blog 6: comment on "don't drink the rhetoric"

Rachael said...
100% Agreement! You took the words right out of my mouth so to speak! I have never felt that the concept of republican or democrat made any sense. As if you are saying you are in some elite club by claiming affiliation with either. It has become expected to be a member of one party or the other. I have always been a free thinker, and i used to think that meant i was an independent; until I was told there was an independent party. How absurd! I say I am an independent because I do not vote based on party affiliation, I vote on the issues i feel passionately about!

http://dontdrinktherhetoric.blogspot.com/2010/07/partisanship-and-iron-triangles-not-for.html#comments

Blog 5: When I first felt the impact of Government

I have always been a proud American and strong supporter of the American Government. I had faith in the system. Granted, I was young, naïve, and just barely learning about government when President Clinton took office. My parents were democrats, so naturally, they were often expressing approval of the Clinton Administration. That led to my political involvement as well as my trust in the system. Then, when I got into high school, George W. Bush was elected. I was really surprised to see how quickly political changes, could greatly effect the American People. For me, the first negative impact I felt was the introduction of the No Child Left Behind Act. Being a new high school student, I was of the first generation of students to begin the mandatory TAKS Testing. This didn’t seem like such a big deal at first, until the course curriculum of my core classes began to change drastically. Instead of learning the material the instructors felt were of the most benefit and necessity, we were spending most of our time cramming for these ridiculous exams, that were more often than not, below our intellectual levels. We would often have to trudge listlessly though eighth grade level readings and elementary level math. These tests were required for every single high school grade level in order to graduate. Consequently the idea of prepairing us for the college world was thrown out the window. When it came time to take the SAT or the ACT most of us were completely unprepared. We certainly did not receive any SAT preparedness courses much less help in the actual administering of the test. When My parents were in school, the SAT was something prepared for and administered in the classroom. After the No Child Left Behind Act, the SAT was something the student had to do themselves. The blame for the lack of college readiness for my generation does not lie with the teachers, faculty, or education board. The blame lies solely on the Bush Administration’s efforts to overhaul the public school system.

Blog 4: "The war between Cutters and Postponers"

For this blog I have chosen to critique an online editorial from the Huffington Post. The author, Leo Hindery Jr., is commenting on the current debate in congress between the cutters of the federal deficit and the postpones. His targeted audience seems to be that of the American Public. This article was designed to enlighten individuals of the current debate and supports the postpones side of the conflict.
The Cutters argue that “large fiscal deficits threaten long-term fiscal credibility and depress private confidence and spending.” These individuals refer to the contrary discrepancies between the Obama Administration’s commitment to bring down the federal deficit to 3% by the year 2015, and the IMF’s opinion that by 2021 the deficit will actually rise from 62% to 90%. Most of these individuals are supporters of the trickle-down economics theories of the reagan era. Hindery points out the fact that this philosophy has, “created more income inequality than at any time since 1928,” and has been “debunked by nearly every responsible economist.”
The Postponers, on the other hand, see the need to slow federal deficit, but believe that the creation of the much needed 22 million jobs should take priority. They propose simultaneously slowing the growth of long-term spending and the creation of jobs.
Hindery points out that The White House should be the balancer of this debate. However, Larry Summers, chief economic advisor for the Obama Administration, seems to be looking at this economic disaster as if these were normal fiscal circumstances. That causes even more upheaval and doubt both in the eyes of the citizens as well as in congress.
Hindery makes it clear in his article that he is a strong supporter of the postponers. He has pointed out that “additional thoughtful job creation would be at least deficit neutral over the medium term and most definitely deficit reducing over the long term.”
I for one am in complete agreement with Mr. Hindery. I am one of the 22 million unemployed individuals in this country who is struggling to find job security. I am an honest hard working mother of two. I have been a dental assistant for many years and should find it easy to secure employment. However, after having twins and taking time off to care for them, the job market worsened. Now three years and thousands of sent resumes later, I am still a jobless stay at home mom barely scraping by.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leo-hindery-jr/deficit-cutters-vs-postpo_b_659941.html

Blog 3

For this blog I chose to critique an editorial from the Austin American Statesman. Entitled “Walk on Eggshells, Get Egg On Your Face.” The author of this article is commenting on the recent video released and aired on Bill O’rielly’s show that shows Shirley Sherrod, an official from The U.S. Department of Agriculture, stating that she did not perform the full force of her abilities to save a white farmer’s land due to the fact that she was struggling with the loss of so many African American Farms. She “Did enough,” but not all she could do. The video ends there. What it doesn’t show is that she was not working for the department then and eventually overcame her racial bias in order to do the right thing. Consequently, she was fired and condemned by the NAACP .
The author is clearly on Sherrod’s side and I don’t blame him. I too believe that what occurred here was absolutely wrong and inexcusable! It clearly shows that this country is not without racism even in this new millennium; in some instances racial attitudes are strong. How disheartening to know that even good, honest, hard working individuals, can still be victims of racial discrimination and stereotyping. We may have came along way from the civil rights era; we’ve come so far as to finally electing an African American President; yet here we are finding that some of the most influential names in the political and news world have jumped to conclusions and shown true blue racist attitudes.
This admirable woman was merely speaking the truth to an audience of young African Americans in order to empower them and show them that racial tendencies must be overcome on all sides. What was meant to be motivating and inspiring ended up smearing her name and may even have led to more mistrust toward our government officials. It is common knowledge that humans are flawed creatures. This event really brings that point home.

You can find the editorial at:
http://www.statesman.com/opinion/walk-on-eggshells-get-egg-on-your-face-820235.html

up unemployment benefits despite national deficit?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/14/unemployment-deficit-polls-voters_n_646600.html

The surveys say that fifty two percent of registered voters believe that unemployment benefits should be increased despite national deficit. The argument is that in the short term it will help the economy more than working to decrease deficit spending. I say yes that is true. In the short term it may fair better for citizens to continue receiving checks in a jobless economy, however, jobs will have more trouble being created without reducing the deficit. In other words, in the long term it will actually hinder the reduction of federal defecit. The nation will continue to suffer from frivolous spending. I, personally, have been out of work for two years. Previously I was a dental assistant. I am now a mom of twin two year olds and am still actively searching for work. I know from personal experience how difficult it is to raise a family with extremely limited income. However I don't believe it is unemployment that will bolster american's ability to find jobs. I believe that it is with something as simple as making TANF available for those who need it for 30-60 days. This will give American's the ability to have childcare, transportation, food, non-food grocery items, as well as other vital tools for securing work readily available to them. I know that I would trade my food stamps in for 30 days of childcare, knowing I will be able to secure a job of some sort to help support my family. Currently the only way to qualify for TANF is to be jobless, virtually homeless, and it doesn't seem to hurt your chances if you are a non-US citizen.
I apologize for straying from the topic. To make a long story short, I believe that raising the unemployment benefits and consequently raising the deficit is not as wise as many americans believe.

The article is worth reading because it is neessary to form an opinion on such a serioous matter.

hello all!