O-H...I-O!

An article about Super Tuesday. I'm proud to be from Ohio!

"OHIO IS WHERE IT'S AT

Step aside, Florida. Ohio remains the ultimate down-to-the-wire presidential state.

Ohio is a microcosm of the country. It has urban centers and sprawling farms. It has diversity in both race and income. It has conservative strongholds in the southwest corner, where Sen. Rob Portman rallied his neighbors to deliver votes for Romney. It has liberal bastions in the northeast, near Cleveland, where moderates sometimes defect to Republicans. Its eastern and southern edges are Appalachia and tend to be filled with more swing voters.

In the end, Romney won the state that no Republican has ever lost on a successful White House run."

http://news.yahoo.com/super-tuesday-learned-083349192.html

The microcosm of the country? Haha, who'd have thunk? 

Music and News

Who would have thought that sitting in the Wilk for an hour would make me passionate about really anything. You go there to eat and socialize! Ever since my one digital civilizations class where we talked about incorporating music and politics, I have wanted to inform people about international issues through music. In case you didn't know, I play the cello. By no means am I extremely talented. I quite often get irritated when people try and swing me into a musical performance. But, this is something I am passionate about. I read about the elections in Russia, and how Vladimir Putin won the recent election. I read that it was relatively well-received, but why then were the protestors hushed so quickly? Were the polls really rigged? 

What about the Chinese self-immolation, or lighting oneself on fire, of another teenager? What were the social conditions that prompted his response? 

I just sent in my absentee ballot yesterday. I was excited about knowing the issues. How the United States and Iran are on the verge of war. The implications of cutting programs or taxes. 

I do not claim to be an expert on international news or even local news. But, for some crazy reason I believe that I could make a difference with music and news. What happened to music with a cause? I am so sick of a constant analysis of emotion. Don't get me wrong, I love infatuations and being twitterpated. However, I am afraid that's all people see in me. I'm afraid I bore people with my constant focus on relationships. If I write music, I don't want it to be my outlet for how annoyed I am at boys. I want it to divert my focus, and help understand the people in this world. Why they do the things they do. 

Well, there you have it. Don't expect much. 

Receiving Revelation: Power of the Holy Spirit

The Spirit is felt so strong in this video. I have been really struggling to know the answers to some of these big decisions, but I know that Heavenly Father wants the best for me. He knows who I am, what I'm going through, and why I need to endure through these trials. He knows that I these trials will bring me closer to Him.

There are a lot of things to figure out at this point: where to live, who to hang out with, who to date, where to stay over the summer, where to work, whom to fall in love with, what college should I go to, what career should I head into. It has been overwhelming, and so I have responded with apathy.

But, reading the scriptures today about Captain Moroni really helped me. Captain Moroni was placed in charge of all of the armies of the Nephites in the Book of Mormon. He was 25 years old (so for any of those men who feel "old" at 24, imagine being appointed as General or President or Defense secretary right now). He knew who he was. He relied on the Lord in all his doings. He never once trusted in his own strength, but the strength of the Lord. Because of this, his faith, and his obedience, he was able to motivate the people to defend their lands, liberty, and families from the Lamanites. Thank you Captain Moroni for you example to us in the Latter-Days.