4 - Friday, November 2, 2012 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 4- Friday, November 2, 2012 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom .! IJIE 1M ditian &4ath Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@michigandaily.com TIMOTHY RABB JOSEPH LICHTERMAN and ADRIENNE ROBERTS ANDREW WEINER EDITOR IN CHIEF EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS MANAGING EDITOR Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors. O I-E IA Vote Johnson, Kelley and McCormack ne of the unsung sections of this year's ballot entails the race for Michigan's Supreme Court. Unbeknownst to many, $10 million has been spent on television ads by the two major political parties on the Supreme Court race. The current Supreme Court is controlled 4-3 by conservative justices, so the outcome of this election will have a major effect on many state decisions, as it supervises and regulates other courts. Beyond disillusionment Since this presidential cam- paign began 18 months ago, there's been a narrative that hasn't seemed to go away. By now, we're all famil- iar with the popular refrain - the disillu- sioned youth who once upon a time volun- teered and voted for President YONAH Barack Obama. LIEBERMAN The 2008 campaign was the first time I really engaged in politics. I wasn't old enough to vote, hut I'm proud to say I got caught up in the empowering slogans of "Change" and "Yes We Can." I sud- denly found myself in Richmond, va. as a community organizer, ral- lying support from door to door. Imagine that: a well-off, Jew- ish, private-school kid talking to impoverished black people. It was inspiring work. But wait! Before you all shove this paper into the recycling bin, I promise not to bore you with all of Obama's accomplishments and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's dangerous posi- tions. That's overdone. There's an oft-overlooked, yet important demographic on campus: people from all backgrounds who may not vote - those of you who are no longer inspired by the soaring rhetoric and incredible atmosphere of "the first time." That is, the first time that Obama ran for president. I know from experience that many pundits' blanket statements of disillusionment are entirely false. I saw it first-hand in Denver when I was a field organizer for the Obama campaign last summer, and I've seen it all across this campus these past two months. But, yes, there are many who have lost faith - who, as the pun- dits say, are "disillusioned." Look, I get it. I really, really do. There are many things I am frus- trated at Obama for not doing in his first term. He failed to achieve immigration reform, fight for the public option in health care reform, pull our troops out of Afghanistan, create more green jobs, reinvigorate the peace process between Israelis and Palestinians or close Guantana- mo Bay. He continued the Bush tax cuts on the wealthy and increased the drone strikes in the Middle East. And yet, my issue isn't entirely with the president, but with the sys- tem in which he functions. My issue isn't entirely with the lack of prog- teas, but with the institutions in place that make true progress diffi- cult. My issue isn't entirely with the change that we didn't see, but with a government that makes changes far too slowly. Clearly, I have major qualms with the president's first term. We shouldn't ignore these issues, and we shouldn't simply forgive his transgressions. We should engage with them. To engage is to act publicly when we disagree. This could mean taking to the streets, lobbying our congres- sional representatives, writing to the White House or - as Obama once did - doing some real community orga- nizing. To engage is not to check out. That shouldn't be an option. Every activist eventually learns that change is slow. It took 10 years after the Montgomery Bus Boycott for the Civil Rights Act of 1965 to become law. It took 35 years after the 1969 Stonewall riots for Massa- chusetts to become the first state to legalize same-sex marriage. We live in an imperfect world gov- erned by imperfect institutions. Our Electoral College is imperfect. Our two-party system is imperfect. Our campaign finance laws are imper- fect. Our politics are imperfect. If we want change, throwing up our hands when confronted with these imperfections isn't an option. We need to roll up our sleeves. The sweeping change we wanted so badly in 2008 may have been represented by Democratic presi- dential nominee Obama, but he was never going to achieve it all with his hands alone. We cannot sit back and watch. If we stop working for change, it drifts that much farther out of reach. Take heart, get out of bed, and go to the polls. We shouldn't forgetour emotions the night Barack Obama became president-elect. We can't push aside the hope we felt simply because change is slow. There's too much at stake. There are too many policiwes that still need to be changed. I refuse to tell my grandchildren that my generation's strength and unity dissolved in disillusionment. I reject the narrative that paints the 2008 election as the high-water mark of our movement for change. There are valid reasons to be dis- appointed in Obama's first term. But there's no excuse not to vote for a sec- ond term. There is no reason why we cannot come together again as agen- eration of change-seekers and hope- mongers, starting with Election.Day. When you wake up on Nov. 6, remember how you felt "the last time." And remember that while change may be slow, change will only come if, after we vote, we keep on working. - Yonah Lieberman can be reached at yonahl@umich.edu. Follow him on Twitter @YonahLieberman. 