DISCOURSE
- Early polling fails to represent voting populace Editorial
- Americans could learn a lesson in democratic spirit Editorial
- Love in the time of mediocre reality television Andrew Zangre
- Expectations crumble after 'insider' look at politics Fatima Hussein
- Media moguls should trade in stereotypes for accurate characters Laura Britton
Early polling fails to represent voting populace
Editorial
The presidential election process is a lot like Christmas.
They both start earlier every year, with red and green decorations supplanting ghoulish masks on store shelves and politicians declaring their candidacy years in advance.
They're also based on the traditions of bygone eras.
The reason behind placing a tree in your living room is as relevant as the Electoral College.
With the transformation of the presidential election into a multi-year endeavor, the immediacy of the process is lost amidst a wash of endless campaigning.
The recent Iowa caucus and New Hampshire primary are symptomatic of a major problem with this country's electoral process.
Far too much time, money and power is awarded to these two states solely because of this country's antiquated conventions.
The residents of Iowa and New Hampshire have for years been able to choose their candidates before the majority of American citizens.
This gives these states, which are distinctly lacking in Electoral College votes, far too much pull to sway
the election.
Candidates are made and broken in the blink of an eye due to the whims of a not-so representational population. Mike Huckabee, who wasn't even on the radar six months ago, is now a frontrunner for a Republican presidential bid.
Reports estimate a record $400 million has been spent in campaign funds to date, and the actual election is more than 10 months away.
Whatever candidate inherits the presidency should take a close look at the outdated and wasteful system responsible for electing him or her.
Millions of dollars are spent in these states financing 30-second attack ads and endorsements from half-rate action stars (Chuck Norris' epic beard notwithstanding).
All the while, the deficit is mind-numbingly massive and inflation is causing the lower class a world of financial hurt.
It's about time the United States confronts the traditionalist systems that govern the presidential election and enter an age of true democracy.
The true reason for the season isn't seven-figure campaign expenditures and sensationalistic commercials geared
toward the populace of only two states.
A national primary that includes
Independent voters will help shorten
the plodding election process, save campaign money and put more power in the hands of every voter.
With this revision, the United States will begin to resemble an actual democracy. Well, except for that pesky Electoral College.
Americans could learn a lesson in democratic spirit
Editorial
Mwai Kibaki was elected president of Kenya on December 28, 2007, in a contest widely criticized in his own country and in the international community.
Kenya's opposition leader, Raila Odinga, called off protests scheduled for Tuesday when the country's death toll exceeded 600 after violence broke out between ethnic groups aligned with
the candidates.
In a continent where ethnic divides are often catalyzed into violent conflicts, it is not the presence of bloodshed that shocks, but the Kenyan people's willingness to protest in the face of certain danger.
Though cancelled, the idea that Kenyans would protest after 600 of their countrymen were killed because of how they voted is astonishing.
More than 2,000 miles away from America, these people were prepared to exercise our First Amendment with more courage than any American since the civil rights movement.
These days, America has become a country where citizens get high on notions of democracy. The overwhelming majority of people refuse to vote and then complain endlessly about politicians they didn't vote for or against.
The word intellectuals use to describe this syndrome: apathy. It is nothing groundbreaking or insightful to say Americans are apathetic. It has been covered on the daily news and talked about around the water cooler.
But apathy isn't uniquely American. It is a cancer that feeds on any nation where voting occurs.
Kenya certainly has its share of abstainers. The difference between Kenya and America?
When it gets down to the wire, to brass tax, the nitty gritty, Americans no longer have the back bone to get done what needs to be done.
In the presence of rampant wrong doing in their election, the Kenyan people exercised the only power they had.
They couldn't buy ad space on the local TV or start Web sites to discredit the
new president.
And they weren't going to wait until another election to get things right.
Instead, Kenyans opted to use their own human voices to shout, sing and cry their injustices for the powerful to hear.
The last time America took to the streets in such a manner was when an entire segment of the population was bereft of rights and equal treatment or when an entire generation feared dying in the jungles of a country most of them couldn't find on a map.
We don't protest over blatant wrong-doing in the political sector anymore.
There is no uproar for hanging chads and polling fraud, no outcry when a rogue president repeatedly ignores the majority of a nation he was elected to serve.
Citizens certainly love to berate public figures in the comfort of their own homes. But almost none of them would be willing to slip on their sandals and protest in a major city.
