10/31/12
Over the past few years, fads have been fluctuating to the point where the information is shoved in your face and it is no longer helpful but annoying. Ranging from one of the earliest fads, break dancing, to the Rubik's cube, fads have been around for along time and will stay for even longer.
One fad everyone remembers is the hacky sack fad. Having thought to have died in the 80's, hacky sac took a turn for the better when they hit the courtyard of Johns Creek High School. Before school, during lunch, and after school, people would get into groups have their hacky sack time. The thing which was extremely different was the club made for hacky sack, which I found unnecessary.
The next few fads are the most recent ones. Last year, over 93 million people viewed a Kony 2012, a video thought to change the world. Several people in my last years language arts class were supporters of this event. But some realized that this event was blown way over proportion, and very soon everyone would have a new bandwagon to jump onto. And it did;v and their second video, which was not quite as succesful, had the effect everyone anticipated; which was nothing.
The next fad was a very recent one which also was blown over proportion. This was the Amanda Todd case. A girl who committed suicide over being bullied. Of course, its in human nature to show sympathy for a situation like this but what everyone didnt like is that everyone was treating this as if this was the first suicide over bullying. Memes were created, her name was plastered all over twitter and facebook, making her suicide seem special. This correlates with another girl who has a rare skin disease which made her look much older. Once again, another child had the same disease but was never given the same treatment.
Fads come and go swiftly, but while they are here they are quite annoying. Although fads should be taken less seriously because of how quickly they fluctuate.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Wiz Khalifa is lame and Katy Perry is semi- l3git
Hey ladies and gentlemen this is my 3rd choice blog. So I was browsing various interesting subjects on the internet when I came across Wiz Khalifa and his rise to stardom. Apparently his real name is Cameron Jibril Thomaz and he came from a military family, therefore his family moved around to many places like Germany, Japan, England, and finally Pittsburgh. His first stage name was Wisdom Khalifa which might not sound very good but thankfully he soon changed it to a more succinct and well-chosen name, that name was Wiz Khalifa. Thomaz changed Wisdom to Wiz and he kept Khalifa which meant, "success," in Arabic. Unlike many recording artists Wiz had a fairly easy way to stardom compared to the harsh roads other artists have taken for a similar position. In 2005, Khalifa dropped his first mixtape which generated alot of buzz in and around Pittsburgh. After all the hype his mixtape got he quickly dropped his first commercial album which got quite bit of street cred from reputable websites in the hiphop community. Warner Bros. quickly signed him after he was getting all the hype but soon after they parted ways. Good fortune soon befell Khalifa because a major hiphop recording company called ,"Atlantic Records," signed him and he has been with them since. Only stardom tenfold has followed and now Wiz Khalifa is one of the richest rappers in the world.
Katy Perry, the international pop sensation and also number 4 on Maxim's top 100 hottest women in the world list, had a much harder road then Wiz Khalifa. Her real name was Kathryn Hudson and she was born in Santa Barbara, California to a conservative family. Katy had a restrictive family of pastors who didn't let her watch many cable channels or listen to rock or popular music. Gradually rebelling as she got older she released her first semi-popular song, "You're so gay," which Madonna really liked but it took her 3 failed record deals to finally get that song with Capitol. Soon she gained her hard-earned fame through her hit song ,"I Kissed a Girl," which boosted her into the billboard charts and into the upper reaches of the economic system. She became famous and has been dominating the pop charts since then.
Wiz Khalifa, in my opinion is a weak rapper with songs that contain too much sing-songy tunes and choruses. Wiz Khalifa is simply not a good rapper who gained fame through hard work, he was just a lucky guy who was in the right place at the right time. Katy Perry is a little better but only because of her originality, while Wiz Khalifa can only rap about one subject, Weed.
Sources: http://www.biography.com/people/katy-perry-562678
http://www.aceshowbiz.com/celebrity/wiz_khalifa/biography.html
Katy Perry, the international pop sensation and also number 4 on Maxim's top 100 hottest women in the world list, had a much harder road then Wiz Khalifa. Her real name was Kathryn Hudson and she was born in Santa Barbara, California to a conservative family. Katy had a restrictive family of pastors who didn't let her watch many cable channels or listen to rock or popular music. Gradually rebelling as she got older she released her first semi-popular song, "You're so gay," which Madonna really liked but it took her 3 failed record deals to finally get that song with Capitol. Soon she gained her hard-earned fame through her hit song ,"I Kissed a Girl," which boosted her into the billboard charts and into the upper reaches of the economic system. She became famous and has been dominating the pop charts since then.
Wiz Khalifa, in my opinion is a weak rapper with songs that contain too much sing-songy tunes and choruses. Wiz Khalifa is simply not a good rapper who gained fame through hard work, he was just a lucky guy who was in the right place at the right time. Katy Perry is a little better but only because of her originality, while Wiz Khalifa can only rap about one subject, Weed.
Sources: http://www.biography.com/people/katy-perry-562678
http://www.aceshowbiz.com/celebrity/wiz_khalifa/biography.html
max choice #3
Taco Bell deserves more respect as the best places to eat for tastiness and value for money. Here's a rap commemorating the franchise. [6]
yo, rolling up to my main man tbell
hittin the burritos theyre so tasty, swell
for the tacos ill even fight all the way to hell
nothing can stop me im glued on like jell
uh, the flavors euphoric like gaming on that dell
the taste goes so back and deep like a well
complete honesty - these words are heart felt
puffin fly - non stop tbell till i die
the border sauce ready - no need to lie
you eat at bk - let your tears out and cry
take your girl from the hood
feed her tbell nice and good
im a nice guy - not a scumbag dude
im not even abusive
these burritos got me lucid
finishin these verses 1 step at a time
i burned your food chains like a wound with lime
continued in next choice blog....
the beat i used it anyone wants to know http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRCJow2tKso
yo, rolling up to my main man tbell
hittin the burritos theyre so tasty, swell
for the tacos ill even fight all the way to hell
nothing can stop me im glued on like jell
uh, the flavors euphoric like gaming on that dell
the taste goes so back and deep like a well
complete honesty - these words are heart felt
puffin fly - non stop tbell till i die
the border sauce ready - no need to lie
you eat at bk - let your tears out and cry
take your girl from the hood
feed her tbell nice and good
im a nice guy - not a scumbag dude
im not even abusive
these burritos got me lucid
finishin these verses 1 step at a time
i burned your food chains like a wound with lime
continued in next choice blog....
the beat i used it anyone wants to know http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRCJow2tKso
Current Event: Daycare Center Ransacked
No matter where you live, cities generally tend to have their fair share of crime. Shootings, robberies, and break-ins are constantly being plastered across the news. As of Tuesday night, another crime was added to the seemingly never-ending list.
Wednesday morning, workers from New Leaf Christian Learning Center arrived to find the daycare completely ransacked. Windows had been broken into and broken glass was everywhere. After a survey of the daycare, it was determined that the theives had taken hundreds of dollars in electronics, including a touch-moniter computer, phone, and surveillance system.
What's so outrageous about this particular crime to me is that people would steal from children. This break-in not only affects the daycare center but the children and parents as well. This center was a place the parents felt comfortable taking their children. However, this just goes to show that no place is truly safe anymore.
Students caught by Sandy are finally able to return home
Thirty metro Atlanta high school students were caught by hurricane Sandy while on a mock trial tournament in New York City. They left Atlanta Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. and there was no available flights back until Thursday. The students have alternative plans to take a bus. One student chose to look on the positive side of the situation. She knew the bus would take longer for her to get home, but she would get to spend more time bonding with her teammates. The concept of staying positive is key when it comes to such situations- by staying positive it helps everyone around you to stay calm. Without everyone worrying it lightens the mood of the atmosphere, making a dismal situation to more of a delightful one. It's crucial to apply this in your everyday lives; if you just focus on the things that matter and having a positive attitude everything else will fall into place. Like the students they were able to have an enjoyable expieriance...even though it wasn't the most exhilirating of activites.
source: http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/jonesboro-students-head-home-nyc/nSsqc/
Most Popular Halloween Costumes of 2012
Most Popular Halloween Costumes of 2012
Today is Halloween and picking the perfect costume is a crucial for Trick or Treating and for Halloween parties. Dressing up as the typical witch or ghost is boring. It's time to step up your Halloween game and wear something that will really stand out. You might be wondering, "What should I wear?!". With these fun and current costume ideas, you will be sure to make to be the talk of the party.Honey Boo Boo
TLC's show "Toddlers and Tiaras" allowed for the spinoff of one of their most famous pagent cuties, Alana. Alana and her ultra country family got their own reality TV show, "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo". This show follows the family through their crazy redneck lifestyle. This costume is super fun and easy to wear adn create. Just put on a tutu, grab a stuffed pig named Glitzy, a sash, a crown, and some Go-Go Juice and your'e on your way to being Honey Boo Boo herself.
Gangam Style Guyan
"Gangam Style" quickly climbed up the billboard charts and the music video became viral. This asian song is a fun song with an even more fun dance. Gangam Style is known and seen all over the world, even NFL players were seen dancing the dance at games this Sunday. Just put on a suit, slick your hair back and put on some black glasses and you are PSY Gangam Style.
Ryan Lochte
The 2012 London Olympics brought many new athletes to the public eye. Ryan Lochte is seen as the ultimate athletic teen hearthrob. This Team USA swimmer has a quirky personality and is easily recognized in all forums. All you need is an Olympic medal, a team USA swim cap, and a grill to wear in your mouth and your'e set.
Current Event: 11/2 : How saving the auto industry is generating jobs.
Current Event: 11/2
General Motors, the world's largest automaker, announced it will be looking in the Sandy Spring area for a new research and development center pertaining to "information technology." If GM does find a possible office, it will hire hundreds of high-end jobs that pay well, in hope of benefiting the local economy.
GM's possible move will be able to boost the local economy and, hopefully, lure more computer programmers and other high-end professions to Georgia. These type of jobs pay well and will provide a sizable increase to the economy. Not only that, the possible office (over 100,000 square feet) will influence higher commercial real estate prices throughout the area. GM's hires will be solid hires, which means workers will be less likely to loose their jobs. Also, if GM continues to do well in sales (which they are), they will continue to hire more and, after time, will increase their presence here in Georgia; thus, increasing the local economy's GDP.
General Motors, the world's largest automaker, announced it will be looking in the Sandy Spring area for a new research and development center pertaining to "information technology." If GM does find a possible office, it will hire hundreds of high-end jobs that pay well, in hope of benefiting the local economy.
GM's possible move will be able to boost the local economy and, hopefully, lure more computer programmers and other high-end professions to Georgia. These type of jobs pay well and will provide a sizable increase to the economy. Not only that, the possible office (over 100,000 square feet) will influence higher commercial real estate prices throughout the area. GM's hires will be solid hires, which means workers will be less likely to loose their jobs. Also, if GM continues to do well in sales (which they are), they will continue to hire more and, after time, will increase their presence here in Georgia; thus, increasing the local economy's GDP.
The recent political arena has shown light on the complications and controversies of the U.S. Auto Industry. Obama has been a staunch supporter of auto jobs, and Romney is busy defending himself over his negative comments. All politics aside, the move to save and revive the U.S. Auto Industry has given this country unimaginable rewards through its over 800,000 employees and over 3 million indirect jobs. GM, once bankrupt, has now recaptured its number one title, in the world, with a measurable lead to fierce rivals such as Volkswagen. Chrysler, who has once suffered a similar fate to GM, is now assisted by Italian car maker Fiat and leading in the highest sales gain in the industry. This type of great news leads to more and more jobs. With more jobs, such as the new hires in the Georgia area, the economy will improve and unemployment will drop. As more great news comes out, these jobs will be able to reach throughout the United States, yielding a better economic outlook each quarter. With such great statistics and a bright future, saving the U.S. Auto Industry was the right choice that was made.
Works Cited
http://www.ajc.com/news/business/general-motors-looking-at-north-metro-atlanta-site/nSdb5/
3rd post - current event: Georgia behind in early voting
Early voting has always been available to the American public in every state for modern day elections. Although Georgia tends to be a very conservative state in presidential elections, it still has the opportunity to allow the public to vote before the date of November 6th in the state of Georgia.
However, in the ajc article I came across, it did a study over the current early voting data that has been done in Georgia. It found that only 700 thousand Georgia voters have been found to vote as of October 26th. The article then goes on to say that this value is lower than how high the value was back in the 2008 elections at this point.
