Same Old...Same Old

I’m writing this two days before the 2008 Presidential election. I’m mentioning this so that the reader (most likely only me) of the future can have a perspective of my viewpoint once the mists of time fade the immediacy of the post.

It appears that Barack Obama has the election well in hand. However, knowing the tenacity of the Republican “win at all cost” attitude, this certainly can’t be written in stone. If McCain were to win, we will continue the horrible path we’ve been on for the last eight years. “Maverick” does not wash with me at all, and, thankfully the vast majority of the population. Since January of 08, I maintained that McCain would win in a narrow victory. I believe his poor handling of the recent and ongoing economy debacle plus his pick of Sarah Palin as his VP running mate sank him big time.

Unfortunately, I really don’t see much of a radical change in an Obama administration.

Here’s what I see. Obama has already advocated a “Permanent War” mindset (i.e., more troops to Afghanistan) which practically no one has dared to vocally dispute. Of course, this pleases the Military/Industrial Complex, so he is serving those masters. He re-authorized the Patriot Act in 2005.

During the Primary Run, he was adamantly opposed to the FISA bill, yet when he won the Democratic Ticket, he proceeded to vote for the bill. He voted for the $750 Billion bailout bill, that the financial institutions are now jockeying to consolidate their positions and buying up smaller banks with the money instead of helping out the mortgage crisis. He’s for the Death Penalty, “Clean” Coal (Give me a break!) and Nuclear Power.

These certainly are not radical departures from our current situation. Obama will be under a huge amount of pressure from the multinational corporations and the aforesaid Military/Industrial Complex to accede to their demands. I don’t see him successfully resisting that pressure.

Finally, Bush has established immense power to the Presidency. Very close to totalitarianism courtesy the meek and mild Congress. I really don’t think anyone inheriting that power is going to beneficently give it all back. The prolific signing statements exempting the President from laws will continue, the feckless Congress will obligingly give Obama whatever he wants, and the band plays on…

I do believe he is a better choice than McCain, but I’m not leaping in the air and clicking my heels about it.

Bottom Line? “Meet the new boss…”

One last thing – what’s with the countdown clock to the first closing of polls on the cable channels? This is supposed to lend an air of “drama” to the election? Do these bozos really think that people are concentrating on the clock, waiting with breathless anticipation for it to hit zero? Like, a “clock” will increase their ratings over another cable news station? This is ludicrous!

I propose that a countdown clock should only be used to count down the last days/hours/minutes/seconds of the state-sanctioned murdering of another human being, then televising the actual event in “living” color. The death penalty is done for the “People,” is it not? Then let the “People” have a good gander at this execrable behavior of society! Pathetic…