There are many reasons why I am voting for Obama, and as I am speaking to the choir, I am not going to waste valuable internet ink in spelling them out here b/c I am sure you feel the same way. However, even if I wasn't so ga-ga over our candidate, I would vote for a very bland candidate over what has emerged from the swamps of the Republican party.
My main reason? Both McCain and Palin possess a singular trait of Dubya that I find the most disturbing of all his characteristics, and is chief behind many of the woes which to which we have been subjected.
Decision making.
After viewing the Gibson interview, I was struck by something that really made me feel scared about this posibility of a McCain/Palin Administration - it has to do with what Obama pointed out as "their pride in being ignorant.
In her interview, this came up several times:
I answered him yes because I have the confidence in that readiness and knowing that you can't blink, you have to be wired in a way of being so committed to the mission, the mission that we're on, reform of this country and victory in the war, you can't blink.
So I didn't blink then even when asked to run as his running mate.
In order to stop Islamic extremists, those terrorists who would seek to destroy America and our allies, we must do whatever it takes and we must not blink, Charlie, in making those tough decisions of where we go and even who we target.
It seems that the apple doesn't fall very far from the tree:
McCain in his book:
"I make them (decisions) quickly as I can, quicker than the other fellow, if I can," Mr. McCain wrote, with his top adviser Mark Salter, in his 2002 book, "Worth the Fighting For." "Often my haste is a mistake, but I live with the consequences without complaint.
Both of these candidates take great pride in their ability to make snap decisions. Now quick thinking is always an attribute, but more important is being correct in your assessment. I have yet to see one decision on foreign or domestic policy where the American people benefitted by how quickly the decision was made. It is astounding that these people, who want to lead our country, place value in how quickly a decision is made rather than value the substance of the decision iteslf.
What makes this especially horrifying is when you couple this foolish pride with being intellectually incurious. We've all heard the statement that McCain made that he is no expert on the economy, and that he still needs to be educated. Really? Well, you are in your 26th year as a United States Senator, when are you going to feel the pressure to seek out that information? Is there any doubt that this portrays the exact personal flaw of George W. Bush?
Like any person with a self-destructive flaw, it continues to persist with the help of enablers (Cindy McCain anyone?)
In that regard, I give you Rick Davis, campaign manager for the McCain campaign:
"This election is not about issues," said Davis. "This election is about a composite view of what people take away from these candidates."
The Confederacy of Dunces that has become the Republican Party has even had a surrogate degrade politicians with all their facts and figures. Unblievable. As Stephen Colbert said, "I't only important to look things up in your gut."
Even a former Palin aide while she was governor of Alaska gave an interview (I have looked everywhere, I can't find it. Supply the link if you've got it.) which praised Palin personally, but stated that she made decisions on superficial analysis of information and did not have the experience.
Can we really have another President who makes decisions based on little or no information, based on an intellect that has never sought out to understand anything more than on a surface level, if that?
McCain, you may live without complaint due to the consequences of your mistakes, but it is the United States that is going to have to cover that check. When the waves come crashing down, it will be on the shores of the average citizen, not those safely nestled in their palaces in Sedona.