Democracy Needs Debates!

 

SIGN THIS PETITION!

DEMOCRACIES NEED DEBATES!

CALLING FOR THOSE SEEKING TO BE ELECTED AS THE SINGLE NON-VOTING DELEGATE TO GUAM, MEET PRIOR TO THE NOVEMBER 3rd ELECTION FOR AT LEAST ONE DEBATE. 


Text is below"

***************************


Albert Toves started this petition to Congressman Michael San Nicolas and 2 others

The people of Guam are only allowed to elect one delegate to represent us in the U.S. federal government. While this is a non-voting delegate position, whoever is elected to this position has a lot of power as Guam’s main, and often only voice in Washington D.C. This person must ensure the even though we are thousands of miles away, our voices are heard. Our representative also has the ability to create new opportunities for Guam and should help keep us informed of federal policies and activities that might affect us. 

Guam’s representative to Congress must have in-depth knowledge about the needs of our island and a solid understanding of how to navigate U.S. Congress and Washington D.C. in a way that ensures Guam’s voice is always heard. Guam is different than most places in the U.S. and its territories, and whoever is chosen as delegate has to understand that difference and advocate for our distinct needs. 

Social media posts, campaign ads and press releases are not enough for voters to determine which candidate might be the best person to represent our island. These are forms of filtered communication and we need to hear our candidates speak directly to us in a live forum. This is why debates are so integral to elections. They allow voters the opportunity to see how a candidate responds on the spot to important questions, and how the candidate reacts while under pressure. 

Considering the significance of this particular office, the people of Guam deserve to hear from our Congressional candidates in a debate. We need to hear our candidates discuss their records, substantiate their promises, and offer their solutions to the issues that directly impact us. 

Debating is an essential part of any democracy. When candidates divide themselves into different partisan camps and do not come together for a serious debate, our democracy suffers. 

Thus, we the people of Guam call on all three candidates running for Guam’s non-voting delegate position to participate in at least one live, public debate prior to the November 3, 2020 election.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Chamoru Love Sayings

Image
A student from my Zoom Chamoru classes recently asked me for some suggestions for some Chamoru sayings or words of wisdom that she could use for a speech she had to give for a friend's wedding.  I get this type of request pretty frequently and so over the years I have a number of lists of ways to say "I Love You" in Chamoru. For years that was one of the my most visited pages on this blog, a simple page that had more than a dozen different ways to say "Hu Guaiya Hao" ranging from the poetic and deep, to the silly and sexy.  When I looked at many of those lists, I realized that the majority of the ways love was expressed, was indeed written in Chamoru, but not necessarily rooted in Chamoru. What I mean by this, is that alot of the sayings were simply translated from English or variants of ways that love would be expressed in English.  For me, I am definitely in support of these sorts of things, I love having our language adapt and take on new forms, especially wh
Read more

Chamorro Public Service Post #15: Pues Adios, Esta Ki

A lot of people end up visiting this blog because they are searching around the internet for lyrics to Chamorro songs. Over the years I’ve pasted a couple here and there, but haven’t really kept up with it as much as I should. I complain all the time about there not being enough internet presence for the Chamorro language and for Chamorro thoughts and so I feel bad when I inadvertently contribute to that absence. På’go, gaige yu’ gi i gima’ iyo-ku grandfather. Desde i ma’pos’ña na mes, kumakatre gui’. Kana’ hineart attack gui’, ya sumaga’ gui’ gi i espitåt para tres meses. Mana’huyong gi i ma’pos na mes, ya sumåsaga’ gui’ gi i gima’, lao ti ha hulat tumohgue sin ayuda. Kada na puengge måtto yu’ gi i gima’-ña para i tetno-hu pumulan gui’. Gi este na tiempo, tåya’ internet, pues siña hu usa este para bai hu fanhasso. Manhasso yu’ put i lina’la’-hu pat i guinife-hu. Buente i chinathinasso-ku siha lokkue’. Tonight, I was trying to figure out what would be the best song to share the lyrics
Read more

Tuleti

Image
I was racking my brain recently to determine what was the first ever Chamorro song that was featured in a motion picture. Noon Sunday was the first every motion picture to be filmed primarily on Guam, prior to that some minor filming had been done on Guam for World War II and Godzilla films but nothing substantial. Noon Sunday was not set in Guam, but it was the first film to feature extensively the island of Guam. Guam was the locale for a fictional Pacific island that was being taken over by a menacing Asian power. Almost all the speaking roles went to people from off-island (from the US or the Philippines), and Chamorros ended up playing most of the "extra" roles. As a result the film didn't feature any Chamorro music. You do find documentaries and television programs, all locally produced that feature Chamorro songs of at least Chamorros singing songs. Guam's History Through Songs, made by the late Carmen Santos is a perfect example of this. For those of you u
Read more