I've been a Democrat my entire life. Whereas some people might weigh their beliefs and come to a decision about which party they feel best exemplifies those beliefs, I was simply drawn to the Democratic party like a thirsty rhino to a watering hole.
Yes, I've wavered from time to time.
I was a Hillary supporter, and so I've always been one of those Democrats who's been tough on President Obama. That being said, I do think he's done a good job, but I'm not ignorant. I know many people in this country would like to see him tossed out. In fact, I was sure that if the Republican party found even a mildly suitable candidate for President, the man I voted for in 2008 was probably not going to get reelected.
Lucky for me, it seems that when talking about Republican candidates, the term 'mildly suitable' is aiming too high.
I'll admit that I'm not fond of all Republicans, but I certainly don't consider the ones I know to be stupid or crazy. At worst, I would call the most extreme ones I know misguided.
So, how then does such a large political party with so many people to choose from manage to only select the biggest nutjobs to move towards the front of the line?
Someone suggested to me recently that perhaps this is all a ruse so that Sarah Palin can reenter the race, now seeming less crazy when compared to someone like Michele Bachmann. I'll admit, as strategies go, I've heard worse...
Heck, I've seen worse--at almost every Republican debate so far.
Normally, we have to wait until the general election before we get any good soundbytes from the Republican party, but this year, Christmas came very, very early.
Between Rick Perry's stumbling, Newt Gingrich turning into a cross between Archie Bunker and Marie Antoinette, Hermain Cain becoming the new Charlie Sheen, and--
Well, I think you get the point.
No sooner does a new front-runner emerge than the message boards light up with enough dirt to bury all the candidates under a pile of campaign buttons.
And each front-runner gets...Well, I feel like I'm overusing the word "crazy" here, but considering how well these people embody the term...
As a gay man, it is not lost on me that all of these people have chosen to be very vocal about just how much they don't like me. As a citizen, what offends me more, is that they seem to think I'm the biggest problem with America--not poverty, not drugs, not crime--me. Me and the fact that I can kiss another boy without being stoned to death in the public square.
Meanwhile, all my fellow Democrats laugh and sigh with relief.
We've got this, they think. The election's in the bag. What looked like a shutout now seems like a slam dunk. They're sure that even people who hate President Obama certainly won't vote for any of these clowns. Once again, "voting for the lesser of two evils" has prevailed for the...less...evil...one.
But I'm still scared.
I like our President, and I think with four more years (crucial years where he doesn't have to worry about campaigning for reelection), he could really take off. I certainly don't think he's the lesser of two evils. And I would love to be able to believe that the Democrats have this one in the bag, but...
But I'm still scared.
I'm scared because whereas during the last election, the Democratic convention was filled with people standing at a podium saying "We can't take four more years of the Bush administration" I didn't think the situation was that dire.
Oh sure, I wanted Obama to win, but I actually did sort of like McCain. Don't get me wrong, I didn't vote for him, but I didn't believe that if he won, the world would collapse. If we survived Bush (who I really didn't like) then we could certainly handle McCain, even if Sarah Palin was strapped to his back like a rabid pet monkey.
But when it comes to these candidates--I'm not so sure we could survive them.
These aren't Republicans. These are extremists.
I look at them on television. I look in their eyes, and I see the same blazing fanaticism you normally only see when you look at old photos of kamikaze pilots.
These people will torpedo us.
All of them want to tear down everything that's been done over the past four years. Some of them think that God speaks directly to them. And again, all of them hate me.
So, yes, I'm concerned.
Because while I toast the President in my quaint little New England Starbucks, I'm aware that across the country a lot of people are out of work, and frustrated, and haven't experienced any improvement in their lives over the last four years.
And they want someone to blame.
And they'll vote for a wax turtle as long as its last name isn't Obama.
(In some cases, I think a wax turtle would be preferable to someone like Rick Santorum.)
So I'll let everybody else start the victory parties early, but I'm holding off. Oh sure, I know the President can clobber most of these people in a debate. Oh sure, I know that once he starts putting his record out there, more people will see that we are better off than we were four years ago. Oh sure, I know that if there's one thing Barack Obama is good at, it's pulling out all the stops to get elected.
I know all this.
But I also know that nothing's a sure thing.
