I want to vote my conscience, but my homework won't let me. (Kerrys!)

[funky_bug]

Look, I want to vote my conscience. I have never been a Kerry supporter, and I cited specific reasons as to why he was not my favorite candidate. So I would love to do the research necessary to either confirm, overcome, or at the very least, accept his positions on things that contradict my views. Yes, I could do a google search, yes, I could visit his website, but dammit I'm a full-time college student with a full-time job on top of that, and I just don't have the time. So if anyone wants to come help me out - either side of the equation - I would be grateful.

Kerry is against gay-marriage. I do know that he voted against DOMA though, so that's sort of in the "out to lunch on this one" catagory.

Kerry voted IWR, but he's against it now, right? Some help, please.

I'm told Kerry has a very liberal voting record, but I'm also told he missed a large majority of his voting opportunities.

Education - NCLB... what does he plan to do about it, now that he's voted for it. I remember a press release or speech where he said he wanted to get rid of teacher unions and tenure... don't like that (as a future teacher).

I'm appealing to those who have done more research than I have. Present the Kerry pros and cons... debate them here, and help me do my homework.

Thanks!

[Lefta Dissenter]

1. That's funny,

I thought that your full-time job was 'being married to a Wes Freak!'

While I first thought that it was horrible that our primary comes up so soon after Wes dropped out, now I find that it's almost a blessing, because I'm just going to go ahead and vote for Wes Clark on Tuesday. As soon as I made that decision, it took all of the pressure off - I had been fretting SO much about how to vote!

It won't make a difference to Kerry's standing in Wisconsin, it will (hopefully) give me a sense of closure, and then I'll just be along for the ride in the months to come. What I learn about Kerry between now and the fall will only help to determine my level of commitment to his campaign - whether I can actually be a strong advocate for him, or can only give a little money, put up a sign, and vote for him.

[funky_bug]

3. Yeah, there's that too...lol

sigh... you see why I need so much help???

[Rowsdower]

5. he has his own drinking game

any other candidates have their own drinking game?

The John Kerry Drinking Game


With John Kerry looking like the eventual Democratic nominee, and with him getting the vast majority of coverage on TV, it seems appropriate to release at this time the rules for the John Kerry Drinking Game. It is all pretty simple, and there are various ways to take advantage. You can watch a John Kerry speech on C-SPAN, watch election coverage on any channel, or tune in to a debate. All you need to play is some John Kerry footage, and a lot of booze. While some rules call for doing shots of liquor, beer can be subsituted, especially if you believe in the saying, "liquor before beer, never fear. Beer before liquor, never sicker." This game is for people 21+ years old.

Here are the rules:

The Wrinkle Salute- To start the game off, determine if John Kerry has more, or less, wrinkles than when you last saw him. If he's in need of a Botox shot, chug a beer. If he appears to have recently received one, pass out a round of shots and toast to looking youthful.

"Bush League"- When John Kerry says "Bush league," all players must take one shot (Rum, Whiskey, Dr. McGillicuddy- whatever you so choose).

"I love you _____"- When John Kerry says "I love you (insert any state)," hug someone, toast your beer, and take a sip. He's been known to say several states at once, so be prepared to hug, toast and drink for every state he loves.

"Bring it on!" For every "bring it on!" said by Kerry and his supporters, drink. This has become a chant at various rallies, so be prepared to tip your drink each time "bring it on" is uttered during the chant.

Name Dropping- Every time John Kerry drops a name (some examples would be Fritz Hollings, Max Cleland, Jim Clyburn), tip back your frosty beverage. This is another one of those things that happens often, so be on your toes.

"In a Kerry Administration...."- Kerry loves dreaming about the future, and loves pointing out what he will do "in a Kerry Administration." Everytime says what he will do "In a Kerry Administration...", all female participants must drink.

JohnKerry.com- It hasn't come up much, but I have a feeling we'll hear more of it now. When you do, drink.

"I have led the fight against...."- This one will be for the guys. For everything he has led the fight again, drink.

"We/I know something about..."- Usually the statement is followed by "aircraft carriers," but it can be used for other things as well. When he says this, as is the theme of this game, drink.

"We're coming, you're going. Don't let the door hit you on the way out!"- This is the big one. This is the social rule. When you hear this Kerry battle cry coming, stand up, raise your beers, and shout it out along with him. At the conclusion, chug one (1) full beer.

Gotcha Rule- If you catch a player missing one of the required drinks, you get to make them drink from their beer for as long as you choose, up to one full beer.

Determining the Winner: Once the event involving Kerry is over, the winner will be the individual that can balance themselves on one foot the longest.


Have Fun!

[tobius]

7. shot of tequila for every "air toke" on imaginary joint? n/t

[WilliamPitt]

2. Here's a Cliff's Notes version

:)

http://www.issues2002.org/John_Kerry.htm

[janx]

4. Good luck, kiddo.

The more you learn, the more confusing it becomes!

[Crunchy Frog]

6. I feel kind of lucky

I don't even have a vote, so I don't have to worry about who to support.

Since our primary was taken away, and we don't caucus until April, the choice will already have been made for me, and I can just coast through the rest of the primary season without worrying about it anymore.

I will enthusiastically support Kerry for the general election(assuming he's the nominee), but I would for any Dem nominee unless it had been Lieberman. Kerry may be far from perfect, but the fact that he isn't Bush is enough for me.

I feel very liberated to be able to watch the primaries as a detached observer, instead of the nailbiting that I was doing before.