On September 30th I wrote "WE NEED HIM TO WIN! And imagine the message the world would receive if he won by a landslide???"
Along with billions of people around the world, I watched with tears of joy as Senator Barack Obama was announced President Elect of the United States of America, after sweeping the Electoral College.
It's been difficult these past weeks... I've been living on antacids and milk because my normally cast iron stomach had rusted through with stress from this election. This is not a diet I recommend, but it was effective; I lost 2 pant sizes in the past week. Still can't eat; my head and my heart know that he's won, but my stomach appears to be a slow learner.
Anyway, full speed ahead. I'm so proud of our candidate.
What do we do now? (aside from feeling relieved/thrilled/joyful beyond words?)
Five Myths about John McCain:
http://www.rollingstone.com/videos/player/23356460
Make-Believe Maverick:
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/make_believe_maverick_the_real_john_mccain
Apparently something I wrote Monday morning on an email forum has been making the rounds, so I figured maybe I should post it here as well:
I just saw the blurb scrolling across ABC stating that McCain has most of surburban and rural voters (and that Obama has 57% of urban voters) and wanted to share my thoughts about this for anyone working with undecideds.
I'm rural, white, female, nearly 50. I was born into a Republican family (I remember when my parents and grandparents voted for Nixon!) I live on a small farm (small livestock) and was raised on a large farm (cattle.) Why does this matter? Because I think I come from the demographic you are trying to reach, and I have some insights.
I've been a maveric (in the true sense of the word, not the "McCain" sense) in my family for decades. I raised my child intelligently rather than following the herd (and my child is the only grandchild with straight A's in school, never in trouble with the law and not yet reproducing). I questioned parenting styles, food sources and how it was grown, voted with my feet and my dollars, questioned why on everything, and definitely questioned authority in every area when necessary. I became a Democrat decades ago. My husband was a STAUNCH Republican just like his own farming family (see the follow the herd pattern?) and we would argue about candidates and their platform. He always insisted that Republicans were the answer for a good economy, and that he would never change.
Fast forward to 2008. After several years of struggling in a downturned economy, and many months of real financial fear, Hubby is now thinking that Democrats aren't so dumb, that Republicans have duped him, and that just MAYBE his wife has been right all these years. (Can't really refute all the evidence, especially the son he's so proud of, who, I am thankful to say, thinks for himself and is a Democrat.) I heard from my son a week or two ago that when the guys were out scouting prior to hunting season (yep, grew up with HUNTERS as well.... you are getting the full deal here) son told me that my husband said out loud to his Republican uncle that he likes everything about Obama except his name. Okay, we are making progress.
What does this mean to you? You have a glimpse into the mindset of rural and hunting voters, and possibly some of the key words to use in getting their votes.
What matters to farmers and hunters? Economy just like everyone else. Guns for hunting.... all the men in my family are hunters, and I grew up eating venison (deer) because we were too poor to eat our own homegrown beef. However, despite the fact that hunting is the life of the men in my family, none of them belong to the NRA. We don't own handguns or AK47's, and see no reason why anybody needs one. (Thank goodness Obama released something about promoting hunting and fishing. I've since been informed that "Obama taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School and that Obama has said that the 2nd Amendment provides for an individual's right to bear arms.")
A real maveric thinks for him or herself, and doesn't vote for a ticket just because the family has always done so.
The evidence speaks for itself. Vote accordingly.
Names mean squat. My husband admitted in the very next sentence (above) that anybody with his German surname would never have been voted President after WWII. So yes, he's aware of the irony of his name prejudice. But he's voting Democrat in November.
I hope this info was of some help.
~ A Real Momma
What a relief that the VP debate is over. I very nearly didn't watch it because I'm sick to death of Palin and wasn't sure I could get through it without hurling. Thankfully, I forced myself, and so was able to see Biden at his best. Good ol' Joe handled himself as a gentleman and a statesman. The utter nonsense from the other side might have been funny if so many people didn't actually fall for it. Really... do people honestly fall for "yer darn right" and winks?
As Cafferty at CNN so aptly put it earlier this week, if BS were currency, Palin could bail out Wall Street all by herself.
Thankfully, the polls have unanimously showed that Biden won, and that anyone who was not a rabid Republican generally thought Palin was a wind up doll spewing memorized lines and relied upon feminine "wiles" rather than the intelligence, grace and attention to the issues necessary to this important position. She was all show and no substance. I have read many posts today, most along the lines of these:
Here is something I posted in the local newspaper this morning:
"Intelligence counts. 8 years of embarrassment from the Current Occupant of the White House has to stop. Our children and grandchildren will be paying for his mistakes long after we are dead and gone, not to mention the many who have lost their lives due to him. Do you want a repeat? Palin is nothing more than Bush in pumps.
