i am having trouble deciding which way to vote - help

hello ,

i am having trouble deciding which way to vote next week in the election for president . i am trying to figure out who is the best man between the 2 , so i have a question which i hope to get a positive answer to -

what has obama done for us in the last 4 years he was in office , what has he done postive for our country . i would like to get many view's on this and please respond . if you are a obama supporter please list 1 thing he has done to help us as americac's and improve our country .

i work at a garage which has been in busniess for 27 year's . but the sad thing it may be closing due to the bad economy and so many people being out of work . everybody is scared to spend any money if they do have it . i have been there for 10 year's and my father 27 , he has owned it for the last 10 years when i went to work for him . it is a transmission shop . we are very saddend at the thought of closing the door's , but if something does not change in the next couple of day's then it will be all she wrote and the shop will be gone . i grew up there also , so it is a part of me . but i have contemplated this question for many day's and would appericate any help . i am trying to figure out who the best man would be , so my question stand's . what has obama done for us in the last 4 years to improve our way of life , thanks for help .

what has obama done for us in the last 4 years he was in office , what has he done postive for our country . ...

Boy, oh boy, it is surprising you need to ask.

For a start, Bill Maher summed up a bunch of things about three weeks ago, on his HBO program:

OBAMA Accomplishments - Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Note: there is some 'adult' language in this clip.

These are all worth noting:

President Obama Achievements
Killed Osama Bin Laden
Eliminated several other Al-Qaeda leaders
Ended the War in Iraq
Begun the drawdown of forces from Afghanistan
End-run Republican obstructionism by recess-appointing Richard Cordray to run the Consumer Financial Protection Board
Overhauled the food safety system
Advanced women's rights in the work place
Ended Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) in our military
Stopped defending DOMA in court.
Passed the Hate Crimes bill.
Appointed two pro-choice women to the Supreme Court.
Expanded access to medical care and provided subsidies for people who can't afford it.
Expanded the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Fixed the preexisting conditions travesty [and rescissions] in health insurance.
Invested in clean energy.
Overhauled the credit card industry, making it much more consumer-friendly.
While Dodd-Frank bill was weak in many respects, it was still an extremely worthwhile start at re-regulating the financial sector.
Created a Elizabeth Warren's dream agency: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Done a lot for veterans
Got help for people whose health was injured during the clean-up after the 9/11 attacks.

http://obamaachievements.org/

President Obama has also improved our standing around the world by representing the U.S. with honor, grace and dignity. His predecessor failed on all three counts. He also spent a great deal of time seeking some kind of bipartisanship with Republican officials, but was rebuffed more often than not.

Is he perfect? No.
Can the Republican challenger make a difference? Not for 47% of the people in this country.

what has obama done for us in the last 4 years he was in office , what has he done postive for our country . ...

Boy, oh boy, it is surprising you need to ask.

For a start, Bill Maher summed up a bunch of things about three weeks ago, on his HBO program:

OBAMA Accomplishments - Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Note: there is some 'adult' language in this clip.

These are all worth noting:

President Obama Achievements
Killed Osama Bin Laden
Eliminated several other Al-Qaeda leaders
Ended the War in Iraq
Begun the drawdown of forces from Afghanistan
End-run Republican obstructionism by recess-appointing Richard Cordray to run the Consumer Financial Protection Board
Overhauled the food safety system
Advanced women's rights in the work place
Ended Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) in our military
Stopped defending DOMA in court.
Passed the Hate Crimes bill.
Appointed two pro-choice women to the Supreme Court.
Expanded access to medical care and provided subsidies for people who can't afford it.
Expanded the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Fixed the preexisting conditions travesty [and rescissions] in health insurance.
Invested in clean energy.
Overhauled the credit card industry, making it much more consumer-friendly.
While Dodd-Frank bill was weak in many respects, it was still an extremely worthwhile start at re-regulating the financial sector.
Created a Elizabeth Warren's dream agency: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Done a lot for veterans
Got help for people whose health was injured during the clean-up after the 9/11 attacks.

http://obamaachievements.org/

President Obama has also improved our standing around the world by representing the U.S. with honor, grace and dignity. His predecessor failed on all three counts. He also spent a great deal of time seeking some kind of bipartisanship with Republican officials, but was rebuffed more often than not.

