12 University Students Hospitalized Over Bad Batch of Molly by Laura Walton (4)

Original Story: http://www.usnews.com/news/newsgram/articles/2015/02/23/12-at-wesleyan-university-hospitalized-for-bad-batch-of-molly

Wesleyan, esteemed University in Connecticut, is recovering from the hospitalization of 12 of its student after a bad batch of molly rattled the college party scene. Upon reading the article, it can be assumed that no one is angry or upset, just concerned because of the possibility of the drug being laced or pure. Authorities compare taking molly to playing Russian roulette because you never know what you’re going to get.

This relates to U.S History because it is the natural tendency of young adults to experiment and the new creation of drugs allows for more outlets. I am pleased that the school officials didn't go all insane and bane music or something in an attempt to control its students. 

Pot Smoking Church Service by Laura Walton (4)

Original Story:

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2015/05/12/indiana-church-plans-pot-smoking-worship-service-in-test-of-religious-freedom?int=99fc08

Bill Levin, founder of the First Church of Cannabis, plans on testing Indiana’s new religious freedom law with a service full of weed. The idea came from a radio show that announced the idea that the religious freedom law could even protect a church of pot smokers and the idea arose. The governor’s office hasn’t commented on the actions of Levin but the preacher was quoted saying “come hell or high water the service will commence”.

This relates to U.S History because cannabis has been subject of major debate in our society because of the negative connotations surrounding it. As someone growing in a generation of pot smokers, I think it wise for the government to invest more understanding to those who do choose to take part in smoking. 

The Death Penalty System is Broken by Laura Walton (4)

Original Story: http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/06/us/executions-dead-man-walking-nun/index.html

Sister Helen Prejean is, in my opinion, is one of the strongest woman in America. She has devoted the past 20 years to visiting and praying with death row inmates. The news story posted by CNN follows her battle against the judicial system with the increased amount of botched executions. Two years ago an inmate was given defective lethal injection that resulted in the death taking 2 hours and the man finally suffering from a fatal heart attack. After witnessing her first execution she realized that one dies almost a thousand times in that cell before actually being executed, and that’s not for the system to determine.

          This relates to U.S History as the Supreme Court, over the past few decades, have been changing their stance on certain high profile issues. It shows that over time, the American mindset bends depending on the views of those in high power. I don’t think that any government should have enough power to decide who should die or not. 

"Tragedy haunts Biden" by Sam Schaffer

Tragedy has struck the Biden family. Joe Biden's son, Beau Biden, died at the age of 46, from brain cancer Saturday night. He had been going through weeks of intensive treatment beforehand, and despite the best efforts of his medical staff, he passed away late Saturday night. His father and family are in mourning, and the nation sends its prayers to the Biden household.
In life, Beau Biden was the Attorney General of the State of Delaware. He was described by many as intelligent, gracious, and kind. In particular, his father described him as "quite simply, the finest man any of us have ever known". He was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2013, and was given a certified clean bill of health following surgery. His cancer returned this spring, and Biden began to pursue aggressive treatment of the disease. He passed away at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Baltimore, surrounded by his extended family. 

Duggar Family hypocrites over Scandal by Laura Walton (4)

Original Story: http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/31/opinions/pearlman-duggar-abuse/index.html

          None of this would have been discovered without Oprah. Last week the whole nation was took by surprise of allegations of molestation by the eldest Duggar son, Josh, to his younger sisters. No names have been released and no action has taken place. The Duggar’s are a conservative Christian family who star on the TLC show “19 Kids and Counting” and the reports say that their entire little town in Arkansas knew about the molestation and no one reported it. The actions look place in 2002 and in 2003, Josh was sent to a church camp and told to apologize to his victims. The family told the town constable and he gave Josh a stern talking to, nothing was ever reported until Oprah was told of the allegations prior to them appearing on her show. Even then, no action was taken against the family or the perpetrator even though the state laws clearly define it as abuse.

          This relates to U.S History as law enforcement continues to turn a blind eye to whoever they feel. It doesn’t matter what status the family holds or if the town feels it isn’t a big deal, the action that took place in that home are wicked and disgusting and harsher action than church camp should’ve taken place. 

Teacher resigns after reading homoerotic poem to AP Class by Laura Walton (4)

Original Story: http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/30/us/connecticut-ginsberg-teacher/index.html

Connecticut, no stranger to controversy when freedom of speech is concerned, has recently fired a teacher upon reading a poem that described homosexual relation. One of the expectations when joining an Advanced Placement class that it is supposed to prepare one for college and the uncensored literature that is read in college. Almost 60% of the opposition came from the school board and students who were not in the class. Many profound professors have commented on the situation by posing questions like "If you can't handle Ginsberg how are you going to teach Walt Whitman?" basically saying that those who can’t handle it now won’t be able to handle collegiate/adult literature.

