# Election fever



## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

So, went to vote in the primary the other day. Bit of a waste of time since there was only one candidate to vote against, but I think us new citizens possibly vote more than the old ones.

As we're heating up to fever pitch, thought it might be time for a poll.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

You're missing an option - I'm American but I'm not voting for anyone.

I figure that I don't live there anymore, and if the wrong person gets elected, I don't really have to live with the mistake. (As with the last eight years. At least it's not my fault.)

I am not looking forward to explaining American politics to my French friends (yet again). The Electoral College is a real strange concoction.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

Bevdeforges said:


> You're missing an option - I'm American but I'm not voting for anyone.
> 
> I figure that I don't live there anymore, and if the wrong person gets elected, I don't really have to live with the mistake. (As with the last eight years. At least it's not my fault.)
> 
> ...


If you don't vote, you're just as guilty in my book. And you presumably file a tax return for Uncle Sam and still aren't allowed to visit Cuba, so it's not like you're allowed to opt out.

I think the Electoral College is easier to explain than proportional representation. However, the latter gives far better results!


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## YaGatDatRite (Aug 7, 2008)

*OK, lets start an all-out Reps vs. Dems beatup*

*Few minorities on GOP podium*

By NANCY BENAC, Associated Press Writer Thu Sep 4, 3:10 AM ET

ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Republican National Convention showcased a Native American color guard, a black preacher and video footage of civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks, all part of its effort to present the GOP as a picture of diversity. What it hasn't offered is many minorities speaking from the podium in prime time, or sitting among the delegates.
ADVERTISEMENT

The convention has a decidedly homogenous look to it, coming hard on the heels of a Democratic gathering where minorities were prominent on the podium and in the crowds, and the spotlight focused squarely on Barack Obama's historic racial breakthrough.

...

It's a problem for the party that goes deeper than the challenge of coming up with a diverse speaker's lineup.

"It is what it is," said Michael Steele, Maryland's former lieutenant governor and the first black elected to statewide office there. "You can't sugarcoat this stuff."

Steele, who chairs GOPAC, which recruits and trains Republican candidates nationwide, got 10 minutes on the podium in prime time Wednesday night.

Earlier in the evening, a number of blacks and Hispanics had a chance to address the convention, albeit briefly. Among them: a nurse from Pennsylvania, a California state senator, the head of a Hispanic medical organization an entrepreneur whose mother was an orphan of Mexican descent.

...

It is a message the Republicans hope will be embraced more broadly among black Americans, so many of them captivated by Obama's path-breaking course.

The predominance of white faces on the podium in St. Paul was reflected in the faces staring back from the audience in St. Paul. About 13 percent of GOP delegates identify themselves as belonging to a minority group, according to convention organizers, who provided no further details on the ethnic breakdown.

...


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## EP GAZZ (Aug 26, 2008)

Not a citizen but live about 25 miles from the X where the convention is going on.

So watching last night I couldn't get over how wooden McCain is the guy looks like an advert for an old folks home or sheltered housing.

Thought we had problems in UK with Brown but jeez that guy gets in here will be a fiasco.


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## YaGatDatRite (Aug 7, 2008)

*Lol*

My sentiments exactly..........

This time the electoral college won't be able to pull it off though.

IMO landslide is as landslide does.

Obama fever babay


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## tcscivic12 (Jul 2, 2008)

Obama/Biden 2009!!!! WOOT!!!


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## YaGatDatRite (Aug 7, 2008)

*Abramoff gets 4 years prison in corruption scandal*

Abramoff gets 4 years prison in corruption scandal - Yahoo! News

Well, at least one of the baddies is getting his dues finally ......... 

Already in jail for 2 years and all set to spend 4 more!


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## nonie (Aug 4, 2008)

*Election Fever*

Senator McCain is not wooden...he is a man that has survived extreme torture and never turned on his country through all of it. You'd probably look a little wooden if the VietCong beat the crap out of you for years too.

Obama Fever: I want a president not a super star.


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

I want a President, not someone who chooses a VP who is under investigation in her home state. Good lord, that woman could make Cheney look like a pussycat. SHE frightens me.


