For those of you who are doubting McCain...

[buddy brown]

P-wiggler, I wouldn't mind her diving into the ice cold waters w/ just a t-shirt.

[CharlieS.]

Charlie... in case you couldnt figure it out. I DONT CARE. I simply put that there because you guys crack me up and I knew id atleast piss half of you off.

We are screwed either way... all politicians are a joke.. and I will be fishing no matter who is in office. Take a deep breath so your face doesnt get so red.

Ohh I agree that most (if not all) are a joke . Look at the long list of career ones . As far as the comments back and forth ,well.....its mainly "water cooler talk" I feel ,something to talk about during the day is all..much like the whats better on boat brands . While an individual may not care ,probably most of them speak on a different thread ,one that is some what , more towards there interest . Me ,crap...I havent said much in the regular boards ,just due to not fishing in quite a while ,so I watch these ,and mainly just lurk on others . Hmmm,red face...damnit....must be the lighting in my office

[Shawn R.]

I think the bottom line is this:
Dems are voting for Obama, Repubs are voting McCain. Its the independants who for whatever reason have not decided yet will swing the vote. I just wish people would look at the issues and truly study both sides, hell i watch Fox and CNBC to hear both sides but to me it is obviously clear which way we need to go!!!
I cant wait for Thursdays debate!!!

[DL]

Are they going to actually debate?? or are they using the same format of canned questions and canned answers that both candidates have already rehearsed....

[mark poulson]

DL,
We can only hope....

[CharlieS.]

Canned? .. cmon.... arent these "debates" real ?

[bpm2000]

I think the bottom line is this:
Dems are voting for Obama, Repubs are voting McCain. Its the independants who for whatever reason have not decided yet will swing the vote. I just wish people would look at the issues and truly study both sides, hell i watch Fox and CNBC to hear both sides but to me it is obviously clear which way we need to go!!!
I cant wait for Thursdays debate!!!

To expand your point, it would be nice if people realized there are more than two parties in the system. Not all independents are sitting on the fence waiting for which of the big two to vote for. I wish people would study ALL sides, not just "both". More viable choices would be a better thing in these elections imo.

And I would never watch Fox to try to get any sort of real information.

[Bison]

Mark,
I respect your reply to me and I agree( for the most part)
that was very well written.

off subject, has anyone fished cachuma lately? Im looking for the best guide, to learn the lake???? I haven't fished it since college.

I'll even fish with a democrate guide... I'll promise to keep my mouth shut! haa

[j10b]

Thats exactly what America needs. Another Bush for 4 years!

that would be Obama... he will have to survive by surrounding himself with people that know more than him, just like Bush did. Difference? Bush is in with Big Oil, Obama is in with big Ethanol.

So 4 more years of Bush is what you are gonna get with Obama. Unless he picks better than Bush for people to surround him. But his choices so far are pretty scary. I mean his run has been propped up by a bunch of Chicago socialites.

[GaryKey]

http://www.suntimes.com/news/elections/ ... 08.article

Check this out Brian

http://www.youtube.com/user/TheMouthPeace

[Brian Linehan]

Again...I'd like to ask you Obama supporters how you feel about Obama's 20 year relationship with Reverend Wright? What about the fanatical Father Flager? Don't forget Obama's longtime confidant William Ayers, who planned on bombing the Pentagon.

Like always, nobody will respond to that. I don't blame you though. I'd be ashamed of that also!

[some guy]

Ive wanted to bomb lots of things.. never did though.

[mark poulson]

Brian,
I didn't respond before because I don't think their religious history, or lack thereof, should be the deciding thing in making my choice for President.
The constitution calls for separation of church and state for a reason.
Our country was founded by people who were fleeing religious persecution by State sponsored religions, and they saw the danger of allowing the State to become involved with religion.
The danger is that the State will chose one religion over the others, and discriminate.
Our Forefathers, the framers of the Constitution, live through that, and they wanted to make sure it didn't happen here.
I am grateful for the freedom to worship as I choose.
As to the candidates themselves, I think trying to peek into everything they've ever done, or everyone they've ever been associated with, is not productive in choosing who should lead our country right now.
Both of them have had associations that aren't kosher. So do most of the rest of us.
I think we should look at what they plan to do, and make an informed decision based on what their positions are, and how well we think they'll run the country.
I watched Gary Key's video connection, and it was very disturbing to me.
Not because I think it's lies.
It's because I think it's probably mostly true.
That's why it's so important for us all to learn as much as we can about how we got into this mess, so we can demand more from our elected leaders in the future, and make educated judgements about what they say and plan to do.
Bill Clinton, who I voted for twice, did facilitate this mess.
The Jimmy Carter federal policy that mandated affordable housing for people was a good thing.
Clinton's loosening of the regulations, and changing of the requirements in terms of forcing banks to participate or be fined, was a disaster.
But there was a Congress in power at that time that approved those changes, without batting an eye, because they all, both sides, get money from financial interests to get elected. And the changes would never have passed if the financial interests didn't think they could make more money with the new regs. And they did.
We all knew that these mortgages were a disaster waiting to happen.
How can a couple afford a house where the payments are predicated on them both making $50K, and where neither of them can miss a weeks work without falling behind in their payments?
And how can people be so naive as to think an interest free/sub-prime loan, with a change to an adjustable rate mortgage in four years, isn't just postponing the inevitable?
If you can't afford a house now, wait. I did. So did most of the rest of us.
But it's done. The horse is out of the barn.
Now we need to find a way to fix this mistake without killing our economy.
So who we pick in November is critical, for that tone and agenda they set for the next four years.
And, if I see Bush, Cheny, Clinton, and Ralph Nader in a crosswalk in front of me, it's going to be tempting.
Do you think we'd be in Iraq if Gore, who actually won the majority of votes, had been declared the winner in 2000?
All that said, I like your haircut.

