The Red and the Blue

Taxes were due yesterday. W00t w00t. So were financial aid forms. Now, I have to make a major complaint. Why do all of the financial aid forms simply ask us for the SAME information that is on our taxes? This would make sense if they didn’t have access to our taxes, but one of the first things they want in your financial aid package is…a copy of your tax forms.

And why do we have to pay $25 for the CSS Profile? It is simply another regurgitation of the information that you can find…in our tax forms.

Same with the Business/Farm Supplement. All of that information is on Schedule C…in your tax forms.

Personally, I think these CSS profiles are extortion. The same information is given in tax forms, the FAFSA and the Penn financial aid forms.

I know my Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) better than I remember my mom’s birthday. I’ve entered my AGI into so many fields, forms, and…you probably don’t want to know where else I’ve put it. Read more…

Yanik Ruiz-Ramon Uncategorized

http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-230164

April 15 is always a great day for Republicans because they can use people’s (warranted) frustration, anger and confusion with the IRS to score political points.

Yesterday conservative groups across the United States staged “TEA” parties, many of which drew upwards of 1,000 people.  The “Taxed Enough Already” protests were aimed at drawing attention to the “excessive government spending and bailouts,” and were organized via Twitter and Facebook—apparently Republicans have finally realized the effectiveness of Obama’s modus operandi.

It’s a little hard to tell, based on the pictures, whether this was a populist movement spurred by angry taxpayers or a political opposition movement sponsored by Fox News. The protesters all seemed so delighted that other people showed up that they sort of forgot what they were there for. Read more…

Lauren Burdette Uncategorized Fox News, protest, Republican, tea party

Young Tea Partyer Protesting in Dallas, TX

The Tax Man cometh, and conservatives are going nuts.

But don’t worry, Fox is covering it with its usual dose of fairness and balance.

Is this our generation’s Woodstock?

Texas is prepared to secede.  And this follows his reassertion of state sovereignty.

The President releases his tax returns and tries to put the economy in a bigger picture.

He is also preparing for some education reform.

Speaking of right wingers, former Rep. Patrick Toomey is officially in.

But Chris Cillizza reports that the GOP establishment is prepared to get behind Arlen Specter.

Reps. Joe Sestak and Patrick Murphy, both of Pennsylvania, take up Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

Colin Kavanaugh Uncategorized

The Daily Pennsylvanian published an article today about the  VOTER Act of 2009.  The bill, proposed in the Senate by Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin (D) and in the House by Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D) and Ohio Rep. Steven LaTourette (R), would allow students to register to vote while registering for classes.

The implementation of the bill rests with the individual colleges and universities, but the point is to utilize what has been a sleeping giant: college-aged voters and campus volunteer mobilization.  Some of these efforts are already being done independently on college campuses.  I remember an article on Berkeley’s placement of registration forms in every new freshman’s mailbox.

At its best, the bill represents an attempt to bring students, often disenfranchised by the political process, into the voting population more effectively.  At its worst, it represents politicking by friendly Illinois Obama allies to institutionalize the Obama campaign’s modus operandi. And you’re kidding yourself if you think the White House wasn’t behind its introduction in some form or another. Read more…

Colin Kavanaugh Uncategorized Elections, Penn Dems, Voting

The intersection of 7th St. and Arch St. (view map) defines irony. It is the type of wry irony that makes you sad but forces you to smile at its bitter poignancy.

701 Arch Street is home to the African-American Museum in Philadelphia. Right across the street at 700 Arch St. is a Federal Detention Center.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the rate of incarceration for black males was 4,618 for 100,00 people as of June 30, 2007. White men are incarcerated at a rate of 773 per 100,000. That is a rate of 4.62% vs. 0.77%.

Out of the 2.1 million incarcerated men, 35.4% are black. That comes out to 724,500 men, or 4.4% of the U.S. black male population. According to the Washington Post, 1 in 10 black males between the ages of 24 and 30 are behind bars. The article also notes that the increase in prison population over the last decade has been due in part to tougher sentencing guidelines.

So at what point do we blame the environmental factors over personal responsibility (or vice-versa?). Sounds like a familiar debate, doesn’t it?

Another factor worth pondering is how the justice system contributes to these skewed results. The racial disparities among prisoners are fascinating and disturbing, especially when the population of a city like Philadelphia is split roughly in half among blacks and whites (45% and 47.6%, respectively). Read more…

Yanik Ruiz-Ramon Uncategorized crime, Philadelphia, philly, race

A map of Philadelphia's Wards

When Obama came to Philly for the Pennsylvania primary he ruffled some feathers by declaring that he would not dole out street money to the local Democratic political machine.

In a venerable city like Philadelphia, street money is one of those lubricants that keeps the system flowing. It pays for transportation expenses, food, buttons, literature and people to get out the vote on election day.

