The last few weeks have been torture, both literally and figuratively. Not only are we as a nation on the brink of economic disaster, but we must, in the midst of this financial confusion, also select the leader who will hopefully pull us from the edge and in a direction of promise and prosperity.
I am an optimistic person by nature. My basic philosophy in life is: hope for the best, prepare for the worst. As election day approaches I scan the news, waiting for the disaster I am sure awaits us that will take our already dire situation and make it worse. For me, as an Obama supporter, that could take many forms. Obviously, losing the election to the McCain/Palin ticket would be personally disastrous, but that in itself isn't what worries me.
What worries me is the process, not necessarily the outcome.
While I am not an African-American, I feel their collective pain as a citizen of the world. We have come a long way since slavery, Lincoln, and the Civil Rights Movement, but we haven't achieved nirvana yet. There are pockets of racist people in this country, and they aren't just ultra-conservative Republicans. There are plenty of racially confused people who are registered Democrats, especially here in Ohio. The polls show the race is tightening, as it usually does this close to the end. We honestly have no idea what will happen on November 4.
Despite the polls leaning in Obama's favor, I can't quiet this nagging, unresolved, uneasy feeling I have. Is it paranoia, fear or irrational panic? Or is it perhaps some lingering 2000 or 2004 election hangover? I just don't trust the system. This is why I chose not to take part in the early voting process. When you live in a state with a history of voter problems, have had your lawn sign stolen right from your front yard, and have lost the last two elections despite your best efforts, it's understandable that you might feel a bit... mistrusting.
It was painful in 2000 with Al Bore (typo, but I am leaving it) and demoralizing in 2004 with John Scary (ok, I did that on purpose), but we are now possibly on the verge of electing our first president of African-American heritage. In a country, mind you, which only 50-some-odd years ago would have made him drink at a separate water fountain than his opponent. Seriously, if people tell you race isn't a factor in this election, they are being very disingenuous.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Matthew T. Sussman
Wait, girls can vote now?
2 - Clavos
What IS the world coming to???
3 - Dave Nalle
What I find troubling is that an otherwise nice and intelligent person like Dawn - and many others I know - can feel the way she does about a candidate who is so transparently manipulative and has so little of substance to offer.
Obama is NOT our savior. He's just another political hack with rehashed versions of failed old ideas and warmed-over cliches. Throw in some racebaiting and some thinly veiled socialism and you get something utterly unappealing. Combine his obvious personal weakness with the rapacious band of criminals in Congress and you have a recipe for utter disaster.
But even more troubling - the democrats haven't even lost yet and they're already acting completely unhinged, with threats of rioting, more and more accusations of racism, every kind of personal attack on McCain and Palin and Republicans in general. As a group they've run the dirtiest, most scurrilous campaign since the days of Nixon, tried and failed to crucify Palin, and generally acting like bullies and fascists. If their current behavior is any indication we're in for very, very dark times if Obama gets elected.
Dave
4 - Donald Gibson
I just don't trust the system.
I'm in Florida. I really don't trust the system.
...we're in for very, very dark times if Obama gets elected.
This view seriously shortchanges the incompetence exhibited by the present administration in the last 8 years.
5 - Baritone
Dave is so right. Bush and company have been the "light and the life" of our great nation and Prince John and Sister Sarah represent our only hope for the future.
They, of course, have performed admirably, divinely even, in keeping their campaign wholly on the positive, "smiley faced" side, always paying homage to the opposition (deserved or not) while humbly, but sincerely putting forth their grand vision of the world to come if only the voting public will grant them the opportunity to serve.
But, the "Dark Lord" Obama and his slavering side kick, Joe, through their evil, deceitful, anti-American, terrorist embracing campaign have hoodwinked at least half the nation into becoming veritable mindless "Stepford" voters obviously rendered helpless through some type of nefarious mind bending or mass hypnosis causing them to march in lock step to the polls to "touch" Obama's name on the screen or hang his "chad", only to awaken come November 5th in utter horror at what they have wrought.
By the next day or two after the "voting" most all of us will have received Mao's Red Book in the mail and been given our marching orders to pick up our gray pajamas and report to work at the collective.
