Zekariah Smith in Mexico for Much-Needed Vacation

Dear ones who read and mull over these thoughts I have been writing for several years now -- I am going on a much needed vacation to visit some friends in Mexico. Keep praying for Obama and Biden. I will try to check in from time to time with a comment, perhaps once a week. But the regular column will not be back until the new year. Happy Holidays!

Obama is a Believer and a Person of Prayer

It is Veteran's Day. Let us be thankful for the service of our men and women in the Armed Forces, and all those who have served over the years, especially those who died for their country. Our freedom was won by their blood, sweat and tears!

And the faith of millions of Americans who have gone before us and paved the way with their prayers.

President-elect Obama is a man of prayer, and we need to surround him and Vice-President-elect Joe Biden with our prayers. They and our country dearly need our prayers!

"I am a Christian," the President-elect told the Chicago Sun-Times a few years ago. "So, I have a deep faith," Obama continues. "I'm rooted in the Christian tradition. I believe that there are many paths to the same place, and that is a belief that there is a higher power, a belief that we are connected as a people. That there are values that transcend race or culture, that move us forward, and there's an obligation for all of us individually as well as collectively to take responsibility to make those values lived."

When he was 6 years old, after his parents divorced, Obama moved with his mother and her new husband -- a non-practicing Muslim -- to Indonesia, where he lived until he was 10 and attended a Roman Catholic school.

"I went to a Catholic school in a Muslim country, so I was studying the Bible and catechisms by day, and, at night, you'd hear the Muslim prayer call," Obama recalls. "My mother was a deeply spiritual person and would spend a lot of time talking about values and give me books about the world's religions and talk to me about them.

"Her view always was that underlying these religions was a common set of beliefs about how you treat other people and how you aspire to act, not just for yourself, but also for the greater good."

Obama is unapologetic in saying he has a "personal relationship with Jesus Christ."
Obama says he reads the Bible, though not as regularly as he'd like, now that he's on the campaign trail. But he does find time to pray.

"It's not formal, me getting on my knees," he says. "I think I have an ongoing conversation with God.... I'm constantly asking myself questions about what I'm doing, why I am doing it.

"The biggest challenge, I think, is always maintaining your moral compass."

Illinois state Sen. James Meeks, who is also the pastor of Chicago's Salem Baptist Church. Obama has stopped by Salem for Wednesday-night Bible study.

"I know that he's a person of prayer," Meeks says. "He came by for prayer."

Still, when you read Obama's books, you see his faith is a growing thing, just like with all of us. Let us pray that God will teach him many things in the next four years.

President-elect Barack Obama Needs Our Prayers!

President-elect Barack Obama needs our prayers. The job he has won will take all the brilliance and patience and compassion he can muster, and then some. It is a daunting task, taking over this country after the failures of the last eight years.

Mr. Obama said it will be hard, but it can be done, in his historic victory speech in Chicago: “There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who wont agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government cant solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way its been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.”

President-elect Obama said he needs our help, all Americans together: “What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

"So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, its that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers - in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people," Obama said.

Please do what you can to help Obama and Biden renew America. Pray. Do. Be positive about this country and its future.

Obama Picks Emmanuel, Who Gets Things Done!

So President-elect Obama makes his first and most important pick -- Rahm Emmanuel as chief of staff. Emanuel, 48, has been leader in Congress committed to addressing the challenges facing families across the nation. Since taking the oath of office in 2003, he has been a strong, effective voice for Chicago in Congress. A Jewish politician whose father was Benjamin was born in Jerusalem. He is known as a fighter and Obama said he chosen Rahm because he knows how to "get things done."

Very good! We need someone like that! Emmanuel will be the quarterback for Coach Obama in the White House.

Let us hope that the Obama team can build some bridges with the other side. Vice-President-elect Joe Biden is working on it. On Tuesday night, in his a stirring victory speech, President –elect Barack Obama said of Senator John McCain and Governor Sarah Palin: “I look forward to working with them to renew this nations promise in the months ahead.” Oh, that we might have such a time of reconciliation.

He also hailed his partner in this amazing race, Vice-President-elect Joe Biden: “I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.”

He also made a statement of faith concerning his beloved grandmother: “And while she is no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.”

.Then he talked about the millions of supporters, stating the fact that this was a team election; “But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to - it belongs to you. I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn’t start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington - it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.

“It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generations apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory."

It is a victory for all who gave and went door to door and did the small things to win this campaign. But now the battle for change begins. Keep praying! Keep hope alive!

The World Has Changed. America Has Re-Booted Itself! Change Has Come! A New Day Dawns!

The world has changed. The American dream has been re-booted. Please pray for America as we embark on a new great adventure!

With his decisive triumph over Senator John McCain, Senate Barack Obama made obvious history: he is the first man of color to win the presidency. But the meaning of his victory extends far beyond that significance. Obama, a former community organizer and law professor, represents a seismic shift in America.

Mounting one of the best run presidential bids in decades, Obama tied his support for progressive positions (taxing the wealthy to pay for tax cuts for working Americans, addressing global warming, expanding affordable health insurance, withdrawing troops from Iraq) to calls for cleaning up Washington and for crafting a new type of politics. He has come to symbolize both hope and change for a country regaining its greatness.

After eight years of George Bush's presidency, Obama represents a serious course correction for America -- one that is being received in a positive manner in many parts of the world.

I am still in awe of the words spoken by PRESIDENT-ELECT BARACK OBAMA at his victory speech on Tuesday night in Grant Park, before a quarter of a million people and, 78 million more on television, and millions more on computer. They are words to be remembered and cherished and acted upon.

He lauded the people who stood in “lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.”

He saluted the American voters: “Young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled - Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.”

He proclaimed for the world to hear that the American people had shown that they could “put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day. Its been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.”

Praise the Lord for the change He has granted us. Pray for the Obamas and Bidens. Pray for America!

Can America Inspire the World? Yes, We Can!

Well. America, you did it! You stood in lines and you voted. Praise the Lord for His many blessings. Now we must pray for Obama and Biden and we must pray for our country. As Rev. Bishop T.D. Jakes said on national television last night, "we must gird President-elect Obama with our prayers."

And we must do all we can to make the promises of this election and American reality. This was a team election and it will be a team presidency. We are all a part of this team. Our job is to pray and keep participating in American democracy.

The words of President-elect Obama said it best:" "If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where anything is possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer," said Obama. It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, on this election, in this defining moment, change is coming to America."

In his first speech as president-elect, Obama catalogued the challenges ahead. "The greatest of a lifetime," he said, "two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century."

He added, "There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as president, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face."

He offered gracious words to his vanquished opponent, Sen. John McCain of Arizona.

"Sen. McCain fought long and hard in this campaign. He's fought even longer and harder for the country that he loves," Obama said. "We are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader."

Indeed, Senator John McCain had an eloquent, remarkable concession speech, sounding like the McCain of old. If he returns to being his own man, not controlled by Bush-Rove policos, to being the old maverick we admired, John McCain may be the key to some of Obama's successes, supporting the number of things that they actually agree upon.

There would be setbacks and false starts, Obama said. "I will always be honest about the challenges…I will listen, especially when we disagree”.

The task would be done as it always had in America, “block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand”.

Obama was clear that the work for strengthening America now begins. “This victory alone is not the change we seek,”he said, calling for a new spirit of sacrifice and a new spirit of service.

In a message to those “beyond our shores” Obama said that a new dawn of American leadership was at hand. He reaffirmed the values of freedom and justice and said that his message to those who wanted to tear down the world was “we will defeat you”.

Can we make good on this promise of change, America? YES WE CAN!

Be Prepared for a Line -- Take a Chair, A Book, an MP3 Player -- But Stay in Line and Vote Obama!

There appears to be a large, more than normal turnout in much of the country on this election day. Even in the small town I vote in, there was a line to vote. "The first time we had a line to vote in over 28 years said a veteran poll worker."

The message from the Obama-Biden people is a simple one -- Go to the polls and vote! PLEASE STAY IN LINE! Take a fold-up chair, a water bottle, a book to read, and MP3 player. Go to your polls prepared to stay awhile in order to get your mission accomplished.

But STAY IN LINE and VOTE for OBAMA-BIDEN. EVERY VOTER MUST VOTE and we must make sure that EVERY VOTE IS COUNTED.

STAND in LINE, STAY in LINE for your country. IT IS A PATRIOTIC THING TO DO. Do it for the future genrations of America. Heck, do it for YOURSELF. Do it for me and you and all those folks that had their votes stolen in 2000 and 2008! Help us take our country back. Make Democracy in the United States work again!

Now is the Time! Vote for the Change We Need -- Help Elect Obama and Biden to Lead America!

This is it, thinking Americans. Today is the day! This is your chance to help take back your country, to stand up for true democracy. Get out and vote for Obama and Biden.

Voters in Dixville Notch, New Hampshire, first voters in America,favored Barack Obama over his Republican rival, John McCain, 15 to 6, in the first ballots cast in the 2008 Presidential election early today. It is the first time in forty years that a Democrat has won in Dixville Notch.

Now it is the rest of America's turn to vote. Please vote for Obama-Biden and urge others to do so. Take some folks to the polls! If someone is still undecided remind them why we have decided to vote for Obama. Here is the case for Obama:

The U.S. faces serious challenges that have not been addressed by the Republican Party that has been in control of the White House for the pat 8 years and the Congress for 6 0f the last 9 years, and still has enough senators to block all progressive legislation. In the meantime, the problems we face as a nation grow as they are passed on to future generations.

