Wednesday, February 1, 2012

FEB 1, 2012

Blog #2 -- due Monday, Feb 6


Blog #2 -- Please respond to the blog entry below in 150 words or more. Due Monday, Feb. 6.

According to experts at the Mercer Quality of Living Survey, the safest place to live in worldwide is Luxembourg, which is a landlocked country bordered by France, Belgium, and Germany. According to the same experts, the country with the highest quality of living worldwide is Vienna (the capital city of Austria). Meanwhile, four cities in Canada rank ahead of any city in the United States in quality of living, and five cities in Canada rank ahead of any city in the U.S. in terms of safety.

Do a little research and answer these questions:
  1. What is the safest city to live in the United States?
  2. What U.S. city has the highest quality of living?
  3. What is the least safe city to live in the United States?
  4. What is the least safe place to live in the world?
Now please comment on this state of affairs. You can comment in any thoughtful way you want, but maybe consider these questions: Why is the United States lagging behind Europe and Canada in quality of living? Why is our safest city less safe than 50 other cities in the world? I don’t expect you to have “correct” answers to these questions, just to show some thought in answering them. Are you surprised to hear that people with data to support their rankings put the United States so low in safety and quality of living? Why or why not? Are you surprised to hear which place in the world ranks as most dangerous? Why/why not?
Posted 2 days ago by English student
3

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  1. 1. Plano, Texas--residents of this wealthy Dallas suburb enjoy the lowest violent crime rate of all big American cities, and have a much lower rate of fatal car crashes. In fact, this "All-American City" tops our list of America's Safest Cities.
    Source: http://www.forbes.com/2010/10/11/safest-cities-america-crime-accidents-lifestyle-real-estate-danger.html

    2. Portland, Oregon has the highest quality of living due to their high demand in all Eco friendly living. also one of the largest citys in the world to have windmill farms.
    Source: www.bestplaces.net

    3. Saginaw, MI has the highest crime rates in the united states.
    Source: http://www.neighborhoodscout.com/neighborhoods/crime-rates/top100dangerous/

    4. Cape Town, South Africa, suffers from high crime rates, partially due to separation of wealth and dangerous sections of the city. Though a major international tourist location, people who travel there should do research to be safe on their journey.
    Source: http://www.mostdangerouscities.org/

    I feel as these websites only focused on one point and that would be crime. the government feels as though crime is a factor in deaths and destruction, true it is a factor but it's not the only thing that makes a city unsafe. for example what about health and toxic waste, San Fransisco has tons of toxic waste but no one sees them as unsafe, we are just looking at the obvious and covering up what is truly hard to get rid of because it requires work and attention. crime can be easily avoided moving to a safer town or having a safer way of thinking, but this relies on your situation of living of course not everyone can afford it. United states is behind because Europe and Canada have a much healthy way of living, and most parts of Europe have free medical care. we only have a couple safe cities because they are not populated with tons of people and a city environment. Im not saying lets leave the united states and move to Canada and Europe. if you leave the problem nothing is going to get fixed and we just need to try a little harder to fix the problem even if it requires everyone just to do things in a more environmentally friendly way.

    Xeromy Kaizad (8:00)
    ReplyDelete
  2. 1. The safest city that I found is Sugar Land, Texas.
    2. The city with the highest living quality in the United States I found was San Francisco.
    3. Detroit was the leas safe city in the United States that I found.
    4. The most dangerous city in the world, in my opinion is Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.
    The main reason that I think our safest city is ranked 50 in the world is because of the economic problems we have had for the past 10 years. Our government has been too busy trying to fix our financial problems that other things have fallen to the side. Also a lot of places don’t have the money to fix the buildings or to implement the proper security measures. I wasn’t surprised when I found that Rio de Janeiro is one the worst places to live. Rio de Janeiro has a lot of corruption problems along with a lot of gangs and drug wars.

    Ryan Marshall
    ReplyDelete
  3. English studentFeb 1, 2012 08:51 AM
    This comment has been removed by the author.
    ReplyDelete
Jan
22

Blog #1 -- due Jan 30



Blog #1: Please respond to the blog entry below in 150 words or more. Due Monday, January 30.

How political are you and why? Do you pay no attention at all to politics? Why is that? Do you consider yourself to be a strong member of a particular political party? Explain why. Do you intend to vote in the 2012 presidential election? Are you happy or unhappy with the current political system? Either way, try to explain why you feel as you do. Do you consider politics more important at the national, state, or local level? Explain. Are you happy or unhappy with the Obama administration? Why? If the election were tomorrow, whom would you vote for? Do you even know who the men are who are vying for the Republican nomination for president? If so, do any of them appeal to you more than others? Do you have anything else to add on the subject of U.S politics?
If you have no opinions whatsoever about politics, and if you do not care at all who runs for election or who wins, try to examine and explain why you feel this way. Why are politics not important to you? Do you think they should be important to anyone? Why or why not?






