Wednesday, October 24, 2007

What is Loyalty?

The following is an editorial.

Loyalty is simply defined as devotion to a particular person or cause--and we here in America are all about it. We exercise patronage in our political system
, we are die-hard sports fans, and we are fiercely loyal to our freedoms. We remember the Alamo, remember the Maine, (try to) remember our mother's birthdays.

Yet, loyalty has gotten us in quite a fix lately. Loyalty got in the way of doing the right thing in Iraq during Abu Ghraib; it got in the way of effective governance during the scandal at the Attorney General's office; and it is especially being questioned in the political arena after convicted felon Norman Hsu donated large sums of money to the Hillary Clinton campaign. In modern times, "blind loyalty" has gotten such a bad rap that, unless you are the family dog, you don't want to be described as such.

But I look around and ask, where has loyalty gotten us today? What do we have to show for it?

Well, the answer is simple: a nation. The loyalty of our founding fathers to that idea of independence, their loyalty to each other, and their loyalty to generations of Americans yet unborn allows us to sit in comfort and exercise freedoms unmatched elsewhere in the world.

Not all loyalty is created equal, however, and it should never be used to excuse or rationalize a course of action that you know is wrong. No one needs a lecture on the difference between right and wrong, but we all must look deep into our hearts to find where our true loyalties lie.

We should never be afraid to question our loyalties, and if need be, to change them. There are certain loyalties that will never change--for our President and military members, their loyalties always lie in the Constitution of the United States. However, as Mark Twain once said,
"Loyalty to petrified opinions never yet broke a chain or freed a human soul in this world--and never will." If our loyalties get in the way of progress, of justice, of equality, of peace, or of human life--it is time to rethink where our efforts truly belong.

There are loyalties that I think we can all agree on: loyalty to the future of our nation; loyalty to the children of the world--their education, their well-being, and their continued safety; loyalty to end the unnecessary deaths of innocent men, women, and children everywhere; loyalty to our men and women serving in combat; loyalty to the prospects of peace above all; loyalty to a better world for us all.

For, if we are not committed to these principles, what are we doing here on Earth? Progress, justice, equality, peace, and life. Made strong by our loyalty, these principles will bring us all to a better day.

Monday, October 22, 2007

Micro-Lend a Hand

"It is every man's obligation to put back into the world at least the equivalent of what he takes out of it." --Albert Einstein

In the 1970s, a few bold business executives left the private sector to take the biggest financial risk of their lives--give loans to third-world entrepreneurs in places like
Colombia, Ecuador, and Nigeria who were either unemployed or had no reliable credit history. This practice of giving small loans to those otherwise unable to procure capital has become known as microcredit, or microlending.

Today, microlending has grown like never before--and YOU have the opportunity to be a microlender. Kiva.org allows anyone with a credit card to lend money to those in need in countries across the world, in amounts starting as low as $25. The website has a whole list of individuals seeking loans, with descriptions of their ventures and desired loan amount.

In the coming weeks and months, we will be giving you more on Kiva.org, but for now--visit their website! You can have a serious impact on the lives of others, even halfway across the world.

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

James Kotecki: Internet Renaissance Man?

James Kotecki is a recent graduate of Georgetown University (magna cum laude, at that) who has pioneered the video-blogging (Vlogging) movement. Starting with a simple camera in his dorm room in January 2007, Kotecki has made countless nonpartisan videos documenting the American political landscape and, more recently, the 2008 Election cycle.

In April of 2007, James made history by hosting the first ever dorm-room interview of a Presidential candidate (Ron Paul). Since then, he has interviewed numerous candidates, including John Edwards, Chris Dodd, and Mike Huckabee.

Kotecki's videos are hilarious--frequently using "pencil puppets" of the presidential candidates--combining an exuberant knack for journalism and interviewing. The amazing part of it all? Kotecki put this all together on a college-student budget, with a cheap camera from Best Buy, common computer software, and most importantly, a lot of "hustle" and hard work. He has been the subject of countless interviews from every major media outlet--from CNN to FoxNews to Al Jazeera English.

You can find his videos, updated daily, on his website. Read this as: we highly encourage you to visit his website--bookmark it and visit it every day!!!


