Fallen Officer: Houston, Texas by Carli Copell/ 6th period

Fallen Officer: Texas Deputy Shot

This article is about a deputy from Houston, TX. The article states that the officer was shot while at a gas pump, fueling up. The alleged shooter is said to be in custody after killing the officer "execution style." The gunshot killed him instantly. Deputy Darren H. Goforth, the victim if this murder, was said to have been walking back to his car when the shooter came up from behind and shot him, for no apparent reason. Gofourth is a husband and a father of two. His kids now have no father, and his wife.. no husband.

Analysis: After reading this article I am shocked and disgusted at how cruel people are. This person, not only took away an innocent man's life, but left behind a widowed wife and two kids that won't be able to grow up with a father. This relates to U.S. because, there has always been some sort of violence in America, against authority. For example during the  Western/Outlaw's days there were always shoot outs and fights with the authorities as well as the Indians, when they did not like something they killed. I personally believe this article can relate to all kinds of revolt towards authority from the past.  



http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/28/us/texas-sheriffs-deputy-shot-gas-station/

Angie Fuentes 8th period

Va. gunman shooting of TV reporter and photographer.
SUITABLE FOR AGES 14+

On august 26, 2015, at approximately 6:46 A.M marked the time when two station reporters lost their lives, alongside with an injured interviewee. A reporter, Alison Parker, 24, and cameraman, Adam Ward, 26, were shot by a former reporter who was fired (two years ago to be exact) known as Bryce Williams. Williams then was in a high-speed pursuit which led him to inflict a self wound, causing him to die around 1:30 P.M. after being airlifted to the hospital. 

Now let's get to my tone of speech

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When I first heard of this event I was in my car ready to take on school when 106.1 decided to shine a light on this horrible event. Me being me of course, I was curious and wondered what happened so I kept listening, many things passed through my head such as; why would this happen? Who would do this? And frankly, what went through the shooters mind? Of course the station also had thoughts of their own, mentioning how it was not just a single shot, but multiple, leaving us to believe it was PERSONAL. And lord behold, was it personal.

In this, oh so very detailed "New York Times" entry we hear about a shooting that took place at Bridgewater Plaza. Unfortunately this tragic event was caught on camera by both the camera man and shooter, leaving most people who witnessed it emotional (I believe so, but of course I did not see it and I advise you to not go out and look for it since the videos have been taken down).The story behind this enraged shooting began when Bryce Williams was fired for "bizarre behavior and threats to other employees". But, Williams decided to file a law suit against them using "racial discrimination" as a set motive. Later on, law official overrode the complaint marking it as a an "obviously depressed individual" who mainly talked about suicide rather than harming others . I'm not sure exactly why this event seemed to affect me in the way that it did, but it did. I guess the fact that so many horrible things can happen from long held in anger. Leaving me to wonder why did we lose Alison and Adam, both with bright futures ahead and just victims of opportunity. A random choice because they came from the same station (WDBJ) where the fuel started.

 

 

If you want to know more about this Event you can click here

 

 

Adriana Hinojosa 8th Pd. - Mt. McKinley has finally been renamed Mt. Denali, thanks Obama.

Here in the United States we are very proud of our highest peak, Mount McKinley. With an elevation of 20,322' it is among the highest in the world, only 9,000' lower than that of Everest's elevation. Although this mountain has been officially called Mt. McKinley since 1917, honoring ex-president William McKinley, most Alaskans have been calling it by its original name "Denali" all along. The word "Denali" is an Athabascan word, the language of Alaska's indigenous people, meaning "the high one." 

Why is this such a big deal?

Well, when the mountain went under the name change the first time, from Denali to McKinley, it was a sign of disrespect toward the Native Americans, as if they needed to be shown more hostility. In 2008 when President Barack Obama was running for his current position he advocated better relations with Native Americans. Many say it was a cowardly move on his part to wait until the end of his presidency to do this name change but in my opinion it was the smart thing to do because he is indeed receiving a lot of criticism and hate for the decision he made, especially from Ohioans. The Ohioans are saying that it is a major sign of disrespect toward ex-POTUS William McKinley but in reality it was an even bigger sign of disrespect in completely disregarding the name that had been placed there by these Native Americans. In a statement the White House released the following was said, "the sacred statues of Denali to generations of Alaska natives," which is reinforcing that the mountain ultimately belongs to these Alaskans just as much as the Statue of Liberty belongs to New York. Regardless of what I or many people who agree with  me think, many Republican government officials are bashing on Obama and his decision saying that he "has decided to ignore an act of congress in unilaterally renaming Mt. McKinley in order to promote his job-killing war on energy." Secretary of Interior, Sally Jewell has come up with a good argument stating that William McKinley really didn't have anything to do with the mountain itself at all nor with the state of Alaska, which he never even visited. I think that if these people who are tearing Obama to shreds really care this much about William McKinley, they don't need a mountain to prove it. If the mountain's original name had been Mt. McKinley I would completely understand their anger but that's not the case. 

The purpose of President Obama's trip to Alaska in the first place was to call attention to the serious matter taking over the state which is that of climate change. Because of that and the name change, Barack Obama will be receiving a lot of love from Alaska natives in these days.

