As the November elections draws near, there is an upsurge in sex scandals in congress and there are some congressmen that are facing economic impropriety allegations . A lot of political pundits are saying that these issues are less likely to influence how people vote in November. I also do believe these recent rash of misconduct in congress will not solely determine how voters cast their votes. This is because there are several other issues that are staring the American voters in the face and it is suddenly not clear cut on how people are going to vote because of these multi-dimensional diplomatic, social, moral, cultural and political issues.

Let us start with Afghanistan that is being described as a "failed state" by many analysts because of uncontained insurgent activity and because of the recent momentum in violent activity by the Taliban against NATO forces. Opinions are rife about how Afghanistan was literally mismanaged economically and politically after the US invasion and how the Taliban are getting ready for a come back. Voters are going to be concerned about what went wrong after American blood was spilled to chase these hoodlums away from Kabul and who and what is responsible for ensuring that they are permanently out of commission.

The Iraqi war is being touted as the single most important issue on the minds of Americans as they prepare to go to the polls. As the situation gets more volatile, as reported by the news media, the American voters are going to vote based on how they feel on the Iraqi invasion and the management of the peace. As American soldiers continue to die in large numbers everyday, some voters are concerned about the possibility of laying down some sort of exit strategy without abandoning the Iraqi's. The insurgency is, based on what we see on TV, getting better at killing coalition soldiers and the security situation in Baghdad and it's environs is precarious. Inasmuch as I do not support the immediate withdrawal from Iraq, I however believe that Washington should reach out to other nations that can influence the insurgent activity in Iraq so the senseless kilings of innocent civilians and coalition forces can stop.

Another issue that will influence how people vote is how the North Korean and Iran nuclear crisis is managed. The need to nip this dangerous development in the bud cannot be overemphasized. The world cannot and should not standby and watch another nuclear arms race begin. With a nuclear North Korea, countries like Iran, Syria, Turkey, Egypt, South Korea, Taiwan and so many other countries could feel the need to invest more resources in this dangerous science.

The other deciding factors for voters are immigration, job loss, big business influence on Washington, the economy and the declining moral values. As Americans prepare to go to the polls, there is an unprecedented desire for information so as to decide on how to vote and who to vote for. That, my friends, is the beauty of democracy.