I was born and raised in Wisconsin but have spent more than ten years now living in Japan. I have always been proud of my Wisconsin roots. When people tease me about being a cheesehead, I point to the fact that Wisconsin is actually a very progressive state that I am proud to be from.
I recently took a group of Japanese tourists on a tour of Wisconsin. They were amazed at the beauty of the state and the warmth of the people. Japanese have always looked up to Americans since the end of World War II. After Sept. 11, there was tremendous good will towards America in Japan and now that has begun to change, directly as a result of the policies of President Bush. A recent poll here showed that 93% hope that he is not re-elected.
Bush criticized Kerry for mentioning a Global Test. What Kerry meant was that our actions need to have credibility in order to lead the world. The president is considered the leader of the free world, but most people see Bush as arrogant and dangerous. His nice guy image does not translate well due to his not so nice policies.
Some feel that supporting President Bush is patriotic and a way of supporting our troops. To turn the world against us and then say that Americans are safer because of it is neither believable nor patriotic. The world is complex and John Kerry comes closer to understanding those complexities than George Bush. Now that the election is approaching, Bush is visiting Wisconsin. Has he done anything for our state besides spending millions for your vote? Wisconsin's motto is 'Forward'. Let's move forward and elect John Kerry for President.
