Just thought I would share this, if you don’t want to listen click the back button. I just thought I would post a descending opinion to most on this board, as to why I have switched – but I have always voted on principal and not party. Depending on who I think is better for the country under the current climate, will get my vote, democrat, republican or independent. I never vote straight party ticket and won’t once again in this election on the different races, but I will share the presidential choice. I originally had decided that I was going to vote for Obama – I really was dead set on needing change from the direction we were heading, had even sent a lot of money to his campaign, but in the past few weeks with the new climate changes have switched to McCain and will definitely be voting for him this election (trust me, I have more then evened things up on the money front), here are the main reasons why: Economy – I don’t think either one of these two have a solid plan for all the problems, however I don’t believe under any circumstances do you increase taxes for anyone during for all intensive purposes a recession. The bottom line raising taxes now on small businesses and businesses in general in essence is a tax on everyone, because business will make that money back, either by raising prices or cutting jobs. I sit on a board of a large publicly traded chemical company and have already started to see the effects of possible Obama win, as we have actually had to implement a hiring freeze on vast majority of the openings – until further notice. Then where Obama really lost me as of late was his insistence on what he calls “re-distribution of wealth.” That to me is not, is not, the American Dream. I guess we can thank the infamous Joe the Plumber here for seeing the truth, because it’s times like that when their not up giving rehearsed speeches in front of constituents and talking off the cuff, you see where they truly stand. Deficit/Spending – Here is where Obama continues to lose me, with a large deficit (~10 trillion) and more than a trillion possible in these latest buyouts, he still is talking as he is plowing ahead with his near trillion dollars in additional spending. In these times we really need someone who will cut spending drastically (make government smaller not bigger) and McCain has at least talked a lot about major cuts, however I don’t believe in a complete spending freeze is the answer – but still that is better than the alternative. Energy – Obama’s stance on nuclear power and possibly offshore drilling concern me here. We really need to look at every alternative possible to gain our independence from the rest of the world. I do believe this is where Palin could really shine as she has the history of success here. Health Care – I am not sure I am with McCain on his idea of issuing a $5K health credit, but I admit I need to do some more research on the viability of that policy. However, when we discuss the alternative I feel as though Obama is going to take us ever so close to socialize medicine. One thing my company is currently doing is looking into the changes we will have to make to our current health insurance, as we have always prided ourselves on great benefits for our employees as a way to recruit top talent – however, it appears even we may have to implement changes based on Obama’s plan and our HR VP will be addressing these next week at our board meeting, so I will be interested to see how that unfolds. Character – I have great concerns over Obama’s relationships with guys like Ayers, Wright, Pfleger and others, as you definitely see a pattern here that is concerning and if the economy wasn’t such a hot topic would have more than likely devastated his campaign. As I talk to a friend of mine in the CIA, with those relationships Obama most likely wouldn’t have been able to get a higher government position like (CIA, FBI, etc.) due to the harsh security checks they are scrutinized through, but yet he can be president. However, I do strongly believe Obama is above all that and a great patriot and American, and wants the best for America, I do not question that one iota. My concern is that it shows he is too far off to one side for my liking. Entitlements – Obama seems to have some clear plans here, not heard much from McCain here (outside of the typical rights talking points), but somebody in this next term will need to address things such as social security. Foreign Policy – I don’t believe there is any choice here, this is truly where McCain out shines and Obama seems to continue to fall short in my opinion (usually on the wrong side of the debate every time). Then to have his own running mate come out and say “Mark my words – Obama will be tested early” is absolutely scary and cannot believe this is not more of an issue. I also am totally against someone who believes you should sit down with guys like Ahdamnejad (sp?) without pre-conditions, that my friends is dangerous. Supreme Courts – There is a possibility there could be anywhere from 2-3 slots opening up on the Supreme Court this term. I don’t want any one issue to be the litmus test for who should get appointed and I have always been a proponent of best qualified, not on ideology or on one particular case (especially Roe Vs. Wade). It seems when we research the 2 candidates we notice that Obama voted against Alito and Roberts due to their conservative beliefs not qualifications. Where McCain has voted on judges based on their qualifications that he definitely disagrees with on ideology, like Ginsberg and others. Others – The attacks on Sarah Palin, in my opinion in the media and even on this board, by members I once respected have been completely out of bounds. It has caused me to do more research on her and