Saturday, May 23, 2009
Radical Agenda?
I recently wrote a letter to the editor of a local newspaper in response to another letter written by somebody making false claims against those of us who support same-sex marriage. You can read the letter here: http://www.toacorn.com/news/2009/0521/letters/011.html
Saturday, May 02, 2009
"Change We Can Believe In"
“Change we can believe in”
During the democratic primary and the presidential election, we were told time and time again that Barack Obama would bring change to Washington and do away with the “politics as usual” processes. After the first 100 days of his Presidency, Barack Obama has brought some of the change that he promised, and neglected to follow through on some as well. Overall, I would say the President is doing a good job with all he has to contend with. Two wars, an economy in shambles, struggling auto and banking industries, and a potential flu pandemic make up the large portion of the Presidential docket. President Obama will also have to appoint a Justice to the Supreme Court perhaps sooner than he had intended to; let us hope that his appointee has a better tax record than some of his cabinet appointees.
One of the most substantial changes; however, is not anything implemented directly by the President or any statesman, but rather influenced by them. The change I am speaking of is the shift of political climate. After a crushing defeat at the hands of the Democrats, the GOP has been searching for a way to re-invigorate their party. Earlier this week, longtime Republican Senator Arlen Specter switched to the Democratic Party putting them within the one vote needed to break a filibuster. Once Al Franken gets sworn in as the newest Senator from Minnesota, the Democrats will essentially have free reign in the Senate. Looking back at the Clinton presidency, this is not necessarily a good thing. It is my firm belief that whenever one group holds the Executive branch and the majority of the Legislative branch, not much gets done. When the groups have to work together in a bipartisan manner, a better compromise can be reached to benefit more of our citizens and the constituents which these politicians were elected to represent.
I believe that more and more Americans are seeing the value of being more selective with their policies and political ideology. They aren’t becoming Centrists necessarily, but it does seem to me that people are becoming more independent in their views. Whether they are Republicans who support abortion rights or Democrats who believe in the right to freely own a gun, people are picking and choosing more aspects of their politics leading to a growing change in the political climate. Americans are also becoming more and more involved and out-spoken. With technology growing by the minute, people are using YouTube and Twitter and Facebook to express themselves and their views. I find this newfound political expression intriguing and exciting. It seems as though everyone’s voice can matter and there are now more outlets to facilitate these expressions. I am finding myself more and more invigorated by the ability to communicate my own thoughts and political beliefs openly through this technology. Let’s hope this change continues and we can develop more dialogue with our representatives to lead us in the direction we need to go.
During the democratic primary and the presidential election, we were told time and time again that Barack Obama would bring change to Washington and do away with the “politics as usual” processes. After the first 100 days of his Presidency, Barack Obama has brought some of the change that he promised, and neglected to follow through on some as well. Overall, I would say the President is doing a good job with all he has to contend with. Two wars, an economy in shambles, struggling auto and banking industries, and a potential flu pandemic make up the large portion of the Presidential docket. President Obama will also have to appoint a Justice to the Supreme Court perhaps sooner than he had intended to; let us hope that his appointee has a better tax record than some of his cabinet appointees.
One of the most substantial changes; however, is not anything implemented directly by the President or any statesman, but rather influenced by them. The change I am speaking of is the shift of political climate. After a crushing defeat at the hands of the Democrats, the GOP has been searching for a way to re-invigorate their party. Earlier this week, longtime Republican Senator Arlen Specter switched to the Democratic Party putting them within the one vote needed to break a filibuster. Once Al Franken gets sworn in as the newest Senator from Minnesota, the Democrats will essentially have free reign in the Senate. Looking back at the Clinton presidency, this is not necessarily a good thing. It is my firm belief that whenever one group holds the Executive branch and the majority of the Legislative branch, not much gets done. When the groups have to work together in a bipartisan manner, a better compromise can be reached to benefit more of our citizens and the constituents which these politicians were elected to represent.
I believe that more and more Americans are seeing the value of being more selective with their policies and political ideology. They aren’t becoming Centrists necessarily, but it does seem to me that people are becoming more independent in their views. Whether they are Republicans who support abortion rights or Democrats who believe in the right to freely own a gun, people are picking and choosing more aspects of their politics leading to a growing change in the political climate. Americans are also becoming more and more involved and out-spoken. With technology growing by the minute, people are using YouTube and Twitter and Facebook to express themselves and their views. I find this newfound political expression intriguing and exciting. It seems as though everyone’s voice can matter and there are now more outlets to facilitate these expressions. I am finding myself more and more invigorated by the ability to communicate my own thoughts and political beliefs openly through this technology. Let’s hope this change continues and we can develop more dialogue with our representatives to lead us in the direction we need to go.
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