Is he perfect? No.
Can the Republican challenger make a difference? Not for 47% of the people in this country.

Once I stop choking on my toast and stop laughing I hopefully can respond to Doc's outrageous claims!

This sums up why President Obama is the logical choice on November 6, 2012

You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.

It has to be said that the rest of the world is looking in your elections and wondering how and why this race is so close. Most counties would give their right arm to have Obama as their leader. But perhaps it is only because we are viewing things from afar that we can see what Obama has done for your country - we are, thankfully, away from the bias of your news stations and get the nearest thing that anyone can to non-biased coverage of what is going on in America. A friend that moved away from my city a few years back said that it was only after he left that he realised how beautiful it was. One can only assume that many Americans, like my friend, are unable to see a good thing staring them in the face.

I'm very sad to hear of your business closing elvis collector. It's not just losing a job, you hate to see a way of life go by as well.

It doesn't help you at all in your situation but #1 on Maher's list helping prevent a depression was a big thing Obama did. Without the stimulus, without the auto bailout, the hole we would be in is so much deeper than it would be. When the President entered office in January 2009, the economy was shedding a staggering 800,000 jobs per month. After the stimulus, which was not big enough, the economy did start moving in a positive direction and adding jobs. Unfortunately, in any economic recovery jobs are the last indicator because businesses only add them when demand forces them to. Sadly, the stimulus wasn't large enough to push that kind of massive demand. However, it along with the auto bailout and some other measures kept a crisis that was already very bad from becoming a total economic cataclysm. Unemployment could easily be 15 or 16 or even 20 percent. That's how bad the hole was.

Unfortunately as the clip from Real Time points out fixing the jobs crisis in the United States is going to take a lot more than any one administration's economic policies. It's very tough to compete in a world where your competitors in other countries pay pennies per hour and within your country, with the jobs that can't leave, the imbalance of power between labor and management where labor can't even keep up with the costs of living.

On a practical aspect, though, something that might benefit you and yours directly here are four.

1) If your son/daughter or yourself is able to secure a federal loan for college, Obama made that practice much more streamlined and inexpensive. Formerly, the loans were granted through banks who as a middle man took a fee for the administration and received all the interest on the loans if and when they were paid back. However, if the loans were not paid back they were guaranteed by the government. So the banks were taking these fees and the government was assuming all the risks. Now, the loans come directly from the government saving the government in expenditures and you the lendee money on payback. It's a much more efficient system.

2) A few years ago, the Supreme Court ruled that if a woman finds out she is getting cheated on her pay in comparison to a man, based solely on her sex, the clock on her right to sue over the issue began as soon as the discrimination started. As many women would go years and years without finding out, that meant the statute of limitations on their suits would run out and they would have no recourse to get that pay that they deserve. The Lily-Ledbetter act starts the clock when the woman finds out about the injustice. The change in the law not only gives hundreds of thousands of women the right to sue for wages that are rightfully theirs, but it also provides a penalty to encourage employers not to engage in those sort of shenanigans. If your wife or sister or mother works for wages this is an important law.

3). The credit card reform act. While the act does not limit the fees that can be charged for a credit card, it does limit the amount of times a fees can be raised in certain time limits, it also forces the companies to notify you when a rate change is about to take place. It prohibits credit cards from being sold to children under 18 and on college campuses. And it basically eliminates a lot of the fine print stuff on credit cards so you know exactly what you're buying when you get it. It's not a perfect law but it does provide more sunshine on this industry than there ever has been.

