In 2010 the Supreme Court ruled on "Citizens United" a case stating that during elections independent contributors, while unable to give money directly to candidates, are allowed to spend as much capital as they choose on advertisements for or against them. These SuperPACs, as they're called, require no oversight from the candidates they claim to speak for- indeed they are not allowed to work with these candidates. Thus they are allowed to make more spurious claims farther removed from their candidates stances. The Supreme Court left too much room for claims unsupported by both the candidates and facts.

The supporters of Citizens United claim that SuperPACs help keep voters more informed, as any group making the ads is able to spread "arguments that voters may find useful in casting their votes" (Chicago Tribune Editorial Par 8). While this is technically true, it leaves out the mitigating factor of money. Any group is able to make ads about any subject they choose, but ad space and ad time goes to the highest bidder, the wealthiest "donor". As such, candidates with the most funding tend to be white older men, usually with previous experience (incumbent or known publicly) with stances more in line with the donors. They also "increase transparency" by making these donors more visible- as they are the names behind the ads, rather than the candidates they are supporting. The billionaire minority funding the ads are required by the act to be visible, and are thus the most easily researched sources for campaign ads.

Those opposed to the act note that as the act is designed, it almost encourages inaccuracy. Candidates are prohibited from interacting directly with the campaign ads creators, facilitating their mistruths and misleading. Another issue is the ads are unregulated with regard to content. "Attack ads" (ads used to discredit or insult candidates) are encouraged through this. Just as donors can decide which of their candidates stances to push and which to embellish, so too can they embellish and push stances that candidates they are against would not.

Frankly, I believe SuperPACs go against the principles of democracy. A true democracy requires fair and balanced time for all candidates to present their ideas- something that is impossible in the best possible situation. Allowing time to be purchased precludes minority and lower class candidates from meaningful discourse. Allowing groups such as the Koch conglomerate to decide which candidates get the most support and time to air their issues maintains the current status quo of our government- something we've seen for too long needs to change.

Howdy Gang! Tonight’s entry is an interview with Mary, my mother. Generally an ambivalent voter, Mary agreed to have a short discussion about her voting habits when she can manage to get to the booths. She identifies most with the Democratic Party as a moderate liberal.

       Personally invested in the Obama vs McCain election, Mary voted for Obama due to her belief in his family values. She was disillusioned with what she believed was a distancing from common sense and peacefulness in the Bush administration. She believed his rush to war was hasty and reckless, and caused more war and bloodshed than was necessary- something she still believes is ongoing. Mary’s hope for 2016 is for Hilary Clinton to win the Presidential election, beginning a new Clinton administration- Mary was a fan of the first, “Bill [Clinton] was just so interesting to watch, charming” she said of him.  

As a member of the younger generation, my own experiences are primarily that of the Bush administration onwards. Seeing the spectacles and messes made by the administration shook my faith in the office, like many others. In a world where information is sent out so quickly and without confirmation, it's important that a leader be thoughtful before making decisions- a trait that G.W. Bush did not demonstrate during his tenure. 

The media talks about a large gap between generations, but a collective, society only has so many viewpoints. You're bound to agree and disagree with people all the time, but it's the point of civilization to find a balance. Voters are compelled by the media to oppose those whose ideas differ, as though democratic debate is an either/or sum game. Liberal vs conservative is a scale, and finding the balance can be different but should voters on both sides of the scale try to work to find it, it's achievable.


Questions posed in the interview:
1. What is your personal affiliation?
2. When have you been most personally affected by a vote?
3. Which side were you on?
4. What led to your stance on the Bush administration?
5. What was your stance on the War in Iraq? What is it today?
6. How would you describe yourself, liberal conservative or other?
7. Who will you likely vote for in the future?
8. Were you a supporter of the first Clinton administration?
9. Liberal or conservative?
10. What are your thoughts on the taxes in your home state?

Howdy Folks!

Hey everyone! My name's Francis R. (You can call me Franky). I'm a first year student at Bunker Hill Community College, and first time student at any college. I'm a lifelong resident of Boston, & attended Latin Academy. I graduated in 2010 & have been working on & off since then. I haven't declared my major yet but I'm looking into aspects of different ones. I'm a fan of the social sciences, psychology & sociology, as well as technological & computer sciences. As a fan of lots of different science fiction it's interesting to see how closer the human race is coming year after year to some of that tech.

I chose online courses to ease myself back into school, and so far it seems like a solid decision. The flexibility is more helpful than I'd originally hoped. I'm still wary but hopefully things continue to go as well as they have thus far!

I'm a big fan of picking apart media. Cartoons, television, films, all of them. I especially love finding ads & marketing hidden in scenes. This main character drinking a Pepsi, this one driving a Kia, another one using Samsung phones. The ways the marketing industry can insert advertisements into anything with so few noticing is always an interesting topic to me.

Hopefully this course can help tie into some of those ideas, and at least help my understanding of my other classes!