Democratic National Convention

As I sat here watching coverage of the Democratic National Convention (DNC), I'm struck by how ridiculous the 4th Estate has become. Pundits are analysing the comments as they are made without really knowing how they will play. What I was struck by was how little Americans make decisions on who to vote for based on real issues. The issues in this election (in no particular order) are quite clear. 1) The economy 2) The War in Iraq 3) Health care 4) American foreign policy. How one can even conscience voting for any Republican candidate at any level is beyond my ability to comprehend. To put it simply, I'm flabbergasted. Where do the Republicans find these troglodytes from? How do the Republicans convince millions of working class Americans to vote against their own economic interests and for them? Anybody earning less than $500k per year should read the book "What's the Matter With Kansas" before deciding to ever again vote for a Republican.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 45.7 million Americans have no health insurance. Almost one in five AMERICAN children live below the poverty line (18%). That is happening in the wealthiest country in the world (and perhaps the wealthiest country in world history). It is simply absurd. As much as I like(d) John McCain in the past, after doing some research, he has voted with the "mainstream" Republican Party viewpoint in over 90% of his votes since 2000. The translation: he agrees with Bush.

Bush is a failure as a world leader and has not taken America in the direction we as a nation needed to go. How did we go from a budget surplus under a Democrat (Clinton) to a huge budget deficit in 8 years? How did we as a nation on 12 September 2001, wake up with the entire world feeling sympathy for the biggest most powerful country in the world, and proceed to dispose of this sympathy in record fashion with a ridiculous war? How can we justify the billions spent in Iraq when we have 18% of our own kids living in poverty? The answer is simple: the chthonic reign of George W. Bush. McCain has shown by his voting record that these nascent policies would continue. Is this what McCain means by leadership when he questions Barack's leadership credentials?

Recently Barack stated that the Republicans would try to make the American populace afraid of his last name, skin color, big ears, etc. This is precisely what has happened. We need Barack. We need a leader with resonance on the world stage.

Theoretically, the part of the world who dislikes America would love for us to vote for McCain, not Barack. Voting for McCain will vividly illustrate to the world that the majority of Americans agree with the disasterous course of American policies over the past few years. This action will only serve to alienate America further from the rest of the world. Electing McCain will be the waterloo of American influence. We need a fresh face with fresh ideas.

Make a smart decision in this election and ignore the media. Vote based on knowledge and on the candidates records. In short: ignore the soundbites. If you don't know the issues, go to www.glassbooth.org and you can find the candidate that best reflects your own views. Okay...I'm going back out into the desert night.

Regards,

Richard the Nomad