I have no illusions: Obama is a politician. I expect no less. But I do expect a little more. And even if he's all great---as if---he's going to be shackled with monstrous debts and oncoming economic tsunamis. I'm not expecting miracles, I'm looking for good governance, and as a registered Independent since the start, I've shown a lifelong penchant to vote for either party who'll deliver. And from a governance stance alone, this current crop is the worst I've seen in my lifetime. Lousy fiscal choices, lousy military leadership, lousy diplomacy, and some seriously shady doings. I mean, the President commuted the sentence of the guy convicted of four felonies covering for the Vice President (and possibly the President). Something is rotten in Denmark.
As for this election, McCain was one of the two Rs I was looking at until he turned into a Bush clone on torture and the religious right and deficits and tax breaks for billionaires. I also believe the pendulum has swung too far right in the Supreme Court---you almost never read of pivotal cases decided in favor of citizens over corporations or governments, and the idea of Scalia being the main idealogical thrust for the next generation doesn't sit well with me.
But I also believe Obama offers something different, and it may be surprising: McCain (and Hillary for that matter) represent, to me, the Vietnam era, when I came of age. Sides were chosen, and you either supported it, or protested it. The images to me are McCain in his Navy uniform, and Hillary in her hippie sunglasses with her long, straight hair. I've lived with that divide most of my life, and it seemed to really separate with the Limbaughization of the country, peaking (for me) during the bogus impeachment proceedings against Clinton. ( I knew then it was political payback for Nixon, and it's even more obvious now.) That was the first time in my life I voted a straight Democratic ticket. Usually, my politics aligned with someone like Jack Danforth (hence the moniker): fiscal sanity, small government, and privacy.
Currently, I still vote for both, and both sides of issues (voted against a tax hike and against a (bad) public transit proposal recently---"Republican" positions, I guess, and I'll gladly vote for a competent local Republican), but with the big stuff, I've been voting more against the lousy governing Rs than for the Ds. Obama, though, offers a chance to turn the page on the Vietnam era stuff I mentioned earlier. Truly, the Greatest Generation has been followed by the Greediest Generation, and we haven't done a very good job of it. And the current crop of Republicans are the worst of the worst. Time to get them out and get some new blood in. As far as Obama's inexperience, I'll pass on the snide remarks about the plentiful experience of the current occupants, and say I believe surrounding himself with brilliant people will be enough. Regardless, it's important to hold feet to the fire of whomever gets elected this November.
Posted by Danforth at 2008-06-24 08:03 PM
Just wanted to show you Jacque, just how incredibly wrong you are.
And how arrogantly ignorant to boot. I've given you volumes of concrete accomplishments as well as the only one that matters to most as reasons why. It comes down to prefering one over the other. You nor anyone is prescient enough to understand why anyone makes the choice we do because such choices are shaped by how we view the world and by how we view the things that are important to each other on a personal basis. That choice is each person's to explain as they feel, not in the narrow, bigoted way you try to define them.
As Danforth so eloquently answered another tunnel-visioned poster, Cookfish; so have I answered you, and every word above stands to the testament of my reasons, and as a testament to your lack of comprehending that which was written solely for that purpose.