Only Dave knows the horrible truth. Hopefully, by next week, he will have his compound adequately armed, ready to fight the good fight in defense of liberty and the American way. It'll be tantamount to another siege of "The Alamo" that will be long remembered in the storied lore of a once great, but forgotten land.
Sad, sad.
B
6 - pablo
Nalle is truly a piece of work. I find it revealing that he will instantly write a hysterical story about a girl that says she was mugged at an atm machine by an obama supporter and tattooed with a backward B. Also his ranting on about ACORN. Did anyone else notice besides me that he has not written an actual article on ACORN? That cause its typical republican hype.
The real story about voting fraud, has little or nothing to do with an 8 buck an hour guy making up Mickey Mouse names, but something far more sinister and evil afoot.
That has to do with a combination of factors, one is the extremely uncalled for long lines for people that for the most part are poor. The average wait time for a white suburban voter in 2004 was 18 minutes, in the poor/democratic neighborhoods it was 3.5 hours, and many had to wait up to 10-12 hours to vote. That is criminal, and yet so little reported, that it makes me want to puke.
Then there is the problem of black box voting, casting your vote into the black pit of fascism, run by the republican machine. I was watching a voting movie tonight (url below) and it was truly appalling at what went on in 2004, let alone 2000.
Nalle will ALWAYS lead you astray if you listen to him, fortunately most dont. He cares not one whit about the real problem, and would have you think that he does. On this site he is the guy who will alway point the finger at the wrong direction as his argument will fleece you blind, and then his boy Clavy will come kickin along to pick up the slack.
There is a guy named Stephen Spoonamore who is an expert in the field of cryptography, computer science, and atm/debit machines in particular. He is a lifetime republican as well, he claims in no uncertain terms that Diebold machines were made to steal elections, and why. He is articulate, educated in his field, and very convincing.
I have two links for those that are interested. The first is Spoonamore's movie, and the second one is a new movie called STEALING AMERICA: Vote by Vote.
I can always tell which way the wind is blowing by reading Nalle, its always in the opposite direction, and I am glad as hell that he disagrees with me on everything.
Stephen Spoonamore on Diebold Machines
STEALING AMERICA: Vote by Vote
As I have said repeatedly on this site to the consternation of conspiracy phobia folks, your vote dont count! If you want it to count you better damned well make your voices heard, and stop acting like fucking sheep.
I am not an Obama fan either, however the republicans have stole it twice, the third time is the charm. Beware.
7 - Jet
What Pablo, my Blogcritic's article on Diebold Machines wasn't good enough for you? Click here
8 - Ruvy
Dawn,
The others commenting here are falling into their usual patterns and fighting modes.
I want to leave that altogether and excoriate you just a bit for the way you characterize the junior Senator from Illinois who is the Democratic candidate.
He is not an African American or "black" man in the sense that most Americans view black people. Such people are best epitomized by General Colin Powell (ret.) or Bill Cosby. Their roots are solidly in this country, despite the larger amount of melanin in their skin.
Barack Hussein Obama II is a man whose father comes from Kenya, a man who has firm roots on the African continent as well as the North American one. In addition, he has strong cultural ties that extend far beyond the borders of your country. He is much like me, a man whose mother is a native of the American continent, but whose father was from a different world entirely. I am properly called, in the parlance of the States, a "fist generation American" - so is Obama.
Looking beyond the snake oil that each candidate sells, if you intend to vote, at least comprehend what you seek to vote for, Dawn. Do not be fooled by appearances.
9 - Jonathan Scanlan
Ya know something.... the real reason you should elect the Big-O is that he can actually lead.
Now I know this sounds crazy, but the fact that he can run such an effective campaign shows you he's a leader. Heck, his cool during the economic crisis should tell you that.
McCain's organizational abilities aren't anywhere near the levels that Obama's are at. Regardless of what you might say about substance, it's skill that really matters.
10 - Ruvy
Their roots are solidly in this country,
A Freudian slip that comes from reading too much about your elections in America.
There will be elections here in early 2009, probably in early February. But, frankly they are not worth all that much attention, in my eyes. Shuffling the same deck of badly bent cards does not give anyone a better hand.
11 - Jet
Skip over the first page on the link in comment 7, and read the meat of it in pages 2-4
12 - Arch Conservative
"I know Republicans are afraid of Barack Obama. Change is scary, challenging the norm can frighten anyone."
