By Matthew Casey

I just finished filling out my vote my mail-in election ballot, and I do not know whether to be happy or disappointed at the reality that the 2008 election cycle is almost over.

Hunter S Thompson called politics better than sex. I am not sure I am willing to go that far, but this year’s election has brought some real excitement.

For those of you who are wondering, I did vote for Barack Obama.

You see, I grew up in the 1990s. Back then, Bill Clinton was president. There was a job available on every corner, and gas cost 95 cents per gallon.

Fast forward eight years.

There really is no comparison.

Life under President George W. Bush has been rough, and Senator John McCain has failed to show me one way in which he will be different from Bush.

He even flipped on immigration, just like Bush.

Nominating Sarah Palin for Vice President is also a reason why McCain lost my vote.

The old school, truly “Maverick” McCain, who should have been president in 2000, would have nominated Senator Joe Lieberman, but the Republican Party got a hold of him the week of the convention and instead forced on us a successful, but obviously unprepared novice who wants to further increase the powers of the vice presidency, ala Dick Cheney, and to continue the Bush/Rove strategy of playing divisive politics by playing rural America against urban America.

But I digress.

Why vote Obama?

Because I think the road this country is currently on is a disastrous one.

Because I want my undocumented friends who have not committed violent crimes to get a chance at U.S. citizenship.

Because I do not want to go to war with Iran without a legitimate reason.

Because I am tired of watching a chosen few become wealthy at the rest of our expense. (Sounds like Mexico, huh?)

Because I do not want to be in debt to China for the rest of my life.

Because I am tired of fighting a war against, as the “Walter” from the “Big Lebowski” so perfectly said, “An unworthy adversary.”

Because I want to capture Osama Bin Laden.

(And anyone who wants to question my patriotism in a comment had better take a good long look at the archives of this blog. If you can’t find a way to respect a fellow American’s position simply because you do not agree with it, then you are the one who is unpatriotic. In short, don’t bring that sh$t in here as this ain’t my first rodeo and I am not intimidated by the “liberals are anti-American crowd.”)

Maybe Obama is not the guy who can ultimately fix all of our problems.

One thing is for sure though; he is a change from the current situation and the current ideals which have not benefited the majority of Americans over the last eight years.