Taking it to a higher level

I have an idea. I'm tired of hearing about whether or not Obama is a Muslim (or an Arab!), and what his association with William Ayers might be. I'm also tired of hearing about whether Sarah Palin can really see Russia from her house, and all the nefarious financial dealings McCain's campaign advisers may have been involved in. These aren't the things that really matter. They are red herrings. They are arguments thrown out there with little regard to the truth, intended to distract us all from talking and thinking about the things that matter in this presidential election.

What matters? Education. Health care. National security. Energy independence. Tax policy. Faith. Values. Our country is in crisis, on the brink of disaster. The policies of the past eight years have brought not only the American economy to its knees, but the world's along with us. Terrorism remains a serious threat, here and in many other parts of the world. This is the most important election in my life so far. We need to stop arguing about the peripheral stuff and focus on the big stuff. And we need to be sure we understand where both candidates stand on these issues, and what the fundamentals of their values really are, before we decide.

I'm not saying the peripheral stuff doesn't matter at all. If Obama did in fact hate America and "pal around with terrorists," who in their right mind would vote for him? And McCain's character is forever ruined to me (and I used to respect him) after I've seen how he has conducted his campaign this time around. These things matter, of course, but there are many, many things that matter much more.

So here's what I'm going to do. Call it my Public Service Announcement Series. I'm going to devote a post a day to the candidates' views on the issues that we should be talking and thinking about. I think people are interested in this stuff, since my hits go way up on the days I do political posts. Perhaps you don't care to hear about it from me, and that's fine. There are plenty of other sources you can go to. I do encourage you to go straight to the candidates themselves though. Don't let either Fox News or the New York Times tell you who to vote for.

Here are my promises to you, my readers and friends:

1. I will not post any second-hand information. I will rely primarily on the candidates' own websites, and will use as secondary sources direct quotes from them in interviews and the debates. I will not post anything a journalist, pundit, blogger, or any other third party says about either candidate's views and plans.

2. I will be unbiased. You all know I'm an Obama supporter, but I will do my very best not to let that show in my reporting on the issues. If you spot any bias in my PSA posts, feel free to call me on it.

3. I will document my sources. I will link to everything I use, so that you can check the facts I post. Again, if you think I'm wrong, please call me on it.

The issues I'm thinking of covering are those I mentioned above, plus whatever else I can think of -- feel free to suggest anything you think is important. Off the top of my head, in no particular order, I want to write about:

a) education
b) health care
c) national security
d) energy policy
e) taxes
f) abortion (even though I personally don't believe this should be a big issue in a presidential race, I know a lot of other people do, so I will post about what both candidates have said about their views on this topic)

So who's in? Who wants to have a civilized, thoughtful, and informed debate about the real issues America faces, and where both candidates stand on them?

Stay tuned, the first one is coming later today.