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| Jared K |
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 | In November of 2008, someone will have to be elected to run the country for another 4 years. As it stands, we have two parties whose elections will be, for the most part, a certainty. The Republican Party: John McCain VP Sarah Palin The Democratic Party: Barack Obama VP Joe Biden The majority of the people voting in November will be voting for one of these parties. With those voters lies the responsibility to make an intelligent and informed decision about who is the most qualified and prepared to lead and represent us as a country. Now, as we all know, politics is an important part of our government’s structure, but it is also a nasty game of cutthroat attacks and misinformation. The lack of real, untainted, soundly researched information about the candidates intentions, backgrounds, and policies leads voters to do one of two things. The first is to not vote, removing the responsibility of taking an active part in deciding the direction taken by the government and the nation, made by the people and for the people. The second, more commonly taken action, is for the voter to find traits or ideals they believe to be more appealing in one of the presidential candidates, and, based on those points alone, the voter then acts, and for better or worse, blindly takes part in the election of that candidate. The first option is, in blunt terms, cowardice. America was founded by brave men and women who stood up to injustice and tyranny so that they could protect what they believed was right and just. It’s up to us, as American citizens to uphold that tradition of fortitude today in our democratic system of government. The second option is dangerous and unacceptable. As American citizens, it is also our responsibility to make sound and accurate decisions when choosing our country’s representatives. The decisions we make now will resonate throughout our nations history, as well as affect the lives of our children, and our children’s children. So, I ask you, as registered voters, and as American citizens, to cast aside the propaganda, see through the misinformation, and to do as much as you can to make a responsible and informed decision when choosing the candidate you want to vote for. And, as for you non-registered voters. I’ll expect that you’ll be getting around to voting sometime in the future, and when that time comes, please do what you can to make the right choice, even if it means choosing the lesser of two evils. I'll end with a quote from one of our greatest leaders, President Abraham Lincoln. -"A house divided against itself cannot stand." We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave, to every living heart and hearth-stone, all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature. Up and up... | ||
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| Animus |
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 | The problem with these candidates, BOTH of them, is that they have yet to tell us anything about their actual stances on the important issues. We know very little. Of Obama, we know that he has socialist tendencies (that is not a negative in my book). Of McCain, we know pretty much nothing at all. This election has become, yet again, a slander-fest, with neither side doing anything more than trying to bring the other down. I'm sorry, guys, but that's not going to win you votes. It just makes you look petty. How is anyone going to make an informed decision when the candidates make it impossible to inform ourselves? This all said, because of my political leanings (socialist), you can bet where I'm putting my vote. I just wish the candidates this time around weren't so far up their own arses that we could actually learn a little bit about them. For the record, the SECOND someone starts to bash a side, this thread will be locked. [ Edited Sep 19 '08, 07:32AM ] | ||
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| SafeNSure |
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 | Animus wrote ... For the record, the SECOND someone starts to bash a side, this thread will be locked. ...in case somebody does, wouldn't it be better to censor the individual comment (as spam on youtube) and let the thread run? Otherwise, it'll be easy for anybody not in a mood for a balanced (and informative) political discussion, which may show unknown strength of one of the parties (or unexpected weaknesses...), to abort the civic debate... "Volonté, persévérance et humilité" - David Belle | ||
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| Animus |
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| | Point taken. | ||
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| Jared K |
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| | Animus, I wish you would elaborate on the socialist tendencies you seem to find apealing in Obama. His economic plan will still allow people to own their own businesses and property, so why would you hint at Socialism? [ Edited Sep 19 '08, 11:38AM ] Up and up... | ||
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| Animus |
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| | Jared, I'm concerned as to why you think socialism is equivalent to collectivism. ;) Obama intends on regulating (or attempting to regulate) a number of things that are currently privatised, most notable of all being healthcare. In addition, he heavily defended the FDR New Deal social welfare programs (i.e. the ones that brought us out of the Depression). Essentially, Obama is going to seek to have the government provide more "necessary" provisions, likely at a tax increase. And for the record, not even communism is synonymous with collectivism. "Communism does not seek to do away with man's ability to appropriate goods to his person; merely, it seeks to end the exploitation of people as a means to that appropriation." - Karl Marx | ||
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| Lonnie |
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| | Oooh boy... So do we pick the puppet on the left or the puppet on the right? Question: "Do you think it's a valid argument ... that a John McCain administration would be a four-year extension of the Bush administration?" Answer: "Sure, but I think that's what's going to happen with Obama, too," Paul replied. "There's no difference. Their foreign policies are identical," Paul explained. "They want more troops in Afghanistan. They want to send more support to Georgia to protect the oil line there. Neither one says bring home the troops from Iraq from the bases — you know the bases are going to stay there, the embassy as big as the Vatican, that's going to remain. So their foreign policies are exactly the same. They're both very, very aggressive with Iran. So I would say there's no difference." Is choosing the lesser of two evils really the best we can do? Why is our system so screwed up? Does our vote even matter? Not really: "How To Steal an Election With a Diebold Machine." Okay so there is a flaw in the voting machine. The powers that be would never let such a thing happen! But it already has... Programmer Testifies Under Oath: US elections rigged. "Let the fear of danger be a spur to prevent it; he that fears not, gives advantage to the danger." -Francis Quarles | ||