Posted 1 week ago by English student
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  1. I'm personally not political at all because i have never really have been interested in it. But if i had to say what i side i am on; i would say the conservative side. The only time i honestly pay attention to it is on special days such as the election or primaries. This year I plan on making a little more effort to pay attention to politics just because i do not really want to see President Obama and his administration go on fur and put this country in a deeper depression than it already is. I also do not agree with Obama health care plan that he pasted two or three years ago. I don't believe the average everyday American should pay for some one health care just because they refuse to spend their money on it. I am really pulling for the Republican side of it and hope they can change this economy around along with creating jobs and take our great country out of this deep depression






    Kyle Ogle
    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I consider myself to be a little in between the Democrats and Republican parties. I do believe that we need to assist each other in this time of crisis but at the same time hold people accountable for their action, such as: If they are not trying to utilize what's available to them in their areas or maybe they might have to relocate, to get better assistance, but do something to make their situation better. I know first hand about relocating, so I could have better opportunities and it worked. I moved from a large city (Chicago), to Champaign just so I could find a job. I been here since 2005 and have done better here than I ever had in Chicago and I was born and raised there. But as far as Obama, goes to expect for him to turn the economy around in four years is nuts or for any one person in four years to just clean up an obvious mess, would be a dream come true, But it ain't happ'in captin.
      Linda Edwards-Hill
      Delete
    2. I'm a democrat. i believe power belongs to the people and not the government. I plan on voting because the republicans party, won the midterm election so its gonna be hard for Obama to hold he presidential spot. I'm sort of happy with the system now, everything needs a little bit of improvement local laws i believe you need to be aware of more because it can affect you faster, instead of a national law changing. I'm very satisfied with the Obama administration, for a couple of reason.
      1) he has giving us a time of peace. not to happy that we killed Bin-lotin because he is still a human being. but two of the previous presidents couldn't catch this guy and he did it in two years.
      2) it brought me hope for the future. it taught me i dont have to settle for a minimum wage job, i can strive and be president.
      and lastly he has tuff skin throughout the election he was called a monkey and a terrorist but he didnt cry he always had a smile on his face we need a leader like that
      THE FAT-MAN
      Delete
  2. I’m not totally political but I know a little bit. Now that I’m eighteen and all I have been following politics and debates a little more closely but I mean I only know enough to know that I have a candidate who I know I’m going to vote for. I don’t pay attention to all the political things out there right now…there’s a lot going on at the moment but I’m following the person who I will vote for. As far as political things go the only real thing I have been following at the moment is the SOPA/PIPA act that deals with the censorship of the internet…wich I believe is wrong and is impeding on our first amendment rights… but I would say that I moderately follow politics is because sometimes things just make me mad to see happen for instance the fact that now women must have a doctor’s prescription to receive the plan b pill…don’t get me started on that…but I do because I want to be able to know what im voting for if I ever have to. Also I don’t like the people who complain about what others vote for when they don’t vote themselves…I don’t want to be that person, so I vote.
    I do plan to vote in the 2012 election, mostly because im tired of Obama. Don’t get me wrong he did a good job, but nothing he did really ever did much to help the nation. It just seemed like the promises I was expecting ended up being broken. It saddens me in the way that I was totally gunning for him to get president and I was happy that he won at first, but then things just ended up not getting done in my eyes. So I could say no, I am not happy with the current situation that we are in as a country. People are taking personal freedoms away in my opinion we cant get jobs if we need them …like a certain college kid typing this response…and if we do have jobs people are hoping every day that they won’t get laid off because of the current economic situation that we are in. Therefore think that politics at the national level is more important. We need to be more concerned with the whole rather than at a state level. The laws are all pretty close and so really do we really need local governments? I think we need representation but I don’t think we need town governments really… theyre not that important to me.
    If the election were tomorrow I do know who I would vote for but for personal reasons I don’t normally tell people who I will or did vote for. Its my own opinion and I don’t really share that one since people get all oh why are you not voting for this guy? I don’t like that… but yes I do know a bit about the presidential candidates… enough to know who I want to vote for and enough to know who I don’t want and then the one with the crazy responses for example putting colonies on the moon … so ya.

    Sam Lehman
    ReplyDelete
  3. I'am not political at all and do not plan on taking any part of learning politcs. I really have no desire to watch and pay attention whats going on. We will learn about it on the news if it really applies to us that bad. But other then that it just doesn't catch my attention. I do think its pretty cool to take part in presidential elections, it's like taking part in your country. Any ways, yes I would like to vote for this 2012 election and mostly i agree a lot with what Sam said about Obama. Also I feel like we see his wife more then we see him I do believe there should be a little role change if he's trying to help us. To be honest if there was the vote tommorrow I wouldn't know who would be electing till that time, but I will not be voting for Obama. Anyways politics are not my subject and all I really care about is that there making the right choice for everyone in America.

    Alexis H
    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm not very political involved at all. I dont follow or watch any elections other than the presidential election. I only watch the presidential at the end of the campaign.I would say im a democrat but like i said im barely involved in politics. Yes i am planning to vote for Obama in the 2012 election.Im am happy with Obama, he doesnt done much but atleast he isn't messing things up. Which it would be hard to do much since the republicans in the political system won't let him.Im not unhappy with it, but i feel like the political system and goverment in general is pretty fucked up. I dont know much abput them i have seen them. I heard one of the republican canidate Rick Santorum took his dead baby home and him and his wife took pictures with the baby? That is one of the craziest things i have ever heard in politics or maybe in my life. If you ask me he is one sick bastard so i'm sure the others aren't much better. I hope that Obama wins and from the looks of it he might.

