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[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hello all,

It saddens me that this will likely be my last post on this blog. I would just like to thank all my followers for tuning in each week to read my responses. A lot of effort went into each post and I hope you all enjoyed them. I am now going to reflect on the 2012 Presidential election. President Obama has been reelected for another term. I am extremely excited for the next four years to come because I have faith that the President has what it takes to further strengthen our nation. Although Romney is a great business man, America made the right choice by electing President Obama for another four years. Romney was inconsistent throughout his campaign and has beliefs that do nothing more but divide people. More than half the country voted for Obama which shows that even Republicans saw something in the President that they didn't see in Romney. Rebuilding our nation by no means is going to be easy, but by increasing unity, peace and acceptance, there isn't anything our nation can't overcome.

[khafani]

Overall I thoughts this debate was like the first and second debate because both candidates were trying to put there points on the table to why to vote for them on November 4th but also talk about foreign policy. Obama was mentioned his thoughts about not interfering with Israel because they have...

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hey Khafani,

I agree that both Romney and Obama strayed off topic a bit. But to play devils advocate, it was the last debate. These two are really adamant about the things they believe in, so when they feel as though the other isn't being truthful, they immediately call each other out on it. I guess I just don't feel it was too much of a bad idea for them promote themselves on the last debate. Other than that, I couldn't agree with you more.

[invisioneyedas-blog]

The Debate

The last presidential debate was amazing. President Obama was in control the whole time and didn't let his guard down. The discussion on foreign policy was very interesting because we needed to pay attention to the other countries around the world. Also in this debate. They kept mentioning the same ideas that they mention in the previous debate. But I feel like Obama won that debate because of the way he brought his ideas to the table.

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hello,

I couldn't agree more with your statements. From beginning to end, Obama was confident (and more importantly factually correct) in defending his positions. Romney's points were definitely more repetitive, and I would have liked for him to be rather confident. It was almost like Romney had given up, from his facial expressions to his lack of knowledge about foreign policy. How do you think Romney would do when it comes to foreign policy if elected?

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hello Everyone,

Today's topic will be about The War on Drugs. This is an issue that directly affects our economy and the well-being of American citizens. The nation spends a vast amount of money on arrests, prosecutions and incarcerations each year. There is about $22,000 spent on each prisoner in tax money. In 2009 alone, the federal government spent around $2,094,510,000 on drug related prisoners. Also, in 2009 there were 187,886 federal inmates convicted, and of those 95,205 were convicted of drug related charges. Police are known to abuse their authority and regularly stop to search people for no probable cause. All constitutionally protected civil liberties have been undermined by the war on drugs. The federal government has created an incentive for police departments to focus more attention on The War on Drugs by allowing them to collect money and other things seized during raids. Some say that police are focusing in on the War on Drugs because they’re after the money more so than the safety of citizens. We can't afford to keep up this drug war. More money is spent, more people are killed and even more people are imprisoned. Drug activity has not increased as opposed to the rising number of people behind bars. Crime rates are still around the same amount, but the laws constructed to put people behind bars have the amount of prisoners at an all-time high.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikLIRqv0wZY & http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303425504577353754196169014.html)

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Greetings Everyone,

Although it has been a long four weeks of debating, the final debate ended on a strong and wishful note. Both candidates had their strengths and weaknesses throughout these debates, but nonetheless were able to give a good fight in hopes of becoming the next President of the United States. To speak specifically about last night's debate, it was clear that President Obama had won. Obama was aggressive and precise when it came to articulating his ideas and views. Romney decided to take a less aggressive approach which didn't help in his favor. As you may know, the main focus of the last debate was foreign policy. Obama gave specific reasons as to why his decisions were best for the nation concerning our allies and those we have to watch out for. Romney lacks a strong foundation when it comes to foreign policy as he doesn't have much background on this particular issue. Obama also called Romney out for having very similar views to his own. Romney really didn't have much else to say besides Obama shouldn't have been attacking him and to focus more on the topic at hand. That statement from Romney is ironic because he would often ramble off topic himself. All in all, Obama dominated the final debate and set the bar high for Romney and the Republican Party. Now, it’s up to us to decide who the next President of the United States of America will be. We should all think long and hard about our vote because the next four years are crucial in terms of our economy and building up our nation. I hope everyone makes the right decision for them and can honestly choose the candidate who best represents their views.

