CollegeCandy » election 2008

5 Reasons To Get To The Polls

Lauren - University of Michigan — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 16:40:38 +0000

Happy Election Day, everyone! I have been waiting for this day for four freaking years, so I can’t wait to head to the polls and get my vote on. If you aren’t quite as stoked as I am, and think you have better things to do than sit around in a long ass line and submit a ballot (full of things you don’t understand), think again.

There are lots of great reasons to vote. Here are just a few of the biggest and baddest:

1. Exercise your right: There are people in this world who don’t have the right to vote. We do, and that is something we should not take for granted. We are so fortunate to be able to have a say in who leads us, what laws get passed and the future of our country. Being that we are college students, this election effects us the most as we will be the people getting jobs, making changes and moving this country forward. We must not sit back and let other people decide our future!

2. Free donuts: Wear your “I Voted” sticker into a neighborhood Krispy Kreme and get a special election themed donut free!

3. Free coffee: Take that free donut and head to the Bucks where you can get a free tall coffee just for casting your vote. The perfect (free) breakfast.

4. Free ice cream: Go vote early so you can get some free Ben and Jerry’s from 5-8.

5. Free sex toys: Those who vote deserve a little pleasure, so head to Babeland to pick up your free Silver Bullet mini vibrator. This thing totally puts the OH! in Obama.

Seriously, if you don’t care about the future of this country (what is wrong with you!?), then at least vote for the free food. I mean, free Starbucks?! That’s gotta be worth something.

Can You Date Someone on the Other (Political) Team?

Lauren - University of Michigan — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 16:30:21 +0000

With politics boiling over all around us people are becoming quite polarized. I know that I have had many a fight with my right-leaning sister-in-law (whom I normally LOVE) that would have turned to blows had my brother not jumped in (literally) to break them up. It wasn’t like I planned to fight with her; I just couldn’t believe the things she was saying and, before I knew it, I was biting off her head and spitting at her.

What can I say? I’m very passionate.

Which made things a bit difficult for me recently when I met a wonderful guy…whom I soon found out was a Republican (ew). I wanted to like him – really I did – but was it really possible to be with someone who votes for the other party? I mean, it may be just a vote, but doesn’t it all tie back to someone’s beliefs, morals and passion?

I tried to stick it out, but I couldn’t get myself past the fact that he declared his love for Fox News within the first 5 minutes of my arrival.

Don’t get me wrong; there is nothing wrong with Fox News. And there is nothing wrong with Republicans. But someone who makes a bold statement about his love for Fox News is not someone I want to be with. It is one thing to date someone who votes for the other team; it is quite another to date someone who votes for the other team and then declares his love for said team from every pedestal/mountain/tall chair he can find.

At that point it becomes less about political party and more about values and common interests. It is not that I hated him for voting for Bush (which, in fact, I did), but rather that my idea of a fun Saturday looked completely different from his. I like to walk in the park, hit up the farmer’s market and peruse the aisles of Trader Joe’s. He wants to listen to Rush Limbaugh on the radio while he drives his gas guzzling Hummer to a Pro-Life rally downtown.

Like everything else in life, when dating someone out of your political party moderation is key. If your prospective mate is a more moderate member of the Republican Party, that’s fine; while you may have differing views on tax breaks for the wealthy, the more important issues – the ones that come from deep inside you and dictate who you are – may still align. But if he’s a Bush loving, gun toting, anti-abortion activist, you may want to pack your things and get out. And, perhaps, consider picking up a more liberal lookin’ guy at the polls tomorrow.

Only 5 More Days Until The Election

Lauren - University of Michigan — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 20:40:35 +0000

The election is only 5 days away! Imagine how much our lives are going to change in the next five days. No, not because we will be getting a new president, but because the election will be over. The coverage will be over. After 2 long years we will be able to return to our regularly scheduled lives.

Not gonna lie: the past 6-8 months have been really exciting. All this campaigning and debating and Sarah Palin-ing has been really freaking awesome. People are getting involved in politics like never before and it is just really fun to watch it all unfold. But, I can’t say that I am not a wee bit happy to see it all ending in 5 short days.

