I am so mad at Rick Perry. I just saw a commercial touting his dedication to public education. He also praised himself for giving a merit pay raise and a $2000.00 raise to all TX teachers.

But did you know...

They raised the retirement age for teachers, because they want to keep qualified teachers in the profession longer. They decreased retirement payments by taking our highest 5 years and dividing that to find out our retirement payments. (They did take the highest 3.)

They gave teachers a $1000.00 pay raise a few years ago... then took away half... then took the other half away. So that pay raise he is bragging about just replaced the $1000.00 they took away and gave us another $1000.00. (Remember 8 years ago when they promised a $6000.00 pay raise to be paid in two years? They gave the first $3000.00, but the next year they decided not to give the other half.) The public hears about the raises, but does not know about the times they take things back...

Then the merit pay raise only goes towards teachers in core subjects and only IF the administration deems it necessary. They are not required to do it... so it is worthless to non-core teachers, and pretty much everyone.

This makes me want to quit teaching. With the Social Security offset, the government giving and taking our money away, increasing retirement age, less retirement benefits, and low wages to begin with... why would anyone want to come into this profession OR stay???????????? (Oh yeah... the kids.) But with discipline problems on the rise, how long with that be a benefit???

GOVERNOR PERRY HAS DONE NOTHING FOR ME or TEXAS STUDENTS.

Oh yeah... don't even get me started on that damn TAKS test. Worthless.

Jodie I didn't take you to raise and I know this is probably going to be wasted on you, but I'd like to share with you a couple of things about political parties in the U.S. political system. All of what T_O_M says is true. Plus the party you vote for is very important because each party has a "platform" that they adopt at the conventions. These platforms change a little from time to time, but most of the basic items remain fairly similar from convention to convention. In the Republican party, however, the "religious right" has established a strangle-hold on the party and have used that to produce many of the extreme decisions that you see people complaining about today.

All of the items that each party adopts in their platform are very important. They address issues that result the passage of laws, how the government spends money, who is appointed to the Supreme Court, etc. Issues like gun control, abortion and many other relevant topics are things that affect you. Now some of these items never come up during a person's term in office, but some do, and if those things are of any interest or importance to you, don't you think it represents you better if the platform of the party you've voted for (when you voted for the man - or not) is compatible with your basic beliefs?

Maybe you won't agree completely with any of the platforms adopted by the parties running for office, but if you agree with one platform more than any other, don't you agree that a person from that party with the platform you like will represent you better?

It's for those reasons that many people cannot vote for a man who belongs to the party that is in opposition to the one that they basically agree with and trust, even if they think that the man or woman from the opposing party sounds good.

A lot of people today seem to think that the smart and right thing to do is vote "for the man" not the party. Then when their man is elected, they are surprised and disappointed when laws are passed according to the party.

I know all this about platforms, agendas, political parties etc....This is what I live to do, politics...... One should look into the background and platform and everything about a candidate before voting for them. They look at what they stand for, what they are about, and so on...Therefore if you only vote one way no matter what you could be closing your mind of to other possibilities. I was a firm, and still am, Clinton supporter, and I am now a Bush supporter. You see I do not only go one way or the other, but rather who I feel fits the bill best. I did not like John Kerry for anything in the world, he is a very shady character, and therefore I supported Bush. My grandfather, although he did not like Kerry at all still voted for him just because he is a Democrat. You see he felt forced to vote Democrat although he did not like the candidate, I just dont understand how you can vote one way or the other. YES the party supports their candidate and offers them what they stand for, and pick the person they want to represent them in the election because they fit there best....But what I am trying to get across is not all Republicans are conservative and not all Democrats are Liberal. They are not all the same.

But what I am trying to get across is not all Republicans are conservative and not all Democrats are Liberal. They are not all the same.

Yes that is right, but if you were a conservative and there was a liberal Republican running against a conservative Democrat and the house was split 217 to 217 and your one vote could decide the election, who would you vote for?

If you vote in the conservative Democrat, the house will have a majority of Democrats who are a more liberal party and all the committees will be headed by the Democrats who are more liberal.

So a vote for the conservative would give you a more liberal congress.

And likewise, a vote for the liberal would give you a more conservative congress.

That is one of the reasons why the White House backed the most antiBuSh Republican Senator in the USA in his Republican primary against a pro-BuSh candidate. Look up Senator Chaffe of Rhode Island's voting record.

In politics: One plus One does not equal Two.

Hey Jodi, girl you can't win around here. Good job trying to express your opinion, but as one stated earlier, they feel it is wasted on you. Keep on keepin' on, I hear what your sayin. Maybe I agree, maybe I don't, but I hear ya.

I am really enjoying this thread. I am learning a lot about the American political system. It appears that the man you elect votes with his party, not with his own conscience. Now, if you elect enough moderate, old-fashioned Republicans can they derail this extremist Christian right agenda?

