Valfierno vs Tomlin [D5 Debate]

[Kire]

[attr="class","rosehorizontal"]rose valfierno [attr="class","rosehorisontal"]candidate

[attr="class","rose"]They had pitted her against Candidate Tomlin for this debate. He had a similar life story to her, except that her sister had won the 68th Hunger Games while Harvey Tomlin had only really ever had himself. They were nearly matched in that regard. He was also about her age too, so at least this time she wouldn't be shunned for being "too young" like she had last time. As the starting candidate she would have to cause an impact with her words. He would try to refute her points and shrink her ideas in the wake of his own, all candidates did. She would just have to come out swinging. The spotlights made it impossible for her to see anyone but herself and Harvey Tomlin. Even the questioner was barely more than a dark shape to her dazzled eyes. "Think back on a time when you experienced great difficulty. How did you get through it?" When hadn't she experienced great difficulty? "My parents all but abandoned my sister and I. We had no one but each other for many years, relying on one another for support. When she was reaped into the 68th Hunger Games I feared I would lose her forever and be completely alone." She tried to look out at the crowd, tried to see if she could spot Tricia's face, but the audience was too dark compared to the unforgiving light upon her. "I barely kept myself together, only able to watch the screen and pray that she might live another hour, another day. When the day of the finale came around I was sick with nerves to the point where I couldn't eat." She was sure there were people in this shaded audience that might be able to relate; the loved ones left behind by the scythe of the Capitol. None of them had been lucky, like her. Perhaps reminding them of her sister's good fortune - if you could call it that - was a bad idea. She was too far in now to turn back, though. "But she won. I held on because I knew she thought I was strong. I had the perseverance to continue to hope because I know my sister is strong. Patricia Valfierno won the 68th Hunger Games and came back to me." There is a lump in her throat but she swallows it. There is no room for tears in politics. She lifted her head to look at Tomlin before turning to face the audience again. "That is my most famous difficulty, one I wished to address because yes, it is rather the elephant in the room. Sister of a victor, spoiled child who grew up with so much. Only not as much as you think." A wry smile touches the corner of her lips. "I was always more stubborn than spoiled. I believed that taking the wealth my sister offered me was being weak. I had to earn the money for myself." Her face shifts into one of her masks. The time for them to see her emotions is over. This is where she goes in for the punch. Her expression is earnest, but with a bit of steel in it. She will not be convinced she is wrong, because she can't possibly be wrong. "I believe that every person should have the opportunity to make money enough to live. I believe children shouldn't have to steal and beg to get by. I want to give this district and its inhabitants the chance to not have to live the life I lived - fighting day-by-day to survive and hoping, praying, something will change." Her spine straightens even further and her eyes pierce into the darkness laid out before her. She may be staring directly into someone's eyes but she couldn't tell. If they believed she was then that was what mattered. "I have overcome my own struggles due to the strength of my sister. Let me be that strength to help us all deal with our struggles." She lets the ferocity drop, placing her hands gently on the top of the podium, folded over each other. Her gaze moves first to the questioner, then to Tomlin. She nods once. Your turn.

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[knuckles]

Harvey Tomlin

He stands perfectly still while listening to his opponent go on about her struggles of growing up. They're all so similar, yet different from each other. Harvey hasn't had a perfect life. He didn't have anyone to lean on because his life was always in shambles.

"I appreciate you talking about your struggles, Ms. Valfierno." He says ever so calmly while nodding his head. Having a victor as a sibling is something he can never imagine since it's unknown if he had any brothers or sisters anyway. He clears his throat before turning to the crowd. "I, too, have grown up in poverty. My parents abandon me when I was born. I grew up in the orphanges struggling to survive. The orphanages are miserable. They're hard to live in. Just one toe across the line, and you're punished. Curfews are strict. I didn't have any friends or anyone to help me. I was truly alone. At the age of eighteen, I was kicked to the curve since I became an adult. I was homeless. I spent time walking through the district digging through garbage cans just to find scraps of food to survive. I would collect water from water puddles in order to have something to drink. I didn't have the skills needed to get a job. I put application after application in to many different places, but nobody wanted me. I struggled with this life until I almost died alone without anyone by my side. I slammed face first into rock bottom."

He pauses just long enough to take a breath calming the nerves trying to shine through.

"I overcame it by picking myself up off the ground and working for it. I was hired as a janitor where I started making money to get a place to live. I then got an apprenticeship where I worked along side some of the greatest people in the world. I had nobody to help me. I was alone most of my life, and today I stand here prepared to do the best I can for all of us. Nobody will ever be alone because I will always stand next to them."

[knuckles]

Harvey Tomlin

What’s the most pressing concern you have about our district, and how do you propose to fix it?

Harvey takes a deep breath pondering all the district needs, but one concern really pulls at his heart strings. He looks around before placing his hands on the podium in front of him.

"I don't think anyone can deny the amount of homeless people the district has, and that's something I want to fix. As someone who went through lived as an orphan, I want to give those turning eighteen a chance to fight for themselves. I don't want anyone living on the streets and digging through dumpsters just to survive. I don't want anyone turning towards drugs or anything else because that's the only way to make a living because that's far from true. There's always answers."

Rubbing his chin, Harvey tries to find the way to word how he'd fix it. Many ideas float through his mind. Maybe all of them can work.

"I'd fix that by one: at the very beginning until the funds are there, I will open up my own home to those who are seeking help. I will provide shelter and education for those kicked to the curve. I will help them transition into the life of an adult. I will start the no child left behind motion because nobody deserves to fight alone. Each person living in district five has a place, and I want to show them that. From the age of sixteen, the children will go through classes learning how to properly fill out applications. Each of them will start learning a skill so they have a foundation to begin with. They'll learn how to manage money, and by the time they're eighteen, they'll know how to live their lives. If they aren't comfortable stepping out into the real world yet, they can still live under the same roof until they're ready to go out on their own. It'll start out small, but as time goes on, I will work to make it something big."

He nods at the crowd before turning to his opponent wondering what all she has to say.