If You Don't Vote, Then You Actually Did Vote.
I often hear people say they don't vote because, they say, their vote wont count or their vote wont matter. This could not be further from the truth. In fact, the bald truth is that even if you don't cast a vote, you just voted. Let me repeat what I just said. IF YOU DON'T VOTE, YOU JUST VOTED. How is this possible? Are you thinking that maybe someone else is voting for you, using your name? That can be a factor of course, but it is not what I am talking about. Look at it this way, say you and 100 of your friends, co-workers and neighbors don't vote. The next day you see who won the election and you find out that candidate A won the election by 50 votes.
The Importance of Voting
I often hear people say they don't vote because, they say, their vote wont count or their vote wont matter. This could not be further from the truth. In fact, the bald truth is that even if you don't cast a vote, you just voted. Let me repeat what I just said. IF YOU DON'T VOTE, YOU JUST VOTED. How is this possible? Are you thinking that maybe someone else is voting for you, using your name? That can be a factor of course, but it is not what I am talking about. Look at it this way, say you and 100 of your friends, co-workers and neighbors don't vote. The next day you see who won the election and you find out that candidate A won the election by 50 votes.
The United States Vs. The Rest Of The World The Numbers Are In And They Are Not Good
As Americans, we like to tell ourselves that we are the best in everything we do. The biggest, the fastest, the smartest, etc. And while that may have been a true statement in the past, in looking at a slew of recent statistics and numbers from reliable sources, it appears that our place in the world on some very important measures are not where we think they are relative to other countries: - According to the World Economic Forum's Competitiveness Index, the United States is now only the fourth most competitive country in the world, having been surpassed by Sweden and Singapore and still trailing Switzerland in the number one position. As recently as the 2008-2009 analysis by the World Economic Forum, the United States was the best in the world.
How Well Would The American Political Class Have Handled The Chilean MIner Crisis?
The rescuing of the 33 Chilean miners, who had been trapped thousands of feet underground for the past two months or so, was certainly the feel good story of the year so far. Kudos to the miners, their families, and everyone involved in this dramatic and extremely difficult rescue. According to an October 15, 2010 article, there had never been another situation where the rescuers had to drill so far down to reach trapped miners, never mind the fact that at the onset of the crisis, no one even knew whether they were alive or where they were located. Nevertheless, the rescue mission was a success. If you read the article, you would be struck by a number of things: - Within days after the crisis began, the Chilean President appointed an engineer, Andre Sougarrett, to be in charge of getting the miners out alive.
The Ever Growing and Ever More Dangerous National Government Debt
Another distressing Associated Press article on October 15, 2010 reviewed the latest and depressing news on out of control government spending. According to the article, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is estimating that the Federal government deficit for the 2010 budget year will total $1.29 TRILLION. This is on top of the Federal budget deficit of $1.4 TRILLION from 2009. Other highlights/lowlights from the article and the mathematical implications include the following: - The administration is predicting that the 2011 budget deficit will rise to $1.4 TRILLION. Thus, in the first three years that Obama has been President, the federal government has overspent its revenue stream by an astonishing $4.
What Good Is Your Blackberry, Mr. President, If You Never Use It?
Just days after becoming President, I recall a picture of President Obama at the White House, using his Blackberry smart phone. The accompanying article swooned over how tech savvy this President was. Great, but it seems that the President rarely uses his Blackberry when it comes to governing and, more importantly, leadership. How much different would life be if he had picked up his Blackberry and made the following calls: - Several months ago, a flotilla of ships headed for the Gaza Strip from Turkish ports, supposedly carrying only non-military, humanitarian cargo to relieve the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza. This flotilla would be in violation of the naval blockade that Israel has imposed on the Gaza Strip and had all of the potential for an ugly confrontation.
Historical Political Quotes, Contemporary Political Crises
A little quiz on quotes relating to politics in America, try to figure out who said it and when they said it: 1) In reference to why political parties have lost the confidence of the public: "Their machinery of intrigue, their shuffling evasions, the dodges. the chicanery, and the deception of their leaders have excited universal disgust, and have created a general readiness in the public mind for any new organization that shall promise to shun their vices." 2) Also in reference to why political parties have lost the confidence of the public: people "saw parties without any... difference contending for power, for the sake of power. They saw politics made a profession, and public plunder an employment.