4) Elements of Obama care currently in place. These include some biggies. One is that insurance companies must spend at least 80 percent of your premiums on actual healthcare as opposed to administration and fees. If they don't they have to refund you the difference. Some people have received refunds already. Another is the prohibition of insurance bans on children with pre-existing conditions. A similar prohibition for everyone goes into place in 2014. A third and is this is an underrated biggie, but insurance companies must let you keep your children on your policy (if of course you are one of the lucky ones with a policy) until their 26th birthday. This means your kids can go to college and not worry about a policy. This means maybe a 19 or 20 or 21 year old can get married and have a starter job and not worry about insurance. They can save for insurance later on or get a house, but they don't have to worry if they job they have now provides it.

These are big things that have an everyday impact. They're all listed above, I'm just giving specifics on how they can affect you.

It has to be said that the rest of the world is looking in your elections and wondering how and why this race is so close. Most counties would give their right arm to have Obama as their leader. But perhaps it is only because we are viewing things from afar that we can see what Obama has done for your country - we are, thankfully, away from the bias of your news stations and get the nearest thing that anyone can to non-biased coverage of what is going on in America. A friend that moved away from my city a few years back said that it was only after he left that he realised how beautiful it was. One can only assume that many Americans, like my friend, are unable to see a good thing staring them in the face.

If you are very rich then vote for Romney.

If you are just a normal person then vote for Obama.

Simple as that.

what has obama done for us in the last 4 years he was in office , what has he done postive for our country . ...

Boy, oh boy, it is surprising you need to ask.

For a start, Bill Maher summed up a bunch of things about three weeks ago, on his HBO program:

OBAMA Accomplishments - Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Note: there is some 'adult' language in this clip.

These are all worth noting:

President Obama Achievements
Killed Osama Bin Laden
Eliminated several other Al-Qaeda leaders
Ended the War in Iraq
Begun the drawdown of forces from Afghanistan
End-run Republican obstructionism by recess-appointing Richard Cordray to run the Consumer Financial Protection Board
Overhauled the food safety system
Advanced women's rights in the work place
Ended Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) in our military
Stopped defending DOMA in court.
Passed the Hate Crimes bill.
Appointed two pro-choice women to the Supreme Court.
Expanded access to medical care and provided subsidies for people who can't afford it.
Expanded the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Fixed the preexisting conditions travesty [and rescissions] in health insurance.
Invested in clean energy.
Overhauled the credit card industry, making it much more consumer-friendly.
While Dodd-Frank bill was weak in many respects, it was still an extremely worthwhile start at re-regulating the financial sector.
Created a Elizabeth Warren's dream agency: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Done a lot for veterans
Got help for people whose health was injured during the clean-up after the 9/11 attacks.

http://obamaachievements.org/

President Obama has also improved our standing around the world by representing the U.S. with honor, grace and dignity. His predecessor failed on all three counts. He also spent a great deal of time seeking some kind of bipartisanship with Republican officials, but was rebuffed more often than not.

Is he perfect? No.
Can the Republican challenger make a difference? Not for 47% of the people in this country.

First of all, you are using Bill Maher as a spokesperson.

I'll at least post this for now (A lot of good comments at the end of story also from the readers)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... redit.html

many thanks for all the info so far , i appericate the answering of this post as this has weighed on my mind for sometime , one thing i learned earley is that you cannot carry on a political conversation in the public without offending someone so i like elvis keep my view's to myself when people ask me about politic's unless they say thing's that i can agree to then i will discuss it . thank you likethebike for the kind word's , i just work there but my father own's the busniess and has been working there for 27 year's , it is very sad to watch him as this has been a part of his life for so long and raised me while working there and bought it 10 years ago as the former owner was going to close it then , i guess you can say the garage is a old friend to him and it breaks your heart to see him as is killing him to know that if in the next few day's if we don't take enough work that he may have to close shop . also for me it may mean looking for another job which will be hard to do in itself . but i was hoping that by posting this there would be some people , which i can see has been , that want's to make the right pick so to speak , again i appeircate all reply's . even if i don't agree i will still thank you for taking the time to do so , god bless you all .

what has obama done for us in the last 4 years he was in office , what has he done postive for our country . ...

Boy, oh boy, it is surprising you need to ask.

For a start, Bill Maher summed up a bunch of things about three weeks ago, on his HBO program:

OBAMA Accomplishments - Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)
Note: there is some 'adult' language in this clip.

These are all worth noting:

President Obama Achievements
Killed Osama Bin Laden
Eliminated several other Al-Qaeda leaders
Ended the War in Iraq
Begun the drawdown of forces from Afghanistan
End-run Republican obstructionism by recess-appointing Richard Cordray to run the Consumer Financial Protection Board
Overhauled the food safety system
Advanced women's rights in the work place
Ended Don't Ask, Don't Tell (DADT) in our military
Stopped defending DOMA in court.
Passed the Hate Crimes bill.
Appointed two pro-choice women to the Supreme Court.
Expanded access to medical care and provided subsidies for people who can't afford it.
Expanded the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Fixed the preexisting conditions travesty [and rescissions] in health insurance.
Invested in clean energy.
Overhauled the credit card industry, making it much more consumer-friendly.
While Dodd-Frank bill was weak in many respects, it was still an extremely worthwhile start at re-regulating the financial sector.
Created a Elizabeth Warren's dream agency: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Done a lot for veterans
Got help for people whose health was injured during the clean-up after the 9/11 attacks.

http://obamaachievements.org/

President Obama has also improved our standing around the world by representing the U.S. with honor, grace and dignity. His predecessor failed on all three counts. He also spent a great deal of time seeking some kind of bipartisanship with Republican officials, but was rebuffed more often than not.

Is he perfect? No.
Can the Republican challenger make a difference? Not for 47% of the people in this country.

First of all, you are using Bill Maher as a spokesperson.

I'll at least post this for now (A lot of good comments at the end of story also from the readers)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... redit.html

And you are using the most right-wing, racist, homophobic, muck-raking newspaper in the UK for your own source - and the people who leave the comments on the end are the people who adhere to the right-wing policies of the newspaper.

many thanks for all the info so far , i appericate the answering of this post as this has weighed on my mind for sometime , one thing i learned earley is that you cannot carry on a political conversation in the public without offending someone so i like elvis keep my view's to myself when people ask me about politic's unless they say thing's that i can agree to then i will discuss it . thank you likethebike for the kind word's , i just work there but my father own's the busniess and has been working there for 27 year's , it is very sad to watch him as this has been a part of his life for so long and raised me while working there and bought it 10 years ago as the former owner was going to close it then , i guess you can say the garage is a old friend to him and it breaks your heart to see him as is killing him to know that if in the next few day's if we don't take enough work that he may have to close shop . also for me it may mean looking for another job which will be hard to do in itself . but i was hoping that by posting this there would be some people , which i can see has been , that want's to make the right pick so to speak , again i appeircate all reply's . even if i don't agree i will still thank you for taking the time to do so , god bless you all .

As awful as your story is, I think it's important to remember that such things are taking place in all countries because of the economic situation over the last four years or so. Someone posted recently a table of figures that showed that american unemployment was a few per cent higher now than when Obama took office. In the same time period, unemployment has risen approximately 70% in the UK, so when compared to other countries the USA has faired well during the recession and economic crisis.

yes , you are right . what our country is going thru did not happen overnight . this was years in the making ,the problem is that we as american's sit back and let it happen . we should have stood up and said wait a minute this our country and we are not letting this happen , but i am afraid it may be to late as i do not know if this can be fixed .

yes , you are right . what our country is going thru did not happen overnight . this was years in the making ,the problem is that we as american's sit back and let it happen . we should have stood up and said wait a minute this our country and we are not letting this happen , but i am afraid it may be to late as i do not know if this can be fixed .

I don't think America standing up on its own would have done a great deal of good - the problems go far beyond America, and you are obviously affected by the situation in Europe where Greece and Spain are both verging on bankruptcy, Ireland has had a bail out package and the Euro is struggling badly. If the people you export to are not buying, then that is going to have a heavy effect on your own economy and employment rates not matter what you do.

yes , you are right . what our country is going thru did not happen overnight . this was years in the making ,the problem is that we as american's sit back and let it happen . we should have stood up and said wait a minute this our country and we are not letting this happen , but i am afraid it may be to late as i do not know if this can be fixed .

There are solutions for getting money into the pockets of potential customers or clients. One of those solutions was a jobs bill that was rejected by congress. This is major thing, and here's a link to CNN. They are not right or left; in fact, they are leaning a bit to the right lately. In any event, this is what happened. And there was an anti-outsourcing bill that was also rejected.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/13/politics/ ... index.html

I found a link to the same event (another try at it) on CBN (Christian Broadcasting Network), so it's clear that the Republican dominated congress killed the bill.

http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/politics/2011/October/Jobs-Bill-Rejected-Obama-Congress-Regroup-/

The first two years, things got done: a stimulus (that needed to go even further), and yes, health care (which is something important to me - when Romney says he'll start to eliminate it on the "first day," he's aiming for me . . . the details are personal, but I cannnot switch insurers until it fully kicks in, in 2014, and use the exchange). Our war in Iraq is over. It was not just a promise. Osama Bin Laden is swimming with the fishes. That was a promise, and was kept, much to everyone's surprise (especially the dude in that compound). The bailout of the auto industry has an impact on the general economy, and on my family's economy, since my family is in auto parts manufacturing, and GM is a customer. The impact on the economy of a collapse of the entire American auto industry is almost impossible to take in. New construction starts are starting to pick up.

From the summertime, when construction is at its zenith (L.A. Times): http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jul/18/business/la-fi-mo-housing-starts-20120718

This means they have good reason to expect that people will be buying homes. Businesses are hiring again. *I* am able to hire again! And I am doing just that this week. I also just put some checks in to the bank today, and will do so again at the end of the week. The Republican plan may restrict tax deductions for charitable giving for the upper middle class, and they GIVE! (And limit charitable deductions for the wealthy, as well, which would be a disaster for small charities. That's us.)

People are often "scared" because of the news channels they watch, and putting out that fear has REAL consequences. The aim was to defeat this President, at ANY cost. There is a fine book about how this took place (thanks, Doc, I have it!). http://www.amazon.com/Not-What-Good-Representatives-ebook/dp/B005FLPM0W/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1351562322&sr=8-2&keywords=Do+Not+Ask+What+Good+We+Do%3A+Inside+the+U.S.+House+of+Representatives

This is significant, because once the election is over, their interest in defeating him will quickly, very quickly wane. And maybe some bills will get passed that will really give the general economy an additional jump start.

I would say that it would be quite a gamble on putting someone whose economic plan is unclear, and yet (what we know of it) resembles the one that got us into this mess in the first place. And clearly, you and your family have a truly "small business" (as do I, even though it is a non-profit, it's still a business, and it's not easy). You are not among the ones gifted with an easy life handed to you. Yes, "you" built that, but your concern regarding for whom to vote shows that none of us does anything completely alone. No man is an Island.

Well, a very few.

This might be helpful; he's not a "pundit," just a citizen, a videographer (answer the questions, when he asks them):

rjm (I'm very sorry to hear what you've been going through; my family has been right there, too, and it's still a great struggle with an uncertain future - but "I built that." With help. Help I need, and appreciate.)

Last edited by rjm on Tue Oct 30, 2012 6:35 am, edited 2 times in total.

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/ ... elps_obama

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/10/29/weather_gods_interfere_in_the_campaign_and_the_left_prays_the_storm_helps_obama

Political bias notwithstanding, that has to be the most badly written piece of "journalism" I have ever read - the wonders of the english language take a battering in that piece.

