Welcome to Jaguar Politics!

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!

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Where is America heading in 2012? (Please respond by Friday, December 16)

For our last blog of 2011, I wanted to end with a question for all of you to think about: What type of year do you see 2012 being for the United States of America? Who do you think will win the race for the White House? Do you think we will be able to lower unemployment and create more jobs over the next year? Will the economy improve? Is it possible for Democrats and Republicans to try and actually work together to get things done? Will there be some type of major event to occur over the next year? Post your honest responses below. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

My main concern and hope for 2012 is our nation's economic struggle. After this past year, I assume that everyone in politics is doing their best to help the improvement of our economy. I do realize it is not an easy task but ever since 2001 after 9/11 our economy has drastically decreased. In the next election, I have high hopes for either Newt Gingrich or Mitt Romney and I would be happy with either of them being in office. Right now I do not have a preference because I do not know much information on them to base an opinion off of who is better. Regardless of who is in office, I believe that they will do whatever they can to lower the unemployment rate and try and create as many new jobs as possible. Whoever becomes president in the next election knows our nation's condition and know what it takes to work toward repairing it one step at a time and I do not doubt that they will do their best. In the process of creating more jobs and lowering the unemployment rate will hopefully boost our economy, even little steps at a time will be productive for our country. It is possible for both parties to work together and with our economy it seems necessary for them to do so, because each party is going to have a different take on the issue and different solutions. Butting heads with eachother will not help fix the economy but collaborating will, and with the help of both sides will dramatically help in more ways than one. I hope the major event would be that the government has figured out a way to create more jobs and the economy is gradually getting better. So now, all we do is wait, in hopes that our government will do what is best for us and the economy.

Anonymous said...

In the year 2012, I feel like it will be a continuation of this year as far as the gradual increase of the economy and employment rates. Hopefully, there will be a noticeable change, but I highly doubt that especially since most politicians’ main concerns is the election. I also feel that things will start to heat up since it is an election year. Just think about it. In a very few short months, propaganda and other hate ads towards candidates running in the election will be playing on repeat on TV, Youtube, and radio stations. As of right now, I believe that Obama will unfortunately win the race for the White House. He has a huge incumbency advantage and his campaign is funded by the millions of dollars he already has stored and ready to go for this election. Moreover, he has the support of many minorities, namely African Americans. I feel that SOME African Americans are just relating themselves to Obama because of their race and aren’t really focused on the issues and problems he’s actually resolved. I’m not saying every one is like this, however, I’m just giving my honest opinion…no offense to anybody. As far as Republicans and Democrats working together, there’s a slim chance. If anything there going to be fighting against each other even more because of the highly anticipated election. There could possibly be a major event that could take place next year, which could maybe shock the general public and have an influence on whom they vote for. Anything is possible at this point since the skeletons are slowly going to start coming out once the candidates for president have their first debate.

Anonymous said...

For the United States of America, I see 2012 as being an interesting year regarding what will happen with our nation. I do not believe Obama will win, he will probably need a miracle for that to happen. I think that the new president may actually be this Newt guy because Romney seems to be shaken up now that he actually has some competition. Newt just seems like he will most likely be the new republican candidate and I feel that he will be able to win the presidential election. Regarding the current economic status, I believe next year will have many ups and downs, but altogether the situation will continue to slowly improve. I do not believe that there will be any drastic results whatsoever, I think that our economic stability will become stronger over the course of many years, not just one. I do in fact think that we will be able to lower unemployment and create more jobs. Since the casinos are being built they will offer many, many jobs to Cleveland alone which will really help our city out. Then again these casinos may unfortunately cause more gambling problems and a rising unemployment rate, but if that happens, I think it will take at least more than one year to develop these problems with the loss of jobs. Overall, I think the new president will work very hard to create new jobs and I believe they will eventually be able to achieve this. I think it is possible for Democrats and Republicans to work together. Much of the nation is already extremely sick of their ability to not get things done because these parties are always at a stalemate. I think that they will finally realize that they need to work together and compromise and stop being so stubborn. If not, there will be many more problems to come. I think that there is a possibility of a major event occurring next year, because there is usually a big thing that happens each year. i think this year is was the capture and death of Bin Laden.In 2012, I think many problems will come about at the end of the year because so many people have this strong superstition that the world is going to end. Even though it is extremely unlikely to actually happen, I think tons of people will still freak out and cause chaotic problems that the government will be forced to address and handle. It will be interesting to see how the 2012 year unfolds.

