OPINION

The following is a guest blog from Kristina A. Kiik, a third-year law student at SMU Dedman School of Law and a Community Voices volunteer columnist. Her e-mail address is kkiik@mail.smu.edu. In 2004, at the age of 21, Kiik was one of the youngest people ever to cast a vote in the Electoral College.

The Republican Party needs to stop drinking the tea and wake up and smell the coffee.

Wait. That's wrong. It's not the actions of my own political party that trouble me. It's the Tea Party activists who love our country and want to make the American dream a reality.

I have no problem with this end. Like all Americans, I work for a better tomorrow, too. But as a twenty-something center-right moderate, I have serious concerns with the Tea Party's means of achieving this shared goal.

By marginalizing themselves as a political alternative, the Tea Party is beginning to alienate its closest ally, the well-established, big-tent Republican Party. This decision undermines the prospects of electing conservatives in to office. Worse, it has the potential to prolong the viability of the Obama-Pelosi-Reid agenda.

This blog post is written by Tony Laws of Oak Cliff, who works in marketing and promotion and is a Community Voices volunteer columnist. His e-mail address is anthonyplaws@yahoo.com.

George Orwell's "1984" is really happening, it's just that 'Big Brother' is not the government, it's Big Business. Corporations just got the OK from the Supreme Court to, basically, finance the outcome of elections. If unlimited amounts of money can be set up for or against a candidate, won't corporations use huge sums of money to make sure that the candidates they favor look good and the opposition candidates look bad? How fast will it happen that several corporations band together to further enhance their power, assume control of state and local elections and, soon, start dictating legislature that favors them even further?

This blog post is written by Destiny DeLaRosa of Richardson, a stay-at-home mom and blogger. She is also a Community Voices volunteer columnist. Her e-mail address is destinydelaro@gmail.com.

I have two daughters. The weight of this truth in no way escapes me. My husband and I both are utterly terrified by this basic fact. It's not that we aren't worried about our son; it's just different with him. He is different. We will be facing a whole different set of issues and decisions as our daughters come of age, and being the type A individual I am, I have already started planning ahead for those delicate teen years. At what age will we allow them to wear make-up? Drive? D-d-d-d-date?

You can see how quickly the duty of raising girls turns to their virtue. If it were up to my husband, the answer to all three of those questions would be much less numerical and much more, well, 'no.' As their mother though, and someone who faced her own teen pregnancy, I am expected to be the voice of reason- the one who jokes about crushing up birth control pills in their oatmeal as soon as they "blossom;" the one who suggest we get them injected, protected or prescribed something before they leave the house. However, having this gift of preemptive time on my hands right now, I find myself really thinking all of these options through thoroughly.

What happens if we are "the responsible parents" who get our daughters on birth control when they become of childbearing age?

Once we've had them safeguarded against the possibility of pregnancy are we out of the woods? What about that virtue I mentioned earlier? Is it not supposed to concern me now?

As I look at my sweet, innocent little girls playing in the sand box I wish I could just freeze time. I know that is not possible and they will not stay this way forever, but as their mother it is my duty to protect them; to keep them from being hurt-both physically and emotionally. Am I wrong to think that by 'safeguarding' them I am leaving them wide open to exploitation?

The following blog post is written by Sandy Kulkarni, a chemistry teacher at Allen High School and a Teacher Voices volunteer columnist. Her e-mail address is sandy.kulkarni108@gmail.com.

Allen has spent time discussing a lot about Cell Phones usage while driving. Some experts said that texting while driving could be as dangerous as having alcohol in the blood. Then came the "Cell Phone ban". I felt safer when I saw those signs specially in school zones. But last week, I saw someone driving in the parallel lane trying to put her make-up on. I just could not believe my own eyes.

How can someone focus on driving while all attention is on makeup? During holidays, I saw one guy pulling out his checkbook and writing a check . (By the way, my husband was driving and not me, so I could look around.)

I can understand that guy's desire to clear his bills, but was it that urgent? Our normal eyesight can focus only on one object at a time. Have you seen anybody sipping Starbucks coffee while driving? What might happen, if they suddenly need to change the lane and are unable to steer in that direction while holding their precious coffee cup? Should there be limitation on consuming food and drinks while driving?

And what about the ear deafening music? Specially teens are often lost in their own world when it comes to music. Should there be decibel limit for sound? So really, are we safe enough on the roads by banning the Cell Phones? What is coming next?

