I am voting for... (+)

Probably no surprise to most of you but I am voting for President Bush. The Chicago Tribune has now endorsed President Bush. They say it better than I can:

Bush's sense of a president's duty to defend America is wider in scope than Kerry's, more ambitious in its tactics, more prone, frankly, to yield both casualties and lasting results. This is the stark difference on which American voters should choose a president.

I especially agree with the part ‘more prone…to yield both casualties and lasting results’. You should read the whole article (unfortunately the Trib forces you to register – it is free but still a pain). They have a great quote by Sen. John McCain:

"All of us, despite the differences that enliven our politics, are united in the one big idea that freedom is our birthright and its defense is always our first responsibility. All other responsibilities come second."

I remain very dubious that either candidate is good for the country when it comes to many domestic issues. I do believe that over all Bush is "less bad".

But make no mistake AMERICA IS AT WAR. We have been at war for a long, long time. Carter failed to fight the war when Iran took hostages, Reagan failed to win the war while in Lebanon, Bush Sr. failed to win the war in Iraq, and Clinton failed to fight it all over the world. Even GWBush failed to properly recognize the threat until 9/11. But since then Bush has shown incredible resolve and leadership on this one issue. And all the other issues pale in comparison to this war on terrorism. A war that has been growing in attacks for decades.

I'm very tired of hearing how the rest of the world hates us. I DON'T CARE because the have never loved us. Sure they smile and act gracious when we give them cash but very few care what happens to America. Neither Churchill nor Reagan was "liked" by much of the world, but they stood firm to evil and eventually won. We need that resolve today. The War on Terrorism is unlike anything we have fought in the past. It will not be easy to win but it will be easy to lose. This election is too important to screw up. Like it or not you have to choose sides.

Does a vote for Kerry make you unpatriotic? No. I do believe it is a vote for appeasement. Just like Chamberlain tried to appease Germany before World War II, an appeasement with Islamic Fascist today will ultimately fail and doom us to a war with far more deaths in the future. Again which is "less bad"?

Others feel the same way. Read this post by an avowed liberal "I'm Voting For Bush".

On an election tangent:

I have voted in every election possible since I turned 18 (okay I missed two primaries for city council that were a done deal before the vote). Not once in six presidential elections has there been a candidate I was thrilled about. I always seem to vote for the "less bad". Has it always been this way?