The Rambler (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 98, No. 7, Ed. 1 Wednesday, March 7, 2007 Page: 3 of 6
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I he Rambler
Opinions
March 7, 2007 3
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Will he be black or female?
Minority hopefuls begin campaign for democratic presidential candidacy
I
Julie
Davis
rf the 2008 election were held
[tomorrow, who would you
vote for? Do you know enough
about the candidates to make an
intelligent and informed deci-
sion, or would you vote for the
person whose ad you heard the
most or for the person your par-
ents would vote for?
If you have been paying
attention to the news, you
' already know that the
Democratic Party has several candidates hoping to
win the presidential nomina-
tion. Two names in particular,
Sens. Hillary Clinton of New
York and Barrack Obama of
Illinois, are in the race. These
two people have caused quite
a stir in the political arena.
Traditionally, the presi-
dent of the United States is a
white male. Hillary Clinton
and Barrack Obama do not fit
the criteria. So, 1 ask you, is
the United States ready to
embrace a president that is not
a male or is not white? You
would think in the year 2007,
we would be able to put gen-
der and ethnic issues behind
us.
Some things are easier
said than done.
Since I have been able to
vote, I have voted for all
Republican presidents. If 1 did
not recognize the name on the
ballot, I simply voted Republican. I understand
that this is not the most effective or responsible
way of voting, but 1 knew that I trusted the reputa-
tion of the Republican Party.
However, I must admit that I am intrigued
with Barrack Obama. I think he introduces a
charisma and vision that I have not seen in any
past president for whom I have had the opportuni-
ty to vote - Republican or Democrat. I do not feel
that I have reached middle age yet. but I feel that
Obama is someone that is worth looking into
because we are close in age, and I feel that he has
a lot of my same interests.
As for Hillary Clinton, like so many others, 1
have already established my opinion of her and
that directly affects her getting my vote. However,
Brenda Matthews, chair of the social sciences
department, has a different view.
"Yes, the United States is ready for a woman
in the White House. Several states, including
Texas, have elected women governors, two
women have recently held the secretary of state
position, the most important position in the presi-
dent's cabinet, and I am supporting Hillary
Clinton for the Democratic nomination," she said.
I do not discount Clinton's qualifications or
ambition. I guess I just had my fill of her as first
lady. Also, I must admit, I am still somewhat old
school because I am not ready to have a woman in
Photo courtesy of www.google.com
Sens. Barrack Obama and Miliary Clinton have raised several million dollars for their cam-
paigns. Obama recently hosted a fund-raising event among the stars in Hollywood.
the White I louse.
And like Dr. Ibrahim Salih, Wesleyan political
science professor, I think region will play a role in
votes received.
"The chances of an African-American or
female presidency is problematic for a lot of peo-
ple. especially southerners," he said.
"Barrack is qualified but lacks experience. His
charisma and youth are two of his strong points,"
Salih said. "He doesn't have the mechanism to get
elected but would make a good vice president.
Hillary Clinton is qualified but we barely accepted
her as the first lady, and it would be difficult to
accept her as president."
Obviously, opinions differ.
"I think it will he a tough decision for all
Democratic Party voters to choose between the
two candidates, but I believe that voters will vote
on qualifications and not on gender or ethnicity,"
said Matthews.
Despite my own admissions of gender bias,
I'd like to think English major Ross Mullens is
right and that color and gender shouldn't matter.
"Just because you have different cultural
backgrounds, it doesn't mean that your values and
standards are different," he said.
Our country is experiencing so much turmoil
these days. We are engaged in a war that has no
definite end, illegal immigration is topping the
headlines, education needs atten-
tion, and, in general, we need to
make some changes.
The 2008 election will be
here before we know it, and, if
you plan on voting, you should
start thinking about who you
want to enforce those changes. I
am sure we have all heard the
song lyric "Red and yellow
black and white, we are precious
in His sight..."
When we cast our vote or as
we learn about each candidate,
let's remember that song lyric. It
should not matter what color or
gender the president is as long
as he or she gets the job done.
As Americans, we should
want what is best for our coun-
try. It does not make sense to
discount one candidate's qualifi-
cations over another because he
or she does not fit the traditional
mold of previous nominees,
does it? We'll have the chance to answer that in a
few months.
Finally, I have admitted that I have voted
using the name/party recognition method, and I
plan on excluding that technique in the next elec-
tion. However, it seems that I am not alone in that
practice.
