Filed under: Uncategorized
Our first meeting of the semester will be held tonight at 7 pm in Kimmel room 909. We will be discussing our agenda for the upcoming semester. There will of course be free food as well. Everyone is welcome whether you have attended a meeting before or not.
Filed under: Uncategorized
Just a friendly reminder from the College Democrats to GO VOTE TODAY! Remind your friends, families, and neighbors to get out and vote, too. Polls are open in New York from 6:00am to 9:00pm. Prove the trends and predictions and media wrong by showing up at the polls during a midterm election. The enthusiasm gap, and the possibility of a stalled Congress and economy for the next two years, can be eliminated if enough of us vote and encourage others to vote in this pivotal election.
Registration: http://www.canivote.org/
Polling Place: http://maps.google.com/vote
NY’s new voting procedures: http://www.votethenewwayny.com/en/default.aspx
OFA Phonebank: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/gpmpfs/?override_wrapper_id=1w3hA
or phonebank from home: https://call.barackobama.com/error/time_window
Have a good election day.
Every little bit counts. Get involved and make a difference today.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: campaign, first amendment, NYU College Democrats, republicans
Christine O’Donnell’s statements in a debate Tuesday with her democratic opponent, Chris Coons, such as, “Where in the Constitution is the separation of church and state?” have drawn a huge amount of backlash from those who say she clearly knows nothing about the Constitution.
I have to side with O’Donnell for the first (and likely last) time on this one.
After the debate, O’Donnell said that she was simply pointing out the (true) fact that the exact words “separation of church and state” do not appear in the text of the Constitution. Some in the media have insisted that O’Donnell is still wrong, however, since the establishment clause of the First Amendment (“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion”) clearly lays out the principle of the separation of church and state. While I completely disagree with Christine O’Donnell’s assertion that separation of church and state does not exist, I don’t think she was simply showing her ignorance here – I think she honestly does not believe in the separation of church and state. O’Donnell has proved that she is a strict textualist, and therefore if the exact words “separation of church and state” don’t appear in the Constitution for her to read, she does not believe that it is a true founding principle of the document.
It remains to be seen whether the majority of the general public, however, are also likely strict textualists or are simply ignorant. According to an article written by Josh Schwartz and published in the New York Times (“Name That Freedom,” http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/24/weekinreview/24schwartz.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper), only 61% of those surveyed knew the First Amendment protects freedom of speech. Only 66% agree that the First Amendment requires separation of church and state, but 53% believe the Constitution establishes a Christian nation. The fact that only 61% of Americans know the First Amendment protects freedom of speech is just mortifying and frightening, but after recently seeing the documentary “Waiting for Superman” on the sorry state of many of America’s public schools, I’m unfortunately not shocked. These numbers are a testament to the many failures of our public education system. The result about the establishment of a Christian nation is likely also a result of the many poorly educated people in this country, but I believe it is even more dangerous than the lack of knowledge about freedom of speech. The belief held by over half of our citizens that America was established as a Christian nation is not only 100% wrong, (even O’Donnell would have to agree here – “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion”) but I believe it is at the root of many of the continuing societal problems we face today. The immense prejudice against and hatred for Muslims, for example, could logically be stemming in large part from the many people who hold this false belief that we are a Christian nation. If people truly believe that this country was founded on Christian principles and should continue to be run by them, there will always be debilitating religious prejudice preventing all of our citizens from reaping the benefits we are all guaranteed – the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. If we believe we are a Christian nation that means we also believe the government should uphold Christian values – which would bring the religion into all sorts of governmental decisions. The people who hold this belief are likely also using it to back up their arguments that government should prohibit gay marriage and abortion.
I don’t believe that we will ever be able to move forward on what are now extremely divisive issues until the entire country understands the principles of religious freedom and the separation of church and state (or at the very least the prohibition of an established national religion) as articulated in the First Amendment. Which brings me back around to the topic of public education in the United States – if we can’t teach our children the founding principles of our country and our government, we are going to continue to perpetuate these debilitating and divisive social arguments which are holding back the progression of our society.
-Rachel Simon
You can see more of her work at her blog http://thedreamliveson.tumblr.com
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bigot, Democrats, gay, NYU College Democrats
Tony Perkins recently wrote a very bigoted editorial for the Washington Post. In this article he discusses the tragedies of the recent teenage suicides. He believes that,
“homosexual activist groups like GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) are exploiting these tragedies to push their agenda of demanding not only tolerance of homosexual individuals, but active affirmation of homosexual conduct and their efforts to redefine the family.”
He later discusses how being gay is destructive behavior, and then compares it to drinking or doing drugs. With all the recent tragedies, an article like this is not what we need. To read the full article go to:
-Milo
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: jon stewart, march to keep fear alive, NYU College Democrats, rally to restore sanity, stephen colbert
I admit it – I was positively giddy with excitement when I first read about Jon Stewart’s upcoming “Rally to Restore Sanity” in Washington, D.C. (and of course, Stephen Colbert’s counter-rally, the “March to Keep Fear Alive.”) My calendar for October 30th was immediately cleared, travel arrangements were made, and friends were rounded up to join me. After completing a flurry of tweets I finally began to calm down enough to think like a rational human being. My mind then quickly turned to the political implications of these rallies.
I found Glenn Beck’s August rally to “Restore Honor” as ridiculous and offensive to MLK Jr.’s memory as the next Daily Show fan. However, while brainstorming a witty sign to create for the Stewart rally in October, I began to wonder if responding to Beck’s rally with another rally would give it (and Beck) more attention and a longer life span than it deserves. Would it make more sense to let the Beck rally hysteria die away, instead of reviving it on the national stage with what is clearly a parody of the day of “Restoring Honor?” In the 24/7 media frenzy we live in, there is certainly something to be said for letting a story die out. There are only so many times I want to hear the MSNBC pundits (as much as I adore them) discuss Beck and his 85,000 (says the unbiased third party) to hundreds of thousands (say Beck and Fox News) of rally-goers.