Jodie,

DO print this stuff out and put a copy in your baby book. It will give you many good laughs as you grow and (hopefully) change as you learn about the REAL world and (hopefully) learn how little of your life's journey is REALLY self-financed and how much you are REALLY helping others.

A quick example...I am a service-connected, disabled veteran of the VietNam Era. My friend was outraged that HER tax dollar was paying me $400/month for four years AND two years of private school tuition, way back when. Grand Total, under $30,000. Then I went to work. The first year that BOTH my husband and I were working full time our FEDERAL tax bite was right around $35,000. And I worked for many years....but let's just say ten years. So I "cost" the government $30,000 and the government PROBABLY got back (the difference between what we'd have paid as a one-income family and what we paid as a two-income family) about $200,000, maybe more. Want to try the math one more time?

Also, I think we might want to consider what groups or classes of people we single out as being less than stellar examples of citizens. Those who really believe that they have nothing are those who often look for some immutable characteristic/trait/behavior of the people we want to disparage and use it to try to make a point...fortunately, it's usually only others who have as little buy into it. As in, "Well, my husband may be a ___, but at least he's not a ____."

My late MIL one told a relative to pick me and my kid up at the airport. When asked how to recongize us, MIL said, "Just look for the fat Mexican woman with the real pretty girl." In my MIL's mind, as long as she and her daughter were neither fat nor Mexican (I'm half), they were "better" than I was. MIL told of this exchange a few times, laughing each time. Finally, the fourth time she told it (in front of an audience) I responded, "Well, I guess you could have told them to look for the only woman in your family who is a college graduate, but that might not have worked as well..." She stopped. Probably because while her daughter was thin and white...she was a high school dropout.

The world is a fascinating place, Jodie. One way we know that children are growing and learning is that they reject their parents' values and adopt their own values, for their own reasons. (They may end up being similar, but they are seldom identical.) Be prepared to change as you sally forth.

Sue

:::Looking in mirror, admiring self for having passed (and tutored) philosopy 101 a hundred years ago, for having voted (for change) by absentee ballot, for NOT being at all fond of Texas politics or politicians--except for the "Molly Ivins subject matter" potential they provide, and most epecially for being several DECADES beyond my teen years and being about 70% grey-haired to prove it:::

:::

The fact that there are two major political parties SHOULD be enough to prove that there is not just one way of "maturing." Each person has his/her own reasons for supporting one party's basic platform, or the other's.

So, Jodie, I hope you do not take to heart the thinly veiled criticism you find hear. Of course, you will grow and change with time. I did, too. I went from liberal, to conservative. My parents went from conservative to liberal. I went from holding lighters up and yelling "Dude" at Rolling Stones concerts to holding American flags up and cheering for President Bush.

Life is, indeed, strange and wonderful. I am sorry that a few here are unable to engage in civil discourse, and choose to take a scornful attitude toward others. I do not always agree with you, but you have maintained a civil tone, even though your ideas were met with anger. I applaud you for that!

Go vote!

The fact that there are two major political parties SHOULD be enough to prove that there is not just one way of "maturing." Each person has his/her own reasons for supporting one party's basic platform, or the other's.

So, Jodie, I hope you do not take to heart the thinly veiled criticism you find hear. Of course, you will grow and change with time. I did, too. I went from liberal, to conservative. My parents went from conservative to liberal. I went from holding lighters up and yelling "Dude" at Rolling Stones concerts to holding American flags up and cheering for President Bush.

Life is, indeed, strange and wonderful. I am sorry that a few here are unable to engage in civil discourse, and choose to take a scornful attitude toward others. I do not always agree with you, but you have maintained a civil tone, even though your ideas were met with anger. I applaud you for that!

Go vote!

Thank you very much, you have done the same. We all cant agree all the time. I dont believe my way is the only way, and it may not always be the right way. But it is my opinion after all. I thank you and only you for your MATURITY that you have shown throughout this thread. Everyone else has taken the attitude that my opinion doesnt matter because I am young. I may be young, but I do know what I believe right now, as you said, it could change, and it is very possible some day. I dont believe that any consenting adult should be scorned for their opinion on political matters. My ballot should come in the mail soon, I love voting, its one of my favorite things in the world to do, weird I know, but I during elections this past Spring, I would skip class just to go vote and help with voting. I love the American Political System and I love to study it. Im excited about next semester because I am taking 3 more POLS classes (Religon and Politics, American Judicial System, and Public Policy). I just want all of you who scorn the youth of today, especially those of us who will be working in politics when you get really old, that we will have the power in legislation, and trust me the government is rather volatile right now. So keep up with your remarks and your gumdrops and daisies attitudes and see where it will lead in the next 20-30 years...Just remember that my generation will have the upper hand in Government one day, so dont knock us too hard.