Give her a sash, tiara, a bouquet of roses and send her calculated smile and winks, and her condescending "aw shucks" good ol' boy talk back home to Alaska where she can continue her efforts to secede from the USA. Her 15 minutes should have been over long ago.
I'm voting for the only ticket in which the candidates have real educations, who have real plans for our country, who listen to us, who show statesmanship and practice statesmanship. We need real leadership, not an old man who's clearly befuddled and his Barbie doll sidekick.
Oh yeah.... She said "nucular" at least eleven times. How embarrassing for her and for our country."
Wow, the world changes fast. Obama came out ahead in the first debate, putting the world back on its proper axis. And even conservative GOP women are now stating that Palin is not fit for the White House and should step down. Wonderful! Then things go south. Again. Economy, economy, economy.
My fears about Palin & McCain (notice the order... that seems to be how the country views them) are lessening. Palin's "charm" is wearing off, and her stupidity is becoming more obvious to those that didn't see it right away.
However, I'm learning more about McCain. I knew he had a horrible temper, but I didn't realize just HOW low and HOW coarse he is until this past week or so. If you go to YouTube and type in "McCain curses" loads of relevant videos turn up showing him cursing out public citizens, fellow congressmen and the media. Is this what we want in a leader? When the going gets tough, do we want someone who can do nothing other than shout "F U!" over and over???? I'm disappointed that this fact is not getting more press.
But I'm relieved that the polls are showing that Obama is ahead. He needs to win. WE NEED HIM TO WIN! And imagine the message the world would receive if he won by a landslide???
I am filled with hope. I have nothing left but hope. I have given all the $ I can afford to give.
I am so afraid. I'm having nightmares regularly. Horrible horrible nightmares about horrible things happening to my family. I can only attribute this to what's happening in our country; how we are seeing a repeat of 2000 and 2004, and how the Republican ticket has been revived by a trashy and thoughtless pick for VP.
I'm seeing polls that show men are now aligning with the GOP only because Palin is on the ticket, and they are stating it's because she's gorgeous and they want to sleep with her. WHAT???? Think with the head on your SHOULDERS! We don't need a "pin up girl" in the White House.... we need intelligence and diplomacy and honesty!
The thought of this woman running our country frightens me to death! And if McCain wins, the VP will run the country.... he is losing his mental grasp, as well as being in very poor health, yet most Republicans are ignoring this or just can't see it. They "see" the McCain of 2000 (who might not have been too horrible, compared to the person currently occupying the White House), but he's not the same man he was 8 years ago.
But even a 2000 version of McCain was no match for Obama now, in any sense.
This video makes me feel a little better. Please click and take 5 minutes to listen while you go about your day.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61y3W5CvQYs
And I'll keep reading and watching the Obama campaign, and doing what I can to help get them into the White House. Once that's accomplished, I'll be able to sleep again. We can't afford for them not to win.... literally and figuratively. WE CAN'T AFFORD MCCAIN!
I've become a "news junkie" in the past weeks... learning all I can about all the candidates. I've learned my candidate is not perfect (kind of a relief! He's human!) and I've learned VERY disturbing things about McCain that really concern me as a person, but truly frightens me should he become President!
Our leader should not have an uncurbable temper, our leader should be willing to be on good terms with leaders in other countries, our leader should put the needs of US citizens ahead of his own political ambitions, and our leader should show good judgment. There are many more criteria that I feel are necessary for the Presidency, but it's late and I'm too tired to think of more. However, McCain does not meet any of the above criteria, and OBAMA DOES!!!
As for Palin.... ewwww. Pretty on the outside, but NOT on the inside! Aside from being against women's rights, and against the environment, she generates such a pack of lies! What a self-centered, unkind person! With a 72-year-old with a variety of health issues heading the ticket, we should be very very afraid of this woman and the 2008 Republican ticket!!! But any criticism of her is considered "sexist" or "off limits."
I hope and pray like never before that people will THINK before November, and vote on ISSUES, rather than the scare tactics that have been churned out regularly by the GOP.
I voted for Obama in the Washington State Primary. I've donated money I cannot afford to donate in order to help get him elected. I've watched the last 2 elections in which the Presidency was stolen from the Democratic candidate. My family cannot survive another stolen election by the Republicans, regardless of a lipstick-wielding VP pretending to represent me and my issues. While I've long felt that a woman in the White House would solve most of the world's problems, Palin is NOT that woman.
~ signed: NOT a "hockey mom", but an "academic mom" who wants better for my son. Barack is the answer.