We need a leader who can lay the foundations of another American Century—someone who will truly attempt to get past our partisan and ideological divisions, as we strengthen our standing in the world and tackle the challenges we face at home. We need a leader who understands our differences, but who also knows the importance of finding common ground. A close analysis finds Senator Barack Obama is the one candidate who can unite the American majority that wants to move forward and improve the long-term economic well-being, security and independence of our nation. We need a return to common sense, to faith and hope, and a move away from the Republican politics of fear and division.

We need real work on real issues, not demagoguery and ideology for ideology’s sake.

National Debt
The federal debt matters. We cannot saddle future taxpayers with having to service the debt we create with our irresponsible fiscal policies. Cutting the deficit will additionally decrease interest rates and increase private investment. The Democrats know how to do this – see the Clinton years.

Trade Deficit
Every year, the difference between what the United States imports from other countries and what it exports grows, and is likely to reach $1 trillion a year by 2010. The U.S.’s trade imbalance with China alone grew from just $10 billion annually in 1990 to well over $200 billion a year by 2006. Despite this increasing and extreme deficit, recent American administrations have been unable or unwilling to force China to revalue its currency and take other measures to strengthen our exports overseas.

Energy Independence
Even without tapping into Alaska’s oil reserves or drilling offshore, we can dramatically reduce our dependence on foreign oil—we have not even begun to realize the possibilities of Iowa corn, South Dakota wind or Montana coal. Even a growing number of environmentalists support increased nuclear power production. Obama is open to all these ways, as well as drilling of already approved spots.

Global Warming
Even those who still believe that global warming is a natural occurrence should agree that rising sea levels and other geological changes will be expensive to adapt to and probably impossible to undo. If we are able to reverse this dangerous trend, we must. No other nation has the economic and political power to take the lead on this issue.

Healthcare Reform
Our healthcare system is reaching a crisis. Rising healthcare costs are crippling business and putting millions of Americans, especially children and the elderly, at great risk. American families risk having a lifetime of savings wiped out from a single hospitalization or illness. Drug companies are reaping record profits as they promote new uses of old drugs. Small hospitals and doctors are closing their doors as malpractice insurance costs increase. We must reform healthcare to make it accessible and affordable for all Americans, while maintaining the competitiveness and innovation that has made our system the envy of the world. McCain’s plan is a farce that would destroy employer funded insurance.

Foreign Policy
As we continue to adapt our military to meet 21st century challenges, we should also work to increase our diplomatic power throughout the world. We cannot continue to utilize only our military strength. We cannot continue to wast over 410 Billion a month in Iraq, killing and maiming more of our young American soldiers in another country's civil war. Our foreign policy should put an emphasis on coalition building and in working with international institutions when it serves the national interest. Obama and Biden will do this effectively.

For these reasons and many more, Senator Obama needs your vote and support. Our country’s future depends on it. We cannot afford to keep the failure-prone Republicans in charge. We do not need four more years of the last eight years. We do not need the diva pitbull, Sarah Palin, a heartbeat away from the erratic, aging McCain as President. We do not need a warmed over Bush presidency: the sequel. We need a change for the better. Please vote for Obama-Biden. And then pray that God will bless America and revive our sense of hope, truth, and justice for all.

Hillary's Message for the Election: "NO WAY, NO HOW, NO MCCAIN, NO PALIN -- ENOUGH!!!"

Leave it to the great campaigner Senator Hillary Clinton to sum it all up for Election Day. Giving a majestic speech and building a compelling case for Senator Obama and Senator Biden on C-Span today (in a speech from Virginia) Clinton said she approved this message -- "No Way, No How, No McCain, No Palin!" She also said the proper mantra for this election, unlike the Republican big oil refrain, "Drill, baby, drill!", Democrats cheer "Jobs,baby, jobs!"

Clinton said voters must not vote for four more years of Republicans in charge of the White House. "It is time to foreclose on their stay, on their tired ideology and policies for the rich!" Clinton pointed out the wisdom in the old saying her mother told her:"Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me!" Clinton said we have already seen the terrible realities of four more years once, in 2004. Now we must all say "enough!"

Compare her wisdom with the caller on CNN who said that "blue collar people are with McCain because McCain supports Joe the Plumber!" Ah, yes, the Dumb Ass Brigade rides again. We have to out-vote the McPalie zombies in order to win our country back.

Republican Dirty Tricks Seek to Block the Vote!

In the hours before Election Day, according to the Associated Press, comes an onslaught of dirty Republican tricks — confusing e-mails, disturbing phone calls and insinuating fliers left on doorsteps during the night. The intent is to keep folks from voting or to confuse them, usually through intimidation or misinformation. RFK Jr. predicted this in BLOCK THE VOTE.

But in this presidential race, in which a black man leads most polls, some of the deceit has a decidedly racist bent. Complaints have surfaced in predominantly African-American neighborhoods of Philadelphia where fliers have circulated, warning voters they could be arrested at the polls if they had unpaid parking tickets or if they had criminal convictions.

Over the weekend in Virginia, bogus fliers with an authentic-looking commonwealth seal said fears of high voter turnout had prompted election officials to hold two elections — one on Tuesday for Republicans and another on Wednesday for Democrats.

In New Mexico, two Hispanic women filed a lawsuit last week claiming they were harassed by a private investigator working for a Republican lawyer who came to their homes and threatened to call immigration authorities, even though they are U.S. citizens.

In Pennsylvania, e-mails appeared linking Democrat Barack Obama to the Holocaust. "Jewish Americans cannot afford to make the wrong decision on Tuesday, Nov. 4," said the electronic message, paid for by an entity calling itself the Republican Federal Committee. "Many of our ancestors ignored the warning signs in the 1930s and 1940s and made a tragic mistake."
So it goes around the country. Republican dirty tricks and outright lies meant to suppress the vote are being done with malice toward all.

Laughlin McDonald, who leads the ACLU's Voting Rights Project, said he has never seen "an election where there was more interest and more voter turnout, and more efforts to suppress registration and turnout. And that has a real impact on minorities."

The stealing of the election of 2008 has begun. Only you and your vote for Obama-Biden can turn American back into a real democracy, where the majority actually has a say in how this nation is run. Fight for your electoral freedom. Help others to vote. Stand up and be counted for the right to vote for all Americans!

Obama Favored By A Majority, But That May Not Be Enough in Bush-McCain America!

Barack Obama has run a fine campaign. He has the brilliance and the judgment to be a fine president. He has solid plans to help make the country great again. There is no doubt in my mind that the majority of voters favor him for president. But he may not win.

The Republicans have stolen the last two elections, so why not this one? If we allow it to be close, they will probably win. Don’t take my word for it. Read for yourself how they stole the election in 2000 and how they stole the election in 2004. What is one more stolen election for thieves of democracy?

The current Republican campaign is the sleaziest campaign in history. Hateful, despicable robo-calls in swing states that even GOP heavyweights decry as beyond the pale of respectable politics…and yet they continue. They seem to be moving the polls. Materials portraying Obama on food stamps., or as a terrorist! The N-word being tossed about Palin rallies.. Muslim. Arab. Socialist. Communist. Anti-American. Dangerous. The blacks will take over. This is a Christian nation, and Obama and the Democrats are godless non-Christians. The Republican lies and dirty tricks abound!

And the Republicans downplay it, dismiss it…even suggest it isn’t happening and, in any case, they aren’t responsible for the words of a few disturbed cranks. Yet the robo-calls continue. Ayers. ACORN. Dangerous. They feed the fires of fear with carefully crafted words and ads. And they have an ace up their sleeve. They know how to steal elections. They have recent experience at it. Suppress the vote with lies and whispers, amp up the fear factor to turn out your rabid base, tamper, obstruct, and use the law against the people to suppress the vote even more.

According to a well-documented investigative report in Rolling Stone magazine, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Greg Palast, after a year-long investigation, reveal a systematic program of "GOP vote tampering" on a massive scale. Example- Republican Secretaries of State of swing-state Colorado have quietly purged one in six names from their voter rolls. Over several months, the GOP politicos in Colorado stonewalled every attempt by Rolling Stone to get an answer to the massive purge - ten times the average state's rate of removal. Read the full story in Rolling Stone online at BLOCK THE VOTE. Also read about Stolen Election 2000 and Stolen Election 2004.

While Obama dreams of riding to the White House on a wave of new voters, more then 2.7 million have had their registrations REJECTED under new procedures signed into law by George Bush. Kennedy, a voting rights lawyer, charges this is a resurgence of 'Jim Crow' tactics to wrongly block Black and Hispanic voters.

A fired US prosecutor levels new charges - accusing leaders of his own party, Republicans, with criminal acts in an attempt to block legal voters as "fraudulent."

Digging through government records, the Kennedy-Palast team discovered that, in 2004, a GOP scheme called "caging” ultimately took away the rights of 1.1 million voters. The Rolling Stone duo predicts that, this November 4, it will be far worse. Since the last presidential race, "States used dubious 'list management' rules to scrub at least 10 million voters from their rolls." There is more to the story. Read BLOCK THE VOTE and be informed as to what has really happened and is happening to our democracy at GOP dirty, crooked hands.

