I haven’t written a lot regarding politics in the history of this blog, and that could be a good thing. With the coming mid-term elections this fall and the run for the presidency starting to make more than whispers, it’s really hard not to think about. Perhaps I’m finding myself more inclined to talk about it now that I’m no longer a U.S. resident, so you’ll have to bear with me as I try to do more of this from time to time.
The thing that pains me the most right now is the thought of John Kerry[wiki] running for president again. I haven’t liked the guy since he first came on the radar for the ’04 elections. I have this problem with politicians in general, but something about Kerry left me feeling less than impressed from the day he stepped up to bat.
The one issue that I keep coming back to is how Kerry would consistantly say what he would have done if he was president when (insert significant political issue or event, that occured prior to the date of making said statement, happened during the Bush administration, and occurred before the ’04 vote, here). This is what we call hindsight, and it was also banking on the anti-Bush sentiment that ran among those with the “anyone but Bush” method of voting.
It almost seems like his tactics haven’t changed.
Sen. John Kerry didn’t contest the results at the time, but now that he’s considering another run for the White House, he’s alleging election improprieties by the Ohio Republican who oversaw the deciding vote in 2004.
An e-mail from Kerry will be sent to 100,000 Democratic donors Tuesday asking them to support U.S. Rep. Ted Strickland for governor of Ohio. The bulk of the e-mail criticizes Strickland’s opponent, GOP Secretary of State Ken Blackwell, for his dual role in 2004 as President Bush’s honorary Ohio campaign co-chairman and the state’s top election official.
“He used the power of his state office to try to intimidate Ohioans and suppress the Democratic vote,” Kerry says in the e-mail, according to a copy provided in advance. [cnn]
The article goes on to say that there have been groups not affiliated with the Kerry campaign contesting the results, even into present day. Granted that he lost and fighting the issue in Ohio might not have changed anything, don’t think that this won’t come up in the ensuing run up to the ’08 vote.
Here is what I want from a presidental candidate, and I mean candidate. Not an elected president, but from the people who want to be the final group of folks looking for the vote.
Tell me that things are messed up, and how you are going to fix it. Don’t tell me what you would have done if you were president in the past six years. I don’t care about that. I’ve lived through it. I know what’s going on. Don’t rehash the past unless you are trying to educate me on the history relating to the present. And then, tell me what you are going to do to fix it.
I don’t care what you would have done on 9/11. Katrina, New Orleans, the Iraq war, foreign relations debacles, and so on. Those things happened already, you weren’t the one in charge then, they were/are messy situations, and nothing you can say about will change anything in the present. As far as I know, time machines do not exist, so let’s talk about what I would like to hear.
Tell me that things are screwed up. Admit that mistakes have been made, especially if you are a senator that voted for something that affected the issues, negatively, that you want to solve, positively. It’s broke, and here is how you want to resolve it as president. And then, keep telling that message over and over. It’s called a platform. Keep that in the media. Don’t make me have to go to your website or read a pamphlet to understand what it is that you want to do as leader of the United States of America.
I’m crying out for people, voters and campaigners, to start thinking about this now, and start thinking with their heads instead of what party they might be registered with. Kerry might have made a great president, and the election might have been rigged. Say what you want about 2004, and little will change how that turns out today or tomorrow. We’ll never know what could have been. We’ve got bigger things to worry about for the future, and living in the past is the worst type of politics that I have ever seen.
i gotta say although it is lame that im very political i do my best to keep it out of friendships dont talk about it at work blah blah blah but every now and again i cant help it and ill through a post up on darfur or something and i always feel strange not because i care shit no adam knows we ever come into money me = africa NOW but because i know i only show although almost ALL still NOT all of myself on my blog. it is interesting to me how it is hard to branch into other areas and show other sides of yourself…for me anyway..
i’d LOVE to read what you have to say on your former country of residences politics i’d read it all! 🙂 this post was great!
It’s something I’m slowly beginning to branch out into. It’s just a matter of getting my head around an issue and then feeling like I understand enough to say something about it. In my head, it all makes sense. But when you pour it out for the world, it gets a little tough. I guess that’s what comments are for though. It’s all about generating discussion.