Glenn Beck is wrong about many Independents

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I agree with Glenn Beck on most issues and appreciate his sincerity. But he's wrong to say that independents are socially liberal and have left the Republicans because they are too conservative. That's just plain wrong. I'm a socially conservative independent who drifted away from the Republican Party because they aren't conservative enough, and there are many of us who have done so.

I think his guest, who wrote the book "independent nation," must be socially liberal and saw what he wanted to see in the independent movement. Either that, or he's claiming they are liberal because that's the what he wants us to think.

It is wrong for Glenn and his guest to assume that many of the Tea Party participants are socially liberal. There were no polls taken on those issues at the Tea Parties, which were billed as non-partisan so as not to make the social controversies an issue. So it's impossible for Glen to assume that most of the participants were socially liberal.

Many of the Participants that I know are socially conservative. And many have left the Republican party because it isn't conservative enough. That's what being independent is all about. We're independent. Being "independent" isn't a party with a platform. You CAN'T label us one way or the other.

Being independent means that when we do vote, we vote for the person we think will represent us the best, no matter what party they are in. So it turned my stomach to hear Beck and his guest say that independents like Barak Obama. Not any of the independents I know. We don't like him on any aspect of the issues. We liked Sarah Palin. Some of us left the Republican Party because of the way they treated her. There are other Republican governors that we like as well, and we might still yet vote for them in the next elections. But the party and its leadership -phooey. We 're done with them.

If Glenn wants to claim the independents as a group that are in agreement with him on social issues, (as he refered to independents as "we"), then maybe those of us that are socially conservative will just have to find a different name for ourselves. Glenn - Don't worry about us co-opting what you feel is your movement. But we aren't going to become liberal simply because it is claimed that this is what independents are. We want someone to represent us that is truly conservative.
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The Sarah Palin Ad - Thank You from America

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The Sarah Palin Ad

Without a doubt, people that have no respect for others will mock this ad. The people in the ad were honestly expressing the appreciation they feel for Governor Palin, but a certain number in America don't like honest people expressing themselves.

The nasty comments below the video seem to be the types of comments given by teenagers who can't stand their parents and grandparents; the kinds of kids that have never been taught to respect people that don't agree with them.

It also reflected the gap between older, rural adults and younger, urban brats...er, people.

But it doesn't matter. These were real people expressing real feelings. To heck with what anyone else thinks.

I know we're supposed to care because pundits say we can't win if we don't win young urban people. But ever since the election we've been getting nothing but pressure from the left to change. We aren't accepted for who we are and what we think. We're supposed to jump on the bandwagon and be part of the new, "united America."

I was listening to some of the pundits saying conservatives need to come to the center and forget all the Christian morality if we're ever to win back the White House. It made me sick to hear that. I thought...but even if that effort were to be successful, who would be winning the White House? Not us. Do you understand what I'm saying? Unless the Repubilcan candidate understands our values and represents our issues, we aren't winning even if the Republican wins.

Moving to the center doesn't do us any good. Being who they want us to be means nothing if in the process we lose who we are and all that we stand for.

Yes, the video was cheesy. but maybe that was because that's who we are. Simple and cheesy. so what. I love those people in the video for it. Even the little lady at the end. Because look at them - who do they remind you of? They are my grandparents, neighbors, church family, and friends. I'm proud of them.

I might be naive, but sooner or later young people grow up and realize Mom and Dad were right.

Maybe by 2012 or 2016 a certain number of Obama fans will have grown up.
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Despite Everything, Almost Half of America Voted McCain

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Some are already blaming Sarah Palin, Fox News, President Bush, and even Joe the Plumber.

Come on.

Despite Bush’s unpopularity, fatigue with Iraq, Obama's charisma, McCain's age, the fact that this was a Democratic year, the $600 million that Obama received, the blanketing of Obama ads, the media bias for Obama, and the economy," John McCain got 46% of the popular vote.

Stop and think - that means despite all those things against him, almost half of America still preferred McCain over Obama.

So if McCain had run a good campaign and brought home the fact that he had been fighting for years to stop Fannie and Freddie from doing what they were doing, and Obama hadn't had all those donations from overseas to use to blanket the media with campaign promises - as well as Acorn and other organizations committing voter fraud - what would have been the result?

I think that all things considered, Senator McCain did very well. This election in no way means that Conservative views were rejected.

