Ricky0282: I've already voted for Obama and now I'm putting my head down and hoping that he's everything I believe he can be as a President. If he's not then I know words like hope and believe will just be words to me and I'll become as cynical about this country as most everyone else.
I've already voted for Obama and now I'm putting my head down and hoping that he's everything I believe he can be as a President. If he's not then I know words like hope and believe will just be words to me and I'll become as cynical about this country as most everyone else.
Goozex Forum Moderator
I really liked McCain back in 2000, and had hoped he'd do better against the imbecile we got. Things would undoubtedly be very different if he had been elected then. However, after 8 years of GOP rule there is a massive infrastructure in place, and much of it is controlled by the nasty and authoritarian part of the party (e.g. folks like Cheney). Some of these folks have been around since Nixon and Reagan.
So what does that matter? Because McCain isn't an 'easy sell' to the core group of the GOP (sadly because much of that core consists of folks who believe that government controlled by *their* religion is good but government controlled by *another* religion is inherently evil), he has had to 'sell his soul' to the GOP leadership, and the result is that many, many of his advisors are the same folks that have been working in the Bush administration and with the GOP leadership for decades. The handling of Palin - done by Bush cronies in a very Bush-like way: denial of access, controlling of information flow, brow-beating and deception - makes this influence very obvious. It is pretty obvious that many of the folks who would be in a McCain administration are the same folks who have been running his campaign - and therefore the same folks who have been around for the last 8 years.
So while McCain isn't Bush, his administration would definitely carry in many of the same folks with the same ideas.
The other thing that bothers me is the hatefulness ... McCain finally took some steps to quell a little of the 'arab' thing, but they are quite happy playing into the misinformation that is laced with fear based on his name and color of his skin. Palin is like a rabid dog on that stuff - they would call her something different if she was a Muslim ... a Jihadist. She is scary in how she plays up hatefulness and divisiveness with a 'golly gee' sort of down-home style.
-- Mike
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She is scary. I always liked McCain too and when he won the nomination I thought that I wouldn't mind if he won. But when he selected Palin that was it. She's just like Bush W. She comes off as a regular person with an average at best education who paints things in black and white colors (ie real vs fake america). Who knows what direction this country would take if she was to become President.
Very well stated txa.
I think an interesting thing we need to look at though - we have had a democrat majority in the senate for quite some time now - one could even argue that they play a more prominant role in the state of our country than Bush has.
So... if we get Obama in there, where will the checks and balances be? I'm not for either McCain or Obama, but I think this puts us in an interesting situation where we will either have a huge Dem majority, or be stuck with Bush's administration latching onto McCain.
Edit: and Timpy, sorry for creating this magnet for flaming and attacks, hopefully people can be mature about it
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My vote doesnt count.
I'm from IL. Obama will win my state whether I vote for him or not...
Decrypded:we have had a democrat majority in the senate for quite some time now
Actually the Republicans have controlled congress for >12 of the last 14 years.
As for the checks and balances things, I agree - and it is a major reason I liked the string of Republican governors in Massachusetts. It is a nice balance.
nulsul:My vote doesnt count. I'm from IL. Obama will win my state whether I vote for him or not...
Don't *ever* think that way! Your vote might not swing the state now, but watching how the candidates use the vote tallies from 4 years ago to target their campaigns shows how you can impact the course of political discourse.
The same is true with 3rd party candidates ... I have lived my whole life (up to 6 months ago) in the People's Republic of Massachusetts. I was around for the election when Teddy Kennedy ripped the Democratic Party in half ... and haven't voted for a major party candidate since Reagan. I have voted with Perot, Libertarian, Green, and so on ... but have never considered those votes a waste.
I agree 100% about the checks and balances issue. Bush did a horrible job with 6 years of a Republican Congress and I admit that I am afraid of Obama basically having the run of things without the checks and balances. The problem as of late is that everything has been so divisive that Bushs last two years with a Democratic Congress was bound to be the stalemate that it has become and nothing is getting done. Again, I'm hoping that Obama will be one of the great President's and will do things in the best interest of the country and not the Democratic Party and things will get better.
Thoraxe the Impaler: Ok, I'm an African American male and I'm not voting for Obama. Why? He is pro-choice. I know that I'm not a woman and will never have to go through pregnancy or being raped or something but still. I don't believe it's right to take the life of a child.
Ok, I'm an African American male and I'm not voting for Obama. Why? He is pro-choice. I know that I'm not a woman and will never have to go through pregnancy or being raped or something but still. I don't believe it's right to take the life of a child.
Even though I am pro-choice, I completely respect your view on abortion. It is shared by many of my closest friends.
I would like to point out, however, that McCain voiced his support of stem cell research that also violates your right to life viewpoint. He wrote:
"While I support federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, I believe clear lines should be drawn that reflect a refusal to sacrifice moral values and ethical principles for the sake of scientific progress"
He supports federal funding for embryonic stem cell research.
Also, before McCain started his presidential run, this is what McCain said about Roe vs Wade:"I'd love to see a point where (Roe vs. Wade) is irrelevant and could be repealed because abortion is no longer necessary. But certainly in the short term, or even the long term, I would not support repeal of Roe vs. Wade, which would then force X number of women in America to (undergo) illegal and dangerous operations." at this same time, his website said:"John McCain opposes abortion with exceptions for rape, incest and at any time when the life of the mother is endangered by the pregnancy."
Of course, this was a few years ago (1999, I believe), and his message has changed a lot now that he is running for president. I don't believe this represents an actual change in his beliefs though, more a message he needs to send to voters to be elected. In the end, I believe neither candidate in this election is really in your camp. One would really like you to believe he is, the other is being honest.
I hope people take the time to see how the next president will effect all of our lives over the next few years when they cast their vote. For many, we really need some financial relief and a functioning economy so that we can survive. I know the abortion issue often makes a presidential vote seem straighforward, but I think there is a lot more going on here.
Sorry for all the longwinded responses here. I'm not usually very politically active, really (beyond arguing Warhawk vs. Halo). I'm just really worried right now because of stuff my friends and family have been going through. This time I feel like I need to pay attention and try to honestly debate these issues.
As an aside, the "checks and balances" upon which the US government is founded don't have anything to do with which political party is currently in charge. Each branch has various ways of limiting and overseeing the others, so no one part of the government can become too powerful. For example, the President (executive branch) gets to nominate the new Supreme Court justices (judicial branch), but the nominees must be approved by Congress (legislative branch).
If the people of the nation agree enough to put one party in charge of both houses of Congress and the Presidency, that just means that they will be more likely to agree with each other and get things done smoothly. It's not like the President could suddenly decide to send troops all over the world and start a bunch of wars without any oversight, that would be un-American!
I consider myself to be pro-choice. I don't think some silver-haired politician in Washington should be able to decide what a woman does with her body.
xtowelyx: I consider myself to be pro-choice. I don't think some silver-haired politician in Washington should be able to decide what a woman does with her body.
all i can think about now is the movie waiting where ryan reynolds is talking about when the constitiuion was made he wasn't consulted so he should be able to sleep with underage girls.
xtowelyx: I don't think some silver-haired politician in Washington should be able to decide what a woman does with her body.
I don't think some silver-haired politician in Washington should be able to decide what a woman does with her body.
<Insert Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky joke of preference here>
PieMonster: This is the kind of ignorance the media wants you to believe. The reality is - no one really knows just what kind of "change" Obama is going to bring, and McCain is not evil incarnate.
This is the kind of ignorance the media wants you to believe. The reality is - no one really knows just what kind of "change" Obama is going to bring, and McCain is not evil incarnate.
I don't listen to the Media, I know for a fact that they wont do some or most of what they say they are going to do, I judge based on watching them speak and how they react more then I would judge based on what they say they are going to do. just saying in the end I think Obama is the lesser of the two evils.
OBAMA! FTW!
When it all boils down, pretty much all politicians are brilliant liars.