The US Presidential Election 2008: America Decides

Well in 2 more weeks, America will vote either Barack Obama or John McCain to be one of the most powerful men in the planet: the president of USA. Currently Obama is leading McCain by 7% as shown in the poll below (taken from BBC site)

*click to view larger version*

So what are these 2 very different men proposing for the future of the US, & the world? Here's a brief comparison on major issues: (adapted from here)

Abortion

• McCain: prolife; he's anti abortion, he will prohibit abortion of all forms, unless the pregnancy is a result of incest, rape or threatens the life of the woman. 
  
• Obama: prochoice; he believes that a woman has the right to decide if she wants to undergo abortion, & that she has the ability to make the right choice for herself.
  
• Rowie: I agree with Obama, being a female myself, I would like the choice to undergo abortion to be in my hands, not the state's or anyone else's.

Prolife or prochoice?

Gay marriages

• Both men are not firm supporters of gay marriages; they both believe that it should be decided by individual state govts & they support same sex civil unions. 
• Rowie: Dang. I'm a firm supporter of gay marriages, everyone deserves equal rights. Obama stated "if we are honest with ourselves, we'll acknowledge that our own community has not always been true with (Martin Luther) King's vision of a beloved community, we have scorned our gay brothers & sisters instead of embracing them." Both men are pretty much on the same wavelength for this issue. 

Gay marriage should be legalized

Education

• This is a tough one, since I'm not familiar with the US' education system...
• McCain: supports student vouchers & sending money directly to local schools (cutting back on red tape & administrative costs); parents & their kids are the center of his education plans (parents will have more power in choosing the schools/institutes for their children); his stand is "empower the people to choose the school/institute they want".
• Obama: opposes student vouchers; education system is failing because of low teacher retention, complex red tape issues that makes it difficult for students to know the financial aid available, hence unable to further their studies, math & science will be a national priority, make college affordable for all, improve the education system; his stand is "improve the system to improve Americans".
• Rowie: Obama FTW! The system should improve, giving Americans the choice over their education isn't a surefire way to ensure that more Americans receive higher education/use their education wisely. 

Reform the education system

Taxes

• Ooh la la...too many complex terms here, I'll try to simplify it.
• McCain: keep Bush's tax cuts permanent; proposes the alternative minimum tax (bad as this will group middle-class taxpayers together with the wealthy taxpayers); forbid Internet & cellphone taxes; suspend federal gas tax; he's just gonna cut taxes that will not affect the rich, with no real benefits to middle-class families.
• Obama: end Bush's tax cuts; raise taxes for the rich & reduce 'em for lower income groups; opposes suspension of federal gas tax; close corporate tax loopholes, reduce deductions for industries such as oil & gas; proposes tax penalties for US companies that keep their profits overseas.
• Rowie: Obama's plan is being carried out in Malaysia, I think its a fair deal. Strike 3 against McCain.

Iraq

• McCain: supports the war but has criticized the management of the war; supports present troop increase, defends the moral justifications of the war.
• Obama: opposes the war, supports phased deployment to remove all troops; he said "I am not opposed to all wars, I'm oppposed to dumb wars."
• Rowie: Get 'em out! Life for civilians & the army isn't getting any better over there. Quit beautifying the horrors of war.

Obama(L) or McCain(R) ?

VP Choice

• McCain: I'm not sure if choosing Sarah Palin was a wise move. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry when I found out. She attacked Obama by saying that he "pals around with terrorists". Good god.
• Obama: Joe Biden is a decent choice. I know many people are rooting for Hillary Clinton, but I believe Joe Biden is the better candidate. At least he doesn't go around talking like he's a naive dandy youngster...

The Alaskan or the Veteran?

If the world could vote...we'd hope Americans will decide & choose the man who will lead this country into greater glory & to bring better relations with the rest of the world. Rowie wants Obama as president because, as Sarah Silverman put it:"he's the goodest person we could have for president." I thoroughly agree.