• Many of the new voters - people who wouldn't have voted otherwise - voted Obama, including my 21-year-old son-in-law, had no real knowledge or care what the issues were. They simply thought Obama was cool, or that Obama is going to work miracles in their lives.
• Others say they voted for Obama because McCain gave them no reason to vote for him. But in saying that, did they say they embrace Obama's issues? No.
• And others say they voted for Obama because McCain went negative. Is that saying they agreed with Obama on the issues? No.

Many of the newly registered voters had no idea what they real issues were and weren't concerned about them. It's a very sad day in America when an election as important as this one has been decided by people bought by charisma.

Further - both Obama and McCain had moved right in their campaigning. Obama moved to center and McCain moved farther right. That shows that America is more to the right than to the left, and it still is.

There are no tears of regret here. Sarah Palin still represents the conservative half of America - which still has a right to exist and is not going away.

God Bless the Palins and McCains. I pray the Lord now leads them in the direction they are to go in order to serve His - The Lord's - Holy purposes. And I pray the Lord leads us as well. Lord, please give us all the wisdom and courage to do whatever you ask of us. I ask this in Your Holy Name - the Holy Name of Jesus.
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Obama Campaign Worker Message

This message below was written by an Obama Campaign worker and was originally posted at http://www.lynettelong.com/ It is interesting to me that despite hundereds of people viewing this post in the last two days, there has been no comment from Obama workers on the content of her message.


"After a long and careful consideration of all the implications and possible consequences of my actions today, I have decided to go through with this in the hope that our country can indeed be guided into the right direction.

"First, a little personal background… I am a female grad student in my 20’s, and a registered Democrat. During the primaries, I was a campaign worker for the Clinton candidacy. I believed in her and still do, staying all the way to the bitter end. And believe me, it was bitter. The snippets you’ve heard from various media outlets only grazed the surface. There was no love between the Clinton and Obama campaigns, and these feelings extended all the way to the top. Hillary was no dope though, and knew that any endorsement of Obama must appear to be a full-fledged one. She did this out of political survival. As a part of his overall effort to extend an olive branch to the Clinton camp and her supporters, Obama took on a few Hillary staff members into his campaign. I was one such worker. Though I was still bitterly loyal to Hillary, I still held out hope that he would choose her as VP. In fact, there was a consensus among us transplants that in the end, he HAD to choose her. It was the only logical choice. I also was committed to the Democratic cause and without much of a second thought, transferred my allegiance to Senator Obama.

"I’m going to let you in on a few secrets here, and this is not because I enjoy the gossip or the attention directed my way. I’m doing this because I doubt much of you know the true weaknesses of Obama. Another reason for my doing this is that I am lost faith in this campaign, and feel that this choice has been forced on many people in this country. Put simply, you are being manipulated. That was and is our job – to manipulate you (the electorate) and the media (we already had them months ago). Our goal is to create chaos with the other side, not hope. I’ve come to the realization (as the campaign already has) that if this comes to the issues, Barack Obama doesn’t have a chance. His only chance is to foster disorganization, chaos, despair, and a sense of inevitability among the Republicans. It has worked up until now. Joe the Plumber has put the focus on the issues again, and this scares us more than anything. Being in a position to know these things, I will rate what the Obama campaign already knows are their weak links from the most important on down.

"1 – Hillary voters. Internal polling suggests that at best, we are taking 70-75% of these voters. Other estimates are as low as 60% in some areas – particularly Ohio and western PA. My biggest problem with this campaign’s strategy was the decision NOT to offer Hillary the VP slot. She was ready and able to take this on, and would have campaigned enthusiastically for it. This selection would have also brought virtually all of her supporters into the fold, and the Obama campaign knew it. Though I have no way of knowing this for certain, and I do admit that I am relying on internal gossip, Senator Obama actually went against the advice of his top advisors. They wanted him to choose her, but the only significant opposition to this within the campaign came from Barack and Michelle Obama. In short, he let personal feelings take precedence over what was the most logical thing to do. Biden, by the way, has been a disaster inside the campaign. Everyone cringes whenever he gives an interview, and he creates so many headaches as the campaign has to stay on their toes in order to disseminate information and spin whatever it was he was trying to say.