This relates to U.S History as the first amendment s challenged as it related to education. Parents take offense to explicit readings in the classroom when only few know what goes on outside of it. The education system is beginning to infringe on topics that have no concern to them, this whole controversy is geared toward taking power from the teachers and scaring them into keeping the topics PG, even to 18 and 19 year olds. 

Discrimination on United Airlines Flight by Laura Walton (4)

Original Story: http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/30/us/united-flight-muslim-chaplain/index.html

Tahera Ahmad, the director of interfaith engagement and the Muslim chaplain for Northwestern University was denied an unopened can of diet coke on a United Airlines flight due to the flight attendants ignorance and discrimination. The flight attendant denied the can of coke because she expressed fear of the can being used as a weapon. Tahera was brought to tears as she asked the people around her if they are witnessing this and a man told her to “shut the f*ck up”. The Airline responded by identifying the situation as a misunderstanding and no formal apology was issued.

This relates to U.S History to show different perspectives of racism and discrimination in America. This is a reminder of how much progress still needs to be made in the respect for different cultures and religions. Despite her status and education she was treated as a virus and I believe no one should be treated as one.

Obamas trade agenda faces tougher odds heading into House

                President Barack Obama is pushing the trade agenda at the end of his second term, and is facing the biggest hurdle. The anti-trade forces are struggling to expertise and spark public outrage towards Obamas trade agenda.the republicans have been willing to hand the president a win in this debate since the end is nearing of his term. "The business of bill passing is a messy sausage-making process. It was in the senate, and it certainly will be in the House," said White House communications director Jen Psaki.
                 Although this situation in history is on a way higher magnitude than this current situation, this current event reminds me of John Adams president when he elects the midnight judges. How these two events relate is both presidents we enforcing things at the very end of their presidency's to remain in their favor for when the next president took office.

www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/05/31/obama-trade-agenda-faces-tougher-odds-heading-into-house/

Maddie Murphy pd. 6

Paul vows to return to Capitol Hill on Sunday to block bill, end NSA spying

               Rand Paul, the Kentucky GOP senator, is planning on blocking the efforts to renew the National Security Agency along with other anti-terrorist and surveillance programs. Paul stated that, "I will force the expiration of the NSA illegal spy program."  11 surveillance laws will expire on Monday. The USA freedom act passed by the House was three votes short of the required 60 that was needed to proceed in the Senate. If the Freedom Act becomes part of our law, then business records and thr roving wiretap authority would come back.  Also, the NSA would continue collecting American telephone records.
                Due to the acts of terrorism brought about towards our country, many laws and acts have been created to ensure the American people safety.  Events such as 9/11 caused a great threat towards America because it showed that Americans safety was weak, and other countries had the ability to harm American people.

www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/05/30/paul-vows-to-return-to-capitol-hill-on-sunday-to-block-bill-end-nsa-spying/

Maddie Murphy pd. 6

Pearl Harbor memorial closed after accident

           The USS Arizona Memorial in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is closing to visitors until the date of June 4th because the dock that sits on top of the sunken battleship was damaged in an accident this past Wednesday. "Initial visual assessments show the dock was moved about 10 feet toward the Memorial. A small area of concrete was damaged where the docks ramp joined the memorial. The dock's ramps and railings were also damaged," the state an said. They closed the memorial because it is not safe for visitors.
          Pearl Harbor and the event that occurred in this place is a very big moment in Americas history.  Many people go to visit the memorial to honor past relatives and people that were involved in the incident.

www.cnn.com/2015/05/28/us/pearl-harbor-arizona-memorial-accident/index.html

Maddie Murphy

Texas floods: Enough rain to cover entire state with 8 inches of water in May

              The massive amounts of rain that Texas has received in May of this year, is not the end of this stormy season. Overall, 22 people have died because of it, so in responce Barack Obama has declared a major disaster in Texas. Just in the Houston suburb of Rosenberg, police have evacuated people from 20 homes. The torrential rains have set the record for the wettest month according to Texas A&M climatologists.  Overall, 37.3 gallons of water have fallen over Texas this past month of May. Sunny days are expected to arrive this next week.
               Our situation right now is the complete opposite in the 1920s when the dust bowl took place. Areas of Texas such as the Panhandle were receiving no signs of rain resulting in a major drought. Many people died because of it such as people have died due to the massive amounts of rain.


www.cnn.com/2015/05/30/us/severe-weather/index.html

Maddie Murphy pd. 6

Muslim Chaplain claims discrimination on United flight

           Ahmad, who is a chaplain and director of the interfaith and engagement at Northwestern university, was denied the right to an unopened soda can due to hygienic reasons.  The flight attended stated that she was unable to give her an unopened soda can because it could be used as a weapon, but gave an unopened beer can to a man near her. Ahmad told the flight attendant that she was being discriminated against but the flight attended did not respond in any way.  When Ahmad asked the other people around her on the flight if they had just witnessed the event, they told her to shut up instead of standing up for her.
             Ever since 9/11, airports have increased their security to protect Americans from terrorists.  Because of this, many people have been discriminating any person of the Muslim faith, even if they are from the United states. Just like the African Americans, women, Japenese americans, Muslims are being discriminated just like these other groups of people.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/30/us/united-flight-muslim-chaplain/index.html
Maddie Murphy pd. 6

