Political Heat

The state of Wisconsin is poised to pass legislation that would require schools statewide to provide students with a complete education on sexual health, including information on contraception and other methods for birth control. Currently, schools in Wisconsin determine for themselves how far they want to teach their students about the "birds and the bees." Many school districts opt for "abstinence-only" education, which severely limits a student's ability to understand how to prevent a pregnancy or contracting a sexually transmitted disease. Under the proposed bill, titled the Healthy Youth Act, Wisconsin schools would be required to teach a comprehensive sex ed class, complete with alternative pregnancy prevention methods. Abstinence would also be included as the best way to prevent a pregnancy or an STD. Critics of the bill have called it an unwarranted attack upon the rights of local governments and school boards. Matt Sande, director of legislation for Pro...

The Obama administration has recently called out FOX News for what it really is, with some administration officials calling it " the communications arm of the Republican Party ." FOX News fans haven't taken it lightly: some conservatives have suggested that the president is behaving in a Nixonian manner, creating an "enemies list" the same way the disgraced ex-president did. Some have even suggested his administration is suppressing freedom of the press and free speech in general. Is the Obama administration doing the wrong thing here? In a way, yes -- their objections to FOX News may have distracted the public away from important issues. By creating a "war" between the network and the White House, Obama has shifted the focus away from these issues and placed himself at center-stage. But it's not entirely unwarranted. FOX News really DOES seem to operate as the media arm of the Republican Party. The loony rantings of Glenn Beck, the misinformation ...

The federal government announced this week that it will no longer seek to prosecute patients using medicinal marijuana if the practice of prescribing it is legal within that patient's state. In a memorandum to select U.S. Attorney's affected by the new policy, Attorney General Eric Holder wrote that, "Pursuit of these priorities should not focus federal resources in your States on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana." In other words, U.S. Attorneys in states where they have legalized medicinal marijuana shouldn't seek out the prosecution of individuals who are using the drugs as part of their doctor's recommendations. The illegal growing and distribution of marijuana is still a criminal offense, and individuals partaking in those endeavors should still be sought after; but as far as patients using the drug, the Obama administration has made it clear that there ar...

A common misconception of the liberal ideology is that it promotes a secular state. That's true, in part; we liberals do want a neutral government when it comes to religion, but we could care less about what the people themselves want to believe in regards to their faith. But conservatives who are pushing for a higher standard of morality in society often further believe that liberals want a moral-less society, one that abolishes faith and religion outright. Nothing could be further from the truth. What are liberalism's views on religion, morality, and society? Liberals take a stance that is common among most Americans: let the people choose for themselves what to believe. With regards to religion, a person should be free to exercise their views without restriction from the state or any other force in society, so long as their views don't conflict with the rights of others. Most liberals don't even mind when religious groups take part in ceremonies on public land or hav...

Roland Burris, a Democratic Senator from Illinois, is not someone I would suggest having as a political hero. Having received his Senate seat under suspicious circumstances -- from an appointment by Rod Blagojevich, the Illinois governor who tried to sell the seat to the highest bidder -- Burris isn't seen as the most ethical Senator within the upper house of Congress. Recently, however, Burris did something that no other Democratic Senator has done, or has had the guts to do: he openly voiced that he will not support any health care reform bill that doesn't include a robust public option. " I would not support a bill that does not have a public option ," said Burris, adding that his "position will not change" on the matter. Some may see Burris's comments as foolish or stubborn. But it's just as stubborn, if not more so, to actively say you won't support any bill WITH a public option, as some conservative Democrats and Republicans have said they ...

It may be too soon to start talking about the midterm elections, but many conservatives and Republican-leaning commentators are predicting a big win for Republicans when the 2010 midterm elections come around. They point to the large turnout at TEA Party protests as evidence of this, as well as other knee-jerk reactions to the proposed policies made by so-called " socialist " Democrats. Those "socialists," however, include a broad coalition of Democrats, ranging from the fiscally conservative Blue Dogs to the more ambitious Progressive Caucus. This "large tent" of Democrats have made it difficult for most Americans to gauge what the Democratic Party's goals and platform really are, as each Congressional Dem has a different take on every piece of legislation that comes to the Hill. Nevertheless, Republican probably will pick up a few seats come November 2010 -- but not enough to substantially change Washington. While it's true that TEA Party protes...

A couple in Louisiana last week wanted to do something many couples in love do: seal their relationship through vows of marriage. So they sought the Justice of the Peace in their parish and informed him of their intentions. However, their dreams of marriage were dashed temporarily when they were informed that the Justice of the Peace refused their request. His reason? He doesn't perform interracial marriages . Keith Bardwell has been the Justice of the Peace within that parish for over 30 years, dating back to the days when interracial marriages were illegal in many states in the south. Today, however, such restrictions on marriage are unheard of, relics of a racist past that most want to leave behind. So when Beth Humphrey and Terence McKay sought out a marriage from Bardwell and heard of his own personal restrictions on marriage, their jaws dropped. How could a public official in this day and age still cling onto such sentiments? How can they still see so narrowly, still judge a ...

