Jesus has my Soul, the Republicans have Everything Else…

I love attention-getting titles, don’t you? But then when that’s all they are and the article is just stupid or not really related to the title, then I’m so disappointed. Oh well, this one is kind of true. Volunteering for the Roskam campaign for 3-4 hours a day, 5 days a week (when I don’t have other mandatory obligations, which are few) has really galvanized my love of politics. Going door-to-door, calling people has really allowed me to see the direct interaction side of politics. We hear about the policies in Washington, we see Congressmen on TV, but we don’t often think about all the interns running around the neighborhoods, whether by phone or car.

Another thing has been that I subscribe to and follow a bunch of (mostly) conservative political sights. One of the ones I forgot to mention in a previous post was the Drudge Report (The link is here). This is basically a plain site with text and pictures that captures headlines form a smorgasbord of different websites, all with different topics. The vast majority of the news is about politics and the headlines are usually sort of hyped-up to slam the Democrats. It’s very informative though because it also has foreign relations news and of course, a smidgeon of the most essential celebrity gossip (Like Bristol Palin and Levi Johnston). I think that I’m going to really try to let my political views show more in my high school this upcoming year. I mean, there isn’t too much room for it because a lot of people just don’t care, but I think now the atmosphere might be a bit different because it’s an election year (albeit not a Presidential one) and Golden Boy Obama’s not what many people thought he’d be. It’s actually kind of frustrating to see how many people whose parents generally are more conservative be quite Democrat. Again though, I think this was part of the Obama-effect because DuPage County (and all the usual conservative counties surrounding Chicago) went Democratic in 08. Obama won in our school’s mock election with 63 percent of the vote or something. I just figure it was the “popular thing to do”.

Anyway, I’ve also linked up my GMail account to Youtube (I didn’t know how useful a GMail account was simply for all the other OpenID places you can use it with) and subscribed to a bunch of GOP Congressmen whose ideas I support. Besides my own Congressman, so far I have Jeb Hensarling  whose articulations during the Financial Regulation C-SPAN debates were quite moving and Eric Cantor, the main Republican Whip and also the header of the YouCut initiative. I’ll definitely be adding more as time goes on. But as a note, it’s awesome to watch the short Congressional speeches made by guys like them. They just sound so articulate and line up well with my beliefs. But it’s also cool just to see anyone speaking in Congress. There’s an air to it that’s pregnant with authority and awe.

Another project I am going to be doing is the Republican Illinois Victory campaign, which is this massive calling program that’s there to take advantage of the best Republican chances for victory in IL in a long time (For those of you who don’t know, IL is a very blue state, but it’s mostly because of Chicago and a few other counties near the Mississippi and by the Southern tip). So you can do things like calling from home, which sounds cool to me. It also sounds cool because when I said I wanted to go to a call center, the nearest ones were far away, so they became unviable.

Lessons From the Campaign Office

Interning for my Congressman over the Summer and a bit earlier in the spring has really taught me so much and has expanded my horizons more than I thought would happen. First of all, my mom actually suggested that I intern for them a while back but I was hesitant as I am with pretty much every new things I try out. So I sort of ignored it but then had the idea in the back of my head for a long time. Then, in the beginning of my Sophomore year at Wheaton North, my APUSH class was going over the formation of the US. We were going through things like the beliefs of the founding fathers, the Puritans, the Federalist-Antifederalist debates, and of all these things I had strong opinions that I would occasionally voice in class (Nicely of course). So as I was feeling fired up about those sort of political things, my mom again brought up the idea (As she would periodically) and this time I felt that maybe it would be a good idea. So I called the office about helping out and to make a long story short, a long process of phone tag and business finally landed me in an office seat staring in front of a computer in mid-March. The business of the day was calling people in the northern suburbs of Pittsburgh, as there was a special election there that a Republican had a good chance of winning (Plus the fact that Congressman Roskam is firmly entrenched in his district and is making an effort to help Republican challengers and those who need assistance). Realize at this point that calling people I don’t know and leaving messages scared me to death. I have and do enjoy public speaking, but not using the phone. I always felt unprepared and would stumble over my words and just feel stupid. However, this job was actually not so bad because it held a key: A script! I no longer had to fear feeling idiotic, I had exactly what I needed to say right in front of me. So I did that for a while until the election (The Republican lost ::Teardrop::). I would then continue to help out, doing whatever was asked, but after school, I was and have been able to throw in so much more time into it. I now am in the office pretty much 5 days of the week from 2-4 hours every day doing whatever needed. And that’s also key to the lessons I’ve learned. As an intern, I have done pretty much everything. I have called people, walked in parades, gone door to door, cut out newspaper clippings, sealed/mailed envelopes, done data entry, and  have been a wall for people to talk into. This has taught me a few new skills, made me know and appreciate my talents (And know the areas where I, uh, lack skill….), and has really shown me flexibility. Usually I know if it’s the week before a parade we’ll be making phone calls, but I don’t always know. It’s a great feeling to be able to do whatever someone asks you to do and try new things. I feel quite useful. I’ve also meet some awesome people there (Clue: They’re all in/done with college) who have imparted their AP, college choice, major choice, and life choice (that sounded bad…) wisdom onto me. I have learned quite a bit from them and can really appreciate my coworkers.

