Blog Update!
For those of you not following me on Facebook, as of the Summer of 2019 I've moved to Central WA, to a tiny mountain town of less than 1,000 people.

I will be covering my exploits here in the Cascades, as I try to further reduce my impact on the environment. With the same attitude, just at a higher altitude!

Saturday, September 20, 2008

A woman in the White House

As much as I should be excited about the possibility of having a woman in the White House, it's hard to muster up much enthusiasm. Sure, one can easily argue that Sarah Palin is smart, has an interesting background and story and she sure can motivate the base, but I have qualms about that background and her conservative stance on a number of issues.

Of course, one can also argue that (and several people have in the comments of this blog), regardless of who is in office there is the potential for not much changing going on. One can point out that during the last week, in regards to the financial industry's falling off the deep end, McCain is now trying to reach out to the middle class with promises of $5,000 to cover health care and additional child tax credits.

[What's missing from this promise is the fact that the (also mentioned) increased taxation on companies for the health care benefits they do provide, encourages said companies to drop or reduce those same benefits. Most companies shell out over $10,000 per individual. Try finding the same sort of coverage as an individual for $5,000. It's farcical. But, I'm digressing here.]

Anyway, if it doesn't necessarily matter who is in office, then what's the problem? Well, wanting to have a female in office is a great thing, similar to wanting to have an African American in office. Some say that either way, minorities win.

But, as much as I'd like an Hispanic in office too, I'd have problems with the ticket if Cheech Marin were selected as somebody's running mate. Sure, he fits the bill as Hispanic. He has an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts and he's a maverick to some extent, but is he really the most qualified Hispanic for the job? Of course, this is a gross analogy, but you get the point.

In other words, let's not get caught up in the potential "firsts" in this presidency and not settle with "good enough". We need people in the White House that can really affect change and get this country back on track. So, make sure you know what your candidates stand for and try to avoid the hyperbole that is flying around on all sides.

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very well said. I always love reading your blog. Too many people forget to actually read what their 'candidate' or the 'candidates' are standing for. Which is as easy as putting their name in google and going to their site. If you read any blogs, people surely should have the time to compare and read up on all the candidates, right?

Robj98168 said...

As usual, my candidate did not ein the nomination. I used to like McCain, before he revealed himself to be a "W" wannabe, that and the fact he supports foreign entities to build military machines and planes. I cannot not get entused at all over Palin, except Tina Fey now has someone to mimic on Saturday Night Live. I like Barack Obama, except I am tired of hearing about all this change from politicos. Of coure it could be worse- McCain could have picked "Traitor Joe" Leiberman for his veep.

cheflovesbeer said...

Cheech is a republican. Which makes it more likely he could get on a ticket. I always liked Tommy Chong better.
The Republicans will vote for anyone.
Sonny Bono His wife
Arnold
Gopher from the Love Boat
Cooter from The Dukes of Hazard(TV)
Nebraska's football coach
All but Arnold went to congress without any previous political experience.

Anonymous said...

As a "degenerate, registered-to-vote youth", Alan Keys is still the only right-wing lunatic I'd ever vote for:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qwDBgNMD7c

Samantha said...

"In other words, let's not get caught up in the potential "firsts" in this presidency and not settle with "good enough". We need people in the White House that can really affect change and get this country back on track."

The problem with that is, either way, you're going to have to settle for good enough. Neither candidate is cut out for the job, unfortunately. Obama really has no idea what's possible and thusly is making all these absolutely insane assertions about what he's going to do in office. (I equate Obama to the kid in high school running for class president, who promises the student body that if he's elected he'll make sure there is no home work, ever again!) And the problems with McCain are obvious, and have already been stated.

As far as I'm concerned, neither of them even fits into the category of "good enough". They're both subpar candidates. I look at this country, and thing to myself, these are the two people you think are best suited to run this country? Really?

Thankfully I plan on getting out of this nut house (read: country) ASAP.

Sharlene said...

