Race cards and bodyguards

It seems everyone is decrying and denying the use of the “race card” in this year’s presidential election. As an African-American mom blessed with the task of raising a generation of kids that innately see “people” instead of color, I struggle to balance the very real and ugly truths of prejudice with hopes for a better world for them.

This election is about so much more than a popularity contest. It is in part about the answer we give our children when they ask why a Harvard-educated, top of his class attorney, state and U.S. senator is seen as “unqualified” when his opponent graduated second from the bottom of his class. It is about why a two-year governor of a state with a small population is seen as qualified and ready to assume the mantle of commander in chief should the need arise, but the opponent is not.

In fact, with either of their credentials and personal history, Barack Obama could not run for dog catcher as my grandmother would say.

Unfortunately, this election that has ignited the political passions of our youth also illuminates a darker side of the world in which they live. Even today, when my children are told that their friends’ parents would not let them date a black person, I still hope this election will be a referendum on policy, vision and bipartisanship, not prejudice, fear and exclusion. There is so much at stake and, and for the sake of the next generation, I have to hope.

Angela C. Townsend
Raleigh

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I encourage voters to read the book “America Alone” by Mark Steyn — a great piece on demographics and our changing world. Between the events of 9/11 and the insight I gained from this book, I have switched my political stance from staunch Democrat to firm Republican. And it is my hope that John McCain will be our next president.

My former progressive, liberal and idealistic views were admirable and might someday be the way of the future for mankind, but if we try to adopt and implement such impractical views now, we will find that our country will weaken and America will become a has-been. We are living in a bubble here in America and such idealistic views must be tempered by the harsh reality of the greater world. America must maintain its position of strength in the world setting and individual Americans must embrace personal responsibility to keep all aspects of our society strong. We must avoid the temptation to lean on or expect the government to universally take care of us.

If you’re like me, you may already be sensing that America has been slowly losing ground. Let’s try to turn that around.

Steve Erpenbeck
Clayton

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This is just a bipartisan request to  readers. There are only 45 days left until we jointly elect new leaders of our country. I’m not telling anyone how to vote or whom to support; but, please consider the following before Nov. 4:

Exercise your right. Vote for sure. Register now if you have not done yet.
Do your homework. The nation’s financial system has virtually clogged. Who is responsible for this? Many lost jobs. Many lost their homes. And many lost their savings. Some executives received millions of dollars as bonuses even their companies failed; and the bottom 95 percent are bailing them out.

The cost of driving has almost doubled. Oil company profit have skyrocketed.
Over 4,100 Americans have lost their lives in Iraq, for what? Thousands are still suffering with injuries and are not having proper care they deserve. Their loved ones are also suffering with them. Defense contractors made fortune in this unfair war. Taxpayers paid billions.

Please use your judgment when you enter the voting booth. Do you feel more comfortable today than eight years ago when we elected the current leaders?

Arup Mallik
Fuquay-Varina

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John McCain has a long and strong military history of which he is justifiably proud. He knows it has never been military strategy to rely on a weak link as back-up. In fact, a good commander promotes officers whose proven abilities and insights enhance and inspire understanding, consistency and success. A good commander also ensures that there are excellent contingency plans should anything unforeseen occur. Recognizing the importance of staff is acknowledging that not one person could nor should make all decisions.

By choosing Gov. Sarah Palin as his second in command in order to win an election by pandering to the fundamentalist base, McCain is going against his military training and his advertised and oft-touted integrity. Evident is self-promotion. Not evident is country first.

Claire Jentsch

Durham

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Over the last few days, both presidential campaigns have run ads attempting to show that the other side’s “advisers” are somehow responsible for the financial crisis. Both campaigns have gone over the line!

When anything bad happens in America it seems someone has to be blamed and it seems always to be said that it is due to greed, stupidity, incompetence, hate or corruption. And in a political race the opposing parties try to use the event to their advantage even if they have to lie about it.  

The recent negative ads are despicable. They are overreaching and so loosely based on the truth as to be blatantly misleading. This has got to stop!  

Both candidates claim they don’t want to run a negative campaign, yet both are doing it. Who is in charge of these campaigns anyway? I am voting for McCain because he is our best bet to keep us safe and cut runaway spending, but I am fed up with both parties and the huge ad campaigns that muddy the water and mislead voters.

Walt Brittle
Chapel Hill

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Carla Fiorina, a strong McCain supporter and former CEO of Hewlett-Packard was asked whether Sarah Palin could run HP. Her answer was no.

One might wonder how McCain’s VP running mate, should she become president, could handle the affairs of our country.

Looking back, of the 42 individuals who have served as president, nine were first vice presidents who arrived in the Oval Office upon the death or resignation of the president. Do we want to run a risk of over 20 percent that Palin would replace McCain during his term of office when he would be between 72 and 76 years of age.

Finally, it is impossible to understand why John McCain, with claims of patriotism and love of country, would pick a VP with no international or fiscal experience to possibly take over the leadership of our country. The answer is: Simply to get elected.  

John Morse
Raleigh

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I am confused and distressed by John McCain’s reaction to recent economic and political events. The war hero I admired has become a confused, incoherent red-faced screamer. The devout deregulator claims now to be a reformed re-regulator. He demands that government, which was the problem, now fix the problem, and proposes yet another new government agency to do it. So much for downsizing government.

