GuidoWorld

Why I’m not Voting: Part 2

June 11, 2008 on 8:31 pm | In General |

Though some politicians seem to be kind and compassionate people, almost none of them demonstrate a basic level of decency when it comes to a few simple principles.

There has been suspicions and some evidence over the last few decades that our government supported and even trained foreign armies that engaged in torture and gross violations of human rights. Now during the last few years our government has begun to admit that it utilizes torture as a fairly standard procedure to obtain evidence from “terrorists” both foreign and domestic. Over the same time period there has been a steady erosion of our basic rights which were previously considered inalienable.

It is the basic duty of Congress to pass and up hold laws which protect our basic rights and freedoms. Members of Congress have not only been eerily silent during this removal of our rights, but also has passed numerous laws in hurrying this dismantling of our Constitution. Likewise, Congress has not made an serious efforts to pass laws limiting or outlawing the use of torture, or enforced any laws currently on the books.

It is hard for me to take any candidate seriously who does not actively seek to end this inhumane and totalitarian trend. Why should I vote for someone who is not morally outraged and apparently condones our loss of freedom and basic rights? How can I respect any person who doesn’t bring the question of torture to the nation’s attention?

No matter what your feelings are towards our war policies I believe everyone would agree that those who serve in our military deserve to be treated respectfully and humanely by our government. The lack of medical and psychological services for those returning from combat is well documented, not only for this war but all conflicts since the Vietnam war. The percentage of veterans who are homeless, clinically depressed, chemically dependent and mentally disabled are growing. The percentage of veterans not receiving services for these treatable maladies is growing even faster. The number of suicides and suicide attempts is also quite formidable.Yet, despite the fact that almost all citizens would support increases in services for veterans, Congress and our political candidates remain far too quiet on this issue.

In my previous post I pointed out how any candidate who truly attempts to alter the status quo gets executed by the corporate media. This fact, could explain why candidates do not deal with the above issues. Maybe, they realize, or are advised by their handlers to stay clear of these issues. It does appear that Paul and Kucinich tried to discuss our loss of personal rights and were attacked, marginalized and ignored by the media. Yet, to both of their credit, they still are the only voices asking these questions.

Yet, even Paul and Kucinich have been quiet about some basic issues regarding human decency. An example of this was in the revelation that members of Congress and maybe the White House were involved in sexual exploitations of Congressional pages. This is not the first time this rumor has surfaced. In fact it was present in the Reagan/Bush administrations. A while back I saw on the net a 1980’s documentary that was pulled before it was aired on pubic TV in which evidence was presented regarding the sexual exploitation of pages and other young males who were brought to the White House after hours. Many of the boys were reportedly under the age of consent.

Now, I’m not saying these allegations are true, yet there did seem to be enough evidence to warrant an investigation. If Congress had enough information to clear themselves and the Administration they should have presented it. What is disconcerting is that the entire issue was quietly swept under the rug.

The three issues above were chosen because they seem pretty clear as a litmus test for human decency. Now some may believe that all human rights are to be protected, that torture should be outlawed, that sex with minors or outside of marriage is unacceptable, and that denying veterans services is immoral and unforgivable. Yet, even if you think some of these acts are acceptable under certain circumstances, you would agree they are worthy of Congressional attention and scrutiny.

The fact that our presidential candidates have stayed mute on these issues for months and years is evidence of a general lack of human decency and compassion. If they can’t rise above a bar for being humane set this low how can they be expected to handle truly complicated legal and cultural issues on the international stage.

Is it too much to ask for our candidates to be good people, who are compassionate and kind? Is it too much to expect our candidates to be honest individuals, who prefer thoughtful dialogue over slogans? Is it too much to want to have leaders who are more interested in trying to do the right thing, rather than making winning the election the main objective?

The only candidate I would have considered voting for is Ron Paul. I would have voted for him because he appears to have integrity and a good and honest heart. Even though I disagree with many of his policies I do not doubt his intentions. It was refreshing to hear someone talk with some conviction while remaining open to further discussion.

I truly feel that we have a shortage of real candidates, and prefer to wait till some arrive worthy of my vote. Again, I’m not looking for the perfect candidate who I agree with, but only someone with some integrity and back bone. Someone with a heart and mind that seem to be going in the direction of compassionate coexistence.

Jim Guido