Thursday, October 2, 2008

And the Vice-Presidential debate winner is...

Wow, good debate. Governor Palin didn't stink like she did in the Couric interviews, which was great for Senator Biden. It allowed him to be his best and he was able to avoid looking like a bully. The moderator was extremely fair. I chose to watch the debate on CNN, where it was interesting to see the real-time opinion of thirty-some Ohioans displayed on the television via a graph measuring audience mood during the discussion.

I feel Biden won the debate, but Palin restored her previously held position as a scrappy soccer, er, hockey mom. She was full-on folksy tonight, for sure, ya know. Couple of winks in there, too. The debate reaffirmed my opinion that I'd rather see Biden stepping into the presidential shoes over Palin. Joe Biden is well spoken, able to make his point, and has the wealth of knowledge and experience to assist Barack in his Presidency. He did his job well, connecting McCain to Bush, and making the case that an Obama/Biden ticket will do more for main street America than McCain/Palin.

Right now the pundits are sorting out the factual content, and I'm sure by morning the news will have some polls to let us know who prevailed. The voices that will count most will be those of the independents. For me, this was a wonderful affirmation that Obama made a great choice in Biden. What a great ticket.

Why is Cynthia Lummis Running for Congress?

From the homepage of Cynthia Lummis' Website, I have taken the liberty to play the role of Gary Trauner in composing a rebuttal to Cynthia's interest in running for congress (my responses are in red):

Cynthia's Top 6 Reasons for Running for Congress
1. Because I love Wyoming; our state and its people represent a uniquely wonderful corner of the world. I completely agree, me too.

2. Because I am an idealist and an optimist; I think that public service can make a difference. Hey, so am I! I have great ideas about health care, green energy and especially taking care of our vets and soldiers. After all, haven't our military men and women provided the greatest service to our country? I 'm optimistic that I can help turn this country back around after having been under the Bush regime for eight years.

3. Because this is a challenging time, both here and abroad. Challenges, to me, are a call to service. Things have only become worse from the time I ran for congress in 2006. While Republican Barbara Cubin accumulated the worst voting record in congress, the last two years have brought us even more challenges. Challenges like the national debt, the further occupation in Iraq, the meager attempts to diminish our dependency on foreign oil. Gosh, where have those challenges come from? Oh, yeah. From the Republicans. Yeah, I am up for challenges, too.

4. Because the Federal government has always had, and continues to have, a big influence on the shape of Wyoming's future; Wyoming's voice in Congress needs to be strong and authentic. I'm pretty sure I act strong and authentic. For instance, I would never have a member of my election team call in to a question and answer session and pretend they are someone else to try and trip up my opponent. I would feel bad about doing something like that.

5. Because how we address the matters of energy, the environment, national security and the economy today, directly affects our children's future. Yeah, the Republicans have always been about the environment, haven't they. Alaskan wilderness. Spotted Owls. Global Warming. Nature freaks, that's what they are. Spending billions in Iraq, all the while creating more disdain for the United States globally, I agree are definitely affecting our children's future. In a bad way.

6 .Because I listen, and will continue to listen, to Wyoming people in order to most effectively represent their interests in Washington. I'm going to listen to all the people in Wyoming, including Democrats, Independents, and Republicans. Because I'm not about serving the party line. I'm about making a difference, and leaving this world a better place for the next generation.

With apologies to Mr. Trauner; who I'm sure would say these things more eloquently than me.

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Regarding the bailout

I could be wrong, but my gut feeling is that this whole bailout attempt is a bad idea. My chief complaint is, why is this the only plan being considered? Shouldn't a problem this enormous have several solutions to discuss? The thought process that "This is our only option" reeks of short-sightedness. Perhaps we need to think outside the cardboard container. Jeffrey A. Miron, a senior lecturer in economics at Harvard University, provides a different point of view in this op/ed piece which frankly, seems to make more sense to me.

After eight years of bad policy, my litmus test is as follows: If George W. Bush thinks it is a good idea, then it most likely is a bad idea.

Perhaps this is our wake up call to stop living beyond our means. The US government needs to start leading by example, and start finding ways to pay down the national debt, not keep adding to it. Perhaps for us citizens, a jolt back into reality, and not a new big screen TV, is exactly what we need.

Donate to our Wyoming Democratic candidates

Have you supported our local candidates? It's a real easy thing to do online. Actblue.com is a one stop spot to donate to our Democratic Party candidates, including Gary Trauner, Chris Rothfuss, Nick Carter, and Terry Jones. We have a little over a month until the general election. If you can, chip in a few dollars and show your support. I promise you will get a warm fuzzy feeling inside when you do!

McCain/Palin attempt to be on same page

This ticket scares me more and more every day. Palin is asked a question from a voter, she gives an answer. But oops, it doesn't match what McCain's views are. So, we go on CBS and state that this was "Gotcha Journalism". What?! How should that have been handled then? Should Palin have said "That's a good question, Mr. Voter. Let me call John and see how I should answer this, and I'll get back to you."

Don't give us the line that it was crowded and loud and she didn't fully hear the question. C'mon, we're smarter that that. This can't be the ticket America wants in the White House. It just can't be.

Monday, September 29, 2008

Wyoming, vote with your absentee ballot today!

In Wyoming, you are allowed to vote 40 days before the General Election. This means you can vote NOW! There are two ways to vote by absentee ballot. First, you may go directly to the office of the county clerk. That's 800 9th St, downtown Wheatland for Platte County. You know the building. Grab a ballot, fill it out, and hand it in right there. Piece of cake. Secondly, you can request an absentee ballot be mailed to you by calling the county clerk (322-2315) or submitting your name, residence address, mailing address, and birth date or Social Security Number. Once your information is verified, your ballot will be sent by mail.

All ballots must be in by November 4th, at 7 p.m. and can be returned in person or by mail. If you are in the military or overseas, go to http://www.fvap.gov.index.html/ for an application for an absentee ballot.

If you're going to be busy November 4th, or happen to be bad at remembering dates, why not contact our county clerk and vote now!

Help Obama/Biden, Call the Swing States!

If you are a realist, you probably have figured out that no matter how much we want it, Barack Obama will probably not win in Wyoming. So what is a Democratic Wyomingite to do? How about picking up the phone and making some calls to those swing states? The Obama website has set up an area where you can register to make phone calls to the states where we really need the votes. They provide you with names, numbers, and talking points to show those "Undecided" folks why Obama must be the next President of the United States of America. Visit the Obama website now and lend a hand.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Gary Trauner on Health Care

Please take a look at Gary Trauner's stance on health care:

• Nearly 1 in every 5 of our fellow Wyomingites is without health care coverage
• The US system is the most expensive in the world
• Our system is inefficient - nearly double most other developed countries, per person
• The US is the only country that relies primarily on employer based plans for health care coverage

Gary's response to "What can we do?" is:

• Reduce the health care coverage burden on our businesses, especially small businesses
• Strive to cover every American with basic, quality coverage
• Take medical decisions away from insurance companies, medical product manufacturers and accountants and give those decisions back to patients and doctors
• Stop the fear talk about universal health care and start the hopeful work of solving this huge national problem

I think Gary Trauner hits the nail squarely on the head. This is the kind of leadership that Wyoming needs. We have a lot of issues to solve in the USA, the hottest topics being the War in Iraq, Energy and the Economy. But let's not forget about healthcare; it should be a priority too. Don't be so resigned to accept our current system as unfixable. Give this man a chance and vote for him on November 4th.