I think that changing the name back was the right thing to do, Native Americans deserve to take pride in the little they have even if that just means naming a mountain. Donald Trump has of course promised to change in back to Mount McKinley if he is made president so here is another reason to not vote for Mr. Trump.

#DumpTrump #Denali 

CNN citing

NBC news citing

Live long and prosper,

Adriana Hinojosa

Reagan Rees Blog Post August 31

On the VMA's last night, which I did not get a chance to watch because I was doing outlines, Kanye West announced that he would be running for president. Because I did not see this live I read it from this article http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/31/politics/kanye-west-2020-running-for-president-vma/
In the past Kanye has attended fundraiser's for Democratic canidate Hilary Clinton, supporting her ideas. The democratic party tweeted welcoming Kanye into the 2020 race. This will be a good, new, interesting view on the candidacy for 2020 if Kanye goes through with his claim. It would encourage more young people to vote, the people who hold the future of our nation. Kanye is relating award shows to politics, instead of making them separate world's, in which they have often been. This is a dawning of a new age of ideas and leaders.

Lia Kerkman 6th- President Obama Compares U.S. and Israel Tensions to Family Feud

      President Obama compared tensions over the the Iranian nuclear deal to the game Family Feud, insinuating that although the U.S. and Israel will have their heated arguments, they will still remain close allies. He looks to keep the idea that we all stay on the best side of Israel, and that we look past any biased  or past opinions we may have had. There are still however a number of people including lawmakers who disapprove and try to vote against the deal. Obama and Israel Prime Minister Netanyahu have never had a cozy relationship, but Obama states that he intends to quickly improve his relations with Israel.


         I think everyone can understand getting more irritated when arguing with a family member rather than arguing with someone not a member of their family. So far the United States is in agreement alongside Britain, France, and several other countries about the topic pertaining the Iranian nuclear deal. In the U.S. a large amount of the democrats supported Obama's decision, while the Republicans criticized him for it. I think the deal to put restrictions on Iran's nuclear purchases benefit the safety of the U.S. as well as other countries.


http://time.com/4015533/obama-us-israel-family-feud/







   

Angelique Flores 9th period "kanye West for president in 2020"

Summary; Celebrity Kanye West announces at 2015 VMA's that in the year of 2020 that he will be running for president.  First West took on his announcement by leading with the topic of the importance of artistic freedom of speech. Then proceeded from then on to his acceptance speech for getting the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award.


Analysis; Kanye West while accepting the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award was proceeding to say "I'm not no politician, bro" well minutes after that someone in the audience screamed "Kanye for President!" and he continued his speech by saying "And yes, as you probably could've guessed by this moment, I have decided in 2020 to run for president." There have been many different responses to his announcement some people ask if he "had smoked something before he came out" or if he was just bluffing us all. Kanye is known for his rude interruption of Taylor Swifts 2009 acceptance speech of the Best Female Video Award, but he came up on stage, snatched the microphone form Swift and proceeded to say how he thinks Beyonce should've won the Best Female Video Award and not Taylor. Since that episode he hasn't yet to apologize for his actions and viewers world wide have tuned in every year to MTV's Video Music Awards to see if West will apologize or act out once again. Kanye made the smart decision to announce this at one of the biggest, well-known Awards show, what better way for this big announcement to become known then to announce it on National Television? Smart Move from Mr. West but there are still some speculations on if this idea of him running for president in 2020 is a good or terrible idea, because even though he may be a well known celebrity and rapper.. that doesn't really mean anything if his actions during him possibly being president in the year of 2020 would cause the nation to crumble or rise.

Links: http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/31/politics/kanye-west-2020-running-for-president-vma/index.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/01/arts/music/kanye-west-president-2015-vma-speech.html?_r=0&module=ArrowsNav&contentCollection=Music&action=keypress&region=FixedLeft&pgtype=article

Police officers killed this year. Bob Cummins 6th Period

     The latest death of a U.S. police officer took place in the Houston area on Friday night.  He was shot "execution style" at a gas station, once in the back and again when he was on the ground.  Ron Hickman, the Harris County Sheriff, says that the killing connects to the anti-police protests that have been happening since the discovered killings of unarmed black men by white police officers. Darren Goforth has been the 23rd officer shot dead this year.  When added to the number of officers killed on duty, 64 total police officers have died this year so far, which is more than the number of officers from the first half of 2014, 62.
     It's a shame that instead of peaceful protest, like the Martin Luther King Jr's demonstrations in the 1960's, this man chose to show his disgust of the situation by causing more of a problem and being just as much of a murderer as some of the alleged officers were.  It might also show how hard pressed some people are regarding this issue, that he would go out and kill what he sees as the problem, as there are two or more sides to every story.  These killings of innocent men by certain officers are no excuse though to kill a random officer in Houston who had never been convicted of any such act.
Source 1
Source 2

Reece Clark, 6th period, Supreme Court Denies Kentucky Clerk's Request To Halt Same Sex Marriage

A conflict recently arose with a Kentucky based clerk in Rowan County who had been denying the issuing of marriage licenses to same-sex couples. Despite the decision by Supreme Court to make all gay marriage legal, Kim Davis decided to take it upon herself to do what she believed to be "right." After being sued by three gay couples that were denied licenses, Supreme Court Judge David Bunning intervened, ordering Davis to put an end to her no same-sex marriage policies. Since then, she has taken her complaints to the Supreme Court directly, claiming that issuing gay marriage licenses treads on her religious beliefs and rights under the US Constitution and the Kentucky Religious Freedom Act. Blatantly denied her desires, it has become clear that Davis but either "follow the law, or resign her public position," as said by Senior Vice President of the Human Rights Campaign for political affairs, JoDee Winterhof.