This blog post is written by Tony Laws of Oak Cliff, who works in marketing and promotion and is a Community Voices volunteer columnist. His e-mail address is anthonyplaws@yahoo.com.

For lack of something better to do, like help fix America's sad State of Unfairs, here come members of the GOP who would make an issue of the statement by Harry Reid describing how President Obama presented himself, physically and verbally, upon being asked as much by some reporters. To paraphrase, Reid said that Obama was a light-skinned Black man that spoke with no discernable Black dialect or colloquialisms. In other words, he was a "Black man that didn't talk like he was back on the block, in the 'hood."

Upon my arrival in Dallas in 1969, from New York City and 11 years of living on Military bases, stateside and in Europe, a Black girl in my 6th grade class asked me where I was from. When I spoke to her in response, she said, "You sound like you from Mars, talkin' like you white." Over the years, to survive, I had to learn to talk "Black". In our president's upbringing and travels, he has had to adapt to his environment and he knows how to talk like a Black man. There is a speech and a pathos that goes with that speech that says, "I feel you". If you are Black and claim that you don't know it, you are not and have not ever lived in reality. Every ethnicity, Black folks included, possesses a language of their own.

Michael Steele knows his; he's tried to use it on several occasions when speaking on behalf of the GOP but, unfortunately, it's gone over like a lead weight. Wrong audience, Dude!

But, to my point, the only people making an issue of this are GOP pundits and Politicos, mostly white guys. Reason being, Black people celebrate the fact that our president can talk to everyone on the level they want or need to be talked to. We have been trying to show the world that we can compete on any level, at anything, following the rules set forth and asking for nothing more than a fair chance.

Barack Obama has played the game by the rules set forth, on a balanced playing field, speaking to you the way you needed him to and speaking to me the way he needed to; speaking to the majority of our country the way they wanted and needed to be spoken to, and he won!

Now then, accept him: his skin tone, his speech and pathos, his abilities and his frailties. He is our president so check before you wreck, huh?

This blog post is written by Brian Brown of Plano. Brian is a senior at Plano West Senior High School and a Student Voices volunteer columnist.

When I was little, I watched Ferris Bueller's Day Off. It made high school look cool. It made apathy acceptable. It made missing school look, well, cool.

Nowadays, however, that's hardly the case.

In a time of the year when the sounds of coughs and sniffles, noses blowing and sneezing become the soundtrack of the daily life of a high school student, it becomes more and more difficult for one to stay healthy and go to school. High schools today, despite emphasis on hand washing and disinfecting, are becoming a cesspool of germs and bacteria.

The worst part? There's not a whole lot that can be done about it.

You can wash your hands and drink orange juice until you're blue in the face, but kids are going to get sick. And those kids are going to get other kids sick, and so on. And when that illness gets to you, there's a tough decision to be made.

Do you go to school?

Now, on the surface, it's a no-brainer. If you're sick, you stay home. And that makes sense. Until you look at it closer.

Flu season is long enough. However, with the uprising of the swine flu, it got even longer. With that came sicker kids who were more contagious and out longer than usual. That means more absences, more make-up work, and more stress on an already overwhelmed out student.

So what many kids do is force themselves to come to school so they don't miss any work. And while they may be making their peers more susceptible to illness, that comes second to staying up to date on their work.

It gets worse. If you're in an Advanced Placement course you can only miss three days in the second semester to keep your exemptions. So there's not really a choice in the matter. Unless you're on your deathbed, you go to school.

Now, I don't like getting sneezed on just as much as the next guy, but I do understand. The amount of work that comes with missing school is overwhelming. And it may be worth going to school in a daze just to keep up with everyone else.

It's like being penalized for being sick. If you go to school under the weather, it's one of two possibilities: Your teachers get upset and send you home, or you stay at school and get others sick. If you stay home, you just miss out on notes, lectures, and work. When you come back, you're flustered.

So missing school isn't cool or fun or any of that. It's stressful.

And this isn't Ferris Bueller's Day Off. This is real life.

The following is a guest blog from Michael Hopkovitz. A resident of Dallas, Hopkovitz volunteers with several Jewish nonprofit groups and is a Community Voices volunteer columnist. His e-mail address is mikespolitics @att.net.

With the revelation of the obvious, that Iran has the know-how to build a nuclear bomb, along with their ongoing testing of medium range missiles that are a regional threat, there can be no illusion anymore about Iran's intentions. Absent military action that would take away their nuclear development facilities, they will become a nuclear power.