Anonymous said...

I see 2012 being a year for proposed change and talk of change but no action being taken. I feel like it will be a year of promising and no doing. I am not sure who will win the race for the White House because I think it will be very close and could go either way. I feel like whom ever the Republican candidate ends up being, they will be sure to make promises as to how they will lower the unemployment ate and create more jobs. Not only will they have to have a plan for unemployment but they will also have to have a plan to remove the deficit. Do I think there will be major improvements next year? Not exactly but I think it will be the year to get plans going and that 2013 will be the year for change. I don't think it will ever be completely possible for Democrats and Republicans to work together because I feel like in today's age, there is so much competition and not enough of the true connections to issues. It's all about winning and being popular. I hope the major event to occur next year will be a Republican candidate getting into office but there is only about a 50-50 chance of that happening. I think next year will definitely be a year of talking and expressing feelings towards issues and ideas for change but nothing will be happening until either Obama is re-elected or someone new is in office. Obama may try and make big changes to get people's votes but I doubt congress will pass anything right away or in time for the election.

Anonymous said...

I think that 2012 will be a very interesting year. I am quite excited actually to see how people are going to react around December of 2012 will all the talk of the world ending. Personally I do not think the world is going to end because God said no one will know the exact time that the world is going to end. I think Barack Obama will be reelected into office after the 2012 election. I think that although there are a majority of Americans who do not agree with him I think those same Americans believe that he has done something for our country. Also people know him, his name, and his face well so if anything incumbency advantage will pull him through during the election. I think there is a possibility that as a country will be able to lower the unemployment rate and get back on the right track. I think that in order to do this though both the Democrats and the Republicans in Congress need to drop their closed minds in order to make an agreement between the two of them that will benefit America as a whole. I do believe that this can be done, but I think it takes the right people and the right leaders to get it started. I believe that there will be many major events that happen over the next year. Hopefully these events will not be devastating but will be good changes like how Libya and Egypt went through this year.

Anonymous said...

I see the year of 2012 as a dramatic one for the United States, and negative in regards to the election. 2012 will be surrounded by all aspects of the election: not only the people but the lies, gossip, negative campaigning, fighting, blaming, all the “interesting” stuff in politics. I mean, who doesn’t enjoy a little political drama? However many Americans, including myself, get sick of seeing the ads everyday regarding all the gossip of politics 24/7. The campaigns will be full of attacks and also many promises to make our nation a better place. In regards to the election, I feel that the Republican candidate will win. Obama’s approval ratings are very low for a president and frankly I think many people are sick of him. He promised a lot and made many mistakes. I thought him bringing home the troops was because he knew it was the right thing to do and believed it was safe. Now that I see he is doing it just in time for the holidays, it shows that it truly was just for his campaign. I know many people will be saying Obama helped our nation out in many different ways, but did he really do that much? I know bringing someone new in might have the same affect, but it is time for a fresh face. Obama had his chance to prove himself, but now it is time for someone else. He is asking for more time, but why should we give it to him? I honestly hope that the economy will improve but I don’t see that happening for a long time. I think that the main focus come 2012 will be the election and the economy, jobs, and unemployment will take a bit of the back burner until a president is elected or reelected. Sadly, I see the economy actually getting worse because the banks have not allowed themselves to “cleanse: or run their course by themselves and European countries and starting to go through what we did 2 years ago. I also do not see Democrats and Republicans working together at all. Obama is on a mission to do whatever he feels and does not feel the need to get approval for the Republicans anymore. Republicans will mainly be focused on finding their candidate so they will not be reaching out to Democrats either. I think 2012 will be a very interesting year and as far as major events, we will have to wait and see!