Cali - Pearson Chambers 4th

Going off my previous blog about the rainfall in Texas, while there other states suffering from all this rain states like California have been in a terrible drought for the past year and conditions have gotten so bad that this story has had national attention. Much of California is made up of farmer town. So this is not only affecting people in major cities but more harshly the farmers who have owned the land for decades. The drought has prevented these farmers from growing crops and supplying jobs in the community. Situation like these not only do people lose money but ruins a community as well due the loss in jobs many turn to drugs. California is really struggling and if the conditions don’t get better soon they will need to seek help from our national government.

http://www.cnn.com/interactive/2015/05/us/map-drought/index.html

Police to announce findings on UVA gang rape reported by Rolling Stone - Jack VanGorden 4th per.

After Rolling Stone published a story of an alleged gang rape of a female student at UVA five months ago, police began an investigation and will announce their findings on Monday afternoon. The story caused controversy, not only at UVA, but across America. The victim, called "Jackie", was supposedly assaulted by seven men in a dark room at a frat party. After the report, people began to debate about rape on college campuses and many were so perplexed that something like what happened to Jackie was going on without punishment. While most people supported Jackie, others questioned her story and pointed out the discrepancies. Rolling Stone made a statement that the reason they didn't interview the alleged attackers is because they didn't want Jackie to feel like the editors were going against her.

This article was written by Ashley Fantz of CNN News on Monday March 23, 2015 at 9:39 AM ET. This story made me seriously think about rape on college campuses. Regardless of whether the story reveals to be accurate or not, something needs to be done so that college women feel protected on campus. The ugly truth is that many universities cover up rape cases so that their statistics show that they are a safe campus and students continue to attend. I applaud Rolling Stone for publishing this story because I'm sure they knew it would cause a lot of controversy but they genuinely wanted to do what was right.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/23/us/rolling-stone-jackie-rape-article-uva/index.html

U.S. service member killed in Afghanistan, official says - Jack VanGorden 4th per.

An Afghan National Army gunman shot and killed a U.S. Army soldier in eastern Afghanistan today. Details haven't been released yet but we do know that the attack took place in Jalalabad. Supposedly a group of troops were leaving a meeting at a provincial governor's compound when they were fired upon. The official's name hasn't been released yet but the embassy "said that all diplomatic personnel had been accounted for after the incident." There is still uncertainty on the motive behind the attack but "green-on-blue" attacks are becoming less common.

This article was written by Jamie Crawford and Jason Hanna of CNN News on Wed April 8. 2015 at 12:40 PM ET. This story left me with several unanswered questions. I will be very curious to see who the official is and why he was targeted. Hopefully the Afghan soldiers can be located and captured so that the family of the victim can find some closure. It makes me really think about how fast and unexpectedly your life can be taken away from you.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/08/world/afghanistan-us/index.html

Severe Thunder Storms (vanessa de la cruz)

These severe thunder storms in Texas, northern Mexico, and southern Oklahoma are effecting society as a whole. Rivers are flooding causing much damage and many deaths. Homes are being destroyed, and buildings are damaged. Many families have lost loved ones and schools are closed because of the flooding. Many are now seeking shelter to even fins  a dryer place.

Other cities in Texas should receive these flood refugees with open arms. We as a state, let alone a country, should help out fellow citizens with their needs. Especially when they homes are being destroyed by tornadoes and freak storms. Prayers are going out to them.
http://news.yahoo.com/swollen-rivers-cause-texas-cities-worry-flooding-062337098.html

Nebraska (vanessa de la cruz)

Nebraska is the most recently  US state to abolish the death penalty, which happened after a veto-override was passed through legislature. Even though this state has not executed anyone since 1997, they now join the ranks of 18 other states throughout the United States.
 
  This traditionally conservative state is now setting a tone for more states to follow, with abolishing the death penalty. This is the first of many conservative states to ban capital punishment. In the near future, we may see other states follow in their same footsteps.
 http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-32910693

The King of Blues (vanessa de la cruz)

This weekend we lost blues legend Riley B. King, who is commonly known as B.B. King. King died in Las Vegas, Nevada, after being in home hospice care for two weeks due to dehydration. This man has honors that vary from a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award to a Presidential Medal of Freedom. King, along with his Lucille, a hollow-bodied Gibson, played well into his age. King will be missed by all for his charisma and his talent for blues music.

