So, it's almost election time for 2004. I think it would be really nice if all canidates, for everything, were to each find one outlet to state their beliefs, goals, intentions, whatever and just do it once. Forget calling each other names, twisting words around, and spending 40 million dollars on advertising. Just think of all the things that that money could have been spent on. The 40 million is only including Bush & Kerry, too. I've seen numerous ads for local people, usually averaging 5-6 different commercials for each person. If you think about it, the money adds up fast.
Maybe it's just me, but the smear ads some people run don't work for me. There's a particular race in Oregon. We have two main canidates running for Congress. One canidate, a woman, has no prior government experience, but still seems to have a grasp on how to do what she needs to do. She knows what she wants, and seems to listen to what the community wants. The other canidate, a man, is the current congressman. He's been in office since 1999, and says he's done a lot for Oregon. Now, pesonally I wasn't going to vote for him. I don't know of anything he's done that I agree with, and just generally don't vote democratic. I'm very conservative, and vote that way. Now, the ads that have been run tell us about this congressman and something he did 30 years ago. If I had been planning to vote for this guy, I would have changed my mind knowing that he attacked a girl he had been dating for two years. He says it "shaped him into the person he has become", but I believe the things we do reflect on the person we are, and any person who would do something like that wouldn't earn my trust. Now, the other canidate might think that she is making progress with voters informing them of this man's past. Unfortunately, the way she has gone about it has convinced me that I do not wish to vote for her either. It's one thing to bring something to light that you think voters should know, it's entirely another to attack someone repeatedly with it. I think it shows poor character the way this was handled and wonder how many others feel this way.
Let's see what else there is.
The biggest measure on the ballot for me is Measure 36. Measure 36 is an amnedment to the Oregon constitution, that would specify that only marriage between "one man and one woman would be recognized as a legal marriage." There is no question here for me! Of course marriage should be between a man and a woman! What's next, some guy wants to marry a guy and a girl because he's bisexual? Before you know it, we'll have a group of 6 people 'married'. It's all written quite clearly in the bible, I mean, just read it!
Anyway, I'm done for now.