    Ian R
    ReplyDelete
  5. Well, being a bartender for eleven years, I was told by the boss from the get go: Interceed on any conversation involving religion or politics. This was sort of funny to me to begin with, but guess what...if a conversation starts in the bar over religion or politics, it NEVER ends well. I, personally, don't really pay a whole lot of attention to politics on a daily basis, but I do vote. I try to "cram" very close to the elections and do the best I can with my decision, but I don't watch tv or listen to the radio or read the newspaper very often, it just depresses me. I did have help from one politican once, who will remain unnamed as I saw him at afterhour parties in my twenties and he has sort of a "party guy" reputation. He was our state rep when he helped me and went onto Congress. I know that he also helped alot of other people and even though his personal time was spent sort of questionably, he did his job and there really don't seem to be alot of politicians who do. I began voting only because of this one man. I still vote for him to this day. To be honest, if it wasn't for him, I might not take the time to vote.

    Divina Fourman
    ReplyDelete
  6. I am not in to politics at all. I do not vote and I probably would not vote for the 2012 elections. But someone has to. I have full confidence in the voters of American. I do not really find myself following any political party. I think that all the talk about how the Obama administration is failing is stupid. It has taken years for this country to get where it is now. All this talk about change and how they can do better, it would not happen overnight. It's going to take time to get this country on its feet again. If I had to vote tomorrow I would vote for Obama, it takes time for a big change to happen. We need to give them a chance to get stuff rolling in a better direction. I am glad people do take politics serious. It needs to be done and it holds the country together. J.McWhorter
    ReplyDelete
  7. In all honesty i do not care nor do i pay attention to the government or any political nonsense. im not a very big fan of "suits". but i do agree that it is important to pay attention to things because after all they make the laws... sadly, and if you choose the wrong person you can have a hell of a horrible life. this may sound really bad but they don't look or sound like interesting people, and i think some of them are not even people at all. i mean its more about a personality thing to me. if they act like they care about there "people" then i will have good thoughts or opinions about them. but if they just stand up there in front of a microphone speaking what they "say" they are going to do then i don't feel as though i should care. everyone else always makes a big deal about but i mean it seams pretty important if people in third world countries die to vote. so in the end yes when i get older ill probably care for it more because it would be effecting my life and even my pay. but in the end i will always look at them as "suits"


    Xeromy Kaziad (8:00)
    ReplyDelete
  8. Im really not interested, know i should be. I did listen to the address last night. I felt like he said everything everyone wanted to hear. I kind of feel like all politicians do that. I have not voted for a couple of years, but plan on doing this year. I feel Illinois is in a really sad state. We have had a lot of criminals in office, but then again i think there a lot of them in office every where. I am going to try to be more involved, i just find it boring.
    paula albin
    ReplyDelete
  9. I am not a very political person, I don’t really know why I’m not I have always have been this way. I don’t consider myself to be a member of a political party I am not even sure what party my parents belong too. When the election of 2012 comes around I will more than likely I will not vote because I don’t know enough about the candidates or even who they are for that matter. I am unhappy with the current political system; I believe that the current political system is corrupt beyond belief. I feel that politicians are only looking out for themselves or just wanting to get more money. I don’t really have an opinion about Obama administration because the only thing that I have really heard about his administration comes from those who have already formed their opinion of it. I have no clue as to who is running for the republican nomination, in my opinion it doesn’t matter because I believe they are all corrupt.

    Ryan Marshall
    ReplyDelete
  10. Im really not interested, even though I know I should be. Ive never voted and im nineteen now. I plan on voting later in life but since ive never really watched politics or anything i dont wanna vote, just to vote. I could try to watch more and try to get involved but its to hard for me. I just find it to boring and not interesting to watch.Maybe ill be more interested when im older but not anytime soon. I mean heck i dont even know whos running besides Obama its safe to say that politics and things that deal with the law just dont go well with me. Bu maybe in the future who knows this can be a better subject for me.

    Brandan McDaniel
    ReplyDelete
  11. Once you turn 18, I think a lot of people get excited about being able to vote and all that fun stuff. Now myself… I honestly don’t know anything about politics. It bores me to death. To tell you the truth, I have no clue who is even running this term. Sometimes I will try and pay attention when my mom or dad will be watching the news, but confusion sets in and I get bored and walk away. I just can’t get interested. For this election, I plan to vote. Most likely, I’ll be voting what my parents are voting since I’m really not sure. I hope to better myself and become more educated with it and by the time the next term comes around be able to decide for myself.
    Right now, I would consider myself a republican, mostly because majority of them are prolife and against abortion. That is one of my biggest beliefs.
    I think that I’m not very interested in politics because no matter what, the president voted is going to do what he wants to do. On the contrary, I’m very glad that there are some people who feel very strongly about politics. I believe there needs to be people like that in order to keep things balanced.

    Bryanna Satterlee
    ReplyDelete
  12. I am not very political because it honestly bores me. I could careless about who is the president, as long as the world is not crumbling down i am happy. I know I should be concerned about the political government but I don't have time to listen to the state of the union address or be concerned about anything else. Obama seems like he is a good president and knows what he is talking about when it comes to taking control over things.

