Wow, here we are… Election 2008 is upon us! By the end of tomorrow, we as the citizens of the United States will have elected our next President into office. For better or for worse, I’ll support our new President.
The campaign trail has grown fierce, and I doubt that neither candidate (Obama or McCain) have gotten much sleep the past week. Both presidential hopefuls have been blazing a trail throughout the country… especially the battleground states that will determine the most closely contested election since the 1960’s.
I heard on the radio this morning that Barack Obama's grandmother recently passed away. They played a brief clip of Obama speaking about his grandmother, and it felt a bit intimate as he shared some of his feelings. Obama has a great deal to thank her for; his grandmother largely raised him as a child. I also recall a couple of weeks ago when he went to Hawaii and paid a visit to her since she was seriously ill. How difficult it must be for him at this time.
Now that his grandmother has passed on, he is dealing with his grief while still continuing to campaign full-tilt; that must be very difficult for him. Hearing him speak with great love and respect about his grandmother brought tears to my eye.
From another clip that NPR News played this morning, Obama stated (with an understandable catch in his throat), "But she has gone home!" Tears returned to my eyes, for his mother has indeed returned home. How right Obama is. And his grandmother is now in a Spiritual paradise that is more real and greater than Obama likely realizes.
Barack Obama is a great orator, there is no doubt about that. When I listen to him speak, I get a sense of honesty in what he shares. His religious background appeals to me as well. He certainly believes very strongly in what he says. But I do not want him to win this election. If Obama made it to the White House, we may well have a dark future ahead.
I am not at all racist, so I welcome the idea of electing a non-Caucasian president… but only if his agenda and ideals match what I desire in our President. And Obama does not approach what I am seeking… not nearly closely enough.
One of my greatest fears is just how much government would grow during his term(s) in office. Taxes would undoubtedly increase, and government intervention would be significant. I greatly fear that if Obama becomes President, that he would institute preliminary measures that could sadly usher in a transition from Capitalism to Socialism. Though he would claim it would be for the benefit of the common man, and the working lower class, a shift towards “government protection” would have to occur to match the issues that he intends to address if he is elected President of the United States.
I am much more in favor of McCain’s sound economic approach, in lowering taxes to free up the middle and upper class to invest more of their money back into the country. It’s a natural result… you lower taxes, and available spending increases. Lower commercial taxes would also encourage foreign investors to move companies and manufacturing into the United States.
Obama would rather increase taxes of companies and the upper class; true, they have more money, but taxing them more heavily is not the answer; they already pay considerably more in taxes as it is. If taxes increase, you encourage businesses to seek greener pastures elsewhere, and the wealthy would only find more loopholes to avoid the taxes that they would be burdened with. I’m certainly not in the wealthy class, but I know that “stealing from the rich” is only affective in Kingdoms of royalty and fairy tales… not a government such as the United States.
Our country was founded upon a democratic government that is based on capitalism, with a low amount of government intervention, and that has made us extremely successful as a nation. To lose that structure by imposing greater government control and hand-holding would not only undermine the most integral structures of this great nation, it would largely destroy the many businesses, great and small, domestic and foreign, that seek to do business within the United States of America. Most especially, it would harm the millions of small business ran by individuals—you and me—that serve to drive the largest part of our economy. We cannot lose that at any cost, and I fear that Obama's time in office would hurt our nation far more then so many people realize!
Furthermore, Obama is young, and woefully inexperienced when compared against Senator McCain. Although I haven't been pleased by any of the mudslinging that has occurred on both sides (some of it downright childish), I do put my faith and trust into McCain, and the political and governmental experience he has attained through the years. Hands down, he’ll make a far better President.
He is definitely older than many presidents have been, but he seems healthy enough to fulfill the responsibilities that being President will require. Also, McCain he is going to be much more solid and consistent when it comes to making hard political decisions... especially regarding our economy, foreign affairs, and cleaning up the aftermath resulting from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, once they finally end... which I believe will occur during the next four years. I shudder with fear to think of what could come of putting Obama in office when faced with such large governmental matters. Obama simply is not up to task; he has flowery words that impress, but it will take actions and hard decisions when reality sets in. That is one reason that I believe McCain will succeed.
McCain also is going to be a different president then George W. Bush, and has stated (against popular belief) that he will not be the 3rd term of President Bush. And I believe that it is a true statement. McCain is republican, as is President Bush, but he is a lot more moderate as well. He will no doubt continue many aspects of policy that President Bush has implemented, many of which I support at my core. But he will also have a fresh view point, and a different take on important matters; it will offer the change we need without going to the far extreme that Obama would lean towards.
Furthermore, while I believe that President Bush has made some mistakes (i.e. undisclosed Wire Tapping, too much security in airports), I largely support his decisions regarding the war in Iraq. It has been expensive, and soldiers have lost lives, but Iraq is far more stable than it was before the war. And had the war on terrorism, and Al-Qaida not occurred, this country could be in a much worse state then it is today. While some deceit likely has occurred during the past several years, I believe that President Bush and his upper administration know things that would make the bravest man or woman pale if we knew everything about it.
