@#%$^& Liars

I didn't have a chance to watch most of the DNC a couple weeks ago, but Ally and I watched quite a bit of the RNC last week. I have to admit, I was impressed by a few of the speeches, namely Mike Huckabee, Sarah Palin and John McCain. However, I do have to remind myself that anyone can make a good speech with weeks of preparation and the best speech writers in the world. I thought I'd better listen to a few of the DNC speeches too so I could really balance what was being said. So far, I've listened to all the DNC speeches with the exception of Obama. The only was I wasn't impressed with was Hillary's. She still seems bitter over losing to Obama.

Anyway, what I was extremely frustrated about is that BOTH sides seem to be caught up in the same old Washington politics. The GOP says Obama wants to raise taxes and they aren't going to and the Dems say McCain wants to raise taxes and they won't. Somebody is lying!! Or at least skewing the truth and not going into enough detail to make it clear.

These convention are a waste of time. They have all the time in the world to make strategy and make the perfect speech, hitting every important point and making sure to avoid the issues that could hurt them. When i comes down to it, what I am sure of, is that politicians are liars. They have to be, because of the ridiculous amount of mudslinging the other party will inevitably hit them with. If they aren't conniving and slippery, what chance do they have of winning.

Therefore, I think there are two key things that we need to base our presidential choice on... First, is the big picture, timeless issues. The only thing that the candidates seem to be really clear on are the issues like capital punishment, abortion, gay rights, etc. Vote for the candidate who is close to you on these issues and you will be making the right choice. They are cryptic about the economy, taxes and war so why not look at the things they are clear about.

Secondly, I think we need to look at the things a candidate says on the fly. Look at the things that come out of their mouths when they don't have the benefit of practicing speeches and advisers instructing them how to respond. This is the best way to make sure you are voting for the right person and not the person who is covering their flaws with the people working for him.

Don't vote Red or Blue, vote YOU!!

Resultant "Languages"

If anyone has not read Gary Chapman's "Five Love Languages, " they should. The basic gist of it is that there a five different ways that people express love (Words of Affirmation, Deeds of Service, Physical, Gift Giving and Quality Time) and the best way for us to feel loved is when someone speaks our language. Understanding this and more importantly using it can greatly improve every relationship in a person's life. Ally and I were talking about this the other night and as she fell asleep, I kept thinking...

I think it can be taken a step further... In music when a root and a fifth is played perfectly in tune, a third tone can be heard two octaves and a third below the root. This is called a resultant tone. If one of the notes is not perfectly in tune, the resultant tone will not sound. While Ally and I have different love languages, I noticed that when we are really focused on speaking each other's language, a third language becomes equally important to us and we can speak it and understand it fluently as if it was our own. The closer we get to being perfectly in tune, the more important this third language becomes.

I started thinking about the parallel between music and love more and realized there are a lot of them. But for now, I need to go, so maybe I'll write more about those another time.

Thoughts and comments welcome