Let me tell you what I am going to do.

Warning - Rant Ahead...

I've been watching this financial crisis unfold for a while now with great interest. I wish I were back in college (not really, but you know...) taking my Money & Banking, Investments, or Financial Statement Analysis classes at the moment. I bet they would be REALLY interesting now. I was briefly encouraged when the House voted down the bailout bill initially. Of course, they added a bunch of pork to the bill and resubmitted it and passed it about a week later. Go figure.

Guess who voted for it. Senators Barack Obama AND John McCain. Guess who I will NOT be voting for on November 4th. The idea that these companies are being bailed out with my tax dollars is nauseating. Neither one of these candidates are going to go to Washington and "fix" this debacle. They are both proposing big spending, each in their own way. I'm a Republican at heart, but was really giving some serious consideration to voting for Obama in this election, simply because I can't stomach another 4 years that resemble the last 8. But I've changed my mind. I've decided that the best way to send a message to the parties that their behavior is totally unacceptable is to withdraw my vote. If the Republican party wants to earn my vote back in 2012, they need to give me a TRUE conservative. Until then, I refuse to send the message that it's okay to give us a candidate like John McCain by voting for him simply because he is the "lesser of 2 evils". I will be voting 3rd party.

An interesting little tidbit: AIG was recently provided with $85 billion dollars to bail them out of their financial troubles and keep them afloat. You want to know how their top performing executives responded? They took a week-long spa retreat and enjoyed massages and other various spa treatments. If you don't believe me, check out the Washington Post article here . That's right - while working Americans watched their 401(k) investments go down the crapper and struggled to make ends meet, AIG executives were out partying on our tax dollars!!! I hope you're sitting down, because it gets even better. Guess how the Federal Reserve responded to their outrageous behavior? They decided to loan them an additional $38 BILLION dollars!!! This just happened on Wednesday of this week.

A few details about the bailout bill...(by the way, have you noticed how initially it was called a "bailout" and now they are calling it a "rescue")...here are a few of the "extras" - or as McCain would call them - "goodies" that were added to the bill before it passed: Film and Television Productions (Sec. 502), Wooden Arrows designed for use by children (Sec. 503), Virgin Island and Puerto Rican Rum (Section 308), Auto Racing Tracks (317), Wool Research (Sec. 325). Kind of gives you a warm, fuzzy feeling, doesn't it?

I'll tell you what. I am going to find out who every single incumbent Congressman & Senator is in this election, and I'm voting against them. I don't care if they have a R or a D next to their name. I want them ALL fired, every last one. It's time to do some major housecleaning if you ask me.