This observation on the polling data goes on further to show that the absence in early voting is mostly occurring in Georgia's most democratic counties. This matters because if there is a lack of confidence in Georgia's democratic voters then that means there could be a bandwagoning mindset for future voters in Georgia that are young now to adopt a republican voting mindset.
If this mindset shift in Georgia voters does become true in the future, then that means democratic candidates in the future will have a harder time to swing Georgia to vote democratic. When democrats begin to find it difficult to swing a very conservative state then that means those candidates will begin to invest less of their campaign in that state. When that state has less presidential campaigns occurring then that state's economy will go down if there's no public audience paying money to the state governments for the tickets to watch the democratic candidate's speech. So, if this absence in early voting continues, it might lower Georgia's presidential campaign income in the future.
Source: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/georgia-early-voting-behind-2008-but-saturday-surg/nSpLZ/
However, in the ajc article I came across, it did a study over the current early voting data that has been done in Georgia. It found that only 700 thousand Georgia voters have been found to vote as of October 26th. The article then goes on to say that this value is lower than how high the value was back in the 2008 elections at this point.
This observation on the polling data goes on further to show that the absence in early voting is mostly occurring in Georgia's most democratic counties. This matters because if there is a lack of confidence in Georgia's democratic voters then that means there could be a bandwagoning mindset for future voters in Georgia that are young now to adopt a republican voting mindset.
If this mindset shift in Georgia voters does become true in the future, then that means democratic candidates in the future will have a harder time to swing Georgia to vote democratic. When democrats begin to find it difficult to swing a very conservative state then that means those candidates will begin to invest less of their campaign in that state. When that state has less presidential campaigns occurring then that state's economy will go down if there's no public audience paying money to the state governments for the tickets to watch the democratic candidate's speech. So, if this absence in early voting continues, it might lower Georgia's presidential campaign income in the future.
Source: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional-govt-politics/georgia-early-voting-behind-2008-but-saturday-surg/nSpLZ/
The Frankenstorm
The Frankenstorm
People rushed out to stock up on bread and warm clothes to prepare for the Frankenstorm. Hurricane Sandy battered the east coast this week. Weather forecasters all over the United States have been warning the public about this storm for days now. "The Perfect Storm" is made when a cold front coming from Canada meets up with Hurricane Sandy to create wind, snow, rain, and massive flooding.As soon as the storm hit land, large masses of land in the northeast was flooded and mass destruction was seen. Schools are closed and people are staying inside and trying to be safe.
Monday and Tuesday were seen as the points where the storm was the strongest. Distruction was seen widespread and now people are just preparing for the cleanup.
http://t.news.msn.com/us/east-coast-struggles-back-2-days-after-killer-storm?gt1=51501
The true meaning of a team
In most little league sports, players and opponents high-five each other at the end of each game to show sportsmanship and the whole team mentality...but when Marcus Lattimore, running back for the University of South Carolina Gamecocks, was injured for the second year in a row a sincere, straightforward, assurance was displayed; by not only his own teammates but the players of the Tennessee Volunteers. The whole stadium grew still as the well respected running back hit the ground in utter distress; the atmosphere of the game completely changed gears. Very typically Steve Spurrier, other Gamecocks, and aid rushed onto the field- but what touched the hearts of everyone amongst the hustle and bustle, is when the Volunteers began to crowd around Lattimore. Spurrier had stated that he'd never seen anything like this before. This was a valid sign of the immense amount of respect people had for such a good-natured young man. It was heart wrenching to see one's dreams and hopes become inexistent due to such a tragic accident. Once they motioned over for the paramedics to get Lattimore off the field and to the hospital, everyone knew something was horribly wrong. Perhaps the exquisite display of two teams coming together lifted the hopes of those all around. Sometimes-it's sad to say- it takes an event like this to rally a crowd together.
3rd post - choice posting: How Storm Sandy could give the candidates leverage in this election
Hey, I read an article discussing the after math of Storm Sandy and it's impacts that it had over northeastern coastal areas.
The first thing I noticed from this article was the level of destruction it caused for the inhabitants for the area. It so far has killed 56 people but then went on to leave 8 million people homeless and jobless. This will make northeastern areas such as New Jersey and New Hampshire to be in need of more stimulus spending in the area in order to recover from such an economical hit around one of the biggest stock centers of the world.
The second thing I noticed from this article was how both electoral candidates will try to use this as leverage on thier campaigns. President Barack Obama will try to say that the stimulus he's putting in this area is for the purposes of relieving the destruction of so many homes and businesses while trying to prove that he is a president that knows how to handle disaster scenarios calmly and safely.
However, I predict that Obama's opponent, former Governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney will try to spin this stimulus as wasteful spending on areas that were never mentioned in the presidential debates and is an area that is distracting Obama from key issues such as international relations.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/31/us-north-east-struggle-recovery-sandy
The first thing I noticed from this article was the level of destruction it caused for the inhabitants for the area. It so far has killed 56 people but then went on to leave 8 million people homeless and jobless. This will make northeastern areas such as New Jersey and New Hampshire to be in need of more stimulus spending in the area in order to recover from such an economical hit around one of the biggest stock centers of the world.
The second thing I noticed from this article was how both electoral candidates will try to use this as leverage on thier campaigns. President Barack Obama will try to say that the stimulus he's putting in this area is for the purposes of relieving the destruction of so many homes and businesses while trying to prove that he is a president that knows how to handle disaster scenarios calmly and safely.
However, I predict that Obama's opponent, former Governor of Massachusetts, Mitt Romney will try to spin this stimulus as wasteful spending on areas that were never mentioned in the presidential debates and is an area that is distracting Obama from key issues such as international relations.
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/31/us-north-east-struggle-recovery-sandy
Third Blog: Choice - The Other Moves
And now begins part three of my dance blogs.
This is a continuation of the last blog, which will cover some of the other moves that are common in freestyles and battles in new style hip hop and hip hop in general.
The first type of move is called an isolation. Isolations are a simple concept that when executed accordingly and uniquely yield a very positive response from the audience. When you combine an isolation with a beatkill (remember in the last blog? when a move is perfectly in sync with the music), that's basically an A+ if you were getting graded on dance (which of course you're not because what fun would that be?). An isolation is executed when the dancer only moves one part of his/her body or keeps a body part (joint, limb, etc.) fixed and moves the other body parts in relation to it without moving that part of the body. Here is a video that breaks it down with a visual. What's different about the videos I'll utilize in this blog is that they are mostly from dance tutorials, which are about 2-4 mins each, making them digestible. The dancers who break down their own combos are accomplished and know what they're talking about. I would encourage you to view other tutorials by the awesome youtube channel who does this, if you feel inclined to do so, as their is a style for everyone. These videos also give you a mini biography on each dancer right before they start demonstrating. In this video, a dancer from a well-known dance crew in Oakland, CA breaks down the isolation aspect of his combo. Choose a video: Isolation or isolation. As you can see in videos, isolations are illusions that create imaginary objects or shapes through the dance, or show various levels of control by fixing body parts in a freestyle. A very impressive skill to know.
Now this next one is part of a style known as popping. Popping is a pretty mainstream style that I am sure you've seen at some point in your life while walking down the street somewhere. Aspects of popping are adopted into new style hip hop -- especially waving. Waving is an illusion that, as the name suggests, depicts a wave passing through the dancer's body. It is really cool to watch because when done correctly -- in a swift, fluid, connected motion that seems impossible -- provides a temporary sense of disbelief, until the next ridiculous move is executed. In this video, a korean dancer shows her style of waving that has many "breaks" which comprise the wave. These tutorials do not need to be watched in full because the move is shown in the first few seconds, but it is fascinating to see how the dancer breaks it down: Funky waving. For those of you smarty pants reading this and have already made the connection, waving is a subset of isolations. Waving is a great asset because it is a visual of the undulation to the beat. Yep, combined with a beatkill makes it a deadly move in battles.
Another important move that is used in a large number of styles is gliding. Without going into too much detail, it is essentially the concept of not blatantly moving the feet to create an effect in which the dancer appears to be "gliding" across the dance floor. This video says it all: Funky gliding. That video accentuated it a little, but you get the idea.
The last move I'll talk about today isn't much of a move. It is a fundamental of popping called the hit. While popping is a pretty different style from new style, "hitting" is used in new style hip hop a lot because it is a static move that is almost always a beatkill in new style, but not so much a beatkill in popping. Hitting in new style can serve as a transition to other moves by providing emphasis on the hit -- which is the most simple beatkill one can do -- and then moving into more complex moves. Here's another tutorial: just skip to 4:45 to watch the full combo and keep an eye out for abrupt stops in his movements Nelson Hitting. Nelson is pretty good at this move. It's simple, but makes an impact.
I know this blog and the last one have been quite technical, but it is useful information to know about dance. If you've read all my blogs, you'll be able to spot the differences from a bad dancer, to a good dancer to a great dancer to a master dancer from ten feet away by the end of this series. Next week I am going to cover one of the most interesting topics and a personal favorite of mine -- dance battles and dancer interactions. Ooh that'll be fun. See if you can spot these moves in this video :) Les Twins
-Kylesh
This is a continuation of the last blog, which will cover some of the other moves that are common in freestyles and battles in new style hip hop and hip hop in general.
The first type of move is called an isolation. Isolations are a simple concept that when executed accordingly and uniquely yield a very positive response from the audience. When you combine an isolation with a beatkill (remember in the last blog? when a move is perfectly in sync with the music), that's basically an A+ if you were getting graded on dance (which of course you're not because what fun would that be?). An isolation is executed when the dancer only moves one part of his/her body or keeps a body part (joint, limb, etc.) fixed and moves the other body parts in relation to it without moving that part of the body. Here is a video that breaks it down with a visual. What's different about the videos I'll utilize in this blog is that they are mostly from dance tutorials, which are about 2-4 mins each, making them digestible. The dancers who break down their own combos are accomplished and know what they're talking about. I would encourage you to view other tutorials by the awesome youtube channel who does this, if you feel inclined to do so, as their is a style for everyone. These videos also give you a mini biography on each dancer right before they start demonstrating. In this video, a dancer from a well-known dance crew in Oakland, CA breaks down the isolation aspect of his combo. Choose a video: Isolation or isolation. As you can see in videos, isolations are illusions that create imaginary objects or shapes through the dance, or show various levels of control by fixing body parts in a freestyle. A very impressive skill to know.
Now this next one is part of a style known as popping. Popping is a pretty mainstream style that I am sure you've seen at some point in your life while walking down the street somewhere. Aspects of popping are adopted into new style hip hop -- especially waving. Waving is an illusion that, as the name suggests, depicts a wave passing through the dancer's body. It is really cool to watch because when done correctly -- in a swift, fluid, connected motion that seems impossible -- provides a temporary sense of disbelief, until the next ridiculous move is executed. In this video, a korean dancer shows her style of waving that has many "breaks" which comprise the wave. These tutorials do not need to be watched in full because the move is shown in the first few seconds, but it is fascinating to see how the dancer breaks it down: Funky waving. For those of you smarty pants reading this and have already made the connection, waving is a subset of isolations. Waving is a great asset because it is a visual of the undulation to the beat. Yep, combined with a beatkill makes it a deadly move in battles.
Another important move that is used in a large number of styles is gliding. Without going into too much detail, it is essentially the concept of not blatantly moving the feet to create an effect in which the dancer appears to be "gliding" across the dance floor. This video says it all: Funky gliding. That video accentuated it a little, but you get the idea.
The last move I'll talk about today isn't much of a move. It is a fundamental of popping called the hit. While popping is a pretty different style from new style, "hitting" is used in new style hip hop a lot because it is a static move that is almost always a beatkill in new style, but not so much a beatkill in popping. Hitting in new style can serve as a transition to other moves by providing emphasis on the hit -- which is the most simple beatkill one can do -- and then moving into more complex moves. Here's another tutorial: just skip to 4:45 to watch the full combo and keep an eye out for abrupt stops in his movements Nelson Hitting. Nelson is pretty good at this move. It's simple, but makes an impact.
I know this blog and the last one have been quite technical, but it is useful information to know about dance. If you've read all my blogs, you'll be able to spot the differences from a bad dancer, to a good dancer to a great dancer to a master dancer from ten feet away by the end of this series. Next week I am going to cover one of the most interesting topics and a personal favorite of mine -- dance battles and dancer interactions. Ooh that'll be fun. See if you can spot these moves in this video :) Les Twins
-Kylesh
Current Event 3 - Waffle House Robbery
On October 21, just 8 days ago in DeKalb, a prime of example of local crime took place. Two men, one of them armed, held up the cashier of a Waffle House at gunpoint, forcing her to hand over the available money. One of the men, evidently to be wearing a black shirt, blue jeans, and white gloves held the weapon. The other male had on a bright orange jacket. Strategically - his jacket on a robbery is indicative of a fool, but hey they got away with it! The police are requesting public assistance in finding these men; the security cameras did not suffice in their investigation.
This event is important in that it should remind us all to be skeptical and on our toes. Now that many students are working, make sure you're prepared for the possible orange-jacket gunman! Hopefully none of us are employed by the delicious, quite sketch waffle house, but I'd go to some extremes for Chik-Fil-A as well.
It also can be related to recent disputes over gun laws, such as the man in Florida this summer shooting the boy who was most likely innocent. Danger is everywhere, because irrational people can acquire weapons. This robbery wouldn't have been as compelling if the risk of the cashier's life weren't at stake. Everybody's gotta eat and protect themselves - it should not be forgotten that some will go to the extremes in order to fulfill those principles.
Source - http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/police-seek-public-help-in-finding-dekalb-waffle-h/nSsbm/
This event is important in that it should remind us all to be skeptical and on our toes. Now that many students are working, make sure you're prepared for the possible orange-jacket gunman! Hopefully none of us are employed by the delicious, quite sketch waffle house, but I'd go to some extremes for Chik-Fil-A as well.
It also can be related to recent disputes over gun laws, such as the man in Florida this summer shooting the boy who was most likely innocent. Danger is everywhere, because irrational people can acquire weapons. This robbery wouldn't have been as compelling if the risk of the cashier's life weren't at stake. Everybody's gotta eat and protect themselves - it should not be forgotten that some will go to the extremes in order to fulfill those principles.
Source - http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/police-seek-public-help-in-finding-dekalb-waffle-h/nSsbm/
Has War Become Obsolete? Choice Blog 3
The distribution of the world can most simply be understood by looking at a map of the globe. When you look at a map, you see countries, bodies of waters, types of terrain, and whatever the index may grant you. Inside of nations are cities, composed of regions, chock full of communities with families and individuals humans making up those groups. Sick of these lists? So are the people society; they're sick of the lists of wars that flood history with tragedy.
The 21st century is unique in that the individuals that control it now have become quite more rational, learning from humanity's past mistakes. Violence still occurs because human nature will drive us to the extreme to defend personal values such as honor, religion, culture, etc. However, should we expect globally noticeable conflicts to occur?
Based off of recent trends, the answer is possibly no. The first reason may not be a trend, but more of an incident that has frightened all of us to our core. Little Boy and Fat Man are to blame, and I'm not talking about Stewie and Peter Griffin. Nuclear weapons existing have made nations fearful of a retaliation, deterring them from attacking in the first place. The non-weapon testing policies that nations have put into place are very clear examples of this! This news should excite you.
Another reason is that economies are so globalized. If one country, such as China or India, were to be attacked, the United States would be indirectly destroyed. If their technology, export/import capabilities, or anything that the economy is dependent on were damaged, ripple effects would arise. I won't bore you, but the logistics behind this are immensely preponderant.
Terrorism and small-scale strifes could never be eliminated, but there is a chance that the apocalyptic scenarios can. The last 60 years do have some improving elements in them, and the decrease in super-power warfare is an example. As humans become more rational, hopefully asinine attempts at "security" such as intervention will begone. No matter what happens though, civilization is probably screwed in the coming centuries... on the real.
Source - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookreviews/5207803/Thinking-About-Nuclear-Weapons-by-Michael-Quinlan-review.html
The 21st century is unique in that the individuals that control it now have become quite more rational, learning from humanity's past mistakes. Violence still occurs because human nature will drive us to the extreme to defend personal values such as honor, religion, culture, etc. However, should we expect globally noticeable conflicts to occur?
Based off of recent trends, the answer is possibly no. The first reason may not be a trend, but more of an incident that has frightened all of us to our core. Little Boy and Fat Man are to blame, and I'm not talking about Stewie and Peter Griffin. Nuclear weapons existing have made nations fearful of a retaliation, deterring them from attacking in the first place. The non-weapon testing policies that nations have put into place are very clear examples of this! This news should excite you.
Another reason is that economies are so globalized. If one country, such as China or India, were to be attacked, the United States would be indirectly destroyed. If their technology, export/import capabilities, or anything that the economy is dependent on were damaged, ripple effects would arise. I won't bore you, but the logistics behind this are immensely preponderant.
Terrorism and small-scale strifes could never be eliminated, but there is a chance that the apocalyptic scenarios can. The last 60 years do have some improving elements in them, and the decrease in super-power warfare is an example. As humans become more rational, hopefully asinine attempts at "security" such as intervention will begone. No matter what happens though, civilization is probably screwed in the coming centuries... on the real.
Source - http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/bookreviews/5207803/Thinking-About-Nuclear-Weapons-by-Michael-Quinlan-review.html
Halloween...not such a big deal anymore
So I don't know about everyone else, but this year Halloween snuck up on me. It came all of a sudden. Maybe I forgot about it because there's so much going on during junior year...homework, SAT/ACT prep, sports, work, and let's not forget all the TV shows we try to keep up with! Who knows? Either way, once I did remember, it was a little disheartening to realize that I didn't really care. That's right. I didn't even get remotely excited. But let's be honest here. We're too old to go trick-or-treating, and we're piled high with assignments and tests and papers. It'd be nice to say that I have a cool outfit all planned out and that I'm going to go to a crazy Halloween party, but tonight all I'll be doing is schoolwork , handing out some candy, and maybe watching X-Factor Live. It's sad but it's the truth.
Halloween seems to be reserved for kids up until about the time they become teenagers, takes a break while they're in high school, then reappers in college in the form of parties, pranks, etc. Now don't get me wrong, there are definitely exceptions. Some high school kids do go to Halloween parties, do got to Netherworlds, and do take it upon themselves to scare the younger kids. However, for me, it's just a normal Wednesday. You have to be honest, today definitely didn't feel like Halloween; I actually had to keep on reminding myself that it was.
So while I'm sitting here at home, my youngest brother is going around as a serial killer, trying to collect as much candy as he possibly can. This year's Halloween has arrived...and will have left, all without me blinking an eye. Where has my childhood gone? Perhaps I should rent a horror movie...but then again, I don't like horror movies.
Halloween seems to be reserved for kids up until about the time they become teenagers, takes a break while they're in high school, then reappers in college in the form of parties, pranks, etc. Now don't get me wrong, there are definitely exceptions. Some high school kids do go to Halloween parties, do got to Netherworlds, and do take it upon themselves to scare the younger kids. However, for me, it's just a normal Wednesday. You have to be honest, today definitely didn't feel like Halloween; I actually had to keep on reminding myself that it was.
So while I'm sitting here at home, my youngest brother is going around as a serial killer, trying to collect as much candy as he possibly can. This year's Halloween has arrived...and will have left, all without me blinking an eye. Where has my childhood gone? Perhaps I should rent a horror movie...but then again, I don't like horror movies.
Current event post 3: Meningitis Outbreak in Georgia
For my third recent event post, I have decided to go with my
theme with outbreaks. So this time I am informing you about the meningitis
outbreak. This outbreak started in a pharmacy in Massachusetts that sent out steroid
shots for back pain. Unfortunately, Georgia is the 17th state to
confirm fungal meningitis in the United States. Across the country, over 360
cases have been reported with 29 deaths.
Meningitis is an
inflammation of the membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord. It is usually
caused by an infection, but it can also be caused by fungi, like the current
outbreak. Symptoms include headache, fever, nausea, stiff neck, pain, or
changes in mental status. These symptoms can take up to a month to appear. If
caught too late, meningitis can cause paralysis, brain damage, or even death.
Fungal meningitis is not contagious and is very rare. The cure
is toxic to the human body, causing the doctor to balance the amount of
anti-fungal drugs without affecting the patient. The fungal type of meningitis
is hard to determine when the fungus has completely died. Patients have to stay
in the hospital months after doctors believe the fungus is gone to ensure the
patient will not relapse.
For many Americans, this outbreak has led to many
unfortunate events, leaving families worried and scraping for money in order to
treat loved ones. But seriously, what are the chances of your doctor getting
some shots from the infected batch that started in Massachusetts? High. The
chances are high. Many are affected right here in Johns Creek.
My friend’s Mom fell at work about six months ago and had
the option for either back surgery, or steroid shots to stop the back pain. She
decided to go with the shots because the back surgery would be about a nine
week recovery. Her doctor got the shots from one of the companies that are
currently having a meningitis outbreak. Due to the recent event, the mother has
decided to go off the shots; meanwhile, she is in unbearable pain. The mother
is going to the doctor next week to set a date for the surgery.
I think this is a
safer decision rather than getting shots from a different company. You can
never be too safe. I bet the shot treatment for back pain will definitely drop
after this outbreak. Who knows when the fungus and bacteria will be totally wiped
out. This sort of outbreak plays along with the Supergerm problem we could
face. Think about it. Would this many people be reacting if we weren’t as susceptible
to these kinds of bacteria?
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/meningitis-victims-face-long-uncertain-recovery-17526915
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/meningitis-outbreak-368-cases-29-deaths/story?id=17609742&page=2
http://www.georgiahealthnews.com/2012/10/meningitis-outbreak-reaches-georgia/
Choice Blog 3
In the past 10 years one of the greatest innovations in connecting the world through technology is social networking. Over 800 million active users survey the realm of Facebook, making it the most popular of them all. However, something that has really come to bother me is the increase in complaints about updating their website, and although these people continually use Facebook, they still find room to hate the change. For example, this is the stereotypical Facebook status after a big update: "OMG!! srsly fb? like it was fine befor, why do u have to keep changin things??? #lame". Now this really grinds my gears. Using this logic, the hypothetical person previously stated would agree that Facebook would be best if it were posted to the internet, and left alone until the end of time. Sorry to break this to you, but complaining about Facebook is updating its software, based off of consumer suggestions, to better benefit YOU, is just straight up ridiculous.
Moving right along. Facebook is planning on updating the timeline so that the left side will be a column containing personal actions, and the right will have friends, recent activity, photos, likes and some apps. The layout on the right side looks like the picture above. Overall, Facebook has attempted to create a profile page that is organized, thoughtful, and contains the information that the consumer wishes to see.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57543175-93/facebook-may-change-the-timeline-layout-again/
WARNING!!:
Moving right along. Facebook is planning on updating the timeline so that the left side will be a column containing personal actions, and the right will have friends, recent activity, photos, likes and some apps. The layout on the right side looks like the picture above. Overall, Facebook has attempted to create a profile page that is organized, thoughtful, and contains the information that the consumer wishes to see.http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-57543175-93/facebook-may-change-the-timeline-layout-again/
WARNING!!:
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Choice Post #3: Left and Right, Conservative and Liberal
Because it's election year and because we are only days away from voting (at least those who are old enough are), you have probably heard the words Left and Right quite often. If you don't know by now, Left refers to the Republican Party and Right refers to the Democratic party. Many of us, including me, don't know why the parties are sometimes referred to as Left or Right. As it turns out, the reason dates back to the French Revolution and the terms actually originated in France.
In the 1790s, King Louis XVI was having a fight with France's Legislative Assembly. In the French Assembly, like in the House of Representatives, delegates were seated according to political association. In France, the king sat in the front, ready to be seen and heard by all. The conservative Feuillants, those who supported the King and believed in a Constitutional Monarchy, sat to the King's right-hand side. The liberal Girondists and the Jacobins, those who were not quite as fond of the King and wished to assert a democratic government, sat to his left.
However, in the U.S. House of Representatives, the conservative Republicans now occupy the left side of the House Speaker and the liberal Democrats seat themselves on the right side. Even so, it was not until the 1900s that the terms Left and Right denoted a political affiliation in the U.S. Furthermore, the political terms "Leftwing" and "Rightwing" weren't used until the 1990s. The reason as to why the two political parties switched sides while being applied to the U.S. government is uncertain but most likely, it was just a coincidence.
-Jalees N.
Sources:
http://hotword.dictionary.com/leftright/
In the 1790s, King Louis XVI was having a fight with France's Legislative Assembly. In the French Assembly, like in the House of Representatives, delegates were seated according to political association. In France, the king sat in the front, ready to be seen and heard by all. The conservative Feuillants, those who supported the King and believed in a Constitutional Monarchy, sat to the King's right-hand side. The liberal Girondists and the Jacobins, those who were not quite as fond of the King and wished to assert a democratic government, sat to his left.
