Hey You...

Yeah, you. The one reading my blog who still hasn't decided how to vote in November. Or, you -- the guy on the couch, who is going to vote for the third party candidate. This blog is for you, so pay attention.
DON'T VOTE FOR MCCAIN Period. End of Sentence.
First, don't vote for McCain if just to keep that Palin out of the West Wing. Can you imagine her with her backwards ideas visiting heads of state in other countries? Sure, she looks nice, but then she'd open her mouth and that would be it.
Second, take a good look around, are you really happy about the state of our country? The economy is in the toliet. Seriously, in the toliet. Not that you'd ever hear how bad it really is from anyone in the GOP. Those guys want you to really, truly believe that everything's okay. But, I did the math and I double checked my figures. My salary in 12 years has more than doubled and I'm still living paycheck to paycheck and just barely keeping my head above water.
Third, McCain has just chosen a great story to be his running mate. A mother of five? A hockey mom. Someone who rose from City Council to Mayor to Governor of the State. Damn, that is a great story, but she's isn't an honest Vice Presidential Candidate. She truly does not belong a heartbeat away from the Presidency.
Finally, we need to take back this nation from those who want to see our freedoms restricted and I never thought this would ever be the case, but it's the Republicans who are trying to restrict our freedoms. Can you say the Patriot Act, boys and girls? In the past sixteen years, the Republican Party has grown from the party of small government to the party of intolerant, uneducated masses. A vote for the McCain/Palin ticket will only strengthen the right wing Christians' hold and make it that much harder for real change to happen in this country. The party of God, guns and gays do not care if you can feed your children or if your small business survives in these hard economic times. They care that they can slam God down your child's throat -- whether you want them to or not. They care that anyone can purchase a weapon and can fill that weapon with armor piercing bullets (and the only thing an armor piercing bullet is for is killing a cop). They care that gays are punished for being born and have no rights whatsoever in this country.
A vote for McCain/Palin is a vote for the end of progress. And, if that happens, God help us all.

God Bless

I can't defend this...

I'm not going to lie and make you think I completely support Obama and Biden. Joe Biden released 10 years worth of tax returns that shows he donated .2% of his income to charity. For last year, he donated a whopping $995.00. How can that be? He made more than $300,000 and he gave less than $1,000. That's less than I gave to charity last year.

Now, don't think this means I'm not going to vote for him, I'm just disappointed in his lack of giving.

On the other hand, where are Sarah Palin's tax returns? At least Biden has released ten years of his tax returns. Palin has released none. McCain has released two years compared to Obama's seven.

At least we know the Democratic candidates have nothing to hide. McCain doesn't even file his taxes jointly with his wife because he'd like you to believe he's just like the rest of us. Well, the us that travels in private jets and earns $400,000 a year. Yes, all the candidates earn more than you and me, but some of them more than others.

It would be nice if Biden had given more to charity.

God Bless

Support Obama

I hadn't designed a shirt or mug in support of Obama because I wasn't going to get into the mess of designing campaign shirts, but this stuff with Palin has really gotten my panties in an uproar and I feel that I have to show my support for Obama. So, I've updated a couple of my earlier posts with links to the shirt and here's the new design. There will be more to follow.

No Questions For Palin

Does anyone beside me think it is really odd that the only interview -- as of this writing -- that Sarah Palin has given was to People magazine on the day McCain announced she was his choice for running mate?

People magazine.

A magazine that is well known for it's in-depth, journalistic integrity. A magazine that is truly known for asking those hard questions.

And, McCain accused Obama of being a celebrity.

Palin is scheduled to be interviewed by Charlie Gibson. I don't envy him. If he asks the tough questions, we'll all get to hear about how he's too tough on her because she's a woman. If he doesn't, we'll all hear about how he let her slide because she's a woman.

I hope he doesn't bother with the tough questions. From where I'm sitting, the GOP doesn't want anyone asking their beauty queen Vice-Presidential candidate any hardass questions. I'm thinking it's because women on the right aren't as tough as women on the left. They can't handle it.