Anonymous said...

In my opinion I don’t think that 2012 will be much different then 2011. With regards to the presidency, I think that Obama and the Republican candidate both have a 50 percent chance of winning the election. Since Obama is the incumbent he has an advantage and many people still do faithfully follow him. The Republican candidate also has a chance at winning because many people don’t like Obama. Many people think that he hasn’t done anything to help the country and they want him out of the presidency as soon as possible. I think it will be close race between Obama and the Republican candidate. Dealing with the issues of unemployment and jobs next year will be very important for the next president. In order to lower unemployment and create more jobs a drastic change needs to be made. I don’t think that the change will be made any time next year due to the rivalry of the two parties. In order to make changes the two parties need to come together and compromise. All they are doing now is fighting and nothing is being done. If they can some how agree on a plan and see it through I think that are economy can turn around for the better. For example, during the Great Depression when FDR came up with the New Deal he saved our economy and brought jobs back. I believe that our economy will get better, our government just needs to try to work together.

Anonymous said...

Honestly, I see 2012 being a perfectly ordinary year in the United States of America, and I do not think that there will be any major events except the Presidential election. Of course, we never know what will happen, so perhaps there will be some unexpected events. The election will be the main focus in politics this year, and I think that the winner will depend on who the Republican nominee will be. I think that if Mitt Romney is the Republican candidate for the election, the Presidential race between him and Obama will be close. Newt Gingrich, in my opinion, would be easily defeated by Barack Obama due to his questionable past. This coming year will not be a time for any dramatic positive changes in the American economy, but I think our country’s economic state will gradually improve over the next year. Along with the economy, I think that the job situation will slowly improve for Americans throughout 2012. I hope that Democrats and Republicans will try to work together in the upcoming year, but I do not think that it will happen because they have not been able to agree for a very long time. Although I do not think that Republicans and Democrats will work together, I do think that it is still possible for positive changes to occur in government and politics. As long as a fairly equal amount of changes are proposed and made by both sides, our country will improve, and everyone will be happy.

Anonymous said...

I think that 2012 is could be an eventful year for America, and I am referring mostly to the exciting presidential election season that is sure to come. I don’t know if whole lot more is going to happen to us as a nation however. I agree with Maggie in that it’s probably just going to be ‘one of those years’.
I do not know right now who is going to win the presidential election. As we discussed in class today, a lot of people really just want Obama out of office, which is an advantage for the Republican Party in this election. However, I still think that Obama has a chance at wining. It is obvious that most of the people in our class are against Obama and that is why I think it is hard for us to imagine, as a class, Obama actually wining the election. I do think that there are a lot of people who will vote for Obama next year and, once again, our class has a difficult time realizing that there are still people that support him due to the overwhelming hatred of him. But there have already been surprising things that have happened in this election so far so I guess we really don’t know what could happen. And Obama still has a whole year left in office, so how he finishes his term could definitely affect the outcome of the election.
I do think that in time we will be able to lower unemployment and create more jobs, but I don’t know if that is going to happen in 2012. I definitely think that our unemployment rates will improve but that it will take some time and that they may still be a little high by the end of 2012. I also think that the economy should begin to improve soon. I think that we have spent enough time struggling to balance out budget and that it’s just all going to work out soon. I don’t think that we will hit rock bottom, so the only other option for the economy is to improve. That’s just how I think it is going to work out. But again, it will definitely take time. However, I can see us being in a better state economically by the end of 2012.
As for Democrats and Republicans being able to get along and get things done, I don’t think that is going to happen in 2012. We know that Obama is going to start trying to do his own thing, since the Republicans are preventing him from getting anything done, and I don’t thin that is going to work out for him either. I think that it’s really hard to find a way to make a split government work and I don’t think that it’s going to happen in the next year.