Analysis: Given the still somewhat fresh decision by Supreme Court to legalize gay marriage, it has become a very controversial topic of discussion when court clerks take it upon themselves to ignore the law, and deny couples the marriage licenses they, by law, are entitled to. It's a constant battle between who's "constitutional right's" overpower who's. It's very important for the average American citizen to know that things like this are happening, so we can take the proper action and initiative to act on what's right and what's fair. 

http://www.buzzfeed.com/chrisgeidner/supreme-court-denies-kentucky-clerks-request-to-halt-same-se#.jyd0WjWGaN

Julie Shilling, 4th Period. Iran and the United States’ proposal to resolve nuclear conflict.

Julie Shilling, 4^th Period.  Iran and the United States’ proposal to resolve nuclear conflict.

After years of imposing monetary and trade sanctions against Iran in order to stop them from developing nuclear weapons, the United States has decided to challenge Iran’s nuclear program in a different way.  During the years of trying to slow Iran’s development of nuclear weapons the United States even used cyber-attacks to stall their progress.  President Obama believes a binding agreement can be reached between the two countries where Iran is permitted to use nuclear fuel for energy and medicine and not weapons.  How and when the United States can verify if their deal is being kept is yet to be decided and depends on how much the United States trusts Iran. 

Reflection-- I picked this event because to me it is very interesting to know about the deals that the US is making with the rest of the world.  On one hand, you can see the benefits of this deal.  The deal would block the uranium enrichment, plutonium separation and covert paths to a nuclear bomb for the next 15 years.  However, with an Iran that is three months from nuclear capability with a stockpile of 10 bombs’ worth of low-enriched uranium, there is some question whether a deal leaves us any safer.  The deal places no limits on how much the Iranians can build or expand their nuclear infrastructure after the 15 year time period is over.   Even the monitoring provisions that would continue beyond 15 years may prove insufficient as the Iranian nuclear program grows.  The U.S. Can't trust Iran with this deal and that has been proven in the past when their government took U.S. hostages.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/03/02/world/middleeast/2015-03-02-iran.html?_r=0.      

Abby Walker 8th Period

"Frazier Glenn Cross found guilty in Jewish community center shooting"

Summary: A man walks into a Jewish community center and open fires into a crowd of people. When the verdict reads "guilty" he performs a Nazi salute and says "Heil" 

Analysis: This article helps us realize that there are still people in this world who still need to learn about history and its negative effects on the world. This man obviously needs to be taught about the Nazi party and why it was wrong and that Jews are people too. 

Source: http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/31/us/kansas-jewish-center-gunman-guilty/index.html

Mormon church chooses to stay with Boy Scouts despite their acceptance of openly gay troup leaders. By Fernanda Sandoval

The church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, more commonly known as the Mormon church, has had a long rich history with the Boy Scouts program, but a couple months ago the boy scouts of America finally decided to allow openly gay men and women to be troup leaders. This caused problems for the Mormons who are not only the program's biggest sponsor but also some of the program's most dedicated members as most of the Mormon boys have grown up in the program. It's part of their society to be a boy scout, as the Boy Scout programs ideals tie very closely to the church.
 When BSA decided that it was about time that openly gays be accepted as troup leaders the Mormon church had some thinking to do. Being openly gay just isn't ok to them, it goes against some of their beleifs. All this made them question whether their boys were "safe" in such a different environment, scared that it would affect what all the boys had been taught. For a while the church seriously contemplated leaving BSA, saying "the church has always welcomed all boys to its scouting units regardless of sexual orientation. However, the admission of openly gay leaders is incosistent with the doctorines of the church and what have traditionally been the values of the boy scouts of america." using this to support why they would leave if they did choose to leave.
 In the end they decided that it was in everyone's best interest to stay with the boy scouts and continue their century long relationship with them, for the moment, setting aside their different views for the boy's benefit.
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/08/26/435036474/despite-policy-allowing-gay-leaders-mormon-church-keeps-ties-with-boy-scouts

"Pope Supports All Family Types in a Controversial Children's Book" - Connor Coleman, 8th Period

This article is about a book. A book that is open to all family types, whether it is a biracial couple, a homosexual couple, a single parent, or an average heterosexual, non-divorced, parental figured family, and this book is breaking boundaries. Also, this is not a regular parenting book, this is a children’s book meant for the new generation to learn how to embrace the world’s new and growing culture, and well, the mayor of Venice is not necessarily so accepting of it as he has banned the book and all “pride” related activities within the city limits. The Mayor was looking to the Pope (currently Pope Francis) for back-up support, but is shocked to not have received it. As a matter of fact, the Pope himself wrote to the author, praising her work of appropriately representing the new human nature. Out cries from the public rant to the new Pope about how he should revert to the original Catholic teachings, but the Pope has stated that he will not ‘not embrace’ the new generation of Christians.

