WHAT YOU TALKIN' 'BOUT, WILLIS?

Tell Me Who To Vote For...

So far, most online quizes are telling me to vote for Kerry, but ugh.. I don't know if I can bring myself to do it.

My overall theory on voting is balance. I want checks and balances, and if they have to come in the form of a Republican in the White House and Democrats in majority in congress, or vice-versa, then so be it. I think that's why the 90s were so prosperous, not because either party had a monopoly on governing. Therefore, I should vote for Kerry, since the Rs have taken over congress.

But, and this is a big "but," the Supreme Court is ultimately composed of justices of the Exec. branch's choosing. The Supreme Court is fairly balanced now, though slightly leaning left. There are potentially 2 justices stepping down, and with balance in mind, I'd rather see it swing 6 to 3 conservative to liberal vs. 7 to 2 liberal to conservative. This may not seem like a big deal, and certainly doesn't get much press, but the big decisions are ultimately decided here, and as much as I dislike their lifelong appointments and bizarre system of being chosen by the president, scandalized by the opposing party, and ultimately railroaded into office--the justices control this country's moral, ethical, and legal standing. This to me to vote for Bush--idiot that he is.

The other issues that are important to me are:

No more tax cuts for rich people - I could even pay a little more if necessary..

More environmental regs for fuel ifficiency and clean air emissions - Come on, who needs or even wants to burn that much fuel?

Limiting medical malpractice suits against docs - our whole healthcare system/drug company needs big overhauls, but this is a start.

Caps on social security payments to the wealthy. Why do they need a check anyway?

Background Checks on Gun Show Purchases. Have you seen these things? ESPECIALLY with the assault rifle ban lifted... (Dems were sleeping on this one. Did they really think laying low was going to get them more NRA votes?)

A big change in my thinking lately is on abortion. For a long time I was somewhat apathetic about abortion, in that I do believe it's wrong, but several things kept me from feeling like we should do anything to overturn Roe v. Wade. However, thanks in small part to a guilt trip laid on me by the conservative co-host of Teens Talk, I've come up with an analogy that changes my opinion. If the KKK, or any hate-group were driving around in their pickups randomly shooting black people (or gays, or the minority of your choice) I would have a pretty big problem with that. I would do everything in my power to make it stop. Why not the same thing for unborn babies?

Many born people feel like the unborn are not people, but just living tissues. I disagree, but I can (unfortunately for my political inner-wranglings) see the argument. People are who they are due to nature and nurture. We are formed by our experiences, the majority of which happen post-birth. However, it all comes down to whether you believe the unborn are in fact people, and if so, do they have rights. I support the passage of the double-homicide for killing a pregnant mother (burn Scott Peterson--j/k!) which accepts the unborn as actually being a person. Doesn't the whole thing remind you of blacks only having three-fifths of a vote?

Another related probelm is a woman's right to choose. Where's my rights as a father? Half that DNA is mine. That child is mine. Guilt-trip I laid on my wife: Someone gets an abortion because the child is unwanted and it will screw up their life. Well, my son is 14 months old and my life is radically different. I happen to love every change parenting has brought, but what if I didn't? Would my father's right to choose allow me to get rid of him? Certainly not. I hear that men and women see abortion differently, but I don't understand how. I'm sure it's because I'm a man.

That whole argument brings up our constitutional right to LIFE, liberty, and to pursue happiness. This brings to my mind the issue of gay marriage, which I believe is ALREADY PROTECTED by the US Constitution. I disagree with gay marriage, I believe homosexuality is against God's will, but I do believe that it is completely protected by our existing laws.

Do I want my son to grow up in a world where gay dudes are kissing on the street? Hmm, guess what, he already is. Wouldn't protecting their right to do so encourage this lifestyle--yes. But do I want to limit other people's rights because I don't like them or their lifestyle? No. People don't want their kids exposed to homosexuals because they don't like them. Guess what, Hitler had the same feelings about Jews.

I want my son to do everything HE can do to show people God's truth. That may include but is certainly not limited to voting his conscience.

Finally, the war in Iraq. I wish we hadn't gone there. If Gore had narrowly tipped the scale (though I'm glad he didn't) we would never have gone. Not that I don't see some positive in it. People are free. But hey, guess what? They don't want to be. They want extreme muslim shar'riah law, which is very much akin to the Taliban where you could be arrested for not having a beard, women couldn't go to school and had to walk around in a sheet, and music--yes ANY music, was illegal to own or play. Which country had the most rights for women and other civil liberties (except occasional being dragged to torutre chamber by the Baathists)? Yep, Iraq. (I guess that's why the administration thought thaey would feel liberated and accept democracy.) Turns out they hated it. They want to go backwards. Well, now they can.

Not that I blame Bush. The military and CIA cook up wars. Take the Cuban Missile Crisis--we could have invaded. We came very close. But we didn't. Those missiles were a few hundred miles off the coast of Florida... I feel sure if Bush had been president we would have invaded Cuba (and possibly completely devalued the treasured cuban cigar industry). But Kennedy masterfully/luckily/diplomatically solved the problem. We could have done the same with Hussein. But every part of our administration fell for the cooked up lies of WMDs and mobile chemical factories. Were these reports completely untrue, exagerrated, or what? Nobody knows, because all this administration can do is stick to their guns and say, "It was the right thing to do." I supported it then. I'm just not sure anymore.

No I don't condone Saddam's torture, rape, and murder of his people. I hate it. I hope he pays dearly for it whenever they prosecute. But it's no more than I hate genocide in Rwanda, starvation in Haiti, or any other dictator depriving people of freedom. But were there missiles pointed at us? No. Would there have been? Maybe. There are now possibly in Iran and N. Korea...

BTW. I'm not concerned about WMDs in the hands of terrorists. I'm concerned about anything in the hands of terrorists. Terrorism is my number one concern in this election. WMDs are just another piece of a much bigger pie. The DC sniper caused more alarm over the last four years than any "Duck and Cover" educational film from the Cold War.

Well, spelling all this out helps me think through the issues. But, I don't know who to vote for. I could make a list, then pick the candidate who I agree with on more issues. Yippee! I could also go to McDonald's and order 3 out of 5 items I enjoy and 2 that would make me vomit. What I wish is that we could vote for the issues, and not the morons who these two ridiculous parties put before us.

Posted by cmwillis at October 14, 2004 12:41 PM | TrackBack