God Bless

Matching to a Candidate

Powered by * Please note, the sender's email address has not been verified. I'm not sure if this will post correctly, but here's my results on the USA Today Candidate Match Game. Click the following to access the sent link: Candidate Match Game II* Get your EMAIL THIS Browser Button and use it to email content from any Web site. Click here for more information. *This article can also be accessed if you copy and paste the entire address below into your web browser. http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/candidate-match-game.htm?friendA=1,2,1.5-2,-1,1-3,2,1-4,-2,1-5,-2,2-6,1,0.666666666666667-7,-2,1-8,-1,1-9,2,1-10,-2,2-11,2,1-12,1,1-

McCain's Health Plan

Right now I work for an employer that #1. Doesn't know how to get the best deal for their employees for healthcare and #2. would love it if they didn't have to provide health insurance for their 5,000 plus employees. I purchase the highest health plan and that means I pay more in premiums than some of my co-workers. I don't use the HSA, so I can have a better health plan and I do use the FSA. I don't have a lot of health issues. I do have asthma and thank goodness I haven't had to use my healthcare much because my healthcare plan sucks. Believe me, when I leave this job it will be for two reasons and one of them is the lousy insurance.

I've heard of jobs where the pay is a little lower, but the benefits packages (tuition reimbursement, healthcare, etc.) are excellent. These positions have made me stop and think about whether I would jump ship to gain better benefits, but not gain much more in money.

Let me say this: I don't want the government supplying me with healthcare -- I want my employer subsdizing it. Right now, one of the few tax breaks I get is the pre-tax healthcare benefit for which I pay $84.49 per month or $1013.88 per year. Remember, this is completely tax free.

McCain wants to take that little tax break away. According to CNN Money, the amount my employer pays "would become taxable income. But anyone who buys insurance would receive a refundable tax credit worth $2,500 per person ($5,000 per family). That's a dollar-for-dollar reduction of your tax bill, or, if you don't have a tax bill, a dollar-for-dollar increase in the amount of money Uncle Sam would send your way."

Except it isn't. Right now, my employer pays $276.82 per month or $3321.84 per year. Under McCain's plan, I'll be taxed on that amount. So, I won't get the out of pocket pre-tax break and now my income will look like it has gone up and I'll be paying even more in taxes. But, McCain gets to tell you that he's offering you a tax break. Let's take a look at that.

McCain wants to give a single person a tax credit (and by the way, there's a difference between a tax deduction and a tax credit. A tax credit reduces what you owe and a tax deduction reduces the amount on which you pay) a total of $2,500. So, if I purchase the insurance I have now, it will cost me $4335.72 -- because the tax break is only for those people who buy their own insurance. The government will be giving me $2500 back, bringing my grand total to $1835.72, which is not only $821.84 more than I pay out of pocket now, but it's all taxed, which adds to the amount that I give back to the government.

Let's just see how much more someone who makes $50,000 a year will pay our government and for health insurance.

I'm using last year's tax tables and I'm going to make the assumption that I'm still allowed to put tax free money into flexiben, which'll keep some figures the same. I'm, also, assuming that I can even purchase the insurance and maintain at least the same coverage for the same price as my employer, but we know that won't be true. Also, keep in mind, your salary goes up on your Federal form, it goes up on your state form. (And, yeah, I know, some states don't have income tax. Bully for you.)

Under the current system, taking off the $1,013.88 for current healthcare costs and $2,500 for Flexiben a single person's taxable income (with no deductions, but the standard) is $41,136.12. The tax amount is $6,705.00. That comes to 16.29% for Federal Tax. And, I've only paid $1,013.88 for healthcare.

Now, the new system:
$50,000.00 salary
$ 2,500.00 flexiben
$ 5,350.00 standard deduction
$42,150.00 taxable income

$6,955.00 taxable amount

My tax amount is now $250.00 higher under the new system. I'm now taxed at the higher amount of 16.50%. Oh, wait, I did forget to take the tax credit off.

