April 1st, 2008 -- Posted in American Politics, Irish Politics |
Having lived in Ireland for almost a year now and have watched with fascination the growing interest of the whole world in the American Election. The News Networks from Europe to the Middle East cannot get enough of the election and it is one of those ever-present segments that are on RTÉ every day (Main Irish Network). I thought it might be a good idea to take a break from my American perspective on the elections to bring a more worldly perspective for this discussion. For this I have used www.boards.ie which is the biggest Irish Forum here in Ireland and here are the results of the Election 2008 Poll conducted so far:
I don’t give any credence to this Poll in terms of the results but it does give a suggestion to what I have been saying about the world opinion at the moment. People outside of the USA are looking for someone to change America’s percieved role in the World. That being said I have liked what Senator McCain has been saying in the media lately that he advocates a stronger relationship with our allies which is a good thing to say but I don’t think that line follows traditional GOP policy. Senator Obama has also been an advocate for a greater integration between the USA and the world but first we will have to see who wins the nomination first.
March 2nd, 2008 -- Posted in American Politics |
The critical Texas and Ohio primaries are upon us with the race looking as divided as ever on the democratic side while Senator McCain continues to build momentum coming up to the general election. This division within the democratic base should worry all segments of the liberal populace because all this competition is draining the energy from the average citizen as well as their enthusiasm to vote. Some people are honestly getting tired with the constant media attention on the election and the competition between the candidates so much so, that they might not vote come the general election. I have no definitive proof of this but it is just the general feeling I get when I speak to some of my friends in America. Whoever comes out ahead on Tuesday, it is my strongest belief that the other person should step down for the good of the party.
Every day I watch Senator McCain gain valuable endorsements, smiling while he spreads the Republican message around the country. Good for him but very bad for the rest of us who want to see a Democratic president take office next year. I am an Obama supporter for many reasons which I won’t go into at the moment but like many other Democrats I would not mind if Hillary won the democratic nomination and the election. I took a fairly length break after writing the earlier sentence to have some dinner and watch the Daily Show by Jon Stewart which airs on Saturday here in Ireland. His guest for the show was former secretary of state Madeline Albright, a democrat and a brilliant woman who advocates a withdrawal from Iraq. She has also endorsed Senator Clinton as being the person who “knows how the Whitehouse works.”
Does that knowledge necessitate the best outcome for the American people? In part perhaps… but not necessarily as a great article in Time gives us a clue into the qualities of a President. The article is entitled: “Does Experience Matter in a President?” They go over in detail over all the past presidents focusing on those who had experience and those who did not have any and compared presidencies. They came up with one definitive conclusion being that having experience does not necessitate a good presidency. I will refer to the last paragraph:
“When Americans pass over the best-credentialed candidates because their heart or their gut leads them elsewhere, they are only reflecting a visceral understanding that the presidency involves tests unlike all others. They are, perhaps, seeking the ineffable quality the writer Katherine Anne Porter had in mind when she defined experience as “the truth that finally overtakes you.” An ideal President is ruthless and compassionate, visionary and pragmatic, cunning and honest, patient and bold, combining the eloquence of a psalmist with the timing of a jungle cat. Not exactly the sort of data you can find on a résumé.”
The point of this entry was to debunk a few Obama myths running up to the election so that people can clearly determine who is the best candidate to lead America in the 21st century. Former Secretary Albright herself mentioned that the new President is going to need to have unique qualities that no one else has therefore leaving the field of potential candidates quite open.
- Myth: Senator Obama does not have the experience of Senator Clinton or Senator McCain in domestic and global issues. Truth: He does not have the experience but as proven above and also mentioned in my previous entry. Experience is not essential and neither does it guarantee someone who can fix the modern America.
Myth: Senator Obama’s middle name is Hussein there he has some sort of hidden link to Islamic radicals and will bring about the doom of America from the inside. Truth: I don’t have a middle name and I plan to rule the world! Seriously 
- Myth: People like me who support Senator Obama are just sheep caught up in the media frenzy and have no distinct minds or thoughts. Truth: Senator Obama actually appeals to the Smart People in society as proven by the exit polling in past primaries. Do we call people with Bachelor’s, Master’s and PHD’s sheep? I think not, these people are following the Senator for a reason because they have read his plans for the country as outlined on his website and understand his words for what they are.
- Myth: Senator Obama will reduce funding to the Military thereby stifling our ability to defend ourselves against Terrorism. Truth: What is the best way to kill many small groups of enemies? With a Broad War? No! With small surgical strikes as advocated by Senator Obama. This strategy will prove far more effective and less detrimental to the global image of the USA.
- Myth: Senator Obama and his wife are not patriotic because they do no wear buttons, flags or put their hand over their heart etc… Truth: How is patriotism defined by a button or an action? Who among us has the right to define the concept? I know so many people who live in America and say horrible things about the place, does that make them love the country less, off course not… America is great because people can voice these things. Senator Obama cares about the future of the USA otherwise why would he waste his time running for president? Also check out this video about Conservative hypocrisy concerning the button issue…
Lastly I would like to stress to people from all walks of the political spectrum, the USA needs change and Senator McCain and Clinton are not the change that the country needs. Electing either of these two people will not solve the problems of China, the Economy, Terrorism or Immigration. These are the kinds of problems that require someone with totally different thought, someone who can think so far outside the box he ends up swimming in the ocean. That candidate is Sentaor Obama. Goodluck Sir!
February 10th, 2008 -- Posted in American Politics |
Well Saturday has gone and past and we are left with Senator Obama winning decisively in Saturday’s contests which doesn’t say too much considering he was expected to win those contests. It’s almost 12am here in Ireland and as I write this blog, democrats are voting in Maine where it is supposed to be a tight contest. Hillary Clinton has achieved the endorsement of the Governor there but I am hoping for a Barack Obama win which I won’t be able to find out until tomorrow. I spent a lot of time watching the news incidentally today on CNBC, CNN and Fox. I find it quite amazing how intensely the elections are being covered which is a great thing and I came across a few interesting statistics in the process of my television watching:
1. A CNN-Time Poll calculated that almost 20 million people have participated in the primaries so far on the democratic side while a mere 13 million people have participated on the Republican Side. These are incredible numbers which is why a Congressman (Not sure who his name was) was estimating that there will be a landslide victory for the Democrats come November. I hope this is the case, if the Republicans continue to avoid the primaries and the general elections than we will definitely have a change for the better.
2. A New Time Poll shows that Senator Obama would captured 48% of the Vote in a theoretical matchup between himself and Senator McCain who captures 41%, these kind of numbers really made my day today but after hearing that news I switched on Fox to see President Bush openly advertising for Senator McCain in terms of massaging the conservative bases’ lack of trust in McCain. There are still a lot of Presidential loyalists out there and if President Bush pushes the message hard enough I this will narrow the gap significantly. If you examine the article it states that Independent’s tend to favor McCain (McCain vs. Clinton) but prefer Obama (McCain vs. Obama) which should tell the Democratic Party who needs to be elected.
3. Lastly I found a great article at the New York Times that I stumbled across emphasizing how little we can trust the delegate numbers in the case of the Democrats. My mother who also follows the elections continually reminds me how far Obama is behind but if we look at the picture below this text, it tells a totally different story:
So who do we believe? I for one, after reading this article will look at the numbers a bit more skeptically so maybe you should to?
