Whew! I didn’t expect to get so many comments yesterday- I’m glad for all of your well thought out opinions and am glad that we live in a country where people can have a difference of opinions and feel free to express them. Make sure you go out and VOTE today.  People died so you could have the privilege.  Do your part.

First off- I’ve really restrained myself here from saying too much until it was pretty much too late to sway votes on purpose.  Just FYI.

Re: Abortion
Sheri said, “I feel that abortion is killing an unborn child. I even hesitate to agree with it during cases of rape, but am still open to that situation. This issue will never make or break a candidate for me either, but it’s definitely one I’m opinionated on.”

I really really like what Jo said about that.  Jo: “The abortion issue is one that I have changed on over the years. Not my stance that all life is precious, but the abortion issue is the end of a very complicated problem, and it needs to be addressed at the beginning, not the end. If we want to end abortion in America, before we force women who are already struggling, we need to end poverty , racism, and the repression of women. I predict if we did that, our abortion rates would drop to nearly nothing.”

I feel like abortion is a symptom of a much larger problem.  Simply getting rid of the symptom won’t solve anything.

Africa- I haven’t read  Freakinomics. Several of my sisters have and were raving about it a couple years ago.  I need to find a copy and read it (or pay my library fines…)

As far as Sarah and Sheri’s claims that I get my news from SNL or ‘bad news sources’

Where I get my news? I can answer this quicker then Palin did.  Although I do watch SNL, The Colbert Report and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart- I also have feeds on my desktop (and read/watch) from: USA Today, CNN.com, People (I know! That’s not news), Google news, Reuters, BBC, and NPR.  I also listen to NPR and even conservative talk radio. I also watch a lot of videos online and watched the VP debate and all three presidential debates.  I don’t watch Fox because they’re so blatantly conservative and biased. I realize that every news source has a bias just as every person does- but I won’t patronize a station that carries Bill O’Reilly and calls it news.

Palin- most of my issues with Palin come straight from her mouth.  I don’t feel like she’s as experienced as anyone on the ticket.  I feel like her ‘folksy’ manner is demeaning and that her being tapped for the nomination is really a step backwards for women’s rights.  I just can’t take her seriously.  McCain did himself a disservice trying to pander to the ‘female’ vote.  If he’d picked a serious man or woman with some serious background he’d be two steps ahead.

Socialism was brought up as well.  I don’t know what is more socialist then Federalizing our banks.  Or ‘buying up all the bad home loans, lowering the mortgage and selling them back’ as McCain has proposed.  All I’ve seen the last 8 years are socialized losses and privatized gains. (Yes, I know I didn’t make that phrase up).  The middle class is shrinking at an alarming rate.  People are falling below the poverty line while huge corporations and the richest of the rich ’succeed’ at the poors expense.

Lindsey said, ‘ I don’t feel people are entitled to all that they think they are. We have to work for what we get!!’ 

I think that is a common thought- but there are SO many people who work very hard, but still don’t have the money to have health insurance or savings or a house and who worry about things like if there will be enough money to feed their kids.  There are so many people in this world who start out 50 or 60 steps below where myself and most people I know have started that I can’t begrudge them food and shelter and healthcare. I just can’t.  I never truly realized how incredibly blessed I was in my upbringing (in a lower-middle class home) just by having family who I could rely on.  By having a church to fall back on, by never going hungry ever. Sure I didn’t have designer jeans and fancy vacations- but I had more then most people.

Tangent: I volunteered in a homeless shelter (run by Catholic Charities) on a weekly basis for almost a full year.  The stories I heard and the desperation was heartbreaking.  The common theme was people who flat out had no one to rely on and no or inadequate education. They simply had no bootstraps to pull themselves up by.  While it would be great if we could as a country take care of our neighbors and family and be sure that everyone was taken care of- we can’t.  It just doesn’t happen that way- there are too many people who will simply fall through the cracks.

I’d much rather give welfare (food, housing, healthcare) to individuals in small amounts then to corporations in huge tax breaks, corporate loopholes, and subsidies.

Sarah brought up the federal budget.  Here are Obama’s plan and ideas.  He talks about it all the time. Here is one of my favorite points:  (Sorry about the size- I can’t adjust it).

• Close special interest corporate loopholes:

  Obama and Biden will level the playing field for all businesses by eliminating special-interest loopholes and deductions, such as those for the oil and gas industry.

Iraq.
Senator McCain stated that he plans to stay in Iraq for 50 to 100 years.  He has no plans to leave.  He’s also said that he wouldn’t hesitate to invade Iran.

Socialized medicine and Universal healthcare are two different things.  Socialized medicine is run by the government.  Universal Healthcare is run by insurance companies- but because there is a pool of people buying the plan together through the government (like your employer does) it brings costs down and makes it affordable for people.  Much like Mitt Romney’s plan that is already in effect and working in Mass.

As far as Iraq attacking us if we leave.  They haven’t attacked us. Iraq was not involved in 9-11.  Al Quieda was not in Iraq during the days of Saddam Hussein.  Saddam was an evil man- but he was not responsible for 9-11.  By invading Iraq we took our eyes off the ball in Afghanistan.

Eowyn- I can only hope if McCain is elected that he’ll be back to being more centered- although his abrupt swing to the right is a lot of what caused me to loose respect for him.

Regardless of your party affiliation (or lack of) I hope you have gone and voted today (if you haven’t earlier).  No matter who is elected the earth will continue to spin, the sun will rise tomorrow (if we even know the results by then) and we’ll all be okay.  I will still love yoiu all and consider you my friends regardless of who you vote for and the outcome of the election.

My predictions:
Obama wins the election by at least 10 electoral votes and wins the popular vote
Obama loses Utah, but with 40% of the vote- which would be a big deal here.

What are your predictions?

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