From his website

"However, my goal is not necessarily to “be a journalist.” Instead, my goals are:

  1. to encourage politicians to converse with voters directly on YouTube
  2. to talk about political personalities, issues, and trends that don’t get a lot of coverage in the mainstream media, and
  3. to have fun making funny, entertaining videos. I’m most like a typical journalist when I’m focused on goal number 2, and less like a typical journalist when I focus on goals 1 and 3.

Since I usually pursue all three goals at once, I’ll let you decide whether, on balance, I’m an actual journalist."

“. . .the unofficial political consultant of the Internet generation . . .” - Yahoo! News

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

We have two options, medically and emotionally: give up, or fight like hell. ~Lance Armstrong

There is good news--breast cancer is not the killer it used to be.

This does not mean that the fight is over--in fact, far from it. Over 40,000 women will lose their fight to breast cancer this year. Putting that into perspective, 110 women will die each day--or 4 each hour--from some form of this cancer. Men aren't immune from this type of ailment, either, as over 2,000 male breast cancer patients will be diagnosed this year alone.

In order to fight it, you must know it. Here some brief, essential facts on breast cancer:

There are two main categories of breast cancer--non-invasive and invasive. Non-invasive are confined to the ducts and lobules of the breast, while invasive spreads throughout the tissue of the breast and is thus much more dangerous. The two types of non-invasive breast cancer are
ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) and lobular carcinoma in situ (LCIS). There are many types of invasive breast cancer (many are not known), but the most common is invasive ductal carcinoma, which accounts for 80% of all cases.

The following are the stages of cancer:

Stage 0 - Stage 0 is carcinoma in situ, early stage cancer that is confined to the ducts or the lobules, depending on where it started. It has not gone into the tissues in the breast nor spread to other organs in the body.


Stage I - Stage I is an early stage of invasive breast cancer. In Stage I, cancer cells have not spread beyond the breast and the tumor is no more than 2 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch) across.

Stage II - Stage II is one of the following:
  • The tumor in the breast is no more than 2 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch) across. The cancer has spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.
  • The tumor is between 2 and 5 centimeters (three-quarters of an inch to 2 inches). The cancer may have spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.
  • The tumor is larger than 5 centimeters (2 inches). The cancer has not spread to the lymph nodes under the arm.
Stage III - Stage III may be a large tumor, but the cancer has not spread beyond the breast and nearby lymph nodes. It is locally advanced cancer.

Stage IV - Stage IV is distant metastatic cancer. The cancer has spread to other parts of the body.

Recurrent cancer - Recurrent cancer is cancer that has come back (recurred) after a period of time when it could not be detected. It may recur locally in the breast or chest wall as another primary cancer, or it may recur in any other part of the body, such as the bone, liver, or lungs, which is generally referred to as metastatic cancer.

The best way to fight it? Find it early. Women should check themselves at least once a month for lumps or abnormalities and receive regular mammograms to halt the spread of cancer early. The earlier breast cancer is detected, the more likely you will be to beat this disease.

All information on this post was derived from http://www.nbcam.org/disease_breast_cancer.cfm.

Keep all those who have lost their lives to this disease in your thoughts and prayers this month. Check your calendar and support local breast cancer awareness drives near you. You never know whose mother, sister, or daughter is depending on you.

Sunday, October 7, 2007

Rep. JoAnn Davis Passes Away

Today, the nation lost a leader whose character and determination were hardly equaled in the halls of Congress. US Rep. JoAnn Davis (R-VA) passed away today after a bout with breast cancer. The following is the wire from CNN.com:

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Rep. Jo Ann Davis, R-Virginia, died Saturday after battling breast cancer, her office said. She was 57.

art.davis.ap.jpg

Rep. Jo Ann Davis died Saturday after a two-year battle with breast cancer.

Davis died at her home in Gloucester, Virginia.

She was first diagnosed with cancer in 2005, according to a statement from her office, and had a recurrence earlier this year.

"Davis had been receiving breast cancer treatment at Duke University and just recently had received positive reports on her condition," the statement said. "However, during the last week Davis' health took a turn for the worse."

Funeral arrangements will be forthcoming, the statement said.

President George Bush said Davis was a "fine example of a public servant" whose "common sense values will be missed on Capitol Hill."

"Laura and I are deeply saddened that Rep. Jo Ann Davis lost her courageous battle with breast cancer today. Her determination to fight the disease is an inspiration to all of us," he said in a statement.