Sadly, the media is largely liberal in their viewpoint, and with the instant access we as the general public has to the news media sources (i.e. Radio, Television, Cable, Satellite, Internet, etc.), has only served to increase the damage they are capable of causing. We as people tend to easily believe anything they say, and only after scrutiny and careful evaluation can we make educated decisions based on the reality of current affairs… not the yellow-journalism sensationalism that seems to saturate so much of our news exposure. Ultimately, it is up to every one of us to make informed decisions based on the most accurate information and data we can assemble. It is our great freedoms—including the freedom of speech and the freedom to elect our officials—that makes this country the most privileged group of citizens anywhere throughout the world.
Today, after work, I will be going to my precinct to vote. Senator John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin will be receiving my vote today. Of course, it will really be the initiatives and local government for which my vote will have the most affect. It’s pretty certain which Senator Utah will be voting for today. I do wish that I had the ability to vote in a battleground state today, where my vote might actually help tip the balance away from Obama.
Why do I support McCain? There are many reasons.
First, the economy: McCain was born at the tail-end of the depression, and I believe he is the best choice in bringing us out of this economic mess. He has lived through many economic crises, and his life experience may well help us the most. Plus, I believe his plans on how to help the economy are sound, as I stated previously.
Second, the war in Iraq: I agree with his support of President Bush’s policies in general, but have no argument that the management of the war has been less than perfect at times. However, it is a conflict we became involved in, and it’s our job to help provide a resolution as well to prevent Iraq from tumbling back into violence and terror. The lives of the Iraqians are far better today than when we entered the war, and the troops that have given so much deserve the credit that they have earned. Everything we have fought for would crumble if we fail to gradually withdraw. I also support McCain’s moral justifications for the war. As I said previously, I largely support President Bush for his war efforts, even with how unfavorable he has become in many people’s eyes. I largely blame the scathing destructiveness of the liberal media for that. I believe that George Bush has done far better than he is given credit for.
Third, his view on Abortion: McCain is “Pro-Life” which mirrors my ideals. McCain is anti-abortion; he believes that abortions should be legal only when the pregnancy resulted from incest, rape, or when the life of the woman is endangered. I also agree with that, because I have a great hatred of any form of abuse. In those cases, I have absolutely no issues with abortion. But otherwise, life is far too important to end on a whim. Every child is a child of our Heavenly Father, and I believe within my heart that the spirit of that tiny life is joined with the body at the time of conception.
Fourth, his chosen running mate, Sarah Palin: I definitely like Sarah Palin, and I feel that she will make a fantastic vice-president alongside McCain. When I first heard that McCain had chosen her, I was absolutely shocked and dumbfounded; indeed it has even hurt his image with many voters. But the more I have read about her choices as Governor of Alaska, my respect for her has increased dramatically. She has been the rallying cry behind the lower class workers of Alaska, and she herself has been among them. And she has stood up to the corruption of the powerful executives that make up the large oil producers in that area. She has shown incredible backbone, and her integrity has been amazing for anyone in the political world. She is also a mother of five, and has the family values which I commend and hold true. Because of how young she is, and how much she has accomplished, I believe she would offer great balance and contrast to McCain’s perspective. It appears that the two of them would work well together, and I believe it would be a great presidency with the two of them in office as President and Vice President. She would also be the first woman in office, which would be historic.
Fifth, the issue of Energy: I like Obama’s stance of using more renewable energies, but I fear his plan to completely phase out incandescent light bulbs in a few years, killing traditional coal, and his stated mandates on renewable energy is a bit too steep. I believe that it is the direction that we must move in, and the destination that we must ultimately reach… but McCain’s plan of alternative energies, nuclear power, and off-shore drilling seems more reasonable and realistic to me. Plus, it keeps large portions of our working force in jobs longer while they gradually transition into other careers.
And now a final word about the biggest change that needs to occur within this next presidency… a resolution to this huge housing crisis mess!
Against what Obama and the other democrats (in general) are saying, it is not the Republican Party that is solely responsible for this mess, and it certainly wasn't the fault of George W. Bush. I believe the original core cause of our economic crisis goes back much further than that.
I have read a variety of reports, letters, and columns written by people that have indicated that the housing crisis started much earlier than President Bush's presidency... way back in the 1980's when pressure was placed to relax the requirements necessary to get a house loan... pressure placed largely by democrats... not republicans.
Here is a quotation from the great fiction writer, Orson Scott Card, on the matter:
“Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights? “
By Orson Scott Card
Editor's note: Orson Scott Card is a Democrat and a newspaper columnist, and in this opinion piece he takes on both while lamenting the current state of journalism.
“This housing crisis didn't come out of nowhere. It was not a vague emanation of the evil Bush administration. It was a direct result of the political decision, back in the late 1990s, to loosen the rules of lending so that home loans would be more accessible to poor people. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were authorized to approve risky loans.
