Welcome ladies to our AP U.S. Government blog. I want this to be a way to continue our class discussions outside of school. Although your participation is required, this is YOUR blog! I will pick a majority of the topics for discussion, but please let me know about political topics you would like to talk about. Enjoy and have fun!
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
America's Direction (Please respond by February 4)
After voting in the poll at the bottom of the page, explain your thoughts about the direction of America. Can President Obama solve some of the problems facing America? What needs to happen over the next year?
10 comments:
Anonymous
said...
I think that President Obama was too broad and very vague during his State of the Union Address. Of course his intention is going be that he leads America in the right direction, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he will. The economy, in my opinion, along with the huge amount of debt that America is in today, should be the number one priority. I do not think that President Obama addressed those two fundamental issues well enough in the State of the Union Address. I believe that, yes, education is a good thing, but all these systems that he wants to set up are not any different than the ones set up in the past. Too much money is just being poured into the educational systems here, and the money is not being spent wisely. I believe that yes, education is of the utmost importance, but America needs an overall stonger educational structure. Programs aren't going to make this change and we can use the past two decades as an example of this. On a more optimistic scale, I did like that Obama wants to trade with more South American countries. I think this is a brilliant idea and will greatly help the United States economically. We cannot depend on China for everything because like I always say, they are, in my opinion, our biggest enemy. Overall, I do believe that President Obama has some good IDEAS that could lead America in the right direction, but it depends on HOW and WHEN those ideas will be put into action that is going to make the difference. President Obama only has two years left, and there are a lot of things that need to be accomplished in that short amount of time. Hopefully he will lead America in the right direction and improve in his presidency during these next two years.
I agree with Grace (or Gracie rather)that President Obama wants to lead the country in the right direction, as I'm sure almost everyone would. I do not believe that he is trying to sabotage the government, he just has the wrong path of ideas. Our number one problem is by far, 110 percent, the economy. That being said, I don't think President Obama is leading us in the right direction because he neglected to mention the weak economy in his State of the Union. In fact, he proposed more projects, more ways to spend money that we DO NOT have. I think some of his proposals were good and should be considered. However, they cannot be considered when there is no plan to back them up (which there wasn't) and they cannot happen when there is no money to fund them (which there is not). The American economy affects everything else in the country, so wouldn't it make sense to fix that problem first before starting tons of new ones? Why does the President fail to realize that? In all honesty, I think he realizes it, he just doesn't know how to fix it.
I agree with Grace and Morgan that President Obama is leading America in the right direction. I feel President Obama, in his SOTU, DID say that he, too, would like to stop spending so much and start trying to balance the national budget. He just wants to focus on other ways of achieving a balanced budget besides cutting social programs. Obama proposed cutting spending by avoiding tax breaks for big businesses and he said in his speech that he wanted to stop "pouring money into a system that's not working", in regards to education. I do not fault Obama for trying to think of innovative ways of economical reparation besides just cutting spending.
I liked that Obama talked about appealing to private investors to invest in community programs focused on employing citizens to work fixing roads and participating in manual labor. Furthermore, I think Obama's presentation of so many ideas proves that the economy IS his number one priority. The subjects he addressed in his speech were very relevant. The economy is not an issue that exists in a vacuum. To fix the economy, Obama must focus on other aspects of government, too. It is not a one-step fix, one can't just "cut spending". One has to be inventive and cut excess programs while still maintaining the integrity of a government that works FOR the people, including the unemployed. Education and health care may not have "economy" in their titles, but they are all inter-working elements that affect one another, and Obama addressing them proves he is trying to come-up with inventive ways to reverse our deficit.