The Dallas Morning News is accepting applications for Community Voices, a panel of volunteer columnists who will be regular contributors to the Opinions page inside the Metro section.

Voices volunteers write opinion columns every four to six weeks and are the "stars" of the weekly Sounding Off feature that appears on Sundays, in which the Voices and other readers respond to a question of the week. To get an idea of what kinds of topics Voices write about, visit dallasnews.com/voices.

Apply in four easy steps:

1. Write a little about yourself and put together a list of current and previous civic involvements. How would others in the community describe you? What is unique about your background and experience? Why should we choose you?

2. Share a previous writing sample or write something new on a current topic. A writing sample should be 600-650 words.

3. Jot down three other topics you would like to write about.

4. E-mail the application to voices@dallasnews.com. Please include your address and phone number.

Deadline: 4 p.m. Monday.

One of our Voices columnists, Nancy Ruder, has a nice guest blog post today on the Education Front about efforts in Plano to reach out to students on their own turf:

Let's think beyond language and race to help school district families. Two education items snagged my attention this week. The first was Matthew Haag's report of Plano's new mobile classroom, a $300,000 Winnebago. The second was Faith Davis Johnson's column about her experience as a "bad student" in a Spanish immersion program. Both items received online comments that can be boiled down to the one "Bukowski" posted on Ms. Johnson's op-ed: "Learn English or go home." I wonder what language "Bukowski's" ancestors spoke when they arrived in the United States. Mine spoke Bohemian and German. Fortunately, the importance of education for their children was impressed upon them, despite their struggles to make a living in a new land. Luckily, they became proficient in English within a few generations.

The following is a guest blog by Victor Medina of Oak Cliff, a freelance travel and sports writer and a Community Voices volunteer columnist. His e-mail address is vic@ victormedina.com.

Let me see if I have this right: some foolish senator yells at President Obama, and I'm supposed to be highly offended, filled with outrage over such a public diss. While the outburst was certainly rude, after years of watching many in the media give a voice to some of the most vile, unfair, and disrespectful criticism of President Bush, I'm all out of outrage.

There was no outrage when President Bush was booed by Democrats during a 2005 address to Congress. Many laughed when a journalist threw his shoes at him. There was no discussion about respect for the office then. When some hung him in effigy, called him a war criminal, and joked about his mental capacity, their actions went largely unchallenged. Few news anchors or columnists tried to balance the criticism or came to his defense.

The double standard runs across the board. Those offended over President Obama's treatment didn't seem to mind the blatant sexism against the Governor of Alaska or the ageism against a war hero and Senator last year. Protests by Cindy Sheehan and her handful of friends usually managed to garner positive prime-time news coverage. When today's "Tea Party" protests are covered, they are characterized as ignorant, racist rednecks, while Anderson Cooper makes crude sexual jokes about them.

Now it appears the standards have changed. We are expected to rejoice in President Obama's amazing awesomeness. While I won't make excuses for rudeness, I have no problem with the avalanche of criticism President Obama receives. As a senator, he helped foster an atmosphere of animosity and lack of respect against the last President that helped get him elected. Now, that treatment has come full circle. His chickens have come home to roost, as his former pastor would say.

The following guest blog post is by Susan Dodia of Plano, a project management consultant who is working on her master's degree in dispute resolution and conflict management at SMU. Her e-mail address is sdodia@email.com..

You don't have to look far to come up with myriad examples of how low the public discourse has sunk and how polarized we are as a nation. Whether it's President Obama's speech to schoolchildren today, the healthcare debate, the proposal to make the Disney Streets in Northwest Dallas a conservation district or a conflict at home or at work, we are no longer able to exchange differing ideas in a calm and respectful manner. The master narrative seems to have been lifted from an episode of Real Housewives of Anywhere, USA. We take pride in being snarky and rude. We feel victorious when we make a point that the other side simply can't respond to, instead of feeling shame for the complete failure of communication we have achieved.

I am currently reading Going to Extremes: How Like Minds Unite and Divide by Harvard University Law Professor Cass R. Sunstein, that explores how political and cultural extremism has grown to be so all-encompassing in America. Very interesting stuff.

The following is a guest blog post from one of our Voices columnists. Become a fan of the Voices on Facebook.)

Victor Medina of Oak Cliff is a freelance travel and sports writer and a Community Voices volunteer columnist. His e-mail address is vic@victormedina.com.