          If you think back to the 1400s, 1500s and 1600s, the reason people left the Pope and the King was to be able to have religious freedom in the new world, and nowadays the new world is the entire world as the whole globe has changed. Homosexuality is becoming more prevalent, transgender lifestyles are coming to light, and all of these ‘freedoms’ whether be religious or not are just escaping to the new world, which as I stated, is now the world in general. The fact that the Pope in the colonial days would scorn these beliefs, and that the Pope we have today embraces them, shows just how history can repeat itself but that the outcome just may not be the same, but one that suits the day that its happening in, and today, the acceptance of homosexuality and allowing families such as biracial couples, single parents, and gay families into the church just proves how history cannot only repeat itself but improve itself.

          All in all, this can relate to US History as this issue of religious tolerance within the LGBTQ+ community has been a struggle in our own country as well as areas of the world where we originated/migrated from.

Source: http://roygbiv.jezebel.com/chill-pope-totally-supports-banned-book-about-gay-paren-1727203562

Rachel Forster - Kentucky Clerk Denies Marriage licence

Article: http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/27/politics/same-sex-marriage-gay-marriage-kentucky/index.html

Summary: This article gives examples, in four different states, of same sex couples facing discrimination. In Kentucky, Kim Davis is refusing to marry all couples based on her belief that the Supreme Court decision legalizing gay marriage nationwide is an infraction on her religious freedom. The counterargument is that while she is more than welcome to practice her religion, it should never impact whether or not she fulfills her duties as Rowan County Clerk. The second display of discrimination described in this article is a law in Mississippi that says that “adoption by couples of the same gender is prohibited.” That law is deemed unfair because of its different treatment of homosexual couples. In Florida, two lesbian women are denied the right to both be included on their child’s birth certificate, despite the Supreme Court ruling. Lastly the article discusses Jack Phillips, a cake baker from Colorado, who refuses to provide his business to a gay wedding. His beliefs parallel Davis’s, in that he too believes that the first amendment protects his religious freedom and excuses his discriminatory actions.

Analysis: This article illustrates how even though we have laws in place to protect every American citizen, some gay couples are still facing discrimination and injustice. People such as Kim Davis, and Jack Phillips feel they can ignore the law because of their own personal views. The first amendment guarantees everyone freedom of religion, but not the right to deprive another citizen of their rights.   Beliefs are individual to each person, and should therefore not be imposed on others.

Synthesis: Gay marriage has been legalized by the Supreme Court, and yet individuals still take it upon themselves to fight the decision in order to uphold their own beliefs. This situation is similar to when the Supreme Court decided in the Brown vs. Board of Education case in 1954 that segregation was not just. In this instance George Wallace chose to oppose the decision by refusing to let black students go to the University of Alabama in 1963 because of his own prejudice. In both of these situations personal bigotry causes people to unjustly take away basic human rights of others. 

It's Legal. BSOA Supports It Now. GET OVER IT. By Jack Higgins 6th period

Once again, a few choice Radical Republicans have decided to praise ignorance and condemn acceptance as shown by the quotes of politicians - embarassingly (but not surprisingly), 2 of the 3 politicians discussed in this article are from Texas. What a shame. Congressman Pete Sessions made this one specific remark (among others) overdramatizing and over-exaggerating the gravity of the Boy Scouts of America's decision to lift the ban on allowing LGBT+ scouts and troop leaders into the organization: "It was done because a series of laws across the United States that were designed to sue the Boy Scouts of America and bring us to our knees." Oh no, equality within the country these radical politicians claim to love BECAUSE of the founding principles within (i.e. religious tolerance, freedom and liberty for all, etc.)? How awful! Sessions has been an strong advocate for the BSOA for several years, even releasing the "100 Years of Scouting" commemorative coin for the scouts and being honored as a "Distinguished Eagle Scout". It's pathetic that social justice could change somebody's opinion about that for the (much) worse. Unsurprisingly, Rick Perry and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker are, too, against the decision of the BSOA.

