Primaries Deny a Voice to Most Americans

I am so glad that I haven’t had a chance to vote yet. If I had, my vote for Edwards would have been given away to another candidate.  I read a blog this morning talking about how voting early in primaries isn’t a good idea– too many votes are wasted by candidates dropping out.

Folks in Ohio don’t necessarially prioritize the same things as they do in New Hampshire, Iowa or South Carolina. Maybe one of the first Primaries should be held in Indiana, Ohio or Illinois… but, then what about Texas, Arizona and Georgia? There isn’t a true sampling of the American fabric in the early primaries and therefore we aren’t all heard.

The American system of Presidential election is so bizarre from the point of view of the rest of the world. We sort. A couple of States get to thin out who they like best and the rest of us are stuck with a dwindling field of candidates. 

Maybe it’s time to move back to Brasil where I couldn’t vote but at least I knew upfront that my vote wouldn’t count and my voice was unheard.

Edwards Is Going Home. Who Will Speak For The Single Mother in Missouri?

I’ve figured out what’s really bugging me about Edwards dropping out… He has used the personal stories of people in Missouri, West Virginia, Ohio… and isn’t giving those folks a chance to have their say.

By dropping out of the race before Super Tuesday he has stopped those voices from speaking for him.

What will he do for the single mother in Missouri who can’t afford to pay the rent and keep on the heat despite working a full time job and is concerned that Child Services will take her children away?  What will he do for the many he has told us about who have lost their jobs and are loosing their homes?  What will he do for the other 50 year olds with cleft palate who can’t afford to have it fixed?

He has walked away from the race before giving those folks a vote.

I can only hope that Edwards, as did Al Gore upon leaving politics, will become a crusader for the working poor– for the middle class– for those without health-care.

At the end of his speech in New Orleans today he said something to the effect that we shouldn’t worry about “this son of a mill worker”  Well, that’s hardly our concern… The Edwards family will go home their comfortable life and they will be fine… it’s the single mother in Missouri that I worry about.  Who will speak for her?

Will either of the democratic candidates speak for her? I guess time will tell…

Edwards Drops Out of Presidential Race

I first supported Richardson and he dropped out. Then I supported Edwards and now he’s gone. Maybe I should support the one I agree the least with and support him or her… with my track record that should get them out of the race.

So, where does this leave us?

On one side is the War-Mongering-Economic-Idiot McCain and the Very-Educated-But-Can’t-Keep-My-Story-Straight Romney.  On the other side is the Billary Dynasty and the Kid.  What choice is there?

McCain isn’t an option for me. He is strong on War and week on Economy. And, does he even know what “Autism” is?

Romney might be strong on Economy but he can’t remember what he just promised so we can’t expect him to keep any of his promises.

Let’s not forget Ron Paul… He’s the candidate of the lunatic fringe… sorry– you don’t have to agree with me. I believe in the Constitution. I like the idea of less taxation but, I can’t understand how our educational system and infrastructure could endure 4 years without support.

Hucklebee— I really don’t have much to say about him. He has no position on Autism. He wants to re-write the constitution.  On the other hand– the guy is really like-able! Have you seen him on the Colbert Report?

Billary: Enough already.  Bill may have been a pretty good President overall but, don’t we want change? We’ve had 8 years of the Clintons. We, the People, wasted a lot of money to find out who he was playing footsie with while he was supposed to be governing… And, really– if Hillary is the candidate (still not sure who’s running that show) she has no experience to speak of– a couple of terms in the Senate; so what? She was not the President and if she’s trying to claim the years she slept in the White House as experience then I should be Ambassador to Brasil since I grew up there! Come on!.. (Anybody remember NAFTA?)

Finally we have Obama…. Humm… He strikes me as lacking confidence. Have you noticed how he takes so long to answer a question? I understand that he has to be careful not to give Billary (and Jon Stewart) and fodder but, he isn’t thinking on his feet.  He’s got his stump speech down and is very charismatic, has some good quot-ables and decent policy but, watch him in the debate on Thursday… I really don’t think he’s got it.

I’ve threatened to do this before but, I think I’ll write in Stephen Colbert.

NOTE: I welcome your opinion and will post opinions that differ from mine but only if written in a polite manner. No insults will be posted.  Make your case for your candidate of choice but do so in a respectful manner. Thank you.

Undecided Voter? Take These Candidate Quizzes

Mine always end up pretty close– the same two are my top matches (Edwards and Gravel) but they vary a little in the order they fall.

USA TODAY: http://www.usatoday.com/news/politics/election2008/candidate-match-game.htm

GLASS BOOTH: http://glassbooth.org/

VA JOE: http://www.vajoe.com/candidate_calculator.html

ABC NEWS: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/page?id=3623346 (This one is so similar to the USA Today version– but it has little candidates jumping around inside the White House so it’s kind of fun!)

A WORD OF CAUTION:  While none of the above links do, some of the quizzes that are out there require you to give them your email address in order to find out who you match up with.  I don’t give that out to anyone I don’t know and/or trust. (After all, how many Viagra offers can a gal handle in a day?)

