What Tuesday Really Said About Santorum

February 9, 2012 • Blog, Politics • by
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There’s been a lot of confusion swirling around Rick Santorum’s “sweeping victory” in Tuesday’s three state GOP primary. He clearly won Minnesota, Colorado, and Missouri which seems in and of itself surprising and a potential indicator of how the midwest might vote. But the race is not really for votes, its for delegates, and in Tuesday’s primaries no delegates were committed.

It’s important too to realize that these “beauty contest” primaries are not representative. In Missouri, they had less than 6% of the voting population turnout, in Minnesota just over 1%, and in Colorado well below 2%. Even more important is the idea that these are the voters most excited or impassioned by a candidate or the issues that candidate embodies. Who else would show up for a primary where delegates weren’t actually decided?

What Santorum’s sweep could say is that he is the candidate of pro-life voters. There’s been a lot of news in the last couple of weeks around the abortion issue and its long been known that pro-life Republicans like to make their voice heard. Tuesday’s primaries probably say more about that than Santorum’s likelihood of getting nominated.

Getting into the 10%

February 3, 2012 • Blog, Economics, Politics • by
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Inc. posted an interesting article last week entitled, “How to Join the Top Ten Percent” in which they broadly examined the characteristics of the wealthiest Americans. They chose 10% instead of 1% cause this group in general has a net-worth of over a million dollars which and are still set apart from the average American.

The Inc. article pointed out that the wealthiest Americans tend to be entrepreneurs who own businesses that are doing well. The tax code encourages business and benefits business owners who are willing to take some risks. I think this is actually a really interesting point that I had not considered before. When most people think of the wealthy I think we imagine finance types and celebrities and CEOs. While this is certainly true, a large part of the top 10% Americans are business owners.

The article then goes on to look at some of the characteristics of this group. They find that the top 10% work longer hours, more than 60 per week as opposed to 40. They have taken risks that many tend to avoid. One point that I found very interesting was that at some point in their career they promised something before they were sure they could deliver it. I think every entrepreneur will recognize that.

Its not that these things will propel you into the 10% though. There is significant selection bias here. The author was only looking at the top 10% and found common characteristics, not characteristics that necessarily separate them from other people. There are plenty of people that I’m sure have taken risks, worked hard, and nothing has come of it.

To read the article, click here.

Of Politics & Policy: Why people who reject politics are wrong

January 31, 2012 • Beliefs, Blog, Politics • by
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Last week my favorite mystic theologian (we all have one right?) put up a quote on his blog by Alexander Solzhenitsny.

“I must say that among educated people, politics occupies far too great a proportion of their time. . .Questions of higher spirit cannot even be compared to the sort of blinking frivolity of politics. The ultimate problems of life and death show the colossal nature of this difference even more…People are prepared to stuff their heads with anything, and to talk on any subject, while actually blocking off any true contemplation of the [whole] issue. This is the reason for the increased pettiness of our society, and our concentration on the small and the irrelevant.”

I come across this anti-politics sentiment a lot. You’re hard-pressed to find anyone who has something good to say about politics. Yet I feel that the “politics is a waste of time” worldview is short-sighted. I think people forget that politics leads to policy.

We interact with policy everyday. Its the basis of the infrastructure we rely on. Many of us are graduates of an education system created by policy. It keeps us safe from terrorists, mad cow disease, and the super-flu. You might not like certain policies and wish that the government did more or less but I think we can all agree that policies matter. There is little else that affects the lives of so many.

It is tempting to look at our political system that is corrupted by money, the 1%, the left or the right, and want to just reject the whole system. Unfortunately I believe many people do just that. But there really is another option. We can work to change the system to rid it of corrupting forces as much as possible. We can work for reform, innovation, and a government that is truly reflective of its populace.

I too am frustrated as I watch today’s politicians duke it out like schoolchildren but I believe in change. I believe we can create something new. I believe I can use my voice to bring change. If you reject politics you’ve given up your voice. That is why I think people who reject politics are wrong.

The GOP Debate in 100 Seconds

September 23, 2011 • Blog, Politics, video • by
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Miss the GOP debate last night? Even know there was a GOP debate last night? Well luckily Talking Points Memo boiled the whole thing down to a 100 seconds for you. Check it out below.

 

 

*Update

This clip shows the crowd booing a gay soldier and Rick Santorum saying he would reinstate DADT.

 


political fight

Policy Matters

September 20, 2011 • Beliefs, Blog, Public Policy • by
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With the current state of our political system, it might be tempting to dismiss politics all together. In fact, I think many of my peers have done just that. What enthusiasm they had initially for President Obama has waned and all we hear about in the news is how each side has become entrenched and the entire system is a mess.

Yet politics and, more important, policy matter.

Last night I had the opportunity to attend the Illinois Forum to Combat Human Trafficking, hosted at Park Community Church. Speakers included Congressman Peter Roskam from the IL-6, Holly Burkhalter of IJM, Lynne Hybels, and representatives from several local organizations.

Speaking last, Holly Burkhalter, gave an impassioned speech about why policy matters. She shared about IJM’s work prosecuting human traffickers around the world. The big difference between today’s slavery and that of the trans-atlantic slave trade in the 19th century is that today, there is not a single country where slavery is legal, she shared. That means that the law is on the side of the slave, the victim, versus on the side of the slave owner as it was in 19th century America.

As a recent graduate of public policy school I have been convinced of the need to promote policy. It is what shapes our lives, our society, and our world. Laws and policy move trillions of dollars and are quite literally the difference between life and death. It is vital then, that people become active in the political system.

So call your Senators and Congressman, tell them to pass the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act. The bill is currently in committee in both the House and the Senate and it is vitally important to fighting human trafficking both domestically and around the world.