h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

During my aimless meanderings about the site, I occasionally see various UKnians expresses "support" for John McCain. Do people really think he'd be a better choice than Obama?

McCain's positions on some issues is frightening:

1. McCain endorses a complete reversal of Roe Vs. Wade, he voted against family planning, he voted against the freedom of access to clinic entrances — that was about violence against women in clinics, he voted against funding for teen pregnancy-prevention programs, endorsing abstinence-only programs.


2. McCain opposes gun reform.

3. McCain panders to the anti-immigration lobby.

4. McCain proposes tax cuts and reducing spending (which of course means cutting back on federl programs and social services).

5. McCain does *not* support legislation that would outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation.

6. While McCain does not support a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, neither does he support its legalization.

7. McCain supports "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policies in the military, claiming that "open homosexuality within the military services presents an intolerable risk to morale, cohesion and discipline."

8. McCain is a strong supporter of privatization of Social Security.

9. McCain is against publicly-funded health care, universal health care, or health coverage mandates; he instead favors tax credits of up to $5,000 for families that get health insurance.

10. McCain is against government regulation of network neutrality; he supports allowing network owners to control what sites consumers view, saying "When you control the pipe you should be able to get profit from your investment"; and he introduced the Consumer Broadband Deregulation Act of 2002, a deregulation measure aimed at preventing the government from requiring broadband providers to offer access to competing ISPs in the residential broadband market.

11. McCain has stated that he believes that the U.S. is a "Christian nation."

12. McCain voted yes on recommending a Constitutional ban on flag desecration, and yes on memorial prayers and religious symbols being allowed at schools.

13. McCain opposes the legalization of marijuana for medicinal use.

14. McCain supports the use of vouchers (providing federal funds to send children to faith-based schools).

15. McCain voted Yes on a 2004 crime bill which mandated prison terms for crimes involving firearms and stricter penalties for other gun and drug law violations.

16. McCain has indicated that he supports the use of the death penalty, mandatory prison terms for selling illegal drugs, and stronger restrictions on the purchase and possession of guns. McCain also voted in support of the USA PATRIOT Act.

I'm sure there's more, but I don't have time to look now.

Sure. But I still think that USAnians are in for disappointment if they think Obama has a hope in hell of beating him. And also - while I'd never vote for McCain - I simply haven't heard anything from Obama that would convince me that he has a practical vision. His good work in local politics aside - he's all feelgood words. Isn't he?

And I mean...c'mooon...is the right to burn US flags really such a pressing concern?

Maybe I'm more familiar with Obama's vision because I'm in his current constituency. I realize there are a lot of people- mostly women over 50- who'd vote for McCain if Clinton doesn't get the nomination, simply because she's conservative on the same issues that they are.

By no means do I think Obama is all feelgood words.

The right to burn flags isn't, per se, a pressing concern, beyond the general bigger cencorship issue that really represents. But no one with a conscience could vote for someone with McCain's views on the concerns that really are pressing.

I think Obama has a good chance of beating him. So I'll continue to support him, and I'll continue to support NARAL and PFAW in their efforts to show McCain's true colors to the voting public.

Well, I guess sometimes politics is about making an adult choice about which bastard/idiot would be slightly less intolerable than the other. I knew this when I helped to sweep Blair to power back in '97. I've still not seen any positive, concrete reasons to vote for Obama, though. Care to adumbrate?

I haven’t decided what I’m going to do. I refuse to vote for McCain but I just don’t know if I’m going to be able to pull that Obama lever either. The other half of my mortgage swears he’s not going to vote at all. This is from someone who was the President of the Young Democrats when we were in college. What he’s getting sick of are all the black people who have no clue what Obama stands for and are only voting for him because they’re all fired up about the first af-am president. This after all the Clintons have done for that community. That sounds rather racist but really it isn’t. He was in charge of the campus campaign for Harvey Gantt (a black man) when he was trying to get good ole Jesse Helms senate seat.

Keep in mind that we live in the south. There are some major race issues here like the Duke lacrosse team’s rather infamous encounter with the black stripper and the Durham DA. There was also a guy here in town who ran for Sheriff. He won by basically forging signatures to set up Democratic precincts. Once it all came out in the news, the city council refused to swear him in and blah blah blah. My point is that regardless of who is **right** the big time af-am leaders like Al Sharpton et al breeze into town and accuse all white people of being racists. It gets really ing old really it does.

His campaign ads are really slick though. If he could pull off half of what he’s slinging it would be pretty amazing.

I guess for me it is going to come down to who I fear more and I fear McCain more than Obama.

>> I've still not seen any positive, concrete reasons to vote for Obama, though. Care to adumbrate?

Sure! Might not be able to do it justice today, as people have started interrupting with work, but I'll compose a coherent post with some reasons for you.

I haven't denied that it's possibly easier for me to see the concrete reasons for vote for Obama because he already represents me, and has done a spectacular job doing so thus far.

I can see why it'd be frustrating that there are black people who would vote for Obama because he's black. I know a dozen different white people who've already sworn they won't vote for him simply because he *is* black. I also know women who would vote for Hilary just because she's a woman, regardless of her many negative positions.

>>The other half of my mortgage swears he’s not going to vote at all.

Now that I don't approve. In both our countries, people gave their lives for our right to vote. (In my country, not five miles from where I'm sitting!)

As I say...you have to be an adult, hold your nose and mark your cross/ pull your lever. If none of the candidates are good enough - run yourself, fer chrissakes! I'm fortunate, though. In my country, even though the party I joined on my eighteenth birthday has long abandoned me, I've the choice of two parliamentary parties to their left. Nowadays only one of them is still in parliament, but at the last election I found myself voting for a party which, on their central issue, probably doesn't accord with my views. (although I'm maybe shifting towards them).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_Socialist_Party
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_National_Party

>>I also know women who would vote for Hilary just because she's a woman, regardless of her many negative positions.

They might want to read these:
http://www.slate.com/id/2182065
http://www.slate.com/id/2182065


and then this:
http://www.apfn.org/apfn/Juanita.htm

That'd be my primary reason to be uncomfortable voting for her. I've others... are you going to make me list them, too?

Only/ Twenty four hours from Tuzla...

There are enough people saying this that it is something the party is really worried about. I think its going to depend on who he picks as his running mate. The sad truth is that with the electoral college system, our votes never count anyway because we live in a red state.

It's disheartening sometimes, isn't it, the electoral system needs a serious overhaul.

Just dropped by to say I wasn't blowing off Ed's request for more detailed info re: Obama, but that my big monthly report is due tomorrow and I've just got the numbers, so I probably won't have time to think about replying till tomorrow afternoon or Friday.

Oddly enough, on the way home I say (and bought) Rolling Stone with him on the cover. I agree - he certainly seems an impressive and refreshing person. I'm sure he's right when he says that America has to rebuild trust abroad; that will be in your bottom line, domestic economic, interests. But can he do it? That's going to take some politics that I'm not convinced that he's capable of.

Incidentally...this exposure of McCain's true nature. I can see a danger in this. It's one thing to expose someone as an embezzler or moral degenerate. Nobody wants to vote for that. But is it useful to expose someone as supporting things that many people will actively approve of?
'He's against fags, flag-burning and abortion!'
'Good!'