If you (or everyone you know) are part of the 90% of voting Americans who have already decided who to vote for in the presidential election and could not be swayed under any circumstances, please do not read this email. However, if you (or someone you know) are among the 10% who have still not made up their mind, please read further or pass it on.
EARLY LIFE VOTERS (18 to 30)
If you want the status quo, and if you want someone whose most significant event in life was framed by war, who stubbornly insists on outdated views of "victory" over all else, McCain is your man. Obama will not shirk from war, but he will be less likely to start a new cold war with Russia or regional wars with Korea or Iran than McCain. Obama will use all forms of diplomacy and solicit our allies before pulling the trigger. McCain may not. Obama will help restore America's respect around the globe. If you want to make a difference in the world, and create lasting change in our social, economic, and political systems, that helps alleviate poverty, creates clean and sustainable energy, and prioritizes responsible stewardship of the environment, Obama is your candidate. He will call upon you to hitch your wagon to a cause greater than yourself, but you may become a bigger person because of it. Lose yourself in the service of others. If you seek to create a world that works for all, please vote for Barack Obama.
MIDDLE LIFE VOTERS (31 to 60)
"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness," wrote Thomas Jefferson. If you believe in equality for all, then please consider voting for Barack Obama. For someone who claims to fight pork barrel politics and ear marks, McCain's proposed $350 billion in tax cuts for the wealthy are the biggest ear mark of all. McCain's net worth is $100 million and you can be sure he is focused on helping the rich first, with the broken promise that some of this wealth will trickle down to help everybody else. Ronald Reagan buffaloed us all with this notion, and I even voted for him in the 1980s so I could have lower taxes and feel like I was helping others with a single vote. But in the last 25 years the rich have become richer and the poor poorer; we know now that trickle-down economics just doesn't work. If you truly care about helping your fellow Americans, a vote for Obama will make a bigger economic difference than any charity or congregation plate donations you make during the next four years. If you are earning more than $250,000 per year, don't be selfish with your good fortune, voting for McCain because he will keep your taxes low. Instead, step up and do your part to help others less fortunate than you. If you are making less than $250,000 per year (95% of taxpayers), your taxes will be reduced if you vote for Obama.
LATER LIFE VOTERS (61 to 100)
Your retirement nest egg is not safe under a Republican administration that believes that free markets should remain unregulated at all costs. Our life savings are now under siege because of overly deregulated markets with inadequate oversight. Obama will fix this. McCain, the deregulator, will not. Under our current health care system, the AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) estimates that most Americans will need to save $250,000 each for medical care in later life, even after Medicare and private insurance reimbursements. How many couples really have an extra $500,000 in savings to apply to this? Most American households don't even have this much for their whole retirements, much less for medical costs. Medical expenses are the #1 cause of bankruptcies in America today. We need the universal care that Obama is advocating, which will bring the Unites States even with the rest of the developed world. McCain will just ask you to figure it out yourself by investing in our tumultuous stock market. With our financial markets in disarray and our stock market plunging, are you ready to take on that risk? Even if you disagree with Obama on everything else, you should vote for him based on this issue alone. Protect your retirement. Vote for Obama.
Participative democracy means every eligible voter's voice should be heard and counted. Whatever you do, please go to the polls on November 4, 2008. And encourage any "Undecideds" you may know to go as well.
Thank you for the consideration,
David Marshall
Moraga, California
journals for people with life stories, love and wisdom to share: www.marshallbooks.net
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Comments: 3
The main reason I'm voting for McCain is because I have no faith in the ability of the Democrats to be accountable if they have both congress and the white house. That's the same unfettered power that allowed the Republicans to fuck things up 2000-2006. IMO, if you want Bush circa 2000-2006 vote for Obama.
That's some pretty bizarre math there, Dan'l. (Is there any INTELLIGENT life on the planet you come from?)
What we DON'T need in our next president is an erratic hot-headed old guy who adheres to the hands-off, free-wheeling regime of deregulation that has given us the current financial system disaster. And now he wants to "turn the page" and talk about something else (unsurprisingly, since he obviously has nothing of value to contribute to the process of finding solutions to the country's economic woes).
His showing the white flag in Michigan is only the begining of the end of his presidential aspirations. He is about to become the next member of the "Bob Dole Failed Republican Presidential Candidates Club".