Far from being killed, an American protestor's greatest fear might come from a missed train home, or a possible night spent out of doors.
Where is the backbone of a nation built by rebels, people who refused apathetic sentiment and became proactive in making their lives better?
When was the last time we refused to pay a tax and dumped a boat load of tea in the ocean?
The new trend is to publicly denounce undesirable actions and then live with them in our private lives. This apathetic attitude affects people loyal to any and all parties in the United States.
Whether Republican, Democrat or Independent, American's overall lack of interest in their nation's affairs has created an environment where it's not only acceptable to not care, it's the norm.
While 600 human beings killed over political fanaticism is a definite tragedy, America's antithetical position, mired in its own apathy and lack of action, could prove just as deadly in the long run.
Love in the time of mediocre reality television
Student Opinion
I've spent my entire life trying to figure out what love is.It was no easy journey. I've had my heart broken. I've invested time and money that I'll never get back.
I've even swallowed butterflies in an
attempt to get that feeling in my stomach.I'll admit now, the butterfly swallowing thing was a bad idea on my part.
But now a woman has come into my life that has taught me how to love. Thanks to her, I understand the crucial bond between two people that is stronger than anything. I know now what it truly means to love and to be loved. Thank you, Tila Tequila.
Your show, "A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila," recently debuted on MTV at No. 1 in its time slot across cable.
Thousands of 18 to 34-year-olds experienced the first episode of your revolutionary dating show, and I'm confident that, as a result, their lives were changed.
If you happen to live under a rock, here's a synopsis of the show.
"A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila" places 16 straight men and 16 lesbian women in a house where they share one very big bed, and fight for the affection of the show's star, the bisexual MySpace celebrity extraordinaire
Tila Tequila.
Now, I don't watch this show because it is revolutionary. To be honest, Tila, I've seen this show before. It was called "The Bachelor" at one point.
It's also been called "Flavor of Love," "Rock of Love" and "I Love New York."
You see, the reason I watch this show is the love. Forget the drama.
Forget the catfights. Forget the alcohol-driven emotional scarring. Above all else in this show, love remains the key.
I could write a textbook on the subject after watching just one episode.
Tila Tequila's sermon of love has perfected the standards set by soap operas several years ago and rushed through me like a bear tranquilizer filled with knowledge.
So I have decided to take on the task of flag bearer for this new gospel of love, and it's important that I share with everyone just a few main ideas about love that I've learned from watching these reality
dating shows.
Love is blind, but somehow manages to select a very tight group of extremely healthy and good-looking people to
choose from.
Love is worth fighting for, especially if it involves pulling hair or spitting in the face. If it helps the ratings, it's helping the relationship.
You can love someone despite your differences, or a lack of any personal history with them, or without any natural chemistry with them whatsoever.
An open relationship is a healthy one. Go ahead and make out with three people in the hot tub. Don't forget the whipped cream. Your love will still be true when it's all said and done.
You only get to be on TV once. Even if your love does not work out, make sure to make a complete fool of yourself and ruin any chance of living a normal life ever again.
It took nearly 21 years and numerous slaps in the face, but I now feel nothing but confidence in my new outlook on love.
Thanks to Tila, and the other important figures in the televised dating revolution, I finally understand every misconception I've had about love, and am ready to alter my life to fit these standards. I'm going to start drinking and cursing more.
I'm going to be much more critical of people's flaws and make them feel bad about having them. I'm going to let millions of people around the country witness my emotional struggles for
their entertainment. That's love, I guess.
It's not supposed to be easy for anybody. Not even former Playboy playmates like Tila Tequila.
But someone had to be the preacher of love for this generation, and this fine young woman has been brave enough to take on the task. Godspeed, Ms. Tequila.
Now that shows like yours are replacing all the morally corrupt garbage on television, it's only a matter of time until love conquers all.
Contact Andrew Zangre at discourse@unfspinnaker.com -- PERMALINK -- TOP OF PAGE
Expectations crumble after 'insider' look at politics
Student Opinion
I had the opportunity to cover the Republican presidential debate for a campaign trail blog in late November as a member of the "People's Press Corps."
Being the naive college student that I am, I eagerly drove four hours to St. Petersburg to watch the debate from "behind the scenes," hoping to witness occurrences that few get to see.