It is sad to see these people who have influenced society die. the good people who inspire and motivate others are the ones who suffer and not those who want to harm us.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/15/entertainment/bb-king-dead/index.html

Another Shooting (vanessa de la cruz)

A shooter entered North Thurston High School and started shooting at the students. Students fortunately were able to leave early and get home to a safe place. No one was hurt and the motive has yet to be determined. The suspect is still in custody.
We should have higher gun regulations. The right to bare arms is not as much of a necessity now as it was when the Constitution was created. I understand that people do need to be able to protect themselves, but we must make sure we are allowing people in their right minds to be able to own deadly weapons.

http://www.gosanangelo.com/galleries/top-photos-april-27-2015

Survivors (vanessa de la cruz)

Two sisters Leslie Roy, 52, and Lee Wright, 56, were driving from a relative's in Kalamazoo, Michigan when their truck got stuck in snow in northern Luce County along Lake Superior. The two survived for 13 days on eight boxes of Girl Scout cookies,  some cheese puffs, and melted snow. Their car was spotted on Friday by a Michigan State Police helicopter and the sisters began waving. Roy and Wright were finally rescued by the helicopter a few miles away on a beach and authorities hiked to them.

It's so scary to me that a car can get stranded on the side of the road and not be noticed for 13 entire days. It makes me wonder who else has been stranded or missing but was actually in plain sight. I'm glad the two sister are alright, though!
http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/26/us/missing-women-found/index.html 

Baltimore Riot (Vanessa de la cruz)

On the news lately, you will see the riots following Freddie Gray's death in Baltimore. Gray died in the custody of the Baltimore police department and no one is positive what happened. He was injured while he was in the police van and the whole thing is under heavy investigation. Things are looking like Ferguson.This could easily be tied to the civil rights movement in the 1960's. Even though African Americans had been freed from slavery in the late 19th century, they still had to fight for basic rights and equality through the 1960's and it seems like the fight still isn't over.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/30/us/baltimore-freddie-gray-death-investigation/index.html

Natalee Holloway Case Advancement- Azra Zuniga P.6

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/world/natalee-holloway-father-interview/index.html

The story of Natalee Holloway begins with her being a student on a trip to Aruba and never returned home. Her story has circulated for many years, and her mother took it upon herself to uncover the events that occurred that night. Her father has recently released a new twist; Natalee is alive.

This has been a cold case, but one of the most well known cases. Natalee Holloway's mother has done a lot for missing persons, such as opening a museum commemorating them and exposing killers. The news that Natalee may be alive is shocking and possibly very unbelievable. However, it would end a long history of trying to find her.

35 Killed in Flooding- Azra Zuniga P.6

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/us/severe-weather/

35 people are dead due to a major flood. 15 in Texas, 6 in Oklahoma, and 14 in nothern Mexico have been drowned in the abnormal series of storms occurring in the south. The search for bodies is not yet over, as many people are still missing.

Natural disasters are an unstoppable force. The weird series of storms should be a sign of something much more serious coming due to our tendency to strain our environment. It could be the culprit of global warming, with it almost being summer and places such as Boston receiving snow. It reminds me, personally, of the apocalyptic movies that start off with massive and weird weather disasters. 

Gun Usage on Road (Miguel Dones 6th)

A 44 year old mother was just giving her teenage daughter a driving lesson in a parking lot last Thursday. On her way home, she had a near collision with another driver. This sparked a feud between the mother and the other male driver. Shots were fired and the mother was shot in the head and rushed to the hospital. After doctors diagnosed the wound as fatal, she was taken off of life support and died. Her husband and daughter is still grieving, and her husband bought Valentine's Day flowers for his wife for the last time.

This is tragic. Why would the driver have a gun in the car with him? This is such an extreme case, and shows that some people have absolutely no patience and don't know how to deal with their anger. My heart goes out to her family, as they are in deep grieving right now. This relates to the second amendment, over the usage of guns. Citizens like this man proves that maybe the second amendment granted freedom that can be dangerous to other people.

 http://www.hlntv.com/article/2015/02/16/road-rage-killer-suspect-sketch-las-vegas

Government poisoning people again? What's new? ----Faith Cleaver P4

Dugway proving ground, a U.S army facility in Utah, somehow managed to ship anthrax through fed-ex. Anthrax is an infection that affects the skin and lungs. People believe that anthrax can be weaponized somehow so research is being done to find a way to protect the public. However, someone messed up and sent these infectious spores to about 19 labs in the U.S. This all began in 2014 and the CDC is now investigating how this could have happened. “The best I can tell, it was not human error,” Odierno told reporters. So pretty much, no one knows how anthrax got out.
   Livespores were also sent to a lab in South Korea. While this lab was actually expecting the samples, they weren't expecting them to be live. Inert spores were supposed to be used for training purposes.Those exposed to anthrax were treated quickly and officials believe that it has been contained. The CDC states that there is no threat to the public of any type of outbreak.


http://www.buzzfeed.com/claudiakoerner/pentagon-accidentally-ships-live-anthrax-up-to-26-people-pos#.hf5JpnX2z

Should We Feel Guilty? (Miguel Dones 6th)

Jodi Arias has been given a life sentence with no parole. In 2008, she was accused and convicted for first degree murder of her ex-boyfriend, Alexander. Alexander was found in a hotel bathtub in a pool of blood, a slit through, multiple stabs in his body and a gunshot to the head. She was at first given a life sentence but with a possibility of parole, however, she was tried years later and was given the option of a death penalty or a life sentence without parole. She claims to be very remorseful and feels like a horrible person.

