I had the fortunate opportunity to attend the Saddleback Forum last evening. What a spectacle. Security was tight, radical protesters from Code Pink to the group that claims "God Hates Homosexuals" were out in full force, and political celebrities were everywhere. I sat next to a married couple that made it clear their votes were going to cancel one anothers out. His for McCain, and hers for Obama. I also sat behind two Muslim clerics in full garb.

Barrack Obama did what he does best, carefully evading each question. Giving something that almost sounds like an answer for everyone...but not really. He even quoted a portion of scripture from the book of Matthew as he prayerfully gazed up towards Heaven. McCain as anticipated recalled his military service record, his Christian experience, and his philosophy of "Service Before Self".

More specifically, Obama made it clear once again that he will prove to be a formidable opponent. He is blindly followed by the media.  He restated that he wishes to bring Republicans and Democrats together while his actions have been such that when given the opportunity not only has he sided with the left everytime, it's been the far left.   He claimed simply that he believes in partial birth abortion if the mothers life is in danger.  He left out that in the Illinois State legislature he opposed a bill that would prevent the killing of infants mistakenly left alive by abortion.  His comments by themselves are taken at face value by the media without regard for his record.  He is known for associating himself with notoriously corrupt entities on his side of the fence such as Tony Rezko who was part of Obama's senatorial finance committee and currently under investigation for a possible violation of federal law by directing at least one person to donate money to Obama's 2004 Senatorial bid and then reimbursing him, among other things.  During the debate Obama declared his focus on campaign finance reform as an achievement and a step in the right direction.  So much for the anticorruption reformer.

We stand at the precipice of a major turning point in history depending on the choices we make this election cycle.  For many Republicans, John McCain wasn't even a 2nd choice and that's putting it lightly.  All kidding aside, whether or not you think he's a good choice, this can no longer be our conversation.  Some have painted a rosy picture that if God forbid Obama should win, he'll be out in 4 years like Jimmy Carter.  That would be great except Jimmy Carter was an aloof social retard without a political clue.  Obama is about as crafty as they come and has created an image that completely diverges from his character.  Political attacks against Obama have been unfairly categorized as challenging his patriotism and experience.  Which is just some of what is all wrong with him.  There is a major problem with his ideology regarding the economy given his record and his willingnes to negotiate and use diplomacy with foreign entities that seek our annihilation.

On a lighter note, one of the unfortunate results of this forum is the minimization of the role faith plays in politics.  I believe that a candidate's faith absolutely affects their world view as Rick Warren has repeatedly stated.  However one of the side effects of this event is that because of the venue, all faith based answers are seen as rhetoric and pandering.  Of course John McCain believes life begins at the moment of conception...at Saddleback.  It's clear that Obama believes that Jesus has washed away his sins, "of which he has many"...at Saddleback.   I'm not saying this is or isn't the case, but I have already heard people claim they only said what the audience wanted to hear.  The faith of these two candidates can not be discerned in my opinion as a result of this event.  So we must look to their actions for clarity.  Let their record be our guide.