I'm voting for Jerry Kilgore to be Virginia's next governor this coming Tuesday, and I'm just sick about it.

Kilgore has really killed a lot of my enthusiasm over the last month or so, and at this point, the best thing I can say about him is that he's the lesser of two evils.

There are, of course, several good, solid, conservative reasons to vote for Kilgore, but Kilgore himself hardly makes mention of them in his campaign ads.

The campaign has been focused almost exclusively on the death penalty for what seems like the past five hundred years... and the problem is, I'm opposed to the death penalty. I'm a Christian, and I can't find a single thing in the teachings of Christ that condones execution as a viable punitive option.

Tim Kaine, the Democratic candidate for Governor, is (of course) a huge hypocrite on the issue. Kaine says that he opposes the death penalty because he's a Catholic. Fine. Me too. I also oppose abortion on demand for the same reasons, and Kaine is all for that.

The situation is made all the murkier by the fact that the Catechism of the Catholic Church doesn't exclude the use of the death penalty if he who is executed is clearly guilty and if executing him is the only way to protect other people. In other words, Kaine uses his Catholicism to justify his opposition of the death penalty, even though the Church does admit that sometimes, there's no other choice. Besides, even though Kaine says he opposes the death penalty as a Catholic, he also says he'll enforce it whenever it's handed out. I don't know how he can reconcile that, but I do know what that makes Kaine in my opinion. Of course, on the subject of abortion on demand, Kaine seems to forget that the Catholic Church even exists.

Meanwhile, the Republican candidate, Jerry Kilgore, gives me little to feel good about with regard to these particular topics. Kilgore is pro-death penalty to the point that he seems bloodthirsty about it. He's run ads saying that Kaine wouldn't even execute Hitler if given the chance, which is just stupid. I don't think I've seen a politician's campaign mishandled this badly since Bob Dole.

By the way, Kilgore, who is ostensibly opposed to abortion, lacked the courage of his convictions when asked about abortion on demand during the September debates.

Again, I know that there are solid, conservative reasons to support Kilgore.... but in this Death Penalty Obsessed Governor's race, I've forgotten them. I'd imagine that most of Virginia has, too... especially those who weren't strongly in Kilgore's base in the first place.

So here's where I stand:

I'm voting for Jerry Kilgore this Tuesday.

I think Kilgore is going to lose badly. I predict a big win for Kaine.

I no longer care.

I can't wait till this race is over.

PS - there is a nominally conservative third candidate running as well, and he'll do nothing more than drain a few votes away from Kilgore. Meanwhile, Virginia will end up saddled with another tax-jackin' liberal Democrat governor. Oh, joy.