Proud independent voter

[tommat]

You know I'm sure I'll get beat up a little for this but as a long registered independent, and former GOP'r, (mostly due to the "my way or the highway tone both parties have taken), especially the GOP, if Obama does take the presidency, the world will not end, guns will not be seized in the wee hours of the night, and we won't be reciting the Koran in school. The country seemed to do just fine with 8 years of a Clinton administration. I try to keep as open minded as possible and have truely not yet decided who my vote will be cast for. I am what both candidates want to attract, and my kind will decide the election!! The selection of Palin has pulled me closer to the McCain camp. I will be watching the debates and mulling over the answers.

 

I just have tired of the severe partisanship politics has taken. I listen to talk radio a lot and it seems that I am considered a traitor to my country because I am not in lock step with the conservatives....If anything, Rush, Sean and especially Michal Medved, (he considers me an "enema of the state"), almost push me and my fellow indy's to the liberal side with that attitude. Not to mention the goofy e-mails I get accusing Obama of raping women, hating America and worshiping the Koran in secret.

 

Obama said it best in his acceptance speech, paraphrased, - Let's stop the character attacks and inuendos and debate policy -.

 

There are many sides to all issues and I will be enjoying the next 60 or so days and mulling whom to cast my vote. This is for sure an interesting election.

 

Just the thoughts of an independent......

[DesertBull]

Obama is the most liberal, social and economic, that we have ever had in this Country. Bill Clinton was closer in policy to Reagan than he is to Obama.

 

Obama agrees with the UN that small arms should banned from personal ownership, worldwide, not just in the US. He changed his rhetoric on that subject since the campaign started, but go back aresearch what he was saying BEFORE.

[wklman]

You should go and look at obamas voting record while he was in the illinois senate for 8 years. its as partisan and liberal as it gets my friend. He talks a big game but if you look into his past record he's as much a devidor as anyone.

 

Wade

[tommat]

I hear that a lot and find it interesting and am disturbed by his relasionship with this Ayres dude, and will look into it. However, can't he have changed is position on some issues...McCain sure has. He has changed his immigration stance, and his drilling stance recently to appeal to the base. I was an early McCain supporter from the last election when he was running strongly against Bush before he was "Roved" in South Carolina with the "colored Baby" thing. I liked his independent style. I can remember clearly Rush Limbaugh mocking him, calling him "Jonny skywalker" and insulting him about the way his arms hang, now he has changed to become a strong supporter. In order to win the presidency both candidates are going to have to modify certain positions they might have held in the past. As far as extreme changes to existing policy after they win office, we can thank God the founding fathers built in the checks and balance system of government. It almost forces crossing the aisle bi partisanship in order to get anything done.

[TwoGuns]

The longest lasting legacy, good or bad, for the next president will probably be their appointees to the Supreme Court. I think that is a huge consideration when voting...what type of justice would each candidate appoint? Because for years and years afterward, that justice will be shaping the way our country is run, and how our constitution is interpreted. We almost lost the right to personal firearm ownership this year, if not for 1 vote. If Obama gets to appoint judges as liberal as he is, you can see how things could change real fast for the worse.

 

 

twoguns

[az4life]

Objectively as I can I was looking at both candidates, I see the each have changed positions on things in the recent past.

 

I see one who has had position he believed in, but due to overwhelming public outcry to change his positions, he did.

 

I see one who has change his positions pre-empting public outcry. It appears the goal was to attract voters, not to stay strong to personal beliefs.

 

You guess which is which

 

 

[.270]

i've tried and tried to not hate obama. but it didn't work. the guy is a joke. he's never done anything, has no experience at anything, has surrounded himself with crazy people and he'll trash anyone, even his family, to get a vote. all the while screaming that if he doesn't get elected it's because of his color. if he gets elected, you can say goodby to ever getting ahead. taxes will literally kill you. literally.

 

as far as being independent, that's fine. but the 2 party system is the one that works. if you have a buncha parties, like some countries, you end with a lot of fractured politics and little groups that don't get along with each other. as screwed up as liberals and republicans are, it's still the best way. at least you can get a majority on an issue or a vote. ross perot tried the independent deal and we got 8 years of clinton to show for it. something that fractured this country to the core and something we'll probably never overcome. clinton won twice with less than 50% of the vote. so you had a guy running a country where around 60% of the folks voted against him. and say what you want, we're paying for his 8 years of doing absolutely nothing but riding a wave, and will for generations. if we ever overcome it. one thing obama did do, well, him and the media, is kill the clintons. at least for now. Lark.