The author, Emily Atkin of think progress.org, has views clearly opposing to those of Sessions and makes that clear in her article (although slightly biased and opinionated, it would be considered a reliable source of information by most because all of the many, many facts listed are accurate). The article was published earlier today, so the meaning most likely would not be any different than it was only a few hours ago. Before reading the article, I already knew that the scouts had begun allowing gays into the organization - much to the dismay of many homophobes, inside of this nation's government representatives and out. My understanding an interpretation of the article are affected mostly by the facts that nothing about this at all shocked or confused me (heard it all before) and that I personally am a strong gay rights supporter (who is disgusted by this form of bigotry, especially when promoted by some of the nation's most influential leaders). This article was written for just about all people interested in the issues facing America today and is a positive influence on all (some may not like it, but at least they're being informed). This article was written for the purpose of educating others on the thoughts of 3 American politicians and helping spread knowledge of the prejudice against many members of the LGBT+ community being faced today.

http://thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2015/08/31/3696951/sessions-gay-scouting-leaders-literally-ruining-everything/

Marlee Fleisher on John Douglas (my idol) (9th period)

Article: http://www.powelltribune.com/news/item/13573-criminal-profiler-john-douglas-recalls-career-with-fbi

John Douglas, (the coolest person ever) Recalls his career as a criminal profiler

The article is about John Douglas' career in the FBI as a criminal profiler for the ISU (Investigative Support Unit). Douglas did not originally intend to be an FBI agent he wanted to be a veterinarian. He was drafted into the air force, sent four years in the military, and completed his bachelor's degree. After his army service a man he met at the gym recruited him for the FBI so he gave it a go. Douglas worked, "'kidnappings, extortions, fugitives, rapists, murders,'" as a member of SWAT, a hostage negotiator, and as the youngest instructor at the FBI National Academy at Quantico, VA. He taught hostage negotiation and applied criminal psychology. After that he started to interview violent  criminals in prison, (on his free time, he's awesome)   he used these interview to pick their brains and study their motives. He started to teach classes on these interviews. He also identified the homicidal triad, bedwetting, animal cruelty, and setting fires. All of his research lead to him developing the science of criminal profiling. He worked the Atlanta child murder case and was the first person to suggest the UNSUB would be black, (he was right, cause he's a boss a** b****)  He was worn thin while working the Green River case, passed out in his hotel room, was in a comma for a week and in rehabilitation for 5 months. He had viral encephalitis, made worse by stress and he's lucky he's alive. (thank god because he's literally the best) After recovering he worked man high profile cases like, the Tylenol case, the Unabomber, and Robert Hansen. Although he has retired, (boo!! John I miss you!) he still offers his criminal profiling services and is trying to find balance in his life, and has written many books. ( if anyone is looking for a gift to by me) ( I already own three) (he's just the best) He will be speaking Wednesday, April 29, 7 p.m.,  at Northwest College (aka where I want to be) where he will talk about he's career in the FBI and how awesome and epic and amazing he is, and its only $10 dollars.

The author is Ilene Olson and she is irrelevant. The article was written on April 23, 2015 at 8:31 am, and was written in Powell. I already knew almost everything in the article other than the event it was advertising. This gives me a greater understanding of the article. The article is written for those interested in John Douglas to learn about one of he's speaking arrangements in Powell. The article has a positive influence of the audience. The article was written to advertise the speaking arrangement at the Northwest College. The article is conveying how amazing John Douglas is. The article is important because it is about John Douglas, period end of story. The conclusion that I can draw from this article is John Douglas is as amazing as I thought he was. It is relevant because it is about John Douglas.

Bernie Sanders on Gun Control - Kate Fehan 8th Period

Bernie Sanders said in an interview that he supports new gun control measures just as much as the other Democrats running for president. He has been criticized for not supporting stricter gun control, but he says he voted for a ban on semi-automatics and for better background checks on buyers. The interview with Jake Trapper gave Sanders a chance to point out the differences between his and Hillary Clinton’s policies. Despite doubt, Sanders has been gaining support and is now not far behind Clinton in many states. He voted no to decreasing the wait time for gun ownership in 1999, but does have a mixed record on gun control.

I think that Bernie Sanders does have a chance of winning, despite being relatively unknown prior to this year in comparison to his biggest rival, Hillary Clinton. Underdogs winning the elections aren't all together unheard of. In 1976, Jimmy Carter was a long-shot, but he ended up becoming the democratic candidate and beat Gerald Ford. Sanders's clean slate in the the minds of many Americans could be just what he needs to win.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/30/politics/bernie-sanders-gun-control-2016/index.html

The Cheaters Loss, and the People Loathe Them by Gabriel David Giron Vives

Summery: A couple weeks back, the infamous dating website centered around couples having affairs, Ashely Madison, was hacked into, with 33 Million of it's accounts stolen and released. Consequently, causing tons of people to freak out. And, according to the Toronto Police Department, even caused some major casualties. 2 people have been reported as having committed suicide due to the hack. Police are looking for the people who have committed the crime.  

Analysis: Look at this. People's personal opinion's once again being forced onto others and ruining their said lives. Personal privacy is something of a touchy issue, especially when it comes to our government in particular. But this is outrageous. Although I disagree with the act of cheating in it's entirety, none of these people deserve to have their privacy violated in such a manor. In a way so drastic and stressful, it caused more than one person to take their lives. My respects go out to the families. No one deserves anything like this. I'm so sorry.  

Source here.

Until next time.