Another thing I have learned from interning is how apathetic people are about politics. When I go door to door, most of the people aren’t home, most of the people who are home don’t know/care, and the people who do just say something like “jobs”. Well who doesn’t want jobs? Are you saying that everyone else on this block who didn’t say they cared about jobs simply doesn’t care if they get laid off? I do understand thought that it can be more important to certain people. But anyway, it’s kind of infuriating to see all these people who when you see the ratings of the President, Congress, and the government in general, seem to think that something’s going wrong, but yet no one really seems to know anything. People talk about how they’re not into politics, but that’s what makes our nation run! People talk about how they don’t like it when the Democrats and Republicans don’t play nice and work together, seemingly failing to realize how impossible that normally is! This nation was founded upon citizen participation and input, and now most people don’t know or care. That’s completely wrong and needs to change…somehow…We need to facilitate this participatory attitude in the people of my generation. You’d think the “Government run” schools would do a good job, but that’s not the case. Oh well, if you all don’t care, more power and influence for me then…

The Politics of Our Beloved Land

Politics has interested me for a while, and President Obama’s election really sparked that interest in me quite a bit. Being in Wheaton in Dupage county, I am in one of the wealthier and more conservative counties in Illinois (And no, we’re not wealthy. I have 5 siblings, remember? I’m paying for all of college myself). However, Wheaton North Public High School was a different story. It seemed, as national polls indicated, that all the young people were in love with Obama, and hated Bush and “that old senile white guy” McCain. Liking Obama was easily the “Cool thing to do.” I’ve just finished a mini lecture series on the history of US Presidential elections, and it was made in 2008 with the last lecture being an analysis of the 08 election. So I could see pretty specifically the massive “Blue shift” almost every single state had during that election. Besides Arizona, Oklahoma, Kentucky, and Tennessee, every other state and countless counties voted far more Democratically than the had in 2004. Even my country, along with many other “Wealthy and white” fast growing suburban counties that had previously been Republican strongholds either went Democratic (As was the case with all the counties surrounding Chicago) or saw their Republican majorities strongly reduced. So that was surprising to me, even though I had predicted early in the Summer that Obama would win by a sizeable amount.

Now today, the Democrats in Congress are in serious danger of losing the House and are probably going to see their majority in the Senate sharply cut (But that’s only because 36 are up for reelection this year). Obama’s approval rating is hovering around the 48-52 range and is at it’s lowest point ever. People are fed up with the liberal agenda that has totally ignored what a majority of the people really want. The deficit is incredibly high and the national debt is staggeringly huge. The new financial regulations bill (Whose Congressional debates I have watched hours of) is also meant to unreasonably restrain businesses (especially farmers) and banking in a way that severely limits their ability to lay safety nets for themselves and is again putting the government into every aspect of our lives. Now granted, some of the reforms have good ideas. Would it be nice to have cheap healthcare for everyone? Of course! Is it good that large financial institutions aren’t being irresponsible with funds and aren’t trying to make money on corporations failing? Yeah! But then do you make taxpayers foot the enormous bill, do you slow down the system, do you harm businesses? No! It’s just like most things the Democrats have come up with over the centuries. Unions were good ideas. They provided workers with better conditions and better pay when they were being exploited. But now, they’re simply out for themselves and don’t seem to care for the companies they actually work for. They are limiting business and slowing down production and aren’t doing much good. Was old age and disability insurance (Social Security) a good idea? Sure! But now it’s going to bankrupt out country because there are and definitely will be in the coming years far more retirees than workers. Things are not getting cheaper and if everything continues, Social Security expenditures will comprise a massive amount of our spending, again raising our deficits and national debt.

So essentially, the Democrats are fantastic at doing things that seem great, but in reality cost far too much money, and cost far too much government. Obama has for the moment lost quite a bit of popularity and many Blue-Dog (Fiscally conservative) Democrats that were swept into office in 2006 when the Dems were energized  are going to be swept right back out as many have not stayed true to their constituents and have obediently bowed to the more liberal wing of the Democrats that has controlled the agenda. Obama’s support among Independents-a key to his 08 victory-has all but vanished. So now, the Republicans are riding a wave that could land them quite a few seats. Republicans are extremely energized, even more so than they were in 94 with the “Republican Revolution”. The problem is, according to some poll (I forgot which one, maybe Gallup) most of those who are planning on voting for a Republican (And there are plenty) are doing so not because they like Republicans and their ideology, but because they dislike Obama. So Republicans cannot be overconfident in thinking that this is the beginning of a major change in American thinking and that they’ll be in power for years to come. As with almost every single movement centered around the hatred or dislike of a person or idea, once the object of dislike is removed, support for that movement vanishes. So Republicans must continue and support what the majority of Americans (And especially those Independents and Democrats) is supporting: fiscal restraint and deficit/debt reduction. Now I know that I have heard and seen personally many representatives (My own, Congressman Roskam *Beams*) especially Republicans that are advocating just that, but we need to make sure that Obama’s fad support doesn’t become our support, where it’s just “cool” to not like the Democrats. That way, we can set this country again on the right path toward a better future for all Americans. (Sorry, couldn’t help adding the melodramatic note at the end)

