Sam Thompson, a 22-year-old environmental studies major at the University of Montana here, considers himself “fiscally conservative” but opposes cuts to Medicare; he expects to need health coverage when he grows old. Aaron Curtis, 27, a graduate student, admired Jon Huntsman, a moderate Republican, but could not stomach Mitt Romney’s opposition to same-sex marriage.
Billie Loewen and Heather Jurva, editors at the student newspaper, speak of a Depression-era mentality that is pushing their generation to back Democrats. Saddled with student debt, they worry about health care and are terrified that they will not find good jobs. “You might be just one accident away from losing everything,” said Ms. Jurva, who has worked 40 hours a week waiting on tables to put herself through school.
It is no secret that young voters tilt left on social issues like immigration and gay rights. But these students, and dozens of other young people interviewed here last week, give voice to a trend that is surprising pollsters and jangling the nerves of Republicans. On a central philosophical question of the day — the size and scope of the federal government — a clear majority of young people embraces President Obama’s notion that it can be a constructive force, a point he intends to make in his State of the Union address on Tuesday.
“Young people absolutely believe that there’s a role for government,” said Matt Singer, a founder of Forward Montana, a left-leaning though officially nonpartisan group that seeks to engage young people in politics. “At the same time, this is not a generation of socialists. They are highly entrepreneurial, and know that some of what it takes to create an environment where they can do their own exciting, creative things is having basic systems that work.”
Nationally, young voters have since 2004 been casting their ballots for Democrats by far wider margins than previous young generations — a shift that could reshape American politics for decades.
Under-30 voters are “the only age group in which a majority said the government should do more to fix problems,” the nonpartisan Pew Research Center reported in November. In a Pew survey a year earlier, more than 8 in 10 said they believed that Social Security and Medicare had been good for the country, and they were especially supportive of seeing the programs overhauled so they would be intact when they retire. (Young people were also more open than their elders to privatizing the programs.)
And while Washington fights about how to cut the federal deficit, young voters believe that it is more important to create jobs, have affordable access to health care and develop “a world-class education system,” according to the Institute of Politics at Harvard.
The Republican’s only goal is acquiring power, even at the expense of democracy. To reach their goals, they have launched an ongoing war against American institutions. According to Aravosis:
They don’t believe in an independent judiciary, and have been undermining, and outright threatening, judges for years. They don’t believe in elections, and thus either gerrymander them when possible (like they’ve now successfully done with the House), or outright attempt to steal them, like they did in the 2000 presidential, and like they tried against Al Franken and others…
Republicans hate facts, and they loathe reality. Reality, you see, has a liberal bias. If we let judges rule, citizens vote, journalists report, students study, and scientists research – all independently – for some strange reason they keep coming up with conclusions that, more often than not, go against the GOP….
So, Republicans try to intimidate the judges, steal the vote, create their own faux news network, and then brither, truther, and climate-changer any and every scientific result possible. That’s why a GOP state official in Missouri is trying to redefine, by legislative fiat, the word “scientific theory” to include “faith-based philosophy.” This way, priests can call themselves “scientists,” and creationism immediately becomes “science.”
The GOP is in 24-hour attack mode, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. And their victim isn’t just Democrats, it’s democracy itself.
The Westboro Baptist Church has announced that they will picket Vassar College on Feb 28th. In response, we are raising money for the Trevor Project, "the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth." Our goal is to raise $4,500, or $100 per minute that the WBC is planning to protest for."
UPDATE:
We've reached 10x our original goal. That means we've raised over $1,000 per minute that the WBC is planning to protest.
Take away the flowers, chocolates, and gifts and we’re left with what Valentine’s Day is intended to celebrate—love. There are discrepancies over the history of this romantic holiday, but one of the most famous accounts is of a Catholic saint named Valentine who would perform marriages for couples in love after Emperor Claudius II outlawed marriage based on the notion that single men made better soldiers.
Saint Valentine saw through the bureaucracy and believed couples in love had a right to marry despite the beliefs of the emperor, so much so that he was eventually found and put to death.
Living up to this tradition, the Illinois Senate — which is controlled by a Democratic supermajority — will vote today to implement a law that would legalize same-sex marriage, making Illinois the 10th state in the country to do so. The Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act also has some conservative backing, in the person of Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady.
Fitting for Valentine’s Day, the measure is expected to pass and make it to Governor Pat Quinn’s desk; he has committed to signing the bill.
The law represents just the latest victory in the long march towards equality. As Roger Streitmatter’s Outlaw Marriages: The Hidden Histories of Fifteen Extraordinary Same-Sex Couples, details, same sex couples — including famous names such as poet Walt Whitman, actress Greta Garbo, and playwright Tennessee Williams — have been enriching American culture since the 18th century.
While same-sex marriage has been a contentious debate in politics and religion, there’s no doubt that today’s holiday should hold no prejudice. Valentine’s Day originates from the very idea that those in love who want to marry ought to be allowed. So hold the flowers, chocolates, and gifts; the Illinois state legislature has chosen a far better way to celebrate the holiday.
8 Comments:
I love it!
Me too! LMAO!
Younger voters lean democratic
Sam Thompson, a 22-year-old environmental studies major at the University of Montana here, considers himself “fiscally conservative” but opposes cuts to Medicare; he expects to need health coverage when he grows old. Aaron Curtis, 27, a graduate student, admired Jon Huntsman, a moderate Republican, but could not stomach Mitt Romney’s opposition to same-sex marriage.