    Emily Harms
    ReplyDelete
  13. Politics are very important to everybody living in the country it effects us all in different ways. I Have never voted because i just turned 18 but i do plan on voting this year. I Can't say that i pay close attention to everything but i know about the major things going on. Obama has had to overcome a lot of things and problems the country had before he was president. I really believe he has and will do everything in his power to help the U.S As much as he can. Its important that we have more on voting and explaining to young ones political situations going on because speaking for the youth we really dont know whats going on in the world all the time because the information is put in places that don't target us.. newspapers, the news on t.v things of that nature. I just think they need o find a better way to inform us so we can know what's really going on

    Matthew Washington
    ReplyDelete
  14. I am a person that is not interested in politics at all. It is not that it isn’t important because I do feel that for our world to be administrated in a better way, the people need to see who is the best candidate to make it happen. Though, as my personal opinion, I find it a waste of time for me. I don’t watch it on t.v. because I am always doing things that I just don’t have time for it. I don’t think that one person can change anything. I turned 18 last year so I never signed up to be able to vote and I haven’t and I don’t think I am this year either. I find it not as important to me at the moment; probably when I am older. I think there are more important things. Though, when Obama was running they made it a huge commotion so I did see parts of it and I would get bored me but I saw that everything he said was logical. If I would have voted I would have voted for him but then when I think about it I tell myself, what is the point of voting if what the candidates promise they end up not doing it? Obama has made many decision and we are still the same if not worst.

    Angelita T.
    ReplyDelete
  15. I'm not a big political person and I pay attention every now and then. I personally believe that politics are corrupt. I don't find myself part of any political party. I guess it's safe to say that I'm one of those people that believe that these things don't effect me when in actuality they do. From the little that I do pay attention to, I think that people expect too much from the Obama administration. Of course he hasn't done much, but our country has been in debt for a couple of decades now, its not that easy to get out of debt, especially only being in office for four years. People expect too much in such a short amount of time. I think its in every presidents nature to lie and contradict themselves. How else are they going to win the election. As far as being a politician,I find them boring and its hard for me to keep up and pay attention.
    ReplyDelete
  16. Honestly I am not big in to all the political things going on out there. I hear people talking about them all the time but I dont really have an opinion on it. It just bores me. Sometimes I will try to pay attention if my parents are watching the political stuff on tv but it all gets so confusing. As for this election, I plan to vote.If I dont know much about the election i will most likely vote for who my parents do. I kind of look at it as though if you vote you will have a say in about the world and if you dont you really cant complain about it because you could have had a chance to choose someone different. There are some things i agree with Obama and other things i dont. I just wish i could pay more attention to everything that is going on but somethings are just boring.
    Bailey
    ReplyDelete
  17. I am not political at all. I do not keep up with politics because it is boring. I do not plan on participating in the upcoming election because I don’t know a lot about politics to vote so there is no reason to vote. I am fine with how our political system is now because I don’t notice how it is affecting me as of right now. If the election was tomorrow I would not care because I don’t plan on voting because I don’t know much of politics. People who don’t know much about politics should not vote in the election just to say that they voted. Really the only way I keep up with politics is when I watch The Colbert Report or The Daily Show with John Stewart on Comedy Central and watch them make fun of the people in politics. That’s about all the political I have in me. Slade W.
    ReplyDelete
  18. The strongest opinion that I have, one that seems to have become a more popular belief, which the American community needs to band together in order to change the political power system that is in control into something that is less convoluted and more streamlined in order to work for the people and allows for less corruption and greed.
    The American government has become an idle group of greed driven; power hungry facades of what it had been intended to be. The idea of a government that was chosen by the people in order to reflect the thoughts and beliefs of the majority has been lost to men who gain their personal beliefs based off of lobbyists and what they think will get them into office again. This is apparent when looking at the simple facts of polls taken every day. The people can have whatever belief in whichever issue you want to use and if it isn’t considered socially acceptable by their party, the lobbyist paying for their next campaign, or by the media, regardless of the public’s opinion the politician makes the economically wise choice for his own pocketbook, not the will of his/her constituents.
    One way that the government agencies help to protect and control their own fates is the use of overly complex and confusing “red-tape” in order to keep the common citizen either afraid of attempting to foster change in the system or their own community or makes it so difficult to understand that the common person wouldn’t stand a chance of actually affecting policies. At one time a petition would allow a person to get at least get a bill introduced to their local officials. Now, beyond just the petition, one would have to give exhaustive research into the subject matter that they are proposing in order for the bill to get to a committee before it even meets the desk of the representative. The thought is to keep the rep from being overwhelmed by millions of ideas, which seems simple and logical enough. Except for that many of the ideas and beliefs of the “working poor” collectively, the “blue collar”, and individual “white collar” political believers don’t get passed the first step of the process.
    “I'm convinced that you never have to give up liberties to be safe. I think you're less safe when you give up your liberties.”
    ― Ron Paul

