Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Election Thoughts


I have been mulling over the political conditions and implications that are currently going on in this country. As I reflect, several realizations have come to my attention:

1. It seems to me that this election is one which involves the wrong candidates. A better nomination which more truthfully reflects the ideals and substance of the Democratic party would have been Hillary Clinton. Once again, the current Democratic candidate (Obama) is painting himself as much, much more conservative in his policies than his voting record reflects, in order to win the most votes. Similarly, the senatorial maverick, John McCain, is not the best representative for the Republicans. Rather, the better candidate, Newt Gingrich, chose not to run this year. Frankly, I can't blame him. Gingrich would have completely ruled the debates, but such is the way of politics.

2. This election has turned into one which involves communication. Ronald Reagan was called the "great communicator" and for good reason. Mr. Bush essentially has become the anti-communicator, unwilling or unable to effectively speak with the American public due to his spin on Iraq, which we all know has turned into the defining issue of his presidency. McCain, like Bush, also has been unable to communicate effectively, especially during the debates, which has cost him greatly. (see my previous article "John, John, John") I can see that his aides tried to urge him to be positive during the debates, smiling and pumping his fist in a "gung ho" gesture, but style without substance does not cut it. Obama, for all his extremely liberal platforms on various issues, is an effective communicator, and it is this that appeals to the American public. He is able, with his team of PR folks, to express his ideas in such a way as they do not seem to be all that bad. Make no mistake, though, he is essentially a communist. At the very least, he is a socialist, which is why Europe is hoping he will be elected. There used to be a saying here in the US- "better dead than red." If you don't understand that, ask someone older than you.

3. Boortz did a piece on Obama this morning that cuts through a lot of the fluff and gets right to the heart of various issues- it can be found at http://townhall.com/columnists/NealBoortz/2008/10/21/to_the_undecided_voter. He stole my thunder on the issue of being a great communicator ( I started writing this article early yesterday morning) but he (Boortz) makes several points that need to be considered to every person that will vote.

4. Once again, it is my opinion that this election is one that involves the lesser of two evils. The economy seems to be the issue that most of the news agencies are pressing. However, the reason this race remains close is because many also feel the issue of national security and Islamic terrorism are the issues that are the most important. Americans seem to vote with short sightedness, with whatever issue seems to affect them the most at that particular time. In this case, that would be the strain on their (our) wallets. Personally, I would think that tough times don't really matter as much if your city is blown into kingdom come in a cloud of nuclear radiation. Last year, right here in our state of Georgia, in Savannah, a group of Islamic militants were detained when it was discovered they had illegally smuggled nuclear material to our shores in a container vessel. Look it up for yourself. You DO realize that Obama wants to make drivers licenses available to any foreign national that wants one, whether they are in the country illegally or not? Yeah, that's what we need.

One thing, one hope is of reassurance to me. God is ultimately in control, regardless of the seemingly powerful forces of politics and power. The true issues are spiritual, not earthly. The disease is not the Romans (as many Jews thought in Jesus' day,) it is within the hearts of men. Thank you, Lord, for Your long suffering towards us. For Your mercy and love. Kirie Elienas. Christae Elienas.

G.Houtchens
armchair coach
amateur historian

No comments: