Commentary

As we all know the United States national government is a valuable part in todays society, how ever which government is better? I believe National government is. On about me Robert Longly wrote an article comparing both types of government. He stated the powers of the National government are as follows: " print money, declare war, establish an army and navy, enter into treaties with foreign governments, regulate commerce between states and international trade, establish post offices, and make laws necessary to enforce the constitution." Where as the State government has the following powers: "establish local government, issue licenses. regulate intrastate, conduct elections, ratify amendments, and provide for public health and safety, excursive powers neither to delegate to the national government or prohibited from the states by the U.S."However i don't see how anyone can compare the two, especially since National Government out weighs the state government. In my opinion National Government is what holds our country together.
      Not only does it help us come up with better laws that help today's society while also enforcing the laws of the constitution, it also helps to establish our army and navy. Without an army/navy, or laws this country wouldn't know what to do. Everyone would be running around acting crazy. If National Government didn't exist the United States of America would be going down hill, it's because of the National Government that we are in one piece as a country. Not to mention National Government regulates international trade. What would happen if they didn't ? I'd hate to imagine what kind of wars we'd be in due to the fact that no one regulated international trade.
     Overall i believe National Government should never be compared to any other type of government, the powers are too great to compare to other types of government. In my opinion National Government is one of the best things that could've happened to us as a country. Although it may have some flaws, everyone is much better off with National Government.

Blog 6: Commenting on someone's blog

"Should the Federal Government Have Their Nose in Local Schools"? posted by Amanda Griffin

In reply to your post.

I agree with some of your opinions you mentioned such as " too many rules and regulations", " too much paper work", and "[having to many] tests". How ever, being in the teaching profession i highly  disagree with many of your other points.

1.) It is not necessary to teach social issues in school- why not? Yes, some social issues should not be talked about in certain situations but, what about important issues that must be discussed? Such as 911, should we not talk about that? Should we avoid it? 911 was one of the most contraversial problems we faced, we shouldn't avoid it, teachers should be able to talk about it. Most teachers who teach in middle school and high school relate social problems in todays society, to the ones we faced in history. Relating todays society to history helps students grasp the concepts more. Not only is it a good idea to teach social problems (in most cases), it's also beneficial to the students. 

2.) Bilingual education is not necessary- I believe it could be. The U.S is very diverse, which includes speaking different languages. Not everyone can speak english right away.  Yes, they should be taught english (since we mainly speak english)but, that doesn't mean they should lose the opportunity of having bilingual education. In most cases people tend to pick up language fairly slowly. Bilingual education provides an opportunity for those who can't speak english, or those who aren't picking it up fast enough a chance to learn what other students are learning and not get behind. Bilingual education is very useful. 

3.) Putting an iPad in the hands of every student will not inspire good education- But, it could be beneficial. Yes, teachers should teach children traditionally. However, using an iPad can be useful to. An iPad can be used for various reasons. There are many educational games children can play that offer education and serve a purpose. Also, each child is different. Some children learn better on things they can visualize (iPad). Being able to visualize while learning helps students grasp what they're learning better. They might be costly, but the benefits out way the con's of the cost. iPad's are a great alternative to traditional teaching when it comes to certain lesson plans. 

Overall i believe the government should be allowed in local schools, they can add benefits and help the school systems improve. 

Contraception, does it really work?

                                                      By: Amanda Polvado 

Contraception, what is it? 

It can be many things; a pill, a shot, and even a ring that's inserted inside your body. 

The question is should contraception be provided free in order to prevent pregnancy's from happening? In my opinion contraceptive should only be provided if the person is examined to make sure she is choosing the right one. Not only is it unsafe to provide everyone a contraception pill, shot, or ring, it's also dangerous. For example many women don't know many details about what contraceptive they're putting in their body, who's to say the person might be allergic to the contraceptive they just inserted into their body and not even know? There's also a health risk. What happens if the person chooses a contraceptive, receives it for free, then decides to become overly sexually active, believing  that just because they're using a contraceptive, that they are incapable of catching anything else. So the person starts to perform various sexual acts thinking they can't catch HIV, or AIDS. Just because you use a pill that prevents pregnancy, doesn't mean it protects you from various diseases. Providing free contraceptives has some positive effects such as helping the abortion rate go down, and preventing pregnancy, but it also has many negative side effects. An article from the Health website tells women the 7 most common side effects of contraceptives. Some side effects include; decreased libido, mood swings, breakthrough bleeding, and dizziness. Not only can you be unaware, now you're putting your body at risk not knowing the side effects before hand. Overall i don't believe that providing contraception to everyone for free is a good idea. It can cause health problems if the person isn't fully aware of what they're inserting inside their body, it doesn't prevent diseases, and it can cause severe side effects. So the next time you think it's ok to insert something in your body without being 100 percent aware, think again. 

The Editorial Board of the Austin American Statesmen recently wrote an editorial stating that increasing the penalty for people who neglect to render aid would be much more effective in todays society. The Editorial gives an example of a a women named Nestande and her trail. Claiming "Nestande admitted she had been drinking the night of the accident but denied being drunk. She testified she had been checking the alarm on her cellphone when something smashed her windshield. Nestande said she thought someone might have thrown a rock at her car and, afraid, had driven to her boyfriend’s apartment a half-mile away". She however went to trial, charged on several different accounts, and came out with 10 years of probation starting March 25th. The Editorials claim that 
"Democratic state Sens. Kirk Watson of Austin and Wendy Davis of Forth Worth have filed a bill that would change failure to stop and render aid from a third-degree felony, which carries a sentence of two to 10 years in prison, to a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. A similar bill has been filed in the Texas House", and " Legislators should make the proposal law. A change in the law will mean that drunken drivers who flee to sober up will face as stiff a penalty if convicted of failure to stop and render aid as they would have faced if convicted of intoxication manslaughter". Not only that, but the Editorials also conclude "Nonetheless, the payment for the crime should be higher. A defendant found guilty of hit and run has committed an unconscionable act. Whether committed sober or drunk, the penalty should be the same". 
       I agree that anyone who fails to render aid should have to face the jury, as well as being sentenced to jail time. If a person is stupid enough to drive while intoxicated, or fails to stop after hitting someone with their car, they should get jail time. The Editorials make good points by telling the readers a true story about a women in Austin, including details about their opinions, as well as including the Democrats and Legislature in their information. Their intended audience is any person who wants to drive while intoxicated, or fail to render aid, they did a nice job of showing the intended audience what the their opinions are, as well as facts that help support their case. Overall this is a well written article that anyone who drives should read. Who knows, maybe we can change societies perception on it. 

Stuart Rothenburg wrote an article on Roll Call explaining his views on the democrats economic narrative still triumphing GOP'S. He stated that the "Congressional Republicans figured that after the fiscal cliff, they’d have the advantage talking about the sequester and, down the road, the continued funding of the government" claiming that their thoughts were wrong. Rothenburg also noted that if teachers, and parents didn't get aboard the sequester it would put them in a difficult situation with the spending cuts. President Barack Obama then made a statement stating " “Emergency responders like the ones who are here today — their ability to help communities respond to and recover from disasters will be degraded. Border Patrol agents will see their hours reduced. FBI agents will be furloughed. Federal prosecutors will have to close cases and let criminals go. Air traffic controllers and airport security will see cutbacks, which means more delays at airports across the country.” And “Thousands of teachers and educators will be laid off. Tens of thousands of parents will have to scramble to find childcare for their kids. Hundreds of thousands of Americans will lose access to primary care and preventive care like flu vaccinations and cancer screenings,” he continued." Rothenburg replied that President Obama could get as many parents, teachers, and media outlets that he wants, but until Republicans figure out how to "re-fashion the political debate and present their vision in a more compelling way" the Democrats will always have an advantage in debates. In my opinion i agree with Rothenburg that until Republicans come up with a strategy to beat the Democrats when they're appealing to people emotionally they will never get their point across. The Democrats have a strong technique down that directly effects teachers, and parents where as the Republicans don't. The U.S needs to stop focusing on one side of the argument, and start worrying about both. 

On Wednesday, February sixth, CNN  posted an article about a Somali women who was allegedly rapped and sentenced for one year. How did this even begin? It all began when a 27 year old women made false accusations of being rapped. She stated that a security forces, forced her to have sex in August. She then was asked several of questions about the accused rape by journalist Abdiaziz Ibrahim who was also sentenced to a year in prison for putting out false information. Which brings questions about respecting women in Somalia. The article read: "Respect for women's rights and media freedom are fundamental to ensuring the development of a strong, stable, and vibrant democracy in Somalia." What will happen next after Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon goes back over the case? Will he find that the Somali women had a right to protect herself even if it was fabricated? Or, will he agree with the government and let her as well as journalist Abdiaziz Ibrahim sit in a prison sell for a year? Hopefully the question will be answered soon. This article is worth reading because, it shows you things that you might not have known about without it, it's also an exciting article to read unlike other articles.

Stage One

This page demonstrates the elements needed for the Stage One assignment. I've included  links in the right navigation bar that the assignment requires.