Okay, now, I'm paying $4,455.00 in Federal income tax. That's a lowering of my taxes by just under 6%. Hey, that sounds pretty good, doesn't it?

Except my state income tax rate is 6.5%. Under the old system, I report $41,136.12 in income and I'm taxed: $2,673.84. Under the new system, I report $42,150.00 in income and I'm taxed: $2,739.75. A difference of $65.91. So, now, I've paid more in taxes -- not much more, but still more AND I've paid more for my insurance coverage: $821.84 more.

And, what did I get for it? $821.84 could pay for a new laptop or pay for a gifts for my grandsons. Maybe, I might give that money to charity.

But, who benefits?

My employer. They now get to save $3321.84 and if you think they'll pass that savings on to me in the form of a raise -- think again. It goes in their pocket. Multiply that by 5,000 employees and they've saved $16,609,200.00. It isn't going to be in the employees' pockets -- I can guarntee you that. Some companies might be willing to pass the savings along, but most won't and you know they won't.

You know who else benefits?

The insurance companies. They can then charge me more for insurance because I'm no longer a part of a group.

You know who won't benefit?

American workers. They'll have even less in their pockets than they do now. According to McCain, that'll be a good thing. But, then, the Republicans are acting like our country is chugging along just fine and we don't need to fix it. Life is good. And, if you think the economy is bad, you have a mental condition.

Someone recently called me a single issue voter, but I'm not. I have loads of reasons for no longer backing McCain. His ideas are not good for me. Ask yourself, are they going to be good for you?

God Bless

Stop Questioning Palin

Okay, I'm confused. Sarah Palin has been selected by John McCain to be his Vice President candidate. Until McCain picked her, 90% of this nation never heard of her. No one knew her name -- for the most part -- outside of Alaska. Yet, McCain's campaign engine has "declared heatedly it was time to stop questioning her background."¹

Are they kidding?

The woman is running for Vice President of the United States of America. I think she needs to answer some questions. Like, how is she going to do in energy meetings when her husband works for an oil company? According to "Tucker Eskew, a senior McCain advisor"² she is "someone with both hands on the steering wheet of America's energy economy."³ Probably because she sleeps with someone who works for an OIL COMPANY.

The campaign is trying to play the sex card because the media is just out to "destroy the first female Republican nominee."⁴ When Hillary tried to play the sex card, the media and the GOP just made fun of her, but I guess you can play it when the female is a Republican and it is okay. If she isn't tough enough to answer questions now before she's even officially nominated as Vice President, how the hell is she ever going to be tough enough to be Vice President?

And, by not asking her questions, by not looking into her background, is the GOP just wanting us to accept four more years of secrecy and lies? Are we as a nation supposed to just lie there and blindly agree with our government? Haven't we had enough of that?

And, another thing, I don't think people should have us ignore Palin's inexperience and then knock Obama's. That's being a hypocrite. And, if you're wondering, Yes, I'm talking directly to you, Fred Thompson. (But, if you're reading this, I loved you on Law & Order.)

God Bless

I've looked far and wide and all I see are hypocrites...

Sarah Palin's seventeen year old daughter is pregnant. Now I know that Obama states that Palin's family is off-limits, but I disagree. Palin supports abstinence education, hmmm, how's that working out for you, Sarah? The Palin's are going to compound the issue by having their 17 year old daughter marry the father of the baby. Well, that sounds like a match made in Heaven.

What really burns my butt on this is the wrong-wing Christians who are rallying behind Palin. Oh, this just shows she's human. This can happen to any family. Blah, blah, blah. This is BS because you and I both know if the shoe was on the other foot and it was a Democrat's child, they would be all over it like white on rice. This, also burns my butt because this is a clearcut example of how abstinence education DOESN'T work.

I'm sorry this seventeen year old girl is going through a pregnancy the whole world knows about. I can only imagine how thrilled she must be that her mother's running for VP, so this is no longer a private family matter. I wonder if she even loves the guy she now has to marry to help her mother save face?