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## YaGatDatRite (Aug 7, 2008)

*Go Dems!!!*

LOL, Tiffani 

For a brief moment last nite, the Sheepublican convention sounded like it was all set to recapture center stage and take it all back (whatever it is).

"Calling all Hockey moms -- y'all rock, y'all need to get up in arms and take 'em back those sheets we lost in 2006, yea! So come on out and elect your first women Veep without so much as a whimper or a peep, yea!"

Not!!


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## nonie (Aug 4, 2008)

Ah, yes. 'Tis much better to bring back those liberals who said it was ok that Clinton and his intern fooled around in the oval office. 

We could go back and forth on this forever. The bottom line is the Dems will cut down on the military and push big government and continue to allow babies to be killed. The other team will maintain or grow the military, let your states make the decisions and fight for the lives of innocent babies. 

'Nuff said.


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## EP GAZZ (Aug 26, 2008)

nonie said:


> Senator McCain is not wooden...he is a man that has survived extreme torture and never turned on his country through all of it. You'd probably look a little wooden if the VietCong beat the crap out of you for years too.
> 
> Obama Fever: I want a president not a super star.


Sorry my comment was not a slight on him being shot down and held prisoner.
Its fascinating that a man who lived through such a fiasco as Vietnam could be so keen to prosecute further conflict that will only end in the same way.

My own father fought all over the world and I lost mates in the Falklands so I understand the military.


I think that your politics as our own in the UK is all sound bites and special interests.

As for your comments on Obama thats your opinion however I at least find with him he is not running on a ticket of more of the same, religion and morality when you have spent a lifetime not practising what you preach.

Its like the war hero bit makes him a good commander why?

Did you win that war?

As for the rhetoric on Clinton yep he cheated on his wife, was he was an alchy or drug user like some?


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## nonie (Aug 4, 2008)

EP GAZZ said:


> Sorry my comment was not a slight on him being shot down and held prisoner.
> Its fascinating that a man who lived through such a fiasco as Vietnam could be so keen to prosecute further conflict that will only end in the same way.
> 
> My own father fought all over the world and I lost mates in the Falklands so I understand the military.
> ...






No, being a war hero does not make him a good commander, but it does make him someone who will always think about the lives of the soldiers before ordering them off to war. He understands the price that can be paid...he understands it first hand. Did we win that war? In the technical sense that I am assuming you are referring to, no. We didn't win that war. It doesn't mean McCain isn't a hero for his fight in that war. My dad has numerous health problems and both my brother and I were born with some birth defects due to Agent Orange thanks to that war. But, my dad is a man of honor even if the war he fought in ended in us walking away from it. And, if you ask him today if he feels he was doing the right thing, he'd tell you yes because he felt that he was fighting communism which he considered a cancer to the world.

I'm assuming the rest of that sentence is referring to Bush. Yeah, he was a drinker, no doubt about that. But he isn't one today and he certainly isn't receiving oral sex by an intern in the oval office----I'm fairly sure he wouldn't survive that----Laura would kill him. It's the quiet ones you have to watch out for. )

Hey, I'm not a big McCain fan, he's not my dream nominee. There were a couple of other guys that I wanted to receive the nomination over him. But, I support him just the same because I believe in the party platform. I think Obama is actually an interesting guy. I can see why people are drawn to him, but he is a liberal and I just don't think a liberal belongs in our white house. Senate or House for that matter. )

And, from these few posts you might guess I'm a conservative! A Bible believing, volleyball/basketball mom who is far tougher than any pit bull. )


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## EP GAZZ (Aug 26, 2008)

nonie said:


> No, being a war hero does not make him a good commander, but it does make him someone who will always think about the lives of the soldiers before ordering them off to war. He understands the price that can be paid...he understands it first hand. Did we win that war? In the technical sense that I am assuming you are referring to, no. We didn't win that war. It doesn't mean McCain isn't a hero for his fight in that war. My dad has numerous health problems and both my brother and I were born with some birth defects due to Agent Orange thanks to that war. But, my dad is a man of honor even if the war he fought in ended in us walking away from it. And, if you ask him today if he feels he was doing the right thing, he'd tell you yes because he felt that he was fighting communism which he considered a cancer to the world.
> 
> I'm assuming the rest of that sentence is referring to Bush. Yeah, he was a drinker, no doubt about that. But he isn't one today and he certainly isn't receiving oral sex by an intern in the oval office----I'm fairly sure he wouldn't survive that----Laura would kill him. It's the quiet ones you have to watch out for. )
> 
> ...


