Just call me Flipper

It’s less than a month until the presidential election. Have you made up your mind for whom you’re going to vote?

If you haven’t committed yourself to a particular candidate yet, be cautious in sharing that bit of information, for you might be branded – gasp – a “flip flopper.” That is, of course, the most consistent “weakness” of Sen. Kerry brought up by the Bush administration.

Kerry, it seems, can’t make a commitment to just one point of view like President Bush can. Kerry has this annoying tendency for letting insignificant things such as facts sway his judgment and he “flip flops” on the issues as a result.

President Bush, on the other hand, is a man of conviction, a man who will stand his ground, even when facts don’t support his decisions. In his campaign, he has pledged to “stay the course” that has been set by his administration – both domestically and internationally. After all, we wouldn’t want to elect a president that will change his mind willy-nilly with the world in such a tumultuous environment, now would we?

One has to wonder, however, if staying the course is truly in our best interests. Internationally, this would mean continuing to alienate the rest of the world – even those nations that have historically been our allies. It would mean an extended commitment of our already over-extended military as future “pre-emptive wars” are waged based on fallacious evidence and the rhetoric of the “war on terror.” In other words, it would mean destroying what is left of our good name in the international community.

On the domestic front, staying the course would mean continued job loss, coupled with simultaneous price hikes in basic necessities such as gas. It would mean that an already record deficit, accrued in only four short years from what had been a budget surplus, would continue to increase. Civil rights and liberties would continue to be rolled back in the name of “national security.” Is this the course that will best benefit the American people?

“Staying the course,” contrary to what Bush may believe, is not a wise political decision, but rather an inability to face the harsh reality that things aren’t working out and an unwillingness to change accordingly. Bush refuses to accept any information that challenges his view of the world; he would prefer to keep us on a course that is detrimental to American interest at home and abroad.

Perhaps it would be in our best interest, come November, to “flip flop” into Kerry’s camp and support his bid for the presidency. Of course, that’s just my opinion. As American citizens, it is our duty to look at all the facts available before coming to a decision as important as choosing our next leader.

By the way – if, in the course of debating these facts, you happen to “flip flop” a couple of times, don’t worry – I won’t call you on it.