    Another way the wool has been pulled over our eyes, so to speak, is the loss of personal liberties and personal expression/privacy. Many factors have chipped away at our civil liberties, including our own drive to be more socially conscious of the feelings of individuals based on sexual preference, race, religion, etc. Although the Constitution and Bill of Rights does call for every man to have the right to pursue happiness, the fact that we are now considering making certain words illegal due to the fact that the offend a person is directly in conflict with the rest of the rights protected, if not in simple English then clearly intended, by the writings of the founding fathers of the American country. To simply decide that someone doesn’t have the right to use “foul language” or “inappropriate terms” is a clear violation of ones right to speech, in any forum. Why then, are people being jailed every day for speaking against political figures and their actions? Why then, are people not allowed to discuss explosives anywhere near an airport? The second example may seem like less of a violation due to the terrorist fear that has been instilled in our culture since 2001 and the great tragedy that our country endured, but if you would consider that jail able, why not jail someone who jokingly states that the government will only change after a violent uprising? Or perhaps someone who makes a harsh statement against a political figure that you are in support of? The fact is they have already dramatically limited the rights and privileges of the average American citizen by simply ignoring the poor, the economically unstable, and those that believe that their voice and vote are useless.
    Jonathan Lawrence
    ReplyDelete
  19. I myself have never been political. I always hear my parents and other peers talking about politics and I find it interesting to listen and hear other people's point of view, but I never got into actually taking time to listen to politics on the news or read about what's going on politically. I'm not exactly sure why, it just never caught my attention. Some people say, "Well you should care, the people in government could decide your future, and without your vote you have no voice." My response to that is, "The people in government are all corrupt, greedy, and liars. I don't care who gets voted to what position, they're all no good anyway." That's just my opinion. Maybe there are a few good people that actually care about what happens to the future of our country, but how am I to tell the who does and who doesn't. That's why I would rather just stay out of it all together.

    -Kevin Albers
    ReplyDelete
  20. Actually I'm not political because it's too complicating, and not very interesting to me at all.Yes I hear people talking about different things going on the political world,but I just don't have any input or anything to say about it. I have been paying a little attention to the election this year and the candidates running, but it is confusing to me. I am going to vote this year;I did vote last election also. As of right now I really feel me voting won't make a difference, due to the fact I haven't really seen a change for the better. They say that they're going do this an that to make things better for us,but seriously i haven't seen any of this and that really coming into play. Maybe once I'm dead, the next generation will see some progress in what these politicians are saying they are going to change to make the us a better place. However I have picked who I'm voting for this term. I just hope he can make a difference for the better. Latonya Mcgill
    ReplyDelete
  21. Unfortunately, I do not have a very strong understanding of our politic government nor opinion. The only two items that I can truly speak to directly affects my life which is health insurance and school expenses. The United States is the only industrialized country in the world that does not have universal health care and a free education (or at least the expense is shared with the government). I believe that these two items do not exist because money thriving desires of the rich. The fact that majority of the richest corporations are found in the US which makes us more susceptible to this problem. We are money driven, modern society that is resistant to change. Therefore, we allow the health insurance corporations to drive our health systems. If you have enough money, you will have the option of medical care (implying that wealth is more important that health). The amount of debt students learn to live with at a very young age reflects outrageous educational system in the US. As a nation, we express the need for a very educated, self-aware, social-aware and politically-aware nation. In order for this to happen, we need to develop social structures. A health and education system needs to be available to every citizen. We need to have focus, controlled massive social protests against our government, which would demonstrate a true democracy (in the hands of the people).

    Abbie
    ReplyDelete
  22. Being only 18, I have yet to "define myself" as being a part of any sort of political party. Politics were never really discussed in depth in my house growing up, and therefore, I do not have any strong political feelings. I am definitely not interested in any sort of political discussion or debate and often find myself spacing out or dozing when political topics come up. Part of the reason for this I think, is because I am very non-confrontational. I hate any sort of confrontation or heated arguments, hence, can't stand any type of political debates. Politics and political figures have become so jaded over the years that I have grown tired of watching all the nasty, negative comments that political figures state about their opposition. It's upsetting that politicians feel that they have to undermine their competition. Instead of being so negative about their opponents, they should focus on their own lives and concentrate on becoming the best, most honest candidates they can be. Being who I am, I don't think I could ever become truly intrigued by politics and I would be better off not voting then trying to sort through all the lies, scandals, and negativity that consist of our political system.
    Megan Strom
    ReplyDelete
  23. I myself have never been political. My family on the other hand is very political. Politics can be very complicated and hard to understand at times. I have never watched campaigns before until this year. This year I have been watching little bits and pieces of the campaign because I think the men running for it are not fit for being the president of the United States. I think the men running for the election are a joke. Instead of the media focusing on scandals and such they should be focusing on what is important and not get into the candidates personal lives so much. I must admit that the scandals of this campaign are what caught my attention this time around but it shouldn't be that way. I plan on voting for the 2012 election but I am not sure quite yet who I will be voting for yet.
    Shelby Walker
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  24. I was unable to vote in the most recent election because of my age. I'm now 20 years old with little to no knowledge on politics. As I would flip through the television to find something to watch I would come across Obama speaking. I would tune in for less than five minutes because I have no interest in hearing him quote. I would much rather hear him communicate with his people about the issues we face as a society. To be completely honest, I have no particular political party interest. My parents are both republican leaving me to obviously sway in that direction even though nothing has captured my interest to vote for either party. I am registered to vote for the 2012 election, but how can I vote when I have no view? I am very much unhappy with the current political system. I feel as if no one in politics takes true concern for what is really going on in the states or the world. Our troops are still gone, gas is fluctuating and we the people are still in a recession. I believe politics are important on every level. Our country needs structure and it starts with the local leading up to the states and then national. I'm pretty unhappy with Obama being in office. I feel as if he isn't doing his job. No one will ever be satisfied with who is in office because we never hear the truth. Whether it is a republican candid or a democrat, the people will always vote leaning on their opinion. If the 2012 election was tomorrow, I really wouldn't know who to vote for.
    H.Walker
    ReplyDelete
  25. I am not political AT ALL!! I have never been interested in politics. The topic just doesn't excite me in any way. This is probably why I am retaking my history class this semester. I find it boring and not as important. Okay, may be it is important, these are the people who are in charge of major decisions that affect my life. I did however vote for president Obama in the last election. Do i think this makes me political in any way? None what so ever. I probably voted solely on the fact that as being an African American myself, I wanted to help make history and see for the first time a (partially) Black president. This year, I don't plan on it. To be honest, I do not even know who is running, what their platform is or what they plan on doing to make the economy better. I don't think it will be fair for me to vote. I do hope that who ever does make it into the White House can do a better job with unemployment, health care, and this recession that we STILL seem to be in! I think i feel this way because I find it ridiculous the amount of debt we're in and the unnecessary wars we have been in. I'm pretty sure we're going to be in trouble here pretty soon with China. It seems to me like something big is going to happen and it will be our governments fault!
    K.Dudley
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  26. I find that I am mildly political, and that I am a republican but I am not an extreme republican, I am pro choice and I also believe that marijuana should be legal for medicinal use. Those are some ideas that might get some old school republicans shaking in their boots. I am not a democrat at all, I just don't agree that people should get so many hand outs from the government. It hurts this country more than helps. I plan on voting this year for the president for the first time. I haven't picked who I am voting for yet but I will look into the people running a little bit more. All i hope for is that we as citizens can wok together to get the right people into office and help our country.