"2 – Sarah Palin. Don’t believe what the media is telling you about how horrible a choice she was. Again, our internal polling suggest that though she has had a minimal impact on pulling disaffected Hillary Democrats to McCain, she has done wonders in mobilizing the base for McCain. Another thing – we were completely taken by surprise with her pick. In my capacity in the research department, I looked into the backgrounds of Leiberman, Romney, Pawlenty and Ridge, and prepared briefs. I don’t mind bragging that we had pretty good stuff on all of them. With Leiberman, the plan was to paint him as an erratic old-timer who didn’t have a clue as to what he was doing (pretty much a clone of McCain). In Romney, we had him pegged as an evil capitalist who cut jobs. Pawlenty was going to get the “Quayle treatment”, or more precisely: a pretty face, with no valid experience. Tom Ridge was going to be used to provide a direct link from McCain to Bush. As you can see, we were quite enamored of all of them. Then the unexpected happened – Sarah Palin. We had no clue as to how to handle her, and bungled it from the start. Though through our misinformation networks, we have successfully taken some of the shine off. But let there be no doubt. She remains a major obstacle. She has singlehanded solidified “soft” Republican support, mobilized the McCain ground game, and has even had some appeal to independents and Hillary voters. This is what our internal polling confirms.

"3 – Obama’s radical connections. Standards operating procedure has been to cry “racism” whenever one of these has been brought up. We even have a detailed strategy ready to go should McCain ever bring Rev. Wright up. Though by themselves they are of minimal worth, taken together, Rev. Wright, Bill Ayers, Father Pfelger, and now, Rashid Khalili, are exactly what the campaign does not need. The more focus on them, the more this election becomes a referendum on Obama. The campaign strategy from the very beginning was to make this election a referendum on Bush. Strategists have been banging their head on how successfully McCain has distanced himself from Bush. This has worked, and right now the tide is in his favor. People are taking a new look at Barack Obama, and our experience when this happens tells us this is not good news at all. When they take a look at him, one or more of these names are bound to be brought up. McCain has wisely not harped on this in recent weeks and let voters decide for themselves. This was a trap we set for him, and he never fully took the bait. Senator Obama openly dared him to bring up Ayers. This was not due to machismo on the part of Obama, but actually due to campaign strategy. Though McCain’s reference to Ayers fell flat in the last debate, people in the Obama campaign were actually disappointed that he didn’t follow through on it more and getting into it. Our focus groups found this out: When McCain brings these connections up, voters are turned off to him. They’d rather take this into consideration themselves, and when this happens, our numbers begin to tank.

"4 – The Bradley Effect. Don’t believe these polls for a second. I just went over our numbers and found that we have next to no chance in the following states: Missouri, Indiana, North Carolina, Florida, New Hampshire and Nevada. Ohio leans heavily to McCain, but is too close to call it for him. Virginia, Pennsylvania, Colorado, New Mexico and Iowa are the true “toss up states”. The only two of these the campaign feels “confident” in are Iowa and New Mexico. The reason for such polling discrepancy is the Bradley Effect, and this is a subject of much discussion in the campaign. In general, we tend to take a -10 point percentage in allowing for this, and are not comfortable until the polls give us a spread well over this mark. This is why we are still campaigning in Virginia and Pennsylvania! This is why Ohio is such a desperate hope for us! What truly bothers this campaign is the fact that some pollsters get up to an 80% “refuse to respond” result. You can’t possibly include these into the polls. The truth is, people are afraid to let people know who they are voting for. The vast majority of these respondents are McCain supporters. Obama is the “hip” choice, and we all know it.

"As part of my research duties, I scour right wing blogs and websites to get somewhat of a “feel” as to what is being talked about on the other side. Much of it is nonsense, but there are some exceptions which give the campaign jitters. A spirited campaign has been made to infiltrate many pro-Hillary sites and discredit them. A more disorganized, but genuine effort has also been made to sow doubts among the unapologetically right wing sites such as redstate.com. Don’t you guys get it? This has been the Obama campaign’s sole strategy from the very beginning! The only way he wins is over a dispirited, disorganized, and demobilized opposition. This is how it has been for all of his campaigns. What surprises me is that everyone has fallen for it. You may point to the polls as proof of the inevitability of all of this. If so, you have fallen for the oldest trick in the book. How did we skew these polls, you might ask? It all starts with the media “buzz” which has been generated over the campaign. Many stories are generated on the powerful Obama ground game, and how many new voters were registered. None of this happens by coincidence. It is all part of the poll-skewing process. This makes pollsters change their mixes to reflect these new voters and tilt the mix more towards Democratic voters. What is not mentioned or reported on is not the “under-reported cell phone users or young voters” we hear so much about. What is underreported is you.

