This is from another Blog here and is well worth reading!
A PALIN CONVERT
I am hoping that some of you can clarify for me just what 'ticket' John McCain and Sarah Palin are using in thier effort to arrive at the two highest offices in the United States of America. Senator McCain is presenting himself as a war hero. a patriot and a 'maverick' who is not really a Republican. As far as I can find in my research both candidates are registered, bona fide Republicans. So, if he is not really a real Republican how is he able to use the Republican ticket and why would a staunch Repulican governor agree to join him?
According to my English language dictionary a MAVERICK is;
A pioneer who didn't brand his calves.
An unbranded range animal.
An idependent person who refuses to conform with his group.
What do you see??
(I also wonder do some Republicans feel that thier party has been highjacked? Do some feel that thier candidate has made a rash and risky choice when he lasooed Ms. Palin? Do they hope to wake up and find this is all just a bad dream?)
Anne Kilkenny, a housewife and a Wasilla resident, who has personally known Sarah Palin for many years wrote this letter as a way to answer questions that friends (unfamiliar with either Wasilla or Sarah Palin) had begun to ask:
THE SARAH PALIN I KNOW
(Link should open in a new window..)
What concerns me about Governor Sarah Palin are not her personal beliefs alone, but the fact
that since she first ran for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska (which was then smaller than it is
today) she injected and made issues out of these in her campaign. In other words, she used
them as vehicles to ride into the sought after office. I see and hear her doing the very
same thing as part of accepting Senator McCain's offer to become his running mate. Issues
are no substitute for honest, real, solid qualification or preparation for stepping into
either the mayor's office or into the second highest office in the United States of America.
While Governor Palin's family should be "off limits" - meaning they should not be attacked
or insulted - her family life and situation is at the same time niether a disqualifying or
qualifying factor in seeking any position or office. At the same time her family situation
does not qualify as preparation or credentials for any position or office - nor does this or
the fact of her teenage daughter's pregnancy or the fact that she has a Down's Syndrome
infant make her a better candidate. These are interesting and telling, yet, should not be
made or accepted as part of her resume.
What matters are her record and her real achievments in the political arena and the means
she is willing to use, and has or is using, to achieve any position or office.
If Senator John McCain is elected as our President in November she will become our Vice
President..and at any given moment may well need to be sworn in as our President - which is
a far cry from being an attractive, fresh, interesting, attention getting presidential
running mate.
Senator McCain, who appears to be an honorable man, has - by his choice of a divisive, ill
prepared running mate - lost not only votes of many who have been sitting back and taking a
good look at both Presidential Candidates - but has lost a good deal of the respect I felt
for the man. His choice, if he is elected, stands to do harm to the citizens of this
country. Senator McCain's age is, unfortunatley, a double-edged sword. With age comes more
life experience and, hopefully, more wisdom. Choosing Governor Palin is a risk he has chosen
to take seeing how this could re-fuel his campaign. He has the right to make his own choice
of a running mate, however, he has no right to at the same time risk the stability of this
nation and to in effect place its citizens in what could well be a precarious place if his
vehicle were to become our president.
For the past several weeks I have sat quietly in the background simply watching and listening to all of the campaign goings on over the radio (NPR and BBC) and news articles on Yahoo. I listened to the radio broadcasts of much of both the Democrat and Repblican Conventions. Now, I am not a "politcial junkie"..just an interested voter looking to make the best decsion that I can come election day.
I was well impressed with Senator Obama's choice of Joe Biden as his running mate..and this is the choice I had been quietly hoping he would make! They present a mature, intelligent and well balanced team.
Senator McCain's VP choice, on the other hand, is most distressing and I don't for a minute see through what is going on with that -- he has chosen some one who can be used as a shoe horn to possibly "shoehorn" himself into the Oval Office.
I keep hearing Barack Obama refered to and labeled as "the black" or "the African American" candidate. This is inaccurate. Barack is an American citizen whose father was a dark skinned African and whose mother was a light skinned American.
Senator Obama is an American citizen who was born into a "working class" American family that valued him as an individual and where he was well nourished emotionally and intellectually. His healthy relationship with his mother and his grandmother endowed Barack with an honest and deep respect for women. He has no difficulty working with or trusting women; and is able to work well with both men and women.
Barack and his wife struggled as do many others to establish themselves in a better financial circumstance which came about owing to Michelle's work as an attorney and then the procedes from his books.
Barack's writing skill gives irefutible evidence of his intellectual capacity and of his ability to clearly communicate with others.
Senator Obama has earned his own way and has not leaned on the acheivements of others; or the name recognition that comes from association with a famous spouse or family lineage.
Senator Barack Obama is a patriot and an American citizen of mixed parentage - as are a vast number of us.
This campaign leaves a legacey to our children in that they have witnessed the fact that anyone at all who meets the basic quailications can run for President of the United States.
I will reach my 6oth year in 2009 and was privilaged to have witnessed early on in my own childhood that anyone, given or able to find opportunity, could become a doctor, a scientist, a mayor or a state governor..and more.
America is truly begining to mature despite her many mistakes and growing pains.
I hear tell that Senator Obama is not among the top bowlers in our country and that he has what my father called "a good understanding". Is his shoe size really 13 or 13 and a half? I am also hearing that he has been given more endorsements and that his campaign continues on an upward trend. And he continues to behave with dignity and comfortable humor. The momentun of his campaign can be said to have "bowled them over" where ever he has spoken and his scores are high where it really matters.
I am quite proud of this young man.