Sorry but what I would say is the same as I said with Blair when he foolishly followed into Iraq would he send his kids and we all know the answer to that.
In the same way we know if we are fighting for freedom why have we not removed Mugabe?

You Liberals are conservative not Liberals its just your Conservatives are so far right wing.

Religion I stupidly believe should play no part in goverment.

Personally if Bush is the biggest boozer in the world I do not give a toss, its the hypocricy of it all that one guy putting peoples life at risk driving whilst drunk and the other guy has sex with another women. Correct me if I am wrong but I imagine with US divorce rates he is hardly alone after all McCain dumped his first wife.

You see its that moral ticket crap that doesn't work for me.


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

nonie said:


> Ah, yes. 'Tis much better to bring back those liberals who said it was ok that Clinton and his intern fooled around in the oval office.
> 
> We could go back and forth on this forever. The bottom line is the Dems will cut down on the military and push big government and continue to allow babies to be killed. The other team will maintain or grow the military, let your states make the decisions and fight for the lives of innocent babies.
> 
> 'Nuff said.


So where did 6 years of almost as much power as the Constitution provides (and even with that they were pushing the boundaries) get the fundamentalist Christians? Thought you were promised an end to legal abortion? Doesn't seem they delivered, does it? If I were one (gawd forbid!), I'd be wondering if I were being played! But you're voting and hoping again, I presume?

Where did the Republicans spend on the military? The answer is they started the world's first private war and have fed the big bucks into shady corporations. So no real money for our military there but plenty of bonuses for a few CEOs. And why do we need a big military anyway? After 9/11, everybody in the rest of the world loved us and gas was a buck-fifty a gallon. Now everyone hates, more Americans have been killed than in the twin towers, and gas is three bucks-fifty a gallon. Perhaps we don't need a big military because I have no idea what benefit they're providing us.

As for big government, the last 8 years the government has become the biggest ever. Unlike other administrations where some of the money did indeed trickle down to the places where it was actually needed, this government has merely given it to the rich to get richer.

Nothing wrong with a few conservative principles in government, but our current lot is a total sham. Goldwater is turning in his grave.


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## YaGatDatRite (Aug 7, 2008)

*Their track record so far.......*

1. Deceiving the country and the world under false pretexts and shady evidence
2. Unlawful occupation of a sovereign country (after its near-total wipe out)
3. Biggest housing and credit crisis since the depression wiping out trillions of $$ worth of assets
4. Scandal after scandal of elected and nominated officials (NJ, Ohio, Fla, WI.........)
5. Three-fold Increase in federal deficit after a record surplus in 2001
6. Allowing rampant speculation in enegry markets and protecting Big Oil
7. Worst possible display of federal emergency assistance in Hurricane Katrina

8 straight years of "special-interests" molly-coddling, saddling kids' and grand-kids' future with 30 years worth of debt, not a single useful piece of legislation to improve education or health-care, and you want more of the same crap???

man, that really pisses me off........


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

YaGatDatRite said:


> 1. Deceiving the country and the world under false pretexts and shady evidence
> 2. Unlawful occupation of a sovereign country (after its near-total wipe out)
> 3. Biggest housing and credit crisis since the depression wiping out trillions of $$ worth of assets
> 4. Scandal after scandal of elected and nominated officials (NJ, Ohio, Fla, WI.........)
> ...



Republican leanings or not, I still cannot understand how 40-odd percent of this country is still supporting this total failure of a party. If you're in the top 0.01%, I suppose it makes sense if you have no conscience. Everybody else who votes for them is just shooting themselves in the foot.


