Posted by
Mike Silverman on Monday, October 13, 2008 11:40:03 AM
How much of a gambler are you? A gambler who knows what he's doing never sits down at a table unless he knows the game inside and out, understands the odds, and is willing to lose his wager. A presidential election is like gambling at the blackjack table in Vegas. Except the odds on drawing a winning hand are a lot longer, and the stakes are the future of the country, not just the cash you happen to have at hand. The presidential campaigns are the owners of the casinos trying to lure you in. At the end of the day, one casino will close up for good, the other will stay in business. You can go in and play thier games, but unlike the possibilities in a real casino, even if you win... you still lose. If you win by keeping your chosen casino in business, the casino still takes money from you.., it may take more than before, or it may take less, but you will always give up something in the form of tax. You can pull out of a blackjack game, if you find yourself losing. There's no pulling out of the game after an election. You are in it for at least 4 years, unless you move to another country. Ultimately, your only choices come down to, what percentage of your money will these casinos take from you, and what will they do with that money. These are both questions that tie directly into the moral compass of the individuals running the casinos. Considering that the stakes are so much higher, Would you use at least the same level of caution..., that you would approach a game of poker or any game of chance..., with how you approach electing a Presidential candidate? To some people ,shockingly, that answer is no. They're star-struck by the flashy neon sign, they're distracted by the floor show, they get thier free drinks, and that's all it takes. They don't care about the past performance of their casino. They don't care what shady characters are behind the scenes or what is done with the money the casino takes from them. They're not interested in how lax the security system is, not concerned about what dangerous people in the world might be plotting an attack on them. They're having a good time, and that's all that matters. This is the Obama/Biden campaign. It's all about distraction. It's all about the floor show, and the drunken revelry of feel-good empty rhetoric. So, what about the McCain/Palin campaign? What are they doing in thier casino? is there any difference? Yes. This casino has a record that it doesn't try to hide. The owners are not shady people with questionable connections, and have offered to take far less from you than that other casino wants to take, and have your personal safety as one of thier primary concerns. I wanted to make this analogy to point out that knowing the track record and the character of the people behind the scenes is important. Questioning Obama's links with Rezko, Ayers, Wright, and ACORN, is key to determining trust in leadership. The attempt is being made right now to try to drain the topic of morality out of the election. Almost all the pundits now are trying to convince the electorate that past associations are not important, only the ideas of the moment are important, that a person's moral choices in thier personal life is not a reflection of thier ability to make the right choices for an entire nation of people. But the examination of all the candidate's past associations is in fact highly relevant when selecting a leader on this scale. It's vital to be clear on what motivates the candidate to make a decision. The attempt to steer the discussion away from Obama's past connections is part of the campaign of deflection and deceit. Nobody should be buying the media line that it's only a distraction from the issues. Character and morality is itself an issue, and the attempt to sweep it under the rug is the distraction.
- Mike Silverman