White House/Pete Souza
An easier audience
On Wednesday, January 27, CitizenTube streamed the State of
the Union address live on its YouTube site, http://www.youtube.com/CitizenTube,
and hosted a Google Moderator series that allowed viewers to submit and vote on
questions in response to President Obama’s address.
Four days... 11,697 questions... and 643,527 votes later... the
results are in!
The people have spoken, and today at 1:45PM EST, Obama will
respond. In anticipation of Obama’s live
“interview” on CitizenTube, OhMyGov took a closer look at the top-voted questions that President Obama may (pending approval) answer. We wonder, will he address the wildly-popular topic of marijuana legalization?
Note to readers: questions are shown as they were asked, grammatical and punctuation
errors and all. For
those who support increased public education funding, just think of it as
evidence for your cause.
Here now, a look at what YouTube viewers want to know of our 44th President...
Jobs and the Economy
656 questions, 109,265 votes
"An open Internet is a powerful engine for economic
growth and new jobs. Letting large companies block and filter online content
and services would stifle needed growth. What is your commitment to keeping the
Internet open and neutral in America?"
"Hello, I am a first year at Columbia and was wondering
what your intentions are for reforming America's deteriorating public education
system and how children in those schools are going to be able to pay for
college? Thanks."
"The world at large is requiring people to have
graduate degrees to secure good jobs that will allow them to attain the once
promised "American Dream" How is this possible when tuition costs so
much, and yet federal grants have been cut severely?"
Healthcare
883 questions, 66,329 votes
"Why are the health care meetings, procedures, etc not
on CSPAN as promised?"
"What is the point of making healthcare mandatory, or
else we pay a fine?"
"Mr. President, Would you agree or disagree that we
should start over on healthcare and fight for a bill that will actually do
something to curb the rising cost of healthcare, and why you believe your
stance is the way forward? Thank you."
Energy and Environment
527 questions, 47,439 votes
"If money is tight, why waste billions in nuclear and
dirty coal when we should ramp up efficiency, wind and solar, which are
economically sustainable and create clean and safe jobs for our
generation?"
"What sorts of alternative fuels are you looking into
making easily available and affordable to the general public?"
"What plans do you have regarding solar and wind
infrastructure in the united states [sic]?"
Foreign Policy and National Security
1,170 questions, 69,329 votes
“Many fear that Sudan may be on the brink of war,
and Darfuri [sic] refugees fear returning home. President Obama, in light of
conditions on the ground, what will you do to galvanize the international
community to prevent widespread violence in Sudan?"
“What is your plan for the War on terror, not only in the Middle East, but across the globe?"
"During the election, you supported setting a deadline
for getting all of our troops out of Iraq. Why do we still have troops
across seas?"
Education
898 questions, 49,784 votes
"What are you planning to do about college tuituion
[sic] costs."
"What are you going to do for college students?"
"I am a student currently in college and with the
current economic situation, what hope do I have for paying for college if my
family income is to [sic] high for finical aid and scholarships or [sic]
getting scarce?"
Financial Reform
393 questions, 41,344 votes
"You said you'd impose a fee on the banks. How will you
ensure that the banks don't pass off the fee onto the consumers, aka, us?"
"Mr. President, our deficit is higher than ever at $12
trillion. Will you consider allowing the private sector to buy and take over
the most troubled government run agencies, such as the US Postal Service?"
"What will you be doing to block or counteract the
supreme court [sic] rollback of the corporate campaign finance limits? In
addition to this, what will your administration do to crack down on
corporations that are violating anti-trust laws?"
Government Reform
764 questions, 64,839 votes
"How are we supposed to have any kind of faith in our
political system, when companies are allowed to buy elections, and pay for
legislation? How is it our system became so corrupt?"
"What are you going to do to mitigate the damage to the
average american [sic] people as a result of the Supreme Court's ruling about
corporate spending in politics? I'm scared!"
"Why should we believe that the government will be able
to change when it is so substantially influenced by major corporations that are
opposed to the changes our government needs? How can a corrupt system fix
itself without external assistance?"
Other (aka Marijuana Legalization)
2,406 questions, 195,198 votes
“Mr. President, When you asked the country to give you
questions, one of the most asked was "Are you going to legalize
Marijuana". When you read it, you laughed like it wasnt [sic] serious. Why
is that?"
"What are your plans for cannabis legalization?"
"Why don't you legalize marijuana, it seems like a great
way to gain tax money, and people should have to right to use it if they
please, and it would cripple gang activity? Do you plan to?"
Tougher than the White House Press Corps (or At Least More
Passive Aggressive)
"why haven't you stoped [sic] the wasting of billions
of dollars on marijuana prohibition, It is nowhere near as bad as alcohol, if
you legalized grandmothers wouldn't have to go to shady areas to get there
medicine that helps them ease pain and suffering."
"Why did Goldman Sachs give you so much money during
your campaign last year? Did it contribute to them getting a huge
bailout?"
"I am an American citizen. I have been married close to
30 years & was diagnosed with MS 15 years ago. Why do I have to be
separated or divorced in order to get the medications and medical care I need
in a country as RICH as the US?"
“One in three enlisted women is sexually assaulted serving
her country. According to CBS, less than 12 percent of SA investigations lead
to prosecution. The Pentagon reports that 80% of military SAs aren't reported.
How will you stop military rape?”
“historically [sic] the use of mercenary units has been a
poor idea for nations, and yet we currently use several. how [sic] do you
justify the use of mercenaries/contractors especially during the current fiscal
crisis?"
"I am 12 and my father just came back from the Iraq war. Now
he is an alcohol [sic] and it is ruining his family. My question is, what will
the Obama administration do to improve medical and psychiatric care for veterans?"
"Bin Laden explicitly stated that his goal was not to
militarily defeat us, but bleed us financially dry, and watch us destroy our
own freedom. Considering our military spending, deficit and the Patriot Act,
why are we playing directly into his plan?"
"Why do we cut back funding on schools before cutting back on
funding to jails and prisons?"
"How do you expect the people of this country to trust you
when you have repeatedly broken promises that were made on the campaign trail.Most [sic] recently, the promise to have a transparent healthcare debate broadcast on
C-Span continues to be broken."
"The Constitution says, "We the people". Not we the
company, not we the special interest group. When is it that Lobbyists will NO
LONGER be able to contribute economically and sway our congress and therefore
the outcome of policy decisions?"
"Will you ask the FDA and NIDA to stop blocking studies on
the medical benefits of marijuana? You just said in your address, we need
therapies that kill cancer cells and not healthy cells. Don't block studies
that have potential for this."
"Why is it that a person can make more money selling drugs
than working in fast food? And why is it that murderers and sex offenders can
receive grants for college, access housing assistance and food stamps, but
those with drug felonies cannot?"
And finally, Just for a Laugh…
"Mr. President, as marijuana also is a great catalyst to
intellectual thinking and creativity, it will for sure benefit economy if
legalized, by the fact that creative thinking can create new useful and
undiscovered items to be produced and exported."
"Do you believe that Scientology should not be
classified as a religion, and instead referred to as a system of improper
ethics?"
In sum, the questions suggest that the legalization of marijuana
may solve the U.S.
economic, social, political, educational, and national security woes. Who knew?
