Here's the thing: Practice is going awesome, but we have more important issues. I'm going to piggy back off a writer's commentary I saw on CNN.com today.
Glenn Beck wrote about the press coverage Obama received for working out. I'm glad I know what he wears, just as Beck was, because it is a high priority for me to know what a man who has no chance of being elected wears when he works out.
At least for me the decision is clear. If I want to keep my current lifestyle, simple or extravagant as you may perceive it, as a member of the military, John McCain gets my vote. Not only is he going to ensure service members continue to get a pay raise, he's going to ensure we can maintain our current lifestyles.
I know this sounds funny to most of you because you know how little the military gets paid. If Obama is elected, there's no way I'd be able to continue living the way I do. His plan to raise taxes would hit most military members pretty hard. Could you imagine having to pay capital gains tax on your house when you have to move every three years?
I'm not claiming everyone in the military buys and sells a house every time they move, but some do sell their current house. Wow, that would sting you right in the pocketbook. Planning to use that money on the next house and you lose most of it right to the "company" you work for? That's an awesome plan.
Or maybe we should discuss how Obama's taxes would hit most military families and effectively push them closer to the poverty line.
One of the most interesting things I've seen is WIC and EBT signs in the commisary. The commisary is the on-base grocery store. Could somebody please tell me why we have military families struggling to make ends meet to the point where they are on government assistance? Doesn't that seem a bit absurd to anybody else?
Money is the main focus for everybody now. All I can think of are the Marines in Calif. who drive nearly 40-50 miles a day, one way, to work.
Think for just one minute about how those families are dealing with the gas prices and whether or not they can afford the neccesities at the grocery store.
Yeah, now all of a sudden your "plight" doesn't seem so bad...
Oh, and don't forget those guys are doing 9-15 month deployments, coming home for eight months max, and going right back out there.
So, I say to all of you who support the military, but vote Obama, thanks for destroying our simple way of life and turning it into a struggle for every military family who defends your right to vote.
No worries, I'm sure Obama will still be able to wear his T-shirt, ball cap and black sweatpants while working out and not have a minute's worth of stress over his decisions.
Back to the commentary and what I loved about it.
"But all of this points to a larger point: We've become a country that continually chooses the sizzle over the steak. McCain may not get my vote, but he gets my admiration for at least offering some substance and new ideas when he speaks. Obama, meanwhile, is like the rock star who's realized that he can just scream unintelligible words into the microphone between songs, and the entire stadium will still scream. When your fans already love you, there's no reason to risk it by offering anything that might be controversial. Remember the Dixie Chicks?
As candidates, Barack Obama and John McCain are ironically a lot like the way the media treats them: Obama is the glitzy magazine cover that screams for people to buy the issue, and McCain is the fact-filled article buried inside that makes you glad you did."
Read the entire commentary here:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/07/
That's my two cents for the day. I hope I didn't bore you to death. Off my soapbox and back to the mop and bucket I go. I have field-day inspection in the morning. I love the Marine Corps.
