| Let's Vote! |
| Heidi M. Pascual* Publisher & Editor * 2006 Journalist of the Year for the State of Wisconsin (U.S.-SBA) |
The two most important issues that rule this year’s presidential election are: the economy and foreign policy. With Wall Street’s
collapse, the housing meltdown, job losses, rising gas prices and everything else (except incomes) going up, we can hear the bad word
“Depression.” And with billions of dollars being spent and thousands of lives being sacrificed in Iraq and Afghanistan, we Americans are
wondering, ‘What if we pull out of Iraq now and use those dollars to bail our economy out? We went to war in Iraq for the wrong reason,
anyway.’ As we all know, however, this is easier said than done.
Unfortunately for GOP’s McCain, so much blame has been placed squarely on the Bush administration for ALL our problems
nowadays, that all polls show Obama, the Democratic Party candidate, ahead by several points. People want change, and Obama’s
campaign has been doing an excellent job — with lots of liberal-media support — at convincing voters, especially the youth, that Obama
is ready to provide that needed change. He is a fresh face, a young leader, a highly educated person of color, and a history-maker (also
“clean and articulate” according to Obama’s running mate, Senator Joe Biden). Obama’s campaign, according to CNN, has raised about
$150 million in September alone, and is spending more than $4 million a day in nationwide campaign and advertising. If elected, Obama
will go down in history as the first African American President of the United States.
I supported Hillary Clinton in the primaries because I strongly believed that she would be the best choice for president. But that’s water
under the bridge, and I have to move on, just like everybody else who liked her. The truth is, I am ambivalent as to who would be the best
choice for President. I like Obama’s image — a biracial intellectual with multicultural experience; but I have reservations because my own
research found very little about “the one.” We are bombarded by media’s daily praises and projections of Obama’s victory despite the
ACORN connection and other past alliances that are brushed aside. Compare that with how McCain’s demeanor during the debates sparked
media attention and outright fun-poking. I am a registered Democrat and a journalist myself, but I must confess I don’t enjoy watching bias
in the media, especially considering how media influence people’s thinking nowadays — from buying stuff they don’t really need to voting
for or against candidates.
s a former U.S. Congressional Fellow (I worked in the Office of Democrat David Bonior of Michigan), I consistently support the
Democratic Party’s policies. But I also respect McCain’s long legislative career and his service to this country. He is well-known for crossing
party lines on important issues such as campaign finance reform and immigration. But as the GOP’s candidate and therefore on the
shadow of “W,” McCain’s own record seems to have been relegated to oblivion. I actually feel sorry for him. He has lost the election just by
watching major TV networks.
I also like Cynthia McKinney, the other Black presidential contender running under the Green Party banner. She is a real challenger,
someone who wears no mask (like Al Sharpton), a Black woman not afraid to challenge prevailing powers to advance issues that are
important to her and to people of color. Unfortunately for McKinney, America hungers for someone who represents both Black and White
interests (and others in between), and Obama, seems to embody the perfect fit. Obama is making history, and that matters most. America
loves firsts, and to White America, Obama is proof that America has transcended race.
Or, has it?
Be an intelligent voter. Do your research and carefully scrutinize the candidates’ record, background, and alliances. Promises are
good, especially if they’re delivered excellently and very convincingly. But fulfilling them is another story. With this depressing economy
(and obviously the growing debate on whether socialism is better than capitalism, as a result of unregulated corporate world that toppled
Wall Street), wars that continue to drain our resources and sacrifice tens of thousands lives of both our soldiers and civilians in Iraq and
Afghanistan, rising nuclear threat from Iran, and the increased military might of China, whoever wins the presidency will certainly have the
toughest job in the world. With that in mind, be sure you elect the one most prepared for this job.
****************
I’d like to thank Atsuko and Paul Kusuda from the bottom of my heart for their very strong support for Asian Wisconzine that really keeps
this magazine alive. I am truly indebted to both of them, and so should our readership.
If you enjoy reading Asian Wisconzine, send your feedback to www.asianwisconzine.com, and click “Contact Us.”
