Go, Kerry!

I
just finished watching John Kerry's acceptance speech to the
Democratic National Convention, and I have to say he gave me a lot of
hope. I've been a Kerry-skeptic in the past, as well as a critic of
Edwards. I now believe that they are a good choice for this election.

Kerry's speech
reminded me a lot of Blair before the 1997 election: he talked a lot
about hope, and the overwhelming theme was we can do better.
It was overwhelmingly positive in nature, and managed to include a
lot of concrete proposals as well as the usual fluff. Kerry's
frequent talk of values, hopes and aspirations was also very
reminiscent of JFK; that shouldn't be a surprise, given that JFK is
one of Kerry's heroes.

I was expecting a relatively nauseating flagwaving experience as
Kerry focused on his war-record, and America greatness. Instead, I
was greeted with aspirations I share. America should look to it's
history, and the greatness of documents such as the Constitution for
inspiration and values. Kerry actually said that equality of
opportunity, diversity, and innovation are the values on which
America is built. Hearing an American presidential candidate say
“equality of opportunity” was music to my
liberal-socialist ears! He even took the time to say that all
religions should be welcome in America.

Now for the issue-by-issue breakdown. I'm a policy-geek, so I enjoy
writing this stuff. Hopefully, someone, somewhere will find it
informative!

A large chunk of Kerry's speech focused on the armed forces, military
policy, counter-terrorism, and internationalism. It was refreshing;
he repeatedly stated that war is always a last resort, to be
prosecuted effectively and only with a concrete plan for “winning
the peace”. He talked a lot about the need to rebuild
alliances, and restore America to the status of a country that leads
by example rather than fear. He also promised to increase the size of
the military, as a means to abolishing the back-door draft (National
Guard/Reservists) that has propped up Bush's war. Predictably enough,
he also promised to be tough on nuclear proliferation. The key phrase
was definitely “the USA never goes to war because we want to,
only because we have to.”

Kerry
also talked a lot about health-care. I liked what he had to say.
Amidst the usual “will not privatize social security”
fluff that every Presidential candidate spouts, were
some true gems. Biggest of all, he said that he wanted to end the
situation in which “America will stop being the only advanced
country in the world that doesn't recognize health-care as a basic
right, not a privilege of the rich”. He promised to cut
health-insurance bills by $1,000 for everyone (a tax policy, perhaps?
A $1,000 tax credit on health-case would give every employee of TSG
comprehensive coverage including dental/vision). He promised to end
the monopoly of US drug companies that prevents the importation of
cheap drugs from Canada and Europe. He also promised faithfully to
never cut Medicare.

Kerry's education platform was also
strong. The biggest item was a concrete promise that every family
will receive a tax credit for every year and every child they have in
college. That's not quite free tuition, but it's a good start. He
also promised to stop cutting financial aid. He said that teachers
should be paid what they are worth, on a par with other essential
professionals. He advocated Head-Start, and a host of other
buzzwords. He was a little fluffy in places on this topic, but at
least concrete proposals were there.

Kerry's economic platform was
interesting. The most notable elements were a return to fiscal
responsibility, or as he put it “pay as you go”. He
sounded a lot like Clinton on this issue (crediting him for it!). He
made some concrete promises: tax breaks for the middle class, a
roll-back of tax cuts for the rich (i.e. more taxes for those over
$100,000/year), closing loopholes that let big companies pay no
taxes, and (best of all for me) he promised large tax breaks for
small businesses. He spoke out against overseas-outsourcing,
promising to reform tax law to encourage companies to employ workers
here and not elsewhere. He talked about being in favor of free-trade,
but only on a fair platform. I'm not sure if that's code for
protectionism! He made a big deal about the middle class, and their
importance to America; and also for the need to remove barriers for
the workers who strive to become middle class. Very solid, overall.

Kerry merged energy policy and
environmental policy in parts of his speech, but did both credit. He
strongly advocated research/development of just about anything that
reduces oil dependency. He promised never to go to war over oil, and
said that the way to avoid it is to no longer rely on it. He promised
never to sell national treasures in back-room deals, and promised
never to kill environmental laws at the behest of business. He
specifically talked about asthma, clean air, and clean water.

There were a few other gems:

• An amusing fluff story about John
  Kerry the father. Apparently, his daughter accidentally dropped a
  hamster cage into the sea – so Kerry dived in to save the
  little beast. That made me smile, even if it is total fluff!

  
  

• He included one definitely
  pro-choice statement.

  
  

• He talked a
  bit about the need to continue to pursue equality for women in all
  things.

  
  

• He promised to
  have an Attorney General who respects and upholds the Constitution.

  
  

Overall, a very
good speech. I'll be watching this campaign closely, so expect more
political updates!

Mood: geeky
Music: Sisters of Mercy - Empire Dam