The midterm elections are coming quickly! College students, especially, check out this list of reasons you should vote!

http://collegecandy.com/2010/10/14/why-vote-5-good-reasons-to-hit-the-polls/

I just mailed in my absentee ballot today, and it felt so good to do my civic duty and make just a small difference!

My friend and I have this phrase we say when we are stressed out about something minor or decide not to do something that isn't a big deal. We say "this doesn't matter in my forever!" meaning that the decision we make and the outcome that results will not significantly impact our lives. Elections are not one of those times. We are deciding on people who can best represent us and making our voices heard on issues that will affect us for the rest of our lives. This does matter in our forever. Almost everyone complains about the way the country is run, but so few people actually take the time to make a difference. Complaining is idle; voting is active.

It is the little actions that matter. On a related tangent, I just recently planned a discussion on my campus about environmental policy and behaviors on an individual level, (more on this in another post) but the message is that everyone needs to be active on an individual level to see changes.

If you don't follow politics, it is not too late to check out the New York Times, Politico, or another news website to catch up on the important issues and races this November.

We are so fortunate to we live in an amazing country where we are free to be ourselves and pursue our dreams in ways millions of people around the world cannot even begin to experience. So, you might say, that means we are free not to choose not to vote. That's true. But if we don't use our freedoms, do we truly have them at all?

ab imo pectore,

Hannah

Ignorance is the new black, apparently.

This op-ed article in the New York Times titles "Making Ignorance Chic" was recently brought to my attention, and I think it raises some really interesting political and societal issues:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/20/opinion/20dowd.html?src=ISMR_HP_LO_MST_F

While this is intended sarcastically by Austen in one of my favorite novels of all time, this seems to be the trend politics and culture

"A woman, especially if she has the misfortune of knowing anything, should conceal it as well as she can" - Northanger Abbey, Jane Austen.

In the article above, Dowd brings up the dichotomy of intelligence and beauty for women in her discussion of Marilyn Monroe and Sarah Palin. It saddens me that we cannot listen to Hillary Clinton, who is a smart, opinionated woman (regardless of whether you like her politics) without commenting on her 'cankles'. And really, what does it matter if Palin cannot define the job of the Vice President of the United States? Her hair looks great! In order to be perceived as feminine, women must be airheads. In a way, it seems we cannot win. This issue especially resonates with me, as my major is public policy, and I do not want to feel pressure to be a Sarah or a Hillary. The world can handle more complexity than that.

My mom sends me a lot of cards in the mail while I'm away at school, and one of them had a quote I really like:

"Refuse to choose between turning pages and turning heads" - "Sakura Park" by Rachel Wetzsteon

I think we should try to live that everyday.

ab imo pectore,

Hannah

Elizabeth Warren

There has been a lot of controversy surrounding whether Elizabeth Warren is a good choice to head The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection. Here’s how I see it:

Pros: Her appointment will show Obama and his administration definitively prioritizing Main Street over Wall Street. Also, Ms. Warren is an academic, not a politician or Washington insider, which I think will give her a fresh perspective. The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection was also Ms. Warren’s idea, which she originally proposed in 2007, before the vast majority of Americans new that anything was wrong.

Cons: It may be a struggle to get the Senate to confirm Ms. Warren as she is not perceived as a being politically neutral. Also, some do not believe she is qualified for the job based on lack of experience or inadequate academic credentials.

All in all, I think she is a great choice to help fix the system that desperately needs fixing. Lately, politics, for better or for worse, has been about the outsider, about the grassroots involvement and the choice of the people. When we thought the White House had failed us, we brought in a previously little-known Senator by the name of Barack Obama as previously apolitical people got involved with grassroots campaigning. Now that the banks have failed us, isn’t it time Obama appoints the people’s choice, namely, Ms. Warren?

ab imo pectore,

Hannah