This is a repost of something I wrote at SendKenToCollege.com

I am going to sidetrack here for  a minute and state a few opinions and observations on politics since 48 hours from now we should have a pretty good idea of the congressional makeup and the president that we will be living under for the next few years.

My major annoyance is the campaign ads that tout candiate x will raise taxes and candidate y will take away tax cuts for small businesses …uh, no, they won’t.  Candidate x and candidate y aren’t going to be making any laws.  That is not the president’s job.  Constitutionally Congress makes the laws, the executive branch enforces laws.  The candidates aren’t going to do anything without 535 other people chiming in on it.

If you think a candidate may be leaning a certain way, now is the time to start barking at your congressional delegation and making enough noise that they figure it will not be a smart thing to vote for whatever atrocity has your undies bunched.  If the bill never gets to the president, it can’t be signed and doesn’t become law.

It is my belief that there are a lot of people that would do well to stop by their local high school and chat with a civics teacher, or take some type of intro to government class at their local community college, or maybe just read something other than a menu at McDonalds and a TV Guide instead of working up a little righteous indignation every 4 years or so.  They also need to keep in mind that there are congressional elections every 2 years, not just every 4, so if your congress people are not behaving in a way that you agree with, exercise that indignation at the ballot box.  Midterm elections generally have a far smaller turnout than presidential elections.  Why?  Are they less important elections?  Not in my not so humble opinion. 

If you want to get righteously indignant, try going to CNN.com or USAToday.com and reading the ignorant tripe that follows many of the news stories.  These people making the stupid comments are your fellow Americans.  If ignorance is bliss, some of these commentors have to be the most blissful crowd that I have ever seen.

Now, for a few thoughts on the Republican ticket.  Sarah Palin, not a smart choice.  John McCain did not prove to be very smart in his choice of a candidate.  You do not pick a VP candidate with even the slightest hint of scandal hanging over them, especially when you have to fight the negative opinions of the current administration that about 70% of American holds.  Whether Governor Palin did anything scandalous in Troopergate, I don’t know.  The fact that Troppergate exists casts a negative shadows on the entire campaign.

The thought has crossed my mind that the GOP may realize just how damaging president Bush’s time has been so instead of fielding a viable choice to run, they simply put up a puppet, knowing full well he/she would never be elected.  This way they can sit on the side for the next 4 years and hope that Americans forget the last 8 years and then make a real run in 2012.  The party pundits have probably figured out they not only don’t stand a real chance of the white house but not much of a chance to get a decent foothold in Congress either, where they are already a minority.

I spent the better part of my young adult life voting straight republican tickets starting with Reagan in 1984 right up through 2000 when I voted for Bush.   I view Bush as brainless and I see Cheney as the real danger here.  I suspect Cheney’s hand in a lot of the underhanded stuff that has taken place. Bush/Cheney have pretty much assured that I will be voting Democratic for the next couple of elections barring any major screw ups by the Dems.  It is only Dems because we do not offer any viable 3rd party candidates.

I have already voted and Barrack Obama was my choice.