As we draw close to election time here in the U.S. (despite my writing habits, I seem to have swindled this country into granting me American citizenship), thoughts naturally have turned to which candidate might best protect our interests, whether it be health care, the economy(, stupid), or how to stop man-on-box-turtle action before it's too late.

Today's round-up of links --as with any such post on politics-- is not meant to support one side or the other. If you don't see the opportunity to laugh at/disdain both sides, and still feel the compulsion to stump, might I suggest that ur doin it wrong.

As always, Drama Llama is about posturing, pose and fighting like a bunch of girls. So let's hit the quotes!

Bush Hates Your Remix

Despite, apparently, not doing much of anything these days except appear in obviously staged town hall meetings, George W. Bush seems poised to go forward with the Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property (PRO-IP) Act.

Main tenets of the PRO-IP Act, as reported by GamePolitics:

• increases the penalties for infringement by expanding what is considered a 'work'
• broadens the ability of the government to permanently seize goods
• creates an Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator, a new cabinet position whose sole job is to increase intellectual property enforcement.

So who's this "IP czar" Dubya wants to create? Explains Gizmodo:

The cabinet position will give a single point of authority to a job now handled by a scattered handful of different agencies and committees. It also calls for increased strength to prosecute and punish IP offenders.

Sounds sensible so far! After all, as Gizmodo senior associate editor John Mahoney quips, "creating a czar worked so well for the war on drugs, why not try it again?"

Mark Methenitis of Law of the Game on Joystiq brings further analysis:

The impact to the consumer is obvious... more or less anything that has come into contact with that pirated item can be seized by the government. The statute is worded in such a broad manner that it would be theoretically possible to seize all of the computers in a home or office if one pirated MP3 or piece of software was present.

...based on this new definition of 'works,' a game with a licensed soundtrack may be multiple works... For example, let's say someone is pirating Madden 2002. It might not be worth EA's time or trouble to go after those pirates, since their real concern at this point is Madden 2009, but the piracy of that game could now also potentially be considered the piracy of that music.

Heaven help you if you pirate Guitar Hero. It seems those things would be worth a vermillion, brazillion dollars.

Methenitis notes that it is unclear whether Dubya will enact this all or leave it to his successor. If you started to relax there, since it's clear that Obama would toss out anything King George left for him, remember that his running mate, Joe Biden, pals around with domestic terrorists-- er, I mean, the RIAA.

(On the other hand, Republican VP nominee Sarah Palin would probably stumble on a phrase like "intellectual property" and not know how to pronounce it. So there you go.)

Gizmodo: Bush Signs Bill to Create Cabinet-Level Intellectual Property Czar

GamePolitics: Scary IP Enforcement Legislation Awaits Dubya's Signature

Law of the Game on Joystiq: The PRO-IP Act and Gaming

Game for Obama, Even If He Doesn't Respect You

GamePolitics posted two articles in quick succession today that create an interesting little narrative.

Gaming Marathon Will Raise Funds for Obama Campaign

A press release posted at examiner.com describes an upcoming five-day gaming marathon which will raise funds for the presidential campaign of Sen. Barack Obama.

The “Gaming for Obama” marathon kicks off at noon on October 20th and runs until midnight, October 25th. A live feed will be provided by Justin.tv.

The official release suggests that the marathon is to encourage gamers to "go out and vote for their favorite candidate on Nov. 4", but still explicitly states that proceeds go to the Obama campaign. I suppose if your choice is between a neo-luddite and a guy who knows what Pong is, the decision is a clear one.

Mind you, Barack Obama is anything but grateful, apparently, since the GP posting just two entries before this one reads:

For Obama, Video Games Still an Underachievement Metaphor

Oh, snap.

This reading of Obama's attitude on games --which has always come across a little dismissive-- derives from a recent speech in which he said:

You know, I will invest in education. We'll make sure government gets behind the schools. But it won't make much of a difference if parents aren't turning off the television set and putting away the video games and making sure that our children are doing their homework.

Which, on the whole, seems rather mild. But it does seem as though Obama wishes his young campaigners would show their support by... doing their homework, I guess? It is midterms time, after all.

McCain, for his part, will never ever figure out how to use a Wiimote, whereas Obama's two daughters look like they really really want Pikmin for Christmas, so I guess there is hope, after all?

That's it for this Drama Llama, Politics Wahey! edition. And now for a poll: clearly, a candidate with first-hand video game experience would be the best for representing our critical interests, such as extra lives, arcade prices, and cheat codes. In short, we need someone who has been there, who has been a game character.

So, list your pick for your top presidential and VP game character candidates! And yes, this is your chance to stump. We want to hear all about Sephiroth's foreign policy experience.