That is why it is so crucial that you call your friends and family and get them to the polls. Make the case for Obama-Biden. Give people a ride. Give people babysitting services if needed. Just get them to the polls to vote. Take the time. Stay in line. We are fighting for the very fabric of our democracy here.

We need a big turnout to defeat the deplorable Republican ways of stealing the close ones. And after you do all that you possibly can do to get out the vote for Obama-Biden, please pray for our country like you have never prayed before!

Please Vote , and Help Others Get to the Polls -- Call Your Friends -- AND STAY IN LINE!

Have you ever noticed how the Republicans trot out black talking points "strategists" to speak for them on the cable news shows? Every black in the Republican party must be being used as "experts" to spout Republiganda on these shows. There are not that many black folk in the almost all-white party, and they all seem to be on cable tv! These duplicitous spokespeople must be paid well to be saying the trash they are saying with a straight face.

The message to anyone who might be voting for Obama and Biden on Tuesday is to make it a clear and unmistakable goal to vote and have your vote counted. Let nothing stop you from voting -- from staying in line and getting your precious vote counted. This is a monumental struggle and you must STAY IN LINE and not be deterred from your responsibility to bring about important change in America. The line may be long, but you cannot falter in gutting it out in order to vote. Your country, its future, all the young people, are depending on you getting to the polls and staying in line until your vote is recorded. To see where your proper polling place is, visit www.barackobama.com

The Republican Spin Masters Whirl More Lies, Even As They Work to Steal Another Election!

The Republicans are masters of spin and distortion and love to paint guilt by association, not matter how minimal it might be. In another attempt to paint groups and people with whom Obama has some connection in as unsavory a light as possible,

McCain has gone after the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now., even though he spoke at their banquet a few years ago. His ad lies, accusing the group of "massive voter fraud" and Johnny McBoy himself claimed in the final presidential debate that ACORN is "now on the verge of maybe perpetrating one of the greatest frauds in voter history in this country, maybe destroying the fabric of democracy." What a lie from the man who approves so many other lies.

That is so far from the truth it should be funny. But, then, so many in the legions of dumb ox McPalies, right wing lemmings that they are, believe it with all their idiotic hearts – and they will all vote on Tuesday, every last stupid one of them.

Both Republican claims are breathtakingly inaccurate, according to factcheck.org,. there's a huge difference between voter fraud and voter registration fraud. And while ACORN, which hires part-time, $8-an-hour canvassers to go door-to-door and register people to vote, has had some problems with phony registrations invented by employees who don't want to work, the problem has never been that it sent people to the polls using bogus identities or to vote in any other fraudulent manner. Even the Republican prosecutor of the largest ACORN case to date said the shenanigans of ACORN workers were "not intended to permit illegal voting."

However, it is mainly a smokescreen to hide the nefarious things the Republicans machine is doing themselves. Read about how they stole the election in 2000, and how they stole the election in 2004. Now, according to highly regarded voting rights attorney Robert F. Kennedy Jr., they are working hard to steal the election of 2008. Read BLOCK THE VOTE, a thoroughly researched expose’ by Kennedy that details the voter suppression strategies they are using this year. We must fight to see that every voter gets to vote and that every vote is counted. It is a supreme social justice issue. Please read BLOCK THE VOTE! And stand up for people’s voting civil rights!

Another smokescreen is a McCain ad that says that Obama’s health care plan would cost 50 million people their health coverage. NOT TRUE! In reality, two prominent studies found that Obama's plan would produce a net increase in the number of employees with health coverage through their jobs. Under McCain, according to the same studies, there would be a net decrease.

On the other hand, McCain would, for the first time, require workers to pay federal income tax on the value of their employer-provided health insurance. He claims it would be offset by the tax credits he'd provide of up to $2,500 per individual and $5,000 per couple or family – but for most people that would not come close to paying for the difference. So, in essence, it will be a big tax increase designed to destroy employer paid insurance, which is a Republican business goal. Anything to stiff the unions.

And the lies and distortions and campaign jolts keep on coming from the sly Republigandists. Now we get the revelation that Obama’s half-aunt from Kenya is living in the United States illegally. Don’t you know Senator Obama would have helped fix her problems if he had known about them? Someone at immigration had been sitting on this until the last minute.

Could it be that John McCain’s party is still in charge? Well, sure. And that explains it. She should be sent home, for sure. But how efficient is the Bush Republican immigration authority when she has been here for ten years and in public housing for five years? I think the greater embarrassment is the Republican lack of governance, that has been glaringly apparent for eight years, and it will not start to change with McCain. He helped it all to fester with his blind support of Bush-Cheney. He is surrounded by Bush people!

I am so very tired of the Republican lie machine. In two days it might actually be quiet for awhile, but if McCain and Palin are elected, it will play loudly for four more very long years. I pray that is not the case, for the children and grandchildren’s sake.

Mr. Smith Goes to McDonald's and Loses Debate to Dumb Ass Brigade, McCain 's Republican Base

On Friday I gave a guest lecture to a community college class of a professor friend of mine who teaches in a neighboring town. I left home with plenty of time to spare, so when I saw the Golden arches in that town, I had a hankering for an Egg Mcmuffin and stopped in to soak up the red and yellow décor It was there, in the back seating area that I encountered the regular early morning coffee group that I will forever know as The Dumb Ass Brigade.

As I sipped my coffee and ate my hash brown, I overheard their mindless chatter.

“I love that Joe the Plumber!” said a plump, fifty-something woman, who I will call Susie the Stupid, “I wish he were running for President. He is so handsome, sort of like Mr. Clean.”

I’ve heard of lots of fantasies over the years, but never about a cartoon cleanser spokesman, but Susie was neck deep in suds and plungers. It did not matter that Joe the fake plumber is unlicensed and much of his story is a lie.

“That Joe tells it like it is," Susie said, with a moony expresssion. "He said Israel was dead if Obama and his Muslim friends get into power.”

“Yeah, and then all the blacks will take over and paint the White House black,” said Harvey the Hillbilly, munching an undetermined form of pastry, “And he is going to make that Bill Ayers guy Secretary of State. Not only is he a terrorist, but he is not qualified – he has only been a weatherman, and what does some TV guy know about foreign policy?”

“Well, that Sarah Palin, she’s standing up for us Joe-Six Packs. And she is really good-looking, too! I just love to watch her speak! ” said another older man, who I call Larry the Lecher, “And Sarah Palin said he was a socialist, he wants to redistribute the wealth like a Commie.”

“He’s not going to lay any hands on my wealth,” said a flannel shirted grandpa type who I call Roger the Rube, whose net worth appeared to be pretty minimal. “And Obama will not get my guns either. Hank Williams Jr. said McCain will protect our guns. Obama wants to give ‘em to the Mexicans and the terrorists!”

Well, I had held my tongue long enough, so I ventured an intelligent statement that went over like the proverbial lead balloon. “Obama is not a socialist. He is talking about a tax cut for 95 percent of the American people. He is just trying to help the poor and the middle class in these tough economic times. He is as American as you and me. His mother and the grandparents who raised him were white. He has a basic, strong middle class upbringing and he loves this country. ANd he supports the second ammendment!”

No one said a word. Ten pairs of eyes stared blankly at me. Then another man, Leo the Lemming, said in a fevered tone, “You got a beard, Mister. You sound like an anti-American. Are you a fellow traveler with Obama?”

I could not help but laugh. I had not heard that fellow traveler stuff for a long, long time.

I laughed. But no one else did.

So I decided to get out of the Mickey D’s before The Dumb Ass Brigade whipped me with their sausage burritos and scalded me with their very hot coffee. I was not going to win any debates with them. They represent the great ill-informed masses of fear-stoked Americans that have supported the Republican Party for years. The not so silent, easily manipulated near majority that makes elections close enough to steal.

So I grabbed what was left of my egg sandwich and backed out of the restaurant. The only consolation I had was that The Dumb Ass Brigade is so dumb maybe they will forget where the polling places are on next Tuesday.

If only America could be so lucky.

Republican Sleaze Knows No Bounds -- From Coast to Coast, Dirty Gutter Tactics Abound!

I used to admire Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina. But now, like John McCain, she has sold out to Republican gutter tactics, the Rove-Atwater doctrine. Dole is trailing in her re-election fight in North Carolina against Democrat Kay Hagan, and so she has resorted to outright lies to attack Hagan, a long time state senator, with character assassination. Sound familiar? She has taken Christianity as her cloak in attacking a Christian Sunday School teacher.

Dole's latest advertisement, according to Washington Monthly, suggests her Democratic opponent, Kay Hagan, is a godless heathen. "A leader of the Godless Americans PAC recently held a secret fundraiser for Kay Hagan," the 30-second spot says, showing footage of the group's members talking about their atheist beliefs on cable news. "Godless Americans and Kay Hagan. She hid from cameras. Took godless money," the ad concludes. "What did Kay Hagan promise in return?"

At the very end of the ad, a voice sounding like Hagan's says: "There is no God." Seriously, Dole used a Hagan impersonator to make voters think Hagan is an atheist. It's hard to know where to start with an ad this deplorable. First, Hagan is actually a Sunday school teacher and an elder in her church. Second, the fundraiser in question was co-hosted by 40 people, one of whom is on the board of an atheist political action committee. Third, there's nothing scandalous about non-believers.

I am a Christian. I pray for them. But they are Americans, too, and should be treated with respect, not hate and derision. Jesus came to proclaim love, not hate. Read your Bible, Libby!

