Change? by Steven Waugh

Im glad that we are all having a good discussion on healthcare reform, and I would like to hear what Phillips opinion on the subject is since Lauren and Stephen already gave their input. I would like to change the subject to another one of Obama's "promises." Im think we can all agree that Obama promised to remove most of the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Earlier in his term he did in fact remove a large number of troops from these areas. In a recent article on CNN, the pentagon announced that it will move forward with plans to send another 34,000 troops to Afghanistan. Huh? I personally agree with the choice to send more troops to the area in order to ensure the safety of the troops there, and maybe a surge in force will be enough to make significant progress in the area. The point I am trying to make is that Obama promised to take troops out, and he did so. But now he realized that he did that too soon, and now he is sending those troops back in. Will Obama make the same mistake with healthcare? Im worried that he will try to do too much too soon, and end up having to fix a larger mess later. I would like to hear everyones input on this situation, because maybe I am overanalyzing the situation.

Poll Bias

Aren't the politicians watching the polls?
Here is an article that talks about polling, and how it is a focal point of politicians. I felt that this would be good for give good insight into Lauren's image and article. Although, its poll contradicts the poll Lauren posted, because it talks about a decrease in the support of healthcare reform, which is a huge part in where this country is headed.

This is a good example of poll bias, which Lauren had talked about. The question that this article's poll asked was, "Public View Of The President's Healthcare Plan? Yay Or Nay For The Democrats?" This question, unlike Lauren's poll question, is short, sweet, and to the point. This leaves less room for bias. Lauren's question is filled with lots of strong wording and adjectives, which conveys the audience in a certain way. I feel that the poll that I discovered is a better gauge for what people think about where the country is going.

By: Stephen Sealy

Washington Post: Obama Poll

Obama & the Economy Poll

By: Lauren Young

Since Steven proposed the idea in his last blog about how Americans always just blame the president for everything, and how Obama is losing approval ratings, I decided to do some research on the matter. Some polls I found from the Washington Post Online state that:

64% of Americans still have confidence in Obama

That there is an increase in the percentage of people who think we are headed in the right direction.

(Statistics based off a telephone survey of 1000 people)

I do not know how accurate this poll is since it might not have had good demographics and it was not conducted by a credible source like AP Nielson Statistics.

However, I find the general claim of this article to state that Americans are starting to think Obama is moving in the right direction. Many Americans still have faith, even if they blame him for problems.

My personal opinion on this article was that it seemed kind of biased. I know it was a survey, but it was still written to favor democrats. Overall, politics are very complicated and I believe it is just human nature to blame political leaders for problems. In my personal opinion, I think anyone in office right now would be blamed for the horrible economy.

Where is the common ground? by Steven Waugh

When will people start sticking to their preconceived notions? There is nothing I hate more than "fair weather fans." In the article "Poll: Public shifting blame for recession," the American people are shown to be following fair weather trends. The recession has been blamed on many things. For one, the housing crisis, and the auto industry has also bore the brunt of the blame. But people mainly blame the recession on either Republicans or Democrats. Republicans have been taking most of the heat for the past two years, but the statistics are showing that people are being swayed towards blaming the current crisis on Democrats.

Obama promised to fix the economy, and millions of people entrusted him with their votes. He has made considerable change with bills such as H.R. 3200 which will create a public option for healthcare. Obama and his "change" have made considerable headway, yet people still have doubts. After blaming Republicans for the economic downturn, some are claiming that Obama has done nothing to improve it, and now some are claiming that he has made the economy even worse! With midterm elections coming up, the American people have a decision to make. Will the Republicans get a second shot at redemption, or will the Democrats, who they are clearly unhappy with, continue to dominate congress? Will America make a stance, or continue to just blame whoever is in office for every problem that arises? Please let me know your stance on the subject at hand, and if you notice some of the same symptoms in our culture.

Public Option? by Steven Waugh

Ok I was going to try to tie in my healthcare argument with Phillips car argument, but I only came up with a few ways to do so. The recent economic downfall has created a revived drive in the governments efforts to reshape the American economy. The American car crisis has been at the forefront of these efforts. Pixars new smart-cars are a new idea that the American people have to look forward to in the future.

But what about healthcare? President Obama promised that "change" would drive his campaign, and a new healthcare platform was at the center of his promises. The house just passed the H.R. 3200 health care bill. For a good summary of the bill look at this summary. It is a great look at the new bill that may be turned into a law if it is successfully passed in the senate.

At the forefront of the healthcare argument is the public option. In theory, the public option is a great way to provide healthcare to everyone equally. But in reality, the public option provides many problems. The mere confusion that will arise with employers trying to figure out whether the incentives to provide the public option will surpass the benefits given by private employers is amazing. The thousand-plus pages of the bill provide people to have many grievances.

Glen Beck is upset with suggested government run parenting programs that would essentially allow government workers to come into your home and "teach" your parents how to run your house hold effectively.

So when is enough, enough? Will the Senate pass the bill? We entrust our leaders to make appropriate decisions that will affect the country in a positive way. In no way am I opposed to the bill because I am in no way educated enough on its contents. I just posted this because I am passionate about keeping tabs on our governments actions and policies. Please let me know your opinions on the bill so I can get a better grasp on how the mainstream student population feels about Obama's administration.

Pixar's Cars Prediction, by Phillip Miller

I apologize for the change in topic but this was too sticking to leave for another time
When are we going to design cars that can speak and hear?
We can do so much with technology these days why not design our traveling bodies with their own mouth and ears. We already have cars that can see......
Cars house our minds nearly as much as our bodies do, it would only make sense to start to design them with as much capabilities as our bodies.....and then some. This topic was sparked inside of me while trying to navigate myself through a car park/ shopping center in North Carolina.

There were not any sidewalks, pathways or pedestrian crosswalks. I felt as though the entire plaza was designed purely for the mobility of cars and not people. I must say though, the plaza well very well landscaped so that made it ok.
It was unbelievable. The day was beautiful and sunny. Not too cold and not too hot, just right. There was not a soul outside unless they were walking to their cars. Everyone jumped out of their cars ran over to where they were about to spend some of their oh so scarce green and then run back into their little safe zones on wheels.
This was a beautiful state with vast amounts of open space all ready to be used for sports and activities but no. Everyone chose to spend their Sunday hiding form the sun and the world outdoors that has not already been processed and deep fried for them.