The Spectrum's editorial board voted to endorse Democratic candidate Barack Obama for president in a 22 to 5 decision on Sunday.
There can be no mistake that politics as usual has become more about talking points than real positions on real issues. Modern informational technology allows full access to information at any time, and has paradoxically reduced the amount the average person knows.
As a result, it has been hard to understand what either candidate from the major political parties will actually do if elected. They don't make it obvious and even the small amount of digging that is necessary to uncover the truth has proven to be too much for many.
But in an era where everything is scrutinized, Obama has weathered the media storm alone, for the most part, while John McCain has lingered in the background until recently. While letting an opponent fight him or herself weak is a fine tactic, it has backfired in this case: A mostly-unscathed Obama is the candidate that has had the most face time of anyone in the race.
In a time of financial crisis, Obama has promised an economically progressive tax, where those who make more pay more than those with less.
Both candidates have promised to cut federal spending, but John McCain supports a war that is a financial drain on our country. Obama's plan to scale back our involvement in Iraq logically suggests that he will cut funding from areas where it makes sense, and he plans to attack the loopholes that make pork-barrel spending so fatty.
Obama has drawn and will soon draw more ire for being a "tax and spend" liberal. It is better to tax and spend than to simply continue spending money the U.S. doesn't have. This country needs to learn once and for all that buying on credit is a foolhardy and dangerous thing to do.
The U.S. was made great in the eyes of the world partially because of its ability to care for its own people. We cannot let that image die.
There is no guarantee that Obama will save this country, fix it or even help it. But we have spent the last eight years suffering through one way of doing things and that way hasn't worked. It's time to try something different.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