What is a risky loan? It's a loan that the recipient is likely not to be able to repay.
The goal of this rule change was to help the poor — which especially would help members of minority groups. But how does it help these people to give them a loan that they can't repay? They get into a house, yes, but when they can't make the payments, they lose the house — along with their credit rating.
They end up worse off than before.
This was completely foreseeable and in fact many people did foresee it. One political party, in Congress and in the executive branch, tried repeatedly to tighten up the rules. The other party blocked every such attempt and tried to loosen them.
Furthermore, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae were making political contributions to the very members of Congress who were allowing them to make irresponsible loans.
Isn't there a story here? Doesn't journalism require that you who produce our daily paper tell the truth about who brought us to a position where the only way to keep confidence in our economy was a $700 billion bailout? Aren't you supposed to follow the money and see which politicians were benefiting personally from the deregulation of mortgage lending?
I have no doubt that if these facts had pointed to the Republican Party or to John McCain as the guilty parties, you would be treating it as a vast scandal. "Housing-gate," no doubt. Or "Fannie-gate."
Instead, it was Senator Christopher Dodd and Congressman Barney Frank, both Democrats, who denied that there were any problems, who refused Bush administration requests to set up a regulatory agency to watch over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and who were still pushing for these agencies to go even further in promoting sub-prime mortgage loans almost up to the minute they failed.
As Thomas Sowell points out in a TownHall.com essay entitled "Do Facts Matter ," Alan Greenspan warned them four years ago. So did the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers to the President. So did Bush's Secretary of the Treasury."
These are facts. This financial crisis was completely preventable. The party that blocked any attempt to prevent it was ... the Democratic Party. The party that tried to prevent it was ... the Republican Party.
Yet when Nancy Pelosi accused the Bush administration and Republican deregulation of causing the crisis, you in the press did not hold her to account for her lie. Instead, you criticized Republicans who took offense at this lie and refused to vote for the bailout! What? It's not the liar, but the victims of the lie who are to blame? How does that logic work?
Now let's follow the money ... right to the presidential candidate who is the number-two recipient of campaign contributions from Fannie Mae. And after Freddie Raines, the CEO of Fannie Mae who made $90 million while running it into the ground, was fired for his incompetence, one presidential candidate's campaign actually consulted him for advice on housing.
If that presidential candidate had been John McCain, you would have called it a major scandal and we would be getting stories in your paper every day about how incompetent and corrupt he was.
But instead, that candidate was Barack Obama, and so you have buried this story, and when the McCain campaign dared to call Raines an "adviser" to the Obama campaign — because that campaign had sought his advice — you actually let Obama's people get away with accusing McCain of lying, merely because Raines wasn't listed as an official adviser to the Obama campaign.
You would never tolerate such weasely nit-picking from a Republican.
If you who produce our local daily paper actually had any principles, you would be pounding this story, because the prosperity of all Americans was put at risk by the foolish, short-sighted, politically selfish, and possibly corrupt actions of leading Democrats, including Obama.
If you who produce our local daily paper had any personal honor, you would find it unbearable to let the American people believe that somehow Republicans were to blame for this crisis.
There are precedents. Even though President Bush and his administration never said that Iraq sponsored or was linked to 9/11, you could not stand the fact that Americans had that misapprehension — so you pounded us with the fact that there was no such link. (Along the way, you created the false impression that Bush had lied to them and said that there was a connection.)
If you had any principles, then surely right now, when the American people are set to blame President Bush and John McCain for a crisis they tried to prevent, and are actually shifting to approve of Barack Obama because of a crisis he helped cause, you would be laboring at least as hard to correct that false impression.
Your job, as journalists, is to tell the truth. That's what you claim you do, when you accept people's money to buy or subscribe to your paper.
But right now, you are consenting to or actively promoting a big fat lie — that the housing crisis should somehow be blamed on Bush, McCain, and the Republicans. You have trained the American people to blame everything bad — even bad weather — on Bush, and they are responding as you have taught them to.
If you had any personal honor, each reporter and editor would be insisting on telling the truth — even if it hurts the election chances of your favorite candidate.
Because that's what honorable people do. Honest people tell the truth even when they don't like the probable consequences. That's what honesty means. That's how trust is earned.
Barack Obama is just another politician, and not a very wise one. He has revealed his ignorance and naiveté time after time — and you have swept it under the rug, treated it as nothing.”
* * * * *
So, tonight is the big night. We will find out who our president for the next four years will be. If Barack Obama is elected president, it certainly won’t be the end of the world. A president only has so much power, even though they can authorize and veto bills. It is the Senate and Congress that adds the balancing factors to our national government.
A lot of what a President does is negotiation and shoulder-rubbing with other countries throughout the world; the president represents the United States, and it is true that Obama is popular in the international circle. He might serve our country well in that regard.
My primary hope is, of course, that John McCain is elected as our next President. We’ll see how the rest of the country feels by the end of tonight… may the best man win!
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