Before the elections the candidates go out and say, promise, swear whatever increases their poll counts, making sure to hit the hot topic for the day. Every move is a choreographed photo op. Every utterance a pithy quotable. Every look judged. We elect these people because they happened to say our favorite buzz word, or they look good, or whatever reason we come up with to convince oursleves that are votes count and that the candidate we elect will change things for the better. Our candidate is always the truthful one, the knight in shining armor who will fix the mess left by the previous administration. The candidates play the game of telling us what we want to hear and we accept it because the reality - that our Government doesn't belong to us - hurts too much.

Bush ran on a platform of no unnecessary wars, of not spreading our forces thin. Bush was trying to show that his Administration wouldn't have the military spread of Clinton's. Now look at us - Afghanistan, Iraq, and a few other places - we're everywhere, spreading the good words of Democracy (and Jesus). And it's come out repeatedly that Bush had a willie - a private agenda - for taking over Iraq. Nothing would prevent him from doing that, certainly not concepts like Truth and American Credibility.

Yet if Kerry wins things will likely not change because (1) we don't know Kerry's private agenda (and I'm not even referring to Skull and Bones); (2) he can keep things at least status quo claiming popular support; and (3) the infrastructure to keep things the way they are is in place. He's not going to simply pull our troops out of Iraq. There's too much exploitative goodness for business growth. And all the military bases we're building, we just can't shut them down. We're in Iraq whether we like it or not, and change ain't gonna happen any time soon.

To counter personal agendas we should increase the role of the voting American Public. We should be able to decide if our tax money should go to various Government sectors and what proportion. I covered this idea in a previous blog. The Budget should be explicit - no black holes - and written for the American Public to digest. Policy loopholes, like attaching (pork-laden) riders to laws, should be removed. Accountability should be the new buzzword.

Would you chose to pay the continued occupation of Iraq and if so how much. If we've spent roughly 100 billion so far and we have a (high ball) population of 300 million Americans that's only about $333 per person. Of course, those 300 million people is a gross overestimate and includes many folks who don't or can't pay taxes but would you be willing to spend a paltry $333 to keep hold of Iraq? In return you get...a nice feeling of helping a previously oppressed people, who may or may not want us there.

Don't be surprised if Kerry gets elected, turns around and asks for another large sum of money to continue operations in Iraq. Maybe if Kerry has any cajones, instead of Halliburton feeding the troops and overcharging for the privilege, he'll request a new contract be put out for open bids. Yeah, right.

Modern Luddite
No DSL. No pagers or beepers. No PDAs. No cable or satellite TV. No wristwatch. One cell phone. DVD via Playstation2. Dial-up modem.

I still feel too plugged in. My goal is to not be at the mercy of spammers, telemarketers, work, and pressures in general. Life should be more than electronic repression.

How long before we drive cars that have mouth inserts to monitor your alcohol level? Or cell phones/PDAs that monitor your vitals and thoughts (and quietly report them to a "secure" Government database)? How long before what we say and think can be measureable and punishable by law?

Don't misunderstand me. I like technology but like everything else in Life it has to be taken with moderation. I worry about ways that our Government plans to use technology for "our own good and safety". Can't happen? Hey, we couldn't fly not so long ago and "The Matrix" is only a movie...