    Alec Pettyjohn
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  27. I am not political at all. Every one of them is a liar and a crook. They will tell you they will change things for the better and fix our country. Their only goal is to make as much money for their friends as they can. Once elected, they, as politicians, are set for life of the backs of the average American. As for the Obama administration, it is not a means of racial indifference, but merely the lack of compotence. During Obama's time as a senator, he would only vote "present" on any bill that came for a vote because he did not want to upset anyone. Kudos to him for playing the cards right, but once a person shows they have no spine, nothing will change that. As for voting, Charles Province once said, "It is the soldier, not the politician that gave us the right to vote."

    Larry Moseley
    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I totally agree with this and spoken like a real American. An American Soldier at that.

      R. McDade
      Delete
  28. I'm not that political, I'm a republican but when it comes to all the politics I try to stay away from it because people can go on for hours about issues that I really just don't care about or I don't understand enough to fight about. I think that people should have a say when the politicians try to pass something that will take away our privacy for protection against piracy I could care less about piracy I care about my rights to have something private and not restricted by the government. Obama is not my favorite in office though something he said at his state of the union address I do agree with like the fact that we need to start limiting the people who come into the United States to go to college just to go back to where they came from to finish their life and work there instead of staying here and having a job and becoming American we shouldn't have to pay more taxes on those people if they aren't going to stay and pay their way to becoming a citizen.
    K.Morse
    ReplyDelete
  29. I am not very political at all. I do not think it should really be about a certain party, it should be about the person and to me when voting you should always vote for the lesser of the two evils. I do not like Obama at all he is a disrespectful person. While deployed in Iraq, a three star general turned to the side of a narrow hallway so Obama could pass by and then the general rendered the greeting of the day to Obama. Obama just walked by without saying a word. Later that day the same three star general saluted Obama to give the formation over to him so he could talk, and Obama did not salute him back. This to me is disrespectful and shows no respect to our United States Military and quite frankly pisses me off and I feel that he should have never been President. I feel politics are a bunch of bulls*** none the less all politician’s lie about everything they are going to do and change.

    R. McDade
    ReplyDelete
  30. I am not a political person. I feel it is just a giant pissing match. I feel like the government is greedy and is trying to control the people too much. The people should not be afraid of the government…the government should be afraid of the people. Someone in an earlier post said “you should always vote for the lesser of the two evils”, he is right and that’s sad. We shouldn’t have to vote for the lesser of the two evils we should be able to vote for the better of the two good runners. I would like to see the people running for president stop saying bad things about each other all the time and concentrate more on how they will better our country.

    K. Henson
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  31. I am somewhat political. Being in the military you sort of have to keep up on what is going on. When situations come about somewhere in the world you might be the one getting deployed threre. I am a republican, and despise Obama. He could possibly go down as the worst president in U.S. history. possibly even worse than Nixon. I am going to leave the that topic alone. I do plan to vote, but not sure who for yet. I am not going to comment on the current political system. If you read what I wrote above, I'm sure you know how I feel about it. Although I pray that the Obama care(health care)plan does not succeed. A lot more people will be without health care than their already is. People will not be avble to afford it. I know Romney, Gingrich, and Obama for the democrats are running. Like I said i am not sure who I will vote for, but it will definetly not be Obama.


    Trent
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  32. I think politics are annoying, and just give our society one more thing to argue about .Even though I get annoyed by them, I do not think we should ignore them they are important to us. Everyone needs to keep updated with what is going on around the world. Politics are just a necessary aspect of civilization. When a community becomes developed, opinions naturally are formed about how things should be run. So I suppose yes, politics are good to help advance humanity and learn from mistakes. They also cause a lot of conflict, and sometimes people let it become too personal so it gets in the way of things like friendship, and sometimes people do things underhandedly, but politics remain very necessary for society, even if they are unpleasant to deal with sometimes. I personally think it's important to have a little knowledge and somewhat of an opinion on different politics to really live your life culturally actively.