Again...I'd like to ask you Obama supporters how you feel about Obama's 20 year relationship with Reverend Wright? What about the fanatical Father Flager? Don't forget Obama's longtime confidant William Ayers, who planned on bombing the Pentagon.

Like always, nobody will respond to that. I don't blame you though. I'd be ashamed of that also!

[Brian Linehan]

I don't think their religious history, or lack thereof, should be the deciding thing in making my choice for President.
The constitution calls for separation of church and state for a reason.

Great points Mark, especially about your fondness for my haircut So let me ask you this....If John McCain was a member of an extremist Islamic mosque and his pastor publicly denounced the US, is that ok with you?

[some guy]

Brian you are being a big meany

[mark poulson]

Brian,
No one is saying either candidate is a member of an extremist sect or religion.
All the accusations are that they were associated with people who were extreme.
I don't think debating whether or not I think a member of an extremist Muslim sect, or an extremist fundamentalist Christian sect, is relevant, since neither candidate is such a member.
I don't know if you remember when Tom Bradley ran for Mayor of Los Angeles.
There were wild accusations that, if Bradley won, the Black Panthers would run City Hall.
Those accusations, and the current crop of accusations, are just an attempt to play to our fears and prejudices.
If any of them were true, don't you think the TV networks, who would put child pornography on prime time if they could get away with it to make money, would have it front and center of every newscast?
I mean, if they can muster a "Storm Watch" every time a cloud appears, imagine how they'd run with something like that.
To me, it is just some dogmatic extremists who want to introduce mistruths into the process, to keep us from actually demanding real answers to the problems we face.
Haircuts aside, this isn't about whether you or I are right or wrong.
It's about learning as much as we can about both me by having them vetted on national television and radio, so we can make informed decisions, not just rant and rave, and vote for "our team".
I, for one, am embarrassed and a bit ashamed that I didn't know a lot of the things in Gary Key's video link, even though I've voted in every election since 1969. So I had the responsibility to be informed. But I wasn't back then. And I still don't know enough to say what's true or not, but I'm afraid a lot of it is true.
And, if it is, it means I voted for a lot of the people responsible for the mess we're in now, and I wasn't informed enough (you can read that as too lazy to keep up) to properly evaluate what they were doing and saying. Shame on me.
I'd love for that video to run slower, and for what's in it to be brought out and discussed publicly, so we don't make that same mistake again.
And so we can ask the candidates about all the things that the video brings out, and let them answer as to their parts in it, and their plans to prevent a repeat performance.

[Brian Linehan]

Re-read your quote Mark You said that a persons religion is irrelevant. Caught ya!

[Alex M.]

Mark......Can I hire you to be my attorney?
This man is on it, and you can't hate on the fact that the groundwork for his argument is based on factual information as opposed to hearsay and 3rd party BS. Opinions are like butt-holes...Everyones got one and they all stink

I'm just sayin .......

[mark poulson]

Brian,
I plead CRS.
I don't think a person's religion should be relevant. Membership in an extremist group that doesn't abide by our country's laws is relevant.
Neither candidate is a member of such a group.
Neither one is bald, either, but I still think they're okay.

[mark poulson]

Alex,
I'm just a Jewish carpenter, not a lawyer.
I'm not as informed as I'd like to be.
I think that's due, in large part, to a failure of our press to actually investigate and report what's really going on.
Just as there are very few statesmen left in politics, because flash and appearance sell, in journalism, it's the sound bite, the headline, that gets into the papers, not the "boring" truth.
It is possible to find out the truth today, but it takes a great deal of informed investigation.
So much is happening all the time, it's easy for things that look relatively harmless, like Clinton's alteration of Jimmy Carter's affordable housing order (if that's what it's called), to slide in under the radar.
Slowly but surely, we're being dumbed down by lack of information, so we wind up making our decisions based on half truths, and slanted reporting.
I think that, if there is a silver lining to this financial crisis, it will be that the people of the United States see that it's in all our interests to be better informed, and that those in public office, who allowed this to happen, are exposed and held accountable.
Fingers crossed.
There's never a wrong time to do the right thing.

