I'm Back....With an Endorsement

So I havent been on here for quite some time. I'm terribly sorry for my absence, however college apps, summer, and work all got in the way. There is alot on my mind right now, but nothing sums it up more than my editorial that will be published in the Knightly News on thursday. The published edition will be a little bit different, but here is the first draft:

Editor’s Endorsement: Barack Obama for President

Close your eyes and take a trip eight years back in time. Welcome to election night 2000. Americans tuned in across the nation to find out who would lead them for the next four years. The campaign took on a new level of competition in the last few weeks as George W. Bush closed the gap on Vice-President Al Gore who should have won easily after the economic boom of the Clinton years. Of course it was not meant to be, and after a few “hanging chads” were looked at and the U.S. Supreme Court weighed in, the election was over. Ultimately the man with the most votes did not win, and five men in robes in Washington decided that George W. Bush would carry our nation into the future.
Now open your eyes and welcome to campaign 2008. The America of today would hardly be recognizable compared to the America of 2000. Our economy is crumbling before our eyes; our nation’s military is stretched to a dangerously thin level in two wars overseas; millions of Americans live without healthcare; returning veterans are treated like second-class citizens. The list goes on and on.
This is one of the most, if not the most important election in American history. In this crucial time for our country, we need a leader who has the vision to carry America forward. We cannot continue to drive farther along the eight-year train-wreck that was the presidency of George W. Bush. Barack Obama is here to take America off that track and give our country hope for a better tomorrow.
Barack Obama will bring his bi-partisan spirit to Washington to end the political gridlock that has put a stranglehold on our nation’s progress. He offers solutions to the real problems that Americans face that George W. Bush and his Republican cronies have ignored for two terms. Barack Obama will end the elitist Bush tax cuts that favor only the wealthiest five percent of Americans. He will cut taxes for 95% of the American middle class, the ones who need it the most.
Obama will work to make healthcare affordable for every American, and those who still cannot afford it will receive a government plan. It is simply appalling that the richest nation in the world does not provide essential care to its citizens. Healthcare should be in the public interest, not the interests of the insurance and drug companies. Barack Obama understands that.
In the area of foreign policy, Barack Obama will put to death the ludicrous idea created by the Karl Rove smear machine that claims that Democrats cannot keep America safe. Obama understands that the key to a sound, diplomatic policy is sitting down and talking tough with our adversaries, not dropping bombs. In Barack Obama’s administration, force will be the absolute last means of dealing with our foes. Obama will revamp America’s image to the rest of the world, and we will once again be able to work hand in hand with our allies to bring terrorists to justice wherever they may be operating.
Obama will end the War in Iraq and bring our troops home with dignity, giving them the care that they deserve when they get home.
John McCain, Barack Obama’s Republican opposition is an honorable man and has lived an honorable life dedicated to public service. No one questions this. But in this crucial election, a John McCain victory would be detrimental to America’s future and essentially mean a third Bush term. John McCain’s economic plan will benefit the richest of the rich and continue to destroy the middle class. While John McCain touts his foreign policy experience, it is clear that the decisions he would make as president will make us no safer and only give us more wars. John McCain’s sites are set on Iran, and his idea of making America safe is declaring a Holy War on the nation of Islam. Though John McCain served in the armed forces, he will do nothing for our nation’s veterans, as he has consistently voted to slash benefits from the Veterans Administration and will continue to so as president. Though he was tortured for seven years in a prison camp in Vietnam, John McCain seems to have no problem with America torturing its enemy combatants.
The choice in this election could never be clearer. This is a turning point election. We can continue on the road we have been on for these disastrous eight years, or we can make a turn toward a better tomorrow. It is Barack Obama who will make this turn, and this is why I have endorsed him for President of the United States.