Last year at this time we had just elected a new president. There was a lot of talk of people voting for him simply because he was black. A lot of us, myself included, believed that the election results had more to do with being fed up with the direction the government had taken with the Republican party, and maybe that was part of it.

Obama was our first black president, it’s an amazing accomplishment for our country. It really was inspiring. A very significant color barrier had finally been broken. Unfortunately, last Tuesday may have been an indicator that color really was, at least in some voters minds what the election was about.

Maybe it’s the new disillusionment with the wild goverment spending, interference and broken promises of the democrats. Maybe it’s just that traditionally, local and state races see a lower turnout. But what actually happened, was that many of the new black and hispanic voters did not show up at the polls last Tuesday. If our newest President was elected simply because he was black,( and by the way, he is half-white also) how meaningful is that amazing accomplishment of ours?

It’s an embarresment, to our country, to our president, and to our children and it’s racism. A vote should mean something more then you approve or disapprove of a canidates skin tone, or their gender (the one we still haven’t managed to break). It should mean that the person who is elected represents your views, at least as much as possible. I wonder now that things are going badly, will many suddenly consider him white.

It’s election day in Virginia. We’re one of those odd states having their General Elections today. The big buzz is how many people will be voting Republican or Democrat as nothing more then their approval or disapproval of Obama’s policies and more specifically healthcare reform. It’s a tough call for a lot of us. Technically, I’m a Democrat, but just technically. I tend to vote all over the board, not straight party, because I think that the most important thing is who is best for the country, state or locality they’re going to be representing and running.

Of course, I’m one of those weirdos that believes that believes strange things, like the news should simply report the news, as facts. I don’t need their editors personal opinions on things. I have enough of my own opinions. Beside’s there’s already a section for that, it’s called the editorial page. I also belive the Constitution is important and still relevent today. But, back to the subject at hand, our elections.

It’s a biggie for us. There’s way too much on the table right now, and someone needs to be there to clean it up. I did vote for Obama in the last election, I don’t regret it because I don’t think I would have been any happier with the alternative. Can’t say I’ve been too happy with a lot of them, although Clinton was pretty good for the country. But as I’ve just said, I’m not too happy with the current administration either. Like any other sane person in this country, I do believe we need some kind of healthcare reform. Notice I called it reform, not socialized medicine as is the case with the current bill. Not the government forcing people to buy a product, this one or any other. I believe in the Constitution and the Ammendments. I don’t recall any part of those saying that government should be going into business for itself. I don’t remember anything that says that they should be selling anything, ever. And I’m not quite clear on how the government is willing to regulate the financial industry, but not the insurance industry, which by the way is regulated by every individual state in which it is sold. Is there any reason we can’t start there?

 Think about it. We have global warming, oil prices are sky high, primary education budgets have been cut while secondary education scholarships have expanded (does anyone understand that?), the economy is in the toilet, unemployment is ridiculous so what are we going to do? We’re going to shove a new healthcare system down everyones throats, fine the people who obviously have enough to worry about with putting food on the table and keeping a roof over their heads and can’t afford to pay for the insurance which they didn’t choose anyway; because the government, current and former, are doing such a great job with everything else that they should obviously be running something that everyone’s lives depend on, right?

 I am one of those people that haven’t always had insurance when I needed it. It’s totally crappy. I will be paying bills off for a very long time. But I no more want this healthcare system then my father, a staunch Republican. Govenment should not now, or ever be selling anything, and that is unfortunately what this election is coming down to.

I don’t like our Republican candidate. I am a single working mother who believes my body is my own, I should be paid the same wages for the same job, religion should never be the foundation for laws (just ask the Middle East how that’s working for them) and everybody is entitled to their own values and beliefs, they live with their own choices. The man is against everything I stand for, except the healthcare issue. He has made the statement that he opposes it unilaterally. Some people have commented that this is dumb, such a sweeping statement. I don’t agree. The bill that’s currently on the table, the extraordinarily long bill, is a violation of our freedom and our rights. It gives the government the license to not only sell a product, but force us to buy it. Can you imagine any other business doing that, there would be riots. They can now regulate yet another industry which they know nothing about. So maybe not such a dumb sweeping statement after all.

I was really hoping that our democratic choice would come out with a statement of some sort. But, with Obama’s back behind him, I guess that may be asking too much. The strongest statement we have there is that he would consider opting Virginia out of the public healthcare option. It’s not enough, not for myself or many other Democrats in this state. Our purple state like our tempers, is starting to run red.

Unfortunately, as much as I hate to admit it, they may be right on this one, our choices seem to be coming down to a vote for or against Obama’s healthcare bill and which rights we are willing to sacrifice to make our voices heard.

Just make sure that your voice, whatever it is saying, is heard.