Rep. Adam Putnam, R-Florida, chairman of the House Republican Conference, noted in a statement that when Davis was first diagnosed with cancer, instead of retiring, she "pressed on, continued to serve with distinction the people of the Commonwealth and the country she loved, and beat the disease."

After the cancer returned, he said, "she courageously took the same path."

"Jo Ann Davis was an inspiration to all of us fortunate enough to serve with her, and we are all deeply saddened by the news of her passing," Putnam said. "At this difficult hour, our thoughts and prayers are with Jo Ann's husband, Chuck, and their loved ones."

Rep. Eric Cantor, R-Virginia, said Davis was a "great woman and a great patriot."

"It was my great honor to serve in the United States House of Representatives alongside my friend, Jo Ann Davis," he said in a statement. "She fought for, and embodied, the core values of Virginia."

Friday, October 5, 2007

University of Kentucky Student Leadership

Nicholas and Brittany put together an awesome, informative video at the University of Kentucky. Visit their student government website!


Got a video to share? E-mail us! Leave some comments for us on what you think about the site so far, what you'd like to see, and what you have done at your university or organization.


There is nothing more dangerous than to build a society, with a larger segment of people in that society, who feel that they have no stake in it; who feel that they have nothing to lose. People who have a stake in their society, protect that society, but when they don't have it, they unconsciously want to destroy it.
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Thursday, October 4, 2007

Students "Dream" at Rutgers

The following article appeared on the "Page One" section of dailytargum.com. It was written by Cassie Bobotas, Acting Associate News Editor.

Faced with sufficient internal opposition, the Rutgers University Student Assembly passed a bill Thursday urging Congress to pass an amendment allowing children of illegal immigrants better chances of attaining permanent residency and higher education.

"It offers an opportunity to these students who don't have a chance, at this point, to be fully contributing members of our society," said Christopher Keating, a Rutgers College junior. "The children of undocumented immigrants shouldn't be punished for crimes their parents committed."

The Development, Relief, and Education for Alien Minors Act, better known as the "Dream Act," originally entered the Senate in 2003 as a way for undocumented students to pursue a degree at a public institution for at least two years while paying the more affordable in-state costs. But since it has come up again, it is now in need of as much support as possible, as its fate will be decided by Nov. 16 of this year.

This amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 states that on the successful completion of high school, undocumented students who came to the United States under the age of 16 and have displayed moral character will be able to attain permanent residency in six years if they either join the U.S. military or attend a higher institution for two years.

On the passage of the amendment, these students would also be eligible to receive previously unavailable benefits such as federal student loans and federal work-study.

As the RUSA Legislative Affairs Chair, Keating said he wrote the resolution in favor of the amendment because it now has its best chance to move through the senate, with support from the likes of Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and he wanted to get the University behind it as well.

"I know the voice of the University students and [RUSA] will only do so much, but at the same time, it's still significant," Keating said.

TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE, CLICK HERE!

Students at Rutgers are proving that, no matter how loud you are, your voice is still important. No matter your beliefs, one of the most essential qualities of a good leader is to be able to discuss and debate those beliefs with anyone and everyone that you meet.

Let us know what you think! E-mail us or comment on this post to talk about the students at Rutgers, or about your own efforts to stand up for what you believe in.

Wednesday, October 3, 2007

Women in Government

85 years ago today, Rebecca Felton (D-GA) became the first woman to serve in the United States Senate as she was appointed to fill the term of Senator Thomas Watson. She served for one day.

In 1931, however, Hattie Caraway (D-AR) became the first woman ever popularly elected to the Senate. She would serve for 14 years, and during her tenure, would also witness the rise of 3 other women to the highest national legislature--Rose Long (D-LA), Dixie Graves (D-AL), and Gladys Pyle (R-SD).

Since the establishment of the Senate in 1785, there have been 35 female senators--putting that into perspective, 1.85% of all individuals who have ever served in the Senate have been female. Today, 16 women serve in the US Senate:

Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Patty Murray (D-WA), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Susan Collins (R-ME), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Elizabeth Dole (R-NC), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Claire McCaskill (D-MO)

Today, and every day, we salute those courageous women who pioneered the rise of women in government. And today, no matter their beliefs or the side of the aisle they sit on, we may find true strength in those 16 women who serve their country in our most hallowed legislative hall.

"Toughness doesn't have to come in a pinstripe suit." --Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)

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