But there's something that gets my attention–the United States Presidential Race. It's all down to two, right? Ever since John Edwards dropped out of the race, there's just two.
Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Both are a minority; he is black, she is a woman. The United States of America will make history with this election. I have repeatedly said that I am not fond of America. I don't like their health care plans, their educational system (well, anything pre-grad anyway), and I don't like Bush (or any other Republican, for that matter). But what gets me the most is the influence of America in every single country in the world. Whatever happens there, whatever policies, laws, and etc. affects every other country, the Philippines in particular. But I do have to say, I may like America now after this election. I just said that I might, but that will be proven in due time, if they are wiling to change.
I agree on universal health care and that families should all have them. No amount of money can pay for a lost life that could have been prevented if health care would have helped them spend for medicine, for operations, for treatment. I should know, since we live in a country where so may people die of sickness that could have been treatable, like fever or asthma.
I care for equal rights of men and women, black, white, Hispanic, Asian, gays, lesbians, disabled, mentally or physically, etc. I don't believe that there is one superior race or one superior gender. Everybody is equal, and free to practice whatever religion or sexual orientation they feel like they are.
Gays should have the right to marry, even if only civilly. Love needs to be celebrated, no matter what shape, form, size, or gender you may be. If anyone had just one right, it is the right to be happy.
I care for the environment and I believe that humans contribute to most of the greenhouse gas emissions and that we should start looking for alternative sources of fuel and energy so that our grandkids don't have to resort to buying bottled oxygen in the next 50 years or that our planet ends up becoming one huge tanning salon.
I believe that women should NOT have an abortion unless it is absolutely necessary (like, the mother's life is being endangered) because human life is precious and I can't see why women would to that to themselves (well, I would love to become a mother someday) and if they really can't have the child, give it up for adoption. But it must be made legal, so that women won't die from shady, back-alley abortions or nasty infections because they weren't treated properly.
I support the idea of contraception, because then abortions wouldn't always be necessary for women to get, nor would they get any deadly STD's like gonorrhea, syphilis, herpes, genital warts, or HIV/AIDS. Sex should not be taboo (though I draw the line at prostitution). Children should be educated in matters of sex and parents should be open their children about these things, because they didn't just wave a magic wand and have kids. Procreation is not a bad thing, society just makes it so. Well, then, damn society! People should be open about sex and sexuality so that there will be less unhappy, sexually repressed people in the world. No gays being forced to hide in the closet, just a life with no secrets and no discrimination.
All of these issues are being addressed, and so many more. I admire the Presidential candidates, and I agree with the change.
The Philippines has always had strong ties with America (we were even a Commonwealth of America back in the 1900's!) but I am so p****d at Bush for sending troops to fight the war in Iraq. First of all, it's not their country! Let them fight their damn war that was unnecessary in the first place.
Those Muslim extremists should be punished by Allah for the deaths of so many innocent men and women, and Bush had to add fuel to the fire by sending troops over too! He just wants to control the oil supply so that he gets even richer. It's all about money and it makes me sick. Worse is, The Philippines sends troops to, literally giving them a death sentence.
I am not harping on the Muslims or anything, I just disagree with their methods. I do not discriminate, even though I am Catholic. Why would I even discriminate on something that is so close to my heart? My last name is Omar. My father is a Muslim. I just totally disagree with the war, because they could have solved it by talking it out and not by violence. America should just focus on the wars in Africa instead so that so many girls don't need to be raped in Rwanda, that the population there won't be ignored. They're the ones who need help.
Don't even get me started when I talk about the dollar. He-llo! It is the international currency and when the dollar's value goes down, it's going to be worth nil. What will happen to the economy of the world!? I say it's just crap. That's my short version. My longer version of the dollar would take up half this blog entry, and it's already a mile and a half long.
If a new President of the United States were elected, I just pray that all these issues will be addressed, so that the rest of the world follows suit. America hold so much power and influence over the world, and they should help countries be independent, to rely on themselves and not on any other country. I want the Philippines to break free from depending on America so much, and America should not be so unwilling to change. If America changes, the rest of the world follows suit. The time is now. Make a change.
The same is true for the Philippines. People, take heed! While the rich get richer and the poor get poorer, do something! Don't keep blaming the President for this. If you keep begging for change but are unwilling to change yourself, nothing is going to happen. It's not just PGMA. Maybe it's you.
Make the future bright for the children. Vote wisely. Nurture them. Educate them. If you change now, for the sake of the billions of children in the world today, then the world will be so much happier.
To quote Barack Obama, "There's not a black America and white America and Latino America and Asian America; there's the United States of America."
I would like to add — There's no such thing as the United States of the World. There is, simply, the world. One country should not depend on the other. It should be the country standing up on it's own. America should help others to help themselves. If they still wield so much power and influence even after this, then they should not misuse it. There are too many corrupt officials out there.
(If I sound like I contradict myself, well, I'm not. I'm just saying that America holds a lot of power to change the world and after they do that, countries will learn to stand up on their own and they wouldn't need America to lean on. Do you get my point?)
[Batang MindaNaw is MindaNews’ voice of the youth corner. Kristelle Alina Rizardo Omar, 13, is in first year high school at the Ateneo de Davao University. She hopes to be the first female Tausug justice in the Supreme Court.]