When we will ever get a candidate that is worth getting excited over? Man, woman, black, white. I just want someone who I feel should be running our country instead of having to pick who I feel is least likely to destroy us.

Humble wife said...

I am a normal lurker here as I am extremely conservative. I find handy tips as my family and I live on a farm, and are living a simple life.

I am disgusted with the millions and millions and millions of dollars each and every month...to get elected. If we were really seeing change then show us.

Neither side can claim change McCain in Washington DC and Biden for over 25 years. Neither Obama nor Palin has any real experience, but Palin has as much as Howard Dean,and Governor has more than a Senator....unfortunately we need to just get over the minority woman in office to stop this FIRST GRANDSTANDING.

I want just a few things-stop big government-and if the war is not about OIL, then why have we not stepped up to assist other nations with maniacal dictators? Or Georgia?

AND the prolife issue is beyond the pale for me...why do those on the Left get upset about one who is prolife...we on the right have not stopped the abortion of 40 million babies in the past 40 years...so why if one supported would you be threatened? The right to life has been proven to not really be worth defending(sadly).
******and********
Thank you for the tips and ideas shared here. I am grateful for you taking the time while supporting your husband in an illness(I too have been helping my husband..although he is learning to walk and adjust to neck and back injuries from a car accident)

Jennifer

nemo said...

Presidents are figureheads, that is why actors are so good at this job. Unfortunately for the Democrats, the Republicans have figured this out, while they have not.

The democratic party is dominated by intellectuals who like to find a person who is an intellectual just like they are (one always hires people who are like oneself). Unfortunately such people rarely connect to the voters and are essentially not electable.

The truth is that it matters very little who is in the White House. Money talks, and money always goes to the ruling party. Witness the millions of dollars Wall Street spent on lobbying against regulation in financial markets.

And where did that money go? It went to the party in power, whether they were Democrats or Republicans. And it was quite effective too. Regulation never saw the light of day. And that is what we will pay for in the decades to come.

No use pointing fingers because the Democrats are as guilty as their Republican peers.

Gretchen said...

Hey Crunchy, did you have any good, non-partisan links for us to learn more about our candidates. I'd love to do that, but hate the idea of wading through 2 hours of bullshit just to find an honestly impartial factual non-opinionated breakdown of the candidates, their voting records, and their positions on the issues.

If you do, please post here in the comments and we'll be checking back. Thanks!

Anonymous said...

Frankly I don't think Cheech qualifies as hyperbole.
Sarah Palin is that ridiculous. I can't understand why more women are screaming about how insulting her selection is.
Men are allowed to have different opinions and aren't lumped all together...just because she is a woman does not mean her policies are good for women.
In fact she is profoundly ignorant.
Shame on John McCain for selecting her. It is an insult to every thinking American. It amounts to an act of treason in that she is grossly unqualified. In addition her hubris and arrogance is astounding.
I'd rather have Cheetch.

roxanne said...

Texan Mama, check out www.ontheissues.org. It just lists the issues, and gives quotes regarding that issue from each of the candidates. You can click on any candidate, and go down the list to read where they stand. At the bottom is a little map sort of thing that shows where they lay politically. You can also click on a link at the bottom and take a quiz to see where you are on the political "map" and you can see who is closest to you. Of course, the quiz is only 20 questions so it is not 100%, but it is definitely a good starting point.

Lee said...

The woman is a road accident. You don't want to look, but she's such a disaster in the world that you can't look away.

Yes, the idiots will probably vote her in. That's the problem with democracy - the idiots outnumber the sane people by a considerable distance. Then there's the issue of fair and honest elections, which the US has not had for some time.

If I were Obama right now, I'd be basing my campaign on telling people that they really, REALLY don't want another four years of the morons who have created the mess you're in right now.

Economic common-sense and fiscal responsibility? The Republican's idea of that is conducting two wars while handing out tax cuts. No wonder you guys have problems. That's like dropping your income but doubling your spending.

D'oh!