I just hope he is able to really practice what he preaches and actually CHANGE SOMETHING. I think he had some really, really great ideas but, stagnancy is an ever-present evil on the political stage, therefore I think that in practice little will change. Unfortunately this sluggishness is a trend almost all presidents and Congresses have, and most likely will, always follow.
okay, I just want to clarify that Obama has the right INTENTION to lead the government on the right path, that doesn't mean I think he is currently leading the country in the right direction. There is a BIG difference. Also, there is a lot of change that needs to happen and so far, none has occured so I just wanted to make that clear. This "positive" change, however, is very unlikely considering he only has a year and a half left in Office and really nothing big, except the healthcare plan which the Conservatives are currently trying to repeal, has occurred. Sorry, I just wanted to clarify.
I think that Obama wants to lead us in the direction but that doesn’t necessarily mean that he is going to take us there. He stressed so much in his campaign about “Change” but America is not seeing much of it. Hopefully he will help take our country to turn for the better and help us get out of the huge debt we are currently facing. During his first two years, Obama has been spending like crazy and that needs to stop right away. I do believe in what he says about cutting spending in our education system because what we are doing is obviously not working well. I agree with him that our country needs new and innovative ideas. Everything he said sounded great but it just is going to matter unless he actually does these things. As we have seen in the past two years, Obama says he is going to do a lot of things but never actually goes through with them. I know that it’s not all his fault, but when it comes to our budget and debt, he seriously needs to act on that now. Obama needs to start solving our problems now if he wants to even have the hope of winning the 2012 election. Obama definitely needs to start stop spending money in pointless things that aren’t doing us good. We cannot afford to pour money into something that won’t give us back good results, such as our education system. Obviously giving it more money is not bringing us back better results. I think that in his address Obama should have addressed more how he’s planning on getting our economy up and running again, instead of talking about high speed trains that we will never see unless he starts to bring us out of this insurmountable doubt. Another problem is the barrier between Democrats and Republicans that is causing gridlock. No matter what Obama says about them trying to work together or where they sit, there is always going to be a wall between them which is bad if we are trying to get anything passed. I think that what he said in this State of the Union sounds nice but I don’t think Obama will do what he says and not much will change. Hopefully Obama will start to take America in the right direction, and if not, we will definitely be seeing a new president in the office in 2012.
I think that Obama's State of the Union Address sounded great in theory and I really do think his ideas would work, if done correctly, in a timely manner, and if he can get anything through the Republicans in Congress. I also agree with what Abbey said about having to fix the economy through fixing other problems. We need to create jobs, because if our unemployment rate keeps going up, our economy won't improve. I was left hopeful after the State of the Union Address because he did have reassuring ideas. However, Grace is right that he was too broad and I had expected more of a plan rather than just his intentions and brainstorms. Overall, I think that his ideas would work. I just need proof that they'll be put into effect.
After listening too President Obama and his proposals during the State of the Union Address, I feel that he is leading America in the right direction with his ideas for the future, the only issue is seeing those ideas put into action. I agree with Bre about this; Obama proposes many new, innovative ideas to the American public, but the most important thing is actually seeing those propositions through. His actions/inability to act today will affect his campaign, either positively or negatively, in the future.
While the address did feel very hopeful and optimistic, he did seem too broad and not very specific, and specific plans are needed right now given the state of the nation today. That being said, I feel that if Obama creates some concrete plans, instead of the vague bullet points that were given during the SOTU, the issues could be agreed upon by both parties, his ideas for bettering America should be able to pass through Congress in the near future. Over the next year, Obama needs to definitely stop the excess government spending. All of the unnecessary spending that is occurring needs to stop because it is doing way more harm than good. I also agree with Morgan that the economy needs to be fixed immediately. Obama needs to realize that how the economy fares has a huge impact on the rest of the country. In order for all of these innovative plans to be put into action, the state of the economy needs to be stabilized, and I feel Obama has yet to figure out a way to do so effectively.
I just wrote this and it is gone. I hate technology.
