JOHN EDWARDS FOR PRESIDENT

Let us first say that we will throw our support behind whoever ends up the Democratic nominee running for the presidency.

It is clear that the Democrats, en masse, take global warming more seriously than do the Republicans. Likewise, they are for the concept of a "We" society, as Michael Moore so eloquently put it in Sicko, as opposed to a me society. That means greater federal government assistance for those in need here in the U.S.

The Democrats also roundly support an assault weapons ban, stringent background checks for potential handgun owners, withdrawal from Iraq, legalization of and support for embryonic stem cell research and an overhaul of both our healthcare and educational systems.

One frontrunning Democratic candidate, however, is strongly opposed to campaign financing, a practice that is all but synonymous with malfeasance, and that candidate is John Edwards.

Edwards is the only Democrat besides Dennis Kucinich who has made the abolition of corporate financing of political campaigns a key issue of his run at the presidency. It can't be overstated how destructive corporate financing can be to our very Democracy. It has surely influenced the current state of not just our nation, but the entire world.

Could George W. Bush have even had the chance to co-opt the presidency twice if not for the network of corporate cronies, from lobbyists to local elected officials, who used their considerable influence to control the voting scenarios in states like Ohio and Florida? And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

We also applaud Edwards' strong stand against on nuclear power as an energy source. With so many options out there, why must we choose the only one whose byproduct is a poison? Sure, containment of the waste water is improving, but nothing is guaranteed free from breaking. Oil tankers are evidence of this.

W do admire Barack Obama for his eloquence and clear empathies for the common man. Our concerns with him are the number of ties to corporate interests he seems to have and the fact that he doesn't come off as decisive on certain issues, particularly military involvement in Iraq. Our concerns with Hillary are similar, particularly in her strong ties to corporate America.

You can see a detailed account of where our candidate, John Edwards, stands in relation to all his major opponents at 2Decide.com. Also, check out John Edwards' website, JohnEdwards.com.

Whomever you decide to vote for we implore of you to just get out and vote. It is both a right and a privilege and as much a civic duty as is paying taxes.