EZ-Pass Saves Lives.... Apparently...

Mathew Yglesias writes on his blog about a paper by Janet Currie on how “EZ-passes” can save lives. On Yglesias’ editorial he seems to be writing towards the crowd who live in urban areas such as a city like our own, Austin, TX. According to wikipedia, Matthew Yglesias is a magna cum laude graduate of Harvard University and was the editor-in-chief of The Harvard Independent.  He has also written for mainstream publications such as the New York Times Magazine, and has made occasional appearances on radio and television as a political commentator. Yglesias truly has an enormous background filled with plenty of political education. The argument Yglesias is making in his article is if someday in the near future everyone should be required to have EZ-pass because he believes the universal use of EZ-Pass would make it much easier to tackle the large issue here which is that taking up space on a crowded road at a crowded time imposes large costs on other people by thinking it will save lives. As simple as it sounds, how on earth can someone claim if all of society has an EZ-pass for the road it will directly save lives. He supports his statement from Janet Currie’s paper stating, “We find that reductions in traffic congestion generated by E-ZPass reduced the incidence of prematurity and low birth weight among mothers within 2 km of a toll plaza by 6.7-9.1% and 8.5-11.3% respectively, with larger effects for African-Americans, smokers, and those very close to toll plazas.” Even though Yglesias’ argument believes that EZ-Passes do save lives, I want support him in his belief because in some way lives are being saved, but maybe not as much as saving a human child’s life but more mother earth’s life. To me I don’t understand how heavy traffic and people living by congested highways causes’ death; I believe that it’s more of an effect on communities around toll ways. According to the March of Dimes Foundation they state that “The causes of preterm labor are not fully understood, but the latest research suggests that many cases are triggered by the body’s natural response to certain infections, including those involving amniotic fluid and fetal membranes. However, in about half of all cases of premature birth, providers cannot determine why a woman delivered prematurely.” So that being, how can Yglesias and Currie claim there is a correlation with communities living around toll areas being diseased or plagued by car emissions, they’re claims are more of a “it might be a cause” statement. The thing I do support about this article is that yes, we do need to do something about roads being congested all the time, and enforcing drivers to have an EZ-Pass is a good idea to help out with the stopping of cars and traffic jams, but to me I also believe that if drivers are forced to get an EZ-Pass the rate for each pass should be incredibly low because it wouldn’t be fare to be overcharged for something that will help our future. Just like Yglesias stated in his opening line if we do something about this problem “the future people are going to regard the level of traffic congestion tolerated by the people of the early 21st century as slightly bizarre.” 

Obama Takes the Search for the Youth Vote to MTV | ABCNEWS

As November elections are coming up, Democrats are fighting to retain themselves in the House of Representatives and Senate while Republicans are giving the Democrats a run for their money because according to the article I read on ABCNEWS.COM. President Obama used a tactic that I believe gave him the ability to defeat Senator McCain by reaching out to the youth of America, and again he is using the tactic to ensure young Americans are in the voting booth. For this midterm election, President Obama is going to air on MTV again to “search for the youth to vote.” He will be having a town hall meeting on national TV to reach out to the youth. This means a lot to the democrats because the youth vote takes up to 53% of 18-29 year, and old voters say they are certain to vote compared to 80 percent of those 65 years and older and 81 percent among those 50-64 years old. Amy Walter reports, “Among younger voters, Obama’s approval rating is 58 percent; among the oldest group of voters it’s just 46 percent. More important, when asked who they’d support in 2010, younger voters give Democrats an advantage (albeit a narrow one) of 51-47 percent. Those 65 and older give Republicans a 51-44 percent advantage.” I certainly think this an effective strategy to get the youth involved again with elections, and it is a good feeling to know the President is trying to cover all ranges of ages to ensure everyone’s voice is heard. I enjoyed reading this article because I didn’t know that President Obama was going to air on MTV on October 14^th to talk to people who not only share the same age as me but some views as well. 

Well Hello =)

Well hello there, my name is Sonny Bhakta and I currently live in the amazing city with the crown of being the city of live music, Austin, Texas. I am a brother of Delta Epsilon Psi Fraternity, Inc. which I am currently secretary of. I am currently a sophomore in college. I play the trumpet and I'm pretty damn good at it. I would consider myself a music junkie because no matter what, I have to have music in my life. To me, music = life. When it comes to politics, I am a liberal democrat and like to support the campus group called the University Democrats. I am taking a Government course at Austin Community College to better prepare myself for the political world in my life.

I believe that the quiz i took regarding my political views are pretty accurate considering I do and know that I am a democrat. Through out my life I have always looked at life in a different perspective by seeing things and rules should be abided by all people no matter if it's at school, clubs, programs, or student council. I feel that if someone is elected a spot on an executive board, that they shouldn't feel as if they have more opportunities or "special treatment" just because they are official. Also, ever since I was a boy, I've had the need to make sure everyone is happy,  and when I say everyone, I mean everyone. Another quality I cherish is I am pretty open minded to things. I just want to live life to the fullest, and encourage others to do the same.