I think that Obama does have the power to change our country in the next year for the better. He has the power at the tips of his fingers, but he is not being as active of a president as everyone hoped and believed. National debt is our biggest issue as Americans. I believe that it is the core of our corruption. So, like in our last blog response, if Obama listens to the Republicans about their plans to decrease the debt, an improvement can be made. Cooperation between both parties can change our country for the better and can get us back up on our feet. Obama's platform a few years ago was about change. Yes, the change was an African American president and that's great, but the change we really need is in our economic hell. If Obama wants to be re-elected, he could start now by making a better name for himself and not just being the change in skin color, but change as in the president who pulled us out of "the worst recession ever", as he said in his State of the Union address. Many things can be done by Obama to follow through with his proposals, which had good intentions, and can be accomplished in a year. I definitely believe that Obama can csolve some problems facing America and if he actually walks the walk instead of just talking the talk, America will slowly but surely mending itself.
I voted that yes, President Obama is leading America in the right direction. When voting I was thinking that his plans are starting to lead America in the right direction. While watching the State of the Union, I noticed that he kept referring to what other countries are doing. All of these countries he touched on are ahead of the United States in education, technology, and economic status. I believe this is one of his best ideas. This tactic is seen in any common competition. We obviously want to be the best, and if our strategy isn't working and our competitors is, we need to make some changes and adopt a policy that is based off of success.
Barack Obama can start to get America in this direction but I do not think he will be the one to completely change our direction. It is going to take a lot of time and money; two things we do not have a lot of. Also, this divided government is not going to help him get this going smoothly either. Like I said, the idea is great, the strategy has proven to work in other countries, but it is not the time for change to come about.
I voted that Obama is leading America in the right direction. However, specifically I think it is more of his intentions that are right, not the actually actions being taken (or not being taken). In the State of the Union Adress, Obama made many proprasals to Congress. In my opinion they seeemed like very logical plans for tackling the major issues our country deals with, such as education and mainly the economy. There may have been those strong proposals made, but due to the divided government I do not see them being put into action for awhile. Reading about the State of the Union around this time last year, many of the similar ideas were put on the table to resolve the issues. But, as we all witness, we have continued to deal with these same issues. with that said I do not think this year's State of the Union proposals will change anything except add more insight as too how to eventually fix things. There is already too much gridlock today when it comes to the governemnt making decidions. With that said it will be even more difficult to come to compromise about the most important decisions determining the future of our nation. Therefore, Obama, along with the two political parties, need to work harder than ever if there are any hopes of seeing improvements.
After hearing some of the main points President Obama described in his State of the Union speech, do you believe he is taking America in the right direction?
10 comments:
I think that President Obama was too broad and very vague during his State of the Union Address. Of course his intention is going be that he leads America in the right direction, but that doesn't necessarily mean that he will. The economy, in my opinion, along with the huge amount of debt that America is in today, should be the number one priority. I do not think that President Obama addressed those two fundamental issues well enough in the State of the Union Address. I believe that, yes, education is a good thing, but all these systems that he wants to set up are not any different than the ones set up in the past. Too much money is just being poured into the educational systems here, and the money is not being spent wisely. I believe that yes, education is of the utmost importance, but America needs an overall stonger educational structure. Programs aren't going to make this change and we can use the past two decades as an example of this. On a more optimistic scale, I did like that Obama wants to trade with more South American countries. I think this is a brilliant idea and will greatly help the United States economically. We cannot depend on China for everything because like I always say, they are, in my opinion, our biggest enemy. Overall, I do believe that President Obama has some good IDEAS that could lead America in the right direction, but it depends on HOW and WHEN those ideas will be put into action that is going to make the difference. President Obama only has two years left, and there are a lot of things that need to be accomplished in that short amount of time. Hopefully he will lead America in the right direction and improve in his presidency during these next two years.
I agree with Grace (or Gracie rather)that President Obama wants to lead the country in the right direction, as I'm sure almost everyone would. I do not believe that he is trying to sabotage the government, he just has the wrong path of ideas. Our number one problem is by far, 110 percent, the economy. That being said, I don't think President Obama is leading us in the right direction because he neglected to mention the weak economy in his State of the Union. In fact, he proposed more projects, more ways to spend money that we DO NOT have. I think some of his proposals were good and should be considered. However, they cannot be considered when there is no plan to back them up (which there wasn't) and they cannot happen when there is no money to fund them (which there is not). The American economy affects everything else in the country, so wouldn't it make sense to fix that problem first before starting tons of new ones? Why does the President fail to realize that? In all honesty, I think he realizes it, he just doesn't know how to fix it.