Another question: what is "godless money"? Since all money has In God We Trust on it, how is it “godless”?

Hagan held a press conference this week with her family and pastor to denounce the ad, and announced that if Dole didn't pull the ad, she would seek a cease-and-desist order. But this is just another example of the sleazy, deplorable Republican attacks all over the country. It is time to throw the rascals out! Reject the lies, America!

It all reminds me of the excellent John Grisham novel, The Appeal, which details how dirty right wing political campaigns are a cancer on democracy, circumventing real debate with fear mongering and distortion of facts. Grisham uses his fiction to lambaste the amorality and greed of corporate America and the consequences suffered by its unwitting victims, mainly the defenseless poor.

The Appeal is an exposé of how highly organized special-interest groups, loaded with cash, can manipulate public opinion in elections. These are right wing tactics perfected by the current Republican Party, which is not the party of Lincoln, or Ford, or Eisenhower. It is the party of Rove and Atwater and Schmidt.

Now we hear that the Republicans, according to MSNBC's Chuck Todd, after complaining about Obama raising so much money from small donors, have thrown $325 million with the RNC (from large donors mostly) toward their get out the vote campaign during the last 72 hours! McCain's campaign manager, Rick "Fannie Mae PR Man" Davis is quoted crowing about it! No way Obama and the DNC can match that. So the right zealots will be voting in great numbers. That is what all the lies and smears are about -- to fire up that legendary angry right wing base. Even as they continue to suppress Democrat votes.

And in the past the Republicans have always had the money advantage. This is how it has been with the Republican Party until this year, when Obama swore off PAC’s and lobbyists and went straight to the people via the Internet, and 2 million small donors gave the little people a voice in an election. The fact that the Democrats have been competitive until this point makes the Republicans so mad. “We don’t know who these donors are!” cries John McCain.

Well, Mr. Pinocchio McCain, I am one of those small donors,, and I am proud of it. I just wish I had more money to give to the cause of saving the country that I love. America. May God bless America!

And if anyone would like to be a donor in the last days, to be a part of in the fight for your country's soul, donate to Obama by Sunday at midnight. Click www.barackobama.com

Then make sure you vote on Tuesday and call as many people as you can to vote for Obama-Biden. The future of America depends upon it!

Chamelon McCain Deserves His Karma, He Represents the Mean Spirited Bush Past

John McCain has earned another nickname to go along with Pinocchio and McSame. He is now the amazing Chameleon! All of a sudden, McCain behaves as though his buddy President Bush, whose major policies he has ardently supported for two terms, has now suddenly revealed himself to McCain as having been“wrong" on many policy issues.

Where was McCain when these “wrong policies” passed congress? Oh, yes, he was VOTING FOR THEM! Now, parroting Obama, he claims to be an agent of change, and presents himself as a maverick. But a hard look at three major-policy areas quickly reveals that rather than a maverick, McCain is more of a sidekick. I suggest we re-christen the good senator with a more fitting moniker: THE AMAZING CHAMELEON!

Do not forger the War on Iraq, costing us at least $10 billion a month. Senator Obama opposed the war right from the beginning, when to even hint it was wrong left one open to charges of being unpatriotic. McCain continues to cheer on this unlawful invasion—a war that costs U.S. taxpayers $10 billion a month--wrapped in the Bush-Cheney mentality that bombs and bullets are the perfect way to spread peace.

Hasn’t he learned the lessons of Vietnam? Obviously not. McCain would have the U.S. bogged down in the Middle East for God knows how long. Sure, the surge has tamped down levels of violence, but that’s rather like saying that, instead of being in the Emergency Room, the patient is now in the Intensive Care Unit—a patient who should never have been one, in the first place. McCain has also talked about bombing Iran and annihilating North Korea—as though two wars were not enough.

And where are Bin Laden, al Qaeda, and the Taliban? Alive and well in Pakistan, right across from Afghanistan, whence they escaped when U.S. forces, having surrounded them, took their eyes off the prize in order to invade Iraq. The Republicans have made enough bad decisions to fill a large, sad book.

Do not forget the Economy. Who said the economy was fundamentally sound the same week the credit markets froze, a huge investment bank collapsed, the world’s largest insurer had to be bailed out, and the whole house of cards that was Wall Street threatened to collapse? More-of-the-same McCain.

McCain has been a leading voice in calling for deregulation of the finance industry, not just the past eight years but going back to the savings and loan scandals of the late 1980s, so the bulls could have their fun? (A scandal in which the senator from Arizona was implicated and chastised by his Senate peers.) More-of-the-same McCain.

Suddenly, McCain has discovered the religion of populism. This, from a man whose main financial adviser for years was his buddy, ex-Senator Phil Gramm, Republican and former chairman of the Senate Banking Committee and fierce advocate of deregulation, who once sneered at the country as a “nation of whiners.”

McCain accuses Obama of class warfare and planning to raise taxes to “spread the wealth,” citing the now famous Joe-the-Plumber Wurzelbacher, who worriedly told Obama at a rally in Toledo, Ohio, that the latter’s financial plans would raise his taxes. But this will be true only if Joe’s business makes more than $250,000 in net income a year. More than 90 percent of U.S. small businesses make less than that. The vast majority would thus get a tax cut rather than a raise.

By the way, newshounds checking on Joe have found out that he is an unlicensed plumber who never even served an apprenticeship, voted Republican in the last primary (though he presented himself originally as non-partisan), and has an outstanding tax lien of $1,000. So he was a fake plumber of questionable reputation.

But did that stop McCain-Palin? Well, surely not. They have never seen a lie they did not like. So they launched the inane Joe the plumber, Betty the dietitian, Sarah the demagogue part of their campaign. Now Joe the fake plumber is part of their campaign of lies – a “special” guest! How very dumb.

But their ostrich-lemming supporters seem to love it! (Their rallies are like Jonestown before the Kool-aid. I almost expect cheers of “ Drink, baby, drink!”

But what about the McCain-Palin policies? More-of-the-Same McCain will extend the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy and such huge corporations as Exxon and Mobil (to the tune of $200 billion), perpetuating a highly inequitable system where the rest of us subsidize the rich. Now that is class warfare. That is Socialism for the rich!

The Republicans traditionally favor the so-called “free market” but a study done by a former editor at Money magazine shows that if a person had invested $10,000 solely with Republican or Democratic administrations since 1929, the result would be dramatically different. With the Republicans, that $10,000 would now be $51,211, excluding the Herbert Hoover years of the Great Depression. (Were we to include his term, the figure would be a paltry $11,733.) In contrast, with the Democrats, the sum today would have appreciated to $300,671.

Under Boy George, that $10,000 would have lost 5.1 percent annually, and one would wind up with less than $7,000.
McCain’s belief that the last eight years the economy has been fundamentally sound is clearly wishful and dangerously self-deluding.

Do not forget about Health Care. McCain intends to go the Bush administration one better with a plan that deregulates the health care industry by, for the first time ever, taxing job-related, health-care benefits 160 million citizens now get. He would force a great number of businesses to stop providing health care altogether, forcing the suddenly uninsured to purchase health insurance in the marketplace, with those needing it the most being the ones most likely to be denied.

This will exacerbate an already terrible situation, with 20 million added to the 47 million citizens now without health insurance. McCain’s proposed tax credit of $5,000 per family is supposed to pay for the cost, but this amount will hardly be enough to pay for a full year’s health insurance premiums. A free-marketeer, McCain believes health care is a commodity, not a right.

Meanwhile, the Barracuda Palin is working her best to distract voters from the abysmal state of the economy. Why such a person -- who makes a virtue of ignorance, flaunts her parochialism who stoops to rampant demagoguery, and shows absolutely no grasp of complex issues– is considered qualified to hold national office, a heartbeat away from the presidency, is a mystery to me. Her fans are more frightening than she is, and she is the worst of Halloween every day. And John McCain showed his poor judgment for all to see -- he picked her!!

There are a lot of ill-informed, under educated people out there. And so the Internet is ripe with rumors aimed at character assassination, not only of Barack but of his wife Michelle. But these reveal more about those who spawn and/or spread these scurrilous allegations than they do about their intended targets.

Sadly, many people believe this kind of trash – the character assassination emails and gutter level gossip, aided by the Robo-calls and the whisper campaigns that the Republigandists have perfected over their long term of election stealing successes. Pray it does not happen again.

It would be nice to live in a real democracy once again.

Obama Makes His Case, and President Clinton Agrees, America Needs Change of Direction!

President Bill Clinton was a good president. He made a terrible mistake in personal judgment, and the hypocritical Republican hate machine made him pay dearly for it. But in his job as commander in chief and chief executive officer, his judgment for the American people was very good, and we had a time of wonderful prosperity because of the economic policies of his administration.

Which is why people need to listen when he says: "Barack Obama represents America's future, and you've got to be there for him next Tuesday," Clinton, with Obama at his side, said to the cheers of a huge crowd in Florida last night. Because he dearly wanted his wife to win the Democratic nomination, Clinton has been critical of Obama in the past, which makes his words now all the more a strong endorsement. He has come to see greatness in the man who beat out his wife in such a hard fought primary campaign.

Heaping praise on President Clinton, Obama said of Clinton: "In case all of you forgot, this is what it's like to have a great president."