Anonymous said...

I think that in 2012, we are looking at another hard year. It may be charged with political energy as the Obama and the Republican nominee battle for the White House, but it seems as though more troubles are in the forecast. I don't know if anyone follows the European debt crisis, but I think that that issue is going to explode in 2012. The European economy is just making it through 2011, limping along while being patched together with compromises and new referendums. However, this can only go on for so long. This also has a huge impact on us, because our debt status is only a little better than theirs (and that is only because they have 5+ countries to deal with... we can't even get 2 parties to get along). If the economy in Europe collapses, then our economy will follow in the next day or even the next hour. I have a bad feeling about the economic status of the Western world. Also, this may sound kind of stupid, but I also think that as more college students graduate and as more 55+ people are forced to keep working that there will be an even larger shortage of jobs. As for the race for the White House, I guess it depends on how much emotional support Obama can summon. He cannot go off of his stats alone because they are not very good, and he knows it. However, Mitt Romney doesn't seem the type to get Republicans excited and to be honest, I feel that Republicans are being forced into choosing Mitt because he is the only suitable choice even if you don't agree with the issues he stands for. The big question of fixing unemployment and jobs only depends on the improvement of a) the economy in general and b) the stabilization of the social security system that would allow the people who should retire to retire. On Democrats and Republicans working together, not a chance until we get someone who is smart enough to see that problems can only be fixed if both sides of the aisle work together and are not so fixated on "party politics". Now that would be a big event that I would like to see in 2012, but one can hope. As for other events in 2012, I think we can expect something on China's shuttle program, or something of that nature, because that would be something that would place them up at the level of the most developed nations in the world, and therefore something that they'd make sure they'd announce.

Anonymous said...

I don't really think that 2012 will be that eventful besides the election. While there are obvious economic and foreign policy issues that need to be taken care of, I don't think any action will be taken on these issues with Obama in office. In regard to the election, it doesn't matter to me which GOP candidate is President, as long as we can get Obama out of office. At this point, I really think and hope that the Republicans choose Romney. I am currently watching the GOP debate in Iowa occurring today before the Iowa caucus. I was surprised that Ron Paul was doing so well. His opinion on Iran really bothered me. I really like Romney and his answers, especially his views on gay rights and his stress on morality. Gingrich also had really good points, except for his actions and opinions on abortion. While I do like most of his points, I don’t think he would be able to beat Obama. The Conservative National Review, an influential conservative magazine, recently published an article saying “If Gingrich is the nominee, a campaign that should be about whether the country will continue on the path to social democracy would inevitably become to a large extent a referendum on Gingrich instead.” Gingrich did play really well to the audience though, since the people who vote in the early caucuses are often the most conservative. I also actually really liked most of what Perry said, especially when he said that if his Attorney General didn’t know about Fast and Furious he would force him to resign. I really like how Gingrich talked about how their only real opponent is Obama. As for unemployment and the economy, I don't think we can have much improvement with Obama as President. His American Jobs Act isn't going to ever go into effect. Obama has all of these 'wonderful' ideas, but he either doesn't follow through or they seem to just fade away. It is possible for Democrats and Republicans to get along in some cases, but it can be rather difficult. Like I said earlier, I don't think anything major can happen with Obama in office.

Anonymous said...

I think the year of 2012 is unoredictable politically. I believe 2012 will be a year with a lot of argument. Obama is going to need to try a lot of things in the White House in order to get reelected. While the republicans are going to do whatever they can to get a Republican in office. In 2012 I think politicans are going to do a lot of things that will help their candidate for each political party instead of worrying about whats best for the country. In the next election, however, I do not know what the outcome will be. Many poeple are dissatisfied with Obama becuase he has not lived up to some of the standards he promised in 2008. On the other hand Obama is goog at getting his name out there and still has many supporters. I personally think it would be good for America to get someone new in office. America has seen what Obama has done in that last few years and what he has done with the economy. I don'tthink the economy will imporve next year because politicans are going to be more focussed on their party winning the election. Legislation would be hard to pass because the opposite party doesn't want their oponent to succeed. Also I think that many politicans are just going to end up arguing to prove that their party is right and to make the opposite party look bad.