Billie Loewen and Heather Jurva, editors at the student newspaper, speak of a Depression-era mentality that is pushing their generation to back Democrats. Saddled with student debt, they worry about health care and are terrified that they will not find good jobs. “You might be just one accident away from losing everything,” said Ms. Jurva, who has worked 40 hours a week waiting on tables to put herself through school.
It is no secret that young voters tilt left on social issues like immigration and gay rights. But these students, and dozens of other young people interviewed here last week, give voice to a trend that is surprising pollsters and jangling the nerves of Republicans. On a central philosophical question of the day — the size and scope of the federal government — a clear majority of young people embraces President Obama’s notion that it can be a constructive force, a point he intends to make in his State of the Union address on Tuesday.
“Young people absolutely believe that there’s a role for government,” said Matt Singer, a founder of Forward Montana, a left-leaning though officially nonpartisan group that seeks to engage young people in politics. “At the same time, this is not a generation of socialists. They are highly entrepreneurial, and know that some of what it takes to create an environment where they can do their own exciting, creative things is having basic systems that work.”
Nationally, young voters have since 2004 been casting their ballots for Democrats by far wider margins than previous young generations — a shift that could reshape American politics for decades.
Under-30 voters are “the only age group in which a majority said the government should do more to fix problems,” the nonpartisan Pew Research Center reported in November. In a Pew survey a year earlier, more than 8 in 10 said they believed that Social Security and Medicare had been good for the country, and they were especially supportive of seeing the programs overhauled so they would be intact when they retire. (Young people were also more open than their elders to privatizing the programs.)
And while Washington fights about how to cut the federal deficit, young voters believe that it is more important to create jobs, have affordable access to health care and develop “a world-class education system,” according to the Institute of Politics at Harvard.
For another laugh you can check out some drag queens helping out Chik-fil-A's image:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sO-msplukrw&feature=youtu.be
Gobble up those waffle fries!
Have a nice day,
Cynthia
The Republican’s only goal is acquiring power, even at the expense of democracy. To reach their goals, they have launched an ongoing war against American institutions. According to Aravosis:
They don’t believe in an independent judiciary, and have been undermining, and outright threatening, judges for years. They don’t believe in elections, and thus either gerrymander them when possible (like they’ve now successfully done with the House), or outright attempt to steal them, like they did in the 2000 presidential, and like they tried against Al Franken and others…
Republicans hate facts, and they loathe reality. Reality, you see, has a liberal bias. If we let judges rule, citizens vote, journalists report, students study, and scientists research – all independently – for some strange reason they keep coming up with conclusions that, more often than not, go against the GOP….
So, Republicans try to intimidate the judges, steal the vote, create their own faux news network, and then brither, truther, and climate-changer any and every scientific result possible. That’s why a GOP state official in Missouri is trying to redefine, by legislative fiat, the word “scientific theory” to include “faith-based philosophy.” This way, priests can call themselves “scientists,” and creationism immediately becomes “science.”
The GOP is in 24-hour attack mode, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. And their victim isn’t just Democrats, it’s democracy itself.
COUNTER-PROTEST THE WBC AT VASSAR COLLEGE
BENEFITING: Trevor Project
THE STORY:
The Westboro Baptist Church has announced that they will picket Vassar College on Feb 28th. In response, we are raising money for the Trevor Project, "the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth." Our goal is to raise $4,500, or $100 per minute that the WBC is planning to protest for."
UPDATE:
We've reached 10x our original goal. That means we've raised over $1,000 per minute that the WBC is planning to protest.
Don't stop now! Donate here
Take away the flowers, chocolates, and gifts and we’re left with what Valentine’s Day is intended to celebrate—love. There are discrepancies over the history of this romantic holiday, but one of the most famous accounts is of a Catholic saint named Valentine who would perform marriages for couples in love after Emperor Claudius II outlawed marriage based on the notion that single men made better soldiers.
Saint Valentine saw through the bureaucracy and believed couples in love had a right to marry despite the beliefs of the emperor, so much so that he was eventually found and put to death.
Living up to this tradition, the Illinois Senate — which is controlled by a Democratic supermajority — will vote today to implement a law that would legalize same-sex marriage, making Illinois the 10th state in the country to do so. The Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act also has some conservative backing, in the person of Republican Party Chairman Pat Brady.
Fitting for Valentine’s Day, the measure is expected to pass and make it to Governor Pat Quinn’s desk; he has committed to signing the bill.
The law represents just the latest victory in the long march towards equality. As Roger Streitmatter’s Outlaw Marriages: The Hidden Histories of Fifteen Extraordinary Same-Sex Couples, details, same sex couples — including famous names such as poet Walt Whitman, actress Greta Garbo, and playwright Tennessee Williams — have been enriching American culture since the 18th century.
While same-sex marriage has been a contentious debate in politics and religion, there’s no doubt that today’s holiday should hold no prejudice. Valentine’s Day originates from the very idea that those in love who want to marry ought to be allowed. So hold the flowers, chocolates, and gifts; the Illinois state legislature has chosen a far better way to celebrate the holiday.
CNN Pundit Politely Tells Anti-Gay Interview Guest That He Is An Idiot
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