So today is Super Tuesday, and politics are once again the #1 topic of discussion among friends, co-workers, and strangers at local sit-down restaurants. I have never been one for politics. I always hated them. I used to try to avoid discussions about government and elections and all that, mainly because I was so badly informed (which explains why I voted for Bush last time). One thing I've noticed lately is that a lot of people act like they know a lot about politics and run their mouths off. I always want to ask these types of people, "Well, why aren't you running for president then?" Because, obviously, they can do a better job. I, on the other hand, don't like to talk about things I don't know anything about. And I know very little about politics.
However, each person is given only one vote, and no matter how big a person's mouth is, each vote counts the same. So in some way everyone, whether well-informed or not, has equal power to elect the next president.
My mind has been on the primaries all day long. From this morning when I read the newspaper to this evening when I voted to later tonight when I watch for the results. Normally I think about politics very little, but today I got started quick and just kept going with it.
I'm really glad this is an election year. It will be interesting and exciting, but man I am ready for a change. I'm tired of George W. Bush and his way of doing things. Monday, President Bush proposed a jaw-dropping $3.1 trillion budget for 2009. This is the first time ever for the budget to top 3 trillion, and obviously the largest budget in history.
One would think that all this money will be going to good use in several areas, but that's not the case. The education budget would be frozen at $60 billion, with no increase to keep up with inflation. The Medicare and Medicaid budget would be cut by $200 billion over the next 5 years. In Alabama, community development and social services grants would be cut by almost 30%. Low income home energy assistance would be cut by 14.1%. The highest increases of budget money in Alabama go to school breakfasts (6.6%) and school lunches (4.7%).
In a country where the price of oil and many other goods climbs higher and higher, it seems like the poor are being pushed lower and lower.
So with the giant budget and all the cuts, what's all that money actually going to? Basically, the military. The cost of the wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq, plus homeland security, plus the the Pentagon - the money is going there.
When I finished reading about the president's proposed budget, I continued through the front section of the newspaper. On the back page there was an article titled "Civilian deaths in U.S. attack bring fears of Sunni backlash". Apparently, what happened is a U.S. army gunship strafed a house Saturday after confusing Sunni fighters (who are allied with the U.S.) with extremists. The result was 9 civilians, including 1 child, dead.
Now I know that's just one circumstance, but I as well as a lot of other Americans look at stories like this, try to understand what's going on, and wonder why in the world we are over there. Yesterday, I read a quote from an anti-war speech by Barack Obama. I don't remember it word for word, but basically he said that we need to decide to go to war based on reason, not based on emotion. He said this before congress decided to go to war. And I agree with him, the war on terror is based on emotion. There were no weapons of mass destruction, so what in the world are we doing? Getting back at the terrorists? Maybe. All I know is that billions and billions of dollars are going into this, taking away from education, healthcare, and programs to help the poor. Not to mention the lives of our soldiers and the lives of innocent civilians.
I'm ready for a change, and while I know that voting won't necessarily save the world, I think that a good president can do a lot of good. I at least want to insert myself into the discussion anyways, because this stuff matters. Life and death issues are here, and they are important. Heck, with global warming our own survival as humanity may be at stake. This is important, so I want to be informed and I want to be involved. I hope that everyone else will do the same.
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3 comments:
Hey Matt. I, like you, do not really like politics very much. I never really talk about it, and never really write about it. But living with my dad and brother, I've heard a lot about it. haha
Anyway... I agreed with you on some of your points, but there are a couple of things i disagree on. I think Christians have a hard time justifying war because of the fact that innocent lives are being put to death. But the truth is, if we didnt go to war then our country could be walked all over and even more lives would be put to death. And in the case of war, men and women are risking their OWN lives to save others, and they are heros. Of course, I do not really like the idea of war, but I dont know what other options we have. I dont really get the idea that Osama bin Laden is gonna want to have a sit down chat to "work things out"
One more thing. You said you wanted change. That is what everyone wants. We get tired of the same ole thing, so we go to the other extreme. Thats how Frankin D. Roosevelt(and most other Presidents) was elected. And everyone loved him at first, but then after a while they got tired of him doing the same thing. So pretty much as humans, we keep going in the same cycle.
With all of that said, it was a nice post, I just thought I would give you my opinions.
Elizabeth, thanks for the comment and thanks especially for disagreeing with me.
I'm not necessarily a pacifist because I understand your point that sometimes we do have to take up our weapons and fight to protect ourselves. I would probably fight to protect the people that I love just as anybody else would. Even though war is a horrible thing, an obvious result of the fall of man, at times it is unavoidable.
However, my problem is that the president and his administration rushed into this war without exercising every option. It's like they almost wanted the war, and with lobbyists such as weapon manufacturers and oil companies paying the bills in Washington, it's easy to see why.
And of course, we went into Afghanistan, we're in Iraq now, and we might be heading into Iran soon. If things keep going the way they are then there is no end sight. Over 4,000 soldiers have already been killed. How many more until this thing is resolved?
I personally think that it was the right decision to go into war after we were attacked. However, I think that we got a little too caught up in the idea of war and "saving others" that we did more than we really need to do. I'm specifically talking about the Operation Iraqi Freedom. Yes, I think we should help them to gain their freedom, but I dont think we needed to bring that into another war issue.
I think that the problem with having someone like Obama as president is the fact that he would probably automatically bring the troops home. If he did that, then all of our time, and the lives of those 4,000 men and women would all have been a waste. We need to finish what we started.
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