Chapter 9 Blog

I identify most with the Democratic Party, because I believe that people have the right to make their own choices, free of government interaction. I read the party platform, and I could not find anything with which I disagreed. I suppose this is why I identify with the Democratic Party; I cannot find anything in the platform that I am opposed to.

I do not think political parties are a necessity, but I look at it as labeling different point of views. I think that if political parties did not exist, that government and politics would still operate the same way as it does now. People who believe in the ability of others to make their own choices free of government interaction are given the label Democrats; People who want the government to uphold traditional moralities are labeled Republicans. People will have similar views or agree with the candidates’ views, so I feel that political parties are just giving people with similar views a label.

I researched and found that I agree with views of the Independence Party. I also found out that Governor Jesse Ventura created the party after leaving the Reform Party in 2000. The views of  the Independence Party is for campaign refinance and is pro-choice, pro-gay rights, pro-medical marijuana, pro-gun rights and fiscally moderate. The Independence Party consists of separately organized state affiliates in Florida, Illinois and Minnesota with no central national leadership. The reason I identify most with them is because of their belief in the right of the people to make their own choices.

I commented on the blogs of Katelyn Dozier, Mathew Cooper, and Robert Johnson.

Chapter 8 Blog

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is North America’s strongest and most diverse labor union. I learned that in 1903, the Teamsters started as a merger of the two leading team driver associations. I found it interesting that Teamsters have 1.4 million members, and there are nearly 1,900 Teamster affiliates throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Teamsters stand ready to organize workers who want to bargain collectively. Wages and benefits under Teamster contracts are markedly better than those of non-union employees in similar jobs. Teamster contracts are the guarantors of decent wages, fair promotion, health coverage, job security, paid time-off and retirement income, and they also perform vital tasks in such areas as pension management, safety & health, community outreach, governmental affairs and communications. I agree with their positions, because they are trying to help their members and others, who are not a part of their group, have better wages and benefits.

The National Organization for Women Foundation (“NOW Foundation”) is a 501(c) (3) organization devoted to achieving full equality for women through education and litigation, which I associate positively with. What I find persuasive about their position is that they fight for all women’s rights; they fight for the rights of gay women as well. I think that in this day in age, it is important for groups like this not to exclude gay couples, because they deserve the same rights too. Aside from that, they fight for right of women to be equal to men, and they focus on a broad range of women’s rights issues, including economic justice, pay equity, racial discrimination, women’s health and body image, women with disabilities, reproductive rights and justice, family law, representation of women in the media, and global feminist issues.

I think some interest groups have too much power in the political system. I do not think there is a fine line balance between freedom of speech and keeping unfair persuasion out of government, because I believe groups have the right to say whatever they want to say.  Figuratively speaking, if they project their voice loud enough, then they will be heard, so the groups that seem to have unfair persuasion just project their voice.

I commented on the blogs of Katelyn Dozier, Mathew Cooper, and Robert Johnson.

Chapter 7

I think media objectivity does still exist,but with the exception of some news casters. I think the majority the media sticks to what needs to be reported and not what they want to report. I think the reporters on CNN express their opinions too much on issues, even though they present the hard facts beforehand. I think most news casters like CBS and NBC, for the most part keep opinions out of their reporting.

I do not listen to talk shows, but even if I did, I do not think it would change my views and opinions. I take the hard facts and form my own opinions. Talk shows usually just tell their opinions without any facts to go along with them. I have always thought that opinions do not carry truth, they carry what they want to carry, and nothing I have experienced has proven that wrong. But, that is my opinion.

I think media objectivity is very important. People do not want opinions; they want the facts, so they can form their own opinions. If the media just reported their opinions, then there would essentially be nothing to report or no reason to watch, because there would be no evidence to back up or disprove their opinions.

I commented on the blogs of Katelyn Dozier, Nikki Stair, and Mathew Cooper.

Chapter 6 Blog

I think the news media is too dependent upon polls; almost everything they report they “confirm” or “disprove” with the results of the polls they create, but I do think it is appropriate for them to create and report them. I do not think the results they report will change the way people view issues. The results from these polls are unreliable, because they are biased. I think polls the news media creates have the potential to be beneficial if they were not biased. Political party identification is not really important to me nor am I really involved in politics, but it is/was more important to my parents and grandparents. Although it is/was more important to them, they are not fully involved either. My friends and I never really talk about politics, so I would say it is less important to them. I think my views on politics are influenced more by social issues. My views on personal choice are stronger than any of my views on the economy, even though the economy does need a substantial amount of work. Therefore, even though I do not really identify as either political party, I would say that through my views I would be more of a Democrat.

I commented on the blogs of Katelyn Dozier, Lee Ellison, and Mathew Cooper.