However, in the U.S. House of Representatives, the conservative Republicans now occupy the left side of the House Speaker and the liberal Democrats seat themselves on the right side. Even so, it was not until the 1900s that the terms Left and Right denoted a political affiliation in the U.S. Furthermore, the political terms "Leftwing" and "Rightwing" weren't used until the 1990s. The reason as to why the two political parties switched sides while being applied to the U.S. government is uncertain but most likely, it was just a coincidence.
-Jalees N.
Sources:
http://hotword.dictionary.com/leftright/
Current Event Post #3: Texting While Driving Law Rarely Enforced
The law that banned texting in 2010, recent statistics show, is rarely enforced. Since the law was passed up until September 17, 2012, there have been a total of 1,281 convictions. 665 of these were from Gwinnett County alone, more than all the other counties combined. Fulton County had a total of 43 convictions while Cobb County had 64 convictions.
Officers are saying that the reason there are so few convictions is because the law is hard to enforce. An officer cannot pull anyone over just for having a cellular device in their hand, it must be confirmed that they are texting and not talking or anything else because the law bans texting only. They other reason is that a driver may put away their phone when pulled over, eliminating any evidence or they may state that they were doing something else on their phone. This lack of enforcement doesn't persist in just Georgia; other states that have a similar law, such as North Carolina and Kentucky, also have a high lack of enforcement of this law. Some states, such as New York, in order to get better enforcement of this law and protect people, have extended this law to ban people from simply holding a handheld device. In this manner, a police officer simply needs to see a phone, not ascertain whether the driver is texting or not. This means that even you are calling, speaker phone or not, or simply holding a phone, you can be pulled over. Another facet people suspect as being an obstacle to enforcing this law is the punishment. The worst that an officer can do in Georgia for texting is give a ticket for $150 and a mark on your driver's license. Many people can afford this and simply don't care whether they get pulled over or not.
Because enforcement of these laws is so rigorous in states like New York and virtually non-existent in Georgia, people are debating whether New York's example should be followed or if it is too limiting. In 2010, Georgia voted against passing a law like New York's but, with the failure of this law beaming at it, Georgia's government may reconsider. This issue affects all the states in America and they are all trying to figure out how to solve this issue. The reason behind this being a major issue is because out of all three types of driving distractions, texting involves all three and puts drivers at a 23 times higher risk. There are visual distractions- distractions that take your eyes off of the road, manual distractions- distractions that take your hands off of the wheel, and cognitive distractions- ones that take your mind off of driving. Texting is classified under all three and presents a major problem and puts drivers in a high risk of crashing. Texting is also a cause of a majority of car accidents in America, so its imperative that a solution is met. This issue affects a large area, not just Georgia and thus puts more people in danger, causing more accidents, and, consequently, more deaths or severe injuries.
Officers are saying that the reason there are so few convictions is because the law is hard to enforce. An officer cannot pull anyone over just for having a cellular device in their hand, it must be confirmed that they are texting and not talking or anything else because the law bans texting only. They other reason is that a driver may put away their phone when pulled over, eliminating any evidence or they may state that they were doing something else on their phone. This lack of enforcement doesn't persist in just Georgia; other states that have a similar law, such as North Carolina and Kentucky, also have a high lack of enforcement of this law. Some states, such as New York, in order to get better enforcement of this law and protect people, have extended this law to ban people from simply holding a handheld device. In this manner, a police officer simply needs to see a phone, not ascertain whether the driver is texting or not. This means that even you are calling, speaker phone or not, or simply holding a phone, you can be pulled over. Another facet people suspect as being an obstacle to enforcing this law is the punishment. The worst that an officer can do in Georgia for texting is give a ticket for $150 and a mark on your driver's license. Many people can afford this and simply don't care whether they get pulled over or not.
Because enforcement of these laws is so rigorous in states like New York and virtually non-existent in Georgia, people are debating whether New York's example should be followed or if it is too limiting. In 2010, Georgia voted against passing a law like New York's but, with the failure of this law beaming at it, Georgia's government may reconsider. This issue affects all the states in America and they are all trying to figure out how to solve this issue. The reason behind this being a major issue is because out of all three types of driving distractions, texting involves all three and puts drivers at a 23 times higher risk. There are visual distractions- distractions that take your eyes off of the road, manual distractions- distractions that take your hands off of the wheel, and cognitive distractions- ones that take your mind off of driving. Texting is classified under all three and presents a major problem and puts drivers in a high risk of crashing. Texting is also a cause of a majority of car accidents in America, so its imperative that a solution is met. This issue affects a large area, not just Georgia and thus puts more people in danger, causing more accidents, and, consequently, more deaths or severe injuries.
-Jalees N.
Sources:
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/texting-while-driving-law-rarely-enforced/nSrTD/
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/texting-while-driving-law-rarely-enforced/nSrTD/
Choice Posting #3: Leaving School
10/29/12
For high school students, a day at school is a stressful and a tedious repetive life. During school, one of the few times to relax and socialize is during lunch, yet after eating in the same place for four repeating years is boring. For years, students have urged high schools to allow the students to leave school during lunch and be allowed to eat somewhere else. While some believe this can have negative consequences, the truth is that overtime, leaving school would be beneficial to the students.
One reason for students to be allowed to leave school for lunch is that the economy would take a turn for the better. As it is sensible for students who have their licenses to be the only ones to be allowed to leave, this still leaves thousands of eligable students to leave school for lunch. This has hundreds of students from each school leaving to lunch, buying food from restaurants and fast food chains, boosting the economy. During school days, restaurants and fast food chains dont recieve much attention. Now, they will have maybe triple the amount of customers.
Aside from the economy, leaving school for lunch can be beneficial to the student. School can be very tedious and boring. While, in the past, lunch could be time for students to relax, it no longer is. Students being in an enclosed space with hundreds of students surronding them is not even close to being relaxing. But, choosing where which restaurant to eat at, whether it be by yourself, alone, and quit or with friends and relaxing, it would be a time for the students to be relieved of stress.
As a proposal, in return for more relaxed students and a better economy, students should be allowed to leave school for lunch. For the past several decades, the location of school luch has been enforced. Now would be an excellent time to change from this tedious action.
