In the interests of full disclosure, I'm a registered Republican. But I've never believed in the 'vote the party line' crap. You vote as an individual and you should vote FOR an individual. The day the Republican party stands in line to submit my ballot is the day they can check all the little 'R' boxes.
But I digress... because I haven't actually voted yet. I'm going to. In fact, right after work I'm heading to the polls. But I've got a problem because there's at least two races in which I'm not sure who I'm voting for yet. You would think that after weeks of negative campaigning and annoying automated phone calls, I would be right on top of it. Heck, Rush Limbaugh called me yesterday. Well, at least his computerized voice called me yesterday. Shouldn't that have put me right at the front of the line this morning?
The problem is that in a couple of the races (governor, Attorney General), it's a case of choosing the least horrible person and hoping they're not quite as horrible as they look. For governor, we have the incumbent who hasn't screwed things up too horribly, comparitively, but hasn't exactly won stars for good behavior either. She also seems to think that state-run gambling is the solution to every woe. Add to that the likelyhood of a cabinet position in Washington... is she even going to be around in 2 years? Her competition is a practicing physician who plans to keep on practicing. I wouldn't have a problem with that, except that I'm married to a doctor and I know that there's no such thing as 'limited practice'. When and where is he going to see patients? From 9-3 in the Statehouse? What about when the legislature is in session? And how is he going to fit in dictating charts, billing concerns, and patients who are suddenly admitted to the hospital in the middle of a budget crisis?
Then of course, we have the lovely Attorney General race. Ha! Double Ha!
In this corner, we have the current Attorney General, Mr. Religious Right, aka Mr. Women-Have-No-Rights. This man has been on a 2 year crusade to get abortion clinic records released to his office, so that he can 'prosecute crimes'. Forgive me if I don't quite believe him. I'm guessing that he's be more than happy to find information that will allow him to shut down every abortion clinic in the state. Now this isn't a commentary on the rights or wrongs of abortion. I've always believed that abortion isn't a choice I would make, but I've never been in a situation that would require me to make that choice either. What bothers me about Mr. Attorney General is that his office has violated medical confidentiality. And now that he has these records (with identifying information markered-out), he's looking to prosecute crimes. And how do you prosecute crimes without identifying the victim???
The attorney general said he still could seek the names of victims of child rape
to build cases against the perpetrators but won't seek the name if an adult
patient is involved. (recent newspaper article)
Okay, so now he wants the names of child victims too. In theory, that's a great idea, right? Prosecute every child rapist out there - yep, you betcha. EXCEPT for a couple of things. One: child rape includes the 18 year old boyfriend who has consensual sex with his 16 year old girlfriend. Two: The parents and the child's physician have made a judgement about the child's ability to deal emotionally and physically with the results of the abuse. The Attorney General would rather prosectute and leave someone else to deal with the consequences.
There's also the matter of the child rape case he prosecuted a couple of years ago where the two participants happened to be males in a consensual relationship. The 18 year old 'adult' was sentenced to a term in prison disproportionate to what the sentence would have been if his sexual partner had been female. So let's throw in a little bias against homosexuality while we're at it.
Given my level of disgust for Mr. Attorney General, you'd think I'd jump up and down over Candidate #2. Well, not so much. As it turns out, he's a big cry baby. And he pouts. Which I don't allow in my kids, so why would it be okay for the Attorney General of the entire state? During a recent radio interview with two local on-air personalities known for asking uncomfortable questions, he actually threw his headset on the table and walked out. And the radio folks weren't being nearly as offensive as they could have been! I've heard them ask much tougher questions with more innuendo :) I could have written it off (possibly) as a bad day, but he's done it more than once. So if he can't handle two Kansas radio personalities, how in the world is he going to appear before the Supreme Court and not flake out?
So there are my choices... dumb and dumber. The great state of Kansas is going to have an interesting next four years. But I'm voting anyway. Because if you don't vote, you can't complain! And Lord knows, I like to complain :)
1 comment:
If you don't vote you can't complain - that's always my motto, too. I love election day. I will totally geek out in front of the TV tonight watching the results come in. :)
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