Other than his skin color, Obama is the norm of American politics in every sense of the word. He belongs to one of the two major parties. He's pandered and lied his ass off, telling people what they want to hear to get where he is. He's much more hype than subsatnce relying on catchphrases like "change" and "hope" rather than honest practical solutions to our problems.
Real change Dawn, is voting for a third party, not one of the two parties that has created the problems we have today. But if it makes you feel better to vote for this phony media creation you call "the one" while placing all of the blame for America's problems on the GOP, by all means don't let me interupt your ignorant delusions with something as mundane as the truth.
"Barack Obama, if we give him the chance, could be the greatest thing to happen to this country in decades. I feel instinctively, despite the scary propaganda machine from the GOP, that this man is poised to do great things."
I feel sorry for you.
Pablo would you prefer brain dead Obama supporters chanting monosyllabic mantras such as "hope" and "change" and insiting that Obama is going to solve all of our problems to Nalle?
The fact is that Obama is a media creation. He's a novelty. An empty suit. He was president of Haravard Law Review. Whoopty friggin do. He has no real accomplishments other than that to speak of and anything that knows anything about higher education knows that positions like that are also about politics so it's really not that impressive.
The fact is that if Obama weren't half black we wouldn't even be discussing him today because it would be someone else the Dems nominated. The idiots on this site will call me a racist but I'm used to be called a racist by a bunch of race baiting leftist morons. I'd rather be honest than politically correct.
I'm not voting for McCain because I can't stand the guy and don't think he'd make a good president but it's very sad to see how gullible and how pathetically simple minded so many AMericans are to have fallen for the Chicago charlatan.
13 - Jet
It’s not just the presidential election we need to look out for. Sensing they’re going to lose this election, The GOP has started hedging their bets by encouraging us to put the GOP back in charge of Congress…
…hoping we’ll forget that when they were in charge:
The quid pro quo, they are trying to pay down to the religious right by attempting repeatedly to pass Taliban-style religious legislation instead of addressing more pressing problems with the economy allowing banks to write loans to people who were unaware that last year they’re mortgage payments would double or tripple causing the forclosure mess we’re in now..
Instead of paying attention to pressing national problems, they put everything aside in order to concentrate on subpoenaing comatose Terri Schiavo to the point of calling Bush back from on of his many multi-month vacations, in case he was needed to sign the legislation.
While trying to whip us into a frenzy over a federal law against gay marriage, they hoped we wouldn’t notice them sneaking George Bush a blanket pardon for war crimes he hadn’t (hasn’t?) committed yet.
A petty and wasted legislative session in order to rename the congressional cafeteria’s french fries, "freedom fries" because a few congressmen were pissed at the French.
Crowing over passing legislation to protect thousands of miles of our southern border… with a 700 mile fence (that still hasn’t been built yet two years later)
The imfamous Alaskan bridge to nowhere
A Republican bill to set asside $20 million for the “War in Iraq Victory Celebration”… which passed.
I won’t even go into the sex scandals.
The NSA spying on people without warrants, and our phone and financial records being examined without regulation or oversight.
Rewriting the War Powers Act so Bush can ignore the the Geneva Conventions
States becoming so frustrated with the GOP congress, that they had to resort to raising the minimum wage on their own, because the GOP-led Congress couldn't do it.
Our national debt in the year 2000 was $20 Trillion. According to the Government Accountability Office and taking into account unfounded liabilities such as Medicare and Social Security, at the end of the 2005 fiscal year our national debt was at $43 trillion and climbing.
14 - Mark Saleski
i don't want to use the word "scary"...hmm, maybe "sad" is the right word: that applies to comments like dave's and arch's. the completely arrogant and condescending attitude that people can't actually maintain different viewpoints without somehow being less than intelligent. it's this attitude that has put the republican party in the state it's in.
unhinged? right. keep telling yourself that.
15 - Lisa Solod Warren
Nice work, Dawn.
16 - Christopher Rose
"What I find troubling is that an otherwise nice and intelligent person like Dawn - and many others I know - can feel the way she does about a candidate who is so transparently manipulative and has so little of substance to offer."
But Dave, you're not standing in this election...
