Candidates

My friends and I were discussing presidential candidates last night, and while I felt very collegiate for having the conversation at all, I also realized how little I know about the candidates.

Sure I know all the big names in the parties: Clinton, Juliani, Obama, Romney, Edwards, McCain, and That-Guy-That-Was-On-Law-&-Order, but do I know what they stand for? Not really. As much as I'd like to believe I'm an informed citizen, if I tried to back why I support a candidate it would be pretty short. And from what I can perceive from my political conversations with other students I'm certainly not alone. Lets go through what I do know prior to any research I may have done post discussion.

Clinton: She's Democratic and a woman, which already gives her some credit in my book. She does take money from lobbyists although she said that doesn't mean she's going to do what they want (I saw it in part of a debate I caught). She has some big health plan that's pretty controversial and I know nothing about. A lot of people don't like her, and the biggest reason I've heard from other people is "she seems like a bitch", which is the lamest reason I have ever heard. Sadly, I think if she were a man she wouldn't get nearly as much criticism, but then she wouldn't have her celebrity status as Bill Clinton's wife so I guess it's a trade off.

So would I vote for her? If it was between her and a Republican, yes. I hate to be one of those insta-democrat, but because I know so little about specific platforms of candidates I'm going to side with the party the best represents my views.

Juliani: The most liberal of the Republican candidates. He's pro-choice and at the very least not anti-gay. He wore drag once which gives him some points for being that comfortable with himself. However I know he was involved with some shady dealings as mayor which makes him a bit sketchy, but I can never remember what exactly what those dealings were. He also married his cousin, which wouldn't really affect my vote but is strange nonetheless.

Would I vote for him? Well I already explained that I'd rather have a Democrat president but if a Republican had to win I'd go for him.

Obama: If elections were tomorrow and I didn't have time to become a little more informed, I'd vote for him. There's something about his charisma and freshness that seems to draw the youth support. Although honestly I know nothing about his platform. I just like his background, and I'm really sick of the white male precedent. As progressive as we think we are we are kind of behind as far as elected officials.

Would I vote for him? Yes, just don't ask me why.

Romney: He's conservative and Mormon. That's pretty much the first thing that comes to mind when I hear his name, which is then followed by my stereotypes of that combination. Those stereotypes being pro-life, anti-gay, and less supportive of separation of church and state. Now I know that not all Mormons or conservatives fall into those categories, but if I had to guess he would be more tied to those views than the other candidates.

Would I vote for him? No. I know it's unfair to dislike him as a candidate based on my biases but that's all I have to go on without reasearch.

Edwards: He doesn't take donations from Fox or it's parent company and doesn't think other Dems should either. I really like that he would stand up for his principles in this way. The donation he did get from someone affiliated with Fox he donated to a charity. On the flip side, he does make significantly less money than Clinton and Obama so it could be argued that he just wants to level the playing field for himself by asking them to do the same. Although I don't see what's wrong with a level playing field anyways. As far as his policies...nada.

Would I vote for him? Yes. I really like that he is willing to stand up for his principles.

McCain: Senator from Arizona, my home state. He was a POW which garners some automatic respect. He has been a big supporter of the war which definitely gains some negative points. He spoke out against the torture, which was brave considering his party affiliation, but then quieted when Bush offered to back him for his bid for 08' if he stopped speaking out. A lot of conservative views I affiliated with Romney.

Would I vote for him? No. I'd love to support my state but I really don't like his views.

That-Guy-That-Was-On-Law-&-Order: He was on Law & Order. He had some political experience before that.

Would I vote for him? No. I hate when celebrities use their fame to gain a political position they didn't earn. I'm looking at you Schwarzenegger.

Obviously I need to do some research before the primaries. And I encourage everyone else to do the same. I'm not exactly the standard for political awareness, but I'd be willing to bet that if you asked 10 random people about how much they knew about the candidates, several of the answers would be similar or even less informed than mine. I'm off to research candidates (I may come do a follow up and post the results), I hope you do the same.

First Post

It's kind of ironic that I'm trying to impress the importance of blogs upon you and this is my first one. That isn't entireuly accurate. I did have a Livejournal blog for a bit and a Xanga way back in the day, but both were dedicated to the trials and tribulations of high school. Something that will be omitted in this blog.

My aim here is to write my views on topics. Both my Mass Media Class and my U.S. Politics class have planted seeds in my head about the way the world works . My preconceived notions about media and politics are quickly crumbling and being replaced with a more malleable base.

I also hope to prove my point about youth making an impact. Not that I'm expecting to form a million dollar website or gain notoriety from the press like some of the examples i gave on the site. But I hope this serves as a conduit for others changing the world.

I have nothing topical to speak on right now, only because I want this entry to serve as the outline for the future of my blog.