Let’s look forward to November 4th. Here is a list of pros and cons of the end of election season:

Pro: No more campaign commercials

Con: More time for these kinds of commercials

Pro: No more funny skits on SNL

Con: Unless McCain and Palin win

Pro: We will be done with the Bush administration

Con: I think I just broke a nail (that’s all I could think of)

Pro: No more “experts” on every damn channel predicting how things are going to go in the election

Con: 24 hour news shows will have to be filled with other less interesting crap

Pro: No more interruptions during Deal or No Deal for a 30 minute commercial.

Con: No more excuses to eat baked goods (“I’m supporting my candidate!”)

Pro: No more hearing about Joe the Plumber, Joe Sixpack, or any other Joe.

Con: Those guys were the closest things I’ve had to a relationship in a really long time (besides Joe I-Can’t-Last-More-Than-40-Seconds).

Pro: We will have a new president!

Con: We will still have a seriously crappy economic situation, a war with Iraq, and other really huge issues to deal with. Oh, and we still have to go to class on Election Day.

Before You Vote: Vote on the Truth, Not on your Truthiness.

Jill - University of Wisconsin — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 13:10:46 +0000

While I may be one of the only people still undecided for the upcoming election, I came across something today that I thought was important to share with you all. A girl I know posted a video on her Facebook status and I had nothing better to do except check it out (and by that I mean, of course I had a million things better to do but procrastination seemed like the best choice).

Anyway she posted this video showing John Mccain from last March swearing numerous times to an NY Times reporter.

It already has over one hundred thousand views.

The only problem is: it’s not true. Far from it actually.

Take a look at the ORIGINAL video; it is true that the clip is showing McCain on edge when being pressed about his private conversations with John Kerry. However, he did not swear during the interview. Not even once. And now, because some guy with too much time on his hands got crafty with his computer gadget editing tools, over one hundred thousand people are judging his character over something that is just not true.

So, I’m just writing to remind you that no matter who you plan to vote for, do your research – on both sides. It’s so easy to believe the first audio snippet you hear or YouTube clip you see, but the fact of the matter is, the media loves to sensationalize and turn everything into breaking news (i.e. Jamie Lynn Spears being knocked up for the second time). (Editor’s Note: WHAT!? That isn’t true?!)

As a journalism major, I learned the importance of fact checking EVERYTHING with at LEAST two credible sources. Even minor things. My job would be so much easier if I passed things along without verifying their validity first; I would have a lot more time for Happy Hours and keg stands, for one. But, if that was the case, I also would have probably passed on hundreds of things that I thought to be true or accurate on first glance that turned out to be so 1000% false.

Things get taken out of context more often than not and the fact is, once something is out there, you can’t take it back and opinions are formed based on things that couldn’t be further from the truth.

I went to a friend’s synagogue over the Jewish High Holiday, Yom Kippur and the rabbi made a really interesting point with his sermon. He was talking about how we are all bit hearing impaired; not because we’ve spent the better part of our high school days at obnoxiously loud B ackstreet Boys concerts (or was that only me?!), but because we choose what to hear and what not to. Stephen Colbert refers to this as truthiness.

The Rabbi referred to some book/study (the name I can’t remember), saying that, basically, once we believe something to be true, we only pay attention to things that prove that point. For example, if you believed wholeheartedly that Britney Spears can sing, you are more likely to tune out on the TV segment, or skip over an article in the paper, whose headline seemed to be trying to prove why in fact, she really can’t. Instead you would only focus on the articles that seemed to assure you that you are right in your beliefs. And since it’s hard to find an unbiased media source these days, it’s so easy for us to find what we want to hear and believe to be true instead of what actually is true.

So in the next few weeks, I ask that you don’t forward an email or a YouTube clip on without knowing if it is categorically correct. This does nothing more than a disservice to others… and to yourself. Before you believe what you hear spewed out by commentators, newspapers, and even the candidates themselves at debates/interviews, follow up and do the research.

So here’s to not skipping over this.

Election 2008 Meets Halloween 2008

CC Staff — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 14:40:40 +0000

Halloween used to be a holiday where people dressed up to spook others. Then it turned into a holiday where people dress up to f**k others. And sometimes it’s a holiday where people dress up to honor others.

This year, why not do all three? Dress up as Sarah Palin!

