Wisconsin in Uproar

            It was announced less than a half hour ago today that earlier this morning Republican Wisconsin senators pushed through a bill that would have a severely adverse effect on unions and their workers’ bargaining power in the future. Democrats tried to halt this process by means of a 60 hour filibuster, with more than 15 people still waiting to speak. However, the many arguments were interrupted by one Republican Senator who, at one o’clock in the morning opened and closed voting within a 60second span. He did this so quickly that only 13 of the 38 Democrats present and able to vote were actually able to do so.

            The bill, which has been designed to account for state's $137 million deficit and  attempting to plan for the $3.6 billion shortfall projected for 2011-2013, contains many helpful measures that don’t appear radical or are detrimental to the average person, so why the big fuss you might ask? Well a vast majority of the debate centers on wording within the bill about public workers. This bill will require public workers to contribute more to their pensions and health insurance and strips them of their right to collectively bargain benefits and work conditions.

            Democrats and unions are up in arms over this, saying it is an attack on worker’s rights and interferes with union support for Democrats. Unions have stated that they would make concessions in the other areas mentioned in the bill if they would still be able to keep their bargaining rights, but the Governor won’t budge.

            After over 3 days of intense debates, this controversial bill that Governor Scott Walker says contains provisions to fill the state’s huge deficit and account for the upcoming shortfall in the budget has been passed but things are in no way cooling down. Though tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets and camped out to protest, the bill was pushed through this morning. But, Democrats aren’t taking this sitting down.

            Minority Democrats in the house have, in fact, fled to Illinois to prevent a vote and say they will stay away unless Governor Walker agrees to discuss a compromise. The governor has said that if the bill does not pass by Friday, the state will miss a deadline to refinance $165 million but other say it could be possible to still meet the deadline if it passes by Tuesday.

Read more here at: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110225/ap_on_re_us/us_wisconsin_budget_unions

Wrestling with his conscience

For the first time in history a female wrestler, 2 in fact, have qualified for the Iowa state wrestling tournament. The drama doesn’t end there however, since one of the best bets to win or at least come out at the top in this tournament forfeited his first match. This would hardly be noteworthy except that he did so, due to his religious beliefs, to one of the girls, freshman Cassy Herkelman. His refusal to wrestle her means that there is no way he can score above third place but he still holds true to his values and belief that it is inappropriate and wrong for him to fight against her in light of his religious and moral beliefs.

This comes not out of fear of losing or being ridiculed for having to wrestle a girl and looking bad, but from the familial and spiritual beliefs of the forfeiter, Joel Northrop, and his family. Joel is a sophomore, homeschooled student whose father is a minister at the Believers in Grace Fellowship church and preaches about respect and elevation of women. He feels that men and women shouldn’t touch in a “familiar” way and that it isn’t right for men and women to wrestle since it  is a full contact and violent sport.

The general consensus at the tournament and among the family of the girl that went ahead through forfeit, Cassy Herkelman, is one of respect and understanding. All involved say that Joel has strong religious values and they feel that he is in no way being derogatory or demeaning. And also that this match was resolved in what, for him, was the only possible way that it could be.

But this begs the question, what is the right thing to do here? What exactly is the correct action to take and what does this mean? Is this advancing women or encouraging them not to continue to compete? This raises a lot of questions that people have to answer to themselves. There is no right or wrong answer in this scenario, only what is right or wrong for those involved and I for one applaud Joel. His religious conviction and dedication to the teachings of his father is admirable and I am surprised that a 15 or 16 year old boy would concede such as important match as gracefully as he has.

Violence Against Women: Again

Violence towards women is an issue that has been gaining momentum and recognition for quite some time now. Though these shocking and horrible actions and practices still continue they are no longer swept under the rug or treated as unimportant. This is especially evident in the case of the newest photo that won the World Press Photo Award, which depicts a young Afghan woman and the disfigured visage that is the result of fleeing her abusive marriage.

Actions such as these abound every single day and the fact that this photo won attests to the seriousness and increasing importance of this issue. Mutilation is a worldwide occurrence and occurs in many differing ways for numerous reasons. These disfigurements can be attributed to several causes such as fleeing horrible leaders, abusive or destructive marriages, or for ceremonial and religious purposes. Some believe these practices to be useful or attach ceremonial significance to these practices and therefore continue to observe their beliefs even to this day.

These horrifying behaviors are not showing signs of abating anytime soon but the question remains, what can be done about them? Even if we feel that they are wrong in doing so, do we have the right to forbid these practices or enforce and ensure that they are no longer able to practice as they believe they have the right to? What right do we have to judge their customs and deny them the ability or choice to practice such things?

Of course, their beliefs do not make it acceptable to maim or harm others and detract from the well being of others. However, there is no real or workable solution here but education and attempted understanding of all those involved, whether impacted by this issue or not. We can try to push for reform and deter people from resorting to these detrimental practices, but the real question is should we be able to and what will our efforts actually achieve? How can we guarentee that this won't occur again in spite of our efforts?



Palin+Reagan Legacy=Presidential Material ?

There's nothing more valuable for a Republican presidential candidate than a link to the legacy of Ronald Reagan. This seems to be the motivation for Sarah Palin in giving a speech to commemorate his 100th birthday with an address at the Reagan Ranch Center in Santa Barbara modeled after his famous 1964 speech "A Time for Choosing."

When he originally gave this message he was in his prime and still sixteen years from being president but the message has a freshness and hardness that his later messages lacked. He had much more experience than Palin and had worked closely with a whole team of advisors to analyze numerous key issues and a broad range of topics. He gave a lot of thought to his own position and had considerably more experience than Palin does at this time although she’s only six years younger than he was at the time he became president.

Many people doubt whether Palin is ready or prepared to deal with the vast majority of these issues and whether she is the best one for the job, which remains to be seen. However, she is forging ahead in her quest to be the frontrunner for the Republican party and is taking steps to ensure that being on the 2012 ballot is a definite possibility.

But she does not seem to the substance of Reagan and many wonder if she ever will. Often mocked by the media for her ridiculous antics, zany made-up words, and statements often proven incorrect, Sarah Palin has a long way to go if she ever hopes to be presidential material.

One thing is certain, this speech will be a key moment for her long with the Republican party in determining whether she has what it takes to represent them in the next presidential race if they hope to take back the White House. Sarah Palin for president, anyone?

This I Believe

 I believe in never giving up