Thank goodness she's alive. She is apparently staying with some friends in Tripoli, but is constantly being chased by Gadhafi's supporters, her life being threatened at every turn. With the help of reporters and resistance supporters, she was finally able to get a hold of a satellite phone and speak with her mother, who showed similar courage in an impossibly difficult time. I hope that she is able to find a way out of Tripoli and spread her message to the rest of Libya. To come out and speak against Gadhafi in his own city has already dealt quite a blow to the credibility of his regime.
Should anyone read this who can offer her some kind of help, I beg of you to help her. Her story must not be silenced. She is a crucial figure to the free Libyan resistance, and if we lose her, we lose the fighting spirit of the rebellion.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Monday, April 4, 2011
The US Deficit
Many are already losing faith in our politicians as '12 Presidential campaigns begin. Obama has already stated that he hopes to raise 1 billion dollars to counter the anticipated millions that Republicans will spend smearing his name. This while the country suffers under a $14,000,000,000,000 debt? Is this really wise? One would think that a rational mind would put aside frivolous spending for a time while putting money aside to counter this debt.
That's just the problem--not one politician is in possession of a rational mind. They are members of the upper class. They are not the ones affected the most by this national debt. There will always be money at their disposal in this time of need, thanks to the special interests and lobbyists, who are actually profiting off the national deficit.
It is the middle and lower class that are suffering. While politicians are playing a game of one-upsmanship, competing for which party will control the country for the next 4 years, the common man is struggling to keep food on the table. The problem is quite clear--our government is out of touch with the population, the same as Libya and Egypt (though of course not to the same degree).
But how can we fix this? It will take a lot of work, and the results will not come as fast as we would like it. But it can happen. Now I am not savvy in the nature of politics, nor economics, but at this point we need new ideas; people thinking outside the box. These are simply opinions, and I am eagerly open to discussion and debate--this is how real, reliable ideas are born.
Now obviously if all our country's wealthy donated money to the national debt, we could be free sooner rather than later. But what's in it for them? It's rather obvious that it's not in their interest to donate money to the country. Perhaps if they made a donation of a certain, large amount, they could get a nice tax exemption? Lord knows they already pay much less than they should in taxes, but perhaps another little incentive could persuade them to loosen their pockets?
At the same time, we need to be fixing our current spending. Of course part of this relies on Congress passing a national budget, and on time, but that is wishful thinking at best if current attitudes are any indication. What is the cause of all this tension and delay? Party wars, of course. Politics have almost become a sport to these people--not a privileged position to better the lives of the populace, but a game of win or lose over who controls the most influence in the national government.
This obviously brings up a bigger question: are the political parties an outdated, broken system? This of course is a matter of opinion once again, but I for one find it is a system of implied simplicity that we relied on too much and now is beginning to stagnate. We cling to these parties because it lets us know what our politicians stand for and what they will fight for. This is a generalization that has proven many a time to not always be necessarily true. Every person is an individual, and their beliefs cannot be shoehorned into a predetermined set of stances. Perhaps rather than rely upon one word to tell us what our politicians stand for, we should do our research, ask questions, and pay more attention to their abilities than their "team standing".
Am I suggesting we get rid of the parties altogether? No, not all at once, anyway. I would rather there be more parties, first, and that we pay more attention to them as though they were a major party member. It is what they stand for, not their party, that should sway us. This way perhaps we will see more results in our fields of interest rather than endless streams of poor decision-making and broken promises.
Obviously I've derailed a bit. Another issue that we must focus on to decrease the national debt is to, as Obama has so often said, "look to the future". I don't mean so in such an idealistic fashion, of course. What I mean is that we must ensure that we are not racking up future debt even as we fight to fix our past problems. How can we do this?
Once again, these are merely opinions, but I find that one of the biggest mistakes we've made in the economic field is outsourcing. It's a shallow fix that only benefits the higher-ups of the company. They don't have to spend as much money paying their employees, but they still get the same annual profit. The issue is that a good percent of the money this company makes does not make it to the United States. It goes to India. Or China. Or wherever the company has outsourced to. These employees must be paid, and while it is not nearly as much as it would be here, there are much more of them, and where will they spend their paychecks? In their home country. Not here. Meanwhile we are experiencing a staggering unemployment rate of 9.2%. I wonder why? What ever happened to the American Dream? Of pride in what we craft with our own two hands? It's been outsourced, and we are beginning to feel its loss now.
That's just the problem--not one politician is in possession of a rational mind. They are members of the upper class. They are not the ones affected the most by this national debt. There will always be money at their disposal in this time of need, thanks to the special interests and lobbyists, who are actually profiting off the national deficit.
It is the middle and lower class that are suffering. While politicians are playing a game of one-upsmanship, competing for which party will control the country for the next 4 years, the common man is struggling to keep food on the table. The problem is quite clear--our government is out of touch with the population, the same as Libya and Egypt (though of course not to the same degree).
But how can we fix this? It will take a lot of work, and the results will not come as fast as we would like it. But it can happen. Now I am not savvy in the nature of politics, nor economics, but at this point we need new ideas; people thinking outside the box. These are simply opinions, and I am eagerly open to discussion and debate--this is how real, reliable ideas are born.
