Election 08

I work from home, so daily I read or watch the news. This has been one of the most publicized & quite simply, the longest presidential primaries we have ever had. They started in record time & are yet to be over as we head into the final days. It has led to a variety of uniqueness in this election process; some of which many voters grow tired of.

CHANGE-CHANGE-CHANGE is what 73% of the American population is screaming for after our country has been in a free fall financially over the past 8 years. Our US Dollar has gone from by far the top, to the middle of the pack in world currency. Our countries financial deficit is at an all time high & what is the American people asking for? Change!

Whether you are a Bush supporter or not, the resounding majority is asking for a new direction, a change of pace, & a financial freedom that once exemplified this great nation. Some simply want a Bush backer in McCain to do it, other's want a female with experience to do it, & yet other's feel a young mind who is assertive should do it while breaking down the color barrier. Where do you stand?

To be frank....I don't care! I'm not into debating politics & rights & wrongs. America is home to FREEDOM. You are welcome to think what you wish & I personally won't push my thoughts upon you. My closest friends know that I can debate with the best of them, & I rarely lose. (maybe I should of gotten into politics). The "debating" brings me to my point of this post...

Politics have gotten dirty. That is not a shock to anyone. Unless you have lived under a rock the past 20 years, you have seen it. From every presidential race to the tiny county commissioner races. Everyone is jockeying for position & they all have a "do whatever it takes" mentality. This time of year I can barely stand to watch commercials, as every other commercial is of someone slamming someone else.

What happened to politics that highlighted what you were offering??!!!?? You always have the candidates that "try" to run a clean campaign, but are eventually sucked in. For instance, in the presidential race, everyone "tries" to stay above water & just talk about what they will do as President, but eventually they all start bashing each other. Clinton says something stupid about her trip to Bosnia, so instead of simply leaving it to the media, Obama & McCain feel they need to lambaste her themselves. Obama makes some interesting comments in Pennsylvania as well as his Pastor going off the deep end. Do the others leave it alone? Of course not....McCain & Clinton nail him to the wall & ride that story like a rented mule. McCain contradicts himself last week twice. Do they let the media kill him & simply stay quiet? HECK NO, Obama & Clinton come at him full force, echoing why a Democrat needs to be in there instead of a Republican. (& I didn't even mention the Republican mud slinging that happened before everyone dropped out)

Why have we become so dirty? Why has everyone fallen into this mockery we call an election process? Is it really impossible to run a clean campaign? YES! If you don't throw punches back, you'll be like the little nerd in school who is getting shoved into his locker every day, yet wondering why everyone always laughs at him. In this century, you have no chance of winning in politics without throwing punches yourself. Clean, in reference to politics, has taken on a whole new meaning.

I love politics & feel that you should be completely informed before basing an opinion. I'm rather bothered by this great divide called "political parties" which seems to be getting bigger each day. FACT: Bill Clinton was the best financial President we have ever had & was a Democrat. FACT: Reagan was the best foreign relations President we have ever has & was a Republican. FACT: Al Gore thinks he created the internet.

Ok, that last one was for fun, but on a serious note why have we become so robotic in our voting? Studies show that 87% of voters simply vote for their party line in elections. 87%!!!! For all you know you could disagree with everything they stand for, but "shoot, their a Democrat/Republican so I'm voting for _______". COME ON PEOPLE!!! Pick up a paper, read the issues, evaluate what's important to you, evaluate morals, ethics, policies, promises, etc. Stop voting for the pretty face of a party & vote for the "CHANGE" you obviously are asking for.

"Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." You owe it to everyone to understand who your voting for. If your not registered, you owe it to everyone to simply VOTE! I'm tired of hearing complaining by both parties & by people in the streets, yet don't do research to find out where real change is going to come from. America is hurting right now. Everyone from President Bush to a citizen like me knows it. So it's pretty easy to stand on a podium & preach "WE WANT CHANGE" while the crowd goes wild. This is something all 3 candidates have done. Yet do you know who will bring it? Do you really? Or do you simply listen to a few news stories & think you know? HINT: In case you haven't figured it out yet, the media outlets are biased one way or another.

Sometimes a candidate will say anything to get elected, even to the point of changing his/her position numerous times. So how do you find the truth? Look at there history. Find out how they have voted & acted in the past. Find out what they have supported & denounced in the past.

Do we really want someone like Eliot Spitzer making it into the White House & not knowing the demons he has in his closet? RESEARCH! BE INFORMED! BE EDUCATED! This is one of the most important election years we have ever had in this country. From President down to local officials. This election is turning out to be one of the most ground breaking & influential elections in recent history. Whether for good or for bad this election will decide a future path for this country & you owe it to your country to do something for it.

Where do I stand? To be honest, I know plenty. I have visited Clinton's site, Obama's site, as well as McCain's site & read up on everything. At this point I don't know who I'm going to vote for. I'm a registered Republican, but when this election comes around I may vote Republican or I may vote Democrat. I have vowed to myself to know all the issues & to vote off of my standard not my parties standard or obligation. I challenge you to do the same!

In closing, I don't know if you saw on the news last week, but they showed a picture of how bad President Bush has aged over his presidency. It was astonishing! So they did the same to the presidential hopefuls. Check out the photo below. That is what stress will do to ya!