007: A Return to Normalcy

Spectre- the latest installment of the 007 franchise- hit theaters a little under a month ago. Up until this point, I have been unable to give my thoughts about this film, but considering I have the time to, let's dissect this entry into the Bond vault. 

The logo of SPECTRE 

The film opens almost  immediatly after it's predecessor, with Bond in Mexico hunting down an assassin that his boss, the deceased M, told him to go after. The resulting chase causes 007 to be suspended by the new M, but, considering the fact that he is 007, Bond continues his mission, ultimately learning about S.P.E.C.T.R.E, a terrorist organization headed by Ernest Blowfeld (Christoph Waltz). Due to spoilers, I'm not going to go much further into the plot, so let's move on to the analysis. 

The film's cinematography is very well done (the first scene is a single shot, with the camera moving in different directions) and the locations are extremely Bondesque. This film, unlike Skyfall, is a return to the standard 007 formula. The weapons, girls, and evil super-villains have made a comeback in the franchise and while some critics will argue otherwise, I think it's not a negative development.  These things are what makes the Bond films universal, and sometimes it can get boring, and you need a Skyfall type film, but, as the adage goes, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." 

Now, there could have been A LOT  more story/character development. The film's pacing was sometimes uneven, and the plot jumped around quite a bit, but overall, Spectre is a nice addition to the 007 collection, and will be remembered as a solid Bond film. 

Why Youth doesn't vote in the Midterms- but why it should

Yesterday was Election Day across the United States, and like most people I know, no one knew unless they saw the Snap story or swiped by it on Twitter. Sadly, it seems like this trend isn't changing. Youth (that is, people between the ages of 18 and 30) don't vote in Midterm Elections.

It seems as if young people have given up on the political process altogether. In the 2014 Midterm Elections, for example, the Youth turnout was just 21.5% (CircleYouth.org) The general consensus among America's younger generations is that, "The Government is corrupt. The system is rigged. Voting is pointless." However, I would argue that every vote counts.

The Electoral Map of 2000, a very close and partisan election

The 2000 Election was a bit before my time, but it's still a controversial topic among the public. If you're unfamiliar with that election or with American political history in general, it goes like this : George W. Bush won the Electoral Vote (Majority of States) while Al Gore won the popular vote. The state of Florida (with 25 electoral votes) was extremely close, so close that News Agencies couldn't even report who won on election night. It took a whole month of recounts before SCOTUS ruled that the recounting should stop, and at that time, Bush had won the popular vote in Florida, which means he won the state's electoral votes, thus winning the Presidency. If just 1,000 more people turned out to vote in Florida, Al Gore would have won the state and won the White House.

Yet it seems as if the American Public has forgotten this close election. In future Presidential elections, the voter turnout was higher, but for Midterm elections, this is not the case.

Youth vote intentions: Midterms vs POTUS elections 

The problem is, that during Midterms, the Congress is elected. Congress dictates policy, but it seems that the youth is under the impression that the President is all powerful, so they only vote for the POTUS, and not the Congress.  Then they blame the leader (Whether it be Bush, Obama, etc) for the problems in this country, when they can't do anything because the people who voted for the President didn't vote for the President's respective party in Congress. The people have the power to vote out Congress and elect new leaders, but they have given up on the process, or only voted for the top honcho.

To the Youth of America, if you're going to vote, vote in the Midterms and in the Presidential elections. If you have the opportunity to vote, and you refuse it, then you have no right to complain.