First i would like to thank Cigar.com for letting this section of the forum exist. This has been a great place for me and others to express deeply rooted and complex ideas in an atmosphere of respect and intellectual honesty. In times as stressful and complex as these, a bit of debate can help mold ideas and bring new things to light.
second i would like to thank the members of this forum. You guys have put up with my thoughts leading up to this election and helped me get frustration with both sides out. You all have done this with respect, knowledge, humor, and passion. I could not ask for a more stimulating group of individuals to debate with.

Debate is good for the mind. Debate is good for the soul. Debate is what the country is founded on. Debate has the potential to make this country stronger. Debate is what you all have given me. Thank you for this chance.


In a few hours I will get up and put some clothes on. I will stagger down the stairs and get myself something warm to drink and put it in a thermal mug. I will go outside in the rain and wait in line for a good amount of time. then i will get the chance to make my voice heard.
My voice is small when alone. but when added to the millions of others out there making their voices heard there is a thunderous roar. Say what you will about the country, where it is heading, where it has been, or where you want it to go; what makes this country great is letting our tiny voices join together into something bigger. It makes me feel alive. It makes me feel that i am a part of something. I am a Citizen of The United States of America. I may disagree with other members of this great country, but i still have more in common with them than i have differences from them.
I try to keep that in mind as i head out tomorrow. If my horse wins i hope i am right about my theories. If the other guy wins i hope that he is right on his theories. We need to remember that we are all trying to do the best that we can.

I hope that the best is enough.

---

Kuzi's cigar catalog blending 101 developing your palate

Well said, kuzi.

A friend at work and I were talking about the phenomenon of early and absentee voting, today. While we appreciate having the option, we both felt we would lose something important by doing it. That thing is the sense of community you get from going to a polling place on election day. There aren't many thing left in our society that remind us we are members of an actual community with other actual living & breathing human beings, so voting is hugely valuable in that regard, too.

---

Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo.

Good luck Kuzi! I already voted. I hope things go smoothly..

---

Would like a Gurkha HMR PM me if you have any extras...

I too already voted. This is the first time I have voted early and the only reason I did was so my wife and I wouldn't have to stand in line forever with a teething 5 month old little boy that doesn't feel very well at the moment. We figured that was the best call! haha

---

Jason
"Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it." - Ronald Reagan

PuroFreak:

I too already voted. This is the first time I have voted early and the only reason I did was so my wife and I wouldn't have to stand in line forever with a teething 5 month old little boy that doesn't feel very well at the moment.

I dunno, Puro. You could probably get him on tv as a pundit.

---

Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo.

Haha, well the lady at the polling place asked which of us was there to vote. I told them he was, but I was his assistant and I had to fill it out for him.

---

Jason
"Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it." - Ronald Reagan

so some of my other posts may seem a bit "attackish" ...if thats a word...

like stated above, i hope Obama's thoughts and ideas are right.

...i just fear to my core that they are not.

political fight or flight... but i have no where to run.

---

Kuzi's cigar catalog blending 101 developing your palate

PuroFreak:

I too already voted. This is the first time I have voted early and the only reason I did was so my wife and I wouldn't have to stand in line forever with a teething 5 month old little boy that doesn't feel very well at the moment. We figured that was the best call! haha

Thats actually kind of funny, all my friends who voted early so they wouldn't have to wait in line, waited 3 hours to vote. When I went in yesterday afternoon there was maybe 3 people there.

We'll see how Obama does. I didn't vote for the man but I have hope that he'll do what he's been saying, instead of getting the man that reflects his voting record. *shivers*

We should all support him until he f*cks up, if he f*cks up.

Oh where, oh where are my libertarian candidates....why can't Libertarians (real conservatives) put up someone who isn't out of his mind or has a shady background. This makes jlzimmerman and sad panda. *sigh*

---

Happiness is: a belt fed weapon

i have a feeling if you called a libertarian a "real conservative" they would be offended. Yes libertarians and conservatives share some ideas but there are some that are very different.

---

Kuzi's cigar catalog blending 101 developing your palate

I really think this monopoly of candidates is really messed up. I think there should be a few other parties to run for the hot seat. Just choosing two people for the highest pwr in the US is just silly. I would love to see a few other parties get the attention during these election years.

---

Would like a Gurkha HMR PM me if you have any extras...

From what I understand that was the way it was originally intended. The party system coming about was unexpected and threw the whole thing off.

Wouldn't it kinda suck though if we had five relatively crappy candidates and one was elected president with like 21 percent of the vote? You're not really just choosing between two people, there's a long process, informal and formal, that happens before it's whittled down to those two candidates.

Luko:

Wouldn't it kinda suck though if we had five relatively crappy candidates and one was elected president with like 21 percent of the vote? You're not really just choosing between two people, there's a long process, informal and formal, that happens before it's whittled down to those two candidates.

They actually can't be elected that way, this was the way the electoral college was supposed to work before the party system. The voting would select the top canidates and then Congress would elect the president from the finalists.

For some reason when you said finalists I thought of the candidates going thru some Survivor style show. That or a gladitorial battle to the death over the presidency.

---

If you can do a half-assed job of anything, your a one-eyed man in a kingdom of blind - Kurt Vonnegut