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/10/29/weather_gods_interfere_in_the_campaign_and_the_left_prays_the_storm_helps_obama

I give a link from The Christian Broadcasting Network, in order to show the full range on the matter, and you return again with Rush? And only Rush? Is he running? Because if he is, then that's the right place to check. I didn't know he was.

Go to Romney's page, where he gives you his plan. And compare to the President's bills, that were rejected by this congress, still. This has happened more than once! They keep rejecting any attempts to jump start jobs and small business.

Here is somebody who wants to know. Rush cannot be the ONLY source . . . I gave information about the jobs legislation, from CNN, and CBN!

rjm

Last edited by rjm on Tue Oct 30, 2012 6:37 am, edited 1 time in total.

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/10/29/weather_gods_interfere_in_the_campaign_and_the_left_prays_the_storm_helps_obama

Political bias notwithstanding, that has to be the most badly written piece of "journalism" I have ever read - the wonders of the english language take a battering in that piece.

Yes, but he has his acolytes. And one reason a family business is having difficulty is because such as Rush is sowing fear and anxiety - even terror across the land among consumers. "Don't buy now, don't fix your car, look for a house, sell your house, tutor your kids: just don't do ANYTHING now! Because the "president" is EVIL, and so you will LOSE EVERYTHING if he is re-elected, and so hide whatever money you have under the mattress." Not an exact quote, but that is what such as Rush would like people to feel.

rjm

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/10/29/weather_gods_interfere_in_the_campaign_and_the_left_prays_the_storm_helps_obama

Your unending links to the same site, over and over again, actually undermine your goals.

Food for thought.

As awful as your story is, I think it's important to remember that such things are taking place in all countries because of the economic situation over the last four years or so. Someone posted recently a table of figures that showed that american unemployment was a few per cent higher now than when Obama took office. In the same time period, unemployment has risen approximately 70% in the UK, so when compared to other countries the USA has faired well during the recession and economic crisis.

Where are you getting the UK stats from? The figures I've seen show that the unemployment rate was 6.7% in January 2009 and is now 7.9%, which is a rise of around 18%.

I was lucky enough to get to vote early (yesterday) and avoid the lines at the polls. I wasn't sure who to vote for, so I closed my eyes and picked one. I forget who I picked, but I know his last name began with an O.

Good luck to that feller, whoever he is.

As awful as your story is, I think it's important to remember that such things are taking place in all countries because of the economic situation over the last four years or so. Someone posted recently a table of figures that showed that american unemployment was a few per cent higher now than when Obama took office. In the same time period, unemployment has risen approximately 70% in the UK, so when compared to other countries the USA has faired well during the recession and economic crisis.

Where are you getting the UK stats from? The figures I've seen show that the unemployment rate was 6.7% in January 2009 and is now 7.9%, which is a rise of around 18%.

September 2008:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7620451.stm

October 2012:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10604117

1.71 million to 2.5 million is approximate 70% rise. The calculations were done in the same way on the american figures posted here by another board member a couple of weeks back.

http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2012/10/29/weather_gods_interfere_in_the_campaign_and_the_left_prays_the_storm_helps_obama

Good one...
I find that guy more amusing than Dr. Phil...

Don't blame Obama for the bad economy. He inherited a fiscal nightmare from that moron George Bush. I like Obama because he is an everymans man. He seems genuinely concerned for this country. He can't fix everything in just four short years. Give the guy the benefit of the doubt and give him another 4 years in the White House and he may be able to make some leeway in picking up the economy.
Governor Romney on the other hand works for the rich SOBs that are near and dear to his heart. He is anti-American judging by how most of his money is in foreign banks and can't be properly investigated by U.S. authorities. He's been caught in many many lies during his campaign. I put Romney in the same category as good ol' Richard Nixon. He's an embarassment to every American citizen in the U.S. Please don't vote for this guy...he couldn't even manage to keep Massachusetts afloat when he was governor here.
He couldn't run a state, so, how is he going to run a whole country efficiently. If he's elected, the rich will become richer and the working man will have to apply for government assistance just to survive.
My opinion only.