I agree with Grace and Morgan that President Obama is leading America in the right direction. I feel President Obama, in his SOTU, DID say that he, too, would like to stop spending so much and start trying to balance the national budget. He just wants to focus on other ways of achieving a balanced budget besides cutting social programs. Obama proposed cutting spending by avoiding tax breaks for big businesses and he said in his speech that he wanted to stop "pouring money into a system that's not working", in regards to education. I do not fault Obama for trying to think of innovative ways of economical reparation besides just cutting spending.
I liked that Obama talked about appealing to private investors to invest in community programs focused on employing citizens to work fixing roads and participating in manual labor. Furthermore, I think Obama's presentation of so many ideas proves that the economy IS his number one priority. The subjects he addressed in his speech were very relevant. The economy is not an issue that exists in a vacuum. To fix the economy, Obama must focus on other aspects of government, too. It is not a one-step fix, one can't just "cut spending". One has to be inventive and cut excess programs while still maintaining the integrity of a government that works FOR the people, including the unemployed. Education and health care may not have "economy" in their titles, but they are all inter-working elements that affect one another, and Obama addressing them proves he is trying to come-up with inventive ways to reverse our deficit.
I just hope he is able to really practice what he preaches and actually CHANGE SOMETHING. I think he had some really, really great ideas but, stagnancy is an ever-present evil on the political stage, therefore I think that in practice little will change. Unfortunately this sluggishness is a trend almost all presidents and Congresses have, and most likely will, always follow.
okay, I just want to clarify that Obama has the right INTENTION to lead the government on the right path, that doesn't mean I think he is currently leading the country in the right direction. There is a BIG difference. Also, there is a lot of change that needs to happen and so far, none has occured so I just wanted to make that clear. This "positive" change, however, is very unlikely considering he only has a year and a half left in Office and really nothing big, except the healthcare plan which the Conservatives are currently trying to repeal, has occurred. Sorry, I just wanted to clarify.
I think that Obama wants to lead us in the direction but that doesn’t necessarily mean that he is going to take us there. He stressed so much in his campaign about “Change” but America is not seeing much of it. Hopefully he will help take our country to turn for the better and help us get out of the huge debt we are currently facing. During his first two years, Obama has been spending like crazy and that needs to stop right away. I do believe in what he says about cutting spending in our education system because what we are doing is obviously not working well. I agree with him that our country needs new and innovative ideas. Everything he said sounded great but it just is going to matter unless he actually does these things. As we have seen in the past two years, Obama says he is going to do a lot of things but never actually goes through with them. I know that it’s not all his fault, but when it comes to our budget and debt, he seriously needs to act on that now. Obama needs to start solving our problems now if he wants to even have the hope of winning the 2012 election. Obama definitely needs to start stop spending money in pointless things that aren’t doing us good. We cannot afford to pour money into something that won’t give us back good results, such as our education system. Obviously giving it more money is not bringing us back better results. I think that in his address Obama should have addressed more how he’s planning on getting our economy up and running again, instead of talking about high speed trains that we will never see unless he starts to bring us out of this insurmountable doubt. Another problem is the barrier between Democrats and Republicans that is causing gridlock. No matter what Obama says about them trying to work together or where they sit, there is always going to be a wall between them which is bad if we are trying to get anything passed. I think that what he said in this State of the Union sounds nice but I don’t think Obama will do what he says and not much will change. Hopefully Obama will start to take America in the right direction, and if not, we will definitely be seeing a new president in the office in 2012.
