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Another Election...
...more reflections
comments: 1 addendums: 0
I firmly believe that the majority of informed voters will make the right decision. I sincerely worry if the majority of voters are not informed.
I think voters in the 2004 elections deserve a pat on the back regardless of how they voted. While we have a ways to go towards improving our awareness and knowledge of the issues I certainly feel that the voters of 2004 were the most informed of at least recent history.
The Internet has a lot to do with that. The majority of us are plugged in to a wealth of information. Some of the information is good, reliable. Most of it isn't, yet. We have to sort it out and I think the majority of us did.
And so we made the right choices.
It wasn't until I stood in the booth that my choice for President was fully made. I would lean towards Bush and waffle towards Kerry. In the end there were not enough differences between the two candidates, to me, on the most important issue we face -- war.
President Bush was soundly criticized for repeating this question to Senator Kerry in their first debate: How will you [Kerry] build a coalition of allies for the wrong war in the wrong place at the wrong time? But Kerry never did provide a clear and detailed answer to that question.
Mr. President, get the job done. Defeat the terrorists. Bring our troops home. And then lets examine our foreign policies so that we never create the atmosphere, and the Husseins and Bin Ladens, that breeds terrorism.
For those who think I'm a neocon: Since 1976, the first election I was old enough to vote in, President Bush was the second Republican candidate I have ever voted for. (Carter, Mondale, Bush Sr., Clinton, Perot, Gore, Bush for those keeping score).
I am a staunchly independent voter.
I voted for Barrack Obama. All the spin about Alan Keyes being the most honest, upfront candidate Illinois has ever seen just didn't cut it with me. I found it hypocritical that Mr. Keyes would criticize Hillary Clinton and then choose the same political avenue as the DC-to-New York Senator.
You want honest? You want informed? At the Candidate's Night forum at the DeKalb County Farm Bureau, Bob Pritchard was asked about impact fees. He said that impact fees raise property taxes for existing homeowners.
Bob!?! That is not a politically correct answer!!! But you got my vote. It was so refreshing to hear a candidate seeking retention reveal his depth of knowledge on an important issue. Now, before all you lovers of impact fees go into a tizzy, Pritchard also said that he thought such regulations should be controlled and decided upon by the local units of government.
Come through on the education finance reform, Bob.
I didn't always vote for the winner. I voted for James MacMurdo in my district for the county board. MacMurdo has talked to me personally on a couple of occasions and I found him intelligent, informed and committed. I've never met Mr. Whelan.
DeKalb County Democrats kicked some butt. They were much better organized than the local GOP and they worked harder at the grassroots level. The local Dems' website is much futher along in functionality and ability to communicate than that of the Republicans. The results did not surprise me.
The visitors of DeKalb County Online sure knew how to pick 'em! We ran two polls. DC Online visitors, who participated in the polls, correctly picked Bush, Obama, Hastert, Burzynski, Pritchard and Matekaitis. In all but the race for President, DC Online pollsters were shockingly close on the final margins.
That can only mean that DeKalb County Online visitors are the most informed people in the county. The rest probably call Ear-to-Ear and leave anonymous messages. :-)
Oh! And there was a referendum in Waterman. If you've visited this site much then you know that I am for responsible growth. I think we need more rooftops. I think we need to make sure that we do not price our homes, new and existing, out of the affordability level for our current residents (and we are). I think we need the jobs and the dollars that new construction generates. I think that government spending needs to be curtailed, not private sector jobs. I think we need to balance our workforce to wean our dependency on the government for jobs and it will take new residents to do that.
All in all? I think the majority of informed voters made the right decisions.
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Date: Thursday November 11, 2004
Time: 09:33 AM -0500
I can't see how anyone could have voted for Bush.
I always ask myself am I better off now than I was four years ago? I am not, and I ask other working class people and they are not. As far as Iraq, it's all about oil and $$$$. My prediction for our future, there will be a draft, and we will invade the country that sits between Iraq and Afganistan. I hope I'm WRONG!
Thank You,
Art LeDoux
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