The Sunday news show pundits all shook their heads about the difficult choice voters face in the upcoming election. They said most voters don’t really like either of the two presidential nominees. How on earth will voters decide?
If you, or your friend or relative, are unsure how to vote, there is a pretty simple solution. My wise wife, the primary decision-maker in our family, says, “Make a list!”
What do you really want? What is most important to you? When you have to make a choice, just list your priorities in order and it will point you to the right decision. Hillary, or Donald? (There is no other choice – one of them will win, so failure to vote for one is a vote for the other).
If your top priority is your job, income, and financial security, which candidate would be better for your pocketbook? Who would increase or decrease government spending, and your tax bill? Who is more likely to protect your job from being taken by a legal or illegal immigrant? Whose economic policies – government and court interference in business, fair trade practices with other nations, support for manufacturing and energy industries, etc. – would cause our economy (and your finances) to improve or decline? If you rely on government handouts for your income, you might prefer the candidate who would give you more money and free stuff. Keep in mind, though, your children, relatives and friends are paying your tab.
You might be more worried about the health and security of your family. Which candidate supports law and order and police departments? Who believes our national defense requires a strong and well-organized military and secure borders? Who would defend your right to own a gun for your own protection? Who has a better long-term solution for improving the quality and reducing the cost of health care?
Some voters’ top priority is one or more social issues. You might be upset by racial division, gender discrimination, global warming, abortion, freedom of or from religion, or the academic drift away from functional knowledge and toward “social enlightenment.” Which candidate is more likely to pit groups of Americans against each other, causing more friction, anger, and crime? Who has the right take on education? Who is more likely to “live and let live”, and not try to control our personal behavior?
A common complaint about both candidates is their apparent lack of “likeability”. If you think “niceness” is the most important job requirement for a president, put that at the top of your list. The same applies for trustworthiness. Both are pretty hard to quantify, but each candidate has a history that can be judged.
If you are already settled on the Hillary vs. Donald question, please pass this advice on to anyone in your circle of influence who is struggling with the decision, perhaps even to the extent that he or she is frozen and refuses to choose. Tell him or her: Make a list! Prioritize what you want from your president. Then decide, issue by issue, who is on your side. You might prefer either candidate on a given issue. That’s okay. Apply weight to the top part of your list, and ignore the bottom.
See? Decision-making is not so tough.
Tom Balek – Rockin’ On the Right Side
Make a wish baby, and I will make it come true
Make a list baby, of the things I’ll do for you
Ain’t no risk now, let my love rain down on you
We could wash away the past, so that we may start anew
God, I love live music! Please check out this fantastic amateur video of David Pack (Ambrosia) and smooth-jazz saxophone goddess Mindi Abair at a little winery, singing and playing their butts off for a small but appreciative audience. This is how it’s done!
Every day, day after day, the anti-Trump insider Republicans wail and moan, louder and longer. It’s beginning to sound like a teenage summer chainsaw movie. Or a difficult childbirth.
I’m a rock guitar player. I grew up riffing to “
At breakfast this morning my daughter was relating a conversation she had with a neighbor-friend who is a third-grade teacher at a predominantly Hispanic public elementary school. They were discussing the problems caused by the extensive federally-required testing of third graders – the loss of instruction time, the stress for students and teachers, the declining scores. Then the teacher made a startling observation.
The US Constitution lists many of the rights we citizens enjoy: the right to assemble, to speak freely, to bear arms. The most important right of all is overlooked by most Americans. You never see it mentioned on a protest sign, or by a political candidate. It doesn’t have its own enumerated amendment in the Bill of Rights. It is the right of individuals to own property and use it for their benefit.
Our country was built on business. Free market, survival-of-the-fittest, improve-or-die business. The United States of America has always been the land of opportunity – a place where success is not only possible, but fully expected by those who follow the timeless and dependable business formula: work hard, be fair and honest, embrace change, meet the customer’s needs, strive for continual improvement. Roll up your sleeves, git ‘er done. Take care of business.
Liberals fervently believe in protecting women and women’s rights. They claim that anybody who is not a liberal Democrat must hate women. Meanwhile, they insist on accepting hundreds of thousands of Muslim immigrants, most of whom require that their women are not allowed to show their faces in public and must be totally subservient to their husbands. So which is it, liberals? Are you for women, or for Muslims?
Paul Ryan attended the University of Miami (Ohio) where he got a degree in economics and political science and worked for John Boehner’s congressional campaign. After graduation he immediately moved to Washington, DC and became enmeshed in the Republican machinery. But for a short stint selling hot dogs, Ryan has never held a non-government job. In 1998 he ran for Wisconsin’s first district congressional seat, and won. Since then he, like most incumbents, has been repeatedly re-elected, and in October of last year he replaced his old friend Boehner as Speaker of the House, causing a uproar among grassroots conservatives. He promised to bring “regular order” back to Congress, whereby the budget would be broken into spending bills which would by voted upon individually. Instead, he 
I voted for Ted Cruz in the South Carolina primary. Last night, after getting Trump-thumped (again) in Indiana, Cruz pulled out of the presidential race.
Tom Balek - Rockin' On The Right Side 