More Politics and Pirates (ARGHH!)

In Peter Pan, Captain Hook accuses Peter of "bad form." For Hook, bad form is anything that shows good character. Hook even attempts to train Smee in what constitutes "good" form; Smee tends to get a little confused with a good pirate requiring he be a bad person. But then, look who his boss is...

The election is just around the calendrical corner, and the fervor is intensifying! I am so excited because if McCain wins, half the country will move to another continent leaving a whole lotta country for me to spread out in. On the other hand, if Obama wins, we may make history more than once in the next few years.

There's no doubt about it. This year's election is forcing people to think and act. One word of caution, though, before you put on your PF Flyers and get poised for the starter's pistol: DO NOT VOTE YOUR CONSCIENCE!

Yes, that's a strange thing for a right-wing conservative to say. Here's the thing, though...there are WAYYYYY too many conflicting opinions on what constitutes good and bad form these days, so much so that this is no longer a good reason to pick one candidate over another. I beg of you, think BIG PICTURE.

Think of these United States of America as a corporation. Imagine the ticker symbol on the NYSE is TUSOA, that sounds cool. And you want the stock to remain healthy, yes? Then you gotta run the country/company with a little more intelligence and a little less...soul. Not no soul, just less soul.

I mean, really, who cares if Palin has an illegitimate grandchild? Who cares if Obama is a macdaddy? I certainly don't! It's time for us to re-evaluate what's important to us.

What Fluff Cares About
I care that my children stay healthy in a world full of evolving diseases. I care that my grandchildren have easy access to excellent teachers and continuing education. I care about the skyrocketing price of gasoline.

I want to know that the people running this country are capable of making intelligent decisions intended to keep this country prosperous. I want my country run like a successful business with good health for its stockholders, yes, but more important, good health for its employees so they can do their jobs with success and satisfaction.

I want scientists to have bandwidth to discover more efficient, cost-effective ways to save our environment and heal the sick. I want minority businesses to be able to compete with larger corporations for the opportunity to provide American citizens with services they are uniquely qualified to provide at rates these citizens can afford.

I want our teachers to be paid what they are worth so they will remain inspired to teach.

I have, amongst my children, capable representation of the industries science, education, the arts and the environment. These are the people who will weave the moral fabric of this country. These are the people who will ensure that women in other countries are able to contribute to their own societies with intelligence and wit, with compassion and courage, without fear for their lives. These are the people who will ensure that next year, 330 thousand more children don't die of AIDS. These are the people who will find ways to increase our natural resources and reduce our carbon footprint, and who will inspire the next generation of scientists, teachers and artists to do the same.

This is not the job of the president of TUSOA. His, (or her) job is to ensure that this company is healthy enough economically and internationally so the employees of this company can do their jobs with satisfaction, efficiency and efficacy.

(That being said, I plan to still give my vote to the irish - what the bloody hell do I know?)