4 McCormack is a former faculty fellow at Yale Law School and the associate dean for clinical affairs at the University's Law School. She has participated in the Law School's clinics and formed her own, the Domestic violence Litiga- tion Clinic and the Pediatric Health Advocacy Clinic. McCormack became the Dean for Clini- cal Affairs in 2002. McCormack is a teacher of law and an advocate for justice. In an interview with Michigan Radio, she said that if elected she would "apply the law set by the political branches of government, to provide stability and promise equal treatment to all of our citi- zens." McCormack is an advocate of due pro- cess of law in all cases, and even volunteered to defend a prisoner held in Guantanamo Bay during the Bush administration. She also told Michigan Radio thatshe's "real- ly committed to the important, independent role the court plays inour constitutional democ- racy." Most importantly, however, McCormack is committed to the community and believes that the Court has a unique responsibility and function within it. Connie Kelley, a veteran of law for 27 years, serves on the Wayne County Circuit Court. Elected to the 3rd Circuit Court in 2008, Kel- ley's term has been characterized by fairness and consideration of both sides of arguments. An Oct. 9 article in The Michigan Chronicle described Kelley as family activist who looks after the rights of children. As Kelley said dur- ing the interview, one of the justices retiring this year, Justice Marilyn Kelly, is the only justice serving the state of Michigan to have experience in family law. Kelley also serves as a mentor for young women at Cody High School in Detroit. In another interview, Kelley identi- fied herself as someone who believes in trans- parency of the law: "We believe that justice should be for everybody and the justice system should be accessible to everybody." Two Republican opponents, Oakland County Circuit Judge Colleen O'Brien, and Justice Ste- phen Markman, have made questionable deci- sions as judges. O'Brien sentenced a man who raped an 11-year-old boy to one year in prison and four years of probation; this is clearly not a harsh enough sentence. Justice Markman has consistently voted conservatively in many cases. For example, in Pride at Work v. the Gov- ernor of Michigan, Markman ruled that Michi- gan's gay marriage ban also bars same-sex domestic partners who are public employees from receiving health insurance benefits. For the half-term Supreme Court position, Judge Sheila Johnson is running against Jus- tice Brian Zahra. Johnson is a graduate of the University of Michigan Law School.and has served as the judge of 46th District Court for nine years. She has worked as both a trial judge and as a lawyer, giving her experience from both sides. Justice Zahra was appointed to the Michigan Supreme Court by Governor Rick Snyder in 201. Zahra, like Markman, voted to reject same-sexbenefits. McCormack, Kelley and Johnson have the skill to maintain jurisprudence in Michigan. Both have opposed unprecedented campaign contributions that took place in the 2010 Supreme Court elections and onward after the Citizens United case. vote Bridget Mary McCormack, Judge Connie Kelley and Judge Sheila Johnson for Michigan Supreme Court. Kelley will provide the necessary expe- rience with regards to family litigation, McCor- mack brings academic reflection to the judicial bench and Johnson brings experience from her range of careers. I I I EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS Kaan Avdan, Sharik Bashir, Eli Cahan, Nirbhay Jain, Jesse Klein, Melanie Kruvelis, Patrick Maillet, Harsha Nahata, Timothy Rabb, Adrienne Roberts, Vanessa Rychlinski, Sarah Skaluba, Michael Spaeth, Gus Turner LIZ RODRIGUES WPI NT Support collective bargaining 4 F ROM T HE DA ILY Vote Dingell, Stabenow Jn a partisan campaign of Super Bowl proportions, former U.S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra is the Republican challenging Democratic incumbent Sen. Debbie Stabenow to represent Michigan in the U.S. Senate. Hoekstra is adamant that his initiatives are a vast improvement over his contender's. In an interview with The Michi- gan Daily, he summarized five key items that form the focal point of his candidacy: achieving American energy independence, revis- ing our tax code, privatizing our country's health care industry, improving our educational system and balancing the budget. Hoekstra's goals mark a good starting point, but he failed to sufficiently explain the means by which he plans to achieve them in the Sen- ate. Most troubling were his presumptuous statements about the current quality of the American health care system. "America's health care is imperfect, but imperfect as it is, it's still the best health care system in the world, and I don't want to put it in aposition where it's controlledby the federal government," Hoekstra said. While it's true Americahas excellenthealth care, it's by no means the "best health care system in the world," even compared to some of our closest neighbors. Per-capita health care spending in the U.S. is nearly twice that of Canada's and exceeds any other country in the world. In spite of the high expenditures, however, the World Health Organization ranked U.S. health care 37th worldwide, well below the other industrialized countries and some developing countries. When asked whether he and his Repub- lican cohorts had earned back their seats in government in the wake of the Bush admin- istration's missteps, Hoekstra pointed to the current administration as an example of a more recent failure. This is a striking example of Hoekstra's tendency to take the path of least resistance, harping on the shortcomings of his opponents rather than emphasizing his own campaign's strengths. Thiswas evenmore clearly observed in hiswidely panned, racially insensitive Super Bowl campaign advertisement, which criti- cized Debbie "Spenditnow" for her alleged sup- port of moving jobs overseas. Stabenow's interview with the Daily focused more on her efforts to strike a com- promise between parties. She has made a positive impact with her position as chair- woman on the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry. She