Politics as Usual

Like many of the pundits on the cable news networks, I too find myself more and more disbeliving of so-called “undecided” voters at this late stage in the game.  In fact, I dare say that they don’t really EXIST except to people who ask them who they’re voting for.  Nope, instead, I think these people know exactly who they’re voting for and for whatever reason are reluctant to “share with the class”.  Could be they are going to vote for Obama but are surrounded by a conservative bias and don’t want to have to answer to their buddies for why they’re “jumping ship”.  Or, they’re going to vote for McCain and are afraid of looking like they’re prejudiced if they admit it.  Could be that they dont’ want to be talked out of their decision.  Could be that they know their reasons for wanting to vote for whichever candidate are flimsy and they don’t want someone to find out.  Could be that they like the drama and attention they recieve as an “undecided” voter.

Who knows why the crazy do what they do?

I’ve heard it said that these people have had more than enough time to research the candidates for themselves and make an informed decision.  I would have to agree.  This has, in essence, been going on for a good year.  If you don’t want to vote for Obama, you should have the cohones to just come out and say so.  If you don’t want to vote for McCain, the same thing goes.  If you don’t want to share who you are voting for, simply say “I don’t want to share that with anyone right now.”  SIMPLE AS THAT.

I have a similar issue with complaining about the candidates.  Everyone complains about politicians.  I’ve heard more than one person call out this behavior as being “fashionable” and I think I have to agree.  If you don’t like one candidate or another and are hesitant to pick a side (see my above rant on undecided voters), it’s so much more stylish to simply say “They all suck!  I don’t want to vote for either!”  Fine.  Then don’t!  You can mark “none of the above”, can’t you?  Instead cast your ballot for the local races that you feel will greater impact you (and they will).  I could maybe buy the “They all suck” song and dance back in 2004 because it was more voting AGAINST someone than it was voting FOR someone.  But this time, it’s different.

I truly and honestly believe that Obama is the answer to our country’s problems.  I think he offers the change we so desperately need.  I don’t believe that he’s “just like any other politician” as I’ve heard some people say.   I think people only say that because they don’t want to vote for him.  It’s fine if you don’t want to vote for him, but to call him “just another politician” is just downright untrue.  For one thing, his campaign has been so vastly different than the presidential campaigns we’ve seen in recent years.  I’ve been truly impressed with how he has done things.  The issues have truly been what is important and the American people have been delighted to see it.

I do think a lot of “undecided” voters don’t want to vote for Obama for one reason or another, but aren’t thrilled with McCain either.  It brings me to mind of John Kerry in 2004.  I sure as HECK wasn’t going to vote for Bush but I wasn’t really excited about Kerry either.  But I voted for him.  And I suspect that a lot of people who tell you that they don’t really like either candidate will actually vote for McCain.

I just wish they would come out and say so already.  Own up to your choices!  Embrace your inner self!  Be free!  (Oh, and don’t forget to vote on November 4!)

I found this link and had to go check it out.  Isn’t technology fabulous?  I love that I can actually physically SEE how much money I would save on my taxes under Obama versus McCain.  I save money either way but isn’t almost twice as much twice as good?  That’s what I thought. You know you want to go find out how much money you’ll save too, don’t you?  Go give it a whirl!

In other news, I hope to go vote this week, as a part of early voting.  You know, since I don’t expect to be changing my mind anytime soon.  Heh.

I had this big post planned, where I would touch on a variety of political topics including some thoughts on independent voters, how I feel about our economic downturn, how Obama’s tax plan is incorrectly viewed by most conservatives and how Sarah Palin has just gotten worse since I first heard about her.  And I also wanted to talk about how all the relentless politicking has just worn me down to a cynical nub.  Again.

But.

Then the whole race issue started rearing it’s ugly head in the last week.  I’ve long been concerned about this becoming a major part of the race.  It could be one of the reasons I initially supported Hillary Clinton, because I was afraid of racial backlash.  I wish I could believe that some of my fellow Americans are beyond the backward thinking our country experienced as recently as the 1960’s.  But, apparently, we’re not.