Emily Miller, "Pluto probe gets new assignment" 6th pd

Summary:
New Horizons, NASA's piano-sized spacecraft that recently snapped pictures on Pluto, has a new mission. It is now going to track down a small space object called PT1 (Potential Target 1). PT1 is located almost a billion miles beyond Pluto in the Kuiper Belt.
Already, New Horizons is 33.7 million miles beyond Pluto on its way to PT1. Scientists still have to get more money from NASA in order to fund the completion of New Horizons' mission. They are putting together a budget proposal for 2016. If the proposal gets approved, then New Horizons is expected to reach PT1 by 2019. Fortunately, the spacecraft was designed to keep working for many years, as it has plenty of extra fuel.

Analysis:
1. The author was Amanda Barnett. She writes about space and science for CNN Digital. She seems excited for the mission.
2. The article was published on Friday, August 28. It is fairly recent, so the information is up to date.
3. Prior to reading the article, I knew that New Horizons had recently visited Pluto. I had also seen the pictures. But I didn't know that the spacecraft was so sophisticated, and I was surprised to find out that it had other duties besides taking pictures of Pluto. My prior knowledge of the subject affected my understanding of this article because it piqued my interest.
4. The article was written for anyone who wanted to know more about Pluto, New Horizons, or space in general. It has a positive effect because it gets us hopeful that New Horizons will reach PT1.
5. The article was written to let everyone know that New Horizons isn't done yet.
6. The main idea- New Horizons is going to investigate a space object.
7. Significance- this article is significant because it documents a scientific accomplishment. We were able to send a probe to Pluto, and it is so advanced that it can go a billion miles farther. The mission, as a whole, demonstrates the potential of space exploration. Our technology is becoming so advanced now that we might take advantage of the possibilities it offers and discover many more things about our universe.

Link- http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/28/us/nasa-new-horizons-new-mission/index.html

Amaya Avila Period 8: Is there life on Jupiter's moons? Juice may hold the key

The mission to find a habitable home for life has become more and more prevalent over time. Recently, NASA has discovered a new possibility for signs of life or a potential home for organisms, the mission, JUICE is to journey out to Jupiter and Jupiter’s moons: Europa, Callisto, and Ganymede to find out what is under those sheets of ice. Scientists believe that there could very well be water, salt water, and maybe even some living bacteria underneath the sheets of ice. It has been stated that the JUICE mission will be set to launch in the year 2022. Although this mission does face many challenges this could be a potential home to human life in the future. It is said that this mission will be a $30 million journey. But scientists do believe this could lead to new discoveries of organic life on new lands.

            I believe in another form of life that is not only on Earth and in the very future finding a new home does not sound ridiculous. This article gives me hope and happiness to think there are people willing to take risks for the better of the people. I think astronomy is very interesting, and I believe its important to discover new things. This article was written for the enjoyment and controversial topic of extraterrestrial life.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/21/world/jupiter-juice-mission/index.html

The Return of Blue Bell By Mattie Whisler 9th period

After almost 5 months Blue Bell is finally back on the shelves. Early Monday morning Blue Bell sent out their first batch of containers to stores in Texas and Alabama. Blue Bell was recalled in April 2015 for the contamination caused by Listeria that killed 3 people and made others sick.

The company has been producing and stocking up their inventory in Alabama. They recently informed Oklahoma that they were going to soon begin working in their Broken Arrow factory. The first phase of the plan was to sell to South Texas and part of Alabama. The next phase of their plan is to sell to North Texas and Oklahoma.

The news is giving Blue Bell a lot of “free advertising”. Many people are excited but is it really everyday news? I think that Blue Bell should not get this much attention.

In 1982 a Tylenol recall happened because someone tampered with the capsules and killed 7 people. For a long period of time afterwards Tylenol sales were slow. It will be interesting to see what happens to Blue Bell’s sales.

Sources:

http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Fall02/Susi/tylenol.htm

http://www.bigcountryhomepage.com/news/blue-bell-is-back-on-shelves

http://www.fox23.com/news/news/national/blue-bell-ice-cream-returns-store-freezers/nnTmW/

Libya Struggles to Cope as Migrants' Bodies Wash Ashore - Margaret King 1st period

Migrants and refugees are leaving by the thousands, sailing across the Mediterranean, to Europe on overcrowded boats that are not safe nor sturdy. Over 2000 people this year, however, never made it to their destination. Days, weeks, and even months later their bodies wash up mainly on Libya's western coast, in Zuwara, Khoms and Sabrata where many of their journeys began. The numbers used to be in the dozens but they have since grown significantly to the hundreds. As there isn't a government capable of dealing with these issues, thousands of Libyan Red Crescent volunteers are teaming up with the International Committee of the Red Cross to collect and send the bodies to local hospitals where they attempt to identify them.

Most of the volunteers have no experience in dealing with dead bodies so the ICRC is training them in the handling of human remains. They are also providing them with body bags and personal protection kits. The recently trained volunteers main job is to transfer the bodies to authorities but others have jobs such as assisting those who were rescued at sea and helping thousands of internally displaced Libyans survive. Without the help of the LRCS, the refugees may have had the same fate as those people who washed up on the shore, thinking that they had no other option than to risk their life on one of the boats.

Click here to read the full article!