"changed my somewhat positive opinion of this campaign during the unfair and sexist campaign against Sarah Palin. I will never agree with her on the issues and will probably never vote for her, but I am embarrassed of what has happened. I can’t ignore our own hand in all of this. What I do know is that I will not be voting for Obama this time around. Treat that as you will. "

http://www.lynettelong.com/
http://www.redstate.com/diaries/anon...-know-in-this/

Response to Mr. Tonello regarding Joe the Plummer

Tonello Article Posted in the Huffington Post, October 26, 2008 10:46 PM (EST)
How Our Candidates Insult American Intelligence


Mr. Tonello, you referred to middle class America as the "lowest-common denominator," and a commentor to your article said that speaking about Joe the Plummer is a "glorification of mediocrity."

This is what one of the major problems is. This campaign has revealed the way left-leaning Americans truly feel about fly-over country and the people in it,.

This campaign hasn't been a vilification of the exceptional, it has been a vilification of Iowa corn country, Alaska oil field workers, Wyoming ranchers, Idaho potato farmers, Minnesota fishermen, Montana hunters, North Dakota beet farmers, Pennsylvania coal miners, and all the nursing assistants, electricians, carpenters, waitresses, and yes, plummers, in our society. Joe the Plummer resounded with a large number of us.

Sure, Joe the PHD is important,too. And so is Josephine. But for many of us, having Sarah Palin in the race made us feel we might be truly heard for the first time in a long time, rather than just used as campaign rhetoric and props.

We aren't Norman Rockwell paintings. We're real people. We truly exist. We are half of the voting public. Raised in the Twin Cities but spending most of my adult life in rural America as well as rural Canada, yes, I have met Josephine. I have also met Jose the illegal immigrant, (he lives in rural areas as well), Joey the locavore-hunter-fisher-writer-vintner-overall-Renaissance man, Joe, the homosexual, and even Joe the millionaire-philanthropist. We aren't stupid. I can know all these people, love them, and still feel socially conservative.

It's safer to say that you have never truly met us. You've seen us in the movies, particularly when there is something Hollywood wants to make fun of. But you've never really known us - or loved us.

DyingInIndianCountry.blogspot.com

Governor Palin Dressing Up for the VP Role -

Contrary to the claim of some that Governor Palin has just been pretending to be like the rest of us - She isn't pretending - she IS Jane Six-pack.

Remember, she and her family didn't have lots of time to prepare for the Republican Convention. That's why the campaign ran out to buy the family new clothes, get it? The money wasn't spent on her alone - the campaign wanted the entire family to be primped up.

Which means she really is just like me and my family.

By the way, if you look at the number of stores and the dates, many of them on the same day in different cities, it's hardly likely that she herself was even doing the shopping. Do you think she had time to shop as she jumped from city to city? The campaign had a professional buyer choose the clothes and bring them to her.

According to reported records of the Federal Election Commission, this is shopping list for Ms. Sarah Palin and her family:

• $75,062.63 spent at Neiman Marcus on Sept. 10.
• $41,850.72 to Saks Fifth Avenue in New York on Sept. 10.
• $7,575.02 to Saks Fifth Avenue in St. Louis on Sept. 10.
• $5,102.71 to Bloomingdale’s in New York on Sept. 10.
• $789.72 to Barney’s New York on Sept. 10.
• Charges of $4,396.94 and $512.92 at Macy’s in Minneapolis on Sept. 10.
• $4,537.85 to Macy’s in Minneapolis on Sept. 22.
• $349.50 to Lord & Taylor in New York on Sept. 25.
• $4,902.08 to Atelier New York, a men’s clothing boutique, on Sept. 10.
• Two separate charges of $98 to Pacifier, a high-end baby store in Minneapolis, on Sept. 10 and Sept. 25.
• $98.50 to Steinlauf & Stoller, a sewing supply store, in New York on Sept. 25.
• $133 to the Gap in Minneapolis on Sept. 25.

McCain's team did the shopping. That's their prerogative. She looks great.

Senator McCain: Only One That Will Govern from the Center.

Lanny Davis, former White House Counsel said yesterday that he gives Senator McCain credit for the bipartisanship he has shown through the years; standing up to "the right-wing base of his own party." But, Mr. Davis said, Senator McCain has not shown that willingness in the last two years as he "sought to placate the conservative and religious right base of his party."

