They had no record whatsoever of issuing a hard drive for my computer. In fact, over the phone, I was told there was nothing wrong with my computer at all. I wasn't exactly qualified to argue with this, since it seemed to be running more or less correctly, if slowly. My mother was more stubborn than I, and we ventured into Dell's online chat support, and an agent walked us through several diagnostics. Sexy underwent more death throes and -- long story short -- they're sending out a technician to replace pretty much everything ever in my computer, including the remote control that was lost at the repair center.
For now, I'm stuck using my parents' desktop (which is actually fairly nice, just not as convenient as lazy-me would like). I figured I'd just put the blog on hold, but then something happened in my country which demanded some type of reaction.
Americans are very aware of our current debt crisis. For my fellow rock-dwelling countrymen and any foreigners who don't watch American news, the US is close to defaulting on its debt, which is huge. We're working on a deadline here, and the House of Representatives and the Senate (the two portions of government which make up our Congress, which is a bit like England's Parliament) are basically engaged in a dick-swinging contest over a thresher.
This.
One side wants to drastically slash spending and raise the debt ceiling. The other side wants to cut spending a bit less, increase revenue by closing tax loopholes, and raise the debt ceiling.
At this point, it doesn't matter who you support; the fact that nothing is getting done this close to the deadline (August 2nd), thus damaging American credit, is ridiculous.
After President Obama's speech last Monday, I decided to try to contact my congressman, Dan Benishek. I didn't vote for the guy. I haven't agreed with pretty much every position he's taken. But I thought I could at least politely ask him to listen and speak my mind a little.
Here's a copy of what I sent him, with personal details redacted:
"Dear Representative Benishek:
My name is --------. I am an undergraduate at the University of Michigan, like you once were. My home is on the family farm in ------------. I am one of the people you represent, but your stance on the national debt crisis makes it hard to believe that you really care about your constituents.
According to a press release on benishek.house.gov, you support the “Cut, Cap and Balance Act.” While I agree that cuts need to be made and that spending needs to come down to more reasonable levels, I do not believe that simply making cuts and raising the debt limit is the responsible choice. I agree with President Obama’s plan to both increase revenue and cut spending while retaining levels of funding to vital programs like Medicare and education.
As Obama explained in his speech last night, middle-class families – and the poor – would not be expected to contribute any more than we already do. In ------, that’s a relief to hear. The people here are struggling, Representative Benishek. There are no jobs, and few prospects for youth; those young people who do graduate from ------- generally have to leave. But we are unprepared. A lack of funding has resulted in a public school that is woefully inadequate. I graduated from -------- High School in 2008. I ran out of math, social studies, and English courses to take and had to obtain credit from the community college thirty miles away in order to finish high school. Our teachers were pushed to the breaking point and many seemed to give up altogether. My world geography teacher, aware that he would be laid off at the end of the year, gave my class the assignment of creating NCAA tournament brackets rather than test us on anything that would require more teaching effort from a man who would shortly become unemployed no matter what he did. Our Spanish teacher, the only foreign language instructor -HS had, was also laid off, despite teaching English and history as well. More recently, -HS has been forced to cut music and art. The school is down to bare essentials, barely able to make state requirements. With this kind of education, how are local youth supposed to be prepared for further education, for jobs in our increasingly global world?
I know that ------ isn’t very important on the national scale, which is why the town has slipped through the cracks so many times. We are used to apathy from the government. The state government cut our funding while increasing educational requirements. And now the national government is so wrapped up in its own politics that it seems to have forgotten that it is supposed to serve the people. The national debt, as you know, threatens disaster. The budget must be balanced, but it has to be done in a responsible way. Relying on cuts alone to do so is haphazard at best. The fact is that many vital programs have already seen more than enough cuts, public education being a prime example. What else will you cut in order to balance the budget? Will you cut low-cost health care still further? Will you put the future of America on hold yet again and slash education budgets? Will you seriously consider the desires of the very wealthy and large corporations before you remember the needs of ordinary people?