I think that she had some mental illness going on, because someone can't possibly hate somoene this much to this much injury to them. I think justice has been served and even if she is truly remorseful and regretful, she still needs to accept the consequences. Hopefully, she has truly learned her lesson.

http://www.hlntv.com/article/2015/04/13/jodi-arias-sentence-life-prison

User Privacy (Miguel Dones 6th)

Apple has just recently enhanced their user privacy. It works like this, " You send a text message that's encrypted on your device. It passes through Apple servers as jumbled code nobody can crack. And it can only get decrypted by your friend's iPhone passcode." This will make it harder for police to get access of your private information like text messages and emails. Many people are saying that this will help terrorists and kidnappers hide their identity and plans.

 The FBI still has access to your information but they now need a warrant to do so. In doing so, rapists or terrorists may be able to hide traces of their crimes because they'll know ahead of time that the police is on their trail. This new feature seems to have more negativities than positives and I hope Apple changes these features back to how they used to be. 

http://jezebel.com/1972-bernie-sanders-had-some-wacky-ideas-about-rape-1707543130

Injustice in System (Miguel Dones 6th)

Kerry Cook describes his experience in the Texas prison system for twenty-two years. He explains that there are the “predators” and the “prey”. The predators rape the prey constantly, but when they go to tell authorities, they are completely ignored and told to “grow some and defend yourself”. Cook describes his experience as being sentenced to twenty-two years of torture.

Our system is so corrupted and needs to be corrected immediately. This is completely against our basic human rights that our country is built on. There also needs to be a cleansing through the prison authorities and hire those who can humanly carry out the job.

http://www.texasmonthly.com/story/what-%E2%80%98tyler-morning-telegraph%E2%80%99-failed-tell-you-about-kerry-max-cook

HIV (Miguel Dones 6th)

Starting in mid-December, there was an outbreak of HIV in a small county in Indiana and, since then, the number of cases has gone up to 142 people. Theses cases are showing up in isolated communities where families use and share needles as a "community activity." As of March, Indiana has declared a public health emergency and the state is bringing in resources from across the nation to help treat the infected people and educate others about the situation. It's reported that the prescription opioid, Opana, is what is causing many people to become infected. Officials are using this outbreak as a severe reminder that HIV and AIDS are not gone and we must pay attention to what we are doing.

     This article is a prime example of how history repeats itself. While HIV has been around for a while, it hasn't peaked this high since the 1980s, when doctors were seeing an average of 35,000 cases. Many of the people that have tested positive were younger and therefore probably not as educated about the dangers of sharing needles as they should be. It's a shame that so many people are getting the virus and I hope the situation gets under control fast.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/24/health/hiv-indiana-spreads/index.html

Police Brutality (Migule Dones 6th)

A deputy was convicted of murder just this past week. He shot and killed an unarmed black man. He claims that he meant to pull out his taser but ended up pulling out his gun and shot the man. He can earn up to four years in prison for killing an unarmed black man. The deputy says that he is upset and very sad over the situation and hopes that people can see that it is an accident.

I don't think this is an accident. How can one pull out a gun and mistake it for a taser. A trained deputy would be able to tell the difference, which leads me to believe that this is a hate crime. It's sad how many crimes are based on discrimination are happening these days. I hope that all these can stop because we need the freedoms that were are still are promised to us this in the Bill of Rights for all people.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/13/us/tulsa-police-shooting-eric-harris-deputy-charged/index.html

Texas Floods -Destiny Ramirez

Texas has been dealing with severe storms for many consecutive days. 35 are now pronounced dead from drowning. Their bodies have been found floating in the wateres. Many homes are destroyed and damged by not only floods and rain, but also by tornadoes.

I hope that eveyrone is doing well and that we can learn how to take necessary precaution to disasters like these. This is kind of the opposite of the dust bowl, where crops were destroyed. They are both natural disasters and it will affect the US economy someway.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/us/severe-weather/

Which Countries Have the Best Sex Education? -Azra Zuniga P.6

http://news.discovery.com/human/videos/which-countries-have-the-best-sex-education-150522.htm

This video talks about the differences in birth rates per 1,000 teens in Europe vs. the U.S. Countries like Germany and Italy only have 4 births per 1,000 teens, as opposed to the U.S.'s rank of 30 per 1,000. It is believed that because of our conservative teachings of sex ed that only highlight the BAD rather than good and bad, our openness about sex is nonexistent and sex is seen as rather taboo.