Mr. Davis went on to claim, "Mr. Obama seems to me to have greater political flexibility to reach out and govern from the center than Mr. McCain."

What?

Sir - you point out that Senator McCain moved right during the campaign to placate the conservative and religious right base of his party. You claim that Senator Obama is in the center. But you know just as well as the rest of us that Senator Obama has also moved to the right during the campaign in order to placate conservative Democrats as well as centrist Republicans.
The Truth - which everyone of us is well aware of - is that Senator McCain is normally in the center and Senator Obama is normally way to the left. Senator McCain is usually in the center. That’s why he chose a conservative governor for his running mate.

So the fact is, Senator McCain, as he has proved time and again in the past, is the one more likely to reach across the aisle and work with everyone. Senator Obama has a clear history of judging things right or wrong through very leftist glasses.

Todd Palin and Gun Rights

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“I know John and Sarah will work to get the government back into the people’s hands,” Todd Palin said when he visited Scheel's Sporting Goods in Morehead, Minnesota Friday. The crowd of about 200, packed into the store, cheered and waved McCain signs as well as bumper stickers with the words, "Read My Lipstick McCain-Palin ’08.”

He went on to tell us that Alaskans share a lot of common interests with Minnesotans. “hunting and fishing and, of course, our Second Amendment rights.”

"I know Sen. McCain and my wife will continue to fight for those Second Amendment rights with your support,” he said.

He reminded us that not only is Senator McCain the only candidate that fully supports gun rights, but he’s also the only one with a plan to encourage both big and small business, which is what the economy needs. The other thing that he wanted us to remember is that should Democrats control the Senate and House as well as the Executive Branch, not only will Obama’s foreign Policy be implemented without opposition, but his domestic policies as well, including his economic and health care plans.

Finally, he told us not to mind the critics that claim that Sarah, as a woman and mother, can't do the job. "She’s been told that in every job that she’s had, running for Mayor, they told her you can’t do it because you’ve got Bristol, Track and Willow. So, any female that puts herself into politics is always going to have that criticism and so, she’s faced challenges before and at the end of the day, she always proves them wrong."

He was humble, kind, and to the point. On the drive home, one of my adult daughters commented that while listening to Senator Obama speak in a stadium earlier this year, she found it very hard to pay attention. She said Obama had good inflection when he is speaking, but his content was just too smooth. As she put it, too “politician.” On the other hand, she really enjoyed listening to Mr. Palin. He wasn’t a polished speaker, but she said that’s what she liked. He was real, and you knew that what he was saying was really coming from his heart.

Why is Sarah Palin our Esther?

Every time Hollywood celebrities say vulgar things about Sarah, they are also saying it to me, a 40-something, Christian, former homeschooling, politically active, rural, not-always-perfect mom. When they mock her for being down-to-earth, pro-life, evangelical and the mom of a pregnant teenager, they are mocking my family as well. It appears that half of America bitterly hates Christians. That's kind of scary.

Sarah isn't perfect, but the jokers currently running Congress are far less perfect. It's beyond me why half of America is suddenly saying that the vice President needs to be one of the "Good Old Boys", after screaming for so long about "change. Why is it that their idea of change means putting someone politically nurtured by the corrupt Chicago establishment into the office of the President?

Not only is Sarah an average person from outside of the beltway, someone who truly represents change, but finally, here is a woman that is on the right side of the issues.

