With McCain’s pick of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin we are staring at the most historic election in the history of the United States. In November the great people of our nation will go to the voting booths and have a choice between a half white, half black, child of a single mother and an immigrant father or a mother of 5. Let there be no doubt we’re living in historic times.That being said, I have a problem with both VP picks. Obama picked a lifelong politician to appease those who think he doesn’t have the experience to lead the nation. McCain picked a woman, frankly, to curry as much favor with women who voted for Hilary in the primaries just because Hilary was a woman. At their core, both choices are, at best, placating swing voters and, at worst, publicity stunts.Not that this really changes my mind. I’ll be voting for Obama this fall. In a two party system you’re stuck choosing the person who most closely represents your own feelings and interests and, for me, that person is Obama. Why?

• I’m an advocate for a woman’s right to choose what she does with her own body.
• I think the Iraq war was, and continues to be, a stain on the history of our great nation.
• I don’t think religion belongs anywhere near our government.
• I believe that we should be heavily investing in alternative energy. I believe in this so strongly that we should do so at the expense of heavier taxes and a decreased military budget. Make no mistake; the future of America’s economy heavily depends on affordable, renewable energy.
• I believe drugs and prostitution should be legalized, taxed and regulated. Australia has a brothel that’s a publicly traded company. The Netherlands has had legalized drugs for quite some time now. Both are respected members of the international community and neither of their societies have spiraled out of control into the pits of Hell.
• I believe that people making tons of money should pay more, not less, in taxes. If you’re making over $250,000 a year I really don’t want to hear you bitching about paying 10% more in taxes than a single mother making $25,000 a year. I wonder how you’ll “sustain” on “only” $150,000 a year in net income.

Given the above facts about my own personal beliefs the best candidate for me is Barack Obama. There’s no way in hell he’d propose legalizing drugs or prostitution and he’s a church going man, but he’ll get us the hell out of Iraq, put taxes on the rich back in place that Bush removed, invest heavily in alternative energy and fight for a woman’s choice. I can live with that.