[Alex M.]

[CharlieS.]

Brian,
I plead CRS.
I don't think a person's religion should be relevant. Membership in an extremist group that doesn't abide by our country's laws is relevant.
Neither candidate is a member of such a group.
Neither one is bald, either, but I still think they're okay.

It is always going to be relevant now anyways . Look at the time we live in . Presidents put judges in . Judges take sides . I cant stand it ,but laws get reversed from law to "it doesnt apply to me due to my religious feelings" Roe V Wade for example...Faith has alot to do with many people and there vote . Gays...etc,,etc....Not even going to touch the extreme side .

[Brian Linehan]

Dude, don't even bring Hippie into this.

[CharlieS.]

Damn..tough crowd....good one !

[Kelly Ripa]

I worked with a gal who took a job at the South pole two years back. She took the assignment because she'd make good dough and wouldn't be able to spend it...she re uped and spent a total of a year down there. I was shocked when she sent pictures of McCain at the south pole. He was there on a fact finding tour to see for himself about global warming/the chunk of ice bigger than Rhode Island that had split off the ice sheet and the scientific research being done there to that end. When I watched the first debate John put it to Obama that he had not been to Aphganestan(sp) to see for himself what was going on even though he is the head of the senate commitee that supervises the action there. Obama neatly side stepped the question saying that McCain knew that the nuts and bolts portion does not come through his commitee. Sorry but this job they are both applying for is really about who can manage the system best for us. I don't buy the link that Obama uses that John is Bush's man. I really feel that Obama hasn't earned my vote yet Stick it out and get some serious time in the Senate and I might buy into it but not with the credentials he presently has. As a fighter jock John made decisions on his own and followed orders. As a Senator he has made his own name and has to my way of thinking not only proved he is his own man but he has delagated authority and got the job done by a mixture of (distasteful to me) politics and knowing how to work the system when he can. I think it is premature to vote in this candidate for change and as you can see my vote won't be going that way.

On a side note any who watched Nacy Pelosi side step a simple yes or no question on 60 minutes the other night has must realize just how f%$&ed up purebred politicians are. I am hopeful when I go home tonight that our polititians have bailed us out of the financial problems by putting away the partisian BS and just doing their job without adding something that is advantages to one party or another....Yeah right!

Rip

Had to laugh at the spinning rod upside down remark...Having lived in Alaska I gotta say that if ya'll think the girls up north don't know how to hold a fishing rod well....you are sadly misinformed

[Bassin]

A must see for all those McCain/Palin supporters....I know, I know...she is highly qualified

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8__aXxXPVc


Hope the link works...I haven't posted one before...

[Brian Linehan]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tV5_T6CfHvE

DOH!

[tunaman]

Sorry folks, but due to popular demand I've been asked to move this to the Political forum. Please feel free to continue the discussion.

Roger

[smittyfish]

Mark is the second coming of christ.

Brian, who controlled congress for the first 6 years of the Bush debacle?

GW has bankrupted everything he has ever been involved with. Now our country is next. In fact we are there now, the rest of the world just hasn't figured it out yet.

GW was right, we never were in recession, we skipped that and are headed right into depression. If we are lucky the depression will only last a few years.

Good luck to all of us.

[Derrek Stewart]

[Kevin]

The sky is falling, the sky is falling!

[Brian Linehan]

Doesn't matter if the GOP controlled it for the first 6. The Dems have had it for the last couple. Point is, they are all somewhat shady for the most part, Obama and McCain included.

At least with McCain, we know what we are getting. He's tough and experienced. Nobody knows what Obama will bring to the table other than a slick tongue and $3000 Armani suits.

Seriously guys, think about it. All of that change he's been talking about for the last 3 years won't happen. With the economic crisis we're facing, Obama can't pay for it. Tax cuts for 95% of the middle class? National healthcare? Yeah right. If you noticed in last weeks debate, he totally backpeddled when asked about cutting some of his programs.

If elected, he will pull what Bill Clinton did when he promised the middle class tax cuts. What did he do one month into office? Not only did he realize that he couldn't honor his promise, but he actually had to raise taxes on middle America.

How unfair is Obama's tax plan? Everyone who earns more than $250K will be facing a tax increase. Should they be penalized because they went to college, became entrepreneurs, or are simply successful? I think not! Whether you make $70K or $700K per year, I think you should pay the same percentage of taxes to the government. At least with McCains plan, everyone from the top to the bottom was going to get a tax cut.

It all sounds nice, but with the crisis we're going to end up paying for, neither McCain or Barrack will be able to do what they're promising.

[Bassin]

"It all sounds nice, but with the crisis we're going to end up paying for, neither McCain or Barrack will be able to do what they're promising."

Brian finally came to his senses! I can promise all of you the words are already put in stone, we will ALL be paying for the last 8 years for a long time to come!

[smittyfish]

If the sky isn't falling, then why is this called a FINANCIAL CRISIS.