I have been rather remiss in not posting much during this campaign season. I have spent the past two months working in NYC but also have been sickened by the tenor of this campaign. Going into this campaign, I and many others would have predicted a much more civil and reasonable campaign because of both candidates. Sadly that has not been the case. I think much of this can be blamed upon the entire system of political consultants and the media. But at the end of the day the buck has to stop with the candidate.

It has been very difficult to cut through all of the hysterical campaigning on both sides to get at the reasons to vote for either candidate. I am neither convinced that McCain is Bush III/Four More Years nor am I convinced that Obama is a closet Muslim. But I would like to give my take on the pros and cons of each candidate.

Barack Obama
Pros

• Foreign policy

Foreign policy is where I believe Obama to be a far superior candidate. The last eight years should certainly be a repudiation of an interventionist foreign policy. I have no doubt that there are those in the world who oppose us and want to harm us. Yet I think we view the world in stark black and white terms at our own peril. I imagine Obama viewing using the military as a means of last resort in international conflicts whereas it appears that McCain would view using the military as one equal tool in his toolbox. While McCain certainly has more foreign policy experience than Obama, it's not like Obama won't surround himself with plenty of experienced people. What foreign policy experience did Bush have when he was first elected? At the end of the day, I would rather have a president who wavers and struggles with a decision to "push the button" versus one who is too quick to "push the button".

• Personal Narrative

Perhaps one of the most compelling reasons for voting for Barack Obama is his personal narrative. We are on the verge of possibly electing an African-American man from a broken home, with a Kenyan father, who did not grow up privileged. Considering the sad history of racism in this country, the fact that someone with this background stands on the verge of becoming president is something that I am proud of and all Americans should be proud of. I love this country because in theory we believe that people can do anything they want to and will solely be judged on their ability rather than their race, sex, religion, etc. I recognize that we don't always get this right in practice but the election of Obama would speak volumes about the American Dream.

Cons

• Economic Policy

I am very dismayed at the class envy language that Obama is using and his general lack of economic understanding. Yes, it plays well to talk about "Wall Street greed". Yet we are all culpable. I haven't heard much furor over middle class families who lied about their incomes in order to qualify for mortgages that they couldn't afford. I'm also disturbed by Obama's claim that this current financial crisis was caused by the Bush administration and by the Republican Congress. I think that Bush and the Republican Congress have been failures. Yet this crisis certainly predates both and is most certainly a bipartisan mess. Case in point regarding Obama's economic ignorance is his support for so-called "windfall taxes" on the oil industry. I certainly don't believe that any industry should receive any government support or breaks in any way. (unlike both Democrats and Republicans; they just have different favorite industries) However, the concept of corporate taxes is ludicrous. When corporations are taxed, they simply pass the tax along to either their employees in the form of lower wages/less job growth or they pass it along to their customers in the form of higher prices. Every time. This is quite unlike personal income tax as we have no one to pass it on to. Of course it is very popular to demagogue about big business. But good intentions do not always equate with good results.

• Abortion

I recognize that abortion is a highly emotional issue. While I am strongly opposed to abortion, I do believe that reasonable people should be able to discuss this issue without resorting to epithets and incendiary language. For someone who talks a lot about representing all Americans, I am dismayed at how stubborn and intransigent that Obama appears on the issue of abortion. At no time has Obama dared challenge the extreme stances of organizations like Planned Parenthood, who profit from abortion. I recognize that abortion is not going to be banned completely in this county anytime soon and likely not in my lifetime. But I do think that reasonable people can agree that laws that allow late term abortions up until the moment of birth need to be changed. You don't have to be an ardent pro-lifer to be disgusted with this practice. Yet Obama simply prevaricates when challenged on this issue.

• Post-Partisan

I think the idea that Obama can transcend partisanship and ideology is admirable. Unfortunately this idea is just that. An idea that appears to have very little substance. If one simply reads Barack Obama's position on the issues you would conclude that he is a fairly down the middle liberal/progressive Democrat. And I don't mean that as a slur. But it is true. And for all the talk about Obama reaching across the aisle, he hasn't done it and has shown little evidence that he would. Obama just doesn't strike me as an independent thinker willing to buck the party line.

John McCain
Pros

• True Bipartisan Leadership

Unlike Obama, John McCain actually does have a strong record of reaching across the aisle to work with Democrats. Afterall, this is one of the reasons that many conservatives opposed McCain in the Republican primary. Whether or not you agree with him on the issues, McCain has shown an ability to forge alliances with Democrats to push through legislation that he believes is in the best interest of the country, even when his party disagrees. I find this a very admirable quality (which unfortunately seems to have gone by the wayside during this campaign).

• Opposed to Earmarks

If there is one thing that unites Democrats and Republicans it is their obsession with power. No matter how idealistic a member of Congress is, most cannot resist the lure of staying there, even if it means betraying their principles. And one of the biggest ways that members of Congress stay in power is through the use of earmarks, otherwise known as "buying votes". The very fact that Congress must hide these spending clauses in unrelated bills should be enough to tip us all off that simply is amiss here. To his credit, McCain has been consistently opposed to earmarks and aims to continue working to get rid of the corrupt practice.

Cons

• McCain-Feingold

Once again, good intentions do not necessarily make for good results. Many people have felt over the past 20-30 years that we need to get rid of the influence of money in political campaigns. And I am not completely opposed to such an idea. Yet, at the end of the day, how does a private citizen exercise freedom of speech in a political campaign? By donating money. Not only was this hallmark of McCain's career an abrogation of freedom of speech, but it hasn't worked. Witness the record spending of the current presidential campaigns.

• Current Campaign

For all the talk about McCain being a bipartisan kind of guy, the partisan and frankly vile tenor of his campaign has been shameful. Over the past few months, the McCain campaign has done little other than make petty personal attacks on Obama, all with the intent of firing up the base with a little blood in the water. Not only is this strategy likely going to fail but it is completely unbecoming of someone with aspirations of national leadership. The attacks on Obama are even more ironic when one considers the brutal personal attacks on McCain by the Bush campaign in 2000. I don't actually believe that this is McCain's style of doing things yet ultimately he is responsible for approving the actions of his campaign staff.

• Temperament

Irascible? Cantankerous? Easily moved to anger? I think all of these could be used to define McCain. And I'm not sure that I want a president with these traits. I was actually embarrassed by McCain's outward show of contempt towards Obama during the debates. At this point in history, I think I would much prefer a president slow to anger and slow to act.

Summary
Each of these issues for both candidates are worthy of discussion and debate. Good people can agree to disagree on these. I can certainly imagine that many of you will disagree with me. Hopefully though we can focus on these real issues and others rather than many of the non-issues that have dominated the campaign. I'm certainly dismayed by many of the petty attacks on Obama, especially those that are conspiratorial in nature. And I'm similarly dismayed by how the media has apparently given Obama a pass by not pressing him as hard as McCain on the issues.

So what does this all mean to me? How I am going to vote?

I'm not sure that I will know until I get into the voting booth tomorrow. I am very inclined to NOT vote for either one. In many ways I feel that both parties have led us into the greatest financial crisis this country has ever seen and neither party is offering any good solutions. I'm also tired of voting for the lessor of two evils and taking the pragmatic approach. I don't see that pragmatism has done us much good.

I can say that regardless of the outcome I will not predict disaster. Nor will I demonize the winner.