I know that some of you are not McCain supporters but I would really like for you to take the time and read this letter that was passed to me. It really puts things into perspective. If you are McCain supporter please take time to copy, paste, pass this letter on. THANKS!!!
Dear Friends:
My name is Joe Porter. I live in Champaign, Illinois. I'm
46 years old, a born-again Christian, a husband, a father, a small business
owner, a veteran, and a homeowner. I don't consider myself to be either
conservative or liberal, and I vote for the person, not Republican or
Democrat. I don't believe there are 'two Americas ' but that every person
in this country can be whomever and whatever they want to be if they'll just
work to get there and nowhere else on earth can they find such
opportunities. I believe our government should help those who are
legitimately downtrodden, and should always put the interests of America
first.
The purpose of this message is that I'm concerned about the
future of this great nation. I'm worried that the silent majority of honest,
hard-working, tax-paying people in this country have been passive for too
long. Most folks I know choose not to involve themselves in politics. They
go about their daily lives, paying their bills, raising their kids, and
doing what they can to maintain the good life. They vote and consider doing
so to be a sacred trust. They shake their heads at the political pundits and
so-called 'news', thinking that what they hear is always spun by whomever is
reporting it. They can't understand how elected officials can regularly
violate the public trust with pork barrel spending. They don't want
government handouts. They want the government to protect them, not raise
their taxes for more government programs.
We are in the unique position in this country of electing
our leaders. It's a privilege to do so. I've never found a candidate in any
election with whom I agreed on everything. I'll wager that most of us don't
even agree with our families or spouses 100% of the time. So when I step
into that voting booth, I always try to look at the big picture and cast my
vote for the man or woman who is best qualified for the job. I've hired a
lot of people in my lifetime, and essentially that's what an election is - a
hiring process. Who has the credentials? Whom do I want working for me? Whom
can I trust to do the job right?
I'm concerned that a growing number of voters in this
country simply don't get it. They are caught up in a fervor they can't
explain, and calling it 'change'.
'Change what?', I ask.
'Well, we're going to change America', they say.
'In what way?', I query.
'We want someone new and fresh in= the White House', they
exclaim.
'So, someone who's not a politician?', I say.
'Uh, well, no, we just want a lot of stuff changed, so we're
voting for Obama', they state.
'So the current system, the system of freedom and democracy
that has enabled a man to grow up in this great country, get a fine
education, raise incredible amounts of money and dominate the news, and win
his party's nomination for the White House that system's all wrong?'
'No, no, that part of the system's okay we just need a lot of
change.'
And so it goes. 'Change we can believe in.'
Quite frankly, I don't believe that vague proclamations of
change hold any promise for me. In recent months, I've been asking virtually
everyone I encounter how they're voting. I live in Illinois, so most folks
tell me they're voting for Barack Obama. But no one can really tell me why
only that he's going to change a lot of stuff 'Change, change, change.' I
have yet to find one single person who can tell me distinctly and
convincingly why this man is qualified to be President and
Commander-in-Chief of the most powerful nation on earth other than the fact
that he claims he's going to implement a lot of change.
We've all seen the emails about Obama's genealogy, his
upbringing, his Muslim background, and his church affiliations. Let's ignore
this for a moment. Put it all aside. Then ask yourself, 'What qualifies this
man to be my president? That he's a brilliant orator and talks about
change?'
CHANGE WHAT?
Friends, I'll be forthright with you I believe the American
voters who are supporting Barack Obama don't have a clue what they're doing,
as evidenced by the fact that not one of them - NOT ONE of them I've spoken
to can spell out his qualifications. Not even the most liberal media can
explain why he should be elected. Political experience? Negligible. Foreign
relations? Non-existent. Achievements? Name one. Someone who wants to
unite the country? If you haven't read his wife's thesis from Princeton,
look it up on the web. This is who's lining up to be our next First Lady?
The only thing I can glean from Obama's constant harping about change is
that we're in for a lot of new taxes.
For me, the choice is clear. I've looked carefully at the two
leading applicants for the job, and I've made my choice.
Here's a question - 'Where were you five and a half years
ago? Around Christmas, 2002. You've had five or six birthdays in that time.
My son has grown from a sixth grade child to a high school graduate. Five
and a half years is a good chunk of time. About 2,000 days. 2,000 nights of
sleep. 6, 000 meals, give= or take.'
John McCain spent that amount of time, from 1967 to 1973,
in a North Vietnamese prisoner-of-war camp.
When offered early release, he refused it. He considered
this offer to be a public relations stunt by his captors, and insisted that
those held longer than he should be released first. Did you get that part?
He was offered his freedom, and he turned it down. A regimen of beatings
and torture began.
Do you possess such strength of character? Locked in a filthy
cell in a foreign country, would you turn down your own freedom in favor of
your fellow man? I submit that's a quality of character that is rarely
found, and for me, this singular act defines John McCain.
Unlike several presidential candidates in recent years whose
military service is questionable or non-existent, you will not find anyone
to denigrate the integrity and moral courage of this man. A graduate of
Annapolis, during his Naval service he received the Silver Star, Bronze
Star, Purple Heart and Distinguished Flying Cross. His own son is now
serving in the Marine Corps in Iraq . Barack Obama is fond of saying 'We
honor John McCain's service...BUT...', which to me is condescending and
offensive - because what I hear is, 'Let's forget this man's sacrifice for
his country, and his proven leadership abilities, and talk some more about
change.'
I don't agree with John McCain on everything - but I am utterly
convinced that he is qualified to be our next President, and I trust him to
do what's right. I know in my heart that he has the best interests of our
country in mind. He doesn't simply want to be President - he wants to lead
America, and there's a huge difference. Factually, there is simply no
comparison between the two candidates. A man of questionable background and
motives who prattles on about change, can't hold a candle to a man who has
devoted his life in public service to this nation, retiring from the Navy
in1981 and elected to the Senate in1982.
Perhaps Obama's supporters are taking a stance between old and
new. Maybe they don't care about McCain's service or his strength of
character, or his unblemished qualifications to be President. Maybe
'likeability' is a higher priority for them than 'trust'. Being a prisoner
of war is not what qualifies John McCain to be President of the United
States of America - but his demonstrated leadership certainly DOES.
Dear friends, it is time for us to stand. It is time for
thinking Americans to say, 'Enough.' It is time for people of all parties to
stop following the party line. It is time for anyone who wants to keep
America first, who wants the right man leading their nation, to start a
dialogue with all their friends and neighbors and ask who they're voting
for, and why.
There's a lot of evil in this world. That should be readily
apparent to all of us by now. And when faced with that evil as we are now,
I want a man who knows the cost of war on his troops and on his citizens. I
want a man who puts my family's interests before any foreign country.
I want a President who's qualified to lead.
I want my country back, and I'm voting for John McCain.
Phone: 760.434.1395
E-mail: ronald.hess@alumni.purdue.edu
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