And I'm scared that next year, the clown we're all laughing at now, may be laughing at us from the Oval Office.
Yes, I've wavered from time to time.
I was a Hillary supporter, and so I've always been one of those Democrats who's been tough on President Obama. That being said, I do think he's done a good job, but I'm not ignorant. I know many people in this country would like to see him tossed out. In fact, I was sure that if the Republican party found even a mildly suitable candidate for President, the man I voted for in 2008 was probably not going to get reelected.
Lucky for me, it seems that when talking about Republican candidates, the term 'mildly suitable' is aiming too high.
I'll admit that I'm not fond of all Republicans, but I certainly don't consider the ones I know to be stupid or crazy. At worst, I would call the most extreme ones I know misguided.
So, how then does such a large political party with so many people to choose from manage to only select the biggest nutjobs to move towards the front of the line?
Someone suggested to me recently that perhaps this is all a ruse so that Sarah Palin can reenter the race, now seeming less crazy when compared to someone like Michele Bachmann. I'll admit, as strategies go, I've heard worse...
Heck, I've seen worse--at almost every Republican debate so far.
Normally, we have to wait until the general election before we get any good soundbytes from the Republican party, but this year, Christmas came very, very early.
Between Rick Perry's stumbling, Newt Gingrich turning into a cross between Archie Bunker and Marie Antoinette, Hermain Cain becoming the new Charlie Sheen, and--
Well, I think you get the point.
No sooner does a new front-runner emerge than the message boards light up with enough dirt to bury all the candidates under a pile of campaign buttons.
And each front-runner gets...Well, I feel like I'm overusing the word "crazy" here, but considering how well these people embody the term...
As a gay man, it is not lost on me that all of these people have chosen to be very vocal about just how much they don't like me. As a citizen, what offends me more, is that they seem to think I'm the biggest problem with America--not poverty, not drugs, not crime--me. Me and the fact that I can kiss another boy without being stoned to death in the public square.
Meanwhile, all my fellow Democrats laugh and sigh with relief.
We've got this, they think. The election's in the bag. What looked like a shutout now seems like a slam dunk. They're sure that even people who hate President Obama certainly won't vote for any of these clowns. Once again, "voting for the lesser of two evils" has prevailed for the...less...evil...one.
But I'm still scared.
I like our President, and I think with four more years (crucial years where he doesn't have to worry about campaigning for reelection), he could really take off. I certainly don't think he's the lesser of two evils. And I would love to be able to believe that the Democrats have this one in the bag, but...
But I'm still scared.
I'm scared because whereas during the last election, the Democratic convention was filled with people standing at a podium saying "We can't take four more years of the Bush administration" I didn't think the situation was that dire.
Oh sure, I wanted Obama to win, but I actually did sort of like McCain. Don't get me wrong, I didn't vote for him, but I didn't believe that if he won, the world would collapse. If we survived Bush (who I really didn't like) then we could certainly handle McCain, even if Sarah Palin was strapped to his back like a rabid pet monkey.
But when it comes to these candidates--I'm not so sure we could survive them.
These aren't Republicans. These are extremists.
I look at them on television. I look in their eyes, and I see the same blazing fanaticism you normally only see when you look at old photos of kamikaze pilots.
These people will torpedo us.
All of them want to tear down everything that's been done over the past four years. Some of them think that God speaks directly to them. And again, all of them hate me.
So, yes, I'm concerned.
Because while I toast the President in my quaint little New England Starbucks, I'm aware that across the country a lot of people are out of work, and frustrated, and haven't experienced any improvement in their lives over the last four years.
And they want someone to blame.
And they'll vote for a wax turtle as long as its last name isn't Obama.
(In some cases, I think a wax turtle would be preferable to someone like Rick Santorum.)
So I'll let everybody else start the victory parties early, but I'm holding off. Oh sure, I know the President can clobber most of these people in a debate. Oh sure, I know that once he starts putting his record out there, more people will see that we are better off than we were four years ago. Oh sure, I know that if there's one thing Barack Obama is good at, it's pulling out all the stops to get elected.
I know all this.
But I also know that nothing's a sure thing.
And I'm scared that next year, the clown we're all laughing at now, may be laughing at us from the Oval Office.
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