And, on top of all this, I have to hear from my mom that: 1) Palin should resign, so she can take care of her family and 2) if she wasn't governor, her daughter wouldn't be pregnant out of wedlock. Like somehow working mothers are to blame when their children are pregnant out of wedlock and the fact that my mom was a stay at home mom is the only reason I didn't end up being a pregnant teenager. (Trust me, Mom, that had nothing to do with it.)

God Bless

McCain's VP Choice

I was going to blog today about something to think about when you're voting, but then John McCain took the wind out of my sails (and Barack Obama's) by making his VP choice: Sarah Palin.

Who?

Yeah, I've never heard of her either. She's Alaska's Governor. (Alaska, that cold state to the Northwest.) All I know is that it is her first term and she's the mother of five.

I, also, know that she's a very smart choice.

Paul Begala -- some guy who writes for CNN and is a Democratic strategist -- disagrees and that explains why the Republicans won with Bush two elections in a row. The Democrats don't really know how to win elections if they're using thinkers like him.

His article states that someone, given McCain's age, as inexperience as Palin is a bad choice. Hey, Paul, I hate to bring this up, but Obama is in his first term, too. Now, I know my father was rooting for Condelezza Rice, but she would've been a bad choice, as are the men Begala mentions in his article.

Begala thinks it was a mistake for McCain to have "passed over Tom Ridge." Are you kidding me? Choose the head of Homeland Security? A man who is very much in line with the Bush regime? That would be like killing his election chances right now.

Mitt Romney? Too scary to even consider.

Joe Lieberman? Someone who didn't win in the primary, so he left his party to be an Independent. How many Republicans are going to trust he will come over to their way of thinking and how many Democrats are going to trust a turncoat?

McCain has taken some wind out of Obama's sales by choosing a woman as his running mate. It shows he still has some maverick left in him. Now, we have a Black Man and a White Man running against a White Man and a White Woman. McCain has put some of the women's votes that were 99% likely to vote for Obama back into the unknown category. A woman VP? History in the making on both sides.

Now, on a personal note to Mr. Begala: In case he's reading this: You moron. My dad's 71 years young and he isn't going to croak in the next four years and I'm betting neither will John McCain (also 71). Where do you get off making an assumption that being over 70 suddenly makes one old?

In case you're wondering, however; I've changed my mind about McCain and will NOT be voting for him. But, I promise you, his AGE has nothing to do with my decision.

God Bless

GOP On Democrats and other thoughts...

Why is any news outlet interviewing Republicans about the Democratic convention? This isn't the week of the Republicans -- it is the week of the Democrats. Who cares what the other side has to say this week. They'll have their chance during their convention. Now, so no one can say I'm being unfair, I'll just state it now: I don't care what the Democrats have to say during the Republican convention. Can we hear the messages and speeches without hearing the twisting of words from the opposite side?

Why do people still think Al Gore said he invented the Internet? How come that sticks in people's minds, especially when it isn't true?

And, speaking of Al Gore, why do people still believe that Global Warming is fake, even when there is a mound of evidence to the contrary? Plus, how could anyone be against making air safer to breath and water safer to drink? What are these people thinking?

And, why is it that when I'm in the shower, I get great ideas for things to write, but the minute my feet hit the tile floor, the idea is gone? How could I do my best thinking in the bathroom?

Why do people think that because they attend church they're good Christians? I can stand in my garage, it doesn't make me a Buick.

One last thing: why is Halle Berry the first Black woman to receive a Best Actress Oscar and Barack Obama the first Black nominee for President when both of them are each 1/2 white? Why aren't they the first mixed race Best Actress Oscar winner and the first mixed race nominee for President?

God Bless

Race

This week -- for the first time in history -- a black man will become a major party's candidate for President of the United States of America. Forty years ago, another black man stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and spoke about his dream. With Obama's nomination, you would think that Martin Luther King's dream has come true.

It hasn't.

Last week, a young white woman (20 years old) was talking to me and said (and I'm quoting): There's two sides to every story, unless they're black. They always lie.

