I remember those hands
WARNING: Despite my best intentions, I am unable to maintain neutrality on this particular issue. Please know that I am not presenting you a completely bias-free look at a political issue.
My grandfather had Parkinson's disease. I can remember my mom sitting up and doing research on therapies, treatments, research, side-effects, and other worries. I can remember hiding in the guest room at my grandparents townhome because I couldn't stand to see my grandfather pouting and whining about it being bedtime. I can remember watching his mouth and seeing the drawn and pained expression. It's not painful (I don't think), so part of that expression is a human perception. But it is frustrating. That's what I know about Parkinson's. It's a frustrating disease. And it has always seemed that you can see the frustration in their hands.
I found this political advertisement on YouTube. By coincidence, it's talking about Missouri. It's a supportive ad for Claire McCaskill, the democratic candidate.
If you're interested in a slightly more spontaneous interview, please look here for an interview done by the CBS affiliate in St. Louis. It's broken into two parts.
It's sobering to see the effects of this disease on someone else. Someone who (counting the number of times I rewatched "Teen Wolf" and "Back to the Future") I may have seen more often than my grandfather.
For the most part, I have no idea of the political orientation of my friends. In one sense, it's not really good conversation. Since issues are designed to be polarizing (or "wedge" issues), often times good rational conversation is hard to come by.
Until I visited St. Louis a few weeks ago, I had no idea what Amendment 2 was about. There, helpfully crafted billboards pointed me to the soundbites and kneejerk reactions. So, when I came home, I went to the Internet to do research.
If you're going to vote in November, I encourage you to do the same. Even if you only focus on one thing, an educated voter is a powerful force. There are lots of places where you can't vote or your vote doesn't mean anything. Maybe I'm just an optimist, but this isn't one of those places.
For Missouri Amendment 2, which is about stem cell research, the issue is all about your perception of life. I encourage everyone who can vote in Missouri to examine this issue. Please do your own research. I also encourage you to not immediately accept anyone's opinion on how you should vote. Not your parents, not your friends, not Michael J. Fox, and not me. None of us really know what you believe or how you feel. All of us want you to vote our way.
No doubt you see the disconnect.
To learn more about the opposition, please read http://www.nocloning.org/
To learn more about the supporters, please read http://www.missouricures.com/
Notice the websites even have spin in their addresses.
For the real deal, please read this. It's the text of the proposed amendment direct from the Missouri government. It does a fairly good job of spelling out the powers and restrictions of the proposed stem cell initiative. Be aware that some groups feel that the language of the ballot is misleading.
Above all, vote. Don't let your opinions be "less important" than people like me, who vote. But vote because you understand. Don't vote because you've heard people talking. Don't vote because you only see two parties. Don't vote because you prefer one color to another.
Uninformed voters are the pawns of those who can craft scarier ads.
My grandfather had Parkinson's disease. I can remember my mom sitting up and doing research on therapies, treatments, research, side-effects, and other worries. I can remember hiding in the guest room at my grandparents townhome because I couldn't stand to see my grandfather pouting and whining about it being bedtime. I can remember watching his mouth and seeing the drawn and pained expression. It's not painful (I don't think), so part of that expression is a human perception. But it is frustrating. That's what I know about Parkinson's. It's a frustrating disease. And it has always seemed that you can see the frustration in their hands.
I found this political advertisement on YouTube. By coincidence, it's talking about Missouri. It's a supportive ad for Claire McCaskill, the democratic candidate.
If you're interested in a slightly more spontaneous interview, please look here for an interview done by the CBS affiliate in St. Louis. It's broken into two parts.
It's sobering to see the effects of this disease on someone else. Someone who (counting the number of times I rewatched "Teen Wolf" and "Back to the Future") I may have seen more often than my grandfather.
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For the most part, I have no idea of the political orientation of my friends. In one sense, it's not really good conversation. Since issues are designed to be polarizing (or "wedge" issues), often times good rational conversation is hard to come by.
Until I visited St. Louis a few weeks ago, I had no idea what Amendment 2 was about. There, helpfully crafted billboards pointed me to the soundbites and kneejerk reactions. So, when I came home, I went to the Internet to do research.
If you're going to vote in November, I encourage you to do the same. Even if you only focus on one thing, an educated voter is a powerful force. There are lots of places where you can't vote or your vote doesn't mean anything. Maybe I'm just an optimist, but this isn't one of those places.
For Missouri Amendment 2, which is about stem cell research, the issue is all about your perception of life. I encourage everyone who can vote in Missouri to examine this issue. Please do your own research. I also encourage you to not immediately accept anyone's opinion on how you should vote. Not your parents, not your friends, not Michael J. Fox, and not me. None of us really know what you believe or how you feel. All of us want you to vote our way.
No doubt you see the disconnect.
To learn more about the opposition, please read http://www.nocloning.org/
To learn more about the supporters, please read http://www.missouricures.com/
Notice the websites even have spin in their addresses.
For the real deal, please read this. It's the text of the proposed amendment direct from the Missouri government. It does a fairly good job of spelling out the powers and restrictions of the proposed stem cell initiative. Be aware that some groups feel that the language of the ballot is misleading.
Above all, vote. Don't let your opinions be "less important" than people like me, who vote. But vote because you understand. Don't vote because you've heard people talking. Don't vote because you only see two parties. Don't vote because you prefer one color to another.
Uninformed voters are the pawns of those who can craft scarier ads.
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