Committee people are the biggest recipients of street money on election day, receiving between $50 and $400 for working 14 hours getting people to the polls. These political workers are elected officials from Philadelphia’s smallest political unit: the division. Philly has over 1,600 divisions, each containing between 100 and 1,200 registered voters. Each division elects two four committee people, one two Democrats and one two Republicans. (Edit: thanks to Adam Lang for the correction)

In turn, these committee people elect the ward leaders who hand out the cash.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Rep. Bob Brady, also the head of Philadelphia’s Democratic Party, ripped a $50 bill in half and gave it to two workers. Whoever brought in the most votes would receive both halves.

There are 66 wards in Philadelphia, containing approximately 30,000 people and between 10 and 50 divisions. They are led by ward leaders elected by the committee people. Each ward has a Democratic and a Republican leader. (Note: some wards are split up into two. i.e. 39a and 39b)

So why are ward leaders important?

Read more…

Yanik Ruiz-Ramon Uncategorized Bob Brady, Democrat, Democratic Party, division, street money, ward

Harvard should let the ROTC back on campus, argue Daniel West and Joseph Kristol in the Wall Street Journal.

David Harsanyi thinks the Secretary of Education is ignoring the truth on vouchers.

Gay rights advocates feel the wind at their back.  Will Penn’s Lambda group do anything in Pennsylvania?

Meanwhile, the National Organization for Marriage is pushing back (in PA!).  Apparently, the gays are coming to get us (and our little dog, too).

Sen. Arlen Specter “just said no” to pot.  I guess the Bio Pond hadn’t been built yet when he was a Penn student.

A little late, but Catholic universities just aren’t what they used to be.

And Obama may be a “Christmas/Easter Christian,” but he still knows when to pass over the Matzoh to Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel.

Colin Kavanaugh Uncategorized gay marriage

Virginia's gubernatorial race will see court time

Virginia is one of two states holding a gubernatorial election in 2009, and it’s shaping up to be one of the most interesting.  The lone Republican candidate, State Attorney General Robert McDonnell, will face off with the Democrat who emerges in front after the June 3rd primary.  The Democrats contending for that honor are State Senator Creigh Deeds, former state delegate Brian Moran and former DNC Chairman and chairman of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign Terry McAuliffe.

This race is pretty tight according to most polls—which might not be saying much, since most people are still recovering from the presidential election.  Based on the most recent Rasmussen poll, it looks like it is going to be a very close race.  Current Governor Tim Kaine, a Democrat, has a 58% approval rating, and President Obama turned Virginia blue for the first time since 1964, but Virginia is still overwhelmingly Republican. How will this race be decided? Will African-Americans, who helped deliver the state to Obama, turn out for a governor’s race? Will Virginia continue in its role as a swing state? Read more…

Lauren Burdette Uncategorized NCAA championship, Robert McDonnell, Terry McAuliffe, Virginia governor

Courtesy of ivopenchevbg at flickr.com

The Red and the Blue has fresh blood: College junior Yanik Ruiz-Ramon will showcase a unique focus on Philly politics.

In Philadelphia politics, all roads lead to the stone behemoth straddling the intersection of Broad and Market streets. City Hall is the nexus of Philadelphia wheeling and dealing, housing the executive, judicial, and legislative branches for 1,450,000 cheese-steak wielding Philadelphians.

City Hall was constructed to represent Philadelphia’s industrial dominance in the 1870s. The ornate style is French Second Empire, another way of architecturally screaming that we have money. This political palace took 30 years to finish, beginning in 1871. A large reason for the delays were good ol’ fashion Philly politics. Political boss Boies Penrose tried to take control of the state-created Building Commission. There were also fights over everything from design to construction.

City Hall was supposed to be the tallest building in the world, reaching 549 feet, but it took so long to finish that by 1901 it was dwarfed by the Eiffel Tower and the Washington Monument. During construction, electricity and elevators were also invented, so builders had to start retrofitting the building before it was even finished. Read more…

Yanik Ruiz-Ramon Uncategorized

What a week for the president.

Starting in London, Barack Obama has traversed Europe from one corner to the other (literally).  But something profound happened in the midst of meeting with European leaders: Obama completed his tour of Europe in Turkey, a nation yet to be accepted into the European Union.

“Some people have asked me if I chose to continue my travels to Ankara and Istanbul to send a message,” Obama said to the Turkish parliament yesterday. “My answer is simple: Evet. Yes.”

In his remarks, he stated, “The United States is not and will never be at war with Islam.”

Obama was trying to send a signal that Turkey is a part of Europe, while simultaneously speaking to the Muslim world.  The problem is: he can’t do both. Read more…

Colin Kavanaugh Uncategorized Barack Obama, Europe, Turkey