“What are they going to do with drones? All this flying stuff. I would really like the benefits to it. And then there’s also the Big-Brother aspect – are they going to be watching us? So, I mean, it would be nice to figure out if there’s a way for them to balance out what they could do as far as are they going to be watching us, or are they going to be taking care of business?”
(Paul Moore, 28, of Syracuse, line cook at Varsity Pizza, voted for Obama, declined to share party affiliation)
“I come from a military family. I am in the reserves myself and a lot of my family members are in the military. And so as far as the economy goes, I feel as though, like, the military puts a lot into the economy. Because whenever I see someone that’s like, ‘I’m gonna slash funds for the military. I’m gonna slash funds for education.’ And I’m like, ‘Well, you’re going to be slashed from my list of people I’m voting for probably.'”
(Lauren Pyland, 23, of Syracuse, activities coordinator at Park Terrace at Radisson Assisted Living & Memory Care, registered Republican)
“I suppose a federal budget that’s responsive to the people. I’m also sympathetic to the pacifists’ perspective – I think the United States has become over-militarized.”
(John Bucki, 64, of DeWitt, director of Le Moyne College Campus Ministry, registered Democrat)
“Nutrition policies. A lot of them are very based in lobbying and stuff with the USDA and everything like the, you know, cattle, beef, pork, everything – they have their own lobby in Washington that determine what policies get passed and what don’t. And that’s not really what’s best for health.”
(Laura Ryan, 24, of Weedsport, general manager of Strong Hearts Café, unaffiliated with a political party)
“In general, it’s become something akin to sports fandom – you’re either a Yankees fan or a Red Sox fan, and you’re just rooting for your side to win. No one actually discusses the issues anymore.”
(Joe Agovino, 42, of Syracuse, director of community development for the St. Thomas More Foundation, declined to share political affiliation)
(Kristen Eskow is a junior majoring in broadcast and digital journalism.)
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