Thank you!
collapse, the housing meltdown, job losses, rising gas prices and everything else (except incomes) going up, we can hear the bad word
“Depression.” And with billions of dollars being spent and thousands of lives being sacrificed in Iraq and Afghanistan, we Americans are
wondering, ‘What if we pull out of Iraq now and use those dollars to bail our economy out? We went to war in Iraq for the wrong reason,
anyway.’ As we all know, however, this is easier said than done.
Unfortunately for GOP’s McCain, so much blame has been placed squarely on the Bush administration for ALL our problems
nowadays, that all polls show Obama, the Democratic Party candidate, ahead by several points. People want change, and Obama’s
campaign has been doing an excellent job — with lots of liberal-media support — at convincing voters, especially the youth, that Obama
is ready to provide that needed change. He is a fresh face, a young leader, a highly educated person of color, and a history-maker (also
“clean and articulate” according to Obama’s running mate, Senator Joe Biden). Obama’s campaign, according to CNN, has raised about
$150 million in September alone, and is spending more than $4 million a day in nationwide campaign and advertising. If elected, Obama
will go down in history as the first African American President of the United States.
I supported Hillary Clinton in the primaries because I strongly believed that she would be the best choice for president. But that’s water
under the bridge, and I have to move on, just like everybody else who liked her. The truth is, I am ambivalent as to who would be the best
choice for President. I like Obama’s image — a biracial intellectual with multicultural experience; but I have reservations because my own
research found very little about “the one.” We are bombarded by media’s daily praises and projections of Obama’s victory despite the
ACORN connection and other past alliances that are brushed aside. Compare that with how McCain’s demeanor during the debates sparked
media attention and outright fun-poking. I am a registered Democrat and a journalist myself, but I must confess I don’t enjoy watching bias
in the media, especially considering how media influence people’s thinking nowadays — from buying stuff they don’t really need to voting
for or against candidates.
s a former U.S. Congressional Fellow (I worked in the Office of Democrat David Bonior of Michigan), I consistently support the
Democratic Party’s policies. But I also respect McCain’s long legislative career and his service to this country. He is well-known for crossing
party lines on important issues such as campaign finance reform and immigration. But as the GOP’s candidate and therefore on the
shadow of “W,” McCain’s own record seems to have been relegated to oblivion. I actually feel sorry for him. He has lost the election just by
watching major TV networks.
I also like Cynthia McKinney, the other Black presidential contender running under the Green Party banner. She is a real challenger,
someone who wears no mask (like Al Sharpton), a Black woman not afraid to challenge prevailing powers to advance issues that are
important to her and to people of color. Unfortunately for McKinney, America hungers for someone who represents both Black and White
interests (and others in between), and Obama, seems to embody the perfect fit. Obama is making history, and that matters most. America
loves firsts, and to White America, Obama is proof that America has transcended race.
Or, has it?
Be an intelligent voter. Do your research and carefully scrutinize the candidates’ record, background, and alliances. Promises are
good, especially if they’re delivered excellently and very convincingly. But fulfilling them is another story. With this depressing economy
(and obviously the growing debate on whether socialism is better than capitalism, as a result of unregulated corporate world that toppled
Wall Street), wars that continue to drain our resources and sacrifice tens of thousands lives of both our soldiers and civilians in Iraq and
Afghanistan, rising nuclear threat from Iran, and the increased military might of China, whoever wins the presidency will certainly have the
toughest job in the world. With that in mind, be sure you elect the one most prepared for this job.
****************
I’d like to thank Atsuko and Paul Kusuda from the bottom of my heart for their very strong support for Asian Wisconzine that really keeps
this magazine alive. I am truly indebted to both of them, and so should our readership.
If you enjoy reading Asian Wisconzine, send your feedback to www.asianwisconzine.com, and click “Contact Us.”
Thank you!
By Paul Kusuda
I n Wisconsin, leaves have turned from green to red, orange, yellow, or brown and have fallen. For many of us, that means a lot of
work raking. As if mowing the lawn isn’t enough necessary exercise, leaf-raking is yet another chore. As the years progress and I get older
by the minute, I also lose strength and endurance while gaining aches, pains, easy-tiredness, and grouchiness. However, I have to admit
that beats the alternatives.
Most of the political palavering, promising, and posturing are past us finally. Some political decisions have been made. Others may not
ever be made, depending on various pressures put on legislators, local and national. Elections are so important to our way of
government, and voter turnout is usually very small. Despite the fact that some election results are not to my liking, I do not agree with
those who say that the voting percentage is too low; that it should be much more than 50 percent — perhaps, even 90 percent or more.
