What I don't like about this election year

I posted this on BEB.  Basically my background is that I am a moderate.  I was treasurer for STJ College Dems a few years ago, but I have moved more to the right since I graduated.  I am pro-choice, I am pro- gay rights, I do support some gun control, I am EXTREMELY pro-environment, and I am very conservative financially.


Here is the post:

I don't like the fact that many Obama supporters are making it seem that it is wrong to be supporting McCain. I feel that they see it as some sort of right and wrong--that voting Republican is either race driven or a result of ignorance.

I am still young, but I cannot remember an election being like this.

As a moderate, I don't appreciate having discussions with people hellbent on framing me into a racist the same way a catcher would frame a ball to look like a close strike.

The truth is I think Obama could be avery special type of leader. If he is elected I would be happy that the environment would finally get more consideration in this country. I am excited at the prospect of him being more open in his diplomacy with some leaders that conservatives would not even talk to.

In the end, however, I am happy with my choice to vote for McCain. Not because I am racist or ignorant, but because of his experience and what he has done with it. He has gone against his party more than just about anyone and has reached across party lines. He has pandered more to ultraconservatives recently, but you have to play the game by the rules to get elected--every politician including Obama does.

I firmly believe he will reach across the aisle and facilitate more bipartisan legislation. I think Obama, being so far left, will be the polar opposite of Bush and voting will be the same old "line in the sand" party affiliated Bush era nonsense.

Obama's comments on redistributing the wealth are socialist and come way too close to countries that none of us want to be compared with. There was a time in my life when I thought socialism was not so bad, but those fantasies gave way to the reality that this country excels due to capitalism.

If you think our economy is bad now, wait and see what happens the day Obama is elected. The floor will fall out of the stock market and we will be stuck with a first term senator who has spent most of his term setting himself up to be president.

And while being a war hero alone does not qualify somebody to be president, how refreshing is it to have a man that gave his life REPEATEDLY...a man that was shot down a week before he was shot down again and eventually captured, who was tryng to free another pilot before a bomb went off an killed him and injured McCain....a man that fought to get transferred to a battle zone from his cushy assignment out of danger....a man that refused to leave a POW camp where he was being tortured because of his beliefs for YEARS....running to lead our country.

I don't trust politicians. I think most of the men and women that truly want to make a difference either get morally currupt during their ascent or don't get out of congress or the state senate--if they even make it that far. We finally have somebody to vote for that has given his life up for this country so many times. A man that almost died saving his fallen comrade and endured years of torture to not abandon his fellow POW's.

Add his indisputable honors, his military mind from his education at the Naval Academy and the National War College, the fact that he has been a member of both congress and the senate, and how could anyone question a vote for him so vehemently?

I just don't get it.

I think everybody has the right to make an informed vote.  There are good and bad points about both parties--there is no absolute right or wrong.  As long as somebody actually thinks for themself, their vote should be respected.  I think there are a lot of people that are trying to make it seem that a vote agaisnt Obama is racist or ignorant.  That is just not true.  I also hear a lot that we have two lousy candidates and I think that couldn't be further from the truth.  Either way, we will have a good president in office come January 20th IMO.

great posts.. .  but be prepared to get assulted...

Yo check this... I know some close minded peeps who not say a thing to ya if you dont believe in they politics. Me, Im cool wit anybdy who cool wit me.

Aint gonna hate. Just gonna debate.

I think everybody has the right to make an informed vote.  There are good and bad points about both parties--there is no absolute right or wrong.  As long as somebody actually thinks for themself, their vote should be respected.  I think there are a lot of people that are trying to make it seem that a vote agaisnt Obama is racist or ignorant.  That is just not true.  I also hear a lot that we have two lousy candidates and I think that couldn't be further from the truth.  Either way, we will have a good president in office come January 20th IMO.

I don't know why you would be assaulted for such an even-handed post.  I'm all for a good debate with minimal name-calling or baiting.

