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June 09 Hilary Clinton, Sexism, and the Historic Presidential BidSome of Hillary clinton's supporters believe there is sexism at play in the defeat of their candidate. However, I couldn't disagree more because I beleive that what ultimately did her in may have been Clinton-Bush fatigue.
No one in the media originally brough up the gender card. The Clinton brought gneder in to the race when she complained of being treated harshly by the other candidates, all male, because she was a women. After this incident what was supposed to be her coronation was over. Then you have the mocking by late-night comedians, which can be over-the-top. However, when these same comedians parody President Bush, of whom I am no great defender, and are over-the-top no one complains. Finally, you have the parody by Father Michael Pflager regarding her feeling entitled. While his parody was inappropriate for the environment in which he did it, the parody is something that would have went largely no comment and recieved no punishment if it were of President Bush.
If women want a female Presidnet and women want to run for president they are going to have to learn to deal with the same indignified parodies as male politicians do. We cannot laugh at parodies of George W. Bush or John McCain and then complain about a parody of Hillary Clinton. That is a double standard.
Until the air of inevitability came crashing down around her and she was not coronated she ran a campaign which looked like her saying she was entitled to the presidnecy, not because she was a woman but because she was a Clinton. Reality set in when Barak Obama started winning in the small contests she ignored. She felt entitled and she was going to win the large primary states, so the caucuses did not matter.
Her hubris and sense of entitlement in the end is what beat her and not any parody, perceived sexism of the media, or the the challenge she got from the other candidates during debates. These were all fair challenges.
Women need to still be proud of the historic presidential bid of Hillary Clinton because as she said in her concession speech the highest glass ceiling has been cracked on many places. June 08 Liberal or Conservative?: The use of Political labels to smear candidatesIt is now the fashionable order of the day to use the political labels such as liberal or conservative as a smear for a person inside your group that thinks differently on major issues. For example, a Republican being branded liberal is a bad thing inside the Republican group, while a Democrat being seen as conservative is equally bad inside the Democratic camp. This negative labeling brings up the question what are conservative and liberal other than labels we use to describe people either pejoratively or positively depending on who is using the label to describe an action that was taken.
I beleive that there are four categories of individuals inside both major parties: conservatives, liberals, moderates, and neoconservatives. This labeling gets more complicated because different actions can earn different labels for the same person. What is the meaning of each of these labels?
(Definitions from Merriam-Webster's Dictionary.)
These thoughts are coming out of an article that is in The State newspaper this morning. Political columnist James Rosen chronicles Senator Lindsey Graham's voting record in his article Graham : Liberal label inaccurate. The article chronicles the difference in treat he recieves from the media and political colleagues and that he recieves from the people, particularly of the upstate region he calls home. Currently he gets defined by the relatively few times he crosses a party line to solve a problem. The actions looming largest in the minds of the voters are the following:
Immigration: Senator Graham supported a bipartisan compromise that included border enforcement and a set of rules that most liberals disagreed with to legalize the illegals that had been here for a certain amount of time. This seemed fair enough, but many just wanted them all sent back.
Torture: He questioned the administration's policy on the definition of torture. This angered "conservatives" who thought that he should go along with the administration on this point. He questioned this policy based n his experience as a military lawyer. The military is, by nature, a conservative institution.
Hillary Clinton: Sen. Graham praised Hillary Clinton which recieved criticism from conservatives.
Gang of 14: Counted correctly as one of his accomplishments, but nonethe less highly criticized by fellow conservatives. He brokered the deal to preserve the instittution of the United States Senate.
Looking at each of these actions to measure his conservatism or liberalism is foolish becasue one has to measure his entire record. It is also not neccessarily conservative or liberal to walk in lockstep (which he hasn't done) behind a president. Looking at each of these actions puts him n the moderate-conservative camp. I am not counting the praise of Hillary Clinton in the caluculation because I think that one can have no political agenda when praising a colleague.
I see the immigration compromise as moderate becasue it allowed people to recieve special visas after returnining to their country of origin and meeting certain requirements.
Sen. Graham's response to the torture is conservative because it follows established precedent and laws. It also follows the experience of the military, which he loves and is a very conservative institution. In his response he also wanted to protect any member of our armed forces that may be held captive.
The Gang of 14 compromise could also be seen in a conservative light as preserving the institution of the United States Senate and allowing the confirmation of several formerly controversial nominees, as well as, Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel Alito.
Calling Sen Graham a liberal is using the term as a pejorative in order to gain political advantage and is espescially disingenuous when one examines his entire record and observes the hard right camapign he is running just to maintian his Senate seat.