listen to what she has said and done, and I walk away very impressed with her. Now, do I believe she is ready to step in right away to be President, as of now, not overly confident, but even when I was behind Obama I had questions here and still do to a small extent. Misc. Factors: Being a moderate, I never like the idea of not having checks and balances in our government, mainly due to distrust in them. So having the three parts of government (excluding judicial – which could tilt with 3 possible selections) run by Obama, Pelosi, and Reid (you can also add the media on their side) does not allow for any oversight, therefore painting a possible scenario where the government will get very large, which I oppose. I have never been a supporter of them making decisions for me and my family, I believe the American people can do that for themselves better, and with that group we will be heading in that direction without a real consenting voice. Bottom line, whoever wins this election, America needs to support fully, especially in these times and I will definitely do my part. However, unlike many on this board, some in particular, I don’t believe it is a forgone conclusion who will win this election, a lot can happen before November 4th and still believe it will come down to the wire. Alright that’s enough and now it is time to blast me…………….I am thinking it will be somewhere around the 2nd or 3rd post, with the “you were always a McCain supporter”, which would be an outright lie…………..
The only thing I really care about is spending but when Obama could not name something he would cut and McCain said he would start a spending freeze I thought that was pretty amazing. I seriously doubt it matters which one is elected though. Congress spends the money and there are no line-item vetos so the government will continue to work as it has. So I cannot make any valid argument for one candidate over the other.
That is indeed a "descending" opinion. j/k thanks for sharing. And at least we completely agree on the bottom line. Even though I will vote Obama, I will be a good supportive citizen if McCain wins. For the record, I tried the same for Bush.
I respect your views, but I don't share them...and Palin is bad for this country, we should have learned our lesson about putting stupid people in a position of power.....and McCain being 72, and aging fast...even if I wanted to, I could not vote for him because of Palin. DD
Did Obama say "redistribute the wealth" or "share the wealth"? I thought it was the latter. At some point, the quote morphed into "redistribution" -- not sure why. I guess the word "share" has too many positive connotations.
Nah, he just looks really old and tired, at some point everyone reaches that age where they go downhill fast...that looks like McCain to me. DD
President is an extremely high stress position. Just look at before and after pictures of Clinton and Bush to see how badly it ages you. Imagine what it can do to a 72 year old man with a volatile temperament.
Rocketball thanks for the thoughtful post, but the reasons for your change seem to follow McCain talking points to the letter.
I respect your change of opinion, mine was the opposite, I was backing McCain but picking Palin broke the camel's back. Spoiler
unlike the members above who respectfully said "good for you, but I disagree", I'm going to flat out state that you've lost your way and you lost your ability to think for yourself.. you basically bought the B.S that the despicable McCain campaign has been selling, and it's really sad to know that someone would actually change his opinion solely based on the lies and deception of that campaign. I personally stopped reading after the "character" part, where you stated that Obama's relationships with "Ayers etc.." are of concern to you.. look, I'm not trying to sway you back or anything, because, bottom line is, Obama is 90% likely to win. However, I really think you should look at the big picture here.. I posted a nasty analogy in an another thread, so I'm just gonna make it less nasty and present it to you, please consider it: let's say that you're locked up in prison with close to no rights at all.. you've been in prison for 8 years, and the only meal you've had in those long 8 years has been animal excrement (specifically, pig excrement, sorry it's gross).. today, after the 8 years, the guards approach you and say, "we decided to give you a choice on what to eat for the next 4 years, the first choice is animal excrement, but this time from younger pigs, as opposed to the crap you've been consuming for the past 8 years, which were obtained from aged pigs, and the second choice: broccoli, what do you choose?" .. so basically, you're choice is between animal excrement, which you've had for 8 years and you're sick of, and broccoli.. now you might not like broccoli, you might even be allergic to it, but you'd be insane if you chose the same pig crap over broccoli.. do get where I'm coming from? I'm saying that something new, whatever the hell it is, is better than the same thing, which has been tried and failed miserably... Einstein's definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results.. by this definition, you'd be insane if you vote McCain (omg, it rhymes!).. I have one last thing for you, please watch the following 2 videos: <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GEtZlR3zp4c&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GEtZlR3zp4c&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object> <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/C4egXbhSOhk&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/C4egXbhSOhk&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object> sorry for the long post, and your reply/argument is welcomed..
