A Few Thoughts...

1) A few gallup polls about which states are most conservative and which states are most liberal came out this week and a couple of results surprised me. One, that my home state of Texas was not listed in the Top 10 of conservative states. Two, that my second home state (Ahem, Commonwealth) of Massachusetts came in as the 5th most liberal states. I mean, c'mon Texas is the same state that has repeatedly thrown around the idea of seceding from the United States because of conservative staple issues like taxes, immigration and federal overreach. And Massachusetts, really!?! This is the first state to provide healthcare for all of its citizens. Yes, the same state that brought you (conservatives avert your eyes) universal health care, is only considered the fifth most liberal state.

Still, I am baffled by Texas not being on the list of Top 10 Conservative States. Could it be that the Lone Star State's status as the conservative standard bearer is just a bunch of hot air? Has the increase in latino population really tipped the scales? I'm not completely convinced yet that the state which prides itself on the motto (one of several I might add) "Texas - it's like a whole other country" has changed it's popular stripes. I am more likely to believe that those people who were polled in Texas were mostly conservative, but held tighter to the "independent" streak that runs throughout the state and just did not wish to label themselves as conservative, liberal or anything of the sort.

Time (or more likely the upcoming 2010 general elections) will either prove my suspicions right or wrong.

2) It is August 3, 2010 and there is already talk about what the president should do about his ticket for the 2012 election. We are not even two years into the Obama Administration and there are people making recommendations about who he should have on his ticket as Vice President in an election that is over two years from now. Interestingly enough, the person making this recommendation is a long-time Obama supporter and a pioneer/trailblazer in his own right when it comes to minority elected officials. His name, Douglas Wilder. For those of you wondering where you've heard that name before, he was the first (and far as I know the only) African-American elected as Governor of the Commonwealth (I know what you're thinking, again with those odd-ball "commonwealths", but this was not on purpose) of Virginia. His recommendation, replace Vice President Joe Biden with (Hill-raisers, get out your pom-poms - no gender puns intended) Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

There are all kinds of rationales for a move like this, but of greater concern to me is the fact that before President Obama even has a chance to settle into being the Leader of the Free World, there are already plans gearing up for the next election. This reality of the "endless" campaign is yet another reason why it's so important for voters to stay vigilant, regardless of who is representing you or the political party in power, because elected officials will come and go, but the issues that face you and your community will most likely be around a long time.

3) Maybe you haven't heard about this or maybe you have, but there seems to be a lot of talk about the 14th Amendment. Some are calling for its repeal, others are apparently calling for hearings to discuss whether or not the entire amendment should be repealed or possibly just parts of the amendment. The issue spawning all of this talk is, immigration. Some people have a problem with Section I of the 14th Amendment which states,

"All persons born or naturalized in the United States and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside."

The amendment says much more than that, but that's the gist and some believe that "illegal immigrants" taking advantage of Section I by running across the border and having kids so that their children can be U.S. citizens. What is interesting is that this amendment overturned the Dred Scott Decision, which stated that the descendants of slaves were not protected by the Constitution and could not be considered U.S. citizens.

I get that people are trying to curb undocumented immigration, but by and large, those who come across the border illegally are doing so for financial interests, and those interest have very little to do with citizenship and everything to do with jobs. Address those large and small companies that directly benefit from the labor of "illegals" (as some like to call them) and the job opportunities will dry up. If the job opportunities dry up, facing the danger and second class existence that comes with living as an undocumented worker will be a lot less attractive.

This smells a lot like creating smoke where there is no fire in one place, because those in charge either don't know or don't want to deal with the legitimate fire that's burning somewhere else. Again, it is activity like this which flies under the radar until it's too late to do anything about it. Be alert, go ask some questions and be a part of the process. Sunlight, as they say, is the best disinfectant.