We’ve all seen the soundbites on television where supporters at McCain rallys have shouted out racial slurs and disturbing calls to violence.  That’s frightening enough.  Because, as we all know, it only takes ONE person to pick up a gun.  It only takes one person to set the world on it’s ear.  And, whether you support him or not, you have to admit that if anything were to happen to Obama at this stage in the game it would be catastophic for this nation.  People. Would. Flip. OUT.  I don’t want that for my country.  I want to see us start to heal our wounds and move forward with a plan for the future.  But I am starting to wonder if that will even be possible.  Because the hate that some people hold in their hearts frightens me.

Take Gayle Quinnell, the McCain supporter who at a recent rally in Minnesota told McCain that she was afraid of Obama because he was an “Arab”.  To McCain’s credit, he quickly and simply told her that she was wrong and that Obama was a decent family man, etc and so forth.  But is it too little, too late?  Because Ms. Quinnell proved to us in an interview after the rally that she still believes Obama is dangerous simply because his father was a Muslim.  Even when the interviewers tried to correct her, to tell her that Obama was indeed a Christian and was never a Muslim, she responded, “Yeah, but he’s still got Muslim in him. So that’s still part of him.”

This makes my heart hurt, people.  It’s “the sins of the father” all over again.  And this is even assuming that simply being a Muslim is a crime (which is definitely is not).  It’s “in him”??  Hiding latent underneath the layers, only to rear it’s ugly head once he steps foot in the Oval Office, causing him to rain destruction and mayhem on our fair country?  DOES SHE REALLY BELIEVE THIS?  And if she believes it, how many others do as well?  I’m afraid to ask.

The thing is, I’m sure you could sit down with someone like Gayle Quinnell and explain to her the facts about Obama and it won’t make one bit of different.  Because calling him an “Arab” is an excuse.  For whatever reason, she doesn’t want to come right out and say that she is afraid of him and won’t support him because he’s black.  So she clings to this other excuse, flimsy as it is.  And there are SO MANY other people who are doing the exact same thing.

In Gayle’s case, she’s 75 years old and it was just how she was raised.  My mother is nearly the same age and grew up in a similar part of the country.  Though she is voting for Obama in this election, she understands why so many of her generation cannot get past the color of his skin.  They were raised to view African Americans as wholly different from themselves.  And not different in a good way.  At “best”, they see them as mentally insufficient.  At worst, they see them as dangerous.

It makes my heart sick to think of it.  It causes me pain to realize that we still have such blind bigotry alive and well in our country.  I guess it doesn’t surprise me much, seeing all the things that have happened in the last eight years, but it does disappoint me.

You know, vote for McCain because you agree with his policies and his ideals.  Don’t vote for him because you have ignorant, racist assumptions about people.  I can respect someone voting for McCain because of his stance on the issues.  I cannot respect someone who comes up with some bullshit notion about Obama being an “Arab” or trying to link him to terrorists simply because they cannot stomach him being a black man.

These next few weeks are going to be brutal.  And I can only hope that once November 4th rolls around, that we use our heads in the voting booths across the country and make a choice that ISN’T based on hate.

I’m thinking… I’m going to tone down the political talk around here for a while.  Not that I’ve done a lot, particularly here on the blog, but I am starting to see where politics can easily take over my life and I gotta nip that in the bud while I still can.  We’ve got two whole months left in this election and while I can’t promise I won’t return to politics when the election rolls around, I think it’s better if I turned to other topics in the meantime.

Twitter, especially, is a political snark enabler for me.  It’s just so easy to type out the things we say to one another when watching speeches and whatnot on television.  Now, my intention has never been to hurt anyone’s feelings.  Of course not!  I’ve said before that I know an awful lot of Republicans.  My in laws are almost all Republican.  I’m rather used to coexisting peacefully with people who have other political beliefs than myself.  And how best do I accomplish this?  I keep my thoughts to myself.

So that’s what I’m going to do.  Keep my thoughts to myself.

I respect my Republican friends and I hope they respect me back.  I don’t want some of my friends to feel they need to avoid my blog in the next couple of months and I don’t want to feel like I have to avoid theirs.  So yeah.  Nipping it in the bud.

Let’s all play nice, okay?  After all, the important thing is still true: At least we’re getting a new President either way.

In other news: Check out the giveaway this week over at Cloth Diaper Mamas!  You don’t have to have a baby in cloth diapers to want this adorable gift.  Go check it out!