Neither candidate thrills me. I lean more republican than democrat (although I am in favor of gun control) but Obama is not "conservative" enough for me so there is no way I could vote for him. But thanks to Dubya, he has made it to where it didn't matter if Jesus himself ran for President on the Republican party - the Republicans are not going to win. I think many people are voting Obama because they are tired of the Republicans having the Presidency. This will be the first time since 2000 when I voted for Gore that I wound up voting for the losing candidate and knowing this already really sucks. I hate our party system - I really do.
All of these men served 2 terms, 8 years. Post pictures of yourself from 8 years ago and you will not look the same no matter how old you are. Time and gravity are never on your side.
I'm not criticizing your positions - you have some very good reasons in there to vote for McCain, but I'd like to point out some that are simply factually false. You may want to do more research (or you may not) - that's your choice. Obama has already stated any tax increases must wait until the economy is expanding. He has proposed raising taxes by 3%. Everything from Social Security to Medicare to taxes being used to build roads to Texas' "robin hood" education funding is redistribution of wealth in the context it was used in his 2001 interview. He has more recently talked about spreading the wealth with Joe the Plumber - that's the idea of trickle-up economics, where you cut taxes on the middle class, which causes them to spend money at businesses, which creates growth for everyone. It's simply the opposite of trickle down economics, but is very different from redistribution of wealth. Most studies of each side's plans show that McCain's is at least as deficit-unfriendly as Obama's, unfortunately. This is one thing that disappoints me with both of them. McCain has promised a balanced budget in 4 years, but that is impossible in itself, and even more impossible when adding up the math of his plans. While Obama has proposed more spending plans, McCain has proposed more tax cuts. Neither is helpful to the deficit. The odd thing about this debate is that Obama and McCain have virtually the same position on Energy. Obama is open to nuclear energy, with more safety regulation. They are both open to offshore drilling - something both opposed 6 months ago - though Obama's is contingent on also forcing work on alternative energy. Interestingly, McCain's reason for changing to support offshore drilling was that it didn't make sense at $70 oil, but did at $140 oil - but now we're back to $70 oil. Why is this scary? It's a factual statement based on history. McCain would be tested as well. What is dangerous here? People say this a lot - but what are the specific negatives that come out of meeting with him? I've never quite understood this. For what it's worth, both candidates are beholden to their parties here. Obama's not going to nominate a pro-life leaning judge, and McCain's not going to nominate a pro-choice leaning judge, no matter what they tell you. Their respective parties would revolt. Just my thoughts.
define "conservative enough", and allow me to ask you this personal question: are you willing to have this country suffer through essentially 4 more years of Dubya just because the alternative candidate "isn't conservative enough" for your liking? those are really sincere questions please don't take offense to that..
Of course you'll look different, but you can't deny that anyone in office ages a lot worse than most people.
and you are critisizing RocketsBall for buying into the McCain campaign? lol. listen Obamatron......you are spewing the same 'animal excrement' most other Obamatrons have been spewing for at least a year. 'Change' 'Change' 'Change' you are so ready to spite Bush you don't even realize who you are really voting for. yes......."Change". Si Se Peude.
no.....it's that Obama is far more liberal than Bush is conservative, thats what is scary....seriously, a President more left of Kennedy, Kerry and Pelosi? yikes.