I know that the Republican party dislikes increasing revenue, but in this case it is only fair. It is only fair to require big business and wealthy individuals to contribute to their own country just as other, poorer citizens do. If everyone takes a fair share of the burden, perhaps this country as a whole can move forward and into a better future. Together.
In short: Please support President Obama’s plan to reduce the debt and increase revenue by closing tax loopholes and exemptions for big business and the upper class.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Sincerely,
-------------------"
And I figured that would be that. Was it naive and sentimental of me to hope I could make a difference? Yes, perhaps, but it was better than doing nothing.
I was sent a form letter in reply. I don't have a problem with form letters -- standardized replies sent out to multiple recipients. If you've applied to an American college, you probably used something like this for your admissions essay. Cover letters tend to be in this format as well.
However, this form letter made it painfully clear that no one actually read what I sent. That no one on the other end really cared what I thought. How do I know this?
Because the letter suggested that I held and expressed political views exactly opposite to that which I did, indeed, express.
Here's Benishek's reply. The underlining was in the original, but I boldfaced the bit that irritated me for those who prefer to just skim.
"Dear ------:
As you may know, the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury Department, Timothy Geithner, set August 2nd as the date federal spending will exceed the statutorily set limit of $14.3 trillion. The problem we are facing today is decades in the making: both Republicans and Democrats have spent taxpayer money without restraint, and leaders of both parties have failed to address this issue. Left unchecked, public debt will reach 100% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in just ten years according to the Congressional Budget Office.
On May 31, 2011, the House voted down—by a 97 to 318 margin—a bill to implement the President's request to increase the statutory limit on the public debt without any corresponding spending reductions. Shortly after, with my support, the House passed H.R. 2560, the "Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of 2011." If enacted, this bill would require Congress—before raising the debt limit— to reduce federal spending by $111 billion for FY 2012, limit federal spending to 19.9% of GDP by 2021, and require the House and Senate to pass a Balanced Budget Amendment to be sent to the states for ratification. Unfortunately, the Senate refused to even consider this legislation, voting instead to table this bill and ensure its failure.
In the absence of a proposal by the President, and with the August 2nd deadline quickly approaching, the House, with my support, passed the "Budget Control Act of 2011." If enacted, this bill would avoid a government default by raising the debt ceiling, while reducing federal spending by nearly $3 trillion over the next decade. While I do not believe the Budget Control Act is the perfect plan, I support this reasonable, responsible effort to cut government spending, avoid a default, and help create a better environment for job creation. This legislation takes an important first step in the right direction by changing the very rules of how the federal government is allowed to spend taxpayer money: this bill will limit the amount of money the government can spend each year, and it provides for the passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution. Additionally, this measure protects America's most vulnerable citizens: the Budget Control Act does not change benefits for Social Security or Medicare recipients. This bill passed the House and was sent to the Senate Friday evening.
This weekend, with Congress in session, I will study carefully any proposal put forward by House and Senate leadership that avoids default and at the same time makes certain that the federal government begins reducing its spending, ensuring that the country does not face a debt crisis in the future.
I understand the frustrations of Americans who wish to reduce spending further, but it is important to remember that this spending spree occurred over decades. Reducing federal spending is not impossible, it simply requires the leadership and resolve to do it. This country has a long way to go until the federal government's finances are stable, but the Budget Control Act represents a good start. I believe Northern Michigan citizens do not think these fiscal measures are too much to ask; they know that the federal government cannot continue to spend more money than it takes in and must live within its means.
Again, thank you for taking the time to share with me your opinion—I value hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Dan Benishek M. D.
Member of Congress
P.S. I would also like to invite you to visit my website, www.benishek.house.gov, for further information. If you have not already done so, please submit your email address so that my office may keep you informed on issues in Congress."
I didn't mind a standardized reply, but one that assumed that I held views antithesis to my own was simply insulting. I wrote back -- and if I receive another reply, that'll be in the next post.
(Anyone who wants to write their congressman can do so here. It includes a zip code verification so American citizens can look up their congressman by location. Very handy.)
-----
*Yes, Sexy. I named her after the Tardis, and it's a really long story and you're just going to have to take my word for it.