Mark Twain said politicians make such poor stewards of government that it's strange we always want to put one at the head of it. People still feel that way today. We all know the best person for the job of president of the United States is seldom dim-witted enough to pursue it, so we're forced to wonder about the motives of those who are willing to do anything - no matter how devoid of ethical and moral fiber - to achieve it.
Think about this stuff before you vote.
Barack Obama wants to appeal to the militant Bush crazies by saying he'll go into Pakistan to capture Osama Bin Laden. How many of us really want to see Bin Laden's head on a pig pole at the expense of our sad excuse for a relationship with Pakistan? What would that solve at this stage of the game? He should be held accountable, but is it worth committing an act of war on Pakistani soil?
Obama is a great speaker, motivator and campaigner, but his idealistic views are oversimplified. One man, even the president, will have a hard time changing things at a fundamental level. Is he really going to end cronyism and special interest control of Washington? I guess I'm having trouble understanding what he's bringing to Washington that's better than money because if such a thing exists I've never heard of it.
Corruption is a mainstay in Washington D.C., fastened to its underbelly like those little fish that eat the gunk off whales. Is he going to end vast oil consumption in America in 10 years, choking out an industry that makes billions of dollars per year? Is he really going to drop the hammer on rich people and make them play fair? Is he going to give the plebs universal health care? I thought rich folks decide who gets to be president anyway.
Sarah Palin is a glorified runner-up to the real Miss Alaska. She apparently doesn't read much, nor does she have any knowledge of Supreme Court cases. Not all of us are professors of constitutional law like Obama, but we're not running for vice president. She is.
It's shameful and pathetic that she feels being governor of Alaska is tantamount to having substantial foreign policy experience, and it's ridiculous that she couldn't pick up a newspaper or a magazine and prepare for an interview with a supposed lightweight like Katie Couric. She should've admitted she wasn't ready for a real interview. I could've respected that just like I could respect Obama more if he'd admit he doesn't really know how he's going to change the world - or if it will be for the better - and he just wants to try and give people something different for a while to see if it works.
Joe Biden? Sure, he'd be great if he could keep his foot out of his mouth. We see his face all the time, election after election. He slung his fair share of mud at Obama when he was still running for president himself. He didn't think then that Obama is ready any more than the Republicans do. Was he so swayed by being chosen as his running mate that he now defends him ferociously?
John McCain is another old, rich Republican who wants domestic drilling for oil. He wants the war machine running strong. He wants to increase taxes on working people through their employer-provided health care coverage and give taxpayers $5,000 to buy $12,000 health insurance that won't be available to everyone, least of all those who need it the most.
"It will certainly do nothing for families with members who have pre-existing conditions or children with special needs - because it makes no provision to regulate the insurers, forcing them to cover all comers at "community" rates that don't discriminate against the people who need health insurance most," Time Magazine political columnist Joe Klein said.
McCain's best experience is not in government. It's in fighter jets and cheating on his wife with some rich lady named Cindy. His idea of winning a fabricated war against the age-old notion of terrorism reads like a script from a bad '80s movie where Chuck Norris and Sly Stallone save the day.
Here are your choices. Good luck! You're going to need it. The good news is, the Mayan calendar has the world scheduled for destruction on Dec. 21, 2012, so this is the last time we'll have to deal with all this nonsense.
Write to John at jrfrees@bsu.edu
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