Neil, you got me thinking about the gun situation some. I agree about increasing the punishment for gun crimes. I have never been a gun person or been around them much at all. Coming from educated hippies, it makes sense. But guns, like drugs, have so much momentum, I think we could never reduce the levels by making them illegal to carry or own. Yes, we can look at countries in Europe who have higher punishments and much lower gun crimes, usually due to much lower levels of guns, but they are in a different society. As I have always kept my place of residence in an area where a gun was not needed, I feel they should not be needed for the most part. So I don't know what to think. With the democrats the gun issue does not effect me so I am not as bothered by it, the idea of universal health care and hand outs for illegals does, because I live in a very expensive state that is constantly raising taxes and expenses (todays raised cost was tools for the tunnels and bridges), that they are only going to make even more expensive. It just infuriates me when Amanda and I combined make decent money (not including the shop because it does not make money yet ) and we don't have massive debt or car payments, nor do we go out or have frivolous expenditures, or take vacations, or even buy fun things that are enjoyable, in addition to always keeping our residual monthly expenses down, we are just meeting our mortgage and bills every month with high cost of living here in a mediocre house on a very small piece of land in an average neighborhood. I am just so freaking pissed that people actually want to elect someone who is going to put an even hard hit on their pocket based on "charisma". I am not saying McCain is the choice, just that Hillary and Obama are so clearly not it is disgusting. /rant