We need to properly use the labels to identify people instead of as pejorative. I do not fell that either position of seeking progress or maitaining tradition is wrong. In fact I beleive that this country is about seeking progress within the existing traditions and institutions of the nation.
June 06 Week Six: Much ado about everythingMy math class is complete and I earned an 'A.' My Business class still has two weeks left and I am earning a 'B' so far. My graduate school orietation is scheduled for 2 July at the Loop Ceter of Devry/Keller.
I am also being trained to take on more responsibility at my Heartland Institute internship. I am learning how to compile the Weekly Media and Media Relations reports. I will be taking over this duty in a short time. Thoughts about EducationWhat is an Educated Person? cross-posted at Heart, Mind, Soul, and Conscience This is just one of the questions I asked myself and journaled about before I began reading the book The Educated Person by D.G. Mulcahy. The other question was what type of education would produce this educated person? First, I believe that education is a lifelong process that consists of both formal and informal experiences that lead to the individual learning something. The setting could be a school, the home, a job, a volunteer position, or an internship or cooperative learning experience. Since an education is a continuing mix of experiences; I think en educated person is a person who has made the most of each experience and lerned from it or understands how the experience falls short for what ever reason. Second, the idea of an educated person always starts with formal school experiences from primary school through college. This focus begs a third question: What should the academic and career oriented curricula look like? The answer to this question is a traditional liberal arts curriculum that teaches reading, writing, mathematics, science, and Physical Education. In middle or high school we can add computer operations. In high school students should add a vocational element to their curriculum weather they are planning to go directly into the work force, enter a two year college training program or go into a university. This required co-operative education program would give all students, regardless of their socioeconomic status or ability level, a chance to learn valuable and transferable workplace skills as well as having work experience to put on a resume. The internship would be after taking a class(es) in a career skill during their third and/or fourth year of high school. This training would also allow them to work through college. High school students should graduate with basic proficiency in Microsoft Office because this will help them weather they work, get follow-on training or enter the university. Third, college should begin with a standard general curriculum the first two years with some options within the general categories of Computer & Technological Literacy, Mathematics, Science, English Composition, Literature, History, Social Sciences, and Humanities. Then their third and fourth years will be spent on their majors with internship and co-op experiences that will train them with the skills specific to field they wish to work in after graduation. Fourth, having mentioned internships and co-operative education opportunities, I believe that in high school required career development courses should be taught at the end of the third year and the end of the sophomore year in college. These classes provide means to learn basic job hunting skills like resume/cover letter writing, preparing a portfolio, interviewing, and give them a vital link to a guidance counselor. They also allow you to explore your interests and skills through particular tests. This will assist people in choosing a major. In my opinion, being an educated person requires several interrelated characteristics: knowledge of self, knowledge of the world around you, and knowledge of potential careers and access to resources, as well as being willing to commit to life-long learning. Every experience and person an individual encounters can be a learning experience that educates them. May 30 Changing DirectionTechnorati Tags: Keller Graduate School of Management DeVry University business Public Administration Information Technology
I originally had planned to complete the Associate Applied Science degree in Web Graphic Design at DeVry University. My first two courses were MATH-032 and BUSN-115 and I am a little more than half way through them. I plan to finish them, however, I do not have funding to achieve this goal. I will place it on hold until a later date. Through taking BUSN-115 I have developed a desire to complete a business degree. I applied to the Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University and was accepted. I have completed my financial aid, paid the tuition deposit, completed the entrance testing and am registered for my first course, IS 535 Managerial Applications of Information Technology. I begin my career as a Keller student on 7 July. The Degree will be a dual Masters in Business Administration and Public Administration. Embedded in the MBA is a certificate in Entrepreneurship. The emphasis in my MPA is Nonprofit Management. I have already planned out my degree and it will take me 4 years part time. It is a total of 25 courses. I am planning to take GM 400 Foundations of Managerial Mathematics with GM 520 Legal, Ethical, and Political Dimensions of Business during Session A of Fall of my second year in the program. I am not required to take GM 400 but am choosing to so I can make sure I am prepared for the statistics, finance, and accounting courses that are required. I take the GM 400 course at no extra cost to me because I tested out of the class. From there I go on to My finance and accounting courses, as well as those in nonprofit management and entrepreneurship.
Course Description for First Course IS 535 Managerial Applications of Information Technology This course introduces structures, applications, and management of corporate information systems. Coursework investigates how technology is changing the way we conduct communication, make decisions, manager people, and improve business processes, as well as how it adds value to business. Students access the Internet to gather and use information, and analyze business decisions using decision support tools.
These are books I either have read or am reading
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