What this election means to me (From my good friend Sooz, in Lincoln)

I am extremely concerned about the outcome of the upcoming presidential election. Why? Because I love my country; I embrace the ideals upon which this country was founded; and because I truly fear for the continued black hole that we Americans will find ourselves in should the Republican party remain in office for another four years.

It was merely two weeks ago that I was riding high on hope and optimism that America would return to its former greatness under the Obama-Biden administration. I am still hopeful and optimistic for our future under these two leaders, however, I am more motivated to take action to assure that the Democratic party reclaim the White House, Congress and reclaim America and do what is right by the American people.

It was less than two years ago when the buzz began about potential presidential candidates. I had been extremely impressed by Sen. Barack Obama when he spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2004. I was also interested in Sen. Hillary Clinton and realizing that she had the potential of becoming our nation's first female president, I completely devoured Carl Bernstein's exhaustive and unbiased look at her life and politics in his book, "A Woman in Charge." Upon completing the book, Sen. Clinton was my candidate.

The Democratic debates were thrilling to watch. For the first time in a long time, the Democratic party had a wealth of potential Presidents from which to choose. I was proud to be a Democrat because of the basic core values for which they all stood. I could have been comfortable with any one of them as our party's nominee. I was so glad to hear Sen. Biden and Gov. Richardson tell it like it is; neither one seemed to feel the need to tiptoe around and not offend people. They spoke FOR the people who needed a voice.

Although I was disappointed that Sen. Clinton dropped out of the race, supporting Barack Obama was a no-brainer. Their positions on the issues and the ideals for which they stand show that they both have a clear understanding of the direction this country needs to go. As I had supported Sen. Biden during the 1988 campaign, his selection as the vice presidential candidate sealed the deal for me.

Now, along come the Republicans with their usual dirty politics. Surely, they must know that their platform is not what is good for America. That has to be the reason the Republicans resort to throwing mud, dirtying the water and avoiding straight talk about issues. The Republicans operate from a position of keeping Americans as fearful as possible. As long as they can drum up all of these things to fear, they believe Americans will continue to put them in office. Sadly, in many cases, their fear mongering and mudslinging has kept them in office.

FULL article at link.

Thanks for sharing Sooz.

OS