President Clinton clasped Obama's hand and held it high when the men came on stage. Clinton made a methodical case for Obama, describing him as a strong thinker with smart policies. In one of his testimonials, he praised Obama for seeking the advice of experts — including him and his wife — on how to handle the country's financial crisis before acting. "Folks, we can't fool with this," Clinton said. "Our country is hanging in the balance. And we have so much promise and so much peril. This man should be our president."

Obama said of the two Clintons: "I am proud to call them my friends." Through the day, in two states, Obama unleashed a bleak portrayal of a McCain presidency, which promises to be four more years of the last eight years, and told a national TV audience that "the time for change has come."

Obama's rare, prime-time infomercial, shades of the great Ross Perot, (and very well done in making Obama's case for a change in direction from the Republicans) cut live to him appearing at a rally in Sunrise, Fla., where 20,000 packed a hockey arena all the way to the nosebleed seats. Obama continues to have wonderful crowds -- if they can just translate into votes to save this country!

The infomercial movie was an attempt to fight back at all the negative, false portrayals of Obama by the McCain campaign and the numerous right wing attack groups. It was an attempt to fight evil with good, instead of going personal and character assassination like McCain. The reason millions of small donars like myself have given to him ( I have given $190, but never over $30 at a time) is because we knew how the Republicans have stolen the last two elections, and we are trying to ward off the swiftboating of Obama. So I helped pay for this infomerial and I was pleased with how my money was spent.

The movie sewed together the best footage of Obama's campaign travels around the country -- hugging the ladies in the kitchen in hairnets, shaking hands on the assembly line, and delivering his best lines at speeches and debates with special family footage of him playing with his photogenic daughters.

Obama reminded viewers of his grandfather's service in World War II; that he only spent a month with his Kenyan father when Obama was 10 and that his mother was fighting HMOs as she died of cancer. He is no radical -- his and Michelle's background is far more solid American middle class than John and Cindy McCain. The ad focused on moving examples of middle-class or falling-from-middle-class families from the swing states that will decide this election.

Americans like you and me are hurting, and Obama has policies that will help them -- and us. McCain does not. He has the same right wing rhetoric that got us into this mess -- it got Bush and the Republicans elected, but look how poorly they have governed! America, do not be hooked and crooked by them again!

"In six days, we can come together as one nation, and one people," Obama said. From your voice, Senator Obama, and from many prayers, to God's ears!

Christians Need to Represent Jesus --Vote for Party That Will Change the Indifference

Christians need to think about issues that matter, not the distractions that certain politicians and their party serve up so easily, when , in truth, they have been indifferent to so many human needs over the past eight years. Issues like Peace. Security. Racial equity. Economic well-being. Adequate nutrition and health care. A healthy environment. Human dignity. These are basic needs of every human being and of the earth. How can our electoral decisions ensure that these fundamentals are met?

The Gospel of Jesus Christ contains examples and commands to help the poor and the needy, as well as to treat others with respect and compassion. Luke 10:27 proclaims: “And love your neighbor as yourself.” For Christians, the life and teachings of Jesus are at the core of moral living. In an era of great change and challenge we are called to bring the Gospel message into our relationships with all people and all creation. Voting American Christians need to vote with social justice issues in mind.

The Republicans do not deserve to stay in charge of the White House. Think of the travesties of the last eight years, of which McCain supported and the Republican Party was in charge. The country is in the ditch and they have been driving the bus. It is time to fire the drivers.

The list of reasons for change is a long one. Think of the high cost of the unnecessary war in Iraq, in lives and money; of the torture and Guantanamo injustices; of the Wall Street mess; of Enron; of the botched response to Katrina; of increased unemployment and increased poverty; of runaway health care costs and 47 million uninsured: of poor governance and all the lies and spin and lies again; of the imperial presidency of Cheney-Bush; of the secretiveness of government; -- I could go on and on, but you get the picture. They do not deserve to be re-elected to power.

There are millions of Americans who have great needs that our society can and should help them with, since this is still the world's richest nation, well able to help the “least of these" in our midst. (Matthew 25). We still have 47 million Americans without health insurance – a travesty in a country as rich as ours. Our education system needs more financing and less unfunded mandates (as Bush did).

We have a rising number of unemployed folks, and jobs still are moving across our borders and corporations seek to find cheap, un-benefited workers (where is the ethics in that?) Global warning continues to be a problem after the Republicans denied it was happening for mush of the last eight years. Poverty is still a big problem, especially among minorities.

Plus, our American global footprint continues to squash others. Our arrogant foreign and corporate policies have ruined our reputation. I have missionary friends abroad who witness daily the global impact of U.S. political and economic decisions encourage voters in the 2008 elections to scrutinize candidates’ policy proposals through the lens of those who, both in the United States and overseas, lack basic necessities, endure the scourge of racism, live with gender-based discrimination or feel the immediate impact of climate change.

The growing influence of mega-corporations on political processes encourages economic decision-making that focuses on wealth and prosperity while forgetting more vulnerable people in the U.S. and abroad. Many of these decisions profit larger businesses at the expense of smaller ones and encourage unsustainable levels of consumption. Our government must enforce a separation of large corporations and state, strengthen and enforce anti-trust laws and promote enforceable mechanisms for corporate accountability.

The knee jerk reactions to immigration, led by demagogues like CNN blabbermouth Lou Dobbs, must be overcome with common sense and compassion. The Congress must implement just and compassionate national immigration policies that counter punitive and isola¬tionist tendencies, that recognize the importance of global solidarity in an intensely polarized world and that respect the inherent dignity and human rights of all migrants and asylum seekers, documented and undocumented alike. We must end the use of workplace raids, and stop the practice of deporting parents of under-age U.S.-born children. We must give urgent attention to the root causes of in¬voluntary migration, especially war and economic injustice. Building a giant wall along the border is a total waste of time and money.

A check of the policies and plans of the two major Presidential candidates gives a stark contrast. The compassionate Christian candidates are Senator Barack Obama and Senator Joe Bide, Visit the Matthew25 Network for more documentation of this fact, or view their policies of compassionate change at www.barackobama.com.

Please, please, please, vote in this election and convince your family and friends to vote for Obama-Biden. The Republicans, by hook and crook will make it very close. Every single vote is crucial! The future of our children and grandchildren depends upon it.

Being for Programs that Help Other People Make Someone a Christian, Not a Marxist!

Florida television anchor Barbara West is getting national attention after an interview with Barack Obama's running mate, Joe Biden. She kicked off the interview by asking Biden whether he was embarrassed by "blatant attempts to register phony voters by groups like ACORN".

She then asked:"How is Barack Obama not being a Marxist if he intends to spread the wealth around?"

Biden asked, "Are you joking?"

The Obama campaign responded to the interview:"This campaign has now spanned 21 months and Barack Obama, Michelle Obama and Joe and Jill Biden have done countless tough interviews and they've answered every single question. Let's be clear: This station's interview with Joe Biden wasn't tough -- it was just absurd!"

Of course, Right wing pubahs Lou Dobbs and Glenn Beck, CNN's water carriers for the Republicans, thought she was just wonderful. (I wish CNN would fire them like they fired their brother Tucker Carlson).

I think she was offensive and out of line! Tax cuts do not equal Marxism, Mrs. West! When tax cuts are for the rich they are good for the country, according to your Republican dogma, but what is wrong with helping the working people for a change? Mrs. West, are you implying that FDR, LBJ, Harry Truman, Dwight Eisenhower, JFK, Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton were also Marxists, because they all backed either tax cuts or social programs or both. Of course, you may not be much of student of history. Few neo-cons are. Which is why we got into the quagmire that is Iraq.

West was just another blonde, pretty talking points attack dog. West is married to a GOP media consultant, and her bio, in which she delights in covering Clinton's impeachment and seems to brag about scuttling Hillary's Heath Care program tells you everything you need to know about her objectivity.

The truth is that social programs, which some call socialist, have really helped this country -- such as social security, medicare, job corps, Comprehensive Education and Training Act (CETA), WPA, Head Start, Legal Aid, and many more. Social programs make it possible to balance the predatory nature of capitalism, so that it can work for the whole country, not just a chosen few wealthy capitalists.

Palin and "Socialist" Alaska: Another Case of Deceitful Hypocrisy from the Lipstick Pitbull

Now the Republigandists in McCain’s campaign are calling Barack Obama a socialist because he proposes middle class tax cuts while allowing the top money-makers $250,000 or more to pay taxes at a level commensurate with what they were before the Bush “give it to the rich” tax cuts. This is extremely hypocritical.

Sarah Palin is governor of the most "socialist" state in the union, and she knows it, but she criticizes Senator Obama about need middle class tax relief. Give me a break! I once lived in Alaska, home of Barracuda Palin, and it has a wonderful plan of sharing the wealth called the permanent fund. I wonder if Sarah or Todd Plain have ever given back their peramanent fund checks that come each fall?

Not that anything about the current “socialism” rhetoric should be taken seriously, it is just another one of the McCainanites distractive lies. But the closest thing to socialism on the American policy agenda is in Sarah Palin’s Alaska? You have collective ownership of valuable natural resources that generates lots of revenue for the state, and then the government makes “spreading the wealth around” through the Permanent Fund, etc. its main priority. It’s actually, for all the flaws of Alaska politics and public policy, a pretty good system. But I think the best way to think about it is that it’s an example of a somewhat special case in which socialism is a good idea.