Yesterday, a white 40 year old male said to me (and I'm quoting, again): If Obama wins, blacks will start thinking they have power.

Now, I'm ashamed to admit that I didn't say or do anything that would counter these quotes. Truth be told, I was shocked speechless. Racist remarks, especially by someone younger than I am, still stuns me. I cannot believe that in the year 2008 that people still feel this way about other races.

I'm not going to proclaim that a great many of my friends are black because it isn't true. I have a couple black friends. I attended a mixed race schools and the one thing I've learned about blacks is they're really just like whites. So, how could it be that there are still people - under the age of 60 - that do not believe in the equality of the races?

With Barack Obama making history, you would think that Martin Luther King's dream of a world where the races lived together in harmony would be reality.

Too bad it isn't.

God Bless

Interesting Politics -- Possible Running Mates

I went to log into my Roadrunner account and there's a bunch of headlines at the bottom. One of them says, "Sen. Joe Lieberman to speak at GOP convention." Well, that's an interesting way to start the day. If you know your recent history, you know that Lieberman ran for VP in 2000. When he lost the Democratic primary in his home state of Connecticut, he ran as an Independent and won. Now, there's talk that he might be McCain's VP choice. Lieberman certainly would be an attention-grabbing choice. And, McCain could use a little more attention.

On the other side of the fence, yesterday, I received a public email from Michael Moore to Caroline Kennedy begging her to consider becoming Barack's running mate. I don't know a lot about Caroline Kennedy. I remember a picture from her wedding day where she was standing outside the church -- looking radiant and beautiful as all brides do -- and she's trying to get the crowd of well wishers to be quiet. She looked really poised for someone holding her finger to her lips.

I wasn't alive nor were my parents married or even knew each other when John F. Kennedy was President. I didn't watch Caroline grow up like so many of my friends did. She doesn't feel like an old friend. Now, her brother, John, that was different. He was everywhere when I was growing up. He was like the older brother I wish I had. When he died in that horrible tragedy, it was the only time in my life I said a prayer for a famous person -- an honest to goodness down on my knees, please God, let him be okay prayer. I could see an Obama/Kennedy ticket if John were still here.

But, Caroline? She's never -- that I've noticed -- shown any interest in politics . She's written books and I know she's heading up the selection committee to help find Obama's running mate. She might be a good choice. She's the only one left from Camelot. She's shown in very hard times that she's level headed. (I don't think I could've been that poised on my wedding day if I had a bunch of people disrupting my service.) And, Caroline doesn't come with a lot of the baggage a different running mate might have. Also, because she hasn't held a political office, she would represent a big change.

Maybe, Michael Moore is right and Caroline should become the next Vice President of the United States.

God Bless

Celebrity and Campaigning

I haven't seen many campaign ads this year. Come to think of it, I've only seen one campaign ad - McCain's Celebrity ad. Have you seen this ad? He compares Obama to Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, claiming that like Spears and Hilton, Obama has no substance.
Let the negative campaigning begin.
You know what ad I'd like to see? I'd like to see an ad where McCain blows smoke up my skirt to tell me how he's going to make my life better. I'd like to see the samething from Obama. I don't want to see negative ads.
But, as Bush proved in 2004, you don't win an election without negative ads. They resonate. Do you know there are still people in this country who believed the pack of lies sold by the Swift Boat attack ads on Kerry?
Couldn't we try something different? Couldn't we get a real understanding of our candidates?
Because based on this one ad, my understanding of McCain is that he has nothing to offer, so he's going on the attack.
God Bless

Obama and the Preacher

I've been mulling over this one for a couple of days now. Barack Obama attends a black church in Illinois which is run by a black preacher who has said some pretty extreme things about America. Senator Obama has denounced what Pastor Wright has said, but he hasn't changed churches, which has some people all up in arms.

Now, would any of us -- minus those of us who attend Trinity church -- even know this pastor's name if someone didn't want to make Obama look bad?

