Sound_Off's Blog

This post has been edited by an administrator

What was your experience like?  How long did you wait in line?  Did you experience any problems?  Was it a smooth experience?  Were you treated well?  Are you grateful for the volunteers? Are you frustrated?  Did you file a complaint?  Do you need to? Are you inspired by the record turnout? 


Sound Off Your Thoughts.  Some of your comments may get used on the air.

Who do you think won the debate?  Even though tonight's debate between John
McCain and Barack Obama is supposed to focus on foreign policy, you
shouldn't be surprised to hear some discussion of the economy.
 
Moderator Jim Lehrer of PBS is indicating that he won't be
constrained by the boundaries negotiated by the two campaigns
months ago, considering the crisis facing the financial system.
 
So how do you think the candidates did on the issue of Foreign Policy?
Who did better on the economy?
Who won overall?

Did the debate help you decide?

SOUND OFF YOUR THOUGHTS HERE.  SOME OF YOUR COMMENTS MAY BE USED ON THE AIR DURING A FOX 2 NEWSCAST.

Right now, the Obama campaign is debating whether or not the presidential candidate should call for Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick to step down. Some Democrats are worried the Republicans will try to link Obama to the mayor, and indeed, the senator did have some kind things to say about Kilpatrick before his legal troubles started.

So what do you think? Would it would be a wise move for Obama to call for Kilpatrick's resignation, or should he stay away from the issue altogether? Whether you're an Obama supporter or not, do you think this is a necessary part of attracting undecided Michigan voters, or does Detroit's mayoral mess really have nothing to do with him and his campaign for president?

Sound off below...

A recent report out the Washington AP tackles the subject of affirmative action, in light of the success of Sen. Barack Obama in his bid for the U.S. presidency.  According to the article, some say Obama's rise suggests that racial prejudice is a thing of the past.  They argue that if Americans are willing to make him president, there are no barriers left for racial minorities and affirmative action would be obsolete.  Others say that everyday minorities are still subject to discrimination and biases, and that Obama is merely an exception.  For example, they point out that, as affirmative action's power diminishes, minority enrollment has fallen at many prominent colleges and universities.  Click here for more.

Now tell us what you think.  Does Obama's success render affirmative action out-of-date, or is he an exception to what is still the rule of bias in American culture?  Remember to be respectful when you express your opinion.

With the election four months away both the Obama and McCain camps are having to respond to ads meant to appeal to audiences racial sentiments

A presidential candidate who's named Hussein and wears a turban? A building that's called the White House but run by a black guy? These blatant racist political images have already have found their way onto TV airwaves and campaign buttons. These racially tinged messages are obviously meant to direct ones attention to the fact that Barack Obama is the first black candidate to head a major party's ticket.

What did these ads entail? The following: A TV station in South Dakota briefly aired an ad that was edited to show Obama saying, "we are no longer a Christian nation, we are also a Muslim nation." The ad omitted his saying, in the same speech, that the United States is not solely a Christian nation. The ad, which included a photo of Obama wearing a turban as part of a traditional outfit given to him in Africa, concluded with a man saying: "It's time for people of faith to stand against Barack Hussein Obama." A group called the Coalition Against Anti-Christian Rhetoric paid for the ad, which stations quickly dropped after the Obama campaign complained.

The Texas Republican Party recently cut ties with a vendor whose political buttons at a party convention included one saying: "If Obama is president ... will we still call it The White House?" Texas GOP spokesman Hans Klingler said, "we will neither tolerate nor profit from bigotry."

The McCain campaign leaders have made it clear that they will have no tolerance for these campaign tactics, but is their word enough?

What do you, the voters, think?  Racially charged criticism of Obama already has been at the forefront of the campaign, will these ads simply bring more attention to an already heated issue?  Because of these ads will voters be more sympathetic to Obama and feel resentment towards McCain for the surfacing of these ads? Will voters be more likely to think of Obama as 'out of touch with American values'? Or will voters completely disregard these ads and look at the real issues at hand, race and religion aside?
 