Oh, my! Are my comments veiled at all? They weren't supposed to be!

Mousecrazy...doesn't "My parents went from conservative to liberal. I went from holding lighters up and yelling "Dude" at Rolling Stones concerts to holding American flags up and cheering for President Bush," pretty much demonstrate my point that what one believes at 20 is often NOT what one believes with a little more maturity?

Again, I have no trouble with people cheering for their president...as long as they know who he is and what he has done. But I hope today's election results will show that more and more people have gotten past the flag-waving stage and moved on to asking intelligent questions and demanding honest answers. I am a veteran who is more than a little upset that people are cheering for the guy who sent troops into harm's way on false pretenses and then wants to renege on VA benefits. There are 104,000 VERY damaged veterans home already...and Bush wants to court people's votes by promising lower taxes. You cannot lower taxes AND take care of these very damaged young bodies and minds...and step in where they can no longer go, to care for themselves and their families. ANYONE who would take away from these people is a shit-suckin' weasel...on a good day....I don't care what his title is or who voted for him.

Jodie, I apologize if I ever made it sound that your opinion does not matter because you are young. Once upon a time, I was young too. I truly believe that with a little life experience, more study, and social awareness your views will mature with you, that was my only point. You see only one perspective at this point. As your life changes your perspective will change too, unless you refuse to learn from life experiences. I wish you lots of luck in your studies.

Hope everyone voted today. I can not wait to see what happens, and I pray for us all one way or the other.

Have a great day all.

And just for fun:

per‧spec‧tive  /pərˈspɛktɪv/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[per-spek-tiv] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation

–noun 1.a technique of depicting volumes and spatial relationships on a flat surface. Compare aerial perspective, linear perspective. 2.a picture employing this technique, esp. one in which it is prominent: an architect's perspective of a house. 3.a visible scene, esp. one extending to a distance; vista: a perspective on the main axis of an estate. 4.the state of existing in space before the eye: The elevations look all right, but the building's composition is a failure in perspective. 5.the state of one's ideas, the facts known to one, etc., in having a meaningful interrelationship: You have to live here a few years to see local conditions in perspective. 6.the faculty of seeing all the relevant data in a meaningful relationship: Your data is admirably detailed but it lacks perspective. 7.a mental view or prospect: the dismal perspective of terminally ill patients. –adjective 8.of or pertaining to the art of perspective, or represented according to its laws.

"Just remember that my generation will have the upper hand in Government one day, so dont knock us too hard."

Hey Jodie, did that last post keep me in the good old folks home, or am I to live in a cardboard box under the bridge?

I'll bet some people here think it's just fine if we "choose" to live in a carboard box under a bridge.

Well, when I was 8 my Mother burned down our house (on accident) and we chose to live in a tent for 6 months in the woods. I chose to wear ragged clothes and to never have any friends over because I was poor. (Kids are cruel.) I chose to have dirt floors and fight the rats for food, to steal toilet paper, and to heat up Water on a fire for baths. The 5 gallon bucket with a toilet seat on it was fun, and the water hose hung up on a tree branch was a blast... until around November. Then it was just a b*tch. But I was young, and did not know what I was doing. Guess I made some bad choices. If I had a clue I would have chosen a better family... one with money. Being the middle child of 5, with an alchoholic step-dad, uneducated mother, no air conditioner or heater was my first choice in life! Oh yeah, I chose to live in a tent until the shell of my house was built, then I chose to live in the half built house for 10 years until I could get the hell out. *** deep sigh*** thank the Lord for letting us make choices.

And to think, I decided to be a teacher so that no one else would be forced to live in a tent (taught business for 8 years)... Now I am an art teacher, so if they live in a tent they can make it look good. :love:

Lol, after I posted it I did realize it came across as threatening, but I dont really mean it as a threat haha! I get what you all are saying, but just because I am young, doesnt mean my vote or my opinion doesnt matter. I think this is why most people my age do not vote, because they feel they dont count, because our opinions are knocked really hard by other generations.

... I think this is why most people my age do not vote, because they feel they dont count, because our opinions are knocked really hard by other generations.

And, assuming you are correct, why do you suppose it's true? Because we old folks were never young? Because we forgot that we were much smarter when we were younger? Or because, with a few years under our belts, we realize that maybe we weren't so smart back when we thought we knew everything. This is not to say that young people know nothing; they know a lot!

But most young adults are really do have little or no life experience, many are still tax deductions for their parents, most have never been responsible for paying for their own dentist office visits let alone for the life of another human being...in other words, they are pretty much "apprentice grown ups."

That doesn't mean that young folks shouldn't have opinions...just that they should realize that those opinions were formed based on very limited experience...and, as such, those opinions should be subject to change upon receipt of more life experience.