Politics

So those of you who know me well know that I'm politically independent, with a slight lean to the left. How far left I lean is in the eyes of the beholder. My super right-wing brother-in-law (who i love) thinks I'm a total liberal freak (but he loves me anyway.) I like to think of myself as being willing to research the issues that matter most to me, and making decisions based on the facts. That may not ALWAYS be true, but it's my goal.

So I felt as though I should give time to the Republican convention tonight and allow myself to listen with an open mind. I'm also very interested in Sarah Palin. I mean, props to a woman with five children who is running Alaska. I think that's pretty remarkable, considering that I can't even keep teaching piano with four children. I wanted to like her. I really did.

My opinion: Palin is a strong, charismatic woman. Her speech was intelligent and exciting, and she certainly knew how to grab her audience.

But man, my open mind has been closed off a lot more after her relentlessly negative speech. Governor Palin, I don't care how much you dislike Senator Obama. I care about what YOU think about the nation. I care about how YOU think we can take care of the myriad and enormous problems facing our country. I DON'T want to hear about how terrible you think Obama is, how little experience he has (and by the way, WHAT? She's been a governor for two years, and OBAMA is inexperienced?), how high he wants to raise taxes...I just don't want to hear it!

This is why I'm an independent. We need less division in our country, not more.