There's no Obama is a Muslim pictures or anything.  For me, I have a hard time believing that Obama could be Bush Through the Looking Glass - the Democrats are wildly disparate and have a really hard time not infighting, or put in another way, they don't necessarily agree.  There are moderate Democrats who will side with Republicans, and lefty Dems who think both houses of Congress don't do enough.

The "redistribution of wealth," as I understand it, is a roll back of Bush' tax cuts, not a takeover of national property a la Uganda (I think that was the country where the new president ran the South Asian and white land owners off in a violent spree).  I think it was an unfortunate comment more than it's a hint of extreme socialism.  We might agree to disagree on that one.

But I don't think a vote for McCain is a racist vote.  There are some curious "othering" elements in the campaign aimed at Obama, for sure - is he a Muslim, will he "take care of his own," is he a Socialist.  I would like to have seen one of the candidates be a governor, for sure.  McCain was an admirable candidate, and I am sure he would do some good for the country if he gets elected.  But I see some changes - and the personal responsibility he often talks about in his stump speeches - being passed on from Obama that's admirable. 

I think he would be, in some aspects, better at foreign policy (though in others, he'll show that he's less experienced).  The US needs foreign cooperation to crush militant elements - not just more troops. 

a vote for mccain is not a racist vote.  i wouldn't have voted for condoleezza rice.

that being said, i get dozens of racist mailings a day warning about the perils of having a black president.  i feel like it's back in the 60's again.

i could live with a mccain presidency.  palin, on the other hand is a train wreck about to happen.  i can't imagine anyone less prepared to run the biggest country in the free world.  it's like bringing in britney spears' mother and expecting her to get it done.  and don't tell me about how she's governor of alaska...population half of westchester.  she's screwed up plenty there already and she's under the thumb of that whack job secessionist husband.

all of you who voted for bush.  you were warned that having a drunk imbecile president would hurt america..but you pushed the lever for him anyway.  we need smart people running the country...not celebrities.

we need smart people running the country...not celebrities.

Yeah I forgot..  the current President graduated from YALE and got his MBA from HARVARD...   he is just a dumb ass hick from Texas...

Quote from: newsman13 on October 30, 2008, 01:29:19 PM

we need smart people running the country...not celebrities.

Yeah I forgot..  the current President graduated from YALE and got his MBA from HARVARD...   he is just a dumb ass hick from Texas...

Some people live off the successes of their father.  Bush got a 1206 on his SAT (not a shabby score at all, but certainly not Ivy League), and was a very average student at Yale.

Quote from: pmg911 on October 31, 2008, 07:57:34 AM

Quote from: newsman13 on October 30, 2008, 01:29:19 PM

we need smart people running the country...not celebrities.

Yeah I forgot..  the current President graduated from YALE and got his MBA from HARVARD...   he is just a dumb ass hick from Texas...

Some people live off the successes of their father.  Bush got a 1206 on his SAT (not a shabby score at all, but certainly not Ivy League), and was a very average student at Yale.

what is your point. .  he went to YALE. . its one of THE best universities in the world...  and he graduate from one of the Top 5 business schools in the world. . the guy might be a horrendous public speaker but he is far from stupid and anyone who thinks he is might need to take a long hard look in the mirror...

Never said he was stupid.  I said that 1206 isn't a shabby SAT scoreat all.  You brought up the point that he went to Yale, which is obviously true, but he really didn't earn it the way everyone else does.  If he was Average Joe applying to Yale with that score, his application would've been in the shredder.

Never said he was stupid.  I said that 1206 isn't a shabby SAT scoreat all.  You brought up the point that he went to Yale, which is obviously true, but he really didn't earn it the way everyone else does.  If he was Average Joe applying to Yale with that score, his application would've been in the shredder.

I never said you said he was stupid. . but if you scroll up a little . . one the far left liberals called him an imbecile...

he got into yale on the rich man's "affirmative action".  it's how ted kennedy got into harvard.  it's how mccain graduated bottom five in his class. 

bush graduated with a "gentlemen's "C" average.  you know this, you're just trying to stir the pot...

he got into yale on the rich man's "affirmative action".  it's how ted kennedy got into harvard.  it's how mccain graduated bottom five in his class. 

bush graduated with a "gentlemen's "C" average.  you know this, you're just trying to stir the pot...

