Food for thought.

I got a very interesting e-mail from my mother the other day which made me think even harder about some things, namely, this election. Oh, I'm still positive that Obama is the man for the job, but the e-mail brought about some interesting points that I had never thought of (and in some cases, didn't know existed). Here it is:

Obama/Biden vs McCain/Palin; what if things were switched around?.....think about it.

Would the country's collective point of view be different? Could racism be the culprit?

Ponder the following:

What if the Obamas had paraded five children across the stage, including a three month old infant and an unwed, pregnant teenage daughter?

What if John McCain was a former president of the Harvard Law Review?

What if Barack Obama finished fifth from the bottom of his graduating class?

What if McCain had only married once, and Obama was a divorcee?

What if Obama had a long affair while he was still married?

What if Michelle Obama was the wife who not only became addicted to pain killers but also acquired them illegally through her charitable organization?

What if Cindy McCain graduated from Harvard?

What if Obama had been a member of the Keating Five?
(The Keating Five were five United States Senators accused of corruption in 1989, igniting a major political scandal as part of the larger Savings and Loan crisis of the late 1980s and early 1990s.)

What if McCain was a charismatic, eloquent speaker?

What if Obama couldn't read from a teleprompter?

What if Obama was the one who had military experience that included discipline problems and a record of crashing seven planes?

What if Obama was the one who was known to display publicly, on many occasions, a serious anger management problem?

What if Michelle Obama's family had made their money from beer distribution?

What if the Obamas had adopted a white child?

You could easily add to this list. If these questions reflected reality, do you really believe the election numbers would be as close as they are?

This is what racism does. It covers up, rationalizes and minimizes positive qualities in one candidate and emphasizes negative qualities in another when there is a color difference.

Educational Background:

Barack Obama:
Columbia University - B.A. Political Science with a Specialization in International Relations.
Harvard - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude

Joseph Biden:
University of Delaware - B.A. in History and B.A. in Political Science.
Syracuse University College of Law - Juris Doctor (J.D.)

vs.

John McCain:
United States Naval Academy - Class rank: 894 of 899

Sarah Palin:
Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester
North Idaho College - 2 semesters - general study
University of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalism
Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester
University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in Journalism

Education isn't everything, but this is about the two highest offices in the land as well as our standing in the world. You make the call.

There are some facts about McCain in there that I had heard nothing about, such as the fact that he was part of the Keating Five scandal (which I had to research to learn about) or the fact that his wife was formerly addicted to pain killers. The Obamas were so thoroughly vetted that I guess I just assumed that the McCains had all of their dirty laundry aired out as well. Maybe because the controversy surrounding these things was older, people didn't bring them up because it was rehashing issues that had already been discussed? If that was the case, I don't think that logic is completely sound, when these issues may also not be remembered by the common voter who is trying to make an informed decision.



On a completely separate note, the Rangers' organization is mourning the loss of one of their own, Alexei Cherepanov. The 19 year old was the Rangers' first draft pick in the 2007 draft and was playing in the Russian KHL this year. From what I've managed to gather, Cherepanov was playing in a game when he collided with Jaromir Jagr, his teammate. Cherepanov made his way back to the bench where he collapsed and his heart stopped. After he was moved to a hospital in Moscow doctors attempted to revive him, but he was later declared dead.
The fact that a young, fit man can die so suddenly is scary to think about- Cherepanov was only a few months older than I am. My prayers go out to his family and friends.


Questions are also being asked now as to why there was no defibrillator on hand. In the case of Jiri Fisher, a defibrillator is credited with saving his life.


Homework time is now upon me; I have an hour before I need to be on the bus to CND for tonight's game! Night.