Subway Breakfast

So earlier this morning, well now technically yesterday morning, I got myself a Subway breakfast. A 6” flatbread sandwich with egg, pepper jack cheese, bacon, green peppers, and onions, an English muffin with eggs, pepper jack cheese, and onions, and a little bottle of orange juice. Now one thing you must realize about my family and I is that we hardly ever go out to eat, especially breakfast. We only do that for dinner when we’re on road trips or for special occasions. Another thing you must realize about me is that I’m easily impressed and can take an incredible amount of joy in the miniscule things in life. (Just so no one thinks I’m that great, I can also be so ticked by the smallest things, so it balances). Anyway, I had to clutch the bag in my hand and bike handgrip because my watch said I was late to leave for the Roskam campaign office where I intern, and I hate being late. So I had to wait on devouring my newly bought friends (Which were $3.67 with a coupon, which was partly the reason I went) until I made it to the office. Well, upon wrenching my right hand open and opening up the thankfully still warm sandwiches, I proceeded to eat them carefully in the hallway, listening to the only two people in the office at that time talk about how to get an apartment in D.C. (One of them was going to get an internship there). As I knew we were going door-to-door that day, I somewhat regretted getting the onions, but they were good and I love onions. I think they sort of dominated the English muffin though. But overall, I’d say if I had much more money to throw around, I would definitely be back there more often. Plus the fact that it’s healthy happens to be a conscience assuager. The orange juice was excellent too, though I love orange juice with a passion. Oooh. I’m actually planning on seeing how fast I can drink a half-gallon of it. I have high expectations because I almost succeeded in drinking a gallon of milk in an hour, and orange juice tastes better than milk.

Gee whiz, I’m making a blog post about a breakfast. My narratives are quite all-encompassing and awkwardly thorough. Oh well. That’s why it’s my blog and not yours. If I didn’t want to watch myself think and post about the most mundane things that seem cool to me, I would’ve hired someone else to write this…

Who I is?

Yes, the inevitable post of selfishness where I talk all about me. As much as I like myself, the post is somewhat obligatory. I’d rather talk about what I think. However, it is important to understand where I’m coming from and what I believe because all these things with certainly color my writing and be quite evident in it.
So first and foremost, I am a Christian. I have been one since I was 4 years old and it is the most central aspect of my life. This of course is easy to say, but hard to live out. It’s a constant struggle for me to put Christ and what He wants to do with me before myself and my desires. My favorite verse sums up myself quite nicely. 1 Corinthians 15:10 says: But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. This verse really means a lot to me because I have been given much. I can easily credit my accomplishments to myself, but it is God and His grace working through me that has enabled me to be who I am. I want to be the person who in this life, works their tail off serving Christ and doing my best, all through the power of God.
I also have very strong political views. I will not hesitate to say that I’m a conservative Republican and I actually am interning for my Congressman, Rep. Peter Roskam of the 6th IL Congressional District. So some of my posts now and in the future might involve interesting things that have happened while volunteering there.
My laptop (An IBM ThinkPad T40) is one of my most treasured electronic companions. I use it all the time and have really poured quite a bit of my life on it, considering all the Documents, pictures, and other things loaded on it. However, it is getting old and worn, so I’m hoping to get one in the next few years, depending on how much money I can acquire.
I also love photography. My Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ1 point and shoot has served me well for over two years and I’ve taken thousands of pictures with it. If you ask my friends, they’d say I’m obsessed with taking pictures and it occasionally annoys them when I shoot them relentlessly at camp and pretty much everywhere.
I also love to read. I’ve always been a reader, whether of books or online articles. I’m hoping that I can find a widget or some custom thing to have a “Currently reading” section somewhere on this blog. My reading style can be quite odd though, as I read extremely fast, so my comprehension isn’t all that fantastic. At least with novels and exciting books, I want to read to know what happens, so I try to find out as fast as possible. I also like academic reading of AP textbooks and other things that will help me for the classes and tests and make me feel smart too.
My favorite music is another odd thing. I really don’t have too many favorites. I am not that loyal to artists and usually only like 1 or a few songs of theirs. I do like Taylor Swift a lot though. Her songs are really well done and her voice is fantastic. I like all sorts of Christian music, but Hillsong’s worship music is just phenomenal. Also, some Christian rap songs are really cool too, but more on that later.
Well, that should be all. I’m done. There are better and more exciting things to write about and I’m sure you’ll see further aspects of my  life and personality come out as this blog continues.