When Choices are Bad and Terrible

Since I was off the road for a week, I had a chance to listen to the presidential candidates. We're told by the press that we have two candidates who are honest and trustworthy, and both are doing their best to lay claim to the "Uniter" title.

My analysis of the two resulted in the conclusion that the choices are between bad and terrible.

First the bad. John McCain seems to be strong on defense issues, which is the realm where he is ultimately more serious and competent than Obama. McCain also steadfastly promises to appoint federal judges who will strictly interpret the constitution and won't follow the arrogance of liberal justices who make their own laws based on their personal views in opposition to the constitution.

McCain can legitimately make the case that he's got the best record between the two candidates in reaching across the aisle to work with compromise legislation with Democrat cooperation. Even though most of those bills are liberal in nature and infuriated conservatives.

But McCain is woefully ignorant on other issues. He's on the wrong side of the illegal immigration issue. He has swallowed the Global Warming religion hook, line, and sinker. He hasn't got a clue about energy policy. And he seems woefully ignorant on many domestic issues, primarily healthcare and environment.

But in case you're thinking McCain's bad side justifies voting for the other guy, sorry, he's much worse.

Barack Obama is a socialist liberal. He promises a new brand of politics, but if you actually listen to him speak, it's almost comical to hear him speak of a transcendent politics where everyone works together, then in the next sentence engage in the same old Bush-bashing everyone else in his party engages in whenever they have a chance.

Obama doesn't really believe we have a problem with terrorism, and if he just reasons with the leaders of places like Iran and Syria and North Korea, somehow they'll find out what a great guy he is and play nice. Obama promises he'll find bin Laden and the war on terror will be over. He'll withdraw troops from Iraq, then dismantle the military.

Then Obama will take the money he saved by dismantling the military and pour it into socialist transfer payments. He promises to be an American Robin Hood, taking from the rich and the oil companies and giving to the poor.

Somehow under Obama we suddenly won't need oil anymore, because we will be running our cars on some undefined "alternative" fuels that are cheap and environmentally friendly. He actually admitted that he's pleased the gas prices have skyrocketed, but would have preferred it happened a bit more gradually.

He's a classic academic liberal, with a mostly Marxist agenda. It is a far more accurate prediction that says Obama represents the second Jimmy Carter term than his own prediction that McCain represents the third George W Bush term.

Neither candidate is the right man for the job. All that can be said at this point is that McCain will be bad for the country, but Obama will be disastrous. The pain we're all feeling now will only get worse over the next few years, but the degree is greater with Obama.