• Abortion is wrong. Even during the most difficult times of my very turbulent life, aborting my children has never been a consideration. Sarah understands this. The woman's movement has never understood women like me.
• Open up ANWR to drilling. If a few acres of American tundra can make a difference, we should be doing that rather than buying oil from overseas.
• None of us like the war. But I do believe, as Sarah does, that McCain is the only candidate that understands what to do in Iraq.
• Corrupt government employees - including corrupt Senators, State Commissioners, or even Troopers - need a swift boot out of office.
• Socialism is wrong. Although we have been low income, my husband vowed in 1992 not to take anymore welfare or entitlements. He made that vow and from that time until his death, he kept it - doing everything he could with his own two hands to feed us. We did not want our neighbors to have to take care of us. We came to understand Capitalism and agree with fiscal conservatives like Sarah. We do believe the Democratic push on the banks laid the foundation for this current crisis.
• My husband, a member of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, fed our family through hunting. He taught our children to hunt and cut up the meat on our kitchen table. There have been times when this was our only meat. We believe in hunting and gun rights for all US citizens(excepting convicted criminals).
• Yes, Creationism is something that many Americans believe in. We aren't nuts; it's part of our religion - (Remember? That thing that the first amendment allows us to have...) So when my kids come home from school, I need to re-teach them and explain that evolution is just a theory - there is no proof for it. Then I explain to them why. (Yes, as a former RN, I have an Associate in Science and can explain.) This is why many of us choose to home school. Something else we have a right to do.
• And yes, I and other parents like me are glad to have a home school mom in high office. You see, when so many from the left mock us and try to take away our right to teach our children our faith, that's a very scary thing.
• And Sarah believes in prayer. When I have listened to her pastors on the Internet, I have appreciated them. They are no different than any of the pastors I have grown to love here in the lower forty.

I am so glad that Sarah, a prayerful woman, is in the position she is in. I have said that with the amount of mocking she has received from the elite, she is like our Princess Di. But she is also like our Esther. God Bless you, Sarah. We are praying for you.

I was a Democrat 30 years ago when I was 18 and served as an alternate at a State Convention. I was a Republican ten years ago when I served on a County Republican Committee.
Fed up with them both, I have voted independently for about eight years.

When this campaign season began, I supported Duncan Hunter. When he bowed out, there was no one left that I felt I could get behind. No one was a good as Hunter, as far as I was concerned.

However, when McCain chose Palin, it made a difference for me. I realize that as VP she won't have much clout. But she'll be there, she'll have a voice, and she will be a breathe of fresh air. Obama supporters can mock her - and us - all they want. It doesn't change a thing. I want her in high office.

Cuss Whites & Palin; but Don't You Dare Say Anything About Obama

It's okay to call Governor Palin anything you want. Swear at her, mock her voice, her hair, her ideas, husband and her children. Slander her church, ridicule Alaska, call her supporters white trash. Accuse her husband of incest, tell everyone she is an unfit mother, make sexual innuendos about her and her family, paste photo-shopped porn images all over the internet.

The left has called her every name in the book, made every derogatory gesture possible, and even worn T-shirts calling her the "C" word. But don't you dare say anything in support of her or you'll get the same. And don't you ever, ever dare say anything negative about Senator Obama.

Jesse Jackson, Pastor Wright, Michelle Obama, and Louis Farrakhan have all given warning that Senator Obama might not view non-blacks in an equal and just manner. Relationships with Bill Ayers, Acorn and Tony Rezco have also warned us that Senator Obama might use corrupt methods to obtain his objectives. But don't you dare think any of it might be true, and heaven help you if you talk to anyone about it.

No one has published photos of Michelle Obama in lewd poses. No one has been reported to have worn a T-shirt calling Senator Obama the "N" word, but that hasn't stopped the left from insinuating its opposition are all nothing but "R" words. Jesse Jackson, Pastor Wright, Michelle Obama, and Louis Farrakhan have each insinuated that all white people are inherently racists and most especially those that disagree with the left. Even Democratic Rep. John Murtha said the other day; "There is no question that western Pennsylvania is a racist area." Michelle Obama is reported to have said last week, “African Press International is supposed to support Africans and African-American view. It is strange that API has chosen to support the racists against my husband."

When I first became a member of an inter-racial family almost 30 years ago, I was initially surprised by the amount of racism coming from extended family members across the kitchen table. Because whites that are the ones primarily accused of racism, I had assumed that minorities must be relatively free of bigotry and very attuned to equality and justice. I was wrong. In all my years, other than one neighbor two doors down, I had never heard bigotry from the mouths of my white family and friends. The biggest surprise for me with my new in-laws was the hate generated toward other minorities - more so than toward whites. But in either case, it was very disturbing. Not everyone at the kitchen table was filled with that hate and rage, but I am no longer naive. It's a real issue.

However, racism from the Obama camp isn't the only disturbing issue. The way the left treats Governor Palin is mind-boggling. Few on the left have stood up in her defense. The main stream media says nothing about the terrible way she is being treated. Why are these people acting so horribly? Her politics, spirituality and way of life are nothing new under the sun. A large percentage of our nation agree with her and live their life very similar to hers. So what is all of this hatred really about? Why are these people so afraid of Governor Palin?

