Before you cast an historic vote…

I seldom address politics, but in this once in a century moment, I’ll make an exception.

I literally want to talk to you about the election— talk since I’m dictating my comments.  Many readers agree with me politically but there may be some who do not.  It’s you that I want to speak to heart to heart. 

Honoring our troops

First, I want to mention our troops. Is Obama against our troops?  I don’t think so.  As General Colin Powell said, the war in Iraq began on the wrong assumption that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.  This proved to be false.  The war in Iraq has worn our brave forces nearly to the limit, has depleted our weapons and munitions to dangerously low levels, and costs us $10 billion a month, although the Iraqis are sitting on a surplus of oil revenues.

Obama wants to honor and conserve our forces and to focus on the war in Afghanistan, where Al Qaeda is.  He is not willing to shed one drop of American blood wrongfully. But, as a senior Pentagon official said at the outset, the Iraq campaign squandered our military resources in a cavalier fashion.

Divide and conquer with theological weapons

For several decades politicians in denominations and in the country have successfully used theological issues as weapons to divide and conquer the people of God. 

What’s important to understand is how good people have been manipulated.  Political operatives used your strong convictions virtually to coerce your decisions about the future of the Southern Baptist Convention, the Republican Party, and the United States Congress and the Presidency.

The 2008 presidential election is not chiefly about unrelated theological or social issues that people feel strongly about.

Economic meltdown

The main issue is economic. 

Beginning with Ronald Reagan, the primary economic theory was to cut taxes, mainly for the very rich, who then would spend lavishly, money trickling down to everyone further down the pay scale.  While accusing Democrats of being “tax and spend liberals,” extreme right Republicans became “borrow and spend” puppets of big business.  In seven years the national debt doubled, from $5 trillion to $10 trillion! Before long, the United States could be another Enron, with costs like the war being off the books just as Enron’s major deficits were.

Another tenet of this philosophy is deregulation.  Self interest and the free market would supposedly assure fair play and honest dealing.  The economic meltdown last month proved this philosophy to be wrong; executives acted in self interest, giving themselves hundreds of millions of dollars in bonuses while their companies collapsed. Reagan practiced “trust but verify” with regard to the Russians; he should have done so with his business tycoon buddies as well.

Obama’s plan means lower taxes for people making less than $250,000 a year.

We don’t live in a Jeffersonian world any more

In the age of Thomas Jefferson, governments were the biggest fish in the pond. Today, however, many governments are small by comparison with multinational corporations.  The Jeffersonian ideal of smaller and smaller government doesn’t work when larger sharks patrol the pool.  Without a strong government to exercise reasonable regulatory powers, huge business interests run rampant over the rest of society.

Powell: the constricting of the Repiblican Party

General Colin Powell’s endorsement of Barack Obama was based partly on the Republican Party’s being hijacked by extreme right wing conservatives who use the cloak of religion to gain and keep power.  He said the party has become so narrow, he felt uncomfortable in it.

John McCain: honorable, impulsive and unsteady

John McCain has served with honor.  Throughout his service, however, he has been impulsive.  By choosing Sarah Palin, rather than Tom Ridge, for example, McCain illustrates the problem with his leadership.  By first canceling his campaign, flying to Washington, DC, failing to solve the economic meltdown, then resuming his campaign, he demonstrated an unsteadiness unsuited for the White House. At age 72 his future health is a concern.

A transformational figure: Barack Obama

Barack Obama can unite our country. In a once-in-a-century crisis (Greenspan), Obama remained calm, well-informed, and disciplined. He is, in the words of General Powell, “a transformational figure.”  I believe his service is rooted in a profound Christian faith.

Join me in voting for Barack Obama and Joe Biden.  Pass this post along to a few friends as well.

Let’s talk

I’d welcome the chance to discuss your views, even if they’re different. If you can change my opinion, fair enough.

(BTW, I only have a few readers as a matter of fact.  I appreciate you a lot.)