politics

Remember Reverend Wright? Allow me to introduce you to two supporters of Senator John McCain. To my extreme right is Reverend John Hagee, a televangelist from San Antone. The good Rev is known for having called the Catholic Church "the great whore". He also supports a pre-emptive strike on Iran. Says it's predicted in the book of Esther. Seems he can't wait to be whisked to heaven when Armageddon comes. Reverend Hagee receives $840,000 a year for his ministries. "It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Matthew 19:24. To his right, a round of applause for Pastor Rod Parsley. Pastor Parsley calls for the eradication of Islam. Seems Islam "is an anti-Christ religion". McCain calls him one of "the truly great leaders of America". The pastor says it is the "divine purpose" of the United States, that "We were built for the conflict. We get off on warfare." "Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God." Matthew 5:9. By the way, my buddy Buddha says may Nirvana always be within your reach. Especially, the first CD.

I recently heard Dylan's Tombstone Blues, and realized that I’ve always misheard this line: "Daddy’s in the alley, he’s looking for the fuse.” I thought Daddy was looking for food, which brings us to the art of vote pandering.A big selling point for both Clinton and McCain has been gas tax relief. This follows on the heels of President Bush’s pandering tax rebate. They've got my vote, unless…What would be accomplished? The gas tax is allocated for highway maintenance and safety. Pot holes, crumbling bridges, things like that. So we save 25 bucks and the roads get worse.And then, there are administrative costs. It’s costing 49 million dollars to mail our rebate checks. What’s the cost of suspending and rescheduling the gas tax? Are we this stupid? Will we really allow a presidential candidate to buy our vote for 25 bucks? Just wondering?