I don't expect or wish for any president to storm into the Oval Office and completely re-do how our government works. And I do not believe this is what Senator Obama means by "Change". I do hope that he will give attention to detail and implement honesty. I believe he will use the experience he has to listen to those who also have experience and who are expert in certain areas. Something that I appreciate about our system of government are the "checks and balances" which need to not be set aside.
I hope to see the deep rooted influence wielded by the Clintons uprooted. There is much weeding to be accomplished. These roots are like those of buttercups in that they poison the ground. During the past several years Mr. and Mrs. Clinton have come to dominate the Democratic party and more.
I hope to see the rule of law respected and our constitution respected.
The Clintons are lawyers who have a proven track record of working to redefine or ignore the rules of the Democratic commitee and the rule of law. They are known to be "Smokey backroom brokers and politicians." Mrs. Clinton is adept at working and speaking ahead in such a way as to be able to claim any side of any issue or situation - it all depends on what will gain the most for her politically. I have, overtime, come to see Mrs. Clinton as a Chameleon and Mr. Clinton as a very good used car salesman. He knows how to make others "feel special' when need be.
What does "Change" mean to you?
As you know, I am an idependent American who, along with many other independents and Republicans, is supporting Senator Barack Obama. I am not as well informed about either the Republican or the Democratic party as they currently exist. And I expect there are others who also need to know more about the party that our candidate represents. Here are a few online resources to get us started:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Democratic_Party
http://www.dnc.org/splashcrowd.php
http://www.dnc.org/index.html
The Charter and Bylaws were last ammended 5 December of 2005 and can be downloaded as a PDF at:
http://www.dnc.org/a/2006/01/dnc_charter_and.php
Right now at this moment in time I am listening to a radio program on NPR called 'To The Point' where they are discussing the current military actions happening in Iraq and are to discuss what our next president may have to deal with.
This brings to mind how some folks will, when they hear that I have read a certain book or have viewed a particular documentary or movie, assume or decide that this is evidence and proof of my being one thing or another. One good example is my having talked about having viewed Hillary The Movie has motivated some to say that this indicates that my overall views are right in line with the folks who produced the movie. That type of narrow, knee-jerk thinking misses the point. Could it be that some of us read, listen to and view a broad variety of articles and books; and that we listen to many radio programs and take part in many conversations. A good amount of what we see, view or read will contradict one another - and will contradict our own opinion or first-hand knowledge and experience.
I believe that it to be able to sift out truth and fact from all the noise we need to NOT limit what we will look at, read, consider and research.
To even begin to understand others, especially those with opposing views or who have made themselves our enemy, it is vital that we search out how and why they have come to where they are in their thinking and behavior. We need to identify what it is that motivates them.
As we learn facts and uncover real history we are wise to hold this up against our own thinking, beliefs and behavior. Each of us needs to come to see and understand how we also have come to think as we do and how we have come to see things as we do. We need to know where we are thinking independently and where we are being helped to think via mind games and manipulation.
One give away clue is when some one uses what I call "flag words and phrases" in their conversation or writing. These will be certain words or phrases handed out by an individual or a group spewing forth a particular ideology, political or social plan. This tells me who or what is guiding and censoring an individuals thinking despite the fact they claim to be free of such influence, guidance and control.
I hope that our next president will be an individual who is willing to listen to others, do his own homework and then sift out fiction from fact.
Something that I believe to be important has not yet ( that I know of) been openly and widely looked at and discussed. This something is the overall physical health of both Senators Obama and Clinton.
Senator Clinton has, for, many years suffered from lymphodema; a chronic condition which causes severe leg, ankle and foot swelling. There is no cure, one must simply manage the symptoms which can at times become immobilizing. She has for decades chosen to operate under great physical and mental stress in order to gain and keep control of her self proclaimed destiny as the first woman president. This has required controlling and managing more and more people, organizations, situations and so on for many, many years.
Senator Clinton's relationship with her estranged husband has not been either happy or healthy - in many respects.
Senator Clinton, at age 60, is an older woman whose rough and tumble, high speed way of living has taken it's toll. She must go to great lengths including face firming injections and professional hair and make-up artists to keep up a healthy and more youthful appearance.
Senator McCain, age 71, is a older than Senator Clinton. He happens to look his age and appears healthy. However, I seem to recall that he was taken to hospital early on this year for an undisclosed reason during or preceding a campaign stop. ( I need help verifying this.) I do know that his time as a POW will have taken a considerable physical toll.
Senator Obama is 46 (about the same as one of our children.) He is in good physical health and is showing that he has the stamina to run this rough course. I am relieved to know that he has given up smoking - making this a "non-issue". Senator Obama and his wife have a healthy, stable and mature marital relationship - something that is also good for one's overall health and well-being.
Who do you see ( and why ) as the overall healthiest candidate best prepared to stay the course?
Have you downloaded Senator Obama's BLUEPRINT FOR CHANGE?
This is a PDF file that is easily downloaded (even on a slow connection). This can then be saved and shared. I suggest that you print out a copy to keep at hand to refer to.
A good way to do this is to use a 3-ring hole-punch and then keep the pages in a nice binder. The elegant, professional looking title page can be used as a "book cover".
Clear vinyl document protector pages can be used if you wish; these also work well to preserve notes and to keep copies of articles printed from the internet (etc.)
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/
DOWNLOAD BUTTON IS NEAR THE TOP OF THE PAGE.
I have just sent the following message , through the Obama website, to Michelle Obama:
**I am a 59 year old grandmother who, having been born into a poor family, truly appreciates the home, free of want, that my husband, of 39 years, and I now share. I am also thankful that we were given opportunity to build a foundation for our children to build their homes on. As a family we still pull together and see that no one has unmet needs.
Anne ***