[Coues 'n' Sheep]

i've tried and tried to not hate obama. but it didn't work. the guy is a joke. he's never done anything, has no experience at anything, has surrounded himself with crazy people and he'll trash anyone, even his family, to get a vote. all the while screaming that if he doesn't get elected it's because of his color. if he gets elected, you can say goodby to ever getting ahead. taxes will literally kill you. literally.

 

as far as being independent, that's fine. but the 2 party system is the one that works. if you have a buncha parties, like some countries, you end with a lot of fractured politics and little groups that don't get along with each other. as screwed up as liberals and republicans are, it's still the best way. at least you can get a majority on an issue or a vote. ross perot tried the independent deal and we got 8 years of clinton to show for it. something that fractured this country to the core and something we'll probably never overcome. clinton won twice with less than 50% of the vote. so you had a guy running a country where around 60% of the folks voted against him. and say what you want, we're paying for his 8 years of doing absolutely nothing but riding a wave, and will for generations. if we ever overcome it. one thing obama did do, well, him and the media, is kill the clintons. at least for now. Lark.

 

 

Dang, Lark!!! You took the words right out of my mouth!!! Well said in all respects!

[DesertBull]

Obama's liberal politics makes Clinton look like a Newt Gingrich conservative. I would take 20 years of Slick over 20 days of Obama.

[Manhunter]

OK, the thoughts of another "independent," albeit a conservative-first, registered Republican who has never voted a straight party ticket. No, the world will not end if Obama's elected. However, regarding your "debate policy" quote, what are Obama's policies? You have to take the initiative to go to his web site, view his specific policy imperatives and have sufficient gray matter to evaluate the effect they will have on our country. You will not hear mention of any specific policies in any of his "stem winder" speeches and you certainly won't hear details of his policies on any nighttime news casts. Here's how I see it:

 

Obama had 143 days in the United States Senate prior to the beginning of his election campaign, yet his "spokespersons" decry Sarah Palin's "lack of experience" - even though she's been the chief executive of an entire, albeit not very populous state;

 

Obama's the "agent of change," yet his VP nominee, Joe Biden is very much a longtime Washington Insider;

 

The Agent of Change and his VP nominee have never bucked the Democratic party hierarchy. McCain and Palin have bucked the Republican Party hierarchy on numerous occasions; Palin in particular has attacked every member of Alaska's congressional delegation on corruption issues;

 

Obama presumes to garner the womens' vote and has stated the need for "pay equity" and equal opportunity for women, yet he chose Joe Biden when he could have chosen a woman; pays the 39 men on his staff an average of $11,000 more per year than the 31 women on his staff, while John McCain pays the 31 women on his staff an average of $6,000 more than the 19 men on his.

 

So who's the party hack and who's the Agent of Change? Remember, losing your job, your house, your family, and your sanity is CHANGE, but is all change good...? One of my favorite quotes is, "If your mind's too open, your brains will fall out..."

[Non-Typical Solutions]

Manhunter....so what is the feel in Pennsylvania????? Obama or McCain???? Give us an early poll

Loved that quote.....

[Manhunter]

Too early to tell. The electorate in Pennsylvania is kind of strange: pro-union, heavily Democratic, but pro-life, very conservative, and extremely pro-Second Amendment. Obama was referring to Pennsylvanians (I'm still an Arizonan at heart, by the way) when he made the crack about "...clinging to their Bibles and guns" it didn't go over well here. When Obama's positions on gun control are more widely known and Pennsylvanians realize that McCain's VP pick is a real hunter, life member of the NRA, a hockey nut, and a real person, McCain is likely to be in a very good position here.

[tommat]

Policy will be debated...they should have at least 3 debates...Obama will have to come up with plans for his promises or Mcain will be getting my vote surely....I look foward to these debates and will, along with some research I will do on my own, use them to decide my vote. I plan on making my choice before the end of October. Sure I could figure it out sooner but I have a life and an Elk and Deer hunt to get ready for also! It really has been an interesting race to watch and follow. I also agree with many that the upcoming supreme court positions, how we get out ourselves out of the Bush / Cheney mess in Iraq while saving face as a nation and not looking like those thousands of young american sacrifices were in vain,(a whole other thread), the energy crisis and of course our old "friends" the Russians........make this the most important choice to lead the nation in decades.

[GameHauler]

Was not sure where to put this

Nice little Vid.

http://www.longrangehunting.com/forums/f22...mr-obama-33758/

[ac guy]

Anyone have any feelings on the fudge factor in the polls? Some are speculating that some people who say they're voting Obama in the polling aren't being truthful.