Ohhh..  and he got into and graduated from Harvard Business School because of his Daddy too...

that's right.  c students don't waltz into harvard business school.

that's right.  c students don't waltz into harvard business school.

I forgot. . you were on the Admission board of Harvard & Yale back in a previous life...

Quote from: pmg911 on October 31, 2008, 07:57:34 AM

Quote from: newsman13 on October 30, 2008, 01:29:19 PM

we need smart people running the country...not celebrities.

Yeah I forgot..  the current President graduated from YALE and got his MBA from HARVARD...   he is just a dumb ass hick from Texas...

Some people live off the successes of their father.  Bush got a 1206 on his SAT (not a shabby score at all, but certainly not Ivy League), and was a very average student at Yale.

Someone always lives off the success of someone else. Even Obama's father received a Masters degree in economics from Harvard and became a political figure as a senior economist in the Kenyan Ministry of Finance.

Quote from: TRabinowitz on October 31, 2008, 09:39:56 AM

Quote from: pmg911 on October 31, 2008, 07:57:34 AM

Quote from: newsman13 on October 30, 2008, 01:29:19 PM

we need smart people running the country...not celebrities.

Yeah I forgot..  the current President graduated from YALE and got his MBA from HARVARD...   he is just a dumb ass hick from Texas...

Some people live off the successes of their father.  Bush got a 1206 on his SAT (not a shabby score at all, but certainly not Ivy League), and was a very average student at Yale.

Someone always lives off the success of someone else. Even Obama's father received a Masters degree in economics from Harvard and became a political figure as a senior economist in the Kenyan Ministry of Finance.

Just like Obama was an average student @ Columbia...

I think everybody has the right to make an informed vote.  There are good and bad points about both parties--there is no absolute right or wrong.  As long as somebody actually thinks for themself, their vote should be respected.  I think there are a lot of people that are trying to make it seem that a vote agaisnt Obama is racist or ignorant.  That is just not true.  I also hear a lot that we have two lousy candidates and I think that couldn't be further from the truth.  Either way, we will have a good president in office come January 20th IMO.

I read your post on both boards and I agree that everyone has a right to their opinions and to cast their vote however they feel, be it from an informed or uninformed (which is much more likely throughout this country on both sides of the aisle) viewpoint.  And insults and ridicule are certainly out of place, although constructive debate and criticism are not.  Also agree that either candidate is light years ahead of what we've had the past 8 years.  Especially if once elected McCain would have been able to shed the positions he's had to take to coddle big business and the religious right although at this point whether he would or not seems moot.

There will certainly be many intelligent, admirable men and women who vote for McCain, just not as many those who vote for Obama. 
However it's probable that the election will be decided by the other 80% of the population.   

Quote from: NYCbuckeye on October 31, 2008, 03:28:50 PM

Quote from: TRabinowitz on October 31, 2008, 09:39:56 AM

Quote from: pmg911 on October 31, 2008, 07:57:34 AM

Quote from: newsman13 on October 30, 2008, 01:29:19 PM

we need smart people running the country...not celebrities.

Yeah I forgot..  the current President graduated from YALE and got his MBA from HARVARD...   he is just a dumb ass hick from Texas...

Some people live off the successes of their father.  Bush got a 1206 on his SAT (not a shabby score at all, but certainly not Ivy League), and was a very average student at Yale.

Someone always lives off the success of someone else. Even Obama's father received a Masters degree in economics from Harvard and became a political figure as a senior economist in the Kenyan Ministry of Finance.

Just like Obama was an average student @ Columbia...

I don't know how you know this when his transcripts haven't been released or leaked...

And do you honestly believe that a C student would get into Harvard Business without some serious connections?

he got into yale on the rich man's "affirmative action".  it's how ted kennedy got into harvard.  it's how mccain graduated bottom five in his class. 

bush graduated with a "gentlemen's "C" average.  you know this, you're just trying to stir the pot...

Well Obama got into Columbia and Harvard on the real Affirmative Action.