CHARACTER MATTERS

"The best predictor of future behavior is past behavior." -Dr. Phil

(1:00 am)  This may be my last post before the election.  If you have been unhappy with both major candidates, I am definitely with you on that.  I hope that the information and approaches I've provided in this blog have been helpful in your decision process.  But it's time to decide.

For this post, I've researched info on the candidates as relates to character.  There is far too much to even just list here, so I'm going to focus just on the net difference on what I've found and concluded.  You may think I'm partial to one side - I suspect that by now, everyone is to some degree - hopefully based on good research.

It's common knowledge that the mainstream media is biased, and so is Fox, so we still must distill the truth from all sources.  My distillation is that, while both the Democrats and Republicans make some very good points, the Republicans make more sense to me, based on what I've learned in my nearly 70 years.  While both parties have made a lot of gaffs and errors and shown a lot of mean-spirited attitudes, the Democrats have an edge there. 

In my research on character, I've found more negative factors for Obama than for Romney.  The main media has made Romney's negative factors quite well known, but have been lax in pointing out Obama's.  So that's what I will work with here.  At the bottom, I've linked to several sites that compare both fairly evenly.  If you are interested, I encourage you to add to my research yourself - I think you'll be surprised how the media have left people uninformed.  Just be sure to verify what you read/see.

Obama has some very positive personal traits that are very powerful:  his legendary oratorical skills, and his amazing ability to see and articulate what people want deeply to hear.  I saw both of those when I first heard him speak at the 2004 Democratic Convention.

What's been disturbing is how strong Obama's negative character traits are.
It is these traits that have come to weigh most heavily on my voting decision - even more that my opinions relative to Platforms and Plans.  These concerns have far outweighed my concerns about Romney's unknowns (and negative knowns).


Some of Obama's Traits That Worry Me:

1. Obama's background
(which can't help but influence his character) as described in the movie 2016: Obama's America (available on Amazon and Redbox).  Definitely different from Romney's background.

2. Blatantly broken campaign promises. 
Note:  This video says 65 Lies - I consider them broken promises (unless he had no intention of doing them), and I really count only about 30 or 40 as really broken - is that enough?   For example:  transparency, open meetings, 5 days posting of bills before he signs, find out what's in it before he signs it, names of corporations benefiting from bills, tax breaks posted online, negotiations on CSPAN, lobbyists won't drown out people's voices, Guantanamo base to close, no tax increase if income < $250,000, can keep your doctor & insur. plan, lots of shovel-ready projects, etc.

    65 Outrageous Lies by President Obama
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kg9m1F8B2_c&feature=player_embedded#!

3. Self-centered, inconsiderate, and/or uneducated, and unwilling to do the required research (same for his staff). 
He gave Prime Minister Gordon Brown a set of CDs that don't work on the British player equipment.  He gave the Queen some cheap gifts he picked up at the airport gift shop, and gave them to her in a shopping bag.

    London aghast at President Obama over gifts given to Prime Minister Brown
    http://articles.nydailynews.com/2009-03-06/news/17918273_1_mr-obama-prime-minister-brown-michelle-obama

    Obama’s Gift to the Queen
    http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/179711/obamas-gift-queen/jonah-goldberg#

    A Picture Says a Thousand Words
    The president simply can't be bothered to help his infirm friend down the stairs and instead leaves that task to the very police officer he belittled in front of the entire nation.
    http://wizbangblog.com/content/2009/07/31/a-picture-says-a-thousand-words.php

4. Covering up bad effects of his own party's legislation. 
His administration is giving waivers/delays to businesses til after the election.  He told some that the government would pay any legal penalties they incurred for not following the law.

    White House to contractors: Hold off on layoff warnings.
    Defense contractors warn sequester would cost jobs in their industry
    http://www.ksat.com/lifestyle/money/White-House-to-contractors-Hold-off-on-layoff-warnings/-/2602640/16783720/-/4gnmglz/-/index.html

    EPA 'Punting Regs Until After Election That 'Spell Doom' for Jobs, Economy
    http://www.freemarketamerica.org/web/media-2/articles-2/83-inhofe-epa-punting-regs-until-after-election-that-spell-doom-for-jobs-economy.html

5. Insensitive to the true gravity of situations. 
He referred to the death of Ambassador Stephens and 3 others as  "not optimal" and the Arab Spring violence as "bumps in the road."

    MSM on Benghazi: “not optimal”
    http://blog.sfgate.com/djsaunders/2012/10/30/msm-on-benghazi-not-optimal/

    Obama: Sacked consulate and dead ambassador “bumps in the road”
    http://hotair.com/archives/2012/09/24/obama-sacked-consulate-and-dead-ambassador-bumps-in-the-road/

6. Real problems with decision-making and/or truthfulness. 
He and his top people have apparently grossly mishandled the Benghazi incident.  See my Nov. 2 posts and these.  

    Latest Benghazi Bombshells Rock Scandal   November 2, 2012 by Tim Brown
    journalists were still locating sensitive State Department items in the burned out compound. Six weeks after the attack.
    http://freedomoutpost.com/2012/11/latest-benghazi-bombshells-rock-scandal/#

    More White House Cover-Up Lies On Benghazi?     posted on November 3, 2012
    http://godfatherpolitics.com/7877/more-white-house-cover-up-lies-on-benghazi/#

    Obama's Benghazi investigator tied to Libya bombing
    http://www.wnd.com/2012/11/obamas-benghazi-investigator-tied-to-libya-bombing/#

    U.S. general: Obama paralyzed by fear
    http://www.wnd.com/2012/11/u-s-general-obama-paralyzed-by-fear/#

7.  He continually blames others for his problems. 
It's Bush's fault, or the economy he inherited, or Congress, or the video about Mohammed, or the State Department, or the military, etc.  This is so well documented that I won't link except this new one I saw.
   
    Axelrod: ‘I’m Not in the White House, Privy to All the Discussions’ on Benghazi.
    Axelrod: "The President convened the top military officials that evening and told them to do whatever was necessary and they took the steps that they thought, they took every step they could take."
    http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/332432/axelrod-im-not-white-house-privy-all-discussions-benghazi-%5Bfield_authors-title-raw%5D#



---LINKS to OTHER COMPARISONS---------------------

A Rare Positive Look at Both Presidential Candidates
    http://oregoncoast.craigslist.org/pol/3377199063.html

Obama and Romney: candidate comparisons   (Oct 24 2012)
    http://www.ksat.com/news/2012-elections/-/6153890/16154398/-/76y21j/-/index.html

Artifacts of Character
    http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/government-elections-politics/choice-2012/the-artifacts/

2012 Candidate Comparison - (comprehensive)
          http://2012.candidate-comparison.org/?compare=Romney&vs=Obama



---LINKS with RELATED INFO---------------------------------

Independent Blog - "I WAS a lifelong Conservative Democrat (Reagan Democrat)  for 35+ years until the Democratic Party became something I no longer recognize.  I am not a Republican."
    http://romanticpoet.wordpress.com/about/
    http://romanticpoet.wordpress.com/independents-are-gaining-steam-for-2010-elections/

Retired Military Overwhelming Endorses Mitt Romney   (233 to 5)
    http://godfatherpolitics.com/7881/retired-military-overwhelming-endorses-mitt-romney/#

Explosive video indictment of Obama rocks YouTube  "CONSERVATISM IS CALLING"
    I found this intriguing.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsa4uLmTw0M&feature=player_embedded


May the better man win, and soon, and clearly.

"Thatch"