Some "Fun Facts" About Elections in the United States

• A majority of the voting-age population does not vote in most
elections in the United States?
• Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, when first elected president,
each received the votes of only about one quarter of those eligible
to vote in his sizable electoral victory, Barack Obama received the
votes of 33 percent of those eligible and 30 percent of voting-age
adults?
• most members of Congress have no effective opposition in running
for renomination, and some have no opponents in the general
election?
• More than 90 percent of members of the House of Representatives
and 80 percent of senators were re-elected in the period from 1960
through 2008.
• No third-party presidential candidate has received any electoral
votes since 1972?
• There were more ballots discarded or under-counted in New York
City and Chicago in the 2000 election than there were disputed
ballots in the controversial Florida presidential vote that year.
• About $5 billion was spent on federal elections in 2008? .
• Information about how elections are conducted in the United
States is so fragmentary that the government does not know how
many people were turned away at the polls, how long people stood
in lines waiting to vote, how many ballots were voided.or simply
not counted, and how many voting machines malfunctioned.
• It took more than seven months in 200S for officials and the courts
to determine the winner of the election in Minnesota for a seat in the
U.S. Senate?
• The average length of time that presidential candidates appeared
on the evening news shows of the major broadcast networks in the
last three elections was about seven seconds?
• More than 50 percent of candidate advertising in recent federal
elections contained some negative reference to an opponents
character or policy positions?

• More than $200 million was spent on advertising during the 2008
nomination process, with the Democrats spending more than
twice as much as the Republicans? (BUT REMEMBER, Liberals are supposed to be the savior of this nation... Obviously it is not working)
• Only about one-third of the people can name the member of
Congress who represents them during nonelectoral periods?


These statements were pulled from the Stephen Wayne's book "Is This Any Way to Run a Democratic Election?".

Facts About Healthcare Today... and the Future

It is a common notion that wars are expensive.  Keeping up with the economy is expensive.  Healthcare is expensive.  LIFE is expensive.  Just because we are American does not mean that the federal government should pay for everything and give us "discounts".  People moan and groan about the costs of healthcare and blame the federal government for hiking up prices but if the government were to turn to a socialized healthcare system the country would collapse from the sheer weight of pressure.  I was recently speaking to a good friend of mine from South Korea who happens to be a huge supporter for socialized healthcare.  South Korea is a country of around 50 million while the United States population sits at about 310 million.  To support a country that is small compared to our population, yes I would say that most South Koreans are probably quite satisfied with their system because it is adequate to fit their needs however when looking at this country and the size versus the number of doctors and hospitals, the numbers do not add up.  Doctors would make less money which would give them less incentive to do their best or even become doctors because they would be overloaded with patients with symptoms ranging from minor colds or cuts to cancer and MS.  This is not a rational process for this nation.  People declare that only the elitists of the country can afford decent healthcare but I myself am living proof that this is false.  I pay under $100 dollars a month for health and dental and I am well taken care of.  I rest easy at night knowing that I am in good hands instead of fearing that one day I might contract a fatal virus and will be left on my own because the cost to save me would not be worth the effort as it would be in a socialized healthcare system.  We really need to, as citizens of this great nation find a happy medium.  Entitlement is not going to help this country but it will certainly hinder it and with the international and domestic issues running rampant today, healthcare is one things we should not have to worry about.  Lets get the GOP back into office to hopefully save the country from the lethal bandwagon fallacy shall we?  

Get Out the Vote

I recently spent several hours campaigning for the Republican Party in Kansas and what an experience that was! I have campaigned in Washington, Nevada, and Idaho previously but this was extremely different for several reasons.  The first was the fact that there were about 4 or 5 of us out walking the streets of Manhattan, Kansas and passing out voter registration forms, advanced voting ballots, and candidate information packets as opposed to the dozens I have been with in the past.  The second difference was the amount of youth (and by youth I mean the 18-25 age group) were actually interested in what we had to say.  It was a relief to see my generation being involved in some way with the political process and I couldn't be happier.  It is our civic duty and obligation to voice our opinions of those government officials who directly impact our way life by voting.  It is so simple and usually quite quick however there are still a massive amount of people that just will not do it.  Why is this?  The lack of civic engagement has caught the attention of several prominent political scientists and sociologists over the past decade and their findings show that although the advancement of technology has allowed for an increase in accessibility, this advancement has also been detrimental to relationships among citizens.  We as citizens of this fantastic country have the right and agency to choose who we vote for and it is sad to see that because of laziness and a disconnect on an individual and local level, we do not act on it.  There are so few countries that have the same freedoms we have and yet we claim so readily that our freedoms and liberty are being taken from us but we have the right to vote for those that are "taking our freedoms".  Do something about it.  Get out the vote in this mid term election and let your voice be heard.

Extremism Part 2

Really America?  What is this country coming too?  I love patriotism but this is getting out of hand.  Liberals v. Conservatives on EVERY issue is not how this was meant to be.  Maybe Madison was right in Federalist 10 (you should go read it often to keep yourself in check) when he said factions were dangerous.  We have to pull together in this country or we will ruin ourselves.  Pointing fingers and accusing opponents of ridiculous actions and statements is not going make the other side look better.  I feel like the news has reverted back to junior high when everyone was in that awkward stage and was rude and inappropriate in many aspects.  There needs to be differences and no one would deny that but the differences are now tearing the country apart and instead of inspiring people to get out the vote, the extreme antics of both parties is pushing people further into the wood work and before we know it extremism will be much more prevalent because the more cautious and wise moderate center will no longer have interest in the process.  These topics such as homosexual marriage, abortion, healthcare, etc must be resolved somehow but because neither side will (or can) come to a solution perhaps it is time to mix things up in the government.  Lets get some unknowns and newbies into the mix and maybe with the combination of the wise and seasoned with the new and fresh will create some ideas and policies that will actually work for both sides.  I know that extremism really knows no concessions but there is no room for a "one size fits all" in the policies and we must come closer to the center to avoid favoring small groups over what the general population wants.  Can we do it?  I would say yes.