Vote or Die

After what seems like years of primaries and campaign trails the time has come to finally get out there and vote, which is what I hope all of you plan to do on Tuesday if you haven't already. This election has been covered from front to back and top to bottom. We've watched the presidential and vice presidential candidates debate. We've heard the words reform, economy, taxes, and health care tossed around ad nauseum. We've heard sound bites like "fundamentally sound", "small town Americans", "mavericks", and "going rogue". We've heard the names Joe Six-Pack, Joe the Plumber, and Joe Obiden. We've heard everything we're going to hear from the candidates and now it's time to make our decision. In the spirit of what appears to be an historic election, I would like to add some of my own personal talking points to keep in mind when going to the polls:

~ Barack Obama is not Muslim. Remember the whole Reverend Wright uproar? If he has a reverend then he's not Muslim. Sorry conservatives, you can't have it both ways.

~ John McCain doesn't know whether he should sit down and talk to President Zapatero of Spain (or any other Latin American leaders).

~ Barack Obama is half black and half white.

~ John McCain has never been an astronaut.

~ Sarah Palin's view of Russia from a tiny Alaskan island gives her foreign policy experience.

~ John McCain plans on giving everyone a $5000 credit for health care, even though your current plan most likely costs close to $12,000.

~ Sarah Palin was stumped by Charles Gibson, Katie Couric, and two comedians from Canada (now those two are a couple of mavericks.)

~ Barack Obama is not Marxist, Socialist, or Satanic.

~ Sarah Palin can't name any newspapers she reads or any Supreme Court cases other than Roe vs. Wade (c'mon Sarah, Brown vs. Board of Education, Dred Scott vs. Sanford, Miranda vs. Arizona, Curly vs. The Three Stooges...oh, wait, ignore that last one.)

~ John McCain knows how to catch Bin Laden...but he'll only tell us once he's President.

~ The fact that Obama rhymes with Osama means absolutely nothing.

~ There is nothing wrong with having hope and supporting change.

Super Troopergate

This is probably not what McCain's campaign had in mind when they told Sarah Palin to go out and get them some press. I can't wait to see the pseudofeminists and deluded women of America defend their precious hockey mom in lipstick.

Alaska panel finds Palin abused power in firing

The difference

Actual debate aside, the differences between the two candidates was astounding. Barack Obama perched comfortably on his chair watching McCain intently. When he spoke he looked directly into the audience his words full of charisma and self-assuredness. McCain, in contrast, scribbled madly on his notepad, at times stumbled in his speaking and shuffled aimlessly around the forum like an old man in his bedroom slippers.

As far as the debate itself, both sides had moments and missteps. But while Barack Obama spoke clearly and plainly about energy, tax policy and the economy, John McCain tended to wander in his thinking until he found a foothold and then burst into a diatribe about one of his campaign's topics. It even seemed as though he was attempting to prove his political know-how by referencing vague and obscure policies, bills, and so on.

If tonight wasn't a clear demonstration of why John McCain is not capable of running the country then I don't know what is.

A word from the wise...

I have mocked McCain and Palin, posted the parodies and unflattering interviews but now I want to be completely serious. To all undecideds, Republicans and, especially, Hillary-turned-Palin supporters I have something to say.

Stop and Think.

This is my new mantra. This election has come down to back and forth arguments between McCain and Obama supporters, reminiscent of the childish "Yah-huh, nuh-uh" variety. For a country that appears to be going down the toilet, this is not the most effective plan.

There have been arguments over whether or not McCain is physically and mentally fit to be president. Well, stop and think. The President of the United States is a taxing, stressful job. Is a 72 year old with a history of health problems the best choice? McCain loves to talk about his time in Vietnam and his five hellish years in a POW camp. Could his time as a POW have caused him traumatic stress that has made him mentally infirm? It's an assumption made about many other Vietnam vets, why not him?

McCain has proven himself to be somewhat of a hothead. Sarah Palin likes to say that one cannot hesitate but must act without blinking. Is this the type of leadership we want in Washington? Well, stop and think. When the day comes when a country points it's nuclear (pronounced nu-clee-ar) weapons at us, or terrorists start chattering about destroying a U.S. city, do we need the hotheaded, triggered-fingered, "strike-first-ask-questions-later" administration that McCain and Palin will surely bring to the White House? Or do we need the calm, level-headed, "weigh-the-consequences-and-act-appropriately" administration that Obama and Biden are much more likely to provide.

Ladies, this next paragraph is directed at you. Sarah Palin has said that she is anti-abortion and that she would like to see Roe vs. Wade overturned. Do you want an administration that will decide what you are allowed to do with your body? Well, stop and think. Placing Sarah Palin in office will undo decades of work that women have done to earn rights and equality. A short sidebar, remember that pro-choice does not equal pro-abortion. Pro-choice means that you have the opportunity to choose what you want to do with your body. This is not something that should be taken away. No one is forcing abortion on you but it is there if and when you need it. If you don't approve, then choose a different option. I respect the decision of women who choose not to have an abortion, please respect my decision if I decide to have one.

I know that many women out there would love to see a woman in the White House. I would love to see a woman in the White House. But Sarah Palin is not that woman. Sarah Palin is not Hillary Clinton. She is not even in the same league as Hillary Clinton. Be patient, ladies. The day will come when a woman enters the oval office.

The McCain/Palin campaign is doing a frighteningly thorough job of scaring their supporters into believing that Obama is not capable of being President. How exactly are they convincing you of this? Well, stop and think. They are spending the majority of their time (and, most likely, money) flinging nasty jabs and sarcastic remarks at the Democrats. They are producing ads that are nothing more than smear campaigns. They are deflecting hardhitting questions with cliched soundbites, negative commentary on their opponents, and cries of "sexism" and "offensiveness". This might be convincing people that the Democrats are a bad choice but are they really convincing people that the Republicans are a good choice? When the election is over and all is said and done, what have they accomplished? They've successfully (and unfairly) made Obama look bad but they haven't proven themselves.

This country has become so jaded and pessimistic that it can't stand the sight of optimism. There are people out there balking at the hopefulness and integrity of the Democratic campaign, writing it off as naivete. There are people mocking the idea of "change" as a platform when that is exactly what this country needs. Please don't be afraid of change, don't be afraid to be hopeful. Truly listen to what each candidate is saying and then stop and think. Think for yourselves. Don't let them tell you what to think.