I’m going to miss George W. Bush.
Our 43rd president wasn’t perfect by any means, but out of the three presidents I can remember, he is my favorite. When I was little, it seemed like Bill Clinton had been president forever. I don’t have any memory of Bush 41, and until Bush 43 was elected, it seemed like the name Clinton was basically synonymous with the word president. In the 2000 election (the first election when I was actually into politics) I rooted for Bush, and I was happy when he won. Same with 2004. In this election, let’s just say I wasn’t overly thrilled with the result.
Although I am trying to give Obama a chance, I liked Bush better and am sad to see him leave. He had a few policies I didn’t agree with, such as increasing AIDS funding for Africa, spending so much money on the Iraq War, and increasing airport security, but overall I think he was one of our better presidents.
Ever since Election Day, I have been bombarded by unquestioning reverence for Obama everywhere I look. I constantly see people wearing Obama buttons, Obama stickers, and Obama t-shirts and speaking adoringly about everything from Obama’s policies to how cute his daughters are. They gush at everyone they talk to (including me) about how election night was “the most exciting experience in my life” or how they’re “still walking on air” and are “proud of America for the first time.”
How inconsiderate to assume that everyone else worships Obama as much as you do! Numerous times I have found myself in the awkward position of either keeping my mouth shut and nodding or making people’s jaws drop by telling them that, believe it or not, I actually don’t really like Obama. Has it ever occurred to you that conservatives exist in the world, and you might be talking to one?
Liberals are known for their tolerance of all different races, religions, and sexual orientations. Apparently, though, liberals require people to be identical to them in ideology in order to be accepted. Would you ever bash gay people if there was a possibility you were talking to a gay person? I don’t think so. Then why do you bash conservatives when you have no idea whether the person you are talking to is conservative or liberal?
Guess what, liberals? Remember how you unanimously and mercilessly bashed the president for the past eight years and called anyone who disagreed with you stupid? Remember how you complained about how horrible America was and how all the other countries are better than us?
Well, now it’s our turn. I did not vote for Obama, and I do not support him. I hope he doesn’t mess up the country too badly, but if he does, it’s the job of us conservatives to give him just as much grief as the liberals gave poor Bush during the past eight years. And if you support Obama, it’s okay to be excited about having a black president for the first time, and even to be excited about Obama’s political views, but remember that he’s just a person, not a god. It’s not good to worship a politician as infallible and perfect, whether they are liberal or conservative.
Left-wing socialists across the country have been opining that Republicans did so badly in the election because conservatism is a dying, obsolete philosophy that Americans are beginning to abandon. Well, they are wrong. I know the real reason why conservatives did so badly on November 4th – because liberals bought the election.
Take Barack Obama, for example. He spent $573 million, while John McCain, who accepted public financing, spent only $293 million. It is simply not right that one candidate can have a half-hour long infomercial on all the major networks and the other candidate cannot.
Another great example of liberals buying the election is Question 1 – the initiative to repeal the Massachusetts income tax. It sickens my heart that Question 1 was defeated 70% to 30%. There would have been no drawbacks to eliminating the state income tax and a huge benefit, namely people getting to keep their money! However, because opponents of Question 1 raised $4.5 million and supporters raised only $431,000, the government theives were able to run deceptive TV ads to brainwash the people of Massachusetts into making the irrational, immoral choice.
It is sad that people are so easily influenced by propaganda instead of thinking for themselves. The amount of money a candidate or group has should not affect their chances of winning an election. I believe that campaign spending limits need to be implemented. I don’t believe in public financing because the government shouldn’t spend money on anything but the military, the justice system, and roads, but I also don’t think campaigns should be able to spend as much as they want. Financial arms races are a waste of money, time, and energy and are collectively self-defeating. To ensure fair elections in which people have a chance to make their own decisions instead of being brainwashed, the government needs to limit the amount of money campaigns are allowed to spend.
Sources for stats:
Center for Responsive Politics (OpenSecrets.org)
SouthCoastToday.com
After my (appropriately) depressing post about the election yesterday, I thought I’d recap the few good decisions voters made. Yes, I said that America did the wrong thing on almost every choice, but “almost” is the key word. Here are the few things voters did right:
- It looks like Proposition 8 is going to pass in California! I’m very pleasantly surprised that a state with such a liberal reputation is actually trying to put an end to gay marriage. Marriage is not a right, and the voters have every right to ban it. I hope the state government doesn’t somehow try to overrule the people’s decision like Massachusetts did.
- Arizona and Florida approved resolutions to ban gay marriage, too.
- Nebraska voted to end affirmative action. This discriminatory practice is insulting and unfair to people of all races and genders.
- Washington voted to allow doctor-assisted suicide. Committing suicide does not hurt anyone and is not immoral, so there is no reason why people shouldn’t be allowed to do it if they choose to.
- Colorado rejected an amendment that would define “person” as “any human being from the moment of fertilization.” In philosophy, a person is defined as a rational, autonomous being. Fetuses (and babies, by the way) are therefore not persons, and to define them as such would be contrary to the rules of the English language.
The 2008 election was the worst election in American history. Voters as a whole made the wrong choice on almost every race and ballot initiative in the entire country.
We’ll have a socialist-leaning president who will continue to decrease people’s liberty and property rights. Massachusetts voters had an opportunity to halt the expansion of government theft and oppression, but, brainwashed by the media and the multi-million dollar ad campaign from government moochers, they let the chance slip by. The magnificent, fun sport of greyhound racing is no more. Kerry and Kennedy are still the Massachusetts senators, depriving all Republicans in this state of representation. New Hampshire, which was supposed to be the only state in New England with a remnant of sense left, elected Jeanne Shaheen the taxing machine to the Senate.
Needless to say, I am extraordinarily disappointed in the people of the United States. All true Americans need to remember that although times are bad now, we must keep fighting and never give up. This will be a terrible four years, but hopefully the majority will realize the mistake they made and will vote differently next time. Every socialist nation so far has deteriorated because there is no incentive for people to work. America is clearly headed in this direction, with Obama as president and a Democratic Congress that will eagerly agree to do anything he asks. Don’t lose hope. Eventually America will realize that socialism is not the way to go.