Of course another time where you need a dose of socialism is if, for example, there’s a financial system emergency and the government needs to partially nationalize large banks in order to recapitalize them. But that’s been brought to us by George W. Bush with the support of John McCain.

Back in the day, as Sarah Palin likes to say, shortly after the oil from Alaska’s North Slope began flowing to market through the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System, the [Alaska] Permanent Fund was created by an amendment to the constitution of the U.S. state of Alaska to be an investment for at least 25% of proceeds from some minerals [such as oil and gas] sale or royalties...The Alaska Permanent Fund sets aside a certain share of oil revenues to continue benefiting current and all future generations of Alaskans.

So while Gov. Palin continues to criticize Sen. Obama for saying that "spreading the wealth around" helps everyone, the annual oil check paid to every Alaskan appears to do just that. I do not see anything wrong with the Permanent Fund. Indeed, I loved to get the checks while I was an Alaskan citizen. But I see Palin's cricism of Obama as high level hypocrisy. And McCain, after voting for a $700 billion bailout of Wall Street, now he wants to criticize Obama's tax cuts for 95 percent of the people as "spreading the wealth" and "socialism"?

The PFD payout, which comes in or near October of each year, is acknowledged to have a substantial effect on Alaska's economy, both in total and especially in rural Alaska where unemployment can reach 60% and where cash is scarce.

While I am not against the Alaskan model of natural resource management, I do believe that as she runs around the country disparaging Sen. Obama's economic plan as socialism, Gov. Palin should be challenged to articulate why Alaskan socialism is not a problem for her. Why is spreading the wealth around good for Alaska but not good for the rest of America?

This year's disbursement to every eligible Alasakan is $3,269 each for every man, woman and child. At times like this I wish I still lived in Alaska.

With Talking Points Hasselbeck, Palin Keeps Showing Unreadiness! Amen, General Powell!

Vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin likes to portray herself as an average American working mother. But how many typical moms get $150,000 worth of merchandise from stylish stores and have strangers pay for it? Of course, now that the truth is out, the Republigandists say that all the clothes were always going to be donated to charity. Yeah, right!

And Palin, campaigning with another mind zombie zero, the wonderful extreme right wing stooge, Talkin Point Harpy Elizabeth Hasselbeck of View infamy, (when is Barbara Walters going to can Her Barbie Dollness?)continued the seemingly fabricated defense. Palin now says she shops only at a consignment store in Alaska for her own clothes. Really? Not even Costco or Walmart or Kmart?

Well, then, why are you wearing $150,000 of Neiman Marcus, Sister Sarah? What is real and what is false in your campaign? Oh, yes, the campaign is mostly false, but you are Joe Six-pack, Joe the Plumber, real America. Right!

Which led me reflect back on the last week, especially back to last weekend. To be fair, Sarah Palin did okay on Saturday Night Live, just as John McCain did fine on David Letterman, but if we were electing a “comedian in chief” I would be for Leno or Letterman, or maybe Steve Martin. I mean, Obama is by far the best speaker in American politics, but it is his great mind and calm demeanor, and the compassionate policies he backs, that make him ready to be president, not his performing abilities on television.

I still say that Palin is not ready to be a heartbeat away from the presidency, and some very good people agree with me. General Colin Powell, in his powerful, thoughtful endorsement of Senator Barack Obama, said, “Now that we have had a chance to watch her for some seven weeks, I don't believe she's ready to be president of the United States, which is the job of the vice president. And so that raised some question in my mind as to the judgment that Senator McCain made..."

Powell is one of America’s most respected public figures. He is a highly decorated military man. He has served in a distinguished manner in several Republican administrations — as a national security adviser in the Reagan White House, as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under the first President Bush during the Gulf War. After leaving government in 2004, Powell and his wife, Alma, formed America's Promise, an organization dedicated to helping children from all socioeconomic groups. So his opinion is an one of the most informed opinions you will find.

Some of the most stinging comments about Palin came from well-known columnist and former Ronald Reagan speechwriter Peggy Noonan, who wrote in The Wall Street Journal that Joe the Plumber was more thoughtful and persuasive than Palin."No news conferences? Interviews now only with friendly journalists? You can't be president or vice-president and govern in that style, as a sequestered figure," Noonan wrote of Palin."In the end the Palin candidacy is a symptom and expression of a new vulgarization in American politics. It's no good, not for conservatism and not for the country. And yes, it is a mark against John McCain, against his judgment and idealism."

In a tough interview on the Fox News Channel last weekend, (yes, Faux News does have one real journalist) Chris Wallace allowed McCain to say Palin did "a great job" on SNL, but then challenged him on his choice of her as running mate. "As a cold political calculation, hasn't Governor Palin become a drag on your ticket?" Wallace asked.

"As a cold political calculation, I could not be more pleased," McCain said. Which again makes me question the judgment of John McCain. It seems, on the basis of judgment, he is not ready to be president.

Let me leave you with one more thing Colin Powell agrees with me on – the lies and despicable tactics of the Republican campaign that John McCain approves are out of line.

Powell said, according to the L. A. Times,: “I'm also troubled by, not what Sen. McCain says, but what members of the party say. And it is permitted to be said, such things as, 'Well, you that know Mr. Obama is a Muslim.' Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim, he's a Christian. He's always been a Christian. But the really right answer is: What if he is? Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer's no, that's not America. Is there something wrong with some 7-year-old Muslim American kid believing that he or she could be president? Yet I have heard senior members of my own party drop the suggestion, 'He's a Muslim and he might be associated with terrorists.' This is not the way we should be doing it in America.”

Amen, brother Powell, Amen!

Republiganda Cries About Biden Comments Much Ado About Nothing! Obama Wise Leader!

The Republiganda machine is latching on to comments made by Joe Biden about the Obama administration being likely to be tested. Well, sure, all new administrations are tested. If McCain is elected, his administration is sure to be tested -- with a green vice-president and an aging president, and the weight of his party's last eight years in the While House, they are sure to be tested.

But I believe Senator Barack Obama is up to the task. And so do a number of experienced White House veterans and foreign policy experts who have endorsed Senator Obama, such as General and Secretary of State Colin Powell, Secretary of State Madeline Albright, U.N. Ambassaador Richard Holbrook, President Bill Clinton, President Jimmy Carter, Vice-President Al Gore, Senator Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State Zbignew Brzinski, Senator John Kerry, General Wesley Clark and Governor Bill Richardson, amomg many. Certainly Obama will need help -- Presidents have never operated in a vacuum.

But who will that help be? Obama is a wise leader has surrounded himself with high quality people, such as former Navy Secreatary Richard Danzig, former Air Force Chief of Staff Tony McPeak, Former National Security Adviser Samuel Berger, former National Security Council member Susan Rice, and Senate foreign relations leader Biden himself. He has shown a calm, steady temperament. Erratic McCain has the dregs of the Bush administration, high powered lobbyists like his campaign manager Rick Davis, and Sarah Palin. And what have the Republicans given us for the last eight years? Enough said.

General Wesley Clark Works to Secure America!

Not only are the Republicans using their lies, distortions and misrepresentations to smear and impugn Senator Barack Obama, but it is a common tactic by Republican candidates on all levels. The Lee Atwater-Karl Rove school of gutter politics has been fully embraced by the Republicans. The party is rotten to its putrid core. I am still a registered Republican, out of respect for Dwight David Eisenhower. But my party of Lincoln and Eisenhower is long gone. All that remains is the name, and that name is being sullied everyday by Bush, McCain, Palin and the Untruth gang that runs things now.

On a recent five hour auto trip I heard attack ad after attack ad on the radio – all Republican, all with the same misleading spin of the half-facts, all using character assassination lines on their Democratic opponents. Simplistic, vile, outright false, Yes! But apparently it works with half the population, which is a great sadness and proof that our education system has gone to hell. Clear thinking seems to be extinct among the red state crowd! Hence, the only Republicans who will get my vote are local candidates that I know are not part of this sellout to dishonesty that is a cancer on our democracy.

I have good company in this disdain for this politics of evil. General Wesley Clark, one of the most honorable men to ever wear the uniform, supreme commander in a war WE WON, finds the campaign tactics dishonorable. And he warns that if we do not elect Democrats to help Obama, we will have the same non-action in Congress the Republicans caused over the past two years. There have been 94 filibusters and numerous other delay tactics by the party of Bush-McCain.

A responsible plan of withdrawal from Iraq? Filibuster. Reform the health care system? Filibuster. Investment in energy renewables, bringing us a new energy economy? Filibuster. 94 such filibusters and roadblocks in Washington, caused by the Republicans in the Senate. Add to that a Republican president who is veto proof because of their numbers, and that is why the Democrats elected in 2006 have been unable to do what they were elected to do! We need more Democratic senators if we want real change by the Potomac River.

General Clark, campaigning across the country for Democrats, warns that is what we can expect to happen to Barack Obama's agenda if we don't elect enough Democrats to the Senate on November 4. Republicans have filibustered a record-breaking 94 times in the last two years! Imagine what they will do when faced with Barack Obama's agenda for change.

General Clark is asking for help in two Senate races that few believed we could win just months ago: Jim Martin in Georgia and Kay Hagan in North Carolina. Contribute to Jim and Kay today.

Click www.actblue to donate to the campaign in the final push.

Jim Martin served our nation honorably as a member of the Armed Forces in Vietnam, in the Georgia House of Representatives, and at the Georgia Department of Human Resources. He has led his state on health care issues, helped provide quality and affordable health care for thousands of children, and put foster children in loving homes.

