Cue the Soviet National Anthem

  Once every four years, the citizens the United States of America raise their voices and elect the people that they want to represent them in the local, state and federal governments.  We are not a democracy, as many people claim, because a democracy implies that every decision is put up to a public vote.  We are a republic, because the people we elect are then trusted to act in our best interests.  It is not a perfect system, but it’s the best one so far.

  Unfortunately, there is a critical flaw in this system.  As a wise man once said, “Never underestimate the power of human stupidity.”  Between the poor job that George W. Bush has done (even though he still did better than Al Gore or John Kerry would have) and the charismatic empty suit of Barack Hussein Obama, our society is ripe and ready to be plucked, and plunged into darker days.

  It’s still early in the day – not even noon yet – but already there’s a pallor hanging over me.  It’s the opposite of when Eliot Spitzer resigned from the governor’s seat.  (ADD Sidebar – Patterson just put out a press release this morning announcing a further two million dollar scaling back of state-funded programs;  I don’t agree with him on much else, but I approve of his heavy handed slashing of government waste.)  But everyone else seems particularly cheerful today, lemmings running towards a cliff with no knowledge of the tragedy of their own making that awaits them when they plunge over the edge.  Even among those of us who are still proud to be a Conservative, it’s a forgone conclusion that Obama will win the election.  We’ve done our best to try to get people to realize the error of their ways, but I don’t think it was enough.  This country could have less of a chance than a meatball at Michael Moore’s house.

  Tax rates will skyrocket, inflation will grow out of control.  Government will cripple businesses and poverty will swell.  This will lead to an increase in crime and a sharp rise in welfare.  While this should ensure me some job security here in the Welfare Department (sorry, Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance), maybe even enabling me to get a promotion (with the accompanying $14,000 annual pay increase), any benefit will be outweighed by the financial impact of having our country’s freedoms and financial security kicked out from under us.

  This sounds a bit negative, I realize.  In actuality, as it always turns out, regardless of who is in the White House, the actual affect on my life will be negligible.  The biggest negative effect could be difficulty in getting a promotion, without having to change agencies.  I disagree with Obama on almost everything and believe he will actually do damage to the country.  I’m not a strong John McCain supporter, and I don’t think he’ll help the country get stronger again;  but at least he won’t sink the ship quite as fast.

  There are other options of course.  Chuck Baldwin, of the Constitution Party.  Bob Barr, the Libertarian.  The ever present Ralph Nader, running as an Independent.  And, from the Green Party, that total nutjob Cynthia McKinney.  I don’t remember ever seeing this many “third party” candidates, but I’ve tried not to pay much attention over the years.  I did vote for Perot, but now that I’m older and wiser, I’ve decided that if I’m going to throw away my vote, I’d like it to at least have a minimal chance of making a difference.  I could vote for Barr or Baldwin (in fact, according to the “Choose Your Candidate” quiz I just took, I’m a 68.75% match with Baldwin, versus 65.63% with McCain (and 44.53% with Barr)), but there’s zero chance of them winning.  Relatively speaking, a vote for McCain has significantly more weight.  Hell, if I can just swing Rensselaer County to a red county on the map with my one vote, it’s a step in the right direction (no pun intended).

  So tonight, I will stop on the way home and cast my vote with the minority that are supporting McCain.  I’ll go home and hug my wife.  And, when I wake up in the morning to the news that Barack Obama has won (or, if he hasn’t, that we’re doing recounts ad nauseum in Florida or Ohio or some damn place), I’ll sigh sadly and hope that four years is enough time for the country to realize the mistake they’ve made and that, when those four years are up, we’ll still have enough freedom remaining to vote Obama out.

  I’ll also sigh with relief that I don’t have to hear any more stupid frickin’ election crap, at least until they start clamoring for the 2012 race, some time around February of next year.