    Dallas
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  33. Unfortunately, I do not have a very strong understanding of our politic government nor opinion. The only two items that I can truly speak to directly affects my life which is health insurance and school expenses. The United States is the only industrialized country in the world that does not have universal health care and a free education (or at least the expense is shared with the government). I believe that these two items do not exist because money thriving desires of the rich. The fact that majority of the richest corporations are found in the US which makes us more susceptible to this problem. We are money driven, modern society that is resistant to change. Therefore, we allow the health insurance corporations to drive our health systems. If you have enough money, you will have the option of medical care (implying that wealth is more important that health). The amount of debt students learn to live with at a very young age reflects outrageous educational system in the US. As a nation, we express the need for a very educated, self-aware, social-aware and politically-aware nation. In order for this to happen, we need to develop social structures. A health and education system needs to be available to every citizen. We need to have focus, controlled massive social protests against our government, which would demonstrate a true democracy (in the hands of the people).

    Abbie
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  34. To be honest i am not political at all. I do sometimes follow politics, I just get very bored, very fast. I feel like I do have a lot to do with politics, I guess I do not notice it. I would like to vote for the next election. I would like to have a strong leader behind us. There are certain things I like that the system is doing, but their is also certain task that I believe the political system does not handle well. I feel like the national level would be the most important, because we have to handle bigger events. I feel like Obama works hard, and has a lot of stress, and people are almost too hard on him. Too be honest I am not paying attention to who is running for the elections. I have way too much going on to learn about the individuals running.

    - Jonathon Lackey!
    ReplyDelete
  35. Despite what I have been told by my father since I can remember, I am not involved with politics. The most I have ever known about the subject is how elections work due to being an election judge for 3 separate elections. Dad has been trying to get me involved for years, even though this is the first year I have been old enough to vote. It sounds like a typical 18 year old when I say that I have no clue about politics or what is going on, but it is true. I really don't know. Every word my dad has said about it has honestly gone through one ear and out the other. Now that I am getting older, I do think it is important though. My dad wants me to register to vote so I can take part in the presidential election. I think it is the time that I finally start listening to my father and get involved. I guess up to this point, I haven't gotten involved for the sheer fact that I didn't see the point when I wasn't even old enough to vote. I would see the people coming in to vote during the long day of election judging that were so passionate about what they were doing and who they were voting for, and I thought it was kind of ridiculous to be honest. Now I get it. People should get that passionate because they should want to make a difference and have a say in what happens with their country. They should want to pick politicians who are going to do the right things, and lead our country in the right direction. So, I guess my answer to the question is that I'm not political at all, but I plan on changing that.
    ReplyDelete
  36. Out of my circle of friends I would say I am a little more political than them but I do not consider myself political at all, for the simple fact that I have come to the conclusion that all politicians are corrupt. I pay a little attention to politics but all it seems to be is smear campaigns on all sides of the fence as it were. The only time I pay any attention is as I am riding along with my father and they have Rush on the radio. As for what I am I would say I am republican for the simple face I was raised so but I am not sure if I truly am for as little as I pay attention to what is going on in either "camp", like I said all politicians are corrupt from what I have seen over my life. If the election for the presidency was today I would sit down and have a conversation with my mother who is very political about what the points of both sides are and make my decision based on what I have heard and the discussion I had with my mother (who is Republican) but more often than not I would vote republican... not because of my mother but because I agree with them more often than not as much as I am not liking to right now. As for who would/is running I have no idea who they are or what they are trying to do atm. But all in all I don't think being a politician is a viable career... it is way to easy to become corrupt. I think anyone in politics should be restricted to a number of terms like the president. We need to go back to how things were before these career politicians came to be, Farmers doing so on the weekend.


    John Tucker
    ReplyDelete
  37. I personally am not the biggest fan of politics... I do pay attention to upcoming elections and who runs or not but politics are not my life. On a scale of 1 to 10 I'm probably a 6 on the fan scale. I think I'm like this just because of the simple fact my parents never made a huge deal out of politics. If I would of been able to vote last election I would have voted for Barack Obama because he's a democrat. This upcoming election in November I'll be voting for him. To conclude all of this I care about politics, only to a certain extent.