Anonymous said...

I see 2012 turning out to be a relatively boring year aside from the election. That will be the main focus of everyone's attention so it is unlikely that anything else big will happen. Obama may try to push through some things that he thinks will help his campaign, but other than that I feel like the political world of the United States is going to be placed on sort of a back burner to the focus of the election. I cannot yet say who will win the election. We do not even know who the Republican nominee is, so there is no possible way to judge that. I hope that Obama does not win. I hope that the Republican candidate, whomever they may be, wins the election. I think that there is a good chance for the Republicans because many people are frustrated with Obama and his lack of doing the things he promised. He promised this country change, and he has yet to deliver it (Why he thinks we need to change the fundamental beliefs of the wonderful nation is beyond me). Our country has not been "changed" while he has been president and many people are not happy with that. Yes, there are the people who follow him an almost cult-like manner, but I think there are many more people who hate him so much that they would vote for anyone or anything over him. I think that unemployment rates could potentially drop, but they do not have the best chances under Obama's presidency. His JOBS bill seems like a good idea on paper, but using money that we don't have to create jobs will just hurt the economy more. The best solution to our economic and unemployment struggles is to cut taxes across the board. Lower taxes lead to increased consumer spending and increased consumer spending leads to more jobs due to a rise in demand of products. I feel like that is the only way that our economy can actually improve and unemployment rates can be lowered. Yes, Democrats and Republicans could potentially work together, but I don't think they should step away from their beliefs to meet those of another party. People should stick to their values. Honestly, I don't want any of Obama's bills or ideas to passed through Congress so I want the Republicans to do whatever it takes. Obama's ideas will not help our country. They will make it worse. So the Republicans in the House need to do everything within their power to prevent them from getting passed for the next year until Obama is hopefully kicked out of office. I don't necessarily think any major events will occur over the next year, but I am concerned about Iraq. I did say in the blog that we wrote about leaving Iraq that I was not pleased with this move on Obama's part. I think it is a silly campaign trick that he will use to try to get voters. I worry that something will happen over in Iraq. I worry that everything we worked for over seas will disappear because we left prematurely. The only big event I see happening this year is one that I hope with all of my heart doesn't happen. I could see something terrible happening in Iraq which would cause us to need to return over there and basically start all over again. Even though this would show Obama as a poor decision maker, I would never wish for our country to go to war with any country just to show that he is a bad president. That would be a horrible thing to do. I hope no major events happen this year and we can all focus on the upcoming election and hopefully celebrating with our new Republican president.

akostell said...

2012 has the chance to be a simple and quiet year when nothing goes too well or wrong; but if Obama wins again (which he won't) then we will definitely have issues. We all know what the major event will be in 2012: the election. But what happens all before that and leading up to it? Honestly? Probably nothing. Obama is too busy trying to win a very difficult campaign to try and pass anything in senate or eliminate our debt. So our debt crisis? Going nowhere. We will just have to wait for the next president to hopefully get us back on track and actually do something for our nation, but we have to wait until 2013 for that to happen.
Though 2012 is going to be an uneventful year in 2012 there are certain areas that will be looking up. Cleveland for example will have thousands of jobs opening in 2012 just for the opening casino and aquarium. Cleveland and other cities are taking the initiative to help eliminate some of the nation's issues such as unemployment all on their own.
Even though 2012 will be uneventful other than being the year that Obama is gone (yippee!!) there are certain areas and cities around the nation that are slowly helping to improve us. Unemployment is going down, debt is very slowly being re-payed, and America is picking its feet up again. Every year is important to our country, whether interesting and important or not.

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?

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