Official Presidential Endorsement

Ladies and Gentlemen,
Taking my lead from newspaper editorial boards across our great land, the time has come for my official presidential endorsement. While I do not wish to tell my fellow Americans how to vote, I do wish to express my opinion on the candidates and reveal who I'm going to vote for.

First I need to look at the candidates and what they stand for. It's hard sifting through the lies and propaganda unleashed by both party machines. Amazingly there have been no "swift boat" like ads like the ones that help sink John Kerry's presidential bid.

So one has to look at public record, stated opinions by the candidates, consider debate answers and sometimes go with a gut feel or instinct on who the better candidate is.

First the falsehoods out there. John McCain and his operatives contend that Barrack Obama will raise taxes on the middle class. Simply that is not true. Obama is on record saying he will reduce taxes for the middle class. McCain also charges that Obama will lead us to socialism and socialize health care. I see nothing on Obama's platform that looks to make us a social European-style democracy. Besides, if it were done, he and the Congressmen that did it would likely get voted out of office at the next election cycle. Obama has stated nothing to the fact that he will socialize health care. He's stated that he will help make it affordable for uninsured Americans. McCain also likes to style himself as a Washington maverick. Voting nearly 90% of the time along party lines isn't a maverick. Joe Lieberman, as much as I don't care for his politics, is more of a maverick than McCain.

Further, I look at McCain's VP candidate AND factor in his age. While not trying to be morbid, age is definitely a consideration I have to look at. Were McCain not able to finish out his term would I feel comfortable with Sarah Palin? And the answer to that is not "no" but a resounding "Hell NO!" Palin is scary. Her lack of understanding of issues or failure to educate herself about them is unfathomable. Her interviews with Katie Couric were appalling. Merely stating party mantras and showing no knowledge of issues is not my idea of a candidate for VP who would be a heart beat away from the presidency.

So then I have to look at Barrack Obama. What do I know about Obama? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. All I know are the propaganda that the Republican machine has put out. The Democrats have failed to effectively get Obama's message to the people out. They haven't directly challenged McCain's falsehoods nor have they countered with any specifics of the lies. The strategy they take is to pin McCain to President George Bush's failed policies. While it's a good plan, I need more substance than just saying McCain is four more years of Bush. I want to know what will be done differently. Change is a pretty message but it doesn't mean changing is
any better than what we currently have. Obama is getting by on his speaking skills and charisma. I view Obama as a smooth talking wind bag. All talk, no substance.

So it makes me think what do I want in a candidate? The first thing I think of is the government's duty to protect the citizens. Next I think about protecting the civil liberties of the citizens. I also think about how huge the federal deficit is. Taking in all the social and political ideas that are dear to me, what is my ideal candidate? I'd like a government that doesn't try to legislate morals, allow maximum freedom of choice in personal issues, the rolling back of some of the nanny state laws, a reduction in the size of government and in the deficit.

I don't see either party fitting the bill. Republicans want to tell me to believe in God, the family is a the foundation of America and that I'm not smart enough to make some personal choices. Democrats also think I'm not smart enough to make some personal choices, want me to pay for the mistakes of others and in some cases just flat out pay for others.

So in my search and debate for how I want to vote for, I'm turning to a third party. I full heartedly endorse Libertarian Bob Barr for president. I agree with many of the planks of the Libertarian Party platform. I believe a smaller government is necessary, an individual's rights are paramount as long as they cause harm to no one or infringe on another's freedoms, abortion is a personal choice, what consenting adults and what lifestyle they chose is also a personal choice, the right to self defense and bear arms and many other party beliefs.

While I support many of the party beliefs, there are some that I don't believe. The Party calls for the elimination of the IRS and federal taxes, the legalization of all drugs and the end of U.S. support for the U.N. and economic aid to other countries. While I believe taxes can be reduced, the IRS and taxes are necessary for government to function and to pay down the insane national debt. The legalization of recreational drugs is not a solution to the current drug problem. Finally, U.S. support is sometimes needed in order to prevent some nations from falling to those who wish to harm the United States and our citizens.

While I don't believe Bob Barr is the best candidate that the Libertarian Party can put forward, I do believe that the Libertarian Party is the closest to my personal and political beliefs. Further I cannot in good conscience vote for either Barrack Obama or John McCain. So when I go into the voting booth this election, I will be voting for the Libertarian Party ticket.

Thoughts on the Current Economic Crisis

A global economic meltdown is obviously underway. Sell orders are inundating stock exchanges around the world as people panic sell. Russia, Indonesia and Austria suspended trading to help keep the sell off in check. Of course, no one knows when a turnaround will commence.

I was adamant in my opposition to the U.S. bailout plan. I saw no reason to take bad mortgages and loans off the books of the banks and financial institutions that practiced irresponsible lending and borrowing tactics. I don't want to be on the hook for all these bad decisions.

On the other hand, a few analysts that I respect, John Mauldin in particular, say the government intervention is necessary. They make a case that no government intervention is probably the worse thing. One of his newsletters mentioned the Japan crisis as an example of what happens with no intervention. Japan's markets and real estate never quiet recovered in the last decade. The newsletter points out five steps the government should take to help alleviate the crisis. Mauldin states that no matter which course of action it's going to be expensive. Since no action is far worse and far more expensive than government intervention, it's time we bite the bullet and accept it. To read more go to Mauldin's Outside the Box: Banking Crisis Around the World.

Despite my objections and protests, Congress didn't listen to me and they passed a bailout bill. So the bill passed and I have to accept the fact. Now I can only hope that the government takes prudent and smart action to turn this around. I'm not to confident that will happen. There are some extremely smart and intelligent people who will be overseeing the bailout but I worry that silly rules and bureaucratic mandates will weigh the measures down. I pray that Congress and the President let those they assign to bail us out let them do their jobs.

As I write this I just got a news flash email that the Dow has dropped below 8,000 to open the day. Fear and panic have taken over the market. Me personally I have no reason to sell any of my holdings. The only thing I sold was a portion of my Buffalo Wild Wings (BWLD) on recommendation from an investing newsletter I subscribe to. In fact, I plan on looking for companies that have been wrongly sold off and had their stock pummeled. Now is the right time to buy stocks that have been beaten down for no reason. There are many companies out there that will still turn a profit and provide goods and services people need just for day to day living. I haven't done any valuations yet but a stock that comes to mind is Johnson & Johnson. I'm going to have to read the newsletters and message boards I subscribe to in order to get a feel for what's out there and follow any recommendations that I feel comfortable with.

Another company that I'm looking at is Berkshire Hathaway (BRK-B). Warren Buffett, arguably the greatest investor of all time, isn't selling. He is buying. When Buffett buys, more than likely it's a good buy. He's getting a sweet deal in putting money into Goldman Sachs (GS). For $5 billion Berkshire gets a 10% dividend on the preferred shares it bought along with the option to buy more stock at $115 per share regardless of the actual price of the shares. So Berkshire makes money at anytime the share price goes above the strike price and they decide to buy. For example, if the shares go up to $150, Buffett can then buy them still for $115 and, at least on paper, make a profit of $35 per share. Not to shabby. Of course, the likes of me can't get a deal like that but by investing in Berkshire I can get a piece of the action.