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hello all,

Today I will be discussing Mass Incarceration. For those who don't know, The United States has the highest rate of incarcerating its own citizens. You may be asking yourself “well why is this?” The truth of the matter is most inmates are imprisoned for non-violent crimes or for minor drug offenses. Sixty percent of America’s inmates are non-violent. More and more of non-violent inmates are receiving longer sentences for no justifiable reason. Crime rates haven’t increased over the years (multiple studies show crime rates have even greatly lowered over the years) but the rate of people being arrested significantly climbs each decade. We focus more on incarcerating our citizens than on bettering schools, libraries etc. The number of incarcerated Americans has quadrupled since 1980. More than two million of our people are now locked up, with another nearly five million who are under parole or probation after incarceration. If we don’t starting putting more time, money and effort into positively shifting our society, then who knows how many inmates we’ll have in the near future.

(#mce_temp_url# & http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/03/opinion/bloom-prison-spending/index.html) 

[oumout-blog]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/10/05/us-unemployment-rate-falls-to-78-pct-in-september-lowest-since-jan-200-hiring/

[mrsundecided-blog]

Congratulations to President Obama and all his hard work on lowering the unemployment rate. We have been waiting for this for a long time. I...

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

^ @mrsundecided this very true, but President Obama was left with a huge mess. It is going to take more time to efficiently correct all that is wrong in our nation. It's not just black and white. Obama has made many accomplishments while being in office, and he is not credited as much as he should be. President Obama has done more good in office than bad. I guess I'm just optimistic when it comes to believing in our nation and president.

[invisioneyedas-blog]

On that note!

On that note, both of them went at it since the beginning . They were shouting over each other and the monirator. It was a tougher battle then what I had expected I think that President Obama won that debate. Romney tried to prove that Obama is a lier, but failed too. Obama came strong and ready to win the second debate.

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hello, 

You're right. Romney clearly failed when trying to prove President Obama to be a liar. The only things Obama wrongfully called Romney out on were things that could have been avoided if Romney (like always) would've expanded on his ideas. Obama claimed Romney once called Arizona's “papers, please” immigration law a model for the nation. Romney didn't, he actually said that about an earlier Arizona law requiring employers to check the immigration status of employees. Nevertheless, Obama still won this debate because he was attentive and very articulate to say the least.

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hi beautiful people,

I'm back again and am ready to discuss a champion presidential debate! Let's start with the champion himself (not just winner but champion) of last night's debate; President Barack Obama. Obama went out last night and delivered. He performed like a whole new person compared to the first debate. I'm not sure if this is a part of his tactic to win another term, but it sure is pleasant to see him perform well. Obama was prepared for this debate which made it all the more interesting and engaging. Obama was attentive, clear with his voice and (like always) made valid points. Romney did well too. Romney is always well spoken and aggressive which is key to winning these debates. But unfortunately, Romney came up a bit short this time around. My favorite moment of last night's debate was the "transcript check". Apparently, Romney was misinformed about when the president declared the attack in Libya "an act of terror". President Obama cut in and claimed he announced on the day it happened that it was an act of terror and not two weeks later like Romney was stating. Romney then insisted that President Obama was not telling the truth until the moderator jumped in and read the transcript which stated that in fact President Obama was telling the truth. What made this moment so significant is indeed because Romney always seems to “fact check” himself. Romney is not always factually correct and frequently changes his views on issues. However, these two showed up and gave viewers exactly the kind of presidential debate everyone was looking for. Hopefully the energy keeps up from both candidates for the last debate.

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Greetings Earthlings!