The Plight of Seabirds by Bella Di Fazio 8th period

About 90% of seabirds have ingested some kind of harmful plastic debris. That percentage has now risen unfortunately higher than when it was approximately 5% in 1960. Ingesting plastic causes build up which leads to gut impaction, which is one of the main killers of seabirds. In order to decrease the amount of plastic ingested, the "hotspots" must be identified. (Which is where the most seabirds are found.) The solution to this problem is actually quite simple- if the flow of plastic is significantly reduced from being thrown out into the ocean, the likelihood of swallowing harmful material is decreased, leaving the birds more time to recover from swallowing  other plastics. 


http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34108017

Another Supreme Court Case that Clarifies, "Yes, If You Do Work for the Government You Have to Marry them." By Nash Farmer.

Another Supreme Court Case that Clarifies, "Yes, If You Do Work for the Government You Have to Marry them." By Nash Farmer.

In Kentucky a county clerk refused to marry gay couples because of his personal beliefs. However a dispute was raised over whether he could or couldn't refuse to give the licenses. So a case was held that eventually made it to the supreme court. The two sides we're this, He shouldn't have to give the license because he has the right to express his first amendment right. Or he has to because if he didn't that would be against the separation of church and state and the recent June 26th ruling saying that gay marriage is legal. The supreme court ruled that he had to issue the licenses, gay couples in Kentucky celebrated the ruling and the Governor of the state supported the ruling.

It's my personal belief is that gay marriage is following the same path that interracial marriage, I'll be it at a faster rate of change. If we look at interracial marriage today no one really cares except for groups of people who are just racists but they're a minority. I have a feeling in the not to distant future the same will be the same for gay marriage. No one will bat an eye, and it will no longer be controversial anywhere, (except for the small minority of bigots.) And this will all be for the best. If you side against civil rights you will lose eventually. 

Sources:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/reckoning-nears-clerk-resisting-sex-marriage-ruling-33439188

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/supreme-court-rules-against-kentucky-clerk-gay-marriage-case-n419191

"Seabirds 'Blighted by Plastic Waste'" Bella Di Fazio 8th period

About 90% of seabirds have ingested some kind of harmful plastic debris. That percentage has now risen unfortunately higher than when it was approximately 5% in 1960. Ingesting plastic causes build up which leads to gut impaction, which is one of the main killers of seabirds. In order to decrease the amount of plastic ingested, the "hotspots" must be identified. (Which is where the most seabirds are found.) The solution to this problem is actually quite simple- if the flow of plastic is significantly reduced from being thrown out into the ocean, the likelihood of swallowing harmful material is decreased, leaving the birds more time to recover from swallowing  other plastics.


http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-34108017

Shelby Flowers 9th period ( US mass shootings )

Shelby Flowers – US Mass Shootings

Summary:

The United States is ranked among the top 5 countries of civilians that own firearms and in the top 15 of public mass shootings.  It stems from cultural and social factors.  The United States allowing free gun ownership contributes to the social factors.  Mental illness is another contributing factor.  Social skills and behaviors of young people pave the path for most mass shooters. One positive of the mass shootings taking place in the US is that fewer people are killed because of training that our law enforcement departments have been using.

Analysis:

Laine Bergeson who I have never read any articles from wrote, “Why Does the US Have So Many Mass Shootings?”  He wrote this from his individual point of view or first person based on findings from many different studies and information he gathered.

This article was recently written on August 24, 2015 in the US.  News.discovery.com picked it up. The timing was just two months after the mass shooting in Charleston, S.C.  The event is still fresh in the minds of Americans.

I did not realize that the US was ranked so high in mass shootings and that we as Americans own more guns per household than others countries.  It really makes me feel more venerable and more aware of my surroundings than before. I feel an urgency to be more alert.

This article was written for the people who oppose gun ownership in the US.  It definitely has a positive twist to those who already oppose guns.  It seems to add to their reasons as to why we should have tighter guns laws.

I believe this article was written to strengthen the support for tougher gun laws.

The article conveys the idea that if we are selling freedom and trying to achieve the American dream than we need to have tougher gun laws in place to protect our citizens from the crazies that want to own multiple guns.

The article is very important to those of us who support tougher gun control laws. I think the author has put together a significant amount of statics to prove that the tougher laws are needed.  Our society is suffering great losses because Jim Bob can buy a gun and shoot people because he is mad.  More so if people who are mentally ill, tougher gun laws would help to keep guns out of their hands. Better screening and more restrictions is the key to helping in the control of mass shootings.  

Article Link:  news.discovery.com/human/why-does-the-us-have-so-many-mass-shootings-150824.htm

Samantha Stromness Twin pandas born at Smithsoian zoo

Fraternal twin pandas we recently born to the Smithsonian zoo. The sex of new born pandas is difficult to discern, however, it has been confirmed both cubs were male. Unfortunately one of the cubs passed away four days after his birth. The zoo believes his death was a result of pneumonia. These pandas are on lone from the Chinese government like most giant pandas outside China. These pandas are significant because they are a reflection of the U.S.'s relationships with China. The birth of these cubs demonstrates the effectiveness of breeding programs working to save and improve the endangered giant panda population.  