That’s the way it is in some other country’s elections. Yeah, but how is that country governed?
I firmly believe that the United States has a form of government that enables its citizenry to change its direction, form, or style of
governance through peaceful means, that is, through elections; not through use of force, intimidation, or major uprising. I recognize
that we do have interferences to the fundamentals of that process (assassination, bribery, expensive advertising for or against a particular
program), but we endure despite such obstacles. Our government sometimes errs, but eventually, it seems to find its way and tries to
remedy mistakes.
Amendment XIII (December 6, 1865) notes: “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the
party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction …” Amendment XV
(February 3, 1870): “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any
State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude …” Amendment XIX (August 18, 1920): “The right of citizens of the
United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex …”
The above constitutional amendments corrected wrongs that had existed for too many years in the United States. Just think, 90
years ago, women were not entitled to vote! Less than 140 years ago, the full right to vote could be withheld because of “… race, color,
or previous condition of servitude.” Such injustices should not have existed. They were corrected after much effort. Demonstrations were
held. People carried banners, shouted, button-holed legislators, and eventually succeeded in making change. It wasn’t easy. Amending
the Constitution, whether federal or state, is an extremely difficult process — but it’s democratic, and requires voting (in addition to
many other activities). Key to all is the vote. And key to the vote is an informed vote. Too often, votes result from minuscule information
gained through slogans, advertisements, and television or radio soundbites. What’s needed, of course, is thoughtfulness, study of issues,
etc. How many of us vote after thinking through issues and weighing what fallouts might be the result of our vote?
(Reprinted with permission from Asian Wisconzine. This column appears in the November 2008 issue of Asian Wiz.-Ed.)
I n Wisconsin, leaves have turned from green to red, orange, yellow, or brown and have fallen. For many of us, that means a lot of
work raking. As if mowing the lawn isn’t enough necessary exercise, leaf-raking is yet another chore. As the years progress and I get older
by the minute, I also lose strength and endurance while gaining aches, pains, easy-tiredness, and grouchiness. However, I have to admit
that beats the alternatives.
Most of the political palavering, promising, and posturing are past us finally. Some political decisions have been made. Others may not
ever be made, depending on various pressures put on legislators, local and national. Elections are so important to our way of
government, and voter turnout is usually very small. Despite the fact that some election results are not to my liking, I do not agree with
those who say that the voting percentage is too low; that it should be much more than 50 percent — perhaps, even 90 percent or more.
That’s the way it is in some other country’s elections. Yeah, but how is that country governed?
I firmly believe that the United States has a form of government that enables its citizenry to change its direction, form, or style of
governance through peaceful means, that is, through elections; not through use of force, intimidation, or major uprising. I recognize
that we do have interferences to the fundamentals of that process (assassination, bribery, expensive advertising for or against a particular
program), but we endure despite such obstacles. Our government sometimes errs, but eventually, it seems to find its way and tries to
remedy mistakes.
Amendment XIII (December 6, 1865) notes: “Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the
party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction …” Amendment XV
(February 3, 1870): “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any
State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude …” Amendment XIX (August 18, 1920): “The right of citizens of the
United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex …”
The above constitutional amendments corrected wrongs that had existed for too many years in the United States. Just think, 90
years ago, women were not entitled to vote! Less than 140 years ago, the full right to vote could be withheld because of “… race, color,
or previous condition of servitude.” Such injustices should not have existed. They were corrected after much effort. Demonstrations were
held. People carried banners, shouted, button-holed legislators, and eventually succeeded in making change. It wasn’t easy. Amending
the Constitution, whether federal or state, is an extremely difficult process — but it’s democratic, and requires voting (in addition to
many other activities). Key to all is the vote. And key to the vote is an informed vote. Too often, votes result from minuscule information
gained through slogans, advertisements, and television or radio soundbites. What’s needed, of course, is thoughtfulness, study of issues,
etc. How many of us vote after thinking through issues and weighing what fallouts might be the result of our vote?
(Reprinted with permission from Asian Wisconzine. This column appears in the November 2008 issue of Asian Wiz.-Ed.)
| THINK BEFORE YOU VOTE |