http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOyD_fvTzos
This is worth listening to - what a great way to explain his decision.
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label politics. Show all posts
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Monday, September 1, 2008
More on politics
A few thoughts on the current situation:
Obama gave a kick-ass speech. If you haven't watched it - you should. Go google it.
McCain's timing for the announcement was intended, imho, to draw attention away from positive reactions to Obama's speech. I seriously wonder if he pushed for someone totally bizarre like Palin in order to draw more attention away. Later, he can have her "drop out graciously for the good of the party" and he can revert to someone more boring and less likely to get him news.
McCain is down in the way of the people trying to do their jobs in New Orleans. Grandstanding... Obama - is staying the hell outta the way so people can do their jobs - and asking his supporters to donate to organizations that are helping.
Obama needs to take gun-owners, hunters, and union members seriously. Gore lost, at least in part, because folks felt they had to choose between abortion rights and gun rights, and more chose gun rights. Picking Biden cuts into Obama's chances of keeping those independents and centrists - but his speech did a pretty good job of pushing away from any extremist position about guns.
Those of us who care about science have more to worry about - if Palin does gets in, we're going to lose even more support for real science - she's a creationist, doesn't believe humans have any impact on global warming, and is against stem-cell research, as many have pointed out.
This year, we need to focus on the core values and rights of the American people - and the Bush Administration is violating those, and McCain promises more of the same - with or without Sarah Palin. Democrats need to keep emphasizing the positions that Obama took in his acceptance speech on Thursday - that there are more things that unite us as Americans than divide us, and that even in the most divisive areas, we can find common purpose.
Obama gave a kick-ass speech. If you haven't watched it - you should. Go google it.
McCain's timing for the announcement was intended, imho, to draw attention away from positive reactions to Obama's speech. I seriously wonder if he pushed for someone totally bizarre like Palin in order to draw more attention away. Later, he can have her "drop out graciously for the good of the party" and he can revert to someone more boring and less likely to get him news.
McCain is down in the way of the people trying to do their jobs in New Orleans. Grandstanding... Obama - is staying the hell outta the way so people can do their jobs - and asking his supporters to donate to organizations that are helping.
Obama needs to take gun-owners, hunters, and union members seriously. Gore lost, at least in part, because folks felt they had to choose between abortion rights and gun rights, and more chose gun rights. Picking Biden cuts into Obama's chances of keeping those independents and centrists - but his speech did a pretty good job of pushing away from any extremist position about guns.
Those of us who care about science have more to worry about - if Palin does gets in, we're going to lose even more support for real science - she's a creationist, doesn't believe humans have any impact on global warming, and is against stem-cell research, as many have pointed out.
This year, we need to focus on the core values and rights of the American people - and the Bush Administration is violating those, and McCain promises more of the same - with or without Sarah Palin. Democrats need to keep emphasizing the positions that Obama took in his acceptance speech on Thursday - that there are more things that unite us as Americans than divide us, and that even in the most divisive areas, we can find common purpose.
Friday, August 29, 2008
I thought you were a libertarian?
After my twittering while watching Obama's speech - a friend accused me with "I thought you were a libertarian".
I do consider myself a small-l libertarian. (I've never been a Libertarian party member). I voted for Harry Browne. I believe in individual freedom and limited government. I worked for concealed carry reform in Minnesota, and have always been staunchly supportive of gay rights, abortion rights, and opposed to the war on drugs.
I am also a pragmatist.
And I believe that, this year, we need to focus more on rebuilding our country than on ideological purity. Barack Obama is not my ideal candidate - and if I were a single-issue voter, I wouldn't vote for him. But I do believe that he will uphold the Constitution, *unlike* the current administration. I do believe that he will rein in the abuses of our civil liberties. Probably not as far as I'd like, but far more than if McCain gets in. I believe that he will work to restore our pride in America, and some of our belief in America and what it stands for.
Perhaps, if I were more of an idealist (and less of a cynic), I'd believe that, if we just let things *really go to hell*, the American people will *rise up* and we'll have a revolution to take back our country. After watching the erosion of our liberties over the years, with the willing consent of those whose liberties were being taken, I no longer believe that.
Is there a better, third-party, truly-libertarian candidate? Unfortunately, this year, I don't think any third-party candidate matters. Because this year, they won't get in. This year, I intend to cast my vote and spend my energy on a candidate who has a chance to get in and who won't further destroy my country once there. Once we've rebuilt and reminded Americans what it means to be American, maybe we'll have a shot at pushing forward and getting a real libertarian candidate into office. But first, this year, we have to recover America from what has been done to her.
This year, I'm voting for Barack Obama. Because, even more than being a libertarian, I am a patriot. And dammit - I want my country back!
I do consider myself a small-l libertarian. (I've never been a Libertarian party member). I voted for Harry Browne. I believe in individual freedom and limited government. I worked for concealed carry reform in Minnesota, and have always been staunchly supportive of gay rights, abortion rights, and opposed to the war on drugs.
I am also a pragmatist.
And I believe that, this year, we need to focus more on rebuilding our country than on ideological purity. Barack Obama is not my ideal candidate - and if I were a single-issue voter, I wouldn't vote for him. But I do believe that he will uphold the Constitution, *unlike* the current administration. I do believe that he will rein in the abuses of our civil liberties. Probably not as far as I'd like, but far more than if McCain gets in. I believe that he will work to restore our pride in America, and some of our belief in America and what it stands for.
Perhaps, if I were more of an idealist (and less of a cynic), I'd believe that, if we just let things *really go to hell*, the American people will *rise up* and we'll have a revolution to take back our country. After watching the erosion of our liberties over the years, with the willing consent of those whose liberties were being taken, I no longer believe that.
Is there a better, third-party, truly-libertarian candidate? Unfortunately, this year, I don't think any third-party candidate matters. Because this year, they won't get in. This year, I intend to cast my vote and spend my energy on a candidate who has a chance to get in and who won't further destroy my country once there. Once we've rebuilt and reminded Americans what it means to be American, maybe we'll have a shot at pushing forward and getting a real libertarian candidate into office. But first, this year, we have to recover America from what has been done to her.
This year, I'm voting for Barack Obama. Because, even more than being a libertarian, I am a patriot. And dammit - I want my country back!
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