According to Salih, an estimated $1 billion
will be raised for the 2008 election.
"People are not elected by their qualifications
but by how much money they solicit from their
supporters," he argued.
If this is the case, I hope we get our money's
worth.
Julie Davis is a senior English major and is the busi-
ness manager for The Rambler.
Free tuition offered by local university
a
Eric
Douglas
If you're reading this, there is a good chance that you or
someone you know is attending college. There are many
difficulties in reaching university level, but one of the
greatest to achieving an education is paying for it.
Throughout most of modern history, it seems that
only the moderately wealthy have been able to attain some
form of higher education. Although we've come a long
way, it is still the richer societies with ___________
people who earn college degrees. After
all, most people in the world holding a
degree come from wealthy nations such
as America.
Even in this country, it is hard for the lowest classes to
get a good education. This inability to gain more knowledge
traps many people in our own community in a cycle of poverty.
They grow up poor, and, because they can't pay for a better education,
they can't get a better job. Because of the lack of a "good" job. they can't
raise their kids in a better environment resulting in the whole circle repeating
itself generation after generation.
Well, The University of Texas at Arlington unveiled plans in January that
took aim at this problem. The plan is to offer free tuition to anyone in Texas
who makes less than $25,000 a year. This gives a monumental chance to
This inubility to gain more
knowledge traps many peo-
ple in our own community
in a cycle of poverty.
those who were trapped in the above cycle of poverty.
Finally an organization is doing more than throwing welfare money at
the impoverished; they are actually trying to better their lives.
"This has a major impact on families," said Chancellor Mark G Yudof.
"When they sit down at the dinner table and say, 'We'd love for John or Jane
to go to college, but we don't know if we can pay for it."'
That major impact is exactly what is needed in some families to get the
kids to college. In my family, we had little motivation from
some of the family because no one knew how we were
going to pay for it. Coming from a family that has been
stuck in that education-less poverty cycle, it is very reassur-
ing to see some schools try to educate the masses - to try
and bring down college from Olympus like Prometheus
———1brought down fire.
I would like to see a program at Wesleyan that matches our neighbor to
the east. If there is any way that Wesleyan can reach out to the disenfran-
chised in such a way, I hope it will.
Caught up in our own lives and education, we all are guilty of focusing
on ourselves. I'd like to see us think about those less prosperous, much like
UTA is doing.
Eric Douglas is a junior religion major and is a staff writer for The Rambler.
The Rambler
Founded in 1917 as The Handout
Harold G Jeffiool, Publisher
Member of the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association.
Chad Wvlie. editor-in-chief spoi ls a/iloi
Trier Atkinson, managing editor
Julie Davis, business manager
Shawn R rolling, news editor
Opinions expressed in The Rambler are those of the individual author only
and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Texas Wesleyan community as a whole.
Letters to the editor: The Rambler. a weekly publication, welcomes all letters,
Ml submissions must have a full printed name, phone number and signature; however, confidentiality vs ill be granted if requested
While every consideration is made to publish letters, publication is limited by time and space.
The editors reserve the right to edit all submissions for space, grammar, clarity and style
Letters to the editor may be subject to response from editors and students on the opinions page.
"We are not afraid to follow the truth wherever it may lead." -Thomas Jefferson
Address all correspondence to:
Texas Wesleyan University. The Rambler. 1201 Wesleyan St.. Fort Worth. TX 76105.
Newsroom 531-7552 Advertising: 531*7582 Fax: 531-4878
E-mail: twuramblertoiyahoo.com
Rambler Ratings
Thumbs up to Michael Chaney
and Greek Council for putting
together the fun and games we
call "Greek Week." This year,
Greek Council teamed up with
SGA to fund the events.
Y
Thumbs down to the security
guard who tried to kick stu-
dents off the mall for playing
frisbcc. He claimed that the
neighborhood people would
Thumbs down to the yellow
night lighting on campus.
Although lighting on campus
is increasing due to the efforts
of Ken Dunson's staff, the yel-
low covers over the lights make the campus
look old.
Thumbs down to security for
not opening the doors to the
science lecture theater for the
Tuesday/Thursday humanities
class at 9:25.
break into cars after coming on campus
because of these frisbee players.
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Wylie, Chad. The Rambler (Fort Worth, Tex.), Vol. 98, No. 7, Ed. 1 Wednesday, March 7, 2007, newspaper, March 7, 2007; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth253388/m1/3/?q=music: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas Wesleyan University.