 2008, 2010, and 2012 — all of which were followed by pathetic underperformance by whoever was in charge.

Six years ago, Dean Heller was in trouble. The Democratic machine had built up a seemingly insurmountable lead in early votes, amassing a 71,000-ballot edge in Clark County and 50,000 statewide. When it came time for me to pen my biennial election predictions column, the decision should have been simple.

Well, it’s finally upon us – once again, THE MOST IMPORTANT ELECTION OF OUR LIFETIMES!!! Until the next one, that is. Here are a few thoughts before the enlightened among us go cast our votes on Tuesday.

In a country riddled with voter suppression brushfires and ballot box snafus, Nevada may end up among the fortunate few scandal-free states in the 2018 midterms. Just writing those words makes me a little nervous. I realize there’s still time to prove me wrong.

Another Nevada Day (Actual) has passed, a holiday which schoolchildren in Nevada used to get off from school so they could dress in costumes and go door to door making extortionate demands for treats until the Legislature decided in 1999 that our schoolchildren were perhaps getting mixed messages. In the spirit of our state holiday, here are some short and spooky facts and opinions about the state of our state.

Hurried travelers arriving at the Reno-Tahoe International Airport often pass by the bronze bust of Senator William J. Raggio, gazing back at them from a pedestal behind a velvet cord. Those not fully absorbed at that moment in making their ground transportation, might even notice the raised lettering on the wall behind it, captioned “Father of the Airport Authority.”

Bankrupt and locked up, the Lucky Dragon Hotel & Casino sits like a gaudy prisoner behind a cyclone fence at 300 W. Sahara Avenue. So close to the action, so far from prosperity. Gaming industry analysts have called the Lucky Dragon debacle many things: the victim of a lingering recession, a miscalculation of the market, and just plain unlucky.

For more than 40 years, I have run a small business here in Nevada, evolving my business practices and using common-sense solutions to keep up with the market. That’s something all small businesses must do to keep the doors open, and it is the kind of thinking the state of Nevada should embrace. Our voter registration process must evolve to keep up with eligible voters looking for convenience in maintaining their registration and security in the voter rolls.

With Hof’s recent passing, several obituaries reminded everyone that he ran a failed campaign against James Oscarson in 2016 as a Libertarian. Afterwards, he publicly left the Libertarian Party, joined the GOP, ran against Oscarson again (this time in the Republican primary), and won.

Dennis Hof was a showman who capitalized on the caricature bestowed by his business – the world’s greatest pimp. He would love the attention his death is getting. But let’s not confuse his flamboyant thorn-in-your side image with what he actually did for the state: brought Nevada’s legal brothels into the modern sexual economy.

Dennis Hof died in bed. Go figure. After ringing in his 72nd birthday Monday surrounded by whores of every stripe, Nevada’s celebrity pimp and state Assembly candidate was found unresponsive in the sack Tuesday morning, which sounds more like an occupational hazard than a medical condition.