10 reasons why I might vote for McCain (in no particular order):

1. I like McCain’s slogan “Country First” much more than I like Obama’s old slogan “Yes We Can”. (Seriously, have the people who own Bob the BuilderTM sued for trademark infringement yet? Perhaps, none of the Obama supporters have young children and recognize the blatant rip-off.) Although I wonder about McCain’s personal honesty, morals and commitment to family values, I sense sincerity in his desire to serve his country.

2. I do not think that acting heroically as a prisoner of war qualifies one to be the Commander-in-Chief anymore than I think bravely standing-up to ones assailants while getting mugged in New York City qualifies one to be the police chief. Nevertheless, I think that military service in general is a plus for a president.

3. I think that experience counts – just like education and intellect. McCain clearly has more experience in passing large legislative initiatives. He has much more foreign policy experience. He has more military policy experience – not just as a field officer, but as the liaison to the Senate, where he had to have been involved in big picture strategic initiatives.

4. McCain was right about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. (Obama took large amounts of political contributions from both groups). McCain is right about earmarks and governmental spending. Despite the fact that I am not convinced that the super-rich in the country should not bear a higher tax burden, I believe that most Americans should pay less tax. I do not trust Obama when he says that he won’t raise taxes on working Americans.

5. I think that time has proved that the Iraq war was misguided. The justifications given for going to war turned out to be false. (I will not opine as to whether this was deliberate or not.) I think that we have witnessed the fulfillment of Book of Mormon teachings on the consequences of choosing to wage offensive wars rather than trusting the Lord and defending our homeland. See, e.g., 3 Ne. 3:20-21. I also think that the post-war reconstruction was terribly mishandled and rife with corruption and immoral behavior, much of it known by the current administration. Nevertheless, now that we are there, I believe that we need to be responsible in our withdrawal. I do not think that the quick exit proposed by Obama would be wise.

6. Joe “Stand up, Chuck” Biden. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRV5Y1JCGRI.

7. I think that divided government is a good thing. My read of history suggests widespread corruption and unbridled excess during the periods when both houses of Congress and the presidency have been controlled by the same power. (Unfortunately, it was no different this recent go around.) It is not likely that Republicans will win control of Congress. Thus, I think that a Republican in the White House would be a positive development.

8. I think the Saturday Night Live skits will be more humorous if McCain is president and Palin is vice president. The media is too in love with Obama to seriously lampoon him.

9. I think McCain will not expand government as much as Obama. Admittedly, McCain has a bad track record on this. He was responsible for one of the single largest abridgments of free speech rights in the nation’s history with the campaign finance bill. He is for massive government regulation with respect to the environment. He also agreed with the near-socialist takeover by the government of one of the largest insurers in the world, AIG. Nevertheless, he is probably the lesser of two evils.

10. Obama reminds me of Eddie Haskell from “Leave it to Beaver”.

RZA