Watch Obama's speech at West Point and respond to the following: 1. what was your general reaction to the speech? 2. Do you think troops will really be out in 18 months? 3. Would you support a "war tax" to help pay for the costs of the war?
Again, Id like to commend Obama on his amazing public speaking skiills. Overall, I was surprised by the fact that he didnt overly stress the different views of the American people and the impact that this decision would have on us. One of the things i like and respect the most about his speeches is how he is able to relate everything back to the American people no matter what the topic but i dont feel he did this to the best of his ability. But i think one of the quotes that summed up the speech and couldnt have been more well up was, "I believe with every fiber of my being that we – as Americans – can still come together behind a common purpose. For our values are not simply words written into parchment – they are a creed that calls us together, and that has carried us through the darkest of storms as one nation, one people." Obama did an amazing job of summing up the task at hand, the obvious... to send 30,000 more troops to the Middle East and the underlying... summoning unity between the American people in order to achieve this goal, whether they support it or not. Personally, unfortunately i do not believe that troops will be out of the area in 18 months, and to that end i think increasing troops, although it will be benefitial to the cause and will allow us to accomplish goals such as patroling borders and training and partnering with Afghan security forces and increasing stability and capacity of partners in the region in order to fight the Al Queda, will lead to U.S. participation in the area far longer than 18 months.
Watching Obama’s speech was certainly not a chore. Listening to him talk is intriguing; he is respectful and he has astounding public speaking skills. To react to the whole speech, I am sort of in awe. I was shocked by how I actually wanted to pay attention for ten minutes, because normally politician speeches can be either boring or confusing to me. Obama got the message across while keeping the wording and pace of his speech relatively simple. Also it was easy for me to tell that the audience was in awe as well. Being a military academy, respect is something that is drilled as importance and for the president to speak to them is such an honor. I agree with Margo, because while I was watching the speech, before I even went to post on the blog site, I knew I wanted to mention something about how I adore the way he pronounced “Taliban.” I know it’s accurate, but my ear is not used to hearing it like that, so it sounded precious. :) As far as content, though, I’m not completely sure I believe the troops will be out in 18 months. As an American, I think it is important to put faith in the president. I trust Obama, however I am skeptical. I did not know much about his campaign, but I was pretty sure it was his main goal to get troops out as soon as possible. And, I recognize that that IS what he is trying to do, however by putting 30,000 troops in for now is a hard strategy for the average American to grasp, when all they want to do is see the troops come home to their families. It is certainly comforting to see a plan, though. To get combat troops out by next summer, and all troops out by 2011 is promising. (It is also really cool that we put deadlines as such in our NATO simulation, and now the real world is doing so too.) Also, a war tax is probably a very beneficial thing for America. A way to simulate an economy is to spend, but many people are very hesitant to spend, because the possibility of not getting money back in return is a scary thought. However, a war tax would be almost a forced way for people to spend money, and it would also help the war end faster. If it could have two potentially huge benefits for our country, then I do support it.
Again, Id like to commend Obama on his amazing public speaking skiills. Overall, I was surprised by the fact that he didnt overly stress the different views of the American people and the impact that this decision would have on us. One of the things i like and respect the most about his speeches is how he is able to relate everything back to the American people no matter what the topic but i dont feel he did this to the best of his ability. But i think one of the quotes that summed up the speech and couldnt have been more well up was, "I believe with every fiber of my being that we – as Americans – can still come together behind a common purpose. For our values are not simply words written into parchment – they are a creed that calls us together, and that has carried us through the darkest of storms as one nation, one people." Obama did an amazing job of summing up the task at hand, the obvious... to send 30,000 more troops to the Middle East and the underlying... summoning unity between the American people in order to achieve this goal, whether they support it or not.
ReplyDeletePersonally, unfortunately i do not believe that troops will be out of the area in 18 months, and to that end i think increasing troops, although it will be benefitial to the cause and will allow us to accomplish goals such as patroling borders and training and partnering with Afghan security forces and increasing stability and capacity of partners in the region in order to fight the Al Queda, will lead to U.S. participation in the area far longer than 18 months.
Watching Obama’s speech was certainly not a chore. Listening to him talk is intriguing; he is respectful and he has astounding public speaking skills. To react to the whole speech, I am sort of in awe. I was shocked by how I actually wanted to pay attention for ten minutes, because normally politician speeches can be either boring or confusing to me. Obama got the message across while keeping the wording and pace of his speech relatively simple. Also it was easy for me to tell that the audience was in awe as well. Being a military academy, respect is something that is drilled as importance and for the president to speak to them is such an honor. I agree with Margo, because while I was watching the speech, before I even went to post on the blog site, I knew I wanted to mention something about how I adore the way he pronounced “Taliban.” I know it’s accurate, but my ear is not used to hearing it like that, so it sounded precious. :) As far as content, though, I’m not completely sure I believe the troops will be out in 18 months. As an American, I think it is important to put faith in the president. I trust Obama, however I am skeptical. I did not know much about his campaign, but I was pretty sure it was his main goal to get troops out as soon as possible. And, I recognize that that IS what he is trying to do, however by putting 30,000 troops in for now is a hard strategy for the average American to grasp, when all they want to do is see the troops come home to their families. It is certainly comforting to see a plan, though. To get combat troops out by next summer, and all troops out by 2011 is promising. (It is also really cool that we put deadlines as such in our NATO simulation, and now the real world is doing so too.) Also, a war tax is probably a very beneficial thing for America. A way to simulate an economy is to spend, but many people are very hesitant to spend, because the possibility of not getting money back in return is a scary thought. However, a war tax would be almost a forced way for people to spend money, and it would also help the war end faster. If it could have two potentially huge benefits for our country, then I do support it.
ReplyDelete