I firmly believe that the WASP members of the Silent Generation and older Baby Boomers are afraid that an African American will be elected to the high office of President of The United States of America.I believe that their fears lie in the thought that they may be punished for their thoughts,words and actions in the past,present and future.

For too many years  the media and general population have preached political correctness and acceptence of all races as being one blood.I see the anger building in the Mid West and parts of the Good Old Boy Democratic South,particularly Florida.Fear is rising huge that a black man,not an American,but an African American will probably be the next president and with a landslide of 10% plus of the vote.

That day is almost here and then,and only then,can the healing of centuries old wounds on all sides begin to heal.I am so grateful that I was alive for such a momentus turning of the tide.How we as individuals handle this will determine the future of America.Are we the strong backbone of the world or are we just a bully that runs around the world preaching one thing and living another?

Most of you are too young to have lived through our own apartheid and I am here to tell you that it was a shameful time in our lives.Racism is alive and well today,it has  just been relagated for the most part to the back of the closet.

Now is the time to fully examine our own motives,fears and goals for our children and to put aside any thoughts that someone who is different in color only ,is  not capable of being a true American and capable of leading this country through these extrememly difficult times ahead.

In the mid seventies,while stationed for two years in Italy,I lived in the Italian Riviera town of Terrania  in a lovely small villa overlooking  the beautiful Piazza della Fiore.

One of my neighbors was a member of the Brigate Rosse or better known as the Red Brigade or the  well known Italian Communist Party that was extremely violent with bombings,killings and kidnappings in the early 80s.I  made it known that I had to associate briefly with this man just because of our living situation and an occassional encounter socially.

This is much like what Senator Obama is being raked through the coals over.Any slight innocent  chance occurrance taken in an out of context way can be made to sound so unpatriotic and almost bordering on the criminal side.

I have to say then that I associated with an axe murderer because of a past acquaintence who did his wife in one night with  his wood chopper in a drunken fit of rage.Just because a past brush with different individuals seems  out of line,it in no way reflects on the morals,ethics and values of anyone.it's something to think about.

As voters we have choices and as voters we have responsibilities of citizenship.That is to educate ourselves to be able to make the best decision possible for ourselves.

Democratic Party:

Barack Obama/Joe Biden

Republican Party:

John McCain/Sarah Palin

Independent Candidates:

Ralph Nader/Matt Gonzalez

Socialism and Liberation Party:

Gloria La Riva/Eugene Puryear

Socialist Workers Party:

James E Harris/Alyson Kennedy

Libertarian Party:

Bob Barr/Wayne A Root

Constitution Party:

Chuck Baldwin/Darrell L Castle

Green Party:

Cynthia McKinney/Rosa Clemente

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Sarah Palin unlawfully abused her power as governor by trying to have her former brother-in-law fired as a state trooper, the chief investigator of an Alaska legislative panel concluded Friday. The politically charged inquiry imperiled her reputation as a reformer on John McCain's Republican ticket.

Investigator Stephen Branchflower, in a report by a bipartisan panel that investigated the matter, found Palin in violation of a state ethics law that prohibits public officials from using their office for personal gain.

The inquiry looked into her dismissal of Public Safety Commissioner Walter Monegan, who said he lost his job because he resisted pressure to fire a state trooper involved in a bitter divorce with the governor's sister. Palin says Monegan was fired as part of a legitimate budget dispute.
The panel found that Palin let the family grudge influence her decision-making even if it was not the sole reason Monegan was dismissed. "I feel vindicated," Monegan said. "It sounds like they've validated my belief and opinions. And that tells me I'm not totally out in left field."

Branchflower said Palin violated a statute of the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act.

Palin and McCain's supporters had hoped the inquiry's finding would be delayed until after the presidential election to spare her any embarrassment and to put aside an enduring distraction as she campaigns as McCain's running mate in an uphill contest against Democrat Barack Obama.

But the panel of lawmakers voted to release the report, although not without dissension.

"I think there are some problems in this report," said Republican state Sen. Gary Stevens, a member of the panel. "I would encourage people to be very cautious, to look at this with a jaundiced eye."

The nearly 300-page report does not recommend sanctions or a criminal investigation.

Palin's critics have said Palin used her office to settle family affairs.

Campaign's version of events
In an effort to head off the report, McCain campaign spokesman Taylor Griffin released the campaign's own version of events. That report, which Griffin said was written by campaign staffers, says the Legislature has taken a legitimate policy dispute between a governor and one of her commissioners, and portrayed it as something inappropriate.

Campaign blames former opponent
The campaign's report blames former campaign opponent Andrew Halcro, who has a blog, of conspiring with Wooten to pin Monegan's dismissal on the family's dispute with Wooten. Three days after Monegan was fired, they say, Wooten told his ex-wife, Palin's sister, that: "You guys are going down. Get ready for the show."

Two days after that confrontation, they say, Halcro and Wooten met at a hotel bar in Anchorage for more than three hours — and that evening, Halcro posted the first accusations on his blog that Monegan had been fired because of a vendetta against Wooten by the Palin family.

"It is tragic that a false story hatched by a blogger after drinks with Trooper Wooten led the legislature to allocate over $100,000 of public money to be spent in what has become a politically driven investigation," the 21-page report concludes.

Although the campaign report describes Wooten as a separate issue, the McCain campaign goes into great detail about the "rogue" trooper and his "long history of unstable and erratic behavior." The campaign describes allegations of violence, including threatening Palin's family and shooting his stepson with a stun gun.

The campaign's report also includes allegations that Wooten cheated the workers' compensation system. Todd Palin has said he had numerous conversations with government officials about why Wooten was allowed to stay on the job.

"The Palins make no apologies for wanting to protect their family and wanting to bring attention to the injustice of a violent trooper keeping his badge and abusing the workers' compensation system."

But Todd Palin said he never pressured anyone, including his wife.

The McCain campaign says the investigation has become "muddied with innuendo, rumor and partisan politics."