BY WILLIAM C. HENRY Okay, I’ll come clean. Obama has been my leader of choice from the get-go and nothing whatsoever I’ve heard from or about the other guy has so much as twitched the needle on my partiality meter. I will, however, admit to an atom of admiration for Romney’s extraordinary chameleon-like ability to change his stance on any given issue to suit the exigency at hand. It’s a talent even a squid could envy. But I digress. Most significantly, I hold unwaveringly to the belief that Barak is simply more concerned about more of us. I continue to this day to be amused by the silver-spooned Romneys of the world claiming to be able to “feel the pain” of those less fortunate. How quaint. Of course they can.
Let me get right to the point. Are you poor, middle class, a woman, a senior citizen or member of a racial or ethnic minority or the LGBT community? Are you considering a vote for Mitt Romney? If so, there are two extremely salient words — there is an armada (literally) of significant others but these should be more than sufficient to persuade even the most taken in — that should clearly serve to explain why you are either sorely ill-informed and/or mightily lacking in sound self-interest judgement. Those two words are: Supreme Court. The next President will in all likelihood appoint at least two, and possibly three, Supreme Court justices. Should Romney prevail, it is a clear-cut certainty that those actions are going to negatively effect each of the above mentioned groups in ways heretofore unimaginable. How do I know? Because I’ve read Mitt’s lips — and, conversely, what they’ve failed to utter as well. Trust me, Mitt is no compassionate conservative. Not by any stretch of the imagination. Never was. Never will be. And shame on those who’ve deluded themselves into believing he ever could be.
Romney will appoint justices who share his ultraconservative (read plutocratic, elitist, religionist) ideology. That’s some very bad news for all of us who believe in equal rights, personal privacy, and human dignity. Don’t believe me? Woman? Better read up on Romney. Poor? Better read up on Romney. Senior citizen? Better read up on Romney. Middle class? Better read up on Romney. Racial or ethnic minority? Better read up on Romney. Member of the LGBT community? You damn sure better read up on Romney! Have Presidents guessed wrong with their selections in the past? Sure. But the unanticipated has been the exception to the rule by far. History has proven that ideology trumps justice when it comes to the courts, and especially the Supreme one. Equal justice will never be served by a right wing ideologue.
Bottom line? I want a President who’ll represent the interests of 100% of the American people. Not just the 1% or the 53%. I think Naomi Klein articulated the obvious choice between Obama and Romney quite eloquently when she said, “Political solutions — accountable to the people and enforceable by their elected representatives — deserve another shot before we throw in the towel and settle for corporate codes, independent monitors and the privatisation of our collective rights as citizens.” I certainly do, and I know that President Obama believes it as well. What about you? In a few days you’re going to be making one of the most crucial decisions ever called for. Before you pull that lever think long and hard about the kind of country and world you want to live in; the kind you want your children and grandchildren to grow up in. Your health, even your life, may very well be hanging in the balance.