A Twist of Things to Come

But here's something my Mac-loving friends should appreciate:



Thanks to hedgegoth, who always posts the best vids around. :)

***

Now for the really scary stuff. I generally avoid political discussion here, for a variety of reasons. Mostly, it is because my Beloved and I, while we are both intelligent and informed people with much the same views on various issues, frequently end up picking different candidates. He's more of a "who will hurt us less" kind of guy, and he usually votes for the candidate whose party does not control Congress, because he fears what either party might do if it found itself without opposition.

There does seem to be a lot more at stake than in past elections. Being a Tennessean, I was very supportive of Gore some years ago, because I knew him to be a very moderate Democrat from his years representing that state in the Senate, but I understood why people, embarrassed by the peccadilloes of the previous presidency, didn't want to go there. Though, in retrospect, a balanced budget and reduced national debt does seem rather attractive, no matter what Clinton did with his cigars.

In the last election, neither candidate seemed very attractive, really, and the level of political discourse degenerated even further. The left were called baby-killing evildoers, and the right were seen by their opposition as gun-toting religious fanatics. As an Army Brat, I can tell you it's never that simple.

I am going to come out and say it. Obama is getting my vote. Not because I think he's ideal, not because his relative inexperience doesn't scare me. But because he can bring this country together. He can give America something she hasn't had since Reagan -- a leader who can inspire us and bring us together. (Not saying I think Reagan was all that great (though I did volunteer at his local campaign headquarters when I was kid -- too young to vote but old enough to my part, stars in my eyes), in fact, I think the "War on Drugs" has become a clusterf*ck of epic proportions, and we'd have been better off without it.)

It's a long shot, maybe, but I am essentially a hopeful creature. Could he make things worse? I freely admit that he could. Does my support for Obama mean that I have no respect for McCain? Far from it. If he were still the same McCain he was some years ago, he would probably have my vote. I still respect him as a patriot, as I do all those who serve in the military.

I don't know what the future holds. My family and I have tried to do what is right, put everything we had into the business that is now all tied up in Africa, just in time for the world economy to go all to hell. We were trying to do a good thing, something we believe in with our lives. It may work out for the best, or not. Right now, I am volunteering my time with literacy programs and school things, but I will likely be working again, soon, probably for a fraction of my previous wages. Perhaps it was foolish to think we could make a difference in the world and still keep body and soul together. More gust than glory, as they say. I'm not complaining. I've always striven to be a person who does the right thing regardless of personal risk, and it has always turned out for the best in the end.

Either way, I am a person who needs to believe, and this time around, for good or ill, I do.



Vid via arachnejericho