Religion, Part II

[moraulf]

So I found online this speech by Barack Obama, which made me feel kind of dumb about my previous religion post. I will stop plugging for Obama now. Sorry. But seriously, watch this if you haven't seen it.



I mean, holy crap, right?

Comments

[arollercoaster]

i don't like his populist pandering. i don't like his aversion to free-market capitalism. i don't know that his health care plan is developed enough. i'm unsure about how he's going to reform social programs to make them more efficient and avoid bankruptcy. i don't know how he's going to get us disentangled from our military engagements without leaving a horrific mess behind.

this video, which kept me up well past my bedtime, is what i wish all people felt. be reasonable, be respectful. obama's message of hope isn't as powerful and effective as other people's message of fear. i'm afraid voters are more likely to support the one who promises to protect them from a struggling economy over the one who will right the wrongs of the past administration and return america to its leadership role in the world. i have a deep fear that america is in decline, that gwbutthead will go down as a weak emperor who helped drive the nation into the gutter. after a certain point no one will be able to bring us back from the brink of disaster. i worry we've past the point of no return.

the problem is, i see a great deal of effective planning in the clinton camp. even though i dislike her, i think her machine knows what it's doing. obama could use that kind of experience and organization. edwards seems to split the difference, but he's not getting his message out as well--he doesn't stand out as much as a black man and the wife of a former president. as for republicans, mccain is the only one i trust.

what disturbs me most about hillary is the dynastic element. after 12 years of bushes and 8 of bill, i'm not comfortable with another 4-8 of a clinton. i want something different. i want someone honest. i want to maintain the american illusion of democracy, which electing another clinton will not help.

our nation is in trouble. the whole world is burning. i don't know what it will take to protect us from ourselves.

[moraulf]

So you're looking for someone who is solid on National Defense, conservative with the economy, and somewhat unifying politically; yeah, I'd go McCain if I were you, too.

My view is less complicated and maybe more naive: I think Obama, Clinton, and Edwards will push for liberal reforms that will strengthen the middle class, and that doing so will generally help the economy recover. But I think Obama is the only one of the three of them who can sell those reforms to America; Edwards lacks credibility and Clinton is too polarizing. I also think another Republican administration, with all the accompanying tax cuts for the rich (which I view essentially as a tax on the middle class and the poor), social service cuts, and military overspending, would obviously be terrible. Even with McCain, who I think is honest and well-intentioned.