I'm surprised no one has called out DISD school board member Ron Price over his proposal to name two new DISD schools after Barack Obama and Sonia Sotomayor. This isn't about honoring a sitting President or a Supreme Court justice - we all know this is nothing more than political grandstanding. Most new DISD schools are named for worthy local community leaders. Have we run out of those? There are plenty of former Presidents who don't have a DISD school named for them. Why isn't Price pushing for a Bill Clinton or George Bush Elementary School?

This shouldn't be about the politics of either Obama or Sotomayor, but Price is making it so. He's trying to make a statement and challenging someone to dare oppose him. Perhaps he's trying to earn some political points - I'm sure he's already dreaming of that photo op the next time the President comes to town. He claims the school should be named after someone the kids there actually know. That statement speaks volumes of the state of education in DISD under his "leadership." Thank God this isn't happening a month ago, or he would have suggested Michael Jackson Elementary School (hey, he's all the rage again with kids).

If I thought Price was actually motivated by unselfish reasons, this wouldn't be an issue. This is as much about him as it is the President and Justice Sotomayor. He wants the credit. He's jumping the gun. Obama deserves to have a school named after him, after he leaves office. Sotomayor might deserve one someday, if she rises to Thurgood Marshall levels. Until then, perhaps Mr. Price should name a school after someone who has already earned it.

The following is a guest blog post from one of our Voices columnists. Become a fan of the Voices on Facebook.)

Nancy L. Ruder of Plano is a preschool teacher and a Community Voices volunteer columnist. Her e-mail address is nancy.ruder@tx.rr.com.

Thanks so much to Scott Cantrell for putting together the informative and thought-provoking "Inn Trouble" feature. I've spent a couple hours looking at the architect's website about the Convention Center Hotel design project, as well as the materials presented at the Dallas Economic Development Committee on June 15, 2009.
See pages 11-17 of the city hall briefing.

As a Metroplex resident, I don't travel to the Dallas Convention Center for meetings or trade shows. Perhaps the only time I was in the Center was for a baseball extravaganza back when Arlington Stadium was hosting the 1995 MLB All Star game. I do love being in downtown or Uptown Dallas whenever the volleyball girls are competing at the Convention Center. There's a festive energy having thousands of girls wearing knee guards roaming our city.

The Convention Center Hotel needs a dose of volleyball energy. The current design is anemic and devoid of personality. It is unlikely to serve it's stated purposes of welcoming visitors and showcasing the vitality and creative imagination of the Metroplex.

A city that can conceive of a deck park over Woodall Rogers can surely give out-of-towners a better view than the top of a parking garage. How can that rooftop become a gathering place for convention goers with green spaces, small amphitheaters for impromptu performances, and maybe a sand volleyball pit or two?

The following is a guest blog post written by one of our Community Voices volunteer columnists:

Susan Dodia is president of The Project Coach, a project management consulting practice. She is also a Community Voices volunteer columnist.
Her e-mail address is Susan@theproject-coach.com
.

Today, President Obama has invited all 60 Democratic Senators to the White House for lunch to discuss extending the "Cash for Clunkers" bill, but healthcare is expected to be on the menu as well. Healthcare reform, one of Obama's big issues during the election season, is stalled in Congress.

Right now there's a lot of attention on reforming the system we use to deliver health care in this country. But can we really overhaul health care without looking at our food industry? From farm subsidies to nutritional labels and couponing, how important is nutrition to our health in general? And to what extent should the health care reform discussion consider food "reform"?

Keven really enjoyed the Mayborn conference this year, and I really hope to go next year. It sounds liek a great experience for us writer-types. I really enjoyed this column by Laurie Lindemeier, one of our Community Voices, so I thought I would post it here.

The following is a column by Laurie Lynn Lindemeier of McKinney is a voice and piano teacher and part-time elementary school front office worker. She is also a Community Voices volunteer columnist. Her e-mail address is lindemeier-rickard@sbcglobal.net.

My heart's in my throat as I stand outside a room and wait to do a 15-minute book pitch to a literary agent at the Mayborn Nonfiction Writer's Conference in Grapevine. As I wait, a gentleman with white hair and suspenders asks me what my book is about. Seizing the opportunity, I spiel off my pitch. "Sounds very interesting." He boosts my confidence. The door opens. Stand up straight. Look the agent in the eye. All the world's a stage. Be smooth, confident.

This blog post is written by Mike Hopkovitz of Dallas, one of our Voices volunteers, regular columnists on our Community Opinions pages. Become a fan of the Voices on Facebook.)

