So, city folks are bad people, eh?

John McCain is about to split America into two opposing halves:

Decent folks with conservative values and plenty of common sense; and dangerous, urban liberals who would impose Big Brother at home and expose the country to danger from abroad.

This won't sit well with most Americans. It also highlights a fundamental difference between McCain and Barack Obama, who famously said that there is only one America for him, instead of a Republican and a Democratic America.

If anything, many people in the countryside tend to be more unpredictable and more dangerous, with their Bible-thumping and guns (just look at Sarah Palin, who can be expected to shoot anything and anyone that comes into her sights).

And what's McCain's deal with demonizing community organizers – and essentially anyone who works for his or her community and country at the grassroots level? Those people are what have made America such a great nation (as opposed to Canada, where most action follows the top-down approach, originating either with federal or provincial governments).

There are only two possible explanations (or a combination of both) that can explain McCain's outright foolish behaviour: He is either becoming demented, or his partisan fervour and ideology have got the best of him – or both, which is probably the most likely scenario.

As a Canadian, I shudder at the thought of a McCain-Palin White House. Americans, therefore, would have to be totally scared stiff and even suicidal at such horrific prospect.

Comments

[SoContent]

That was a nice snow job last night. What is disturbing is the second return of neocon influence that the same interest groups will again be running matters in Washington. Robert Kagan now et al with quasi foundations who set the same miasma on current McCain economic, social and cultural affairs to suit their purposes at the expense of all Americans will still be pulling the same puppet strings. Palin is brought in as a media poster child yet she should have known better then being used as most northerners including Alaskans value their independence and free spirited thinking pluralism.

Neoconservatism it should be noted had its firm solid roots in left wing collectivism and it carries with it the same frayed tired old baggage of what is wrong with government(s): interest groups, concealed agenda creation, lobbying, big and more bureaucracy, pandering, bloated deficits, division, hostility, Fed printing press debasing the currency that forces other countries to do same etc. as always. Neoconservatism is not true solid conservatism. Anything built and having foundations around rejected radical socialism that was still allowed to creep into agenda conservatism can never nor ever will be. It needs to be firmly rejected as an ideology nor tolerated as a political influence for that very reason.

This is not the conservatism certainly of Edmund Burke or Thomas Jefferson what they had in mind for America. That brand of conservatism made America great and strong in its ideological foundations how it evolved and represented in terms of leadership for America and the world. It needs to be rediscovered. This ‘Christian Coalition’ even at work here in Canada is not what Christianity is all about. The neocon machine uses this distortion of Christianity as a mockery when it suits different needs and purposes nothing to do with this faith. It is insulting if not unfair not just to Christians but anyone who holds honest personal theological beliefs of any faith that they are even mixed together and referred to in the same instances. Some good theological deeds done quietly separated at times from the state whatever your beliefs is not a totally bad thing as we have had enough major or minor wars fought in its name directly and indirectly to this date in our world. That is not ‘the God’ the Fathers of the American Constitution had in mind. Republicans (and Democrats) should be ashamed and reject this same old same tired rhetoric for what it actually represents and stands for breaking themselves firmly if not swiftly from it.

After the last eight years, moving and distancing themselves as a party from this ideology through the back door should have been a top priority and even libertarian conservatism 'lite' looks more promising as a direction needed to clean up their party, their country and the path it has been moving towards in the world. McCain had his chance to get rid of and firmly disassociate himself from that crowd. All he has done when you examine who is behind the scenes once again is further entrenched its influence and the vision it represents. Those overtones were actually heard again last night in his speech on two points at the very heart of neoconservatism; the clarity on foreign policy as nothing new and rejection of economic conservatism where vague generalities were adhered to that is the basis of the (neocon) ideology. In simple terms, more of the same and further debt creation with government. Populism is nothing without substance where goalposts get moved.

Proof again that labels mean really nothing at all in politics and how true. We share this continent and it is right from our side of the border to be concerned that people learn and educate themselves on these political philosophies. They should be highlighted and scrutinized by all of us in a free thinking society to debate as to what predomination they represent and stand for.

Too bad as a maverick McCain did not shy away from Bush in that area with good solid fiscal conservatism for the American people with a much cleaner concise slate to start from then the same Bush/Cheney advisors coming in through the back door trying to carry on with these fatigued somewhat despotic ideals. That is not conservatism; not only its purest but in any sort of form. There is no change here when the french idiom of more of the same is expounded upon by politicians. At least Powell left and did the right thing when he saw himself being used by it. I hold him in very high esteem for that difficult decision he made.

Sorry, I see through it and I do not buy it! Whether Americans do or not, it is their country and we truly respect their electoral decision making without we trust any future Broward County type debacles in deciding matters for their own country and society.

[Werner Patels]

Of course, Americans are free to make their electoral decisions without our input from Canada. Although one National Post columnist recently mused about a scenario that would see Americans vote in Canadian elections and Canadians in American ones.

The thing is that the person of the U.S. president does matter to Canada. Whatever is decided at the White House and in Washington, D.C., in general does have an impact on Canada and Canadians.

So, while we are not allowed to vote south of the border, we must take every opportunity (e.g., through blogging) to make our voices heard, because their election is also our election in so many ways.