2004-11-01 Voting, the war, and stuff

You preferred Bush's statements 33% of the time You preferred Kerry's statements 67% of the time Voting purely on the issues you should vote Kerry Who would you vote for if you voted on the issues? Find out now!

I took this quiz three times, and all three results were the same...I should vote for John Kerry.

As you will see if you take the quiz, each time you take it, the questions/statements are different.

I pretty much predicted the outcome so it really didn't come as a suprise.

I found myself agreeing with John Kerry's plans for education the most, and this has always been my most "important" issue anyway.

As far as national security is concerned, it was a toss up. I can't seem to make my mind up one way or the other about the war...sometimes I feel like we did the right thing, other times I don't. I don't know if I will ever make my mind up about that. One thing that I know for sure...those protesting the war need to sit down and shutup. Seriously, if you don't agree with us going there, fine. That's your right and I don't deny you that but before you go with your "hell no" chants, think about what you are doiing to the soldiers morale. Don't agree with why they are there, but at least support them while they are.

I have mentioned before that we have a close friend in Iraq. I got a letter from him the other day saying that he was going to be getting some leave in November. It got me thinking. He has two children(7 and 3 years old). I was wondering if people ever really think about how much our soldiers sacrifice, aside from the quite obviously the possibility that they may lose their life? Eric has not seen his children since January...that's 11 months folks. I can't even fathom that. Not that I wouldn't miss Ryun terribly...but I could live without seeing him for an extended period of time...email and letters would be ok. It would be hard but I would survive. I think that I might literally die of lonesomeness, heartbreak, or maybe even boredom if I even had to go more than a week without seeing my children, let alone 11 months or longer. How do you "check that" feeling at the door or the battlefield or whatever? How does he or anyone else with children fighting over there not breakdown and cry everyday for them? It takes one hell of a strong person. I wish that those protesting would just for one minute think about all of that. You don't have to agree with the reasoning behind the war. You just have to support those who are over there fighting for something that they may not even agree with. Think about that too...how hard it must be to fight for a cause that you might not believe in, and have to leave your friends and family to boot. They do it though...and they do it for us... whether or not you choose to believe it.

I can't help but think of this war on a personal level. I know that there is so much more to it and maybe it's selfish, I don't know. Sometimes though, I think that the political aspect of things just takes on too much importance. Yes, we are over their protecting our interests and those of others...and the whole war is a political thing in and of itself. To me though, when I doubt the reasons behind our our going there, I stop and think about those who are there and what they are going through and what they have left behind...and my protests just don't seem so important anymore.

Regardless of who your voting for, or why, please vote. You may not think it matters, may not think your vote counts. It does matter and you do count. It's your right, your priviledge and it should be your honor.