While taking pictures of the candidates after the debate in the "spin-room," journalists had the opportunity to speak personally with the presidential hopefuls - asking them follow-up questions, shaking their hands and urging them to smile for the cameras.
As the night passed and the scene became too redundant to pique interest,
I left the theater to take pictures of protesters outside. After making conversation with a number of "crazy liberals," I realized that there was a greater understanding of reality regarding America's future barricaded outside the building as opposed to the scene housed inside.
Focusing their efforts on combating the rising homeless rate in the United States, the protestors stood outside for hours shouting statistics concerning the numbers of veterans and college-educated
homeless people.
All the while, journalists in the theater stood in line to talk to Chuck Norris, hoping he could give them his infamous fake punch, and every so often, asking lesser-known candidates if they believed America is truly No.1.
After telling two protesters about my experiences inside the debate hall and "spin room," they said they weren't the least bit surprised.
They explained that these types of scenes are what Americans have been forced to watch in order to divert attention from this country's most pressing issues.
The reason Americans have yet to do anything about this problem is because they are far too comfortable with their current living situations to complain about their questions never being
answered directly.
It's obvious that images of presidential candidates kissing babies and shaking hands with quadriplegics will be consistently shown until a situation so dire is created that it may be far too late for change.
And even then, our attention will be diverted elsewhere.
In the end, I came back from St. Petersburg with the same, if not more, confusion and outrage towards the system as I had before I left.
While the debate itself was anything but thought provoking, I was even more surprised to find that experiencing an "insider's" perspective provided even more disillusionment.
Debates featuring smiling candidates being chummy with journalists and digressing from issues begging for answers will always be a great American pastime, confusing viewers and creating problems beyond extreme partisanship; but hey, at least I caught a fake punch from Chuck Norris.
Contact Fatima Hussein at discourse@unfspinnaker.com -- PERMALINK -- TOP OF PAGE
Media moguls should trade in stereotypes for accurate characters
Britton Knows Best
Joe: Maybe Peter took the trophy. He wanted it all along.
Peter: I couldn't have taken it; I was too busy breakin' into Joe's garage, stealin' his ladder so I could steal the trophy tonight!
Lois: Peter!
Peter: What? It's a ladder! He can't use it. It's like takin' a watch off a dead guy.
The above dialogue is from the hit comedy "Family Guy," in reference to Joe, the Griffins' paraplegic neighbor. Funny, isn't it? Most Americans think so - and I can't blame them. The media giants have portrayed people with disabilities as easy targets to stereotype. They're either funny to laugh at, easy to feel bad for, or made to fear.
Consider the following dialogue from the movie "Rain Man" between Raymond, who has autism, and his brother Charlie.
Raymond: Gotta get my boxer shorts at Kmart.
Charlie: What difference does it make where you buy underwear? What difference does it make? Underwear is underwear! It is underwear wherever you buy it! In Cincinnati or wherever!
This scene makes my heart ache. I feel bad for Raymond. I feel bad that his disorder is being doubted. I feel bad for people with autism who have to live their lives differently than everyone else. I guess the media's stereotypes worked on me, too. They've got me right where they want me.
People with disabilities are vastly underrepresented in the media, but when they are featured, there is an emphasis on their physical or mental condition instead of their personality.
Recently, however, there has been a rise in movies that depict people with psychiatric disorders.
Take, for example, the 2005 box office hit "Hide and Seek," starring Robert De Niro and Dakota Fanning.
After the suicide of his wife, De Niro's character, David Callaway, discovers that his 9-year-old daughter, Emily, has an imaginary friend named Charlie who demands her to do disturbing, violent things.
By the movie's end, the captive audience finds that David is, in fact, Charlie, and he's suffering from multiple personality disorder.
David realizes his alternate personality killed his wife and then made it appear to be a suicide. David's personality then becomes fully consumed by the increasingly violent Charlie, and at movie's end, David is killed. The movie is over, and the big, bad, scary, crazy man is killed off. Thank you, media giants.The media giants have a job to do. They owe it to the 54 million Americans that have a disability to portray them accurately and with care. To do anything less is a gross injustice. A stigma still remains throughout various media channels that people with disabilities are on a lower level than the rest of us.
The blame lies with you, media giant. Start using accuracy instead of stereotyping, and viewer's perceptions about the disabled will follow in time. Awareness is the first step toward change.
Contact Laura Britton at discourse@unfspinnaker.com -- PERMALINK -- TOP OF PAGE