Tweet of the Day: September 3, 2012

That was one helluva game tonight. 20-17 OT victory.

Th Wrap-Up: May 14, 2012

Here you can see a bit of Michelle Obama speaking at the Commencement ceremony of Virginia Tech (LET'S GO HOKIES!!!).

Tony Perkins' Thursday was...less than stellar (which in the grand scheme of things is probably good).

Speaking of Mr Perkins, when he of all people says a homophobic "joke" goes too far, it's gone WAY too far. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) should take note of that fact.

Bristol Palin had the temerity to give President Obama parenting advice after saying that his interactions with his daughters' friends helped him "evolve" on marriage equality. Some needs to be taken down a peg...or three.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is taking on a diabolical enemy: the Girl Scouts.

Mitt Romney flip-flopped on same-sex adoption in record time, even for him.

Hopefully, this leaked memo to GOP operatives signifies a coming change in Republican policy. Ironically, it comes after GOP strategist Ed Gillespie said Republicans would be campaigning in "traditional" marriage (after President Obama's announcement).

How might marriage equality affect in presidential race in 2016?

And lastly, MSNBC's Tamron Hall lays the smack-down on one of Mitt Romney's surrogates.

The Wrap-Up: December 9, 2011

Burruss Hall at Virginia Tech

First and foremost, my thoughts and prayers go out to those effected by the shootings that happened yesterday at my alma mater, Virginia Tech. This incident, bad enough in and of itself, brings back some terribly memories. Stay strong Hokie Nation.

The LGBT community of El Paso, Texas is now standing up for the mayor who stood up for domestic-partner benefits for them.

The National Organization for Marriage is endorsing a book which claims same-sex parents are more likely to molest their children. I have three words for them: WHERE'S. THE. PROOF?

Heeding the call from Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, the Justice Minister of Malawi is putting the nation's relevant laws under review, much to the chagrin of Pat Robertson I'm sure.

Senator Scott Brown (R-MA)

Competing proposals to extend the payroll tax were both stalled in the Senate. The difference is which party's proposal met more opposition.

Granted the election is about 11 months away, there is some good polling news out of Massachusetts...unless you're Scott Brown that is.

Thus far, only two candidates have signed onto Trump's December 27th debate. Since one of those is Rick Santorum, he doesn't even count. Bachmann is the only candidate still undecided.

Here is a great ad from the Perry campaign. I don't say it's great because of its content (which is actually quite terrible), I say it's great because of the public response which was so negative, comments were disabled. So much for his view on freedom of speech.

With Gingrich's star on the rise, he is coming under attack...by fellow Republicans that aren't even in the race.

Joseph Kennedy III

The mayor of Troy, Michigan who came under fire for anti-gay comments she made on Facebook has lost her day job. Unfortunately, she's still the mayor though.

Will the Kennedy's make a return to Congress?

With all of his running away from the $117,000 in child support, I'm surprised that Rep. Joe "Deadbeat Dad" Walsh has the energy to run from anything else. I guess he had a lot of coffee.

And lastly, New York City's Ali Forney Center, which benefits homeless LGBT youth, received an incredible gift just in time for the holidays.

Occupy Wall Street: Blacksburg Edition

When I merely saw the headline, I got excited. Though the fervor is obviously not as strong here as it is in New York, Boston, Seattle, and various other places in the country/world, I honestly didn't think it would reach to my little corner of this planet. I'm glad I was wrong.

Blacksburg Occupied

For the second time in less than a week, Blacksburg was occupied.

Occupy Blacksburg held a protest Saturday, Oct. 15, to show solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Waving signs and carrying banners, members of the community gathered in front of The Cellar Restaurant and listened to speakers before they marched through downtown Blacksburg.

The Occupy Virginia Tech group held a similar protest at the War Memorial Pylons last Thursday.

While that protest was populated predominately by students, Saturday’s saw a more diverse crowd.

“Occupy Virginia Tech was mainly students where people came out for job security and student debt,” said Kyle Gardiner, a senior political science major. “Occupy Blacksburg had a much larger age variety and reflected more general concerns about a government that is no longer serving the people.”

Gardiner spoke at Occupy Blacksburg but did not at the Tech protest. He said he didn’t feel comfortable protesting amid the memorials to American soldiers, since Occupy Virginia Tech was held near the War Memorial Chapel. 

Protestors at Occupy Blacksburg offered many different reasons for why they came out Saturday and gave their opinions about the movement’s purpose.

“It’s about the 99 percent that don’t control all the wealth in the country standing up and taking back what is theirs,” said Abby Hays, a junior political science major.

Others said they were dissatisfied with the state of the job market in the U.S.

“I know people here are concerned with the fact that there are no jobs for them after college, and they are burdened with a lot of debt,” said Robert Fentress, the senior instructional designer and developer for the Institute for Distance and Distributed Learning at Tech. 

“(It’s a) similar thing for the staff, as their salaries haven’t increased, while some people at the top of the university are making a lot of money.”

Margaret Breslau, one of the organizers of Occupy Blacksburg, said Wall Street hasn’t felt the same economic woes that have afflicted the rest of the population.

“Wages have been falling in this country, and yet the top 1 percent had the highest profits ever even in this time of crisis and economic downturn,” Breslau said. “They’re still getting a profit while wages are falling, people can’t find jobs and student loans are spiraling out of control.”

A common stance among occupiers at the protest was that the government’s affiliation with corporations has resulted in political inequality.

Travis Merritt, a graduate student studying physics, said wealth often equates in large amounts of political leverage, and he wants to see the government work more for the 99 percent, rather than the rich 1 percent.

“People are saying that it is a socialist movement, but it is wholly democratic, trying to get back to the one person, one vote,” Merritt said. “People are going to Wall Street because that is where they are seeing most of the influence.”

With so many beliefs expressed in one place, some bystanders questioned the effectiveness of having a protest without much direction.

Will Stacy, a Tech alumnus, said despite a lack of direction, protesting is an effective measure in showing leaders people’s will.

“How do we begin to put pressure on our government to create policies that limit the effect of large corporations on our policy decisions?” Stacy said. “I don’t understand any other way, other than voting, which doesn’t seem to be working. We’re here mainly to start that pressure.”

Breslau said the Occupy movement is spreading as more people connect with what it stands for.

“The fact that it happened in New York was just one example of something that everyone across the country and the world has been really wanting,” Breslau said.

Saturday’s protest was held in conjunction with protests not only in cities across the country, but also across the globe. From Brussels to Berlin and Taipei to Tokyo, protesters came out Saturday to voice their concerns on wealth disparity and others.

Reaction to the protest was mixed. Cars driving by gave out honks of support, while at least one driver flipped off the protestors as he passed.

“This is just the first of many opportunities for people to speak out, to be heard and to continue the solidarity,” Breslau said.

Collegiate Times