What's the use in rattling a decorative saber?

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has drawn a line in the sand for the Obama administration with her statements this weekend that "We are going to do everything we can to prevent you (Iran) from getting a nuclear weapon. Your pursuit is futile."

"Everything we can" includes a U.S. defensive umbrella over our Middle East allies. Strong language from an administration that not that long ago said Washington would "extend our hand (to Iran) if you will unclench your fist."

Predictably, we see the AP headline that "Iran rejects Clinton's nuclear defense umbrella." Raise your hand if you believe for one minute that the Obama administration would use U.S. military force to keep Iran from putting a nuke together - we really wouldn't "do everything we can." The Iranians surely know that. It is not very smart foreign policy to saber rattle when the saber is for decorative purposes only. I agree with the sentiment, but idle threats are not helpful in this very dangerous situation.

Michael Hopkovitz of Dallas volunteers with several Jewish nonprofit groups and is a Community Voices volunteer columnist. His e-mail address is mikespolitics@att.net.

This blog post is written by Eric Van Steenburg of Lakewood, one of our Voices volunteers, regular columnists on our Community Opinions pages. Become a fan of the Voices on Facebook.)

Is Dallas overrun with NIMBYs and CAVE people?

Or does our city have the same issues trying to do something different or new as every other city in the country, or world, for that matter?

You know the NIMBYs - the people who are fine with a new project or idea, as long as it's Not In My Back Yard. They were the ones who didn't want any of the DART stops near their neighborhoods back in the 1990s. Now, of course, everyone would like to be near a light rail station. They typically add great amenities to a neighborhood, such as restaurants and retail outlets. And they make it easier for the people who live nearby to get around. In most cases, the result has been increased property values.

Then there are the CAVE dwellers. A relatively new phenomenon, these are Citizens Against Virtually Everything. It doesn't matter what the city, neighborhood association, HOA or other entity wants to do in an effort to try to improve the quality of life for all citizens, the CAVE people are against it. More often than not, these folks travel in political circles. But haven't we all experienced a neighbor or two who seem to enjoy being a roadblock just because?

So, is it just a Dallas issue, and/or is it worse here than in other places? Or do other cities have even more organized opposition that we face and we're actually lucky that we get anything done at all?

Eric Van Steenburg of Lakewood is the executive director of the Friends of the Katy Trail. He is also a Community Voices volunteer columnist. His e-mail address is eric@katytraildallas.org.

This blog post is written by Nancy L. Ruder of Plano, one of our Voices volunteers, regular columnists on our Community Opinions pages. Become a fan of the Voices on Facebook.)

Electricity fascination peaks in sixth grade for most people.

That's when I successfully connected a dry cell battery to a miniature light fixture to form a circuit. Sitting in my pitch black condo, I worried about Monday's record energy usage, power grids, and rolling blackouts. Our power failure affected a few buildings, but my worries grew the way anxiety does in the dark of night.

Is the North Texas power grid the monster under the bed, or a fuzzy, friendly Muppet? Heat advisories remain in effect. Will we experience that nasty California nightmare, the rolling blackout if energy demand goes too high? I sure wish Mr. Rogers were here to hold my hand. Is any federal stimulus money going to improve the grid?

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas asks Texans to conserve between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. I'm glad to oblige if I can just have a little nightlight shining at bedtime to keep the monsters away.

The American Red Cross has a checklist to prepare your household for power outages.

The Center for Disease Control has a prevention guide for extreme heat safety.

Nancy L. Ruder of Plano is a preschool teacher and a Community Voices volunteer columnist. Her e-mail address is nancy.ruder@tx.rr.com.

Here's a look at some recent Voices columns that told me something I didn't know and made a point about how something could be done better.

Jeri Chambers: Right testing can do much more than TAKS

Victor Medina of Oak Cliff: Stricter code enforcement isn't the answer

Tina Sanchez: What have we done to a little slice of heaven?

Eric Van Steenburg: Lighting the way through compromise

David McClure: Why reading lists turned my son off books

Keith A. Brown: Pleasant Grove may have found its Moses

Shirlene Lucy: My biggest regret was no college degree

Valirie Morgan: DISD positives lost among the negatives

Erin Goldman of Dallas: Arts thrive in hard times

L. Edward Sizemore: Books are perfect gifts ... for libraries

Kathy Palomino: Are we raising global citizens?

Cherie Bell: I see how poverty can prevent success