My last pre-election editorial for my local paper.

[ZombieNixon]

WHY VOTE FOR KERRY?
If the presidential debates showed one thing, it is that the person who can make the best argument against George Bush is George Bush. But enough Bush-bashing. What is the case for John Kerry? For many, the best argument is “he’s not Bush.” True, but is voting against the incumbent reason enough to vote for the challenger? Sometimes, yes, but it always helps if the challenger closes the deal. For the rest of this article, I will explain my support for John Kerry without mentioning the name of the incumbent president. Here goes.
A Kerry Administration will at least be thoughtful in their decisions and will resist the temptation to jump headlong into a policy decision without thinking about its effects and counter effects. What the government needs to realize is that everything is interconnected. It is not enough to simply have a foreign policy, an economic policy and a health care policy. The president, whoever he (or she, at some future date) might be, must understand that all these things work together and that changes to one will affect another. That’s why Kerry’s plan to reduce our dependency on Middle Eastern oil, an environmental, economic and foreign policy issue, seems like a good place to start.
As Americans, we must wean ourselves from our crippling dependence on Middle Eastern oil. Because we are so dependent of fossil fuels, Saudi Arabia actually owns 7 or 8 percent of our country. As a result, a regime Amnesty International repeatedly condemns for gross human rights violations has us over a barrel. We cannot attempt to find much more oil under our own ground for a very simple reason. The United States only has 3 percent of the world’s crude oil reserves, compared to a whopping 57 percent in the Middle East. We have to find alternative ways to power our society. Many companies have developed hybrid or electric automobiles, but the Federal Government is reluctant to subsidize significant research into alternative energy sources. Kerry plans to invest in research and exploration to develop effective use of renewable energy like solar and wind power. He will also develop ways to use America’s own natural resources, like coal and natural gas, more cleanly and efficiently. This will drastically diminish the harm done to the environment by the burning of fossil fuels. It will also set us on the path to alternative fuels for cars, eventually reducing the amount of money we spend at the gas pump each week. If we reduce our dependence on foreign oil, we will no longer have to deal with oppressive fundamentalist regimes in the Middle East just to get cheap fuel. It’s putting our national security at risk.
As for national security, John Kerry says that he will not let up in the fight against terrorism. I trust him. As a senator, Kerry spearheaded the investigation of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI), an international criminal bank connected to narcotics traffickers as well as terrorists. During the Reagan Administration, after the Iran/Contra scandal, John Kerry was tasked with tracking down drug connections between Iran and the Contras. In the early 1990s, he discovered drug and money laundering connections from the BCCI not only to Noriega but also to then-CIA operative Osama Bin Laden. Immediately, everyone in Washington, in both parties, pressured Kerry to back down. Instead, he took all the information he collected and gave it to Robert Morgenthau, a New York District Attorney. By 1991, Morgenthau’s and Kerry’s investigations had exposed what Morgenthau called “one of the biggest criminal enterprises in world history.” If John Kerry pursues al-Qaeda with the same doggedness that he did BCCI, we’ll be in good hands.
Domestic issues are traditionally Democratic territory, and John Kerry won’t let us down. I don’t believe the wealthiest Americans deserve a tax cut at the expense of the middle-class and the working poor. Sure enough, Kerry will roll back the recent tax cuts for Americans making over $200,000 a year. If you wonder how Kerry can pay for all his plans, remember that the president does not put all of his plans into effect at once. The money we will glean from the rollback of the tax cuts for the rich can go toward kick-starting our economy, reducing the deficit, allowing for spending on health care, education and homeland security. I think that ss a man of depth, Kerry understands this. You can be sure that Kerry will try his hardest to cut health care costs, improve education and increase funding for homeland security, but as his support for a balanced budget shows a commitment to fiscal responsibility that is rarely seen in Washington these days.
I don’t expect everyone to agree with my assessment as there are genuine ideological differences in this country at this time, but on a personal level, John Kerry has shown himself to be a man of intelligence and courage. It may not mean much, but he has my full support to become the next president of the United States of America.
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I had orignally posted this in GD:2004, but I think it's better here. Please critique it. I welcome all feedback.