And, all those who have sat in church and listened to a priest, pastor, minister, deacon, etc. and have never disagreed with the one who was preaching, please raise your hands. No one, right?

I have sat and listened to one priest after another say something I whole heartedly disagreed with and I'm still a member of the same church. Why? You might ask. Well, because it's just one priest and it's just one sermon. Some of the priests were visiting pastors and they were gone in a week, some of the priests I heard because I attended a different Mass than my usual one at a different church. During the last Presidential election, I heard a priest strongly imply that a vote for Kerry meant the voter would be burning in Hell and he never said the name Kerry.

Anyway, what I have heard is that there is talk that Senator Obama should renounce his membership in this church and walk away from it. Obama, so far, has refused to do so.

I think Senator Obama is making the right decision. A church can be a second home to someone. Your church of choice is very personal, even if you're running for a public office. Too much is being made of our elected officials religious beliefs as it is and we should really mind our own business. Faith is faith and politics are politics and never the two should meet. I'm sure the good Senator -- if he was even at that particular service -- cringed when he heard Pastor Wright say "America's chickens have come home to roost." But, Trinity feels like home and we shouldn't expect him to leave home.

This past weekend my grandsons were visiting and they attended Easter Mass with us. I was reading the readings and when I was done and returned to the pew, Danny clapped and said, "Good job, Nana. Good job."

So, following Danny's lead, I say to Barack Obama, "Good job, Senator. Good job."

God Bless

Conseratives for Romney

According to Mitt Romney, he is going to win the Republican Nomination because "We really can't afford John McCain as the nominee of our party."

John McCain is the only candidate out there that might bring our country back together. Mitt Romney is only interested in keeping our nation apart. He said in a recent debate that he supports a protection of marriage amendment. That's just a fancy way of saying anti-gay amendment. He's been pandering to the religious right and that isn't the way to bring this nation back together.

We have serious issues that need to be solved. We are fighting two wars -- Afghanistan and Iraq. The dollar is slowly sinking. Foreclosures are at an all time high. We have 47 million Americans without any healthcare. Gas prices hover around $3.00 a gallon (here in Racine) and we're headed for a recession when we really haven't recovered from the last recession.

Those are the issues we need to be discussing. We need to strengthen our borders and join together to bring America back to the glory I know in my heart she so rightfully deserves.

John McCain can bring our country back together. Under McCain's leadership, we can solve our issues working together. A union divided cannot stand -- we learned that over 100 years ago when a man named Lincoln was our president. We can learn it again under a man named McCain.

A vote for Romney is a vote for four more years of the division we have had under Bush. A vote for McCain is a vote for unity.

God Bless

PS. Anyone Limbaugh and Coulter don't want in the president's seat must be okay.

T-Shirt

I saw an advertisement for a t-shirt that says, "If Hillary is elected, I'm moving to Canada." What kind of jerk would wear a t-shirt like that? You're going to change countries because you don't like the President? If we all thought like that, 49% of us would be in Canada right now.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for showing your support or your non-support for a candidate or party, but leave the country? Isn't that going a bit too far? Plus, it just bugs me because the guy wearing it probably doesn't know anything about Hillary Clinton except the fact he doesn't like her. He probably can't even tell you why if you asked him.

So, I say, let's all vote for Hillary to get morons who wear shirts like that to leave the country!

:-) It might make the USA a better place to be!

Oh and one last thought, could we try something a little different this election year. Could we try to be civil to one another and make decisions on Candidates based on issues? United we stand, divided we fall and we have been divided for far too long.

Just a thought.

God Bless

Fred Thompson

I like Fred Thompson. I think the guy is a terrific actor. I can see why the very right wing of the Republican party is courting him -- enough for him to give up his job on Law & Order.

Here's what I've found out about where he stands on the issues:

• Abortion - He voted against abortion on three different occasions.
• Gay Rights - He voted against adding sexual orientation to the hate crimes bill and he is against gay marriage.
• Death Penalty - He's for it.
• Privatizing Social Security - For
• Gun Control - He voted on more than one occasion to eliminate background checks at gun shows.
• Voted for the war in Iraq.
  

Now, I like Fred Thompson. I think he'd be a great guy to sit and chew the fat with over ice tea on a hot summer day on the back porch, but I'm not so sure I want him to be the next president. Although, I think he's got a pretty good shot at winning.

First, the man's from Tennessee. He's a southern boy and southern voters like voting for one of their own. Second, he plays a very likable character on TV. A lot of people associate actors and actresses on-screen characters with their real life character. Heck, even I like the guy based on nothing more than his movie and TV parts. I've never seen him play a character I didn't like. I don't have much else to go on. Third, he's not a Washington insider, which has been a bonus for candidates lately. Finally (but only because I'm running out of time), he's a protestant, which is always good for business for a presidential candidate.

But, you should make up your own mine. Do the research and decide if you'll offer him your support.

God Bless

The Upcoming Election Year...

Unless you've been living under a rock, you know that next year is a Presidential election year. It's all over the news.

I'd like to try something different this election. Let's not pick a front runner until all the facts are in. Let's not let the media pick the two people we should like.

Also, let's agree on some basic items with which our next President has to deal. Here is my top three list and I have more, but I'll save them for later.

1. The War in Iraq. Anyone who thinks we'll be out of Iraq by the end of 2008 is fooling themselves. We can't leave this country until it has a stable environment. That means more troops and more money spent. (and, yes, unfortunately, more lives lost). We've started something that we just can't leave. Not winning in Iraq means more terrorists, not less. This isn't like Vietnam. The Vietnamese weren't going to get on boats and planes and attack us. Terrorists trained in Iraq eventually will. Should we have started the war? No, but now that we have, we can't just take our football home and not play anymore because it's too hard to finish the game.
2. Health care. 45 million Americans do not have any form of health care. I'm not necessarily advocating a national health care plan, but let's find ways to reduce costs, while not reducing coverage. The company for whom I work is touting their new health care program for 2008. Smaller premiums, but they are encouraging each employee to put money into a tax free savings account -- that translates to less is going to be covered. We shouldn't have to lose coverage for lower premiums. Also, I'm tired of these rich companies complaining about health care, like it's some great sacrifice to cover their employees. These same companies pay their CEOs so much money that if they got themselves a cheaper CEO, they could put that money into health care for their employees. (You know, the ones doing the work.) We need to offer better tax breaks on the employers' portion of the premiums, maybe even credits (which is better than a deduction).
3. Dependence on Foreign Oil. Enough is enough. We need, since our car companies can't seem to do it on their own, to mandate higher MPG on our cars. If we have to subsidize some of this, take the money back from the oil companies to do it. We need more research into other alternative fuels -- including electric cars. GM (correct me if I'm wrong about the company) had one, but they concluded that it was too expensive to mass produce and there wouldn't be a large enough buying public. Are they kidding?!? I would've purchased the car. Also, let's do real tax credits for buying electric or hybrid cars. Not this only the first so many buyers need apply and that it had to be by a certain date. Further, let's encourage companies that provide company cars to purchase hybrids/electrics -- give them a tax credit for doing so.

There are many other items we can agree upon, but these are a fairly good start. Let's find the candidates that come up with the best solutions to these issues. Let's not care about political parties. And, above all, let's not let the extreme right wing Christians hijack our country for another four years.

God Bless

John Edwards for President

I like John Edwards, really I do. In fact, I think I voted for him in the primary when he ran the last time and I really voted for Kerry for just two reasons:
1) I dislike Bush
2) I like John Edwards.

BUT, did he have to throw his hat in the ring this early in the game? Can he really keep the momentum going all the way to the White House? I don't think so. Personally, I don't think anyone can.

Personally, I think discussing the next Presidential race when it is still a year away is just too soon. We have issues that need to be resolved now, not in two years when a new president takes over. I think our politicians spend way too much time campaigning and not enough time running the country, but maybe, that's just me.

God Bless

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