Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Elect Sen. Obama the next president of the U.S.
The Daily Review ^ | Wednesday, October 29, 2008 | Editorial

Posted on 10/29/2008 4:30:32 AM PDT by Cricket24

Whether one lives in the Northern Tier of Pennsylvania, the Southern Tier of New York, or elsewhere in the United States, most Americans who will vote Nov. 4 never have seen the nation in such an uncertain position.

For all of their lives, their country has had the world’s most powerful economy, rooted not just in knowledge but in fundamental optimism.

Yet in recent months they have seen their own financial foundations — homes, jobs, access to health care and savings — erode at an alarming pace.

For all of their lives, Americans here and elsewhere have been accustomed to the United States being the world’s principal superpower, not just militarily but as a broader force for peace and greater prosperity.

Yet in recent years they have seen American global leadership wither under the yoke of a belligerent, unilateral foreign policy that has deepened traditional enmities, alienated traditional allies and rendered suspect American motives. They have found themselves saddled with two wars with uncertain prospects, at enormous expense in blood and treasure.

For all of their lives Americans have understood their country to be the global leader in innovation, industrial prowess and national development.

Yet in recent years they have seen America stand still as the world catches up. They have felt stagnant American industries stagger under innovative competition from abroad. And they have watched the steady erosion of the physical infrastructure in which they once took such pride, and have wondered at the lack of an answer from the nation’s leaders.

All of those conditions, separately, are massive issues. Together, they point to the overarching requirement for the man who will be elected president: the leadership ability to inspire Americans to rise above such unsettling jeopardy and achieve a new era of greatness.

As this campaign has progressed, it has become clearer with time that Barack Obama is well-suited to the awesome tasks ahead.

Make no mistake. John McCain is a great patriot who has served his country well. But John McCain, the candidate in this election, is not the John McCain of 2000 — the “maverick” who eschewed blind ideology in favor of a fact-based response to the nation’s problems.

Over the course of this campaign, Sen. McCain has veered from that course in order to secure the favor of the same narrow party base against which he once rebelled. His irresponsible choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate was a cynical play to the base, a case of politics before country. The vice president’s real job is to be ready to be president and Gov. Palin does not meet that requirement. It’s an indictment of Sen. McCain’s judgment that he has pretended not to know it. By contrast, Sen. Obama has selected Sen. Joe Biden, a seasoned U.S. senator with years of experience and a distinguished record in the crucible of politics, including foreign affairs, an area in which Sen. Obama has not been tested.

In fact, Sen. Obama, as his critics charge, is relatively inexperienced. But throughout the course of the long presidential campaign, he has surrounded himself with highly competent people and demonstrated a keen intellect and ideal temperament. The result is a policy pragmatism, as in economic proposals that recognize the primacy of free markets while acknowledging the need for effective regulation in the public interest — a decidedly centrist approach. Sen. McCain, by contrast, says that he is uncomfortable with economic issues and primarily touts extension and expansion of the Bush-era tax cuts — policy rooted in naﶥ ideology rather than troubling reality.

Like many residents in this region, we have a particular concern about Sen. Obama’s long-standing approval of broad abortion rights. We respect a woman’s right to choose, as do many Americans, and abortion, of course, is legal. Yet, strict rules respecting the viability of a fetus must be observed. Whether Sen. Obama fulfills his vow to work toward fewer abortions through means other than outlawing it will be a fundamental test of his veracity.

America’s daunting problems call for new leadership. In that regard Sen. Obama has the potential to be a truly transformational figure.

He has strived mightily since the beginning of his presidential campaign to keep his candidacy from being about race alone. He succeeded, for the most part, until the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Sen. Obama’s spiritual mentor, was revealed to have made fire-breathing sermons condemning the United States and white Americans, generally. Forced to address the issue, Sen. Obama did that and more in a courageous, inspiring address that will be remembered as one of the best political speeches of recent times.

Sen. Obama convincingly portrayed race in America not simply as an issue to be navigated in his own campaign, but as an underlying source of divisiveness that stands in the way of resolving hosts of other issues.

Americans interested in understanding and equitably resolving the divisiveness are well advised to weigh carefully Sen. Obama’s insightful observations about the states of mind of troubled black people and other racial and ethnic minorities, as well as what’s on the minds of troubled white people. It was refreshing to hear a politician confront the issue with such candor and sensitivity.

Sen. Obama represents a generational shift and a view definitively rooted in the future rather than the past. He will strive to heal our wounds abroad and call Americans to common purpose at home. His time is now. We urge a vote for Sen. Obama for president of the United State of America.


TOPICS: News/Current Events; US: Pennsylvania
KEYWORDS:
Our local paper, The Daily Review or as I call it The Daily Liberal Rag, had been taking a left hand turn for some time now. I actually felt physically ill when I read this because it's obvious that the editor and whoever put this together knows nothing about BHO other than the talking points put out by the democrat party! This paper will NEVER be in our home again! By the way...this is a very rural, conservative area.
1 posted on 10/29/2008 4:30:32 AM PDT by Cricket24
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Cricket24

I’m voting democrat !!

I’ve made up my mind that it is easier to let the government govern my life in every way.... SO

I’m voting Democrat!!

I’m voting Democrat because I believe the government will do a better job of spending the money I earn than I would.

I’m voting Democrat because freedom of speech is fine as long as nobody is offended by it.

I’m voting Democrat because when we pull out of Iraq I trust that the bad guys will stop what they’re doing because they now think we’re good people.

I’m voting Democrat because I believe that people who can’t tell us if it will rain on Friday CAN tell us that the polar ice caps will melt away in ten years if I don’t start driving a Prius.

I’m voting Democrat because I’m not concerned about the sla ughter of millions of babies so long as we keep all death row inmates alive.

I’m voting Democrat because I believe that business should not be allowed to make profits for themselves . They need to break even and give the rest away to the government for redistribution as THEY see fit.

I’m voting Democrat because I believe liberal judges need to rewrite the Constitution every few days to suit some fringe kooks who would NEVER get their agendas past the voters.

I’m voting Democrat because I believe that open borders and government give-a-ways to undocumented foreigners is a great way to grow a nation.

I’m voting Democrat because I’m way too irresponsible to own a gun, and I know that my local police are all I need to protect me from murderers and thieves.

I’m voting Democrat because I love the fact that I can now marry whatever I want. I’ve decided to marry my dog Rebel. As soon as polygymy is legal, I can marry Angus.

I’m voting Democrat because I believe oil companies’ profits of 4% on a gallon of gas are obscene but the government taxing the same gallon of gas at 15% isn’t.

I’m voting Democrat because after listening to the unbiased media, I realize that my head is so firmly planted up my butt, it’s unlikely that I’ll ever have another point of view.

(Sarc: Mike)


2 posted on 10/29/2008 4:34:45 AM PDT by IrishMike (Gov Sarah Palin - Gun control is hitting what you shoot at)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Cricket24

No, thanks. And how did these geniuses conclude that an inexperienced, untested, leftist with Marxist mentors and Marxist views is the person to lead us in a crisis? If Obama’s dad had been white, Hillary would be the Democratic nominee.


3 posted on 10/29/2008 4:36:49 AM PDT by popdonnelly (Obama is a neo-Marxist)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Cricket24
This paper will NEVER be in our home again!

Eight years ago there was a digusting editorial bashing Bush. The author was a business owner so several people called the business and/or wrote letters to the editor stating they would never eat at his establishment again. Sadly, he's still in business but I take satisfaction of never setting a foot in there since and will never. When I boycott a business, I do so forever. It may not effect their bottom line but at least I'm not helping them gain power.

4 posted on 10/29/2008 4:44:50 AM PDT by itsthejourney (1 of every 10 people you pass in the mall is here illegally)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Cricket24

Well, they did get this one right:

“Sen. Obama has the potential to be a truly transformational figure.”


5 posted on 10/29/2008 4:47:29 AM PDT by Need4Truth
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: IrishMike

I was thinking of a bumper sticker that reads:

I’m voting Democrat because I want your stuff!


6 posted on 10/29/2008 4:48:40 AM PDT by Ghost of Philip Marlowe (If Hillary is elected, her legacy will be telling the American people: Better put some ice on that.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: Cricket24

7 posted on 10/29/2008 4:57:38 AM PDT by IbJensen (Don't Be An Obombazombie!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Cricket24
Elect Sen. Obama the next president of the U.S.

Sure thing. I'll get to work on that right away. LOL!

8 posted on 10/29/2008 5:00:17 AM PDT by careyb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Cricket24
Forced to address the issue, Sen. Obama did that and more in a courageous, inspiring address that will be remembered as one of the best political speeches of recent times.

Thanks for posting this. Now that I've tossed last nights dinner I need to go rinse my mouth and get a breath mint.

9 posted on 10/29/2008 5:06:35 AM PDT by Pan_Yan (All gray areas are fabrications.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Cricket24
Would it be too much to ask when you use quotes from a daily newspaper, you at least post the city and state of publication?

This is an international web site and many of us do not know these newspapers by name.

This is something that has bugged me a lot lately when I read quotes from newspapers unknown to me and many others.

10 posted on 10/29/2008 5:22:14 AM PDT by NoControllingLegalAuthority
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: NoControllingLegalAuthority
Agreed. I found out it was from Towanda, PA. It was obvious to me that this was from the western or central parts of NY or PA, but Mapquest provided the exact location. Clearly, when the pollsters call up that area of the country, they invariably get some liberal asshat reader of this rag to ask, and its just not reflective of the views of the folks in the surrounding countryside.

That's the biggest reason I have hope for Tuesday.

11 posted on 10/29/2008 5:27:23 AM PDT by hunter112 (Gov. Palin is ten times the woman Hillary could've hoped to be, if she had stayed a "Goldwater Girl")
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: NoControllingLegalAuthority

Sorry!
Towanda, PA Bradford County
Approx. 70 miles nw of Scranton


12 posted on 10/29/2008 5:49:04 AM PDT by Cricket24 (Just one of those Conservative women!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson