My Great Political Dillemma

I got an e-mail from good ol’ Eli Pariser over at MoveOn.org today. Normally, I’m 100% behind whatever Eli is e-mailing me about - whether it’s taking down Karl Rove or sticking it to Bush on foreign policy. But this time, I’m a little torn.

The issue is the estate tax, a Federal policy with which my family has had recent experience. When my Grandpa passed away last fall, a substantial portion of his hard-earned money went to the Federal government. Normally, I would have no problem with this. My family is very comfortable, if not obscenely wealthy.

But then I calculated the amount of money from my Grandpa’s estate that was going directly to fund this dirty little war we’re involved in, and I was miffed. That money could be going to a thousand more important causes than funding the Iraq war. It could be paying for my little brother to attend private school or making our home more energy efficient. But instead, my Grandfather’s money is building bombs.

I have no idea which way I want Senators Murray and Cantwell to vote on the issue. Does anyone have any perspective for me on this?