Letter

The following is from an email forward I received from my cousin. He sent it out because he believed it was a well written letter and I have to agree. I am not posting this because I believe the writer to be some amazing and credible source, but because I agree with what this man has written, regardless of who he is or isn't, and agree with my cousin that it is worth sharing. (Apologies if some of the spacing in this is off, copying from emails can be a pain.)

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Dear Friends:

My name is Joe Porter. I live in Champaign, Illinois. I'm 46 years old, a born-again Christian, a husband, a father, a smallbusiness owner, a veteran, and a homeowner. I don't consider myself tobe either conservative or liberal, and I vote for the person, notRepublican or Democrat. I don't believe there are 'two Americas' butthat every person in this country can be whomever and whatever they wantto be if they'll just work to get there, and nowhere else on earth canthey find such opportunities. I believe our government should help thosewho are legitimately downtrodden, and should alway s put the interestsof America first.

The purpose of this message is that I'm concerned aboutthe future of this great nation. I'm worried that the silent majority ofhonest, hard-working, tax-paying people in this country have beenpassive for too long. Most folks I know choose not to involve themselvesin politics. They go about their daily lives, paying their bills,raising their kids, and doing what they can to maintain the good life.They vote and consider doing so to be a sacred trust. They shake theirheads at the political pundits and so-called 'news', thinking that whatthey hear is always spun by whomever is reporting it. They can'tunderstand how elected officials can regularly violate the public trustwith pork barrel spending. They don't want government handouts. Theywant the government to protect them, not raise their taxes for moregovernment programs.

We are in the unique position in this country ofelecting our leaders. It's a privilege to do so. I've never found acandidate in any election with whom I agreed on everything. I'll wagerthat most of us don't even agree with our families or spouses 100% ofthe time. So, when I step into that voting booth, I always try to lookat the big picture and cast my vote for the man or woman who is bestqualified for the job. I've hired a lot of people in my lifetime, andessentially that's what an election is - a hiring process. Who has thecredentials? Whom do I want working for me? Whom can I trust to do thejob right?

I'm concerned that a growing number of voters in thiscountry simply don't get it. They are caught up in a fervor they can'texplain, and calling it 'change'.

'Change what?' I ask.

'Well, we're going to change America ,' they say.

'In what way?' I query.

'We want someone new and fresh in the White House,'they exclaim.

'So, someone who's not a politician?' I say.

'Uh, well, no, we just want a lot of stuff changed, sowe'revoting for Obama,' they state.

'So the current system, the system of freedom anddemocracy that has enabled a man to grow up in this great country, get afine education, raise incredible amounts of money and dominate the news,and win his party's nomination for the White House that system's all wrong?'

'No, no, that part of the system's okay. We just needa lot of change.'

And so it goes. 'Change we can believe in.'

Quite frankly, I don't believe that vague proclamationsof change hold any promise for me. In recent months, I've been askingvirtually everyone I encounter how they're voting. I live in Illinois ,so most folks tell me they're voting for Barack Obama. But no one canreally tell me why, only that he's going to change a lot of stuff.'Change, change, change.' I have yet to find one single person who cantell me distinctly and convincingly why this man is qualified to bePresident and Commander-in-Chief of the most powerful nation on earth,other than the fact that he claims he's going to implement a lot of change.

We've all seen the emails about Obama's genealogy, hisupbringing, his Muslim background, and his church affiliations. Let'signore this for a moment. Put it all aside. Then ask yourself, 'What qualifies this man to be my president? That he's a brilliant orator andtalks about change?'

CHANGE WHAT?

Friends, I'll be forthright with you. I believe the American voters who are supporting Barack Obama don't have a clue whatthey're doing, as evidenced by the fact that not one of them - NOT ONEof them I've spoken to can spell out his qualifications. Not even themost liberal media can explain why he should be elected. Politicalexperience?Negligible. Foreign relations? Non-existent. Achievements? Name one.Someone who wants to unite the country? If you haven't read his wife'sthesis from Princeton , look it up on the web. This is who's lining upto be our next First Lady? The only thing I can glean from Obama'sconstant harping about change is that we're in for a lot of new taxes.

For me, the choice is clear. I've looked carefully atthe two leading applicants for the job, and I've made my choice.

Here's a question - 'Where were you five and a halfyears ago? Around Christmas, 2002. You've had five or six birthdays inthat time.My son has grown from a sixth grade child to a high school graduate.Five and a half years is a good chunk of time. About 2,000 days. 2,000nights of sleep. 6,000 meals, give or take.'

John McCain spent that amount of time, from 1967 to1973, in a North Vietnamese prisoner-of-war camp. When offered early release, he refused it. He considered this offer to be a public relations stunt by his captors, andinsisted that those held longer than he should be released first. Did you get that part? He was offered his freedom, and he turned it down. A regimen ofbeatings and torture began.

Do you possess such strength of character? Locked in a filthy cell in a foreign country, would you turn down your own freedomin favor of your fellow man? I submit that's a quality of characterthat is rarely found, and for me, this singular act defines John McCain.

Unlike several presidential candidates in recent years whose military service is questionable or non-existent, you will not find anyone to denigrate the integrity and moral courage of this man. Agraduate of Annapolis, during his Naval service he received the SilverStar, Bronze Star, Purple Heart and Distinguished Flying Cross. His ownson is now serving in the Marine Corps in Iraq . Barack Obama is fondof saying 'We honor John McCain's service...BUT..,' which to me is condescending and offensive - because what I hear is, 'Let's forget thisman's sacrifice for his country, and his proven leadership abilities,and talk some more about change.'

I don't agree with John McCain on everything - but Iam utterly convinced that he is qualified to be our next President, andI trust him to do what's right. I know in my heart that he has the bestinterests of our country in mind. He doesn't simply want to bePresident - he wants to lead America , and there's a huge difference.Factually, there is simply no comparison between the two candidates. Aman of questionable background and motives who prattles on about change,can't hold a candle to a man who has devoted his life in public serviceto this nation, retiring from the Navyin1981 and elected to the Senate in1982.

Perhaps Obama's supporters are taking a stance betweenold and new. Maybe they don't care about McCain's service or hisstrength of character, or his unblemished qualifications to bePresident. Maybe 'likeability' is a higher priority for them than'trust'. Being a prisoner of war is not what qualifies John McCain tobe President of the United States of America - but his demonstratedleadership certainly DOES.

Dear friends, it is time for us to stand. It is timefor thinking Americans to say, 'Enough.' It is time for people of allparties to stop following the party line. It is time for anyone whowants to keep America first, who wants the right man leading theirnation, to start a dialogue with all their friends and neighbors and askwho they're voting for, and why.

There's a lot of evil in this world. That should bereadily apparent to all of us by now. And when faced with that evil aswe are now, I want a man who knows the cost of war on his troops and on his citizens. I want a man who puts my family's interests before any foreign country.