Chapter 9 Political Parties

1.      Which political party do you most identify with?  Why?  Are there things in the party platform with which you disagree?

I don’t consider myself identifying with any party actually.  I believe that I should make my decision based on my own research of the candidates and their positions on the issues.  I think the issues are sometimes lost with the political parties and I disagree with the way the batter each other.  I think that both parties do too much “mud slinging” and that it takes away from what the real issues should be. I think that some people get lost in political parties and forget to look at the overall picture sometimes.  I think this makes it hard for people to really vote in what is in the “best interest” of the people.

2.      Does American need political parties?  The founders originally hoped that American politics would operate without need of parties?  Would that work today?  Why?

I am divided as to the need for political parties in America today.  While I understand that it gives unity to the people and allows for the selection of one person to run for office, I do believe that most of them are in it to win and are not serving the best interest of the people.  I think that political parties sometimes stick together with but do not always think of the political agenda that they are supporting and loose focus of the real issues at hand. I believe if there are going to be political parties, they should be less focused on talking bad about the other candidate and spend more time focusing on the real issues that the public is interested in.

3.      Please research lesser known political parties – which one do you most identify with?  Why?

I think if I were going to identify with a lesser know political party, I would definitely be more likely to identify with the Green Party.  I like their stances in regards to non-violence and decentralization.  I somewhat agree with them in that decision – making should remain at the individual and local levels.  I do not think that all decision making should be at that level but I definitely feel that some of it should.  I sometimes feel that too much power is given to the people that are elected and that sometimes this power is abused in the name of “what’s best”.  I don’t think that a small group of people can always determine that for everyone.

Commented on blogs: David Smith, Ed King, Robert Cook

Chapter 8 Interest Groups

1. From figure 8.1 in the text, select one of the interest groups and do some research on their issues and beliefs.  What did you learn?  What did you find interesting?  Do you agree/disagree with their positions on issues? Why?

I chose the AFGE (American Federation of Government Employees).  They have many issues that they are involved in such as privatization, health & safety, women’s/Fair Practices and Labor-Management Forums, to name a few.  I learned that they are involved in a lot of things and feel strongly about all of them.  One of the things that I found interesting is that under their list of issues, they had military leave list.  This is one of the things that I do agree with.  I do believe that if a person has been on military leave, they are entitled to some benefits for their service.  I do not agree with their stance on Unionization.

2. Find an interest group with which you associate (positively).  What is the name of the group and what do you find persuasive about their position on issues?

I chose the UAN (United American Nurses).  While I once again, do not believe in unions I do believe in their stance. They offer a wide variety of services and information to nurses that may not be available in other places.  Nursing is a hard career and I do believe that it is a career that does not pay as good as it should based on the work they perform.  Nursing is an under appreciated job that needs to have more incentives in my book.  It is nice to see that they have a support system that allows them some accesses to resources that will help them alleviate some of their stresses and concerns.

3. Do interest groups have enough/too much/the right amount of power in the political system?  Most believe it's a fine-line balance between freedom of speech for the groups and keeping unfair persuasion out of government.  Where is that line and when is it crossed?

I believe that the interest groups and the amount of power they have depends on the individual groups.  Not all of them have enough power while others have too much power.  I do believe that based on some of the research, some unions have too much power and it gives way for them to cross the line.  I believe that when the interest groups push so hard that it causes people to loose jobs, such as striking and things like that, they have crossed a fine line between helping people and hurting them. I am not sure that I would support any interest group where I would feel so strongly that I would support a strike or where I would try to speak on the behalf of all. Having said that, there are some that would otherwise not speak for themselves and need the interest groups to speak for them.

Please also comment at least 50 words each on at least three of your classmates' posts and then post on your own blog the names of the classmates whose blogs you commented on.
Tinisha Key
Robert Cook
David Kunsman

Chapter 7: The news media and the internet

1. Does objectivity still exist in the media's coverage of politics?  Of the major news outlets (CNN, FoxNews, MSNBC, NPR, NBC, etc.), which are the most objective and which seem to have the most bias?

If there is any objectivity it is sure hard to find in the news media.  Everyone seems to have their own agenda and doesn’t seem too concerned with looking at the overall difference of the parties.  It would seem that they would rather submit their own opinions and direct the facts to their own personal opinions.  Because I do not feel so strongly in regards to a party ran election, it is hard for me to say which I find the most objective and which seems to have the most biased.  I would have to say that I think CNN is probably the least biased and that the others seem to lean one way or the other.

2. How does talk radio (Rush Limbaugh, Keith Olbermann, etc.) affect your view of politics?  Why?

I do not care of the opinions of those on talk radios especially that of Rush Limbaugh.  He certainly does not affect my point of view and if I had to say, he would probably more so drive me in a different direction if he could.  To me he is just an obnoxious person with nothing to offer me in regards to his feeling regarding politics.  He is an interesting person to listen to however, if you want to get a strong one-sided view of how he feels about politics and the way they are moving forward today as opposed to how they used to be handled. 

3. Is media objectivity important?  Why or why not?

 do believe that objectivity is important and necessary today.  I believe that media should be there to report the facts and not their own opinions.  I do not believe that it is their place to share their opinions or try to alter the facts to fit their own agenda.  I also think that is a bad media decision to do it.  In order to be more objective and properly inform the public of the total issues, there should definitely be more objectivity in the media. This would allow people a better view of the facts and allow them to make better decisions regarding the real issues as opposed to putting forth a public agenda.

Please also comment at least 50 words each on the blogs of at least three of your classmates and list the names of these classmates on your blog.
Pam Smith, Jesse Griffith, David Smith

Chapter 6 - Public opinion

1. Is American news media too dependent upon polls?  Is it appropriate for news agencies to create polls and then report on them?  Why or why not?

The news media does tend to do a lot of polls and I feel they are too dependent upon them.  It is such a small sampling that it is hard to determine the actual overall attitudes of the entire population.  It seems like there is a poll for everything and I think that reporting them constantly is a waste of time.  I would also be somewhat offended if I were to be asked coming out of voting both by an exit poll, what my opinion is.  I believe that politics is in individual choice and the intrusion into that opinion somewhat offends me.

2. How important is political party identification to you (e.g. as a Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, etc.)? Was it more or less important to your parents & grandparents?  Does it seem more or less important to your friends?  Why or why not?

I do not feel that political party identification is very important to me at all.  I believe that regardless of the political party, we should elect the best person for the job.  I do not believe that my parents cared about political party identification either but my grandparents did very much so. I think as generations have evolved, there has been less emphasis on political parties in my family because we all want what’s best regardless of party.  My friends and I however, do not discuss politics and it is hard for me to say how they feel about political party identification. 

3. Do you feel that your opinion of politics is more influenced by economic  issues  or by social issues? Why?

At this point, I feel that my opinion of politics is more influenced by social issues.  I think that is because I am very young and have not had to experience or be concerned about economic issues.  As I continue to grow and learn more I think that will change to more concern regarding economic issues.  It’s easy for me to not worry about the economy so much at this age but when I am on my own and have to worry about these things, they will become more prominent for me in my thought regarding politics.  At least this class has made me more aware of many of the issues that I will be faced with as a young adult.

I have posted to Pam Smith, Robert Cook and Stephanie Griffin