Thoughts on Politics
So I'm still a Ron Paul supporter. Yes, he has no possible way to win the presidency. Yes, some of his ideas are extreme. Yes, many of his supporters are crazy people. But government is not the answer to problems; it simply causes more. He realizes that, he states it honestly, and he proposes viable alternatives. He has written at least 8 books on economics, after all.
With that being said, Obama is a very persuasive man. It's easy to watch one of his speeches and get caught up in the almost religious like fervor. And he has a lot going for him, too; an immediate closure of Guantanamo, reconciliation and cooperation with other countries, support for immigration, and an all around open-mindedness. But while he's both more elegant and palpable than John McCain, it's almost morally difficult for me to support his government increases. Pumping more money into health care, education, and other faltering areas - which is what his proposals, at their core, are - just can't be the answer. If it were, these problems would have been solved.
Voting records are useful for determining how our future president will act:
Obama voted against the flag burning amendment. good
John McCain voted for it. not good
He voted for an amendment to make English the common language. not good
John McCain voted against it. good
He voted for an amendment that opposes criticism of our military. what?
Even John McCain voted against that.
Obama rejected an amendment to define marriage as between one man and one woman. good
So did John McCain. also good
Obama voted for a congressional commission to see what went wrong with Katrina.
McCain voted against this. hmm...
He voted against getting rid of the estate tax. come on
John Mccain voted to get rid of it. that's better
Obama voted against increasing the debt limit of $8.97 trillion. $8.97 trillion??
McCain also voted against that. well that's good
Obama voted to increase Pell grants.
McCain voted not to. as a college student with libertarian-esque views, i... don't know what to think here.
Obama voted against CAFTA.
McCain voted for it. free trade's the way to go. people in poorer countries need our money as much as we do
Obama voted for embryonic stem cell research. kind of a tough call here
As did McCain.
Obama's voting record
McCain's voting record
So if the two candidates are similar on social issues (liberal to moderate, which is good), but different on economic issues (generally speaking, Obama is liberal, McCain is conservative), then why shouldn't I vote for McCain? Is it because he's uninspiring, proposes continuing the Iraq War, or is a Republican? But if inspiration was all it took, then William Jennings Bryan would have been president. If it's about ending the Iraq War, well, Obama's plan to immediately pull out troops seems childish and naive, and McCain has much more experience in this field. If it's about party loyalty, well, I have none. And please don't say that McCain is "Bush's 3rd term", or something stupid like that; he is very different, which perhaps is why so many hardcore Republicans find it hard to swallow him. They're both good, honorable men, and I'm glad that I have at least a decent choice for my first vote (remember Bush vs. Kerry?)
I'm definitely still up in the air, though. Obama is extremely inspiring, and at times I feel like I'll be cheating my country if I don't vote for him. In any case, I probably won't decide until November, when I've heard everything I can from them.
Any thoughts? Who will YOU vote for, and why? (and if you don't live in the U.S., who would you vote for?)
With that being said, Obama is a very persuasive man. It's easy to watch one of his speeches and get caught up in the almost religious like fervor. And he has a lot going for him, too; an immediate closure of Guantanamo, reconciliation and cooperation with other countries, support for immigration, and an all around open-mindedness. But while he's both more elegant and palpable than John McCain, it's almost morally difficult for me to support his government increases. Pumping more money into health care, education, and other faltering areas - which is what his proposals, at their core, are - just can't be the answer. If it were, these problems would have been solved.
Voting records are useful for determining how our future president will act:
Obama voted against the flag burning amendment. good
John McCain voted for it. not good
He voted for an amendment to make English the common language. not good
John McCain voted against it. good
He voted for an amendment that opposes criticism of our military. what?
Even John McCain voted against that.
Obama rejected an amendment to define marriage as between one man and one woman. good
So did John McCain. also good
Obama voted for a congressional commission to see what went wrong with Katrina.
McCain voted against this. hmm...
He voted against getting rid of the estate tax. come on
John Mccain voted to get rid of it. that's better
Obama voted against increasing the debt limit of $8.97 trillion. $8.97 trillion??
McCain also voted against that. well that's good
Obama voted to increase Pell grants.
McCain voted not to. as a college student with libertarian-esque views, i... don't know what to think here.
Obama voted against CAFTA.
McCain voted for it. free trade's the way to go. people in poorer countries need our money as much as we do
Obama voted for embryonic stem cell research. kind of a tough call here
As did McCain.
Obama's voting record
McCain's voting record
So if the two candidates are similar on social issues (liberal to moderate, which is good), but different on economic issues (generally speaking, Obama is liberal, McCain is conservative), then why shouldn't I vote for McCain? Is it because he's uninspiring, proposes continuing the Iraq War, or is a Republican? But if inspiration was all it took, then William Jennings Bryan would have been president. If it's about ending the Iraq War, well, Obama's plan to immediately pull out troops seems childish and naive, and McCain has much more experience in this field. If it's about party loyalty, well, I have none. And please don't say that McCain is "Bush's 3rd term", or something stupid like that; he is very different, which perhaps is why so many hardcore Republicans find it hard to swallow him. They're both good, honorable men, and I'm glad that I have at least a decent choice for my first vote (remember Bush vs. Kerry?)
I'm definitely still up in the air, though. Obama is extremely inspiring, and at times I feel like I'll be cheating my country if I don't vote for him. In any case, I probably won't decide until November, when I've heard everything I can from them.
Any thoughts? Who will YOU vote for, and why? (and if you don't live in the U.S., who would you vote for?)