Pre-election rant

Family values. Moral majority. Passionate conservatism. Thanks to Karl Rove, the Right-wing formulated a plan to seize power over the masses in this country. By hijacking morality, Republicans made the American people believe that it would be un-American to vote Democrat. They said that Conservatives represented family values. They said Liberals' lack of respect for traditional family values would destroy America. Let's see how well the Righties walk the walk.

Rush Limbaugh, the voice of the right wing, called Michael J. Fox a faker and physically mocked him on camera when describing Fox's "exaggerated" Parkinson's tremors in a political ad. This was an attempt by Rush to discredit "those evil Liberals" who have exploited poor Mr. Fox for their own political gains. The truth: Limbaugh was fired from ESPN for racist and ridiculous remarks he made about quarterback Donovan McNabb being overrated because he is black. I guess leading his team to four straight NFC championship games was just dumb luck. Rush also was caught in possession of drugs that he had no prescription for and later admitted he was addicted to. And he is a man we should be taking morality lessons from? Sadly, millions of brainwashed Americans believe the garbage the Limbaugh spits out every day on the radio. He is a divider of America and has done more than most politicians to tear at the "United We Stand" credo of this great nation.

But the immoral majority does not limit itself to radio personalities. The leader of the American Association of Evangelicals who has long condemned gay relationships has been outed for having a long term gay relationship with a meth-dealing male prostitute. He has taken part in weekly conference calls with President Bush since Dubya took office. This is the President's spititual compass. Pat Robertson, an ordained minister and leader of the Christian Coalition has publicly called for the assasination of world leaders and has even expressed that Hurrican Katrina was God's way of punishing sinners in Louisiana. WWJD? Jesus preached the virtues of peace and love, Pat. Do you ever read that Bible or do you just thump it?

There used to be a time when poor folks and middle class families refused to vote for Republicans. To them, Republicans represented the greedy, industrialized "Fat Cat" America that didn't care about the little guy. After the right-wing's propaganda campaign against Democrats on the battle grounds of morality, many of these left of center voters began to believe that Conservatives cared more about their problems and really did share their values. Do you think Halliburton (a contracting firm that has made billions of dollars "rebuilding" Iraq by receiving no-bid contracts from the Administration- the same Administration that includes Vice-President Dick Cheney who was a board member for Halliburton before he was sworn into office) cares about the little guy? Do you think Cheney and his friends care about the poor folks who couldn't afford college who are now finding themselves in Iraq wearing bulls-eyes on their backs?

Do you think Republican congressmen like Tom Delay, Mark Foley, and Duke Cunningham who have all been forced to resign due to ethics violations are in any position to claim that they know morality? I received a mailer the other day from our state representative Ed Robb claiming that he was "pro-life" while his opponent Jim Ritter is "pro-abortion." Does he really think Ritter is "pro-abortion" (meaning he wishes everyone would have abortions) or does he know that Ritter supports a woman's constitutional right to choose what medical procedures she feels that she needs, yet Robb uses divisive, hateful, and incorrect speech to sway voters anyway? That doesn't sound like a morally right thing to do. Neither does bombing abortion clinics, supporting the death penalty, and sending thousands of troops to die in a war that never should have taken place- especially for any politician who calls himself "pro-life." And how much can they value life if they cut seniors' Medicare benefits leaving elderly Americans to choose which life-saving prescriptions that they will have to do without due to lack of coverage?

The Right is wrong. At every turn they have abused the power they seized in 2000. They have divided this country by constantly accusing Democarats who disagree with their views of being anti-American. They say that Democrats don't share their moral values. Personally, I am glad I don't share their values. Hopefully, the majority of Americans will vote this Tuesday for the party that truly does seek to help the poor, infirmed, and the elderly. The party that has always stood for real American values is the Democratic party. The party that has never accused dissenters of being anti-American is the Democratic party. The party that values the American family over making billions in profits for big business is the Democratic party. The party that will give us the best chance of pulling this country back together, rather that dividing us further is the Democratic party.

Do yourself, your family, your country, and the world a favor- vote Democrat on Tuesday, November 7.