However, I think it is critical to notice that Stewart is not fighting back against Beck’s far-right wingedness with a far-left wing movement. Instead, he is aiming to bring together the 70%-80% of the population who fall somewhere in between the far extremes of the political scale – those of us who are sane, and want to restore this sanity to the political discourses occurring across the country. This is a long overdue and brilliant idea. The extreme voices in politics and in the media, like Beck, Bill O’Reilly, Sarah Palin and the Tea Partiers, Keith Olbermann, etc., get an inordinate amount of buzz simply because they are most outlandish. A rally of this proportion, and with such wildly popular figures as Stewart and Colbert, is likely the most effective way to focus the media’s attention on the 70%-80% who, as Stewart says, are relatively moderate and sane. Seeing as we are a democracy, where by definition the majority should rule, it seems about time that the majority has the spotlight turned on them, their opinions, and what they want for the country.
The “Rally to Restore Sanity” truly is media genius. And while at the end of the day its all meant to be a joke, I’d say the immense success and popularity of Stewart and Colbert’s shows proves that jokes sometimes can have a very powerful effect on the national political dialogue.
- By: Rachel Simon
You can see more by Rachel Simon at her blog http://thedreamliveson.tumblr.com .
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: jon stewart, march to keep fear alive, rally to restore sanity, stephen colbert
Jon Stewart is holding a Rally to Restore Sanity, in case you haven’t heard. It will be in Washington D.C. on October 30th. He has also called it the “Million Moderate March”. He describes the people they are looking to join them as follows:
“Who among us has not wanted to open their window and shout that at the top of their lungs? Seriously, who? Because we’re looking for those people. We’re looking for the people who think shouting is annoying, counterproductive, and terrible for your throat.”
They also will have signs provided, including ones that say:
“9/11 was an outside job” and “I Disagree With You But I’m Pretty Sure You’re Not Hitler.”
Stephen Colbert will also be holding a “March to Keep Fear Alive” that same day in Washington D.C.
You can find more information for these rally’s at:
http://www.rallytorestoresanity.com/
http://www.keepfearalive.com/
-Milo
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: NYU College Democrats, registration, voting
Come out this Tuesday night and help us mail out the voter registration forms and absentee ballot applications. We will be meeting on the 7th floor of Kimmel at 5 pm. Then at 7 we will take a break to watch President Obama’s speech to college students from the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Come out and help us finish the last part of our voter registration drive. It’s sure to be a fun night!
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: campaign, Christine O'Donnell, Democrats, NYU College Democrats, politics, Sarah Palin
If your friends don’t understand your love of politics or how a political campaign could possibly be interesting, tell them about this crazy headlining mid-term election story of the week:
The GOP’s nominee for Delaware Senate, Christine O’Donnell, has been getting a lot of press lately with her primary win and the support of Sarah Palin and the tea party. She’s also facing ethics charges about her campaign finance spending. Additionally, her statements on Bill Maher’s show “Politically Incorrect” have some questioning her past and character.
So how crazy is too crazy, and how can we really judge the character of our candidates? On the show in 1999, O’Donnell admitted that she “dabbled into witchcraft,” in high school; she even, though unknowingly, went on a date with a witch on a satanic altar. Other than a sarcastic tweet and her statements that it was just an immature high school phase (well, who hasn’t had one of those?), she hasn’t really gotten into the witchcraft discussion or answered many questions. Some of her other outrageous statements on Maher’s show are slowly being released: for example, she stated that mice have human brains. Maher said he will keep releasing more footage of O’Donnell on his show until she agrees to appear on “Politically Incorrect.”
O’Donnell’s also stayed silent when asked about her former campaign manger’s accusations that her campaign funds were used for rent, dinners, and other personal expenses while her staff was underpaid. Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, a non-partisan Washington DC group, is filing a complaint against her.
The group started in 2005, and seems to fight for a cause we can believe in: to keep Congress corruption-free. In a time where Americans’ trust in government is certainly being debated and tested, it seems as if this election season is the perfect time for such publicity, and an opportunity for their allegations to influence the votes. For a quick summary of the candidates, the group lists on their website “Crooked Candidates 2010.” While their work to “ensure those representing our country exemplify the values of honesty and integrity,” is certainly admirable, this list puts two questions in my mind:
1. Why are no incumbents on the list? Wouldn’t highlighting ethics charges cause voters to re-consider their stance on their incumbent congressman? Just last week incumbent Charles Rangel won the primary in New York’s 15th District while faced with ethics charges. Is the public entirely aware of incumbent ethics charges? And if so, did these charges really matter in this election (or will they, come November)?
2. Why so harsh? It seems that the goal of group would be to promote trust back into government by getting rid of corruption, but instead reading the website gives the sense that congressmen are not ‘innocent until proven guilty.’ They mention that these candidates are “continuing the culture of corruption,” and seem confident that there is much more corruption to be found. Does this group serve to further weaken our trust in government?
Watch O’Donnell on “Politically Incorrect” here:
Work your magic and encourage your friends to register to vote (although maybe not for O’Donnell)!
-Written By: Sydney Egnasko
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: clubs, Democrats, NYU, NYU College Democrats
Come to the first meeting of the NYU College Democrats. We will be meeting on Thursday, September 16 at 7 pm in Kimmel in room 912. We will discuss our plans and trips for the year, get to know one another, and as always there will be great food.
