SOTU 2011

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I've embedded the speech below:

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 P.S. Don't forget to leave me a comment below on your thoughts! As always, I'd love to hear from you.

Obama's State of the Union Address

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So as I was watching Obama's first State of the Union Address (SOTU) as president earlier, education was high on my list of things to note. As a college student right now who is planning on pursuing higher education (via law school), it is probably one of the two most important issues (healthcare being the other one) that I am concerned with... and I've mentioned that on this blog time and time again (like here and  here for example).

Even with grants and whatnot, I am still going to be in TREMENDOUS debt... and that's just from the past four years worth of education. For the past four years, tuition has increased EVERY year and it has definitely added up. I don't even want to think about what I'll owe after law school.

One of the reasons I've been contemplating on whether I should go to law school right after undergraduate or work for a few years first is because of this debt! This is especially because of the state of the economy nowadays... it's not like before where if I had a pretty decent education, I would most likely find a decent job (barring any unforeseen circumstances).

Nowadays, I know so many people who have been laid off in the last year or so that it is ridiculous. To think of the competition of people from an older generation looking for jobs and the young people vying for the same jobs is pretty scary. All I know is I'm not too comfortable with the idea of being in such a huge debt and being uncertain of a plan to pay it back.

Quoting a part of what Obama said tonight about the education aspect:

'To make college more affordable, this bill will finally end the unwarranted taxpayer-subsidies that go to banks for student loans. Instead, let’s take that money and give families a $10,000 tax credit for four years of college and increase Pell Grants. And let’s tell another one million students that when they graduate, they will be required to pay only ten percent of their income on student loans, and all of their debt will be forgiven after twenty years – and forgiven after ten years if they choose a career in public service. Because in the United States of America, no one should go broke because they chose to go to college. And it’s time for colleges and universities to get serious about cutting their own costs' 

My thoughts on this:

1. The tax credit and increase in pell grants will go a long way and help many families.
2. Students being only required to pay 10% of their income on student loans and their debts being forgiven after 20 years will take a HUGE burden off of a lot of people! This one is a biggie in my opinion.
3. Calling for colleges/universities to cut their own costs. I could not agree more! One of the annoying things at Rutgers is that as a part of our tuition, we pay some money to use the printing services at the libraries and computer labs. We are given about $30-32 dollars (i think) worth to use in printing twice a year (one for the fall and winter semesters and another one for the spring and summer semesters). However, we are not given an option on whether we want to do this or not! I, next to never, use the printing services (because I don't usually have the time in between in classes and whatnot to use it  up). And we don't get the amount we don't use back either, so I am being gypped of about 60 dollars each year for this. And this is just one of those ridiculous fees we pay... so they all add up!

Now by no means am I naive. So in no way am I expecting a hundred percent of what was said tonight to happen in reality. However, I want SOMETHING done! As Obama said today: "In the United States of America, no one should go broke because they decided to go to college".

Here are the other important highlights from his address (VERY briefly):

• Obama called for a crack down on the violations nationwide of the equal pay acts so that men and women get equal pay for an equal day's work. As a women, of course, I find this to VERY important. It's so sad that even now women are still fighting for just basic things!!
• A call for doubling the child care tax credit; expanding tax credit for families with children.
• Healthcare! discussed very briefly though.
• The state of the economy and the ENORMOUS deficit the country faces.
• Obama said he plans to work with Congress to repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country in the armed services. No matter what your religious and/or political views are on gays and lesbians, they are people and they have rights.  

What were your thoughts on his speech and some of the issues in general?



P.S. Don't forget to leave me a comment below on your thoughts! As always, I'd love to hear from you.

Past Few Days in Summary (Political-wise)...

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Wow, a lot of things have happened politically this week. With classes having started again, I find myself having absolutely no free time at all to catch up on everything.

Monday, Senator Ted Kennedy and his son Patrick followed Caroline Kennedy in endorsing Barack Obama. In backing Barack Obama for president, Ted Kennedy said: "It is time again for a new generation of leadership. It is time now for Barack Obama".

Ted even took a line from Clinton's campaign, saying Obama "is ready to be president on Day 1", which is something Clinton has been asking throughout her campaign. Also, In what may have been a stab directed at Bill Clinton, Ted said that "from the beginning, he (Obama) opposed the war in Iraq. And let no one deny that truth." That was of course in reference to Bill Clinton's statements about how Obama vote against the war early on was a "fairytale".

Monday night was also Bush's last State of the Union Address and Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius delivered the Democratic response to President Bush's final State of the Union address. Sebelius also endorsed Obama on Tuesday. She is also supposed to one of the possible choices for Vice President in the democrats.

Tuesday was the primary in Florida. Once again, there were no delegates being distributed for the democrats, so the race didn't really matter for them. On the republican side, delegates-wise, it was winner takes all. It was pretty much a tie throughout between McCain and Romney, but in the end McCain was the winner. In the weeks before the primary in Florida, Guiliani had said multiple times that the race in Florida is crucial and had gone as far as to say that whoever wins the primary in Florida from the republican side will go on to being the nominee. Guiliani wasn't even doing anywhere near well when he was saying all this - he was tied with Huckabee for third.

There had also news been for the past few days that Guiliani is dropping out and he is going to endorse McCain. From the sound of his conceding speech after the primary in Florida on Tuesday, it definitely confirmed he was indeed dropping out and it even seemed like it was going to possibly happen sometime in that speech considering Guiliani spoke in past tense pretty much the whole time in reference to his candidacy. Not only that, but McCain went on and on suddenly about praising Guiliani. Anyhow, Tuesday night, NBC News confirmed that Guiliani will drop out and endorse McCain on Wednesday.

As if that wasn't enough..I woke up Wednesday to breaking news that John Edwards was dropping out! I mean I knew this was coming, but definitely not today..I though he would at least hold off until after Super Tuesday. I have nothing but respect for John Edwards and his family and the hardship they have gone through while campaigning. Edwards wife, Elizabeth, has been an inspiration for many as she continually campaigned while still being treated for her recurring cancer.

Tonight is the last republican debate before Super Tuesday and tomorrow is the democratic one...so we will see how they go.

Super Tuesday is just days away and in the democrats, it is now just a race between Clinton and Obama! Everything definitely counts now. Whether Clinton or Obama win, it is still history in the making as it will be either the first woman President or the first African American President.