My Choice...

Election day is finally here. My friend Jonathan called me last night wondering what I was going to write this morning. My apologies for not calling him back but I wanted this to be debuted here not elsewhere!

This election has been one of the most interesting ones that I can remember. The idea of change we can believe in didn't work for me though. I didn't see either party putting up a platform that I thought was truly change. (Granted the Dems platform this year was much better than 4 years ago...when they didn't even have one!)

First of all, I did not vote for McCain/Palin. I highly respect John McCain for everything he has done but at his age, I cannot imagine him living through a 4 year presidency unscathed health-wise. That would leave us with Sarah Palin taking a much larger role in the White House. That I am not comfortable with because of her lack of experience and her communication skills have left me unsure about what she would actually do in the White House.

Second of all, I did not vote for Obama/Biden. Obama's lack of experience scared me. He is a powerful speaker that will definitely infuse hope in the nation but I am not sure what he would do after that! Growing up in Maryland, I have seen Biden's work and was not impressed along with his plagiarism. (Being a former English teacher, plagiarism is a big no-no!)

That didn't leave me with any option in the major parties that I felt comfortable with. Beyond that, I truly believe that we need a 3rd party option.

I ended up choosing this guy http://www.bobbarr2008.com/issues.

I don't agree with everything he stands for but if we are going for change, we need to do something different than the two parties we currently have because I don't really see much difference between the two.

A third...or even fourth party...would be helpful to truly change. I cast my vote to start that process.

Discuss amongst yourselves.....(and sorry Jon...but at least I didn't vote Republican right?:))

Tomorrow is the day...

As tomorrow is election day, first thing tomorrow morning I will post who I voted for and why. It may be a shock and it may not be...discuss amongst yourselves!

The Only Maverick Comment....

I have liked during this whole election came from an unlikely source: Mark Cuban.

After essentially saying he was sick of the election, he commented on the "Maverick" title that McCain's supporters have thrown around him. His comment was the best thing he could do is make a few thousand Dallas Mavericks jerseys with the last name McCain on the back of them and sell them at RNC headquarters!

Mark Cuban is a brilliant marketer and I had the privilege of having ice cream at a Dairy Queen in the Dallas area served by him based on his criticism of refereeing in the NBA. He served with a smile even then! I like Mark Cuban because he thinks outside of the box even in crazy times.

That made me laugh and gave a moment of levity in what we are currently experiencing! And to quote my boy Robert Randolph (who is brilliant live!) Ain't Nothing Wrong With That....

Litmus Test

During the debate (don't get me started about how they didn't say anything new), there was a question about Supreme Court justices.

McCain was asked about whether he would ever propose a candidate who was not pro-life. McCain's response was that there was no "litmus" test. He would put forward the best person. The question was turned, the other way, to Obama where he was asked if he would propose someone pro-life. He was less forthcoming on the litmus test issue in my opinion.

Questions: Should there bit a litmus test for a Supreme Court candidate for each potential president? Even if they don't say there are litmus tests, does each candidate have a litmus test?

Talk amongst yourselves....

A few thoughts...

Some thoughts on last night's debate....

1. McCain coming out with his mortgage plan on national TV was gutsy. It won't get him the points he needs to win the election, but it was interesting.

2. Obama won points by being more composed than McCain. McCain's pointing to Obama and saying "that one" seeemed snarky and cranky. Not good.

3. I don't think either candidate (or anyone else for that matter) has a really good idea what to do with the economy.

4. McCain tried to look more comfortable around the non-rich last night. Didn't really work.

5. The question of why would we trust either party was funny and cut right to the bone.

6. Obama saying that he nor McCain need a tax break was a good admission.

7. How can anyone know what they don't know? If they knew it, they would have already learned it!

Here's a topic discuss amongst yourselves....the candidates were proposed three priorities: entitlements, energy, and the economy. Which of these three would you work on first? Or is there another priority you value more?

A New Hockey Mom Sheriff is in Town

I was interested to see what Sarah Palin was going to say last night. While I missed some of the best lines of the night walking the dogs, I think she proved herself to be a formidable force in the McCain campaign. I chuckled out loud a few times and thought she made some good points.

Unfortunately, some of her good points could be pointed directly back at her. Especially her criticism of Obama as a person who doesn't have the experience to lead.

What did everyone else think? Did you like her or her ideas better?

Not Exactly Africa....

Many moons ago when I was in college, I walked into one of my friend's room. Greg "Ox" Haigh and Allen Borden looked at me to continue their discussion asking: "Who do you think is the better catcher Carlton Fisk or Johnny Bench?" Anyone who knows me knows I love baseball and can argue the stats of the game for hours upon end.

I responded "Wow, I don't know which one is better." Ox looked at me and said "That is worse than choosing Johnny Bench". We know who he thought was the better catcher....

Barack Obama did exactly the same thing in his responses at Saddleback Church. For those of you who missed the news, McCain and Obama were invited to come to Saddleback Church and the pastor there, Rick Warren who is a popular author, asked them questions. The interviews were back to back, not at the same time.

One question was essentially: when does a fetus become a baby? McCain immediatey said upon conception. Obama's response was troubling to me. He said that this answer was "above his paygrade".

That answer seemed more like a dodgeball to me than an actual answer. And if Obama does become president, what else would be above his paygrade?

Granted this would not be on the same level as Bench vs. Fisk, but then what is?

For the first time in this election, I am leaning toward one side. That side is the man who answered the question not the one who was concerned that an answer to a difficult issue is above his paygrade.