The first Presidential Debate in Mississippi happened as planned, in spite of all the plot twists over the past 24-48 hours.

Obama, true to form, was well versed, so some of that time he spent practicing his lines in Florida over the past few days before going to Washington payed off, and there’s no denying he is very eloquent.  We all want a President that cares about us, and he knows everyone is worried about money, and he played to that very well just as he always does.

When I listened to McCain, I felt like a Mom who was watching her son up on stage (even though I’m much younger) and rooting for him because he is my favorite, but cringing at times because I wanted him to be able to PERFORM as nicely as Obama did.

That’s just never going to happen, McCain is a straight shooter, but he’s not a great performer…and I don’t care about that EXCEPT for the fact that appearances are so important to people who don’t want to look past the facade.  I thought McCain repeated himself a lot, and thought both candidates, instead of bringing something fresh and new, often reverted back to the speeches that they give during their Campaign stops, lines I’ve heard repeatedly as I’ve followed closely during the past many…too many…weeks.

So round #1, as far as performance, goes to Obama, but I know deep inside that I want experience, and someone who has has had the courage to stand up against even his own party when he doesn’t agree…so at present, my November vote still goes to McCain.

Now we look forward to the VP Debate next week on October 2nd…where did September go anyway? Have a great weekend!

Here’s the debate:

Today someone who means a lot to me wrote and asked me some questions about who I’m voting for and why, with some specific questions about some of the current issues, and how my Christian views play into my decision.  I wrote a long reply, sharing some of my thoughts.  They are a bit random at times, and  I’m not saying all of them are right. Since I spent so much time on that, I thought I’d share some of it with you below, enjoy getting into my head a bit…now that’s a frightening thought:-)

It’s funny you are writing this, I was just thinking about these things. Hubby is more in tune with some of the specifics that you ask about, and when he is of the frame of mind will answer them I am sure. I hope you can follow this, as I re-read it, it goes on some tangents :-)

For a time, both of us were not feeling terribly excited about the election this year as each candidate isn’t quite what we’d (I’d) want. I’m concerned about the needy, and where the line should be drawn between personal responsibility and helping those in need. I see many Christians volunteering to do wonderful things, and think there should be more of that.

I always want to be a Nation that welcomes people to come to our country LEGALLY to enjoy it’s freedoms, and have always loved the fact that we have been a nation that embraced what is on the Statue of Liberty (*I copied and pasted below), yet it’s hard to know the enemy any more in this strange war we find ourselves in that has been brewing for a long, LONG time while we were complacent.

As for abortion, it is an extremely important issue, and so are all the other things. It’s just that there are plenty of voices on both sides for the other things, economy, etc., but only Judeo-Christians will stand up for babies forming in their mother’s wombs that are not yet born, so that may be why they are a voice for that one issue that wouldn’t be heard otherwise.

I was just today thinking about whether having a Christian -v- non as President mattered, and why it is such a big issue, I don’t remember it mattering that much when our parents were voting, except for the talk about Kennedy being a Catholic when he was elected, but I was too young to really understand why that was an issue.

At first, I just put the “Christian” part out of my decision, and listened to as many speeches by the candidates as I could. I came away believing McCain was the tough, yet in some ways gentle, type of person we need in office at this time in history because we are a Nation at war whether we like it or want to acknowledge it or not, and he will not duck and run, but face it head on. He has been refined by time and experience in a way Obama has not. We CAN’T take our guys out of Iraq sooner than is wise, and we need a President who will admit who the enemy is and face the enemy head on.

I want us to continue to be the Nation that helps other Nations by giving our lives for them, that is what we are doing, just like we did in past wars, as agonizing as that is……

It wasn’t until the confusing years of the 1960’s and the Viet Nam war, a war with a Draft, that we changed…at least in my lifetime…when we did leave before the job was finished and had soldiers who had given their all, and are were forever marked by it, come back to anti-war protests instead of an appreciative America. I have long believed it is the grown up anti-war hippies that are making up many of the philosophies of the democratic party…at the same time that doesn’t mean there weren’t any lessons to be learned, I’m talking about the extremes.

Yes, we wish we could go back to the days gone by when everything SEEMED fine, the days when Clinton was screwing around in the White house, or the days when Reagan was President and we saw the end of the Soviet Union (at least for a while), but that’s not where we are, and just voting for the guy on the other side of where we are now isn’t going to change that. The “present administration”, a term used often, is at a stand-still because of politics…the Democrats are the majority in the congress/house and holding up almost anything our Republican president wants to do, while they constantly speak against him.

Anyway, I digress, I came to terms with McCain as President…Obama simply does not have the experience, and there are to many things he says that I simply don’t agree with, and I am concerned about the brain-washing he received while in the church he attended.