And why are so many NOT afraid of Senator Obama? Acorn and Ayers are not non-issues. They are warnings. When Obama talks about change, he really means it. Only most of his supporters haven't clued in to what that change might actually be. Dr. Corsi, author of the "Obama Nation," was recently arrested in Kenya where he was scheduled to hold a press conference by invitation of missionaries in the area. No documented word yet on why he was arrested. (He has since been released.) We know it was said that he didn't have a work permit, but many have gone to Kenya to minister at evangelical churches and camps for short periods of time - two weeks to a month - without a work permit, including our own pastor several times.

For those who wish to pull out worn arguments that Troopergate and the Keating Affair are worse than any of Senator Obama's associations, please don't bother.

1. The Troopergate ethics inquiry concluded that Palin was 'proper and lawful' in firing a state commissioner - but failed to keep her husband from meddling in the trooper's discipline. There is nothing wrong with an administrator releasing those that don't work well with the administration, or worse still, those who might be a danger to the public.
2. McCain was also cleared of impropriety for the Keating Affair.
3. Four of the Keating five were Democrats. But in fact, there was really only a "Keating Three," because both McCain and John Glenn were actually held blameless. Later, Robert Bennett, Chief Counsel to the Democrats during the investigation, repeatedly said that McCain should not have been included in the investigation. He said that here was no evidence of any wrongdoing, and the Democratic controlled Senate simply kept McCain involved so it would be “bipartisan” scandal.

4. McCain's involvement with Keating has been public knowledge for years. No one is allowed to question or examine Senator Obama's history. This is the difference.

I agree with Tucker Bounds, spokesman for Senator McCain, who said, “Americans need to ask themselves if they’ve ever befriended an unrepentant terrorist, or had a convicted felon help them buy their house — because those aren’t smears, those are true facts about Barack Obama.”

Will Obama Keep His Promises?

I've been around too many salesmen. I don't trust Senator Obama's "coolness." Senator Obama's "explanations" aren't convincing me - just as they aren't convincing half the nation. Many of us like real people. Senator McCain, although I don't always agree with him, is real. Governor Palin is real. I and my house agree with Palin on the issues.

Joe the Plumber represents many of us small business owners - many of whom don’t like Obama's Robbing Hood economic plan. He can't cut taxes to 95% of the population and yet still fund all the different programs he claims he'll fund. He's making empty campaign promises. I am afraid of what he might really do once he was in power, especially with the government now so involved with the banking industry. We need to know more about him before we put him in such an important seat.

Why is Sarah Palin our Princess Di?

Every time a Hollywood celebrity says something derogatory about Sarah, they are also saying it to me, a 40-something Christian, former homeschooling, politically active, rural, not-always-perfect mother and grandmother. When they mock her for being down-to-earth, pro-life, evangelical - and hey, even being the mom of a pregnant teenager - their words cut into our family as well.

Don't celebrities understand that in mocking Sarah, they are alienating many of people that - up until this last month - used to watch their movies?

Liberal women's organizations have never spoken for me. Even when I was a teenager, those organizations never understood or spoke for me. Hillary Clinton has never understood evangelical mom's like me. Even further, I have never cared for any of the so-called top named Christian women's leaders, either. When I have seen video's of "inspirational" Christian women speaking, I've never felt any closer to them with their poofy hair, religious dogma and perfect lives than I have Hillary.

But Sarah is different. She isn't perfect.And not only is she like me in that respect, but finally, here is a woman that knows how I feel about the issues - and feels the same way.