We've all just witnessed a very heated debate to say the least. Let me start off by saying both candidates were well prepared, engaging and likable during tonight's debate. Ryan did an excellent job at composing himself and clearly stating his oppositions. However, Ryan (like Romney) gave a weak counter argument when it came to healthcare. Call me crazy, but Obamacare still seems like the better option when it comes to health care. Biden was extremely aggressive and relentless when it came to getting his point across. Some will argue that his behavior was unnecessary and condescending; while others feel he was picking up the tab for Obama and the Democratic Party. This debate is by far one of the most compelling I've seen yet. There is one issue that stood out to me the most, and that was their views on (you guessed it!) abortion. Biden won this debate in my opinion because of his stance on this issue. He made a valid argument when he stated that his personal beliefs should not interfere with what a woman chooses to do with her body. SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE is key when abortion is being discussed. A politician's personal beliefs/religion should never be imposed on the lives of others. I will not accept the fact that because this nation is predominantly Christian, that we should abide by their beliefs. Let's not forget that we are also a nation known for coming together and embracing our differences as well. That is all for tonight folks.

[khafani]

Overall, my opinion of the debate with Romney and Obama was that Mitt Romney had good points to where he had a five step plan to his outlook on how to fix the United States. Romney did not explain his points to the extent of what everyone wanted to hear. Now with Obama he was basically talking to...

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hello Khafani,

I definitely agree that one of Romney's major downfalls was that he didn't expand on certain issues he spoke upon. I will be looking out for expansion on his ideas in the next debate. However, I will also be looking for passion and drive from Obama in the next debate as well (the uhhhhh's just don't do it for me).

[causeiamawesum-blog]

During the first presidential debate it was clear that Romney had won. Whether you like what Romney said or not, Obama was a deer in the headlights. Romney had a smile and gave viewers the feeling that everything was going to be alright(probably won’t be alright though). Obama had no appeal. Obama...

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hello,

I do agree that Obama lacked in the passion department of debating. Romney was definitely more prepared and well spoken. Although Obama had a tough first debate, I wouldn't automatically deem him as the loser for the next debate. I'm definitely looking forward to see who rises to the occasion for the next debate.

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Greetings followers,

It is I (Elijaih) back with yet another topic. I figured that I would rant about crime rates in the United States today. Surprisingly, crime rates (specifically violent crimes) have significantly lowered since the 1990's. Although no one is exactly sure why crime rates have declined, there is one theory in particular that stood out to me. Personally, I believe that major advances in technology are to blame. We’re living in a day and age where we put more love into our electronic possessions than anyone or anything else. This fact is important when observing behavioral pattern changes. People are spending less and less time developing bonds with fellow human beings and more time cooped up in a bedroom behind a computer/tv screen. There are many things like computers, video games, cell phones and pretty much anything else you can think of, that have people at home occupying their time. One spends less time thinking about ways to entertain themselves (which in some cases results in illegal activity) and more time just keeping up with technology. Some may argue that in the 90's we still had things like computers, video games and cell phones that occupied ones' time. I agree, but not to the extent in which they are now. Today, even the smallest devices offer more entertainment than anything the 90's has ever seen. It's safe to say that in 2012, people are less likely to leave their homes more so than ever before. So I'll leave everyone with this, can you provide me with a different logical explanation as to why crime rates are declining? Think about it then respond to my post.

(sources: http://www.disastercenter.com/crime/uscrime.htm & http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2012/0109/US-crime-rate-at-lowest-point-in-decades.-Why-America-is-safer-now)

[barackobama]

[thinkaboutgov-blog]

Hello followers,

I've been utterly indecisive when it comes to the Obama v. Romney debate that was held on October 3rd, 2012. As I tried my hardest to listen in on the issues that were being discussed that night, the overly aggressive Romney and overly passive Obama grabbed more of my attention. Romney was definitely well articulated and seemed more comfortable and ready for the debate. Obama, on the other hand seemed less comfortable as if he hadn't experienced a debate in a while. Although Romney came across more assertive, he lacked expansion on his ideas. Obama provided clear facts and logical arguments to help support his claims. However, Romney gained massive credibility for referencing Massachusetts (whoop whoop!) and his accomplishments here as governor. With this being said, I am not indicating a clear winner as both candidates did well/not so well in an equal amount of areas. Nonetheless, I am looking forward to the next debates and overall election. I know these two candidates are extremely passionate and are not stopping until ultimately one of them becomes president.