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

It is kind of refreshing to have a conservative on here though. Even though I don't agree with your party's politics or ideologies, it's always healthy to hear a different point of view  

But, as yet, I have yet to hear one good reason why I should choose McCain over Obama. And that's something I never thought I'd say because I have always had great respect for McCain. He has always stood by his principles and voted in the way that he thought was right without towing the party line. But in the past year or two he's really gone over to pander to the party faithful and towing the line  It has frankly been sad to watch because I always thought "if McCain ever runs for President, he would probably have my vote unless the Democrat was amazing" and now I can't say that anymore. 

I respect McCain for everything he did to serve his country (just as my brother, father, uncle, and grandfather did) but that doesn't mean I have to agree with everything he says (just like I disagree with my family members sometimes), and I don't think he's the best man for the job. And Sarah Palin really freaks me out.


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

Tiffani said:


> It is kind of refreshing to have a conservative on here though. Even though I don't agree with your party's politics or ideologies, it's always healthy to hear a different point of view


My hypothesis is that those who've lived overseas and seen more of the world are more likely to lean to the left than the right.


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

Fatbrit said:


> My hypothesis is that those who've lived overseas and seen more of the world are more likely to lean to the left than the right.


agreed. That's why it's refreshing to have a different point of view. Keeps us grounded  

(and it's a stark reminder too, that this election is not Obama's to lose, and people who want to see him in power need to not be complacent in November)


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## synthia (Apr 18, 2007)

I'm not a McCain fan, but let's be fair about the woodenness. How wooden would you look if you were unable to move your upper arms more than a few inches, couldn't swing them when you walk, and couldn't really bend your back much. The torture he indured left him somewhat immobilized. It isn't looking wooden that's the problem.

And Bev, people from all over the world wish they could vote in the elections, because the election does affect everyone, not just US residents. Now if you were from Australia, you would be right. But a voter with an international perspective is especiallly important now. Please register and vote.


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

synthia said:


> And Bev, people from all over the world wish they could vote in the elections, because the election does affect everyone, not just US residents. Now if you were from Australia, you would be right. But a voter with an international perspective is especiallly important now. Please register and vote.


I know plenty of Australians who would LOVE to be able to vote in this election! (not to mention French, British, and so on). 

Bev I agree with the others. If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem! (at least with respect to the elections). You have a duty as an American to vote. After hearing some of the stories from students I met in my last job in the US who are from places without free governments -- I won't mention any countries specifically but one girl in particular I remember well who feared returning home because she could be imprisoned or killed for being part of a movement toward open government -- to not vote in a country with the freedoms we were born into out of sheer luck makes a mockery of everyone who's ever had to fight for it.

***steps off soapbox***


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

I wasn't going to get into it, but since you have raised the issue, I'll explain my thinking on this. I did vote a few years back - but given that you are supposed to vote in the last district in which you lived before leaving the US, I find I am further and further removed from that district. I have no friends or family back there, and have not even visited back there for at least 15 years now. When I have tried to contact "my" Congressional representative, I find that unless you give them a return address within their district, you won't get through. (Some poor slob in the house I used to own is no doubt being peppered with junk mail from the Congressional Rep for the district!)

I have a real horror of "one issue voters." You know, those people who vote based on the candidate's position on a single issue - whether it's the war, or abortion or creationism or whatever. And national elections (which includes president, senators and congressional reps) are based on a combination of domestic and international issues, IMO.

I'm currently in the US, and listening to the news here, I realize that I don't have a clue on most of the domestic issues being discussed over here. Add to that, the area I return to in the US is at the other end of the continent from the district in which I'm eligible to vote.

I do vote in the French elections now that I have my French nationality, and that's where I invest my time and effort to study the issues and try to select the "better" candidate among the choices on offer. But if I can't cast a considered and intelligent vote, based on all the relevant issues, I prefer not to vote based solely on the "sound bites" and bits and pieces of reporting that make it across the Pond.
Cheers,
Bev


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## Tiffani (Dec 4, 2007)

I see your point, Bev.


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