Although no one really wants to learn about sex with some random adult, it is true that our overall outlook on sex is unhealthy because we see it as something disgusting and taboo. Per 1,000,000 teens in the U.S., 30,000 will have given birth. Rather than discussing the benefits and healthy factors of sex, we are terrified which closes off communication with our parents about the subject and in turn, more teen pregnancies occur. In the 70's, counterculture occurred and sex became a more profound topic rather than being left undiscussed.

Eye Cancer -Destiny Ramirez

A mother in Rockford, Illinois discovered her child's tumor based off of a photo she took of her son's face. In an interview she said that she had always noticed something in the back of his eye, and always had comments about they way his eyes looked in pictures Then, a few weeks ago, she decided to look up her son's symptoms and learned of a person who had the same symptoms, who in pictures, had one red eye and one white that ended up having cancer. She took him to the doctor and they confirmed that he had been blind in this eye for his entire life because there was a growing tumor. Due to this, they removed his eye before it spread to the rest of his body, and he is now in good health.

This is a story about how technology can actually help save people's lives. And not even by calling 911, but by pictures alone. I'm so glad that the boy is alive and safe and hope that other people can learn from this valuable lesson. 

http://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2015/05/08/pkg-illinois-toddler-eye-cancer.wrex

Immigration -Destiny Ramirez

This article discusses issues around immigration and how those in power are abusing their responsibilities. The author has addressed issues like the discrimination towards immigrant, putting their visas on the line. They take into account where they come from and what race they are. He also talks about the injustice immigrants face even after they get their visas. 

ThinkProgress is aimed for a democratic/ liberal audience and this article is no different. I like the author's point of view and I hope that we can deal with this issue and please, just finally make American a safe place for everyone, free from discrimination and abuse. 

http://thinkprogress.org/immigration/2015/05/09/3657080/north-carolina-district-attorney-u-visa-latino/

Women in FIFA 16? How dare they? ---Faith Cleaver P4

Amidst all of its recent scandal for corruption charges, FIFA has been in the news for other issues. It was announced that women would be featured in the next installment of the long running EA Sports FIFA game. FIFA 16 will feature 12 female football teams that players can choose from. The decision has sparked a lot of unnecessary backlash from male fans of the game. At the moment however FIFA has more to worry about than this.

"So now there's gonna be women's football on FIFA 16, why do women have to interfere with everything we do?!"
-Some guy on twitter.

Some people are criticizing it as an failed gender equality attempt and are even saying it's a handicap for players. Others are saying it may be an attempt to give players more enjoyment. Which often leads to sexists comments.

"i dunno why EA's introducing women teams on fifa 16 yazi...unless they gonna exchange jerseys at the end of a match"
 -Another person on twitter.
I bet these guys are single...


http://www.buzzfeed.com/krishrach/a-bunch-of-men-are-freaking-out-because-the-latest-fifa-game

Abolishing Death Penalty -Destiny Ramirez

The newest US state to abolish the death penalty is Nebraska, which happened after a veto-override was passed through legislature. Even though this state has not executed anyone since 1997, they now join the ranks of 18 other states throughout the United States. Other states have also abolished the death penalty, but some are bringing it back due to the high crimes. 

    This traditionally conservative state is now setting a tone for more states to follow, with abolishing the death penalty. I don't think that the death penalty should be penalty for anyone.  This is the first of many conservative states to ban capital punishment. In the near future, we may see other states follow in their same footsteps.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-32910693

Cop's Son Gets Patrol Car -Destiny Ramirez

A cop was killed in the line of duty and all his possessions were being auctioned off. His son, a teenager, took to Go Fund Me to raise a little more than three thousand dollars to bid for his dads patrol car. He had tons of supporters and followers that gave him money and even moral support.  Many well-off people would be there at the auction. The son told his family that he will try his best to bid on the car, but in the end, if someone outbid him, he hoped that the person would give him the car. His forecast became true, as a rich rancher bid $60,000. As the son was nearly in tears, the rancher walked over to him and placed the keys in his hands and walked away.

I think that this is such a touching story. Even though there is a lot of injustice in our judicial system these days, there are glimpses of good and hope through people like these. I hope that everyone can learn from the sacrifice that the cop made and the support that their family needs. 

http://www.9news.com/story/news/local/2015/05/13/sam-brownlee-auction/27242595/

Hacked Texts -Destiny Ramirez

There is a text message that will automatically shut down iPhones when received. It has caused the Apple company a lot of trouble as they try to figure out how to solve the problems and to respond to the client's complaints. This text is now used for practical pranks and to ruin other people's phones. 

This relates to the technology age that United States went through, starting with the cotton gin. Apple is such a big company that I'm sure that they can fix the problem without losing that much money. I hope they can fix the problem, and I find it very amusing that someone had found this. 

http://www.cnbc.com/id/102711126

Girl Burned By Mob in Guatemala - Sophie Potrykus 2nd

        Recently, a video has surfaced showing a mob located in Guatemala burning a teenage girl. This video has sparked massive controversy and now has the rest of the world questioning Guatemala's justice system. This country is notoriously known for its massive crime rate, being one of the highest in the world.
         This horrible crime happened in the rural village of Rio Bravo, which is common along with the multiple waves of mob burning a occurring earlier in the year. In the near future, hopefully Guatemala's justice system can figure out a way to handle these reoccurring crimes, and put families in the country at ease.