• Abortion is wrong. Even during the most difficult times of my very turbulent life, aborting my children has never been a consideration. Sarah understands this. The woman's movement has never understood women like me.
• Open up ANWR to drilling. If a few acres of American tundra can make a difference, we should be doing that rather than buying oil from overseas.
• None of us like the war. But I do believe, as Sarah does, that McCain is the only candidate that understands what to do with Iraq.
• Corrupt government employees - including corrupt Senators, State Commissioners, or even Troopers - need a swift boot out of office.
• Although we have been low income, my husband vowed in 1992 not to take anymore welfare or entitlements. He made that vow and from that time until his death, he kept it - doing everything he could with his own two hands to feed us. We came to understand and agree with fiscal conservatives like Sarah. We do believe the Democratic push on the banks laid the foundation for this current crisis.
• My husband, a member of the Minnesota Chippewa Tribe, fed our family through hunting. He taught our children to hunt and cut up the meat on our kitchen table. There have been times when this was our only meat. We believe in hunting and gun rights for all US citizens.
• Yes, Creationism is something that many Americans believe in. We aren't nuts; it's part of our religion - (Remember? That thing that the first amendment allows us to have...) So when my kids come home from school, I need to re-teach them and explain that evolution is just a theory - there is no proof for it. Then I explain to them why. (Yes, as a former RN, I have an Associate in Science and can explain.) This is why many of us choose to homeschool. Something else we have a right to do.
• And yes, I and other parents like me are glad to have a homeschool mom in high office. You see, when so many from the left mock us and try to take away our right to teach our children our faith, that's a very scary thing.
• And Sarah believes in prayer. When I have listened to her pastors on the internet, I have appreciated them. They are no different than any of the pastors I have grown to love here in the lower forty. I am so glad that Sarah, a prayerful woman, is in the position she is in.

I have said that with the amount of mocking she has recieved from the elite, she is like our Princess Di. But she is also like our Esther. God Bless you, Sarah. We are praying for you.

Democrat Visit to a Palin Rally -

Palin in LA - A First Hand Report from Lynette Long's blog via http://www.liberalrapture.com/2008/10/palin-today.html

A PUMA pointed me toward a ticket to a Palin rally in LA today. USC did not start until five so I went. Or rather I lolly gagged my way to the Home Depot Center - how big could this rally be??? - this is LA - ???

Bad idea. She packed the tennis stadium (10,000) and the over flow sat and watched the jumbo tron where the LA Galaxy Soccer team plays. But I got in....It was fascinating. 2 immediate thoughts:

1. She was introduced by a President of a NOW chapter - wow.
2. She brought up Bill Ayres.

I have not decided who I will vote for. I did not go as a supporter of this ticket. I went to see Palin. Anyone who has every been in the same room as Bill Clinton - however big - knows what a "star" is. I wanted to see if she was a "star". I can say without question she is a "new star". The idea of her is clearly electric to her party. She owns the stage like Bill Clinton does. She has not quite mastered the relationship between herself and the crowd. 2 pods made themselves known. One she dropped the house on with a line about fighting for the first amendment. The other she handled by ignoring - which I rarely think works.

A few important take aways for me:

1. The difference between the role of women circa 1988 GOP and the 2008 version is something to behold. To say I was flabbergasted that former President of a NOW chapter, talking about equal pay and Geraldine Ferarro, introduced Palin at a large GOP rally is an understatement. This is not the GOP I remember - the one with shrinking, smiling wives off to the side. Think Nancy Reagan. Women were front and center. The code words were "working moms" - but what they were talking about was "robust women as equal partners." "Family Values" as a sledge hammer is out - "Women as a very valuable and equal partner in a family" is in.
2. If she wants it, Palin has a future in her party regardless of the outcome in November. They LOVE this woman - like they LOVED Reagan.
3. The crowd was younger and more racially diverse than I expected it to be. Including more than a few Black Americans.
4. A group of about 40 Obama people demonstrated outside. The chant was "Hey, hey ho, ho Sarah Palin has got to go." This is the most tired chant one can imagine. It is like hippies have taken a page from civil war re-enactors. Dress up as if it is 40 years ago and do a historical play.
5. Of the four people on the ticket, Palin is the only one who is not a member of the "elite." This is true even during her stump speech. When she talked about her father growing up in North Hollywood is feels entirely sincere and middle class. Even Clinton's talk of being from Hope, Arkansas had the sheen of being canned. It is not that "I want to have a beer" with her. It's that I would not be surprised in the least if I saw her in line at the grocery store. The closest antecedent I can conjure is Harry Truman. Still, even Truman doesn't quite work. She is a mom, not a dad. This feels entirely new in American politics.
6. Having been to Democratic rallies over the years I must say: Republicans are nicer and more respectful. At least the ones I saw today. Everyone picked up their trash. A small, but telling, fact. Plus, is was organized. People stood in line and waited their turn to get in. I know that only an old school Democrat would find this worthy of note.
7. Based on the number of Hilary stickers in the parking lot - PUMA's were represented.

All in all - it is clear to me that the GOP is not my party. But it was a compelling afternoon. Palin is a fascinating figure. Whatever McCain's motives were in choosing her - the choice changed the game. Whether she wins or loses, Palin will be around for a while.