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| Animus |
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| | The electoral college is the most unconstitutional and unAmerican thing to have ever existed here.. and the sad thing is that it's been in place at the start. For the record, our fourth president, John Q. Adams.. rigged the election. And it's always going to be the lesser of two evils. My concern is what's going to be done domestically. | ||
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| Jared K |
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| | Liquid, I don't know who this Paul guy is, but Obama specifically stated that he's going to get our troops out of Iraq "in 16 months." His and McCain's stances on the war are completely opposite. [ Edited Sep 19 '08, 02:10PM ] Up and up... | ||
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| Animus |
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| | Yeah, he did say that by 2010, he intends on a full withdrawal. [ Edited Sep 19 '08, 02:27PM ] | ||
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| Hurley |
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| | If you like your money in your wallet, you don't vote for Obama. Raise taxes on everyone that makes more than $31,850 a year....THATS ALMOST EVERYONE. [ Edited Sep 19 '08, 03:53PM ] HURLEY EXCEEDER FILM'S YOUTUBE PAGE | ||
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| SafeNSure |
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| | I can't quote the exact words that shocked me in 2004, but I've read something along the lines of "according to the same standards that the Carter/Ford Commission uses for certifying the independence of third world countries elections around the world, 2000 and 2004 presidential elections wouldn't qualify...", or very close to it. If anybody is so inclined, I supply a couple of links to further research it: - National Commission on Federal Election Reform (read the final report) - Commission on Federal Election Reform I rather go back to work, to pay those taxes that still won't allow me -per se- to have any saying in this Country, that I'm only "visiting" (for the past 9 years)... ;) "Volonté, persévérance et humilité" - David Belle | ||
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| Animus |
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| | Ryth wrote ... If you like your money in your wallet, you don't vote for Obama. Raise taxes on everyone that makes more than $31,850 a year....THATS ALMOST EVERYONE. Yes, and that's in return for essential services that he intends on enacting (such as universal healthcare), more funding towards education (and ultimately lower tuitions for public universities, pay raises for teachers, etc.), and more power toward labour unions (which means better benefits, 401k, etc).. Increase in taxation is not a bad thing. It means you have less money in your pocket, but you save more money overall. | ||
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| Lonnie |
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| | Don't let clever wording and empty promises fool you. These people are politicians backed by very rich special interest groups who will hold them accountable once they are in office. Sure Obama has a plan for phased withdrawal but so does McCain. Obama might have a shorter time line but neither plan on a FULL withdrawal. From Obama's website: Under the Obama-Biden plan, a residual force will remain in Iraq and in the region to conduct targeted counter-terrorism missions against al Qaeda in Iraq and to protect American diplomatic and civilian personnel. They will not build permanent bases in Iraq, but will continue efforts to train and support the Iraqi security forces as long as Iraqi leaders move toward political reconciliation and away from sectarianism. Wait... That's exactly what McCain plans to do! That's EXACTLY what we have been doing in Iraq since the war began! Why must we continue to police the world? Because the aristocrats behind the scenes have a lot at stake in the Middle East. There is no lesser evil because there is only one group pulling the strings. The two party system is an illusion. I love my country but it's a fact that we have little say in who becomes our president. Why not put your vote to some use and vote third party? No, your candidate isn't going to win it but at least you will have a voice! Isn't that the point? I think we all need to take a step back and look at the bigger picture. Woodrow Wilson wrote ... "We have come to be one of the worst ruled, one of the most completely controlled and dominated Governments in the civilized world, no longer a Government by free opinion, no longer a Government by conviction and the vote of the majority, but a Government by the opinion and duress of a small group of dominant men." John Adams wrote ... “Whoever controls the volume of money in our country is absolute master of all industry and commerce...and when you realize that the entire system is very easily controlled, one way or another, by a few powerful men at the top, you will not have to be told how periods of inflation and depression originate.†Aristocracy: A form of government, where rule is established through an internal struggle over who has the most status and influence over society and internal relations. Power is maintained by an hereditary elite, from a caste, class, family (dynasty or even some individuals). [ Edited Sep 19 '08, 05:40PM ] "Let the fear of danger be a spur to prevent it; he that fears not, gives advantage to the danger." -Francis Quarles | ||
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| Jared K |
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| | The second you give up on your country, you loose it. Obama has a plan for a self sustaining nation. Sure, it'll be a little rocky at first, but that's how most good changes start. Taxes are going to go up, but Obama has a plan to open up more jobs and stabalize the minimum wage. It may sound like a rough move now, but in 10 or 20 years, if things work out, we should be in decent shape. Up and up... | ||
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