Link: http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/americas/guatemala-girl-burned-mob/index.html

Could America Function Without Illegal Immigrants Working in the Fields? - Azra Zuniga P.6

http://news.discovery.com/human/videos/would-americas-farms-collapse-without-immigrants-150528.htm

Because we are so accustomed to our own urban lives, we oftentimes forget about where our food comes from and the process of growth. This video states many facts, disputing the theory that illegal immigrants are stealing jobs. Georgia passed an act that forced them to return to their home countries, resulting in the loss of $1 billion and their farms almost being shut down entirely.

The issue of immigration has been one for centuries, due to many different factors and the favorite excuse being "they steal our jobs." It is a fact that immigrants usually take jobs that no one else will, hence why they are called the 'backbone' of the country. They manage city sewers, pick up garbage, and most often find themselves active in the agricultural setting. What this means is that they will take the jobs that are so awful in order to make a living, but some of us do not realize the importance of their contribution to our economy.

"Child Trafficking" Brett Akop

Child trafficking started many many years ago. A baby was taken from his mother in 1973. In Chile, this was common and children were stolen from parents and taken out of the country to take part in child trafficking. Travis Tolliver was one of these babies who was stolen from his mother and given up for adoption to an unsuspecting couple in Washington. His mother was told he died at birth but was never presented a body or death certificate. 40 years later, he found her through blood tests and reconnected with his biological mother.

We should put an end to these kind of horrible things. It's not impossible, and if we don't act now it will just be harder to stop. We need to raise awareness. This sort of related to child labor because there were a lot of illegal things happening during that time period towards children. 

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/25/americas/chile-stolen-baby-reunion/index.html

"El Nino" Brett Akop

  El Niño is returning this year. This hurricane involves  the warming of water in the equatorial Pacific.That reduces the intensity of tropical storms and hurricanes and prevents other systems from becoming powerful enough to be named storms. "What El Niño does is it suppresses the hurricane season mainly during the peak months of the season, which are August, September and October," Bell told reporters during a news conference in New Orleans on Wednesday.

Since we've already had this before I hope that we can learn how to deal with this kind of thing. This relates to American History because of Hurricane Katrina and how the country had to reconstruct, not only the damaged cities but also the economy. 

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/us/hurricane-outlook-2015/index.html

"Death Row" Brett Akop

A woman in Indianapolis had pleaded guilty to a murder decades ago and served 27 years in prison. However, after a successful appeal, she was released from prison and escaped from the death row. She was only 17, the youngest convicted murder in Indiana. Just this past weekend, she was found with a self inflicted gunshot to the head.

Capital punishment has long been a controversial topic in American history. I think that the woman may have had some kind of mental illness, or another story as to why she would shoot herself. Capital punishment can go very wrongly if authorities are not careful with their information.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/05/28/indiana-death-row-inmate/28054065/

"Rain in Texas, Snow in Boston" Brett Akop

Although it is raining heavily in Texas, it's snowing heavily in Boston. It has caused people to stay in their homes. A lot of people are snowed in, and believe it or not, schools are closing, and it's so close to the end of the school year. There are piles of debris and snow on the streets of Boston and it is making it very dangerous for cars to pass through.

I think that it's a bit funny yet amazing that one part of the country can be snowing heavily and the other can be raining heavily. This relates to Manifest Destiny. Although that dream was to expand the nation from sea to shining sea, we also expanded from north to south. We are such a big nation that we can have two different seasons in a month.

Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2015/05/28/boston-snow-pile/28089509/

Tar Balls Wash Up on Californian Beach- Azra Zuniga, P.6

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/28/us/california-manhattan-beach-tar-balls/index.html

Balls and patties of black substances are showing up in mass amounts in Santa Monica. Teams are investigating the cause, but they suspect it was a recent nearby oil spill. Beaches might be closed to the public until cleaning crews clear the area of all toxic wastes.

Humans have always been a destructive force, constantly draining mother nature of her resources. The introduction of oil came about when automobiles became cheap and easy to assemble in the 20's, creating an explosion in the need for oil. Over the years, businessman and government officials have chased this black evil substance in order to satisfy their greedy minds but they do not stop to think about the effects of our overconsumption on the environment. As a result, a reckless oil leakage has turned a bright beach into and dark, toxic wasteland.

Tobacco (Daniel Alcorta 4th)

For more than 50 years we've known that smoking can kill you. It is still the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. and yet 42.1 million people light up and new smokers start every day. "Smoking is my best friend," Atlantan Barry Blackwell said. "It's always with me long after friends have left and people have gone, they are always here." To help people who do want to quit,scientists have looked with great interest into what works. Especially since studies have shown that 90% of those who try to quit, will start smoking again despite their best efforts.