I think that Obama's State of the Union Address sounded great in theory and I really do think his ideas would work, if done correctly, in a timely manner, and if he can get anything through the Republicans in Congress. I also agree with what Abbey said about having to fix the economy through fixing other problems. We need to create jobs, because if our unemployment rate keeps going up, our economy won't improve. I was left hopeful after the State of the Union Address because he did have reassuring ideas. However, Grace is right that he was too broad and I had expected more of a plan rather than just his intentions and brainstorms. Overall, I think that his ideas would work. I just need proof that they'll be put into effect.
After listening too President Obama and his proposals during the State of the Union Address, I feel that he is leading America in the right direction with his ideas for the future, the only issue is seeing those ideas put into action. I agree with Bre about this; Obama proposes many new, innovative ideas to the American public, but the most important thing is actually seeing those propositions through. His actions/inability to act today will affect his campaign, either positively or negatively, in the future.
While the address did feel very hopeful and optimistic, he did seem too broad and not very specific, and specific plans are needed right now given the state of the nation today. That being said, I feel that if Obama creates some concrete plans, instead of the vague bullet points that were given during the SOTU, the issues could be agreed upon by both parties, his ideas for bettering America should be able to pass through Congress in the near future. Over the next year, Obama needs to definitely stop the excess government spending. All of the unnecessary spending that is occurring needs to stop because it is doing way more harm than good. I also agree with Morgan that the economy needs to be fixed immediately. Obama needs to realize that how the economy fares has a huge impact on the rest of the country. In order for all of these innovative plans to be put into action, the state of the economy needs to be stabilized, and I feel Obama has yet to figure out a way to do so effectively.
I just wrote this and it is gone. I hate technology.
I think that Obama does have the power to change our country in the next year for the better. He has the power at the tips of his fingers, but he is not being as active of a president as everyone hoped and believed. National debt is our biggest issue as Americans. I believe that it is the core of our corruption. So, like in our last blog response, if Obama listens to the Republicans about their plans to decrease the debt, an improvement can be made. Cooperation between both parties can change our country for the better and can get us back up on our feet. Obama's platform a few years ago was about change. Yes, the change was an African American president and that's great, but the change we really need is in our economic hell. If Obama wants to be re-elected, he could start now by making a better name for himself and not just being the change in skin color, but change as in the president who pulled us out of "the worst recession ever", as he said in his State of the Union address. Many things can be done by Obama to follow through with his proposals, which had good intentions, and can be accomplished in a year. I definitely believe that Obama can csolve some problems facing America and if he actually walks the walk instead of just talking the talk, America will slowly but surely mending itself.
I voted that yes, President Obama is leading America in the right direction. When voting I was thinking that his plans are starting to lead America in the right direction. While watching the State of the Union, I noticed that he kept referring to what other countries are doing. All of these countries he touched on are ahead of the United States in education, technology, and economic status. I believe this is one of his best ideas. This tactic is seen in any common competition. We obviously want to be the best, and if our strategy isn't working and our competitors is, we need to make some changes and adopt a policy that is based off of success.
Barack Obama can start to get America in this direction but I do not think he will be the one to completely change our direction. It is going to take a lot of time and money; two things we do not have a lot of. Also, this divided government is not going to help him get this going smoothly either. Like I said, the idea is great, the strategy has proven to work in other countries, but it is not the time for change to come about.
I voted that Obama is leading America in the right direction. However, specifically I think it is more of his intentions that are right, not the actually actions being taken (or not being taken). In the State of the Union Adress, Obama made many proprasals to Congress. In my opinion they seeemed like very logical plans for tackling the major issues our country deals with, such as education and mainly the economy. There may have been those strong proposals made, but due to the divided government I do not see them being put into action for awhile. Reading about the State of the Union around this time last year, many of the similar ideas were put on the table to resolve the issues. But, as we all witness, we have continued to deal with these same issues. with that said I do not think this year's State of the Union proposals will change anything except add more insight as too how to eventually fix things. There is already too much gridlock today when it comes to the governemnt making decidions. With that said it will be even more difficult to come to compromise about the most important decisions determining the future of our nation. Therefore, Obama, along with the two political parties, need to work harder than ever if there are any hopes of seeing improvements.
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