His repeated strong fundamentals of the economy are now really the skilled American labor force, something he never, in truth, defined as such until it became a false and mindless slogan. Moreover, 600,000 “fundamentals” are out of work so far this year alone. The only strong thing about it is the foul smell of the crass insult if he expects me to believe him.

Most troubling is his railing against the corrupt and greedy CEOs who cheated those fundamental economic workers. These are the guys he still wants to give permanent tax breaks to.

McCain has personally deregulated an ancient admonition that says, “Thou shalt not bear false witness.” This is not the standard of leadership I learned when I volunteered for naval service aboard his father’s flagship years ago. He has lost his moral compass and it makes me very, very sad.

Irwin Rovner
Raleigh

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For decades we have heard about deficits, or yearly federal debt. Kay Hagan’s latest ads mention $9 trillion, referring to the national debt. The United States has had some debt for most of its existence, but the total debt never exceeded $1 trillion until 1982. Presidents Reagan, Bush and Bush added to that debt each year. Clinton actually left a surplus.

Each American owes over $31,000 of the national debt. A family of five owes over $150,000. Who is going to pay this debt, your great grandchildren? We need don’t need more of the same in Washington.

Hank Macknee
Durham

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Now that we are getting into the real presidential campaign it is time to say what seems to be considered “politically incorrect”: John McCain is too old to be president. I think I can speak with some authority on this since he is only a few months younger than me.

There is no way that I have the stamina and strength to be president and I have had a much easier life than him but I can remember how many houses I own.

The common reply to this is that Ronald Reagan was this old, but that actually proves my point It is now common knowledge that Reagan was showing signs of early Alzheimer’s during his second term.

Dan DiPerna
Raleigh

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Identifying a successor is a critical task for a CEO. In our political system, presidents name their successors before they are even elected, by selecting a running mate.   

It is interesting to look at how John McCain went about this process, which is even more important for him (Actuarial tables show that a 72 year old has about a one in five chance of dying in the next four years).

 An extremely important attribute for the president of the United States is experience in foreign policy. However, McCain selected someone with absolutely no national or international experience but with views that the religious right is comfortable with (e.g.  evolution is only a theory, humans have nothing to do with global warming, etc.).  

By way of contrast, Barack Obama selected someone with whom he had sparred in the primaries, but who has unparalled expertise in foreign policy. The selection of the vice presidential candidate is the only window we have into the kind of selection decisions that the presidential candidate will make.  It certainly appears that McCain will continue President Bush’s policy of appointing ideologues to important posts rather than trying to find the most competent people.

Philip Manhardt
Sanford

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Remember when Jesse Helms warned Bill Clinton to “bring a bodyguard” if he came to North Carolina? Remember how outraged the liberal media and the left was?

While nobody on the left or in the media appreciated Helms’ warning against Clinton, they can’t help but fall all over themselves with giddy appreciation of the way one of their own “jokes” about Republican VP candidate Sarah Palin.

Recently, the alleged comedienne Sandra Bernhard had some stern warnings herself for Palin, and The Washington Post raved over it, saying, “After Bernhard declares in the D.C. Jewish Community Center that if Palin were to step onto her Manhattan turf, ‘I’ll tear her apart like a Wise natural kosher chicken,’ the explosive laugh derives as much from the sneering vehemence of her delivery as the idea of the evangelical Christian candidate as kosher poultry.”  

Bernhard also told Palin not to come into Manhattan “lest she get gang-raped by some of Sandra’s big black brothers”.

Mightn’t we call this the “audacity of hypocrisy”?

Chris Kling
Vanceboro

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Sen. John McCain of the Straight Talk Express would have us believe that he tells the truth when in fact he distorts it (“Fiction becomes fact on the road to White House,” news story, Sept. 15).

One of the most egregious distortions is McCain’s claim that Barack Obama supported a bill in the Illinois Senate to teach comprehensive sex education to kindergartners. Obama voted for a bill that revised the state’s standards on sex education from kindergarten through 12th grade. The bill was written to protect young children from sexual predators. Obama believes in sex education that is age-appropriate.  

McCain plays loose with the facts about Gov. Sarah Palin as well. He says that Palin would help him put an end to pork barrel projects known as earmarks. Yet in February, Palin requested $198 million in earmarks.

In talking about Palin’s foreign policy experience, McCain cited a trip to Iraq and a visit to Ireland. The visit to Ireland was a refueling stop and the visit to Iraq was to the Kuwait-Iraq border crossing.  

For eight years we’ve had a president who distorted and withheld facts to disastrous effects. Do we need yet another?

Louise Lockwood-Zorowski

Cary

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Regarding your Sept. 14 article “In office, Palin hired friends, crushed critics”:
It is both fascinating and disheartening to observe the extreme effort to sabotage the candidacy of Sarah Palin and, therefore, John McCain. Now that it appears that middle America is considering electing McCain over their anointed one, the elitists cannot contain their disdain for those things that make McCain/Palin appealing.

 Unapologetic patriotism, reverence for our military, religious faith and distrust of government as a solution to the average person’s problems make their skin crawl. How can we average Americans not understand that we would be better off if we just quit making our own dumb decisions about how to strengthen our families and let the elitists take the reins for us?

As the brother of a man who fought for America and for democracy in Iraq and is now doing the same in Afghanistan and as a faithful Catholic husband and father, I can relate to McCain/Palin.

And so when the Washington elites and the media glare down their noses at Palin and McCain, middle America begins to feel the weight of that same disdainful glare and we want out from under.

William Lalor
Durham