    Chelsea Windmon
    ReplyDelete
  38. Political subjects are hard for me to sort through. There are a few issues with the package of "politics" that keep me from putting too much energy and attention towards it. On the one hand, I think there are many big issues with the political system that most people agree on. For example, the percentage of corrupt politicians/the lack of honest ones, endless national debt, etc. Unfortunately, I think a combination of controversial issues, party ties, and absence of the true voice of ALL the people hinder us from fixing many issues at all, even ones we can agree on. Also, there are some issues with the process of election that make it hard to find truly great candidates, namely the fact that there really aren't many other ways of getting elected to an important position than either making scandalous deals or focusing entirely on shooting down your opponent with every negative allegation that can be dredged up. These issues are why I don't focus on very much or participate in politics. Despite them though, we are blessed with many liberties that we take for granted and a much louder voice in our government than many others around the world. Our political system has many issues, but it does work for the most part, I just don't participate in it because of the nature of the issues it does possess.
    Trevor J
    ReplyDelete
  39. Reading the responses ahead of me I see that most people are not big on politics. I would have to say that im not a big fan in them also. but i do have a little knowledge on whats going on. Im not big on politics although i believe i should be because the laws change all the time and majority of the time i do not know what is going on. I will participate in the 2012 election because i do like what Barack Obama has did with the health care plan and with ending a war in which, shouldnt have never happened to begin with. He also has found Osamin Bin Laden which is also a plus. I will vote for Obama in the election so that he can continue to end this depression. but a lot oof people believes that it happens over night, when it doesn't. Alot of people has forgotten that he has to clean up the last president mess first then make improvements in America.
    Robert Story
    ReplyDelete
  40. Ahhhh politics. Not a very enjoyable topic in my book. It is so frustrating really. I vote because I at the very least want our government to know that we the poeple will still come to the polls and that we really do care even though they manage to make the power of the masses amount to an ant hill. The options are generally awful. When you do find a candidate you think you can back, you eventually have to realize that this one person is merely a figure head and is not in any way, shape or form able to affect massive change in our country. I truly believe two things. One, the presidents advisors and network of people who's job it has been to run this country year in and year out while different people take the office, are truly making all of the decisions, and two, the massive amounts of money that the top 1% of our society banks holds the true pwer here. People need to stop being so gullible and realize who really runs this country. It isn't the president.

    A. Cole
    ReplyDelete
  41. I'm a democrat. i believe power belongs to the people and not the government. I plan on voting because the republicans party, won the midterm election so its gonna be hard for Obama to hold he presidential spot. I'm sort of happy with the system now, everything needs a little bit of improvement local laws i believe you need to be aware of more because it can affect you faster, instead of a national law changing. I'm very satisfied with the Obama administration, for a couple of reason.
    1) he has giving us a time of peace. not to happy that we killed Bin-lotin because he is still a human being. but two of the previous presidents couldn't catch this guy and he did it in two years.
    2) it brought me hope for the future. it taught me i dont have to settle for a minimum wage job, i can strive and be president.
    and lastly he has tuff skin throughout the election he was called a monkey and a terrorist but he didnt cry he always had a smile on his face we need a leader like that
    ReplyDelete
  42. I am a firm believer in politics because my family has been involved with politics for the past two generations. My uncle is one of the most profound lobbyists in the state of Illinois and my grandfather is also an essential figure with Illinois's political government. These two figures have significantly increased my knowledge pertaining to state and national politics. I am extremely excited for this presidential election because this will be the first time I can vote in a presidential election. Also, my opinion will be heard across America through this one simple vote. My family and I are firm believers in the Democratic party and its political structure. I honestly do not have a negative opinion or a positive opinion pertaining to the current political system. I do however believe that it is a fair system, but the political system needs to focus on its state of debt. America is in serious debts to other countries and the political system needs to place an emphasis on this debt in order to get the nation's economy back on track. Politics are most important on the state level because Illinois is one of the states in the worst economic conditions. Gas prices are outrageous and the tax on certain goods and services is just absurd. I personally am happy with the Obama administration because I believe they have done an excellent job in stabilizing the nation's economic and political conditions. The administration entered the White House with a lot of shoes to fill and holes to fix and they have done an excellent job. Politics are very interesting to me because things change everyday and by participating in voting my opinion and voice is being heard across America. Melyssa Mcfee
    ReplyDelete
  43. Ive never been to caught up into politics and i doubt i ever will be. The main reason behind this is that i dont belive in the two party system. I have views that reflect both parties and dont belive either one can get it right alone. Also being a resident of IL all my life had made me very judgemental of the senate and the house. Illinois vote should really be called chigago's vote being as the run the state. I could never be the one to make revisions because i am not informed enough about what would really be right or wrong, but i belive changed need to be made to our political systems to make them more effective and fair.
    Blake Kreitner
    ReplyDelete
  44. I am not political at all. I have no idea what's going on in America right now which is extrememly sad. I should be a able to have knowledge of what our president is doing with our country but overall i have better things to do in my lifetime. I HAVE looked at the recent canidates for the election of 2012 and so far i haven't seen anyone qualified for president that should get my vote. Therefore, I chose not to register just yet. I will register soon enough.From just hearing from other people and the buzz on the news i believe Obama is doing a wonderful job compare to our previous president. I looked and seen people say we're in a deeper depression. Well i definitely don't see it. I think our country did just fine with Obama has president. :]
    Janay Dorsey
    ReplyDelete
  45. I really have no interest in the politics that are going on right now. I’m registered to vote in the state of Illinois but what I know of the running candidates is little to nothing. What I know about their standings is non-existent and what I’ve heard about the election comes from the people I sit with while on brakes between classes, and they aren’t the most reliable sources. Right now politics aren’t important to me because I have so many responsibilities at home that I can’t just sit down and read about the candidates. Plus I have no cable or internet at home so I can’t really research them either. Politics should be important because you’re picking the future leader and ambassador to the United States. Plus you can’t really complain about who’s voted and sworn in if you didn’t help in the decision making process. I may consider taking an interest in the next election but for now I don’t have the time nor the energy.
    ReplyDelete
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