Why I am voting for Barack Obama

Do I really know Barack Hussein Obama? No. Could he be a closet marxist that will work to change America in unacceptable ways? Could be. But as of this writing, I really don't believe this. My reasoning has led me to conclude based upon his background and his performance during the election that he is someone that has a combination of liberal ideas tempered by reason and discipline.
Is there some question regarding his honesty? I find this to be a naive question to ask of a politician. Our best leaders have been able to credibly present what "should be" not "what is" and to also use persuasion to accomplish what they feel is right, not to mention the ability to carefully craft a response to deflect opposition and criticism. I have concluded for myself that he has more integrity than most of his peers. But he is still a politician, and we are electing a politician. I want no more rank amateurs with only familial ties to politicians leading our country.
Obama is a very well educated and professional politician with community, state, and national political experience.
Few candidates have been tested as Obama has been during this absurdly long presidential election. He took on direct attacks from the Clinton family - one of the preeminent political forces ever to appear on the American landscape. He has been tested by the "credit crisis", which has the potential to have the same impact on the world as the Great Depression of the 20's and 30's. Instead of erratic actions - he gathered about him well reasoned and respected leaders, Buffett, Rubin, Volker to name a few. An act which in and of itself had a settling effect on the American populous. His opponent instead sounded the alarm and increased the level of concern by suspending his campaign.
Three books have helped inform my choice on which candidate to vote for. The first is by Andrew J. Bacevich entitled The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism. Professor Bacevich explains clearly the consequences of and the limits to our current American society that is focused on consumption and personal freedom from responsibility. Are Bush and Cheney responsible for our current plight of endless war and and a collapsing economy? No. They are a product of each of our strong desire for affordable consumer goods, free energy, and the desire to not have to contribute to American's wealth and safety. We produced them. Yes, they came willingly, but it is you and I as Americans that chose them. It was also the democrats that did not have the courage to tell Americans that there are limits to consumption and irresponsibility, instead of producing candidates of courage, they produced in 2000 and 2004 presidential candidates whose strongest merits were that they had worked their entire lives focused on a single goal - becoming President of the United States.
I respect John McCain. I supported him for President in 2000 when he was running against a relatively inexperienced governor with a questionable background, a lack of education and understanding of politics and economics. McCain's opposition in the 2000 Republican primary was someone who was likely at that time less qualified to be President than Sarah Palin. His opponent in 2000 was of course G.W. Bush.
Alas, after eight years of American Exceptionalism and arrogance and reckless exhaustion of our military and economic power, we must now look to return to a course set during the Clinton administration, that being one of multilateral participation in the international community in partnership with other sovereign nations of the world. Alas, Senator McCain has surrounded himself with leaders of the neo-conservative movement. The temptation, which I too share, to hold America up as the greatest and most powerful nation on earth and to view it as somehow having a more important place in world history and to view it as not having limits is extremely appealing and intoxicating. However, we have to realize that we have reached the limits to our power, politically, economically, and militarily.
The second book which I am just finishing up is written by Robert Baer, the former CIA Agent who worked in the middle east in the 1980s and 90s. The Devil We Know: Dealing with the New Iranian Superpower explains the folly of the US invasion of Iraq and goes on to explain why the only potential for any positive impact within the Middle East is nuanced diplomacy and economic engagement not a military response. The US must stop threatening other nations, for the only reaction and consequence is a military escalation resulting from fear. Obama may not be able to resolve or improve the situation in the middle east, but he at least has the right perspective and skills to make an attempt. The Neocon response likely from a McCain administration will most probably lead to a further reduction in US influence and an increase in instability and violence.
Economic Disaster
The result of the past thirty years of deregulation, which actually started in the Carter administration, not the Reagan administration as is popularly believed has led us to a global financial crisis that will impact nearly everyone on the planet. This is quite an accomplishment. Recovery is going to take time. Unemployment rates will likely reach levels not seen since the 1930s. Millions have lost their financial security. The recovery is going to require a practical and intelligent response. Charles R. Morris, one of the most informed and prescient elder statesmen in finance has explained the current financial crisis, which is still unfolding, probably only now in its 5th or 6th inning, in his unsettling book The Trillion Dollar Meltdown: Easy Money, High Rollers, and the Great Crash. Mr. Morris provided a clear road map for the consequences of excessive deregulation, artificially relaxed money policy, and the misuse of sophisticated credit derivative instruments. But, if deregulation got us into our current once a century crisis, excessive, ill conceived, and hastily enacted regulation will surely prolong the crisis, possibly indefinitely. We need competence and reason in the White House. Obama has more intelligence, communication skills, and reason than does his opponent. We will need it. Will it be enough? Of this I am skeptical, but lets go into this worsening crisis with the best we have.
Age and running mate choice
The next president is going to face challenges similar to those faced after 9/11 and by the economic and political crises of the mid to late 1970s and early 80s. We need someone with the energy and stamina to hold up for at least four if not eight years. Senator McCain's age and his medical history create an unacceptable risk at this critical time. Compound the advanced age and history of melanoma, with the choice of Sarah Palin as Vice President and the risk of a McCain presidency is too great. Obama's choice of running mate was very similar to John Kennedy's, a senior Senator with decades of experience to counterbalance his relatively short tenure and young age. Senator Biden doesn't have presidential charisma, but he has experience and competence. Vice Presidents at their best do the heavy lifting behind the scenes. Nixon as the Vice President for Eisenhower, and to a certain extent Gore in the Clinton administration are representative examples of working Vice Presidents. Biden may be a bundle of malapropisms - but he is competent, experienced, and hard working and he is ready to assume the presidency if needed.
Finally
So it is with some measured optimism and with no sense of loss, that I find myself voting for a Democrat in the Presidential election for the second time in my life.
Please think then vote
No matter if you agree with me or ardently disagree please think for yourself. Weigh the choices carefully, for we do have real choices in this election, and then exercise your right and great privilege to vote.