His opponent, Saxby Chambliss, ran one of the most despicable TV ads I've ever seen in 2002. The ad compared war hero Senator Max Cleland to Osama bin Laden. And now, Chambliss has launched two new attack ads against Jim, even brazenly using the same background music from the attack ad on Max.

The race is neck-and-neck, and General Clark needs you to make sure Jim has the resources to fight back against Chambliss' distortions and lies by making a contribution today.

As a five-term State Senator, Kay Hagan helped strengthen North Carolina's economy, increased the salaries of teachers, and broadened early childhood education. I'm also standing with Kay because she will stand up for our nation's military and veterans. It is not just because she comes from a strong military family -- she has a deep respect for the men and women who serve our country and fight for the freedom we often take for granted.

Kay has a real chance to oust Elizabeth Dole. Dole has been a rubberstamp for George Bush and has voted with him 92% of the time, even more than Bush lapdog John McCain (ninety percent). We cannot let George Bush's failed policies continue under Dole and McCain.

Kay holds a slim lead. So now the right wing attack machine is throwing millions of dollars into this race over the final two weeks, hoping negative, false advertisements will make the difference. Elizabeth Dole has loaned herself $3 million dollars this week to buy her seat back. It must be nice to have that kind of change lying around.
Kay needs our help to fight back. Please help carry Kay to victory by making a contribution today!

Click www.actblueto donate to the campaign for the final push.

We have 10 days to make a difference in these races. Jim and Kay need your help now. Check out General Wesley Clark’s views and schedule at Securing America.com Help General Clark, Senator Obama and Senator Biden change our country for the better.

Republicans Stole Elections in '00,'04! Now Try for 2008! Read About BLOCK THE VOTE!

We continue to get emails asking about the real history of the stolen presidential elections of the last eight years. Yes, both President Gore and President Kerry actually would have won the elections if not for Republican deceitful actions. If you want to read about real things that tore at the fabric of democracy, the Republican war on democracy in the United States, then please read in detail about the Stolen Elections of 2000 with well-researched articles and links to powerful books by Alan Dershowitz. Vincent Bugliosi and Jeffrey Toobin, and the Stolen Election of 2004 where Robert F. Kennedy Jr. writes a compelling story about the theft of democracy in America. In the most recent issue of the magazine he wtites about how to guard against it happening again in 2008, in the powerful, complelling article, BLOCK THE VOTE.

McCain's Bus Now Doubletalk Standard, Fueled by Lies: Will America Still Take Bus to Nowhere?

Our economy is in a huge mess. Wages are Stagnant as Prices Rise: While wages remain flat, the costs of basic necessities are increasing. The cost of in-state college tuition has grown 35 percent over the past five years. Health care costs have risen four times faster than wages over the past six years.

And the personal savings rate is now the lowest it's been since the Great Depression. And it was exacerbated bv a "spread it to the wealthy scheme" also known as the Bush tax cuts which gave those who earn over $1 million dollars a tax cut nearly 160 times greater than that received by middle-income Americans. At the same time, this Republican administration has refused to tackle health care, education and housing in a manner that benefits the middle class. And the McCainanite Republicans promise more of the same. Ideological prattle, but no share of the cattle for middle class and poor Americans.

Obama-Biden promise to enact a Windfall Profits Tax to Provide a $1,000 Emergency Energy Rebate to American Families:Barack Obama and Joe Biden will enact a windfall profits tax on excessive oil company profits to give American families an immediate $1,000 emergency energy rebate to help families pay rising bills. This relief would be a down payment on the Obama-Biden long-term plan to provide middle-class families with at least $1,000 per year in permanent tax relief. this is not spread the wealth, it is share the health, helping our entire country become healthy economically.

They also plan to provide $50 billion to jumpstart the Economy and Prevent 1 Million Americans from Losing Their Jobs: This relief would include a $25 billion State Growth Fund to prevent state and local cuts in health, education, housing, and heating assistance or counterproductive increases in property taxes, tolls or fees. The Obama-Biden relief plan will also include $25 billion in a Jobs and Growth Fund to prevent cutbacks in road and bridge maintenance and fund school re¬pair - all to save more than 1 million jobs in danger of being cut.

Do not expect John McCain and the Republicans to bring the needed changes. Their policies got us here in the first place.

“The failed economic policies and the same corrupt culture that led us into this mess will not help get us out of it. We need to get to work immediately on reforming the broken government -- and the broken politics -- that allowed this crisis to happen in the first place.” Senator Barack Obama wrote me and other supporters recently, standing up for principles he has been calling for over the last eighteen months, and decrying the Republican presidential administration economic policies that drove this nation into the very deep financial and economic ditch.

Obama has repeatedly said for months that what was happening in the subprime lending market was inappropriate, that nobody was looking at whether or not these loans made sense, that in many cases they were pushed into communities in which workers and homebuyers couldn't support the underlying mortgages, and the fact that we just did not do anything is reminiscent of what happened during the savings and loans crisis. (Which John McCain, of Keating Five and “poor judgment” fame, should know something about). Obama was spot on right in his warnings – while McCain was missing in action, as has been the case for much of the last eight years of his embrace of Bush and Bush’s brainless policies.

In his letter to supporters, Senator Obama stated the core truth of the financial mess Bush and his merry men and women cooked up for us: “The era of greed and irresponsibility on Wall Street and in Washington has created a financial crisis as profound as any we have faced since the Great Depression. “

And, make no doubt about, John McCain and his Republican Party are guilty of being co-conspirators in cooking up this financial mess with a purposeful lack of regulation and safeguards. In response, Obama and Joe Biden promise that they will be “guided by core principles of fairness, balance, and responsibility to one another,” in their economic policies.

Obama stated:“Joe Biden and I have a plan that will guarantee our long-term prosperity -- including tax cuts for 95 percent of families, an economic stimulus package that creates millions of new jobs and leads us towards energy independence, and health care that is affordable to every American. It won't be easy. The kind of change we're looking for never is., but if we work together and stand by these principles, we can get through this crisis and emerge a stronger nation.”

This is the kind of real Straight Talk America needs. McCain’s straight talk ended in South Carolina n 2000, the victim of the same Rove-Bush gutter politics he now embraces. His campaign bus no longer is the Straight Talk Express -- it is now the Doubletalk Standard, powered by lies not gas, on a perpetual route from Spinville to Propaganda City. And yet almost half of America is still on board this bus to nowhere.

It is a sad commentary on where our nation is, educationally, morally, and in the important areas of clarity of thinking and careful discernment.

Vile McCain Mailer Crawls Out of the Sewer!

The Republican National Committee is distributing a mail piece that says "Terrorists" on the front and opens to a big picture of Senotor Obama saying "Not Who You Think He Is."

John McCain -- who promised to run a respectful campaign -- said that he was "absolutely" proud of it. How schizophrenic!

If you are sick of this kind of campaigning, call people for Obama, make a donation, go door to door. We must overturn this evil Republican campaign tactic and their flood of smears. The McCain campaign is a cancer on democracy. www.barackobama.com

Obama is Pro-family -- His Policies Will Aid American Families Much More than Republicans!

I am praying for Barack Obama and his grandmother. The fact that the white woman who raised him, his grandmother on his mother’s side, is sick, and he is putting aside the most important campaign of his life to be with her, well, this shows he is a candidate with deeply held family values. His plans and policies reflect this high regard for families.

The reason he is a great leader is that he has good values and good work habits, learned at his grandmother’s knee. Obama has demonstrated that he is a committed Christian with strong Christian values at the heart of his vision of America, and the world, as well as his vision of the society and the support for the neediest ones among us. Even his opponent, John McCain, recently told a crowd that Obama is “a decent family man.. who loves America” If I were the Obama campaign I would run this as an ad and a robo-call to kill the lies against Senator Obama.

It is amazing what some people will believe in the character assassination ads and emails. I found it interesting that Obama’s lack of lapel flag pin was so “disrespectful” in the primaries, but when he wears one in each of the presidential debates, and McCain wears none, and no one says a word. Sarah Palin attacks Obama as anti-family, and yet which candidate has policies that will actually help families? It is Obama, by far. just check his website for detail after detail. www.barackobama.com

You can also check out your coming tax cut under Obama if you are one of the 95 percent of Americans who will get one. And if you are wealthy, you will still only be paying what you were paying before the Bush tax cuts, which were originally meant to be temporary. And, if you are wealthy, you are getting more out of the American dream than anyone else, so you should pay a little more to help the rest of society. It is not spread the wealth, it is keep the health -- of the country that is buttering your bread with more butter than ninety-five percent of your fellow countrymen and women!

Anyone who has seen Senator Obama interact with his wonderful wife Michelle and his two young girls knows there is a lot of love in this little family. And both he and Michelle grew up in basic American families with strong values and work ethics that we can all admire. What is more, Obama is a good family man and represents families in his beliefs and policies! He loves his kids, his wife and he also cares for the families struggling all over the country, including the veterans and current military. He is concerned about the future we are handing our children and grandchildren. We all should be concerned about it!

In Obama’s remarkable acceptance speech in late August, he brought up an issue that we must keep at the forefront of this election: paid family leave and paid sick days. He laid out a compelling vision of what a strong America looks like when he said:

“We measure the strength of our economy not by the number of billionaires we have or the profits of the Fortune 500, but by whether someone with a good idea can take a risk and start a new business, or whether the waitress who lives on tips can take a day off to look after a sick kid without losing her job - an economy that honors the dignity of work.”

