Unbiased

S

orry about the rants lately. Sometimes I need to let off steam. Someone from SC again said something uncalled for and I reacted. I swear, there is no one who can rub me the wrong way more than a Trojan. No not the condom--although they rub me the wrong way, too--but that Greek man in a skirt that all SC Trojans identify with--I'll let you come to your own Freudian conclusions.

Anyway, there is less than a month to the next election and this is a big one in my mind. There is more at stake than any other election since the Vietnam War, and so I am watching closely and trying to be as involved as my schedule will allow, which isn't very much. But I can express my opinions here, and I will. But just so you don't think I'm some biased idiot who can see no further than his father's vote, allow me to tell you that indeed I once did vote just like my dad. Fortunately for me, when I became old enough to vote, I learned the dangers of following daddy blindly--Had I been able to vote in 1972, I would have voted for Nixon. Indeed, I helped in the campaign as a volunteer for Asian Americans for Nixon. I can't believe it myself sometimes...

Anyway, here is a record of my voting--or possible votes had I not been lazy with the absentee voting in Japan...

Year	Voted for	Reason for voting
	Opponent
1976	Carter (D)	This is pretty simple. This was a vote against Watergate. I believe still that Nixon was an intellectually brilliant man. But as a leader, he lacked all the appropriate moral characteristics: trust, honesty, loyalty. Also, I think, had Reagan beaten Ford in the primary, he would have lost to Carter and never would have been a viable Republican candidate again. Meaning, we never would have had Reagan as president.
	Ford (R)
1980	Reagan (R)	There were two main reasons for voting Reagan. He did many things that I suported when he was governor of California and I had hopes for him as President. Carter lacked the "vision" thing. He was quite intelligent, but when he said he lusted after some TV personality and suggested that Americans were weak, he lost me for good.
	Carter (D)
1984	Reagan (R)	I didn't vote because I was in Japan at the time. But despite questions about his age and possible problems with arms for hostages rumors, I think i would have voted for him anyway.
	Mondale (D)
1988	H.W. Bush (R)	I never liked Bush. He was wishy washy, and so hungry for power. During the 1980 primaries, he dubbed Reagan's trickle-down theory "Voodoo economics", but when it was time to name Reagan's Vice-President, he had his booty wagging like a little dog. "Pick me! Pick me!" He wasn't even Reagan's first choice. But Dukakis conveyed an even worse image. His ride in the tank looked like a kid on a Disneyland ride. While was smart, image does matter. So ever so reluctantly--I literally spent hours agonizing before I voted, and I think I paused for at least five minutes in the actual voting booth, before reluctantly voting for Bush.
	Dukakis (D)
1992	Clinton (D)	I was in Japan and so could not vote. It was a toss up, but I did know that the economy was going bad, and Bush had had his chance. He was riding on his success in the Gulf War and started to coast. What a jerk. A president never coasts. He's got to be on the job every freaking minute. I mean, he is the leader of the free world--yeah, yeah, corny, but I believe it.
	H.W. Bush (R)
1996	Dole (R)	After all the questionable actions he was accused of--remember Paula Jones BEFORE Monica?--I was fed up with a President who could not take seriously his role as model of American Citizenship. Besides, I have alwasy liked Dole. He has integrity, he is honest. I had not problem voting for him. Besides, have you ever seen his Vice President debate against Mondale in 1976? It is classic, I tell you. He was sarcastic, acerbic, biting. Everything I admire in a man. Heheheheheeheh...
	Clinton (D)
2000	Gore (D)	Gore is another good man with integrity. But he simply lacks stage presence, and that is what cost him. Also, early on, when Bush was doing interviews and he could tell you the names of heads of state, I figure this guy is just out of touch with the political world. I believed at the time, that he is simply the product of handlers. He will do as he is told. Not the quality I wanted in a president.
	G.W. Bush (R)

Anyway, I just thought I'd put down my record, so when I start giving my opinions, you won't think I'm operating from a prejudged, preconceived bias. I am not. In seven presidential elections, I voted (or would have voted) Republican 4 times and Democrat 3 times. In the case of the incumbent, I always vote on their record. What did they do as president? I do not need to make a decision on conjecture or on intagibles such as "being resolute." George W. Bush has left us a tangible record. I think we should examine it. Don't you?