I realize that we listed our next scheduled post as the October 20th, 1948 film The Three Musketeers starring Gene Kelly, but we here at Think Classic recognize that there are other things of more importance that should be discussed at the moment, and it just so happens that we can tie it in with Fall of '48.
If you have any awareness to political happenings going on around you, then you know that this November is another presidential election, and that's coming up mighty fast. So, we'd like to do our part to encourage you to vote and make an educated decision, but we'd like to give some fun history first.
The year of 1948 was a presidential election year, but not a typical one. Even today it is still known as the biggest presidential election upset in the history of the United States of America. The primary candidates were Thomas E. Dewey of the Republican party, Strom Thurmond from the Dixiecrats, and Democratic nominee Harry S. Truman. The Republican party was ahead in every poll, and support poured in for Dewey from all across the nation. He was expected to win by a landslide, with Truman and the Democrats not just coming in second, but third. Political cartoons were slapped across every front page all through the campaigns, very much like this one:
In all honesty, Dewey and the Republican party had every right to be confident that they would get the vote. They had it in the bag. Pro-Republican newspapers even printed headlines announcing Truman's defeat before the election was over. But on November 4th, 1948, the results were shocking, with Harry S. Truman coming in first with 303 out of the 266 electoral votes that were needed to win, thereby making him the 33rd president of the United States and the 5th consecutive Democratic nominee to take office in a presidential election.
"A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities out of his difficulties."
-Harry S. Truman
"When even one American, who has done nothing wrong, is forced by fear to shut his mind and close his mouth, then all Americans are in peril."
-Harry S. Truman
I don't want to go on and on about the importance of voting because I would hope that every able man and woman knows the importance of it already. And I don't want to turn Think Classic into a platform for stating my own political beliefs because they should not sway you at all. I simply want to stress the following:
1. Voting IS very important, and your vote DOES matter, so you should cast it.
2. Always educate yourself not only on who you are voting for, but the party that you choose to identify with.
3. It is okay to vote for someone who is not a candidate for your political party, so don't let that sway you.
4. As long as you are well educated about who you want to support and vote for, do not let others sway your opinion.
Do I realize that those seem like extremely elementary pieces of advice? Yes, but you would be surprised how many adults out there make those decisions.
The only other thing I'd like to address is the major political parties themselves. I know for a fact that a lot of teenagers who are just able to vote this year, or who will be old enough for the next election, either have no idea what party to identify with or (sometimes because of that fact) just choose which party to identify with because that party has had more presidents, or because that party has a president that they liked. You really need to be much more educated on the different parties and what they fundamentally stand for, BEFORE you choose to identify with one. So, for your convenience, here they are in all their glory, with their beliefs and views:
INDEPENDENT PARTY:
1. Acknowledges God as Creator and that all independent rights come from Him.
2. Individuals have specific God-given duties/responsibilities.
3. The Constitution enables us to protect those rights and fulfill those duties.
4. Rights and duties of association, including government.
5. The Constitution is the original contract that America has with itself, but it has been distorted and has therefore led to the violation of the promise of limited government from the Tenth Amendment.
6. Believes in freedom from "liberalism."
7. Believes in the sanctity and protection of life, and the corresponding duties and rights of family units.
8. Supports heterosexual marriage.
9. Individual and common defense.
10. Pro-life.
11. Believes that all those who serve in government and political positions are held responsible to God and answer to Him.
http://www.aipca.org/
REPUBLICAN PARTY:
1. Believes in the power and opportunity of America's free-market economy, and the importance of sensible business regulations.
2. Opposes interventionist policies that put the federal government in control of industry.
3. Believe in peace for national defense through freedom and the will to defend it.
4. Requires full commitment to America's armed forces.
5. Supports common-sense reforms to health care systems that lower cost, ensure equality, and end lawsuit abuse.
6. Opposes government run health care.
7. Encourages responsible production of nuclear power, clean coal, solar, wind, geothermal, hydropower, oil drills, and natural gases in environmentally safe ways.
8. Believe in maintaining fidelity to the U.S. Constitution.
9. Tend to take stances supporting pro life and heterosexual marriage.
10. Supports the death penalty.
http://www.gop.com/
DEMOCRATIC PARTY:
1. Believes in equality for all citizens.
2. Believes in more government control over economic matters.
3. Believes in less government control over individual rights.
4. Supports accessible, affordable, high quality health care for everyone.
5. Supports same-sex marriage.
6. Opposes any efforts to privatize or voucherize health care program.
7. Promotes liberalism.
8. Tends to take a pro choice stance.
9. Supports the death penalty, but has a strong base of those who oppose it.
10. Decreased spending on military issues.
http://www.democrats.org/
http://www.diffen.com/difference/Democrat_vs_Republican
