My Personal Political Dilemma

I face a personal political dilemma. I belong to the Democratic Party (as opposed to being a Democrat. I am a human that happens to believe in traditional Democratic principles, but I am NOT "a Democrat") and have nearly always voted for those candidates.

But in this year’s gubernatorial race the Democratic candidate, Steve Beshear, is not merely pro casino gambling, but is making that the central plank of his platform. Now casino/electronic gambling is the pre-eminent issue that will adversely affect not only the future of Kentucky, but also that of the whole nation. Therefore, although Mr. Beshear is an otherwise solid candidate, his promotion of casino gambling disqualifies him and I would not support him or any candidate who supported this losing enterprise.

The Republican candidate, Governor Ernie Fletcher, has now changed his stance on casinos from one of allowing a referendum to being adamantly opposed to them. He has thus made casino gambling the key issue in the race and has positioned himself as the savior to prevent its ugly tentacles from strangling Kentucky’s future.

I predicted this move by Mr. Fletcher. It is shrewd, but it is politically expedient. I would not trust that he would spend all his political capital opposing casinos if re-elected…but he might, I just don’t know. It would have been much, much more convincing had he been so opposed from day one.

That said, my realization of just how very, extremely critical it is for us to keep casinos out of Kentucky is such that I am so-o-o-o tempted to support Mr. Fletcher. For even though his past work in Congress helped degrade our democracy, his ultra-partisan attacks on Clinton and his proposals, and his near 100% support for President Bush and his anti-democracy, pro special interest agenda, his support of the Iraqi war, and his reneging of his promise to clean up the mess in Frankfort by instead making it worse--despite all that the issue now is Kentucky’s future. Should I not support at least the one candidate who now promises to oppose casinos?

But no, I just can’t and won’t support a past facilitator of the corrosion that has so infiltrated Washington, now up to the Supreme Court.

So I won’t support Beshear, nor will I Fletcher. Can I just sit on my hands and not vote this election? I, a proponent of exercising our hard fought democratic rights, chief among them the power of the polling place, can I go through a major election without placing a vote?

No. And the only other person I know who I trust to do the right thing, to surround themselves with good, honest people who with him will focus solely on what is best for the COMMON wealth of Kentucky and its future is…oh gosh, this is going to sound…I don’t know the word, it’s not quite egotistical, but close, it’s not quite delusional, but close…oh drat, forget what it sounds like---the only person I know who believes in the approach and the policies that I believe in is me.

But I am not a candidate. I belong to the party that has a candidate and I did not run, nor did I think I needed to with the field that did run. But then Beshear, late in the primary season, unleashed his pro casino agenda that thoroughly dis-heartened me.

Do I let the fact that I have no chance, that I have no track record, that it would dilute whatever credibility I might have and make me look ridiculous stop me from doing the really unthinkable: change my political affiliation to Independent and enter as a write in candidate, just so I can use my vote on the person I most trust?