|
 |
Images of U.S. Casualties
04.28.04
I understand the government's stance on not showing pictures of the fallen soldiers' caskets out of respect for the families, but it is important for Americans to know that coalition soldiers are dying in post-war Iraq. The pictures are respectful, and almost eerily beautiful, with our bright flag covering the caskets.It is more insulting for the government to brush off the deaths of coalition troops and volunteers in Iraq, saying that acts of violence are random incidents, as if it's no big deal when a few soldiers die. It is a big deal, especially to their families. The solemn pictures humanize the war and bring it home. Since our cities are not being destroyed and our families are safe at home, it seems that we tend to forget just how costly wars are to us.
-Gena, 24
Murfreesboro, TN
|
|
|
|
We treat our fallen brothers and sisters with the greatest respect and honor. The loss is personal, but we mourn as a community. The few pictures I have seen related to this story demonstrate our commitment to our dead. I believe we all feel the loss viewing these images. I also can see why the ban exists. It is wicked to use the sacrifice of solders and families to humiliate or discredit anyone, especially the man who ordered them into the situations that took their lives. I am sure he felt the weight and burden of the requirements of the day and the lives at stake. The bottom line is respect. If the images respect the fallen, support the families and do no harm, they should be allowed. Can we trust our constitutionally mandated media to report the news without the ire and venom of politics? Respect our fallen, even when your brand of politics says we are where we should not be. If it was your son or your daughter draped in the flag, how would you feel?
-Patrick, 31
Reston, VA
|
|
|
|
I think that the pictures are very touching. I really didn't know that they did all of that for the fallen soldiers. It's very nice to know that even in the end, soldiers pay their utmost respect by taking care of those they lost.
-Shawn, 20
Bellevue, WA
|
|
|
|
I do believe the coffins should be seen. It is an image of war that most people seem to forget or push aside. We show pictures of dead Iraqis, why not our own?
-Jamie, 27
Jacksonville, FL
|
|
|
|
I am absolutely incensed at the media coverage the death of Pat Tillman is getting. My heart truly hurts for his family and friends at their loss. But my heart hurts for ALL the families and friends of every soldier killed in the line of duty. It is ludicrous that the American public is prevented from seeing the caskets of our daughters, sons, mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters coming home from war but we have to watch such tribute paid to ONE individual who chose to join the service. As a mother of an Air Force officer who may yet be killed in the line of duty in Iraq, I want all of the soldiers who've given their lives to receive recognition and tribute.
-Andi, 40
Downingtown, PA
|
|
|
|
I do not think we should see the caskets. It is so disrespectful and hurtful to the families, who are looking at the caskets and wondering if and which one is their son or daughter, their brother or sister, one of their grandchildren. They have died for their/our country and I think they should be brought back and laid to rest without pictures being shown of them.
-Em, 20
Mineola, NY
|
|
|
|
Paying the Gas Man
I don't know about anyone else, but I can't afford gas anymore on a college student's budget.
-S. Dixon, 20
Houston, TX
|
|
|
|
Everyone complains about higher oil prices, and rightfully so. Yet, why is it that people are obsessed with finding cheaper sources of oil? Anyone with a basic understanding of economics should know that the best way to lower the price of oil would be to decrease the demand, and yet President Bush refuses to oppose the American auto lobbyists who vehemently oppose any legislation that would require them to develop alternative-energy engines such as hybrids. The result: higher oil prices and losses by the American auto industry to foreign competitors like Honda who have been innovative in their development of hybrid engines.
-Dan, 19
St. Louis, MO
|
|
|
|
Middle-class Americans are losing their money while the big shots are earning more than ever. All of the jobs are going overseas because those people will work for less. It's ridiculous. In the end, those companies are going to lose because they're still charging Americans and their ex-employees the same amount of money. How can people buy a product when they don't have a job to pay for it?
-Brandy, 17
St George, UT
|
|
|
|
DREAM Acting
What really bugs me about this story is the comment about it's not the paperwork but the spirit. Excuse me, you should take the time to do the paperwork. To me it doesn't matter if you're coming from Mexico or France -- you shouldn't come here illegally and expect help from our government. I'm a legal citizen and I might not be able to afford to go to college -- who are non-Americans to expect money when people that are Americans can barely get some themselves?
-Victoria, 15
Salem, OR
|
|
|
|
Representing for 20 Million Loud
I was hoping to enter the essay contest until I read the essay question. "Why is the president's call to community service important and how have you demonstrated it?" This is such a terrible essay question. It has nothing to do with how the young people of this nation will shape the Democratic and Republican parties. I ask you to push the parties to let the young people entering the contest to choose what they think is an important topic for the future of their party. Leaving the question open would let the voters make a clear choice about what they feel is the most important direction for this country.
-Spencer, 20
Summit, NJ
|
|
|
|
I believe that the convention speech competition should offer both questions to both parties' contestants. Some people who would like to write on community service are Democrats, while some individuals who would write on the importance of politics are Republican. I think that if an individual could write on either topic for either convention more individuals would be prompted to write. In addition, if both conventions had speeches on the same topic, a "debate" could ensue on the differing opinions of the younger generation.
-Jim Franko, 22
Manhattan, KS
|
|
|
|
Funding Party Politics?
The debate on 527s shouldn't be over whether it favors the Democrats over the Republicans, it's whether it favors partisan groups over nonpartisan groups. Clearly, the voices of nonpartisan, nonprofit voter-education groups are drowned out by the money flowing into both Republican and Democratic-linked campaigns. This does not bode well for balanced, insightful, nonpartisan education efforts -- but it's great for professional partisan campaigners!
-Carlia 19
Atlanta, GA
|
|
|
|
Outsourcing
How can you complain about jobs going overseas to countries that need them (such as India)? Their unemployment rate is FAR higher than ours is. Their standard of living is even lower than that. We don't live in shanties, thousands upon thousands of their people do. It gives hope to nations that had none for better wages in their country and the prospect of being able to afford higher education. Isn't this what we're after too? Higher education? Better wages? What makes them different than us? We're all human, and we're all entitled to the right to better ourselves. Let them outsource because it gives other, more needy people a chance to have a life outside of poverty.
-John, 19
Woodstock, IL
|
|
|
|
The ranting about outsourcing is nothing more than campaign rhetoric, and it is not new. In the 1980s people feared Japan would take over our country. Why has this not happened? Because the facts disprove the rhetoric. Fact: the percentage of outsourced jobs has remained relatively constant since the globalization of the economy in the late 1960s. Fact: 70 percent of the jobs outsourced are to provide services or manufacture goods for foreign countries -- not to send the goods or to provide services to the United States. This is common sense: place the factory or service personnel as close to the target market as possible. Fact: outsourcing helps our own economy. The outsourcing of certain manufacturing and low-level technical jobs increases the productivity of jobs in the U.S., and last year the GDP grew by $34 billion (that's with a "b") from such improvements in productivity. To ask U.S.-based companies to ignore these facts will hurt our economy and will hurt your opportunity to obtain a meaningful job.
-Douglas, 26
Hoboken, NJ
|
|
|
|
The Economy
Everyone is griping about the economy and unemployment, but Clinton bragged about the same unemployment rate Bush is being criticized for. Both sides must be presented to truly educate anyone, otherwise it's like only listening to one sibling in an argument -- you only get half the story.
-Drew, 23
Malibu, CA
|
|
|
|
|