Sarah Palin was a nice addition to the ticket, I like her, she is REAL, someone you feel like you could comfortably sit down and talk to, and she is a Christian, yes, yes, that is important to me. I’d be a fool if it wasn’t.

When I think of Bush, who liberals and some media have been brain-washing us to hate for about 8 or more years, I think of Moses….just because Moses lead the people, and was before God all the time on their behalf, it didn’t always guarantee “change” because people are stupid, we all want our own way, especially when the going is tough like it was wandering in the wilderness. God had to intervene many times with his judgment, and I wonder if we are seeing some of that today.

I have rambled…. Bottom line, at least for today, I’m voting McCain/Palin, I think that they are the people for the time that we are in even if I don’t agree with every single thing they say.

God bless, and God bless America,

[Me]

PS - I thought I heard not that long ago that the ozone layer was doing better, and the “hole” in it was smaller now? I don’t trust all scientists. Did you see the movie “Expelled” with Ben Stein yet?

——————–

*The New Colossus

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”

I was listening to Sarah Palin on TV today during McCain and Palin’s visit to Ohio..oops, I mean Iowa.  In it she shared that John McCain had been talking with her about some of the responsibilities that she would have as Vice President.  I’m sure there will be more things revealed over time, but here is what she shared today (nice to hear some specifics, by the way!)

• Help lead the mission of energy security.  She shared how the cost of energy is affecting many aspects of our economy from the price of food, living (up)  and paycheck (down).   Her experience in Alaska will help in the area of providing energy within our borders.  It is now a matter of National Security, we need American resources provided by American ingenuity and produced by American workers!
• Reforming Government - making government more transparent, more accountable, more acceptable for those who want to  serve.  Will recruit the best people to run agencies, regardless of party affiliation or Washington experience. As Alaska’s governor she put Alaska’s checkbook online so people could see where money was going, will bring that kind of transparency to Washington.
• Funding for students with Special Needs - she shares that this is an issue that touches her heart, starting 13 years ago with the birth of a nephew with autism, and then of course the birth of her own precious special needs child in April, their son, Trig.  (Personally, as a sister to a special needs brother who is now in his 40’s, I am especially attuned to this need, after spending several years researching what was out there, and learning what was needed to make sure that my dear brother was placed in the best group home setting available where we live…and he was this past June.)  She is going to make sure that government is working on behalf of special needs families.

These are just a few things she shared, I look forward to more of this, actual things that are going to be done, from all of the candidates.

I guess this is as good a time as any to have a little fun, and to remind my readers why I started this blog, especially since most of the political news is about negative advertising, negative this, negative that, and I’m not in the mood to write about it.  Republicans, you may like this, Democrats, maybe not.

First, I started this blog because of my husband…he has always been into politics, and I have had only a slight interest.  It’s tough being married to a guy that loves talking about the latest thing he heard on Rush Limbaugh, or the latest thing he heard at a meeting because of his involvement in local politics when frankly, I don’t care as much as I should, so I thought that maybe if I mixed my love for blogging with writing about political things it would help me come to terms.

Here is the latest thing that my husband received from a member of his family that he forwarded to me by email…yes, even though he’s sitting a room away at his desktop while I’m at my laptop.  We have a bear that visits frequently, (visit my New Jersey Baby Boomer blog under the “NJ Wildlife” category for our latest pictures) either our trash or bird feeder, so we loved this for a few reasons :-)  Here goes:

The photo below captures a disturbing trend that is beginning to affect wildlife in the US. Animals that were formerly self-sufficient are now showing signs of belonging to the Democratic Party… as they have apparently learned to just sit and wait for the government to step in and provide for their care and sustenance.

No, I noticed, have been taking a break from blogging over the weekend.  But I didn’t miss the fact that McCain had more viewers of his comparatively humble but powerful acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention.  Yes, it was a great night for Obama when he spoke, a great show, I really enjoyed it and as I have shared, commend him on his accomplishment as far as being the first black American to run for President, but the winds have shifted a bit as far as who is in the lead in the race to the White House.

Obama is a wonderful man, but he is out-experienced by McCain, and it is going to show in the days to come. More on that another time, here is John McCain’s acceptance speech in 5 parts. No, he is not the power speaker Obama is, or Sarah Palin is, but he has a LOT of content:

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3:

Part 4:

Part 5:

According to the Nielsen ratings, approximately 37 million viewers watched Sarah Palin’s speech last night, not quite as many as Obama’s speech, but very close for someone who is running for Vice President, not President.  Wow!

I’m curious to see how this is going to affect the polls, aren’t you?

Waiting on McCain’s speech tonight…

Here’s the woman that everyone was waiting to hear from telling it like it is in her own words. I am going to find the speeches by Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee and will add them later.