also underscored her role as a "champion of advanced manu- facturing and new technologies," a support- er of the national auto industry and a chief figure in a $23-billion reduction of wasteful spending in the agricultural industry. Though her voting record lacks perfect consistency, Stabenow is the most qualified candidate for U.S. Senate not only for her abstention from extreme rhetoric, but also due to the firm precedent she's set with a 12-year tenure as a senator. vote Sen. Debbie Stabenow for U.S. Senate. In the U.S. House of Representatives, Rep. John Dingell faces Cynthia Kallgren to con- tinue his record-long service as congressman. Dingell's 57-year career, the longest in House history, is studded with remarkable contribu- tions, including his crucial role in uncovering numerous cases of political corruption and fraud. Duringa candidateforum at Weber's Inn on Oct. 10, Dingell was able to cite numerous examples of political service, while Kallgren's only managerial experience is derived from her role as a consultant for a company called Creative Memories. Dingell's record speaks for itself -vote Rep. John Dingell for the U.S. House of Representatives. If you're a Michigan voter, you have an important decision to make on Nov. 6. Will you stand on the side of working families and on the side of democracy, dignity and fairness for all workers by vot- ing yes on Proposal 2? We, as your GSIs and as officers, stewards and members of the Gradu- ate Employees' Organization, have worked hard to ensure you are able to make this decision for our state, rather than the CEos and politicians who have launched dozens of legis- lative actions stripping workers of their right to organize and bargain collectively. We urge you to vote yes on Proposal 2. You might have seen a few of the attack advertisements that circulate outright lies about what this constitutional amendment will mean for Michigan. These commercials try to portray edu- cators as evil criminals out to harm children and steal taxpayer money, instead of folks just try- ing to take care of their families, be treated fairly at work and make our communities a better place to live. These advertisements are examples of the most basic kind of discourse that does not even both- er to rise to the level of informed debate - you couldn't get away with argumentation like this in your English 125 essays. But the adverts aren't fooling the people who matter. Parents and informed citizens know that collective bar- gaining builds our communities and protects students. That's why groups like the Michigan PTA have endorsed Proposal 2. Before you make your decision, you might have a few questions. What is collective bargaining? In a political climate that vilifies working people, it's easy to for- get that collective bargaining is simply when two or more workers come together with their employer to negotiate hours, compensation and working conditions. Work- ers democratically decide among themselves what to bargain for and often address safety, quality stan- dards and due process in hiring and firing in their contracts. Many of the basic workplace rights and pro- tections we take for granted today are the result of decades of collec- tive bargaining efforts: the basic 40-hour work week, the weekend break, minimum wage and child labor laws. Maybe your question is, "What does the right to bargain collectively have to do with me and my future?" You might not be a union member when you graduate, but your work- ing conditions will be affected by the standards that bargaining sets. All workers gain because the wages, benefits, working conditions and safety procedures laid out in collec- tively bargained contracts become standards that other employers must meet to stay competitive. Our com- munities grow stronger because fair wages allow us to support local busi- nesses, fund our schools adequately and keep safety services strong. Con= versely, when workers don't have a voice, we all lose. Politicians are roll- ing back current laws that protect wages, hours and safe working con- ditions. We can't wait until our rights are completely gone - we need to protect them now. There's a classic labor movement * song that you might have heard played at our rally with lecturers and other community members support- ing Proposal 2 last Friday. The lyrics ask a simple question: Which side are you on? As we teach you in our dis- cussion sections, rarely is such a reductive question the right one to ask. There are multiple sides to every issue - and that's exactly why teachers need a seat at the table when decisions that affect the quality of their students' edu- cation are being discussed. Nurses need to know they can't be fired for raising safety concerns in hospitals that are increasingly run for profit at the patient's expense. All work- ers need a seat at the table when wages and benefits are being dis- cussed. Collective bargaining gives workers a say in these crucial deci- sions that directly affect the lives of their students, their patients and their communities. Yet in a time when the basic democratic rights of working people are under attack by politi- cians and CEos who rake in record profits for themselves while keep- ing wages stagnant, the question before you is simple: Which side are you on? A vote for Proposal 2 is a vote for the right for workers to have a seat at the table, to have a say in their working conditions and to be respected for the labor and skills they-bring to their jobs every single day. This viewpoint was written by Liz Rodrigues and other members of the Graduate Employees' Organization. INTERESTED IN CAMPUS ISSUES? POLITICS? SEX, DRUGS AND ROCK'N'ROLL? Check out The Michigan Daily's editorial board meetings. Every Monday and Thursday at 6pm, the Daily's opinion staff meets to discuss both University and national affairs and write editorials. E-mail opinioneditors@michigandaily.com to join in the debate. .0