17 - Ruvy
Other than his skin color, Obama is the norm of American politics in every sense of the word. He belongs to one of the two major parties. He's pandered and lied his ass off, telling people what they want to hear to get where he is. He's much more hype than subsatnce relying on catchphrases like "change" and "hope" rather than honest practical solutions to our problems.
Real change Dawn, is voting for a third party, not one of the two parties that has created the problems we have today. But if it makes you feel better to vote for this phony media creation you call "the one" while placing all of the blame for America's problems on the GOP, by all means don't let me interupt your ignorant delusions with something as mundane as the truth.
Jet, in his comment immediately subsequent enumerated the Republican sins while in power.
But he ignores the fact that the Democrats are cut from a similar cloth and while for a short time in the 1930's and 1940's might have been the party of the people, the party of hope and change, they especially since the 1980's, have merely become a shadow of that tradition and are just as rich and greedy as the most greedy and wasteful Republicans, who are more like the carpetbaggers of the late 1860's and 1870's than anything else.
The term "republocrat" is a fitting and accurate epithet. The term "vulture" is more pithy, and gets to the point a lot faster.
The remnants of the New Deal Democratic Party are far and few between in the United States.
So we can expect to continue to see the NSA tap phones;
We can expect to see more wasted sessions of Congress - but the topics will be different and just as irrelevant to the crises facing your nation;
We can expect a smart boy like Obama to note carefully how Bush has concentrated the powers of the presidency, and use them far more effectively, both covertly and overtly, while covering his own shredding of the United States costitution with mellifluous pear shaped tones singing paeans to hope, change and opportunity.
We have already seen how Obama operates in Kenya, but most of you refuse to pay attention to the real record the man has.
I focus on Obama not because I am opposed to him succeeding to the presidency in your nation - quite the contrary; for my selfish purposes as an Israeli, he is just what the doctor ordered.
No. I focus on Obama because it is unlikely that you will choose McCain when all is said and done on 4 November. Were you more likely to choose McCain, I'd focus my ire and contempt on him instead. But the election appears to be Obama's to lose.
One question only remains. Will Bush cede his position willingly?
18 - Cindy D
RE #6
Pablo,
I have seen that Stealing America: Vote by Vote documentary. It is something every voter should see. Thanks for posting that.
19 - Lisa Solod Warren
Get Greg Palast's Steal Back the Vote comic book. It's a free download.
20 - troll
...perhaps there will be a military coup - what self-respecting General would allow his country to be turned over to a Marxist - ?
hoard salt and pepper
21 - Cindy D
Dave,
I have news for you. It isn't just Democrats and independents who scorn McCain and Palin and recognize that Obama is the better choice. It the conservative GOP--at least the smartest ones.
[Sarah Palin] represents a fatal cancer to the Republican party. --David Brooks*, Conservative Journalist and Commentator
Conservatives Dis and Ditch McCain-Palin
McCain is left with the voters who think Barack Obama is a Marxist and believe Sarah Palin would be a competent president. And maybe George Will will hold his nose and vote for McCain, but maybe he'll think about Sarah Palin in the White House and quietly cast his secret ballot for Obama.
* Author of Dan's Bobo's in Paradise novel.
22 - Cindy D
Dave,
Those voters McCain is left with; they sound a lot like...well--you!
Here's another good read for you:
The Rise of the Obamacons Oct 23rd 2008 From The Economist print edition
A striking number of conservatives are planning to vote for Obama
23 - Ruvy
Have you gotten your cold call yet from the Gaza Strip asking you to vote for Obama?
24 - Dawn
Look, I have done a fair amount of research on both candidates. I truly have. Read all sorts of point of views. For a while, I felt that Obama, while a natural fit, was boring and wasn't all that "enthused" about voting for him, but I have since come around to truly feeling instinctively that this man is a leader with exemplary qualities and good, sound judgment. The right man at the right time. I am not a blind follower, I do my homework.
I just don't want another divided country, that scares me more than Palin -- and that's saying something.
25 - Clavos
I just don't want another divided country
Dawn, I agree with you there. Unfortunately, I think that regardless of which one of these candidates is elected, the result will be continued divisiveness.
The reason I think so, is because of the polls -- each candidate is polling near half the voters, so half of 'em will be disappointed, regardless of outcome.
The rancor and vituperation on the part of supporters on both sides completes the equation.
The losers will not be happy.
The divisiveness will continue.