Monday, November 3, 2008

Tomorrow is THE day!

Well guys the past couple of years worth of campaigning comes to an end tomorrow. I can only pray that at this point we have all decided on who we will be voting for. Now I do not want to make this a political discussion to be argued back and forth... that is the main reason I have waited until now to post my feelings on this election and who I will be voting for and why.

My dad and John McCain served together in the same squadron on the Enterprise during the Vietnam war. Both were carrier pilots. My father was fortunate enough to never have been shot down, John McCain on the other hand was shot down and suffered for five agonizing long years in the Hanoi Hilton. The following I received in a email from my Dad about McCain and it details the qualifications and experience he has based on his military career and how that will prepare him to lead our country. None of the following was written by me or my father... I'm just passing it along.

OOOOPPPS... from my DAD... I was mistaken... here is the real story.
In your latest post, you have me and John McCain as squadron mates on Enterprise . I knew him casually, he was in VA-65 on Saratoga , I was in VA-85 on FORRESTAL. That was in the early 60’s, probably 1960 or 61. I appreciate your trying to make more than I am, I was just another pilot in the cold war, and happy to make it out alive.


Love DAD

"In all modesty, I can personally verify that the author is correct in his analysis of what the true experience of every naval carrier pilot has always been. When you talk about having visibility, every take off and landing from a carrier is witnessed by several hundred of pairs of eyes. And when on that sombre occasion, a naval carrier pilot fails to return from his mission, an immediate and enduring personal loss is deeply felt by the four or five thousand members of the carrier's crew, and air group. And so it was when John failed to return that day so long ago. But he had met the continuing test of every naval carrier pilot, and went on to meet an even greater test."

This appeared in the New York Times

What is there in the experience of a naval carrier pilot that would help prepare a person to be president? Beneath the derring-do that is part of the successful aviator's image are many fine qualities - some natural, some learned.Above all, you must be true to yourself. Delusional people rarely survive the harsh demands of carrier flying. You cannot cheat your way through a carrier landing, or ignore the reality of a dark night and a pitching deck.You must be absolutely committed to a cause greater than yourself, because your life is what you wager each time you take off on a mission. And you must be a team player. Many other team members are needed to operate both the ship and your aircraft, and you need to provide leadership.A carrier pilot must also learn to accept criticism of his or her own performance, from both peers and overseers. The landing signal officer on an aircraft carrier administers a public debriefing and critique of every landing, and a grade is assigned to every pass the pilot makes at the deck. These grades and the pilot's performance ranking are displayed publicly for all to praise or ridicule. The psychological pressure of this culture is the whetstone that successful carrier pilots use to sharpen their skills, and the grinder that drives some from the profession.The Navy considers its pilots to be officers first and aviators second. Most carrier pilots lead divisions of perhaps 20 sailors who perform the various tasks of squadron administration and aircraft maintenance, so they must learn to balance the pressures of flying, at times as flight leaders, with the demands of full time squadron leadership. And this is just during peacetime. In times of combat, the pressures are increased exponentially. So what do we have that could enhance a presidential resume.? Honesty, integrity, courage, commitment, love of country, leadership, capacity for self-criticism, ability to multitask and grace under pressure. These are great qualities indeed for anyone who aspires to become the leader of the free world.-

STEPHEN R. GRAY, the author of "Rampant Raider: An A-4 Skyhawk Pilot in Vietnam "

Now is this reason enough for me to base my vote on this man? In many instances it is, however I recently read something to the effect that as a Christian, we are neither Democrats or Republicans...we are Christians and we are called to use the Bible as the source of what we believe. We should look to the examples in the Bible and base our decisions upon that. Not on whether the party that is elected will bring about financial benefits, tax cuts etc.... but what does the Bible say about the topics at hand. For me it all boils down to ONE issue...abortion!

I have my beautiful, charismatic, creative, exuberant son, because his birth mother loved him enough to NOT have an abortion. I thank God for her each and every day.

The simple fact is that Obama sees nothing wrong with abortion. Nothing. He actually believes that if a child is born alive after an abortion, it should just be left alone to die. Sickening....absolutely sickening. I am going to add some links, that I saw on a friends blog all about the stance that these two men have on abortion. Thanks Melissa!! Click on colored links below.

Interesting A fellow bloggers opinions on Christianity and Obama

Obama's views on Abortion

McCain's view on Abortion

Thanks for reading... and PLEASE PLEASE don't forget to vote!!!

3 comments:

Keri said...

awesome post Kari! :)

Kassie said...

I agree with Keri great post.

anita said...

You go, girl! Let's keep praying today.