Obama rally in Fayetteville Sunday

To those who don't know me - they'd see the long hair and the tie-dyes and assume I'm some kind of bleeding heart liberal....I guess I am in a way - I believe that man is extremely charitable and will not stand by to watch others suffer, and Americans have proven time and again that they are some of the most giving folks on the planet. I'd give my last dollar to help a brother or sister truly in need, but I resent the government taking my money and determining for me who is most deserving. I let my church do that, I let the non-profits that I donate my time and money to determine that. I truly believe in the 'teach a man to fish' VS the 'give a man a fish' attitude towards life. BUT.. I also believe that the gov't forces us to give a lot of handouts to people who have stopped wanting to learn how to help themselves...for whatever reason (and I'm not even going to go into that now). They feel that we owe them something for whatever reason (won't go into that either, most folks have heard them all). Those who refuse to learn how to fish - for whatever reason - well...then you'd better find another way to eat. Here's what bothers me...and you'll see my conflict.... Music has always been a big part of my life. It brings me great joy, gives me a great appreciation for the talents that God blesses each and every one of us with - and helps pick me up in those times when nothing else seems to be going right. I love(d) nothing more than dancing in a field with my fellow Deadheads at a Grateful Dead show...mellowing out on a beautiful evening listening to Peter, Paul and Mary...listening to Bob Marley preach to me about the light of goodness that we all have in us..even listening to Bob Dylan murder so many of the beautiful songs he wrote that he should've just let others sing (I've heard the same comment made about Willie Nelson, too)....it all made me feel good at the time, and all I was concerned about was the music. Now all these musicians at one time or another have expressed political views that I may not have agreed with - but that didn't make their music any less beautiful.....am I supposed to hate them because I don't agree with their political views? Should I burn their records in the streets and call the radio stations and their advertisers and tell them I will no longer support them because of this person's political views? OR should I be glad that we all live in a country where we're allowed to have dissenting views, and thank God that we're not all the same? I personally love James Taylor. I think his music is beautiful. I think it's amazing - that like so few others in the world - he has managed to overcome his problems (heroin addiction), and done something positive in his life. He should be an inspiration.... Yeah, I don't agree with his political views....he takes a big risk by putting that out in public....ask the Dixie Chicks what something like that can do to your career......but, as a fellow musician and a fellow American - I can agree to disagree with him on his political views......It's what makes this country great that we are allowed to have that kind of discourse without fear. We may not all agree on the method, but I'm hoping that we're all voicing our opinions on what we feel in our hearts is the right thing to do.... All this bickering reminds me of the old Wile E Coyote cartoons when he and the sheepdog met each morning for a cup of coffee before they punched the clock.....once they were clocked in, they were arch enemies - but when the day was over...after all the explosions and attempted murder and various evil-doing towards each other - they both realized that they were just doing their job the way they thought it should be done...and went back to being civil towards each other..... I wish they would remove the D and the R after every politicians name on the ballot.....I wonder how many voters would be confused as to who to vote for? Would folks start voting on issues when they didn't have a party line telling them what they are supposed to think?