Character is like a tree and reputation like its shadow. The shadow is what we think of it; the tree is the real thing.

- Abraham Lincoln (1809 - 1865)

Why am I reluctant?

I just spent the last 3-hours-plus going through the Log Cabin candidate-profiles, the Club for Growth's white papers, and looking at the actual candidates' sites for several of the front-running and second-tier candidates. In-part since I wanted to take a much closer-look at Rep. Paul, who Uncle Sully's been shilling-for. While I have some sympathies for Dr. Paul's "libertarian" views, his positions on both abortion and the use of the military and Iraq are just total no-starters here. Plus, there's the unelectability -factor. Tancredo and Huckabee's anti-abortion and just down-right anti-gay positions make them non-starters, and Romney's an opportunist and flop-flopper. Plus there's the still open-issue in my mind about his Mormonism vs. his conscience and the US Constitution.

That basically leaves me back at Rudy Giuliani. He's posted his Twelve Commitments on his website, with background statements on 11 of them. In going-through the bullet points in the backgrounders, I find that I can basically agree with just about all of them, and I can even live with his position on gay marriage if balanced by meaningful domestic partnership laws.

Yet I feel a general unease...I just don't trust the man...and I'm not sure why. It's the same feeling I have towards Dick Nixon or Frank Rizzo; they're all-right for 95% of the time...but watch out for the 5%, especially in the middle of the night. For some reason I have the mental image of a Pres. Giuliani wandering the halls of the White House late at-night...between crises...muttering to himself about perceived enemies in the fashion of the failed Nixon-presidency. He's whole persona's repellant, like a Mob boss or a long-time ward-healer on-the-make....and the take. I got the same "vibe" from Jim McGreevey when I'd run into him at functions back when he was my closeted-Governor; you just didn't want to shake his hand or be anywhere near him. "Danger! ...Danger, Will Robinson!"

Do you vote agenda, or character? Is electing St. Hillarybeast for 4 years safer(!!) than allowing ANY of the GOP-hopefuls near the Oval Office? I'd feel better if Newt Gingrich was running...or at-least was locked-in as Giuliani's Vice-Presidential running-mate.

It's late, and I need a drink,

Is LCR - National effective?

It would help if the LCR-Natl’ had some money to spread around like a proper “special interest”….but that’s right, they’re broke and won’t tell anyone (including the general membership) the truth about it’s finances. No-one has yet explained where the “One-million-dollars” alledgedly spent by Patrick (the First) to defeat a Republican-candidate-and-sitting-President in the 2004 general election came from in the first-place. …Smart move.

And other than a e-newsletter and sponsoring upscale ski-parties and $1500-a-person “fly-ins” to Washington DC…what has LCR-Natl. been doing? Many of the local and state chapters have been busy getting G/L Republicans involved at the local-level, but there’s no sign of any Nationally-generated grassroots political operation, not any overt lobbying on the Hill or to the White House. Oh, that’s right…they don’t have any money to spread around….

And without some financial and organizational transparency, I’m reluctant to give at the “what-ever“-level without knowing where it’s going and who authorized the budget…and who’s auditing the books.

A Mormon President?

I'm not supporting Romney for President, but not because of the Mormon past; I'm disconcerted by their Prophet and his theological authority over any faithful Mormon today and tomorrow. As a beliving Mormon and Mormon bishop, Romney does not answer to his own moral conscience; he answers to his Prophet. What pressures might a Prophet have over the decisions and actions of the President of the United States; who holds the powers of life and death over the entire planet via the Presidential "football", who is Commander-in-chief, and commands the full weight of the Federal Government. If the Prophet calls in the middle of the night, at what point does his Presidential oath to uphold the Constitution and protect the people of the United States conflict with his obedience to his Prophet over some moral, ethical or even apolcalypic crisis?
I want a President of the United States who owns and answers to his own conscience; not to his Prophet, his Holy Father, nor any any other failible third-person. The presidency is dfferent than any other elected-office in America, and requires special consideration of who has access to it's unique powers....

A First Step towards Reform

It certainly makes sense to have some-reform of the familial-ties aspect of immigration. Does it really serve the public good that once one member of a family getts residency-status or citizenship that the ENTIRE CLAN gets first-dibs on the limited number of legal slots. I can understand spouses and children, and parents where the children are native-born; but why grandparents and aunts, uncles and fourth-cousins and THEIR children....over meritorious candidates with needed skills and/or capital. As long as it doesn't turn into a education-derby. If we needed murses we allow more nurses, if we need more field-laborers allow more field-laborers. But just because the applicant has a Ph.D. in Compartive Literature or Bio-Sciences does mean he gets in line-first....especially if we need construction workers, etc...

And frankly, most "professional" credentials from foreign countries at face-value are NOT comparible to US credentials and work experience. In my own profession, there are maybe 5 or 10 international schools who's graduates are one-to-one with those of our graduate schools....and we in-the-profession still requier years of apprenticeship and testing before licensure. Our major "immigration" problem is getting/incouraging the international students in our graduate programs to return home afterwards...like they agreed-to in their visa-applications. Too-many just stay afterwards, work here, then claim "irreplaceable skillls" after-the-fact.

I'm not sure I fully-understand the part where they have to return to their country-of-origin to fill-out their paperwork. If they will already have probationary-status here, and they don't have to permanently go home and wait; why go home to do the application? I could understand if they had to go to their consulate; that would make the home-country feel some of our pain as they attempt to cope with the flood at their consulates' gates demanding consular-services help with the forms.