Point Counterpoint

Others are angry because of the lasting effects of the administration: the poor state of the economy, high unemployment rates, a tax cut which mainly favored the wealthy and the No Child Left Behind Act (which left millions of children behind).

Other reasons for opposing Bush include his poor public speaking skills, absurdly meaningless quotes and his continual stare of confusion.

For these reasons, there are many anti-Bush groups that developed in order to increase voter turnout and assist in the anti-Bush, pro-Kerry vote.

A group called Mothers Opposing Bush has TV commercials listing reasons why mothers should vote for Kerry instead of Bush. Run Against Bush holds weekly runs in several cities across the country to express their dissatisfaction with the Bush administration.

Several organizations have hosted voter registration drives, especially in swing states. Philadelphia county voter registration administrator Bob Lee told The Philadelphia Inquirer that party affiliations on new voter applications were running roughly 9-to-1 in favor of Democratic party.

Nonprofits such as Rock the Vote and Declare Yourself hired celebrity spokespersons to encourage young adults and minorities to vote, groups which generally favor the Democratic Party.

Kerry is actually acknowledging black voters by appearing on BET (Black Entertainment Television) and detailing his commitment to civil rights. It is undecided whether or not Bush thinks BET is just the word ‘bet’ in capital letters.

Several media outlets have advantaged the Kerry vote both directly and indirectly. Movies such as Fahrenheit 9/11 and Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch’s War on Journalism have been influential in emphasizing the problems of Republican control, therefore attempting to increase Democratic support.

The recently released Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry earned positive feedback from Roger Ebert and other movie reviewers across the country. And Kitty Kelley’s controversial book, The Family: The Real Story of the Bush Dynasty, which details drug abuse and infidelity has uncovered scandalous secrets which may sway voters.

Constant media coverage has put Kerry in the spotlight since the beginning of this year, forcing republicans, democrats, independents and everyone in between to take notice.

Regardless of political party, a lot of Americans want and need a change. Gays and lesbians want to live in a country where they are safe from discrimination. Arab-Americans want to live in a country where they aren’t stereotyped as terrorists. That surely won’t happen with another four years of Yale’s most famous graduate.

Frustrated veterans, disgruntled workers, unhappy mothers and sweaty runners will vote for John Kerry this November, ensuring his victory.

Stephanie Young can be reached at sunbeam@temple.edu.

The guy feels that now is the time to make his move, and while the librarian looks alright, she may be unobtainable. So his best bet is the girl in the tight shirt because he is pretty sure she is going to do it. Tonight.

This is the difference between George W. Bush and John Kerry. Bush is the chick in the tight shirt that will do it and probably not think about it.

Kerry is the one who will take time to think about it and might do it really, really well, but this guy will never know because he doesn’t want to take the chance and get shot down. He just wants to do it.

All of this boils down to a matter of fear, and this is the fear that Bush (and tight-shirted chicks) have instilled in our nation. America is afraid of not getting the job done, and now that we are in this discombobulated War on Terror/Iraq, most Americans are going to go for the one who got us there in the first place.

Bush is into this war. He likes it. He likes sending other people to fight it, he likes spending enormous amounts of money on it and he is going to keep fighting it until someone wakes up and asks, “What the hell are you still doing here?”

Kerry, while he says he wants to win this war, acts like he’s above it and says that Bush is doing it all wrong, which may not be that far off.

But he also said he did not support the war, so that leaves the question of what he will do about the whole mess if he ever makes it into office. And who really wants to think about that?

Most Americans probably don’t want to think about that. They just want to get this war over with and to that end, Bush is their man.

Kerry will take too much time to think about it and plan it out, and for his reprehensible thinking ways he has been called a “flip-flopper.” But, most people who actually think eventually change their minds.

Bush projects a persona of being an unchanging, stoic individual and he uses this to make a scared nation feel safer in his hands.

Bush is going to win because he has this type of mass market appeal. He appeals to the reactionary who shouts, “Just nuke ’em!”

Kerry appeals to the type of person who may not see the benefit in nuking anything, or the college kid who thinks Bush is the devil, but does not know exactly when the election takes place.

One group may not be better than the other, but there is a whole lot more of the former than the latter, and it’s called Middle America.

For people who live in cities, it may be hard to fathom how it could be possible for Bush to win this election. You can hardly walk down the street without getting clobbered by a clip-boarder for Kerry.

You see Kerry/Edwards on everything from backpacks to store windows, but Middle America is still present and a large part of the voting public.

To them, Bush portrays himself as a sign of unwavering strength. And gee-wiz, he has daily chats with the Lord Almighty.

This makes Middle America feel safe and Bush is banking on this as he simultaneously spreads fear of more terrorist attacks. He will keep making America afraid until 2008, or until people vote him out.

Meredith Lindemon can be reached at merbayne@temple.edu.