She scares the crap out of me, my guy friends wanna f**k her, and, somehow, it’s an honor to dress up as this gun toting, beehive wearing, American Vice Presidential hopeful.

[Photo courtesy of Gawker.com]

Paris Hilton’s Energy Policy: Loves It

CC Staff — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 15:30:22 +0000

See Paris Hilton Responds to McCain Ad and more funny videos on FunnyOrDie.com

See more funny videos at Funny or Die


Recently, McCain ran an ad that attempted to compare Obama to Paris Hilton and Britney Spears.  Obama is a celebrity, was the basic message of the ad, don't vote for someone millions of people think is awesome.
(Okay.  So maybe the message was really about how Obama is more famous than he is versed in international politics, but the McCain camp just made themselves look redonk by bitching and moaning about some other guy's popularity.)
ANYWAY, Paris and the guys over at FunnyOrDie decided that the best way to fight back against old people smear campaigns was to make a video that was more than just hilariously similar to the original -- they made a video that actually made a lot more sense.  Plus, it's funny.  Second plus, Hilton is not speaking in her weird baby voice.  Third plus: an energy policy I can actually get behind.



Pimpin’ All Over the Presidency: Ludacris vs. Obama
Melanie - Northeastern University — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 13:55:21 +0000

I’m going to say what everyone is thinking. Ludacris is a modern day Shakespeare. Yeah, I said it, someone had to. If you don’t know every word to “Roll Out (My Business)” then I’m not sure you can be considered an American.
What could be better than a modern day Shakespeare? Pair him with today’s JFK or some other awesome leader of yesteryear. That of course, is Barack “Yeah I did coke, so what?!” Obama. Luda plus Obama? It’s like Batman and Robin, peanut butter and jelly, Paris and Nicole, boxed wine and passing out on a sidewalk! They just make sense together.
Naturally I was psyched when Barack and Luda first met up to talk about AIDS, empowering the youth or bling. My hopes were built up by a conversation that I could only assume they had.
Ludacris: YOU’S A HOOOO, OHHHHH!
Barack: Together… we can change America, Ludacris.
Ludacris: Yeah man, you’s going for that number one spot.
Barack: I want you, to be… my running mate.
Ludacris: YEAHHH Baby. Hells YES we CAN OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! LUDA! YEPPP!
My dreams started to become closer to reality when Ludacris dropped his new song “Obama’s Here”. Brilliance, sheer brilliance. I’d even call it poetic if poetry wasn’t so boring. He even dropped the idea of him being the Vice President! I felt faint with excitement, Ludacris said all the things I simply couldn’t articulate. My personal favorite line? “Hillary hated on you, so that bitch is irrelevant.”
However, things have taken a turn for the worse. Obama wasn’t as crazy about Ludacris’ single as I was. He formally REJECTED Luda’s delicately put-together song. I’m crushed. According to Ludacris, Obama would’ve even give him a “special pardon if [he’s] ever in the slammer.”
Barack! You’re going to pardon him for a future drive-by or shoot up of a club, but you won’t accept his praising lyrics? Ludicrous.

         


Paris Hilton for President: That’s Hot 2008
Melanie - Northeastern University — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 15:30:52 +0000
 So here’s the sitch: John “I’m not dead yet” McCain likened Barack “Too Sexy for this presidency” Obama to Paris Hilton in one of his feeble attempts to get attention, or you know, “campaign,” which is pretty funny considering that McCain is married to a character who is very similar to Hilton. You know, blonde, looks like a leather handbag, is an heiress to a shit-ton of money but doesn’t really contribute other than being “umm, kinda good looking?”
I digress.
Anyway, the democrats got all pissy and whiney about the ad and made some comments that didn’t do anything to help the situation, but I’m sure they’re still whining about it, not being productive, you know, the usual. I didn’t really see the problem with the ad, mainly because I was psyched about Paris Hilton being president.
I’m not really wild about either candidate, so I’m going to have to say we all write-in Paris Hilton for president for 2008. Mostly, because who couldn’t do a better job than what’s his name? Also, because she would hopefully implement some great policies that would bring this country out of it’s depressing state.
She’s a perfect representative for America. She has tons of super sweet connections with people, even if the majority of her network is people she’s given blow jobs to. She’s concerned with appearances and does not approve of anything “not hot,” like terrorism, hate crimes, animal cruelty and flannel. She doesn’t seem to care about either the Democrat or Republican party, but she does party, thus making her the perfect middle ground this country needs.
I’d start tuning into C-SPAN if she passed a law that mandated everyone in the House of Representatives to bring a tiny pursedog or other cute animal to every meeting. I’d watch her speeches, even if most of them were interrupted by her answering text messaged on her bedazzled BlackBerry. I’d even watch her speeches if they were filmed in Night Vision!
Maybe John “I Just Wet My Depends” McCain has a solid point. Maybe all this country needs is a little hotness. So, who’s with me?
“Hilton ’08: Yes, We CAN, bitch! Loves it!”

