Back To Square One

I'm confused and conflicted. I wasn't before I started talking politic with my dad, who unfortunately happens to be both very knowledgeable about politics and who disagrees with my choice for the next president. Now, though... conflicted. Mostly because he's right - maybe we need to see past the smoke and mirrors, and acknowledge what's actually going to happen. Either way, my future as a US citizen kind of looks bleak.

The question is one of who to trust - who really is who they say they are, and who isn't. We have Obama vs. McCain - a well-spoken people's man (who seems to be a socialist) against an old ex-POW (who is a patriot, through and through).

Dad's right, that Obama wants to bring the government more and more into every aspect of our economy, possibly ousting the American dream in the process. Given what's happened in history, this isn't likely to turn out the way we idealize it to. Take more from the people who already pay 75% of tax dollars, so that 10% of the population is more pressured to support both the low-income citizens and the governments employees (who by this point amass to half of the country). Add to that "more jobs," meaning "more government jobs" and more people for those who have achieved the American Dream to pay for. Then, following the "take from the rich, give to the poor," motto, put money into welfare systems that seem to have a pattern of only creating more problems (see social reforms of the 60's, part 1).

So he's not necessarily a bad guy, but he doesn't see the American Dream the way most of us do. It's about pursuing your own dream the way you want to do it, right? How do we pull that off when the government is regulating more and more of our lives, including a heavy lot of the economy? He has the press on his side, which just makes it harder to decide what's true and what's not. Furthermore, how can I decide my own future when I don't have the advantage of hindsight, like my dad does? This election matters the most for the generation that can't look into the past and see how the previous Obamas haven't worked.

Hypothetically speaking, however, I don't know if I can bring myself to vote for McCain. He, for one, does not have the press on his side, since any oratorial challenge proves insurmountable and anything else he does is used as ammo to paint him as an ornery old man. Not to mention that he is one of the oldest republican candidates in history and is capable of passing the presidency to an inexperienced hockey mom who defines foreign relations as, "looking at Russia from my house."

How can a race that seemed to promising, so full of hope, be so quickly dashed with a dabble in hindsight? I hate pessimism, but I hate lying more. Do we, the young people who are making decisions for our future, deserve to know all the gory details? I realize more and more that so much of politics is about appealing to the people who can't see your flaws because they don't know enough. I knew it was all about lies when I first got involved, and here I am back at the same conclusion after trying to convince myself that maybe it could be as good as it all sounds. Do I really have to exercise my right to vote for the first time by not voting at all?