I'm not normally someone who weighs in on political issues. As far as I'm concerned, the crap that goes on in Washington is usually too deep and too stinky to deal with, especially with the current situation that as a nation we are now in. What really hurts is that I have been a registered Republican all of my adult life. I have voted in every Presidential election since 1980 - as a Republican, not just because of party affiliation, but because up until 2004 I'd always believed the Republican candidate has been the best candidate for the job.
That changed in 2004. I couldn't, in good conscience, vote for George W. Bush for a second term of office. Obviously it didn't matter because he still got elected for a second term. And it's become painfully clear to me that he has failed miserably, as I'm sure it has to many others.
Now, I have no idea what I'm going to do with respect to the impending election. Both candidates are equally unpalatable to me. While I have a great deal of respect for John McCain's service to our country, I don't think he is up to the job. I also believe that he is insincere in what he says to us out here who are considering him for the job. Plus, while the world has raved about Sarah Palin, it's also become clear to me that she is not cut out to be a heartbeat away from the Presidency. She simply doesn't have the experience that someone in her position should have.
Unfortunately, I feel the same way about Barack Obama. He also is not ready to be President, mostly because of his experience, or lack thereof. While I think he has a lot of personal charm and a considerable store of innate intelligence, I'm not sure I trust him; he has not been consistent with his views about what should happen with this country of ours. Plus, he chose Joe Biden, who in my opinion is an absolute knucklehead. Biden has managed to piss off many people in government that he's had to deal with over the course of the 30-odd years he's been a member of the Senate. While he may be an effective legislator, my personal feeling is that he will poison the well even more than he already has.
Now on to the bailout..... I've been following events as they've unfolded - I'm sure many of us have, considering the results of this affect us all. Unfortunately, as of about 8:00AM today there is been a collapse of negotiations, and nothing is set. CNN published the following story this morning, the meat of it being that Senate Republicans will not participate in any further negotiations set towards finding a solution to the problem. Also, McCain, as of this morning, is still not going to the University of Mississippi to debate Obama tonight unless a solution is found.
Personally, I believe this is a huge mistake. Regardless of what is going on with financial markets, the campaign needs to continue, and the discussion needs to continue. Otherwise, my personal feeling is that McCain will end up in a similar situation to the one Jimmy Carter was in during his Presidency when there were hostages in Iran. He didn't leave the White House, and to a degree he tried to micro-manage the outcome of that whole mess. We all saw how that turned out; Iran didn't release hostages until Ronald Reagan was inaugurated.
In a totally unrelated matter (or maybe not - who knows?), the Northeast is being hammered by rain. Lots of it. The rain is supposed to fall throughout the weekend, and according to Accuweather, there is a strong possibility that we could receive a glancing blow from Kyle, which is predicted to hit hurricane strength and head due north towards the Canadian Maritime provinces (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island). If that indeed happens, I will pray for my friends that are living up there in that they don't have to deal with much in the way of damage and that they stay safe.
As I look out the window of my now reasonably clean office, I'm watching the rain come down. It took me a little over 90 minutes to get home from work this morning. Driving from Boston was a bit more of a challenge than usual because of the rain, but I got here.
That changed in 2004. I couldn't, in good conscience, vote for George W. Bush for a second term of office. Obviously it didn't matter because he still got elected for a second term. And it's become painfully clear to me that he has failed miserably, as I'm sure it has to many others.
Now, I have no idea what I'm going to do with respect to the impending election. Both candidates are equally unpalatable to me. While I have a great deal of respect for John McCain's service to our country, I don't think he is up to the job. I also believe that he is insincere in what he says to us out here who are considering him for the job. Plus, while the world has raved about Sarah Palin, it's also become clear to me that she is not cut out to be a heartbeat away from the Presidency. She simply doesn't have the experience that someone in her position should have.
Unfortunately, I feel the same way about Barack Obama. He also is not ready to be President, mostly because of his experience, or lack thereof. While I think he has a lot of personal charm and a considerable store of innate intelligence, I'm not sure I trust him; he has not been consistent with his views about what should happen with this country of ours. Plus, he chose Joe Biden, who in my opinion is an absolute knucklehead. Biden has managed to piss off many people in government that he's had to deal with over the course of the 30-odd years he's been a member of the Senate. While he may be an effective legislator, my personal feeling is that he will poison the well even more than he already has.
Now on to the bailout..... I've been following events as they've unfolded - I'm sure many of us have, considering the results of this affect us all. Unfortunately, as of about 8:00AM today there is been a collapse of negotiations, and nothing is set. CNN published the following story this morning, the meat of it being that Senate Republicans will not participate in any further negotiations set towards finding a solution to the problem. Also, McCain, as of this morning, is still not going to the University of Mississippi to debate Obama tonight unless a solution is found.
Personally, I believe this is a huge mistake. Regardless of what is going on with financial markets, the campaign needs to continue, and the discussion needs to continue. Otherwise, my personal feeling is that McCain will end up in a similar situation to the one Jimmy Carter was in during his Presidency when there were hostages in Iran. He didn't leave the White House, and to a degree he tried to micro-manage the outcome of that whole mess. We all saw how that turned out; Iran didn't release hostages until Ronald Reagan was inaugurated.
In a totally unrelated matter (or maybe not - who knows?), the Northeast is being hammered by rain. Lots of it. The rain is supposed to fall throughout the weekend, and according to Accuweather, there is a strong possibility that we could receive a glancing blow from Kyle, which is predicted to hit hurricane strength and head due north towards the Canadian Maritime provinces (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island). If that indeed happens, I will pray for my friends that are living up there in that they don't have to deal with much in the way of damage and that they stay safe.
As I look out the window of my now reasonably clean office, I'm watching the rain come down. It took me a little over 90 minutes to get home from work this morning. Driving from Boston was a bit more of a challenge than usual because of the rain, but I got here.
No comments:
Post a Comment