         


Celebreality in Election 2008
CC Staff — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 19:30:56 +0000
You wouldn’t think it, but there is one way this 2008 presidential election looks sort of like the end of the 2004 campaign.
The celebrities are coming out early and in full force.
Here’s how it breaks down by candidate (the ones who are still in the game) and celeb (this is a MUCH abbreviated list):
Mike Huckabee – Chuck Norris
 Barack Obama – Oprah Winfrey
 John McCain – Red Sox pitcher Kurt Schilling
 Hilary Clinton  – America Ferrera
I understand that a celebrity endorsement can bring excitement to the campaign and makes people who otherwise might not pay attention to a particular candidate tune in and then (I hope) research that candidate’s platform. Perhaps I shouldn’t be so shocked that not only do quite a few people take note of who throws their support where, but it actually makes a difference as to who is coming out to back you up.
According to a Forbes.com poll, six  celebrities “who would have the most positive impact on the image of a candidate with whom they associated were Oprah, on top, followed by Tom Hanks, George Clooney, Jon Stewart of The Daily Show, Angelina Jolie and Tiger Woods.”
Conversely, the Forbes poll shows that politicians should be avoiding Rosie O’Donnell, Tom Cruise, Madonna, Jane Fonda, Donald Trump and Susan Sarandon.
Interesting.  I will admit that I can see how Jon Stewart would have a positive impact (especially because I might be in love with him), and how Tom Cruise would bring someone down. On my part it’s less about which celeb I like, and more about which ones I can take seriously. If I were running for President and Tara Reid began vocalizing her support for me, I would take issue with it and try to separate myself from her as quickly as possible. On the other hand, basing it solely on reputation and acting chops, if Meryl Streep was offering her support, you bet your ass I’d take her up on that.
As for the famous whose support is done more quietly through financial support, you might be surprised to see who’s putting their cash where.
Does it matter that Obama’s getting many of the big names behind him?  In 2004, John Kerry had a big celebrity backing, especially as the election drew near. Despite a close election, it’s hard to say whether the endorsements hurt or helped Kerry in winning 48.3% of the popular vote versus Bush’s 50.7%.
So what do you think? Does celebrity endorsement matter? Should it? Does it influence the way you vote or do you just ignore them?

         


Candidate Craze: Find Out Where You Stand In ‘08
CC Staff — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 19:55:51 +0000
Don’t know which candidate you’re leaning towards for next year’s presidential elections?
Yeah, me either.
Despite the candidates push to get the attention of our generation, I still haven’t done as much homework as I need to on the candidates and their issues.
From getting on MySpace to being interviewed by Tyra Banks, these candidates are speaking to the ladies and gents of our technology savvy generation.
They (finally!) understand that the young people in this country have a voice, and that voice is going to speak loudly in ’08.
This quiz (I know, quizzes, UGH!) is a good precursor to all that candidate homework that is right around the corner. It asks how you feel about a few of the very important issues and tells you how you align with EACH of the presidential candidates.
It’s surprising to see exactly how each candidate feels about the issues that you feel are most important for our country.
I know that there are actual quizzes to take and papers to write, but with the turmoil of our country at the moment, we cannot afford to be apathetic about the presidential elections.
Besides, who doesn’t like to procrastinate with an online quiz?
By the time next year rolls around, I’ll be damn sure to have studied up so I know I am making the right choice based on the right issues.