Endorsement

May Day Rally, originally uploaded by Dalmatica.

Not that my endorsement is worth a flip...but I thought I'd make it official: I'm voting for Barack Obama and Joe the Senator. Like my two readers haven't guessed by now. :)

Let me just say a couple things about this endorsement. It has not been as easy as I've might have led on.

First, I really do have deep discomforts about Obama's stated strategic policies concerning our intervention in Iraq and Afghanistan. First among which is the way he cavalierly treated our relationship to Pakistan in recent debates. The last thing we need folks, in removing Al-Qaeda, is to overlook the unthinking mess we might create with a nuclear-armed regime and a bunch of nationalistic Pakistanis, who are battle-hardy and not necessarily push-overs and moderate-leaning. How we deal with Afghanistan has 100% to do with what is going on in the rest of the steppe and that means pointedly, Kashmir, and our relationship with India. We're not dealing with the real issues if we're not willing to deal realistically with the larger concerns of the Pakistani people.

But this is a time of many concerns and (gasp) greater threats to our national stability and freedom are on the line. The quality of the character, intelligence, pragmatism and leadership potential of the candidates therefore has to be my top priority. Fact is, Iraq and Afghanistan may not be the only countries in dire straits. Scared as I am for the fate of the M.E., I simply can't afford to make my decision on one issue. I'm praying that Obama is as wise as he seems, so that he may chart a more realistic course than he's stated. I can trust him. James Zogby's endorsement of Obama has given me some comfort.

But I can't trust McCain.

As a Latino, the most disappointing thing about this past year has been to witness a man who I've held in great affection and esteem, an honorable man, a decent human being, a highly principled man,...summarily (and without much effort it seemed to me) betray my estimation of him by compromising on all his once stated values. I'm wounded by McCain's betrayal of his once notable, conscious-laden stance against his party's policies concerning immigration reform. I am saddened by his seeming complicity with his party's complete disregard for decency by shamelessly employing political terrorism and fear-mongering with tactics reminiscent of Jim Crow days. I am willing to tolerate negative ads, but really, this is beyond me. This is unprincipled as unprincipled can be. This is intolerable. This is reversing every strive we've made since Civil Rights. A man who would allow this kind of conduct in his campaign is willing to compromise sacred American values. This certainly is not the kind of quality we need in a leader to lead America in our century.