Now obviously if all our country's wealthy donated money to the national debt, we could be free sooner rather than later. But what's in it for them? It's rather obvious that it's not in their interest to donate money to the country. Perhaps if they made a donation of a certain, large amount, they could get a nice tax exemption? Lord knows they already pay much less than they should in taxes, but perhaps another little incentive could persuade them to loosen their pockets?
At the same time, we need to be fixing our current spending. Of course part of this relies on Congress passing a national budget, and on time, but that is wishful thinking at best if current attitudes are any indication. What is the cause of all this tension and delay? Party wars, of course. Politics have almost become a sport to these people--not a privileged position to better the lives of the populace, but a game of win or lose over who controls the most influence in the national government.
This obviously brings up a bigger question: are the political parties an outdated, broken system? This of course is a matter of opinion once again, but I for one find it is a system of implied simplicity that we relied on too much and now is beginning to stagnate. We cling to these parties because it lets us know what our politicians stand for and what they will fight for. This is a generalization that has proven many a time to not always be necessarily true. Every person is an individual, and their beliefs cannot be shoehorned into a predetermined set of stances. Perhaps rather than rely upon one word to tell us what our politicians stand for, we should do our research, ask questions, and pay more attention to their abilities than their "team standing".
Am I suggesting we get rid of the parties altogether? No, not all at once, anyway. I would rather there be more parties, first, and that we pay more attention to them as though they were a major party member. It is what they stand for, not their party, that should sway us. This way perhaps we will see more results in our fields of interest rather than endless streams of poor decision-making and broken promises.
Obviously I've derailed a bit. Another issue that we must focus on to decrease the national debt is to, as Obama has so often said, "look to the future". I don't mean so in such an idealistic fashion, of course. What I mean is that we must ensure that we are not racking up future debt even as we fight to fix our past problems. How can we do this?
Once again, these are merely opinions, but I find that one of the biggest mistakes we've made in the economic field is outsourcing. It's a shallow fix that only benefits the higher-ups of the company. They don't have to spend as much money paying their employees, but they still get the same annual profit. The issue is that a good percent of the money this company makes does not make it to the United States. It goes to India. Or China. Or wherever the company has outsourced to. These employees must be paid, and while it is not nearly as much as it would be here, there are much more of them, and where will they spend their paychecks? In their home country. Not here. Meanwhile we are experiencing a staggering unemployment rate of 9.2%. I wonder why? What ever happened to the American Dream? Of pride in what we craft with our own two hands? It's been outsourced, and we are beginning to feel its loss now.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Plunging Headfirst into Turbulent Waters
I didn't want to get involved in politics. I truly didn't. But world events have grabbed my attention and refused to let go. I can hold my tongue no longer, and I will not be lied to.
Eman al-Obeidy met reporters at the Tripoli Hotel to tell them her story--a story of abuse and betrayal by authority figures. She told of how she was detained for two days and raped by 15 men of Gadhafi's regime, and then sent on her way in what was no doubt a fearful silence. It was only during this recent rebellion that she finally worked up the courage to come out in Benghazi--Gadhafi's stronghold--and spoke up against everything that is wrong with his government. Instantly she was snatched up, beaten, called a "traitor", and dragged away to parts unknown. Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim claims that she has been returned to her family and that her claims are being looked into, but no proof has been given. We have seen them killing civilians in the streets, and yet they have the gall to expect us to take their word for it. Her family has even stated that they have not seen her since she went to the hotel.
I for one will not swallow the lies this bigoted regime continues to force upon us. We all fear we know what has become of her, but still cling to the hope that perhaps some day we'll see her alive again. When will we hold this government accountable for its wrongs? How long will we hold back from supporting the rebels because we "don't know who they are or what they stand for"? We do know them, and what they stand for. They are the common man, and they stand for freedom.
What will we tell Eman's parents? That she was a careless renegade who threw herself to the wolves for nothing? Will we let this poor woman's brave sacrifice be in vain?
Never Forget
Eman al-Obeidy
Presumed Dead
Demand Answers
Eman al-Obeidy met reporters at the Tripoli Hotel to tell them her story--a story of abuse and betrayal by authority figures. She told of how she was detained for two days and raped by 15 men of Gadhafi's regime, and then sent on her way in what was no doubt a fearful silence. It was only during this recent rebellion that she finally worked up the courage to come out in Benghazi--Gadhafi's stronghold--and spoke up against everything that is wrong with his government. Instantly she was snatched up, beaten, called a "traitor", and dragged away to parts unknown. Government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim claims that she has been returned to her family and that her claims are being looked into, but no proof has been given. We have seen them killing civilians in the streets, and yet they have the gall to expect us to take their word for it. Her family has even stated that they have not seen her since she went to the hotel.
I for one will not swallow the lies this bigoted regime continues to force upon us. We all fear we know what has become of her, but still cling to the hope that perhaps some day we'll see her alive again. When will we hold this government accountable for its wrongs? How long will we hold back from supporting the rebels because we "don't know who they are or what they stand for"? We do know them, and what they stand for. They are the common man, and they stand for freedom.
What will we tell Eman's parents? That she was a careless renegade who threw herself to the wolves for nothing? Will we let this poor woman's brave sacrifice be in vain?
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