Smoking tobacco one of the worst things you can do to your body more specifically your lungs. Tobacco was the leading export during colonial period and for some time after that. IF you told colonists that tobacco would be so addictive and harmful to your body they wouldn't believe you.

Nebraska Abolishes Death Penalty - Sophie Potrykus 2nd

  The newest US state to abolish the death penalty is Nebraska, which happened after a veto-override was passed through legislature. Even though this state has not executed anyone since 1997, they now join the ranks of 18 other states throughout the United States.
    This traditionally conservative state is now setting a tone for more states to follow, with abolishing the death penalty. This is the first of many conservative states to ban capital punishment. In the near future, we may see other states follow in their same footsteps.

Link: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-32910693

Attempted Ambush (Daniel Alcorta 4th)

Recently, two gunmen attempted to the ambush an event in Garland, Texas, where political cartoons of ISIS were on display. One suspect, identified as Elton Simpson by a federal law enforcement source, linked himself to ISIS in a tweet posted just before the attack. Simpson even had a history with federal power. The other suspect, identified as Nadir Soofi by two federal law enforcement officials,was Simpson's roommate in a Phoenix apartment. Simpson and Soofi never made it inside the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, where a right-wing Dutch politician who's on an Al Qaeda hit list was speaking SUnday evening.

Living fairly close to Garland this was a shock, and you wouldn't expect these things to happen "close to home". Terrorism isn't something you'd expect in a smaller town, unfortunately the icon for terrorism in the U.S. will always be 9-11.

FIFA Corruption (Daniel Alcorta 4th)

A tough period for FIFA began in May 2010 when the world's governing body for soccer was presented with official bid documents by Australia, England, Netherlands/Belgium, Japan, South Korea, Qatar, Russia, Spain/Portugal and the UNited States for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. During the ceremony at its Swiss headquarters, FIFA announced dates for inspections of the bidding nations from July-September.

FIFA and world renowned Organization publicly in the wrong and spiraling down hill. Federation International Football Association is an organization where equality and fairness are essential. This is related to the period of corruption in the 70s.

"Shut Down Text" Brett Akop

Someone has hacked the iPhone, creating a text that when sent to someone, and if they're on another app besides their text messages, it will shut their phone off when received. This has turned into a practical joke among people, especially teenagers. One boy has gone so far as to spamming his friends phone until it shut down permanently.

Technology has been a great blessing to the United States, starting with the Industrial Revolution. However, with technological difficulties and faults it can also be a curse. This text message is very annoying and I hope Apple can fix it soon.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/102711126

Chicago Police Officers and a Racially Charged Photograph- Azra Zuniga P.6

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/28/us/chicago-police-antlers-photo/index.html

In this photograph, (taken sometime in the early 2000's)  2 ex-Chicago officers are pictured with rifles holding a black man in antlers almost as if they are posing with their prey. Both officers have been charged for separate crimes, including pocketing money from arrested drug dealers and have been fired as a result. This photograph has sparked national outrage for over a decade, and has been uncovered with the recent events unfolding.

Racism is still today a very big issue. Although this photograph was taken a long time ago, it could have been taken fairly recently especially taking into consideration the amount of police brutality that has been thrusted into the limelight. No one knows anything about the black man pictured, but he appears to be unconscious. This only further proves that there are very many racist government officials working against the good of the people and taking advantage of their positions of power.

"Floods" Brett Akop

35 people are pronounced dead after the horrible floods from the severe storms in Texas. It has been raining for several consecutive days with no signs of stopping. In fact, more storms are predicted to come. May homes are destroyed and Houston and Wimberley have been declared cities in states of emergency. 

It's a very sad thing to have people died, especially from sudden natural disasters. It's tornado season and we should take precaution to the possible damages and things that could happen. Hopefully, after theses storms pass, we can all learn from them how to protect ourselves. 

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/27/us/severe-weather/

House passes bill banning abortions after 20 weeks : Vivie Behrens (Period 6, Week 6)

     The House of Representatives was recently able to pass a bill that makes it illegal to receive an abortion after twenty weeks of pregnancy. The bill requires that only women who were sexually assaulted can receive exemption from this potential law but only if they report sexual abuse to the police and attend counseling and medial examinations two days before the abortion. The law was supported by many republicans and was protested against by women’s rights advocates and liberals.

 This law would potentially infuriate many women’s rights advocates, as well as many women in American society, because it limits their rights to privacy and limits their ability to receive an abortion if they feel it necessary. Additionally, many argue that this decision cannot be made solely by government officials who have no expertise in women’s health. On the opposing side, many religious conservatives and evangelists would probably support this act because they feel that abortion devalues human life. In APUSH, this bill directly responds to the Roe vs. Wade decision which legalized abortion. The ideals behind this law also correlate with the rise of the conservatism during the late 1970's and 80's. 

Source:

http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/13/politics/house-gop-abortion-20-weeks/