7 Reasons to Vote in This Year's Mid-Terms

[Adam's Apple]

These are not my priorities, but its a thoughtful list that affects everyone.

Seven Reasons to Vote
By Elaine S. Povich, AARP Bulletin
October 17, 2006

Think this Election Day doesn't matter? Think again. From the Iraq war to the future of Social Security, from the fate of pension plans to the complexities of long-term care, Americans have a huge stake in politics 2006.

This could be the most important election in a decade, experts say, even though the presidency is not up for grabs. The outcome of the midterm elections of all U.S. House members, 33 senators and 36 governors could determine the course of the nation for years to come.

"This election is about 'Do you like the direction of the country, or do you want a change?' " says Stuart Rothenberg, a nonpartisan political analyst in Washington. "Change, or the status quo?"

The answer to that question lies, of course, in the candidates voters choose. And in sizing up those candidates, voters have a lot of issues on their minds—and many reasons to vote. In an AARP Bulletin poll of 1,000 Americans 18 and older conducted by International Communications Research of Media, Pa., the war in Iraq topped the list of their concerns.

Next in line are the cost of health care and prescription drugs, corruption in government, energy prices and Social Security's future.

(Singled out for discussion in this article are Social Security, Medicare, long-term care, economic security, health care reform, integrity in government, Presidential power and Congressional oversight. Also given a mention are immigration, stem cell research, education, medical malpractice, and identity theft.)

For full article:
http://www.aarp.org/bulletin/yourlife/seven_reasons_to_vote.html

 

[Avatar4321]

I find it interesting that the presumption seems to be that voting Democrats in would issue the change when they are the ones standing in the way of all the reforms.

 

[Adam's Apple]

There would be no change for the better with the Democrats in charge of Congress, and things would get a lot, lot worse. I don’t think a majority of Americans buy the Democrats’ solution to the WOT, immigration, handling the energy crisis, abortion, the marriage issue, getting Christianity out of the public arenas, or any of the other hot political issues.

I wonder about these election polls—where they are taken and the people selected to participate. I am assuming these polls are conducted on the East or West Coast with people living in those areas, and that conservatives do not get included in the mix. If they do get included, it is by a very small percentage so that the poll results reflect the liberal agenda. I have great difficulty believing that discontented conservatives would send a liberal Democrat (the only kind allowed in today’s Democrat Party) to Washington to represent them, and I have an even greater problem believing that conservatives will sit this election out—not with the issues that are on the table.

 

[Hobbit]

There would be no change for the better with the Democrats in charge of Congress, and things would get a lot, lot worse. I don’t think a majority of Americans buy the Democrats’ solution to the WOT, immigration, handling the energy crisis, abortion, the marriage issue, getting Christianity out of the public arenas, or any of the other hot political issues.

I wonder about these election polls—where they are taken and the people selected to participate. I am assuming these polls are conducted on the East or West Coast with people living in those areas, and that conservatives do not get included in the mix. If they do get included, it is by a very small percentage so that the poll results reflect the liberal agenda. I have great difficulty believing that discontented conservatives would send a liberal Democrat (the only kind allowed in today’s Democrat Party) to Washington to represent them, and I have an even greater problem believing that conservatives will sit this election out—not with the issues that are on the table.

The Democratic victory has been predicted using the same polling methods used to predict Kerry's victory in '04. These polls, however, are further off because they only ask people, "Democrat or Republican" and do it as a national thing. This is a midterm election. What the nation as a whole decides doesn't really matter. What matters is the individual races. It's not "Democrat or Republican," it's, taking my district for an example, "Nathan Deal or John Bradbury?" Well, I might not be happy about Mark Foley or McCain-Feingold, but Nathan Deal has been largely voting the way I want him to, and while John Bradbury claims he'll bring 'fiscal responsibility' and claims to be a 'fiscal conservative,' he also seems to support socialized medicine and using government strongarming to force companies to keep their operations locating in the United States, rather than removing the oppression that drove them out. He would also be beholden to Nancy Pelosi, who pressures all incoming Democratic Reps. into signing an agreement that, unless given permission, they'll vote with her on every issue. Therefore, barring the unforseen, I'll be voting for Nathan Deal.