The Liberated Centrist

This is my latest revision on this article, printed in The New Hampshire, Friday Oct. 22nd. This column corrects some inaccuracies that plagued my original draft. Last month, UNH instituted a pilot Medical Amnesty program after months of negotiations between the administration, town of Durham , UNH and Durham police and the Student Senate through its Community Change Chair, Ashley Rennebu. The current Medical Amnesty program protects students from sanctions like eviction and probation and replaces them with a mandatory alcohol education class. Within 2 days after meeting with the Complainant, those written up can go to Conduct and Mediation to fill out a form to request amnesty and potentially avoid sanctions. From there, a judicial officer decides your fate. It is recommended that students arrested off-campus seek legal advice from Student Senate Legal Services Attorney Joanne Stella. A Medical Amnesty policy is a step in the right directio...

Based on previous conversations with some friends and the folks on UNH campus with "Rock the Vote," I've decided to share my views on voting. The election on November 2nd is 15 days away. The way I see it, a vote is something very personal for each citizen. As members of a republican society in which we vote for our representatives in government, it is important for our votes to reflect what direction we believe our government should take. Some may say that voting for a particular candidate may be "wasting a vote" because that candidate may not have the slightest chance of winning his or her race. I long to debate every person who claims this because it is that mindset alone that locks our citizenry into the failed Left-Right political paradigm and encourages complacency in the political process. When we see two candidates, one Democrat and one Republican, they feel as though they must pick one of the two because putting that vote towards any other candida...

Printed in The New Hampshire Oct 8 "From the Right" column Tea Party head-to-head “Taxed Enough Already.” That was the original mantra behind the T.E.A. Party. The movement builds itself around the pressing reality that our government is going bankrupt and taking our country with it. A very real concern is that we will end up paying the billions of dollars our government has promised but never took the time to find. What's significant about the Tea Party is that it has attempted to force a debate into American politics concerning the important issues of rising debt and over-arching federal power. It is a debate that needs to happen, but has never been able to manifest itself. The very thought of a discussion on the true role of government threatens both Republican and Democratic ambitions alike. Examine the incentives for members of Congress: government grows whether or not your party is “in power” giving more influence on society to all members of Congress, its a win-wi...