Presumptive Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama is back in Michigan, and he's directly addressing issues that are important to our state.  But is he just paying lip service, or does he have some practical solutions for the economic crisis affecting Michigan?  Sound off below.  

An organization called Reform Michigan Government Now is passing around a petition to try get some changes to state government on the ballot this November. Click here to read more.  Do you agree with their proposals? Are they practical? What would YOU like to see changed about the way Lansing operates? Tell us your thoughts below.

After months of debate between the Clinton and Obama camps and Democratic party officials, the party has decided on a compromise to seat Michigan and Florida delegates at the convention,  with each one counting as a half vote.  This has seemed to placate Obama supporters, but Clinton followers are livid, saying she won fair and square in Michigan and that every vote should be counted.  What do you think?  Putting your personal politics aside if possible, do you think this was a fair solution?  Or did the Democratic party screw it up?  How does this affect your view of the primary process?  Let us know your thoughts.

Sources at Fox 2 say the removal of televisions from police stations is a direct result from police officers cheering and applauding when they watched Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick get formally charged on perjury and misconduct infractions.

It's true that a memo was sent out (read memo below), but if its because officers cheered watching him get charged, how ridiculous is that? What's next, a grounding. No recess. No dessert. A time out chair. On a serious note, will not having television impede officers workload as many of them tell us at Fox 2 that they depend it for news information and for playing surveillance tapes.

What's your take. SOUND OFF AND BE HEARD.

Memo issued from Detroit Police Central office -- The Detroit police district commanders have received an inter-office memorandum ordering them to remove all T.V. sets from working areas by 8am on Friday. All district supervisors are to ensure that all T.V. sets are removed from all working areas in the building by 8am Friday, Apr 4th, 2008. This includes tv sets in the lieutenants & sergeants offices, timekeeping office, at the front desk and behind the front desk, in iou, except the iou commanding officers office, property control office, doj office, vmo office, special operations offices and any other working area not listed. Failure to remove the T.V. Sets will result in their removal and discarding of same. This includes gaming division and central events.

Governor Jennifer Granholm gave her annual State of the State address Tuesday night in Lansing. What did you think of the governor's speech? Do you agree or disagree with her proposals? Post your comments below:

What did you think about President Bush's final "State of the Union" speech? Post your comments below... some of them may be used on-the-air.

148 State lawmakers are taking 18 days off to go hunting.

It's a tradition in Lansing to take time off for the "open hunt", but consider this:

Only 9 of the 148 applied for a license this year.

So this begs the question, with a budget balance debacle still weighing heavily on the future of our state, is this really the time to take an extended vacation.

What do you think?

Sound Off and be heard!

Some of your comments may get used on the air.

Take the poll on our Politics page.

 

In a mock election, who would cast your vote for?

 

Hillary Clinton or Rudy Giuliani?

 

Then tell us why you voted the way you did.  Perhaps you can persuade voters to see things your way.  Tell us who you would like to see on the ballot in '08.

 

Sound Off and be heard!

The deadline for a state budget deal is Wednesday. That's when a month-long temporary budget extension runs out.

So what are state lawmakers doing to meet the deadline?

OFFICIALLY TAKING THE WEEKEND OFF !!

AP reports: A few lawmakers will continue working on
specific department level proposals over the weekend as the
Legislature work on a new spending plan. The Senate is to return to
session Monday. The House canceled today's (Friday) session and may
reconvene Monday.

What the H -E double hockey sticks is going on around here?!  Where's the sense of urgency?

What do you think?  Sound Off and be heard.  Some of your comments may be used on the air.   Let em rip folks.



 

LANSING, Mich.  --  Ten state lawmakers who voted to raise taxes may be fighting for their jobs.

Anti-tax activists on Thursday named five Democrats and five Republicans in the 148-member Legislature as recall targets. Paperwork was quickly filed against one legislator -- Rep. Steve Bieda, D-Warren -- with more to come against nine others Friday and early next week.

Would you sign a petition to recall a representative who voted for Michigan's tax increase? Sound Off here.