By Matt Gomez
The Guardsman

Health care was reformed last month, and while the effects may not yet be evident, benefits for students could be great in the future.

Although this reform does not bring the country closer to a universal, single-payer system or include a public option, it will make necessary changes to what many consider a corrupt handling of people’s health.

Children of policyholders will now be allowed to stay covered under their parents’ insurance plan until the age of 26. This means there will be less of a financial burden for those who may have been told not to get sick because they don’t have insurance.

It also means, students will be able to focus more on school if they aren’t constantly concerned with either paying for their own insurance or risking their life by having none. When jobs are scarce and school alone is hard to pay for, one less bill, or the assurance of access to medical care, is appreciated.

The bill was also bundled with reform that concerns the student loan program. Instead of private banks lending government loans to students, the government itself will loan the money, essentially eliminating the middle man who wasn’t necessary in the first place.

This will save taxpayers some $68 billion. President Obama plans to re-invest the savings into education. His re-investment will increase Pell Grants, help students pay off loans and upgrade community colleges.

According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, this reform will cost about $950 billion over the next decade, but will lower federal deficits by $148 billion.  It will also extend coverage to 32 million previously uninsured people.

Republicans in office, who hope to see the reform fail, are calling this bill the Democrats’ Waterloo.

Democrats, of course, see this as their greatest victory in a long time.

Each side hopes to prevail, but the victory of this reform is owed to the people of this country – the people whom both Republican and Democratic congressman are elected to represent.

The U.S. is not the superpower it once was and it will take time to regain that status. That can’t be achieved by constant bickering between two parties who dislike each other solely because they hold different ideals.

The Democrats compromised a lot for this bill to become reality. Now that it is, both parties need to take every possible step to see this opportunity is not wasted because some grown-ups in Washington want to be able to say, “I told you so.” $1 trillion is still $1 trillion.

This bill could be a Waterloo or a victory, it all depends on how the situation is handled. This reform isn’t a revolution and it still hasn’t granted anyone anything, but it does present an opportunity with the potential to change the lives of many citizens of this country.

BY DESMOND MILLER
EDITOR

On Nov. 4 2008, I was torn in two by the historical election that struck down one discriminatory ideal, the thought that a black man could never be the president of the United States, and strengthened another, the thought that marriage could only be between a man and a woman.

As a 32-year-old black man, I was ecstatic by the electricity of President-elect Obama’s words as they filled my mind with unlimited possibilities that this unprecedented moment in history could create.

The idea that my family, my grandmother who is in her 80’s and knew racism in its most raw sense could cry tears of joy because of the hard work her generation did during the civil rights movement made me smile.
Just as quickly as those happy thoughts swirled in my head, they were ripped from me when I found out that Proposition 8, the ballot initiative that would change California state law by defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman, had won.

California wasn’t the only state to vote to change its laws regarding marriage. Arizona and Florida have also banned same-sex marriages. Currently, there are only two states that have legalized same-sex marriages, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

As a 32 year old gay man, I was devastated. The ring that I wear on the ring finger of my left hand felt as if it weighed a ton, becoming a symbol of discrimination by the people that want to let fear and hatred rule their lives.

The thing that made this worse for me was that 69 percent of Black voters voted for Proposition 8, according to CNN exit poles.

I hung my head low as I succumbed to the fact that the Daily Show’s host Jon Stewart was right: Within 24 hours my people had gone from oppressed to the oppressors.

So what do I do now?

It is obvious that we have still a long way to go before we can truly live in a world were we are truly equal. I often think about my grandmother, when she asked me to forgive her for not coming to my wedding a year ago.

I forgave her because I understood that change takes time and even thought she couldn’t see past her own beliefs my younger cousin who is named after her could and she was honored to be in my wedding.

It took at least 200 years before black people got a fair deal in this country. It was by any means necessary that we survived to see the day that generations of black people had waited for. It took days, weeks, years for it to come.

Again, it takes time and struggle as we live and die we change and mix. Our experiences will become one and when we can finally see, whether through silent protest or burning rage, that we are all the same. Only then can we find the change the president wants.

So while one part of me is happy, the other must find a balance between the two. On one hand, I have never been more proud to be a black man; on the other, I am saddened to see that same part is what keeps me for feeling truly whole. I have patience and I am hopeful that we will see that change is the only way.

BY BONTÃ HILL
EDITOR

Senator Barack Obama could become the first African American to be elected President of the United States, making Nov. 4 2008, one of the most historic days in American history.

The feeling that surrounds this campaign is something surreal. The feeling of anticipation, anxiousness and celebration is waiting to happen to Sen. Obama if he becomes president.

The hype and money that has been thrown around this election year has been off the charts.

When Sen. Obama’s nomination at the August 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver drew 82,000 people, that’s when it hit that this election was big.

The speeches, composure and determination of Sen. Obama looks and sounds good, but will this really work?

Can he really come through for a country that is desperate for a new direction?

Time will tell if Obama gets elected, yet from watching the speeches, and his demeanor in the debates, he looks like a natural.

The negativity that Sen. McCain has thrown at him has not distracted Obama from his plan at all.

There definitely could be danger for Obama if he becomes president, as fears of an assassination have been rumored if Obama is elected. It is something that is surely on the mind of African Americans.

Will the public outcry be bigger than when Jackie Robinson broke baseball’s color barrier in 1947? Only time will tell as future Americans look back at this time in history.

These are questions hopefully we get to see answered soon, and hopefully we see that there is a change.

A change for a better country, equal opportunity, and This is election will be something we talk about for years, and it feels great to be able to witness it.

DESMOND MILLER / GUARDSMAN