With the midterm elections coming, and the 2008 Presidential Sweepstakes starting up, it's time for us to be bombarded with the latest crop of useless and insulting print and video ads from the candidates. You know the ones I mean..."vote for me because my opponent secretly supports Osama bin Laden, and he's a devil-worshiping pedophile who kicks helpless puppies and kittens, and...", well, you get my drift. One of your best friends at times like these is the wonderful website FactCheck.org (http://www.factcheck.org/) run by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. Unlike most politically-oriented websites, this one is resolutely non-partisan...they dissect Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, with equal vigor, carefully analyzing the content of political ads and researching the truth of claims and allegations made by all sides. I check this site regularly, and so should you...whether you are a die-hard Republican or a dyed-in-the-wool Democrat, it's important to know the truth about the claims your respective parties are making...which invariably aren't as truthful and accurate as you probably think.

I stumbled on great piece related to these thoughts in this morning's Washington Post. Peter Carlson's article "They All Approve This Message" is a great satire on the idiocy of the modern political ad. You can find this article in the online edition of the Post at http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/23/AR2006092300959.html. On reading it, I was reminded of the famous David Allen Coe song titled, "The Perfect Country Western Song," in which he sang that a real country-western song had to include mention of mama, or trains, or trucks, or prison, or getting drunk...therefore, the perfect country-western song would include the verse:

"Well, I was drunk the day my Mom got out of prison,
And I went to pick her up in the rain,
But before I could get to the station in my pickup truck,
She got runned over by a damned old train."

Well, I've drifted a bit from my main point, which is the same point I always make in this blog: don't let anyone do your thinking for you. Be skeptical. Challenge bald assertions by politicians who want your vote, then forget about you until the next election. You have a unique opportunity to shape the future of your country with your vote. Don't waste it on morons who appeal only to your fears and your base instincts. Use FactCheck.org, read all sides of the arguments, and make an informed decision.

My grandchildren will live with the long-term results of the decisions we make today. Don't let them down.

Have a good day. More thoughts tomorrow.

Bilbo