South Carolina Debate; Still No Mention of Autism

Did I miss something? It was heated. Edwards, Clinton and Obama spent a lot of time on health-care and yet, they did not mention Autism. Statistically 1 in 150 children born today will be diagnosed with Autism and yet it again did not warrant mention in this lively debate.

Does the Autism community need to sponsor a debate in order to make it a national topic?

John Edwards’ Response to Autism Questionaire

Below is the link to a questionaire with John Edwards’ responses in regard to autism. While I still want to see some passion– I’m getting close to being comfortable that Edwards will help middle class families with Autism. 

http://www.a-champ.org/Candidatequestionnaire2007/Edwards/ACHAMP_Edwards_response_1-2-08.pdf

I do not endorse A-Champ. However, I do appreciate this information.

John Edwards on Autism

I spent some time looking around John Edwards’ website and in his blog section the mother of an autistic 12 year old (Austin), prouddem316 writes of Mr. Edwards: “He has looked me in the eye and said “things will change for kids like Austin” and I believe him, I do.” http://blog.johnedwards.com/user/prouddem316

I haven’t looked him in the eye. I don’t know whether to believe him or not… a debate about Autism would sure help!

I emailed Edwards’ campaign this morning and so far no form letter– points for him! 🙂 Obama and Clinton both sent form letters referring me to their sites… OK. I don’t expect them to call me but, come ‘on… that didn’t help. I’ll wait to see what becomes of the email to Edwards.

John Edwards Autism Plan

http://www.johnedwards.com/issues/health-care/autism/index.html

I’m still looking for a real plan from Barack Obama (the paragraph he has on his website just can’t be called a plan…) but, between Edwards and Clinton– Edwards certainly has the better plan for families dealing with Autism.

Please let me know if you find a real plan from Obama.  (See past posts for what I’ve found on Clinton and Obama so far.)

I’d really love to hear them talk about Autism so we can all see if there’s any passion or if it’s just something they are going to have to deal with…. The cynic I married says it’s going to take an Autistic grandchild for these politician to really care.

Another Debate With NO Mention Of Autism

How is it that the candidates get off the hook in relation to Autism in debate after debate? We know the statistics: 1 in 150 children born in the US are diagnosed with Autism. It affects more of us than the issues they spend so much time on… I can’t speak for you but, Autism matters more to me than campaign finance reform and Yucca Mountain.

Having said that– if I lived at the foot of Yucca I might feel differently… But, do 1 in 150 children born in the US live in an area that would be affected by nuclear waste? So, why spend so much time on the few and refuse to tackle issues that matter to the many? This is a national campaign.

I ran a search on Google “Candidates Debate Autism” and the top result was mine… what’s the matter here?  I’m looking for answers to the subject that matters the most to me and have to really dig to find out what these candidates believe– as far as what they would do; digging isn’t enough– they really don’t appear to have a plan that would help those of us who are already dealing with Autism.  

Clinton says she’ll find out what causes it– Great! But, J already has it. 1 in 150 already have it. That’s great for future kids and their families. Finding out what causes it may lead to better treatments– even a cure. (Let’s not debate “cure”, ok?)

Humor me here– When the cause is discovered and treatments are identified many of us will need help to access these treatments. Will Mrs. Clinton demand that our insurance, social services, school systems provide these treatments? Or will it be another instance in which only the wealthy few will be able to access it?

What about Autism?

Why aren’t they talking about it?

I understand that the economy is in the toilet. I understand that people are dying in Iraq. I understand that we need to save this planet before we have ruined it beyond repair. This is all very important– VERY important.  But, are any of the issues we are facing as a country more important than this generation of kids? (If they think there is a shortage of soldiers now– wait until 1 in 150 soldier aged people in the US are Autistic.)

How can we get the candidates to talk about Autism?

As I have said before– I am an undecided voter. The issues that matter the most with me are the Economy and Autism.  So far, no candidate has said anything that will keep me from writing in “Colbert.”

Many thanks to those of you who helped me get a question to MSNBC!

Tuesday Debate–Please Help Me Ask About Autism

I’ve been trying to get a question onto the MSNBC form and keep getting an error message… Could you help me ask the following question– or something like it:

I am an undecided voter. The issues that matter the most to me are the economy and Autism.

What will you do for the middle class insured who can not afford the “extra” services (therapy, equipment) our autistic children need to succeed, can not qualify for assistance because we fall above the income cut-off, and who’s insurance does not cover these needed “extras”?

Here is the link to the MSNBC form http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22574335/

From the MSNBC Website: “Watch the Jan. 15th 2008 Democratic Presidential Candidates’ Debate — the first debate since the New Hampshire primaries — on MSNBC TV and MSNBC.com to see if your question is asked.

Brian Williams will be the moderator and he will be joined by Tim Russert.   Natalie Morales will ask the candidates your questions.

NBC News, the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, 100 Black Men of America, IMPACTO, the African American Democratic Leadership Council and the College of Southern Nevada will co-sponsor the debate among the Democratic candidates. The debate will take place at the Cashman Center in Las Vegas, Nev., from 6-8 p.m. PST.”

Thanks so much! Please let me know if you were able to get through…. thanks!