Hate and assasination

In my relatively short amount of time on this Earth, I have witnessed varying acts of dislike, distaste, and distrust. Hate has happened, but it's never been malicious, unforgivable hatred. Now, I have stated before, and will say it again, this is not a political blog, and I plan to keep it that way. There are plenty of those out there already. However, I can't sit by and let this pass without some type of acknowledgement.

This election has definitely brought about some of the underlying issues we have in this country that have never been addressed before now. One must wonder, if Hillary would have been running instead of Obama, if issues pertaining to gender would have arisen.

The candidates both promised to run a clean campaign when they unofficially won their nominations this summer. However, since then that has not been the case. As a matter of fact, McCain has run almost all negative ads since then. CNN had a chart up yesterday and it was like 61% negative ads to Obamas 41% (don't quote me on those numbers).

I understand that you want to make your opponent seem unfit to win this election and whatnot, but some of the tactics McCain has been using have caused what can only be described as a scary turn in people.

Don't believe me? Read this article by Frank Schaeffer (a Republican, btw):

John McCain: If your campaign does not stop equating Sen. Barack Obama with terrorism, questioning his patriotism and portraying Mr. Obama as "not one of us," I accuse you of deliberately feeding the most unhinged elements of our society the red meat of hate, and therefore of potentially instigating violence.

At a Sarah Palin rally, someone called out, "Kill him!" At one of your rallies, someone called out, "Terrorist!" Neither was answered or denounced by you or your running mate, as the crowd laughed and cheered. At your campaign event Wednesday in Bethlehem, Pa., the crowd was seething with hatred for the Democratic nominee - an attitude encouraged in speeches there by you, your running mate, your wife and the local Republican chairman.

Shame!

John McCain: In 2000, as a lifelong Republican, I worked to get you elected instead of George W. Bush. In return, you wrote an endorsement of one of my books about military service. You seemed to be a man who put principle ahead of mere political gain.

You have changed. You have a choice: Go down in history as a decent senator and an honorable military man with many successes, or go down in history as the latest abettor of right-wing extremist hate.

John McCain, you are no fool, and you understand the depths of hatred that surround the issue of race in this country. You also know that, post-9/11, to call someone a friend of a terrorist is a very serious matter. You also know we are a bitterly divided country on many other issues. You know that, sadly, in America, violence is always just a moment away. You know that there are plenty of crazy people out there.

Stop! Think! Your rallies are beginning to look, sound, feel and smell like lynch mobs.

John McCain, you're walking a perilous line. If you do not stand up for all that is good in America and declare that Senator Obama is a patriot, fit for office, and denounce your hate-filled supporters when they scream out "Terrorist" or "Kill him," history will hold you responsible for all that follows.

John McCain and Sarah Palin, you are playing with fire, and you know it. You are unleashing the monster of American hatred and prejudice, to the peril of all of us. You are doing this in wartime. You are doing this as our economy collapses. You are doing this in a country with a history of assassinations.

Change the atmosphere of your campaign. Talk about the issues at hand. Make your case. But stop stirring up the lunatic fringe of haters, or risk suffering the judgment of history and the loathing of the American people - forever.

We will hold you responsible.

I'm not writing this to tell you to vote for Obama, or to denounce McCain. My sole purpose is to get my feelings about how his negative campaign has brought out the worst in people.

On top of all this, a friend of mine brought about an interesting point. Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, John F. and Robert Kennedy all were involved with getting all people civil rights. Now, Obama isn't exactly a civil rights activist or anything, but he is a black man, and we know that there is someone out there plotting to assassinate him, especially if he wins.

Scary part about what my friend said is that he may be right. Shh...don't tell him I said that, though. Hopefully though, that won't happen.

Well, thanks to all of you that have read this. Sometimes, even I have to make a political statement.