Odds and Sods

Gonna be hot today. I used to like the heat. I'd find a 100-degree day exciting. Now that it's routine (or at least will be soon enough), I've grown to dislike them. Still, something about a piping hot cup of coffee which really boosts my mood. I find myself in good spirits today.

Not going to get all heavy into philosophizing today. It's Friday, after all. Then again, when you're unemployed, every day could be a Friday- or a Monday. I guess it's all how you approach it. Damn. I guess I had to get a little deep there. Sorry.

While I'm waiting for my clothes to get done in the dryer I made the mistake of picking up the paper and reading about our two nominees for president, Obama and McCain. I can't wait for November. Not that I want Bush out of office: I just want the election and all the rhetoric all over with. Believe me, this election will only be historic for how much b.s. is thrown our way.

"Change" seems to be the buzzword for Obama campaign, which puzzles me in a couple of ways. First of all, people hate change. Secondly, the words I'm hearing Obama say sound nothing like change to me. "We're going to change the way we do things in Washington". Oh. That's a new one. Plus, can you really claim change when one of the people you appoint to be in charge of the vice presidential search is a Kennedy? What, no Roosevelt's available? You can ask five people what they'd like to change and get five different answers. It stands to reason then (Philosophizing!) that whatever is changed is going to anger more people than it pleases. I will give credit to Obama as having a wonderful way with words, so much so that he can whip a crowd into a frenzy without really saying anything. That's quite a gift.

The most important issue this year has to be national security and who can best protect the country. We have a geographic advantage in that if most of the world goes to hell in a hand basket, two oceans protect us. We have a geographic disadvantage because of our sheer size. Every inch of the border, every mile of coastline...it's impossible to protect it all. Bad guys will fall through the cracks. Who will keep more bad guys out? I'm not quite convinced it's the junior senator from Illinois. The only time I hear Islamic fascists talk about "unity" is when they determine how many suicide bombs they'd like to detonate simultaneously.

Not that McCain is making me quiver (yeah, quiver) like a belly full of jelly. He's been down this road before, and voters have passed. That fact that he's come this far only showcases how weak the field has become (NOTE: I've said before that I thought Guiliani was the best candidate, but he didn't seem to have his heart in the race). McCain certainly hasn't been a friend to Nevada, as he has been outspoken in wanting to take the right to bet on college sports away from us. He's been weak on illegal immigration, but since he was representing Arizona all these years, this was undoubtedly pandering to the electorate. It'll be interesting to see what happens with his policy should he get elected.

I believe it will be Obama who will win the election. I just see him gathering too much over the summer. What would help Obama as well is the improving situation in Iraq. Ironic, isn't it, that the continued improving situation overseas could lead to the election of someone fervently against the war in the first place? Wild, wild stuff.

And seriously....what kind of odds do you think you would've gotten that the new president of the United States in November of 2008 would have the middle name of....

Hussein?

More importantly, would President McCain have let us wager on it?