Age Does Matter

As Dwight D. Eisenhower said, "Any man who wants to be president is either an egomaniac or crazy"

Aging takes its toll on the ego and as a person's matures, his motivation becomes less egocentric. Life experience teaches us to feel our own needs less intensely, therefore making it possible to seek out solutions based on what is best for the whole as opposed to what is best for me.

I agree with John Edwards on most issues and I believe he would make a great president someday. However, Joe Biden would make a better president right now because he has the wisdom required to lead a country as powerful as our country is; the wisdom gained from the accumulation of knowledge resulting from direct participation in political events, from what he has observed, encountered, and undergone over almost four decades of service to this country.

I may not agree with Biden on every issue but I trust that his decisions will be based on his insight and ability to discern or judge what is best for America in the long run. He has witnessed and been a part of the democratic process for much longer than any of the other candidates and has shown he has what it takes to take on the most challenging of situations.

Of course, the aging process alone is not sufficient to determine whether one is qualified to be President of the United States...far from it. Nevertheless, when almost all other factors are equal, we should consider age only as far as how much experience a person has and how he has responded to what life has dished out.

Is he willing to admit when he is wrong? Does he have the strength and integrity to cling to what he truly believes is right despite social or political pressure, yet possesses the ability to put his ego in perspective and the flexibility to alter his opinion when presented with new knowledge and/or particular instances of personally encountering or undergoing something?

We do not know how most of the candidates will respond when the proverbial shit hits the fan but we do know how Joe Biden has responded to the most difficult circumstances and we've seen him mature gracefully willing to learn from his mistakes and grow from the trials and tribulations life has dished out.

Read more...

Rudy Giuliani Preferred Candidate of News Corp?

Rudy Giuliani, another narcissistic, potential megalomaniac whose real talent is creating the grand illusion that he is a hero might make George Bush look tame in comparison, if elected.

“What Giuliani is, is George Bush on steroids. Giuliani, Romney and the rest of the Republicans running for the nomination are going to give the country four more years of crony capitalism, which is exactly what we have now. We have insurance companies and drug companies and oil companies running this government. They need to be stopped. And Giuliani just wants to empower them.” -- John Edwards

Between New York's five Mafia families almost sanctioning a hit on Rudy in 1986, using his erroneous perception of the reality of what actually occurred on 9/11 to promote himself ; his colorful personal life including his estrangement from his children who know him best, Giuliani is anything but boring...but neither is OJ Simpson. Giuliani may not have killed his ex-wife but I'm sure he wouldn't think twice if #1 it would further his goal of being the most powerful man in the world, and #2 guaranteed that he would get away with it.

It comes as no surprise that Fox News or News Corp's political agenda may include getting Rudy Giuliani elected president, especially considering their history.

Read more...

John Edwards is My Kind of Democrat

John Edwards goes straight to the heart of the matter and attacks our real enemy, corporate America, whether they are Democrats or Republicans. To be fair, he is not the only Democrat who in unafraid to challenge the status quo; Dennis Kucinich goes even further than John Edwards on many issues but unfortunately, Kucinich does not seem to have what it takes to attract the press.

After the Bush Administration, we need a leader like John Edwards who cuts through all the smoke and mirrors and is not afraid to get his hands dirty.

"Let me tell you one thing I have learned from my experience," Edwards said last week. "You cannot deal with them on their terms. You cannot play by their rules, sit at their table, or give them a seat at yours. They will not give up their power -- you have to take it from them."

-- John Edwards

Read more...

Rhetoric

As the LA Times points out there have been more than 245,000 deaths due to traffic accidents in the United States alone since 9/11, yet there are no alarms, no wars...no response of any kind.

"A few days ago, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that 42,642 Americans died in traffic in 2006. Did you hear this reported anywhere?"

"Road Kill" is a not just problem we face in this country but a global one as well. This is the first time in history that statistics show death by traffic accident surpasses death by mortal combat. It's nice to know that our world is becoming more "civilized" but the opposite appears to be true because of the attention the media gives "mortal combat" and the "rhetoric" our politicians continue to use such as "war on terror".

Three simple words, "war on terror" have caused more terror, globally, than they have prevented since 9/11. People focus in on these simple words because it feels much better to combat a force that we feel we are not responsible than rhetoric that may be less black and white, more complex; words that focuses our attention on ourselves; words that force us to take some responsibility for the problem at hand such as the way we choose to transport ourselves.

Politicians carefully choose their words making sure they divert our attention away from issues such as the automobile industry's relationship with their advertisers which may, in turn, cause the media to avoid reporting on how lethal our highways have become and toward focusing on an issue that may or may not exist, but does not have the impact of the one they're directing our attention away.

"This political language has created a frame that is not accurate and that Bush and his gang have used to justify anything they want to do," Edwards said in a phone interview from Everett, Wash. "It's been used to justify a whole series of things that are not justifiable, ranging from the war in Iraq, to torture, to violation of the civil liberties of Americans, to illegal spying on Americans. Anyone who speaks out against these things is treated as unpatriotic. I also think it suggests that there's a fixed enemy that we can defeat with just a military campaign. I just don't think that's true."-- John Edwards

Read more...

I Really Like This John Edwards.

I wasn't overly impressed with John Edwards when he was running for Vice President in the last election. He exuded the charm of youthfulness with all the qualities associated with it, such as enthusiasm, energy and hope, but I found he lacked the depth that only reflection upon real life experience can bring. In a very short time, he has integrated his recent hardships; loss of the election; his wife's breast cancer, transforming himself into a person with a depth of understanding that can filter the inessential from the essential. He has learned in a few years what takes most of us a lifetime to learn, and I believe he has what it takes to lead our country.

Read more...