After eight years of Republican rule, our country looks nothing like this. When families find themselves in crisis and ask, “How can I keep my paycheck and care for my family in the face of this emergency?”…the answer for most people is “you can’t.” Working moms and dads have to make painful decisions about whether they take time off to care for a new baby or have enough money to buy diapers. The leadership of the supposed “family friendly” party has done very little to make life easier for American families.

Here are some facts to consider:

• The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) has given more than 50 million Americans the ability to support their families. However, because leave is unpaid, many families that have taken leave face economic hardship. Of the people who do not take FMLA, 78 percent say they could not afford to take leave.

• In the United States, only 51 percent of people get paid leave through their work to care for families.

• Almost half - 48 percent - of workers in the private sector get no paid sick days.

• Among low-wage workers the number with out paid sick days are even more dramatic: nearly 80 percent do not get any paid sick days.

We can do better for working Americans. We must do better for working Americans. We must do better for families. We need a real pro-family administration, not one that just gives lip service to the phrase and then actually attacks the families with pro-business plans and nothing for the workers.

Now is the time to help families with paid sick days and better family leave, because nobody in America should have to choose between keeping their jobs and caring for a sick child or ailing spouse or parent. We must elect Barack Obama and Joe Biden because they are really pro-family!

How Can People Believe Republican Lies, Even When They Have No Plans to Help Most People?

When I see the blatant character attacks of the Republican machine upon Obama, and the dirty campaign tactics of Robo-calls and whisper campaigns, I cannot help bur remember that Rick Davis, manager of the McCain campaign, stated in August, "This campaign is not about issues. This election is about a composite view of what people take away from these candidates."

Davis's statement reduces the campaign to a personality contest, and then they are not dealing with truth about personality. They lie to tear down Obama. During an election season when war, the economy and health care are such pressing issues, the Republicans naturally want to shift the focus to personality–especially when they've presided over eight years of disaster and all they offer is more of the same.

Think back to the first week in September. We could see this gutter campaign coming, because the convention was prelude to the brutal rap act that has followed. Given this Davis strategy, the speeches at the Republican National Convention were short on plans for the economy, as well as on Iraq, energy and health care. Energy is more drilling for oil companies, health care is destroy the employer health insurance benefit, and education is more unfunded rhetoric.

In his acceptance speech, John McCain stated in reference to American workers, "We will prepare them for the jobs of today. We will use our community colleges to help train people for new opportunities in their communities"–surely a reprise of George Bush's empty promises during his debates with John Kerry. Like Bush, McCain knows that he has no such program in mind. Let him state instead that he'll put an end to tax cuts for corporations that ship American jobs overseas. That is a strategy that will really help workers. It is one that Obama promises.

All you have to do is think back to the Republican convention to see that social justice issues were not on the Republican agenda, at least not in real policy efforts. In fact, no issues were on their agenda, except keeping the Bush tax cuts for the rich, staying in Iraq for a long time, and "drill, baby, drill!"

Following the strategy as defined by Davis, who is a highly paid corporate lobbyist when he is not controlling McCain, the convention became a nasty succession of crafted lies and character attacks, with the target being Barack Obama. During the convention, a new dirty word entered the Republican lexicon: "community organizer." As Sarah Palin stated, "I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a "community organizer," except that you have actual responsibilities."

The Republicans are clearly contradicting theeir won history when they disparage this valuable role. George H. W. Bush stated at his inaugural address of January 2, 1989, "I have spoken of a thousand points of light, of all the community organizations that are spread like stars throughout the nation, doing good." And McCain himself, in his acceptance speech, asked listeners to "Fight for our children's future. Fight for justice and opportunity for all." Yes, Papa Bush seemed to care, but the Neo-Cons seem to have stolen his son's soul, and the soul of the Republican Party that he has led for the past eight years. This is the party of John McCain and Sarah Palin.

I have always been suspicious when Republicans extol the virtue of voluntarism. Between the lines I hear, "Don't expect us to properly fund education, health care and other social needs. How can we do that and afford tax cuts for the wealthy and a repeal of the estate tax? Let volunteers and charity handle it."

Regardless of my suspicions, the fact is that Barack Obama is entitled to high praise for his work as a community organizer. As recounted by U.S News & World Report, "After graduating from Columbia University in 1983 with a major in political science, Obama worked as a financial consultant in New York City. But he was bored—and drawn to public service."

So instead of staying on Wall Street and raking in dough, Obama took a tremendous salary cut in order to help people. His annual salary was $10,000. I realize that the work of CEOs and hedge fund managers command more respect according to the Republican value system. But how can anyone, except those operating on the most cynical of motives, deny Obama's idealism and patriotism?

So what did Obama do as a community organizer? According to U.S. News, "In 1985, he moved to Chicago to work with local churches organizing job training and other programs for poor and working-class residents of Altgeld Gardens, a public housing project where 5,300 African-Americans tried to survive amid shuttered steel mills, a nearby landfill, a putrid sewage treatment plant, and a pervasive feeling that the white establishment of Chicago would never give them a fair shake."

This is what we should hope would happen in our neighborhoods!

Note that Obama worked with "local churches"–a point conveniently forgotten by Palin, the new rock star of the religious right. And a party that preaches self-help ought to praise Obama for the values he sought to instill in others: "...whether it was getting the city to fill potholes, provide summer jobs, or remove asbestos from the apartments or persuading the apartment managers to repair toilets, pipes, and ceilings, Obama encouraged residents to come up with their own priorities with the gentle admonition: "It's your community."

The attempt to mock Obama for his praiseworthy work as a community organizer was a clear sign as one more diversion by a Republican campaign that is bankrupt of ideas and offers the nation an extension of the failed Bush presidency. And they have kept up these incessant attacks, trying to paint him as a terrorist by association with a man who has not been anything near being a terrorist for nearly 40 years.

They have misrepresented his tax cuts for 95 percent of the people, calling it socialism when they know it is not! They have purposely lied about other policy issues. And so many people believe them! Pray for America. We are being run by liars and thieves and enemies of workers an the poor, yet half the people like it and have no compassion. Even for themselves. The American Way for them is lies, fables and veiled hate and racism.

It is time for Compassionate Christians to Stand Up and Be Counted! Work for Social Justice!

For nearly 2000 years, followers of Christ have sought to live out their faith in the real world – under a variety of political systems: empires, feudal systems, tribal systems, monarchies, oligarchies, totalitarian regimes, anarchy, corporatetocracy, or democracy.

Rev. Brian McClaren, insightful author of a number of cutting edge Christian books, puts it well: "In our American democracy, we have struggled, stumbled, fallen, and gotten up again, over and over, learning each time as we moved forward. We have grappled with how our faith related to declaring independence, opposing slavery, fighting for the rights of women, confronting child labor, aiding farm workers, and overcoming economic depression. We have embraced the dream of overcoming racism, we have fought for openness in government, and the right of every one to vote, and so much more."

However, McClaren warns that over the last years we’ve watched large sectors of our Christian community in the U.S. engage in several decades of divisive, ineffective, and downright counterproductive political engagement. At best, many attempts at engagement have been superficial, simplistic, and subject to binary thinking where one or two wedge issues easily distinguish the “good guys” from the bad. It is happening again in this election, led by such divisive Evangelicals as James Dobson and Pat Robertson, and vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

At worst, we’ve watched too many of our fellow Christians slip into a “culture war” mindset where neighbors became enemies to be defeated and silenced, not loved as we love ourselves. In addition, we’ve watched too many members of our faith communities be manipulated by cynical politicians who knew what tune to play to get people of faith marching obediently in their parade. It has been very sad and counter-productive to the full Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Zekariah Smith has been writing about this for years. The powerful parables of Mathew 25, the prophetic book of Amos, and many other compassion-laden scriptures have been forgotten in order to develop wedge issues based on fear. While the wedge issues of the past and of today may have some basis in the Bible, much larger issues of ethics and social justice have been virtually ignored. Dishonesty and deceitfulness in political campaigning has been lauded and rewarded. We must all remember that Jesus said that Satan is the father of lies. We must not reward the liars and charlatans with electoral success when their overall policies bring about injustice, not justice.

Now we face unprecedented global crises: caring for our fragile and wounded planet, building a just peace in situations of conflict and fear, and eliminating extreme poverty and health care inequalities, while working for economic fairness and stability the world over. Electing the wrong president will set us back even farther in these crises – something we cannot afford to do. Electing the better president will not solve everything; it will only be a first step in the next chapter of our history, but it is an important step.

We invite you, as a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, to step off the sidelines as an observer or critic. Put your beliefs into action in the election that we believe is for the soul of America. We hope you’ll join us, as Matthew 25 Network member Rev. McClaren proclaims … "Praying for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven and seeking to be humble makers of peace, joyful workers for the common good, and dedicated servants of 'the least of these.'”

Please consider Barack Obama and Joe Biden for a new administration in Washington and a clean break with the last eight years. For reasons to make such a choice, read the other articles and columns in this “Battling for Truth” blog.

For more information about social justice activism and the politics of hope, not fear, see the Matthew 25 Network. Watch their wonderful video on families and share it with all you know.

And read Columnist Zekariah Smith each day, joining in the battle for truth, justice, and the American way.