Look beyond the Obama distractions

A red herring, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a clue which is intentionally or unintentionally misleading or distracting from the actual issue. If there was truth in political advertising, the red herring could replace the Obama bull’s-eye as the brand symbol. Enter Bain Capital, tax returns and all the trappings of class warfare. Somehow, we are to believe, a successful and proven leader is unqualified because he is, um, uh, successful? Didn’t disqualify John Kerry, or John Kennedy; however, anything and everything to distract us from the real issues.

The real issue is that we have a whiner-in-chief who refuses to accept any responsibility or accountability for any of the disastrous financial policies that have decimated employment, housing values and investments. We are graduating a generation of young women and men with crushing debts and no economic prospects. The real issue is a media circus about a single Florida shooting while hundreds bleed to death in the streets of Chicago. Nary a word about millions of 50-somethings who send out hundreds of resumes, who have had to sell their homes, empty their 401(k)s and savings and now cling precariously to mere survival. No, let’s talk about condoms.

Perhaps there are still enough grown-ups left to see through this nonsense and who can ignore what will be close to $2 billion in combined advertising. The office exists for two reasons: to protect the nation and to facilitate economic policies that provide the most opportunity to the most people. Oh, and we need to do it within something that resembles a budget. The real issue is that we cannot afford four more years of hype and pain.

Steve Quick

Arlington Heights