Yep. Palin is a train wreck. I can't help watching. She's fascinating, like a rotting piece of meat with maggots.

Jerry Critter said...

I think the decision is real easy.

If you like the way the country is run, vote for McCain. If you think things should be done differently, vote for Obama.

They both talk about change, but to think that the republicans will change what they do is not realistic. The Democrats may not do it either, but at least they will try.

Bird Wicks said...

factcheck.org is a great non-partisan web-site. They give a great break down of some of the myths going around about candidates (and about their organization as they've been misquoted by McCain). Otherwise, I'm not sure I see how a Governor of less than a year has more experience than a Senator of several. Obama knows national policies and issues, Palin doesn't, end of story. If you really believe that a Governor has more experience then you must also believe Palin is more qualified than McCain, thus she should be running as president with him as vp (which is quite frankly more horrifying than the current situation). Finally, Biden and Obama are change. Go to the League of Conservation Voters webpage (http://www.lcv.org/) to see just how different Obama and Biden are from the current president and vp and the Republican hopefuls. That said, Crunchy as usual your blog is fantastic :)

Unknown said...

No matter who gets elected, we're still going to have to worry about "that little man behind the curtain".

Unknown said...

I like your Cheech analogy. It made me laugh. Your post hit the nail on the head--well said.

Tara said...

Sarah Palin does not need to be in the White House FOR ANY REASON WHATSOEVER. 'Nuf said.
Did McCain actually think no one would see through that shallow maneuver?
I wonder who he would have chosen had Obama chosen Clinton... Can you just imagine the Clinton vs. Palin debate?

Frisky said...

no one person is qualified to run the country, but one person gets to choose a team. i like the chances of an obama administration.

Oldnovice said...

I'm "fired up" about Obama gaining the presidency; have been for about a year. There's no way I could vote for the McCain/Palin ticket.

jewishfarmer said...

Damn, Crunch, you got me all excited thinking that maybe I could trade in the current candidates for an aging 60s comedian who smoked a lot of pot - how could that not be better. And heck, he's hispanic, too.

I also think that if we are going to get hung up on firsts, let's compare them. 1. Person with tits in the vice-president's office, the least powerful political office in the land. Person gets to go to political funerals, raise funds for prez and hope (probably fruitlessly, given that his 90+ Mom is on the campaign trail) that one day all powerful white military dude drops dead making her all powerful. 2. Person with black skin gets to be all powerful president of the US. Ummm...which is the bigger milestone? Hmmm...

I'm not sure the problem isn't that we're not paying enough attention to the milestones. ;-).

Sharon

Maggie said...

Hi Crunchy,
I'm not sure if you ever watch the Daily Show but there was a hilarious bit about how women vote. I think it's great. Enjoy!
http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=183521&title=John-McCain-Chooses-a-Running-Mate

Anonymous said...

If environmental issues and real change are important, then it may be worth looking at policies rather than just the status quo :)

http://www.votenader.org/issues/environment/

Unknown said...

Got to love a system that calls women a minority ;)
So glad I'm not voting in this election!

Unknown said...

The democratic party is dominated by intellectuals who like to find a person who is an intellectual just like they are (one always hires people who are like oneself). Unfortunately such people rarely connect to the voters and are essentially not electable.

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Brian Goethe

Alison Kerr said...

Even though this will be first time voting I'm just not excited about the whole thing. No matter who gets in there will be problems, mistakes, things we wanted and didn't get, things we didn't want that we get. History has shown that there's not too much great stuff whoever gets in. I will vote for the person I think will do the least damage. Sorry if I'm being a skeptic, but politics is one area of thinking that I'm not an idealist in.

I enjoy your blog. Thanks :-)

From the lion's mouth said...

"Some say that either way, minorities win."

Can we not call women a "minority" please? We're 52% of the population - I think you'll find that's a *majority*!

And having Palin, whose "policies" are completely anti-women (pro-forced pregnancy, for example) in the Whitehouse is a victory for the patriarchy, not for women.