Article-http://news.discovery.com/animals/endangered-species/twin-panda-cubs-were-fraternal-brothers-zoo-says-15083.htm

Paul Radke (5th) Kanye for president 2020?

Summary- Kanye West for president in the 2020 elections? While accepting the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award at the 2015 MTV Video Music awards, Kanye, in his final words of his 12 minute speech said that he will in fact be running for president in 2020. "And yes, as you probably could have guessed by this moment, I have decided in 2020 to run for president. This got everyone talking and this news was one of the most unforeseen events of the night

Analysis- While it is a different thing to have a celebrity to run for office, is it a good thing? I know that Kanye may be smart but I don't think he would be the best in office. First off he told the audience that if they are wondering "did he smoke something before he came out here... Yes, I rolled up a little something. I knocked the edge off." this does not seem like a very wise choice for a person who could be running the country in the next half decade. He also renown for his interruption of Taylor Swifts speech during the 2009 VMA's where he  jumped up and grabbed her microphone and said that Beyonce's music video was better than hers. Though very immature of him, he claims that he would not have done that if he had a daughter at the time, yet he went on stage after "rolling up a little something."

Source- http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/31/politics/kanye-west-2020-running-for-president-vma/

Sophie Kurzius(8th period), Tropical Storm Erika

On Sunday, August 30, 2015, in Dominica, a huge tropical storm flooded the island, creating landslides, powerful winds, and torrential rain. The island was evacuated at the last minute and at least fifty people were killed and twenty are still missing. The storm destroyed countless homes and buildings, and is said to have set the country back two decades of development. Also, because of the intense flooding, all roads are unusable, leaving the country disconnected from the rest of civilization.  The author of the article is not stated, but it seems their point of view is that the government should be doing more to provide aid for the economically, developmentally, and physically drowning island. The article was last modified on Monday, August 31, 2015. The date of the article could mean that the information was directly from a source in Dominica based on how fast the news was shared. I had no prior knowledge of this particular natural disaster to reading this article, so I was kind of shocked I had not heard about it yet, but I remember hearing about other natural disasters, like Hurricane Katrina, and how devastating they can be. I think the article was written to inform the public of the tropical storm and the toll it took on Dominica. In my opinion, the main idea of this commentary was that Dominica was taken by storm, literally, and is suffering greatly without any assistance. This particular report is important because it displays how essential a strong government is to the stability of a country, especially when dealing with unpreventable happenings, like the recovery from a natural disaster.



http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/aug/31/tropical-storm-erika-dominica-declares-disaster-status-and-appeals-for-aid

"U.S. Deploys Predator Drones to Latvia" Maddie Hanratty 8th period

As of today, the Pentagon, which is the U.S. Department of Defense HQ, has announced the release of drones to Latvia. Latvia is a northern European country located in the Baltic region. Through September 15th of 2015, two drones will be deployed in the area to make the support of the Ukrainian government eminent. The purpose, as stated by Tal Kopan and Jim Sciutto, is to show that the U.S. "is committed to their [Eastern Europe's] security in the wake of Russian actions in Ukraine". This statement in itself reflects a long-term alliance of sorts; something George Washington would disapprove of.
In Washington's Farewell Address of 1796, he specifically warns, "Tis our true policy to steer clear of permanent Alliances, with any portion of the foreign world." As scholars and inhabitants of the United States, it is our job to refer to the documents and people that defined the development of our country and to question whether they are valid in modern politics.
In my opinion, predator drones are just another advanced way to kill people, only without endangering the flight crew, because the flight crew isn't really on the flight. To me, drones are more anonymous than traditional bombers. This is reminiscent of a cyberbully; if someone knows they can remain anonymous and do not have to witness the effects of what they are doing, then that person is more likely to continue to hurt others. This method of defense is more discreet and less direct. Personally, even if I lived in Eastern Europe where the drones are supposed to be protecting the area, I would be terrified of the capabilities of these war machines.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/31/politics/u-s-deploys-predator-drones-latvia/index.html

Carlos Joglar APUSH Current Event- Palmyra's Temple of Bel 'destroyed'

An article on BBC News sadly confirms that the Temple of Bel at Palmyra has been destroyed. This 2,000 year old structure, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, was, in its prime, among the most import ancient world cultural centers. One of the more preserved sites, the Temple of Bel, has been confirmed to have been destroyed, following the destruction of another structure at the site, the Baalshamin Temple. Satellite images, captured by the UN, confirmed the destruction of the landmark in Damascus. (Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34111092 )

I can't tell if this is more tragic or frightening. The tragedy is obvious- thousands of years of history erased, never to be seen again and for no good reason. The scare factor is a bit more divided. On one hand, it's scary to think how ruthlessly ISIS has been destroying historical monuments and landmarks, and how quickly they're doing so. They also seem to have no limits. Perhaps even more frightening, however, is that these people actually think they're doing good. They think they are helping the world. How do you fix that? How can you help people recognize the destruction and loss they are causing when they think what they're doing is to better the world? And maybe that is the ultimate question. Maybe that is why ISIS has yet to be stopped. Either way, I feel confident enough to say that most of the world agrees that ISIS must be stopped.