As far as the surge is concerned, there is absolutely nothing in the way of intelligence that says that the surge did indeed work. If that were the case then why didn’t violence go down back in 2005 when troop levels were at an all time high in Iraq? Many believe that it wasn’t so much the surge but rather due to negotiations with Muqtada al-Sadr and his Shi’ite militia that caused insurgent violence to go down. It’s interesting that the surge happened right around the time when a cease-fire was called by al-Sadr. Also what you won’t hear is the fact that the U.S. paid off Sunni guerrillas to have them stop attacking troops and such. Frankly, I think all this talk about the “surge” is nothing more than a political tactic. Doesn’t mean that the surge wasn’t necessary; it just means that Republicans are doing their best to put a pretty face on the Iraq war by pretending that the “surge” really did anything at all.

Now, as far as Obama is concerned, you may not agree with all his politics but nobody can deny that the guy is perhaps the most intelligent candidate we’ve had in a very long time. This is a guy who graduated from Columbia University and Harvard Law School, worked as an attorney in Chicago, taught constitutional law at the University of Chicago Law School for 11 years, and became a Senator in 2004. You can’t do all that and be a dummy. As such, he has my vote of confidence simply because I think he’s intelligent, articulate, and a good person. Yes, he’s gonna make mistakes but I really think he’s capable of learning from them and moving on.

Now, if you don’t have the same kind of sentiment, if you look at Barack and think of him as the “lesser of two evils” then don’t vote. If you’re not confident in the candidates then why even bother participating in the process? Granted, I would like you to vote for Obama…but not because you feel you have to but because you believe he’s the best candidate. If you don’t, don’t vote!

Thanks.

PEACE,
Elsa