Swing voters take their cue from the economy in Rust Belt state

[Thurston Howe IV]

Like many voters in socially conservative southern Ohio, Locke is more in tune with the Republican Party on issues such as abortion and gun control, but that may not be enough to seal the deal this time.

"I was raised a strict Republican, but I'm really torn between the two parties this time. In the end, I think maybe John Kerry has the best plan for the country."

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040912/ts_alt_afp/us_vote_jobs&cid=1506&ncid=2043

[Justice]

1. Great to Hear A Voter Who Knows Of Kerry's Plan

Perhaps somehow his plan got thru the media barrier.

[opihimoimoi]

2. Reality slowly opens HER EYES...didn't need too much Visine either

Its time for the Grass Roots to realize we are an endangered species.

Our Planet is not up to snuff in terms of food production... having to contend with lessening energy reserves and overpopulation. The math/stats confirms..

Our(Humanity) Fun level is being Lowered ever so slowly....to an unacceptable Level....

People are starting to see it in their faces.... and, under Bush, it can only get worse.

[Porcupine]

4. Yah but we've got Viagra!!

who needs jobs, food, clothing, shelter and minimal medical care. America's got wood.

[bluestateguy]

3. Kerry wins the state if he can just run even in south Ohio

Al Gore lost it badly due to gays, guns and God.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

5. Gore lost by 4 points! That is hardly a "bad" loss.

[DeepModem Mom]

6. kick

[DaveSZ]

7. I noticed this:

"The ripple effects of the economic malaise have touched some who have not even made it into the workforce yet, like Brittany Shipley, 18.

A recent high-school graduate who will cast her vote in a presidential election for the first time this year, Shipley is headed to college this fall to study nursing.

"I would have liked to teach little kids. I would have liked to have made a difference in their lives," she said wistfully. "But my stepfather just got laid off from the warehouse where he works, and I'm worried about job security.

"It seems like you're screwed if you don't work in a bank or a hospital. My boyfriend is a paramedic, and he told me I'll always have a job nursing."

[DaveSZ]

8. That job isn't so secure either:

http://new.wset.com/news/stories/0804/168121.html

Nursing Overtime Pay Loss Could Grow Shortage
Monday August 23, 2004 11:22pm Reporter: Amanda Cruickshank Posted By: Jeff Taylor



Lynchburg, VA - Some salaried nurses stand to lose overtime pay under the new rules. It's another blow to a profession that's already hurting. We have more on what some say is a looming crisis here in Central Virginia.

We're talking about the nursing shortage and it is still very much a reality in the Commonwealth. The bottom line is you or your family may not get the best care when you need it the most.

It's a critical situation that will only get worse over the next few years. Patty Bumgarner looks after 14 patients a day at Lynchburg General's Medical ICU. But the nursing shortage weighs on her mind for a different reason

Patty Bumgarner, Registered Nurse - "Who's going to take care of me when I get older? That's what goes through my head."

-more