Lately, I’ve seen a chain letter being circulated entitled, “The Difference between Liberals and Conservatives Explained.” It’s a very elementary view of the real difference between liberals and conservatives, and I’d like to take a moment to explain why each point isn’t a valid one to have been made. -If a conservative doesn’t like guns, he doesn't buy one. -If a liberal doesn't like guns, he wants all guns outlawed. This is a common misperception that the right has of liberals. We don’t care if you have guns or not. Sure, some communities have outlawed handguns, but it’s not a liberal position to take; it’s a position a community has taken, and one that is unconstitutional. A specific weapon may be considered unfit to have, but banning weapons outright is an unconstitutional thing for a community to do. Many leftists are avid hunters, and encourage people to have guns...in a responsible way. Guns that are for more than hunting or self-defense -- that is, guns that are militar...

Alex Lange is just like any other infant in Colorado. He's healthy and he's breastfed. He's also a good size -- 17 lbs. Alex's weight, though heavier than normal, isn't anything to worry about. It puts him in the 99th percentile in terms of infant weight, but he can't do much about it, being that he's on a diet of breast milk and breast milk only. Still, his weight has caused his parents much concern. Not because they feared their baby was obese, but rather because his insurance provider refused to cover him because of it . Alex's insurance provider, Rocky Mountain Health Plans, only covered infants in the 95th percentile and lower with regards to their weight. Alex, therefore, was a prime candidate for being denied his insurance claims. As was previously mentioned, Alex couldn't do much about this -- his diet consisted solely of breast milk. Most doctors recommend to mothers that they feed their child only breast milk in the early months of their li...

Russ Feingold is a political hero of mine. I agree with him on 99 percent of all the issues. Occasionally, however, there comes a time when I do disagree with his position once in awhile. Sen. Feingold recently criticized the power a president has to appoint so-called "czars" who are advisers and members of the presidential administration on special matters (like drugs or education). "Our ability to conduct meaningful oversight of those who hold the levers of power and to evaluate whether they have the qualifications and character to carry out their duties may be undermined by the centralization of power in the White House," said Feingold. Feingold's statements are noble in his attempts to have presidents, conservative or liberal alike, be held accountable for whom they appoint. However, it's a concern that he doesn't have to worry about too much, mainly because these czars aren't given much power over that which they supposedly are in charge of. Su...

The Supreme Court today began hearing oral arguments on a case regarding the separation of church and state. At issue is whether a Christian cross in honor of fallen veterans that was erected in the Great Depression era can be legally placed on federal land, or whether the government can sell that land to a private party to keep it in place there. The cross is located within the Mojave Desert. The federal government attempted to sell the small parcel of land to private interests in order to preserve the cross at the site it is currently placed at. The motivations behind the transaction were clearly to preserve a religious symbol on/near federal lands, with the sale having no benefits financially to the federal government in any way. Were the federal government to treat religious organizations equally -- allowing other groups to set up shrines or symbols as well -- then there wouldn't be much of a problem. But the park refused to place a Buddhist symbol there in 1999, and stated its...

Republican lawmakers are backing off a measure they drafted last week condemning Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) for statements he made regarding the GOP's plan for health care reform. "Don't get sick," Grayson warned. "If you get sick...die quickly. That's right. The Republicans want you to die quickly if you get sick." Those are pretty strong words, but they pale in comparison when you look at the rhetoric conservatives have been throwing around in the debate. Some in the GOP have claimed that the Democratic Party's plan for reform would set up "death panels" that would be responsible for determining a person's worth to society, effectively sentencing the elderly and people with special needs to death because their health care would be a burden to the state. Such statements are flat-out lies, but no member of Congress has been forced to apologize for saying them. Republicans last week, however, wanted Grayson to apologize for effectively s...

The 2016 Olympics have been decided; Rio de Janeiro is the selected site. Despite Barack Obama personally going to Copenhagen, Denmark, to lobby on behalf of the city of Chicago, the Olympic committee went another direction. Obama had received unwarranted criticism earlier in the week for traveling to Denmark. Taking a day and a half trip overseas, to some, was in bad taste, especially with the health care debate still going strong and the situation in Afghanistan needing his attention. Those critics, however, ignore several key things. First, Obama took less than two days to get his two cents in to the Olympic committee. When looking at how many vacation days George W. Bush took, Obama has been working overtime by comparison. Second, Obama didn't use this trip as "time off" -- he took this opportunity to meet with his top commander in Afghanistan to discuss strategy there. When Bush was on vacation, he didn't even bother reading important documents, such as the rep...

A recent Doonesbury cartoon by Garry Trudeau recently made my day. A veteran political cartoon artist, Trudeau has been drawing Doonesbury for decades. His comics entertain thousands of readers daily through contemporary political humor, and some consider his comic to be an American institution. Yesterday, reading Doonesbury in the Capital Times, I was once again moved by Trudeau's imagery and words of insight. The comic began with a thought bubble emanating from the White House: "Remaking America is tougher than I thought..." The next five frames shifted dramatically towards images of Hitler at a Nazi rally, book burnings, World War II battles, a Holocaust death camp, and a field of graves, the result of the war to end all wars. Words were juxtaposed within each frame, detailing the horrific scenery: "The Nazis created a brutal, repressive society, left half the world in flames, and methodically murdered millions. They were the most evil force in history." The...