For high school students, a day at school is a stressful and a tedious repetive life. During school, one of the few times to relax and socialize is during lunch, yet after eating in the same place for four repeating years is boring. For years, students have urged high schools to allow the students to leave school during lunch and be allowed to eat somewhere else. While some believe this can have negative consequences, the truth is that overtime, leaving school would be beneficial to the students.
One reason for students to be allowed to leave school for lunch is that the economy would take a turn for the better. As it is sensible for students who have their licenses to be the only ones to be allowed to leave, this still leaves thousands of eligable students to leave school for lunch. This has hundreds of students from each school leaving to lunch, buying food from restaurants and fast food chains, boosting the economy. During school days, restaurants and fast food chains dont recieve much attention. Now, they will have maybe triple the amount of customers.
Aside from the economy, leaving school for lunch can be beneficial to the student. School can be very tedious and boring. While, in the past, lunch could be time for students to relax, it no longer is. Students being in an enclosed space with hundreds of students surronding them is not even close to being relaxing. But, choosing where which restaurant to eat at, whether it be by yourself, alone, and quit or with friends and relaxing, it would be a time for the students to be relieved of stress.
As a proposal, in return for more relaxed students and a better economy, students should be allowed to leave school for lunch. For the past several decades, the location of school luch has been enforced. Now would be an excellent time to change from this tedious action.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Choice Blog 3: Homecoming Hair
For my third choice blog I have decided to evaluate the
different hair styles that people wore for homecoming. Hair is something people
use to express their style and personality. Tight curls for an innocent look, long
beach waves for a relaxed look, or hair full of volume for a bold look. The
options are limitless. But, every hair style has a weakness. Homecoming night
is full of jumping, dancing, and laughing with friends. Your hair has to be
ready to move with you.
The way I see it, there are only a couple of general options
for hair: pinned bun, half up or half
down, all down and ponytail. Each of these options has limitless details one
can add for their own personal touch, for example, hair clips, bows, curls, or braids.
The first hairstyle I will evaluate is the all hair down
look. Let’s face it—everyone who dances gets sweaty and disgusting. If you are
going to be dancing the night away, hair down is not a good option. Hair that is
wet from sweat is not every attractive to look at, it sticks to you, and it is
just grossing me out talking about it. Anyways, along with getting sweaty many
people’s hair get frizzy with the combination of heat and moisture. There is
nothing you can do to fix that unless you have a hair tie to put it in a
ponytail.
The second hair style is the half up half down. This has
many of the same problems as all hair down, but I think the half up part keeps
this look from getting extremely frizzy. This alo allows more hairstyle options
of accessories in the hair and jewelry, like long dangly earrings.
The third hairstyle is the ponytail. Ponytails can be low or
high with a French braid going around the girls head to the hair tie. This
hairstyle is great for not getting the hair sweaty and frizzy; however, when
dancing, the ponytail can swing and hit someone in the face. This sounds absurd,
but trust me, it has happened. Ladies, we have all been there. Also, with this look you need to make sure
your dress will look good with your hair in an up do. If you can see a bra
strap from the dress or you are breaking out last minute, this may not be the
choice for you.
The final hairstyle is the pinned bun (no hair tie). This is
the look I did for homecoming this year. I had a French fishtail around my head
and that was then wrapped into a bun. With no hair tie, I bobby pinned that
sucker like my life depended on it. I did not want to risk it falling out. This
is considered an up do style so one must consider the negatives and positives
this shares with the ponytail option. Unlike the ponytail, there is no hair
tie, which makes the bun a lot less stable. I was worried about the bun falling
out, but it held up really well. I did not lose any bobby pins and if I felt
the bun was getting loose, I just pushed the pins back in by squeezing the bun
with my hand. Also when jump dancing, nothing came loose and I did not have to
worry about smacking some random kid in the face with my hair. The look held up
nice the whole night and I never worried about it falling out. This style was a
success.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Current Event #2: Dekalb County Bans Smoking in Parks
For years, protesters have been attempting to get smoking banned in all public places. In a way, they hae succeeded. In New York, Mayor Bloomberg has done a really good job of keeping smoking out of the public, among other things. However, in Dekalb county, smoking has been banned in all public parks.
The main reason for the banning of smoking is all of the studies about "secondhand smoke." The basis of this is that people, even children, who choose not to smoke, but choose to go for a walk in the park, can be exposed to the harmful carcinogens in tobacco smoke. At the end of the day, freedom is all well and good, but only until it infringes upon the freedom of another person. This is the main premise of the smoking bans.
While the smoking ban in public, family oriented places is completely warranted, parks are just the first step. The anti-smoking lobbyists are doing their best to ban it in clubs too, a completely non-family place. While it is still "everyone's air", I'm just not sure if I like the government stopping people from going into a club and puffing one up. The club managers in Dekalb would lose business from this ban as well. People like going out to a club, drinking, smoking, and dancing. It's what people do. Club owners fear that if smoking is banned in Dekalb, that their customers will go elsewhere to "hang out."
I really see the fact that smoking will be stopped in public places as a big win for the community. There will be less secondhand smoke, you won't have to smell burnt tobacco all the time (Yuck!), and the air will be cleaner overall. There's a fine line between positive regulation and infringment of people's rights. Only time will tell if the legislature chooses to cross that line, but if they do, we may be headed down a slippery slope.
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/dekalb-bans-smoking-in-parks/nSk8j/
The main reason for the banning of smoking is all of the studies about "secondhand smoke." The basis of this is that people, even children, who choose not to smoke, but choose to go for a walk in the park, can be exposed to the harmful carcinogens in tobacco smoke. At the end of the day, freedom is all well and good, but only until it infringes upon the freedom of another person. This is the main premise of the smoking bans.
While the smoking ban in public, family oriented places is completely warranted, parks are just the first step. The anti-smoking lobbyists are doing their best to ban it in clubs too, a completely non-family place. While it is still "everyone's air", I'm just not sure if I like the government stopping people from going into a club and puffing one up. The club managers in Dekalb would lose business from this ban as well. People like going out to a club, drinking, smoking, and dancing. It's what people do. Club owners fear that if smoking is banned in Dekalb, that their customers will go elsewhere to "hang out."
I really see the fact that smoking will be stopped in public places as a big win for the community. There will be less secondhand smoke, you won't have to smell burnt tobacco all the time (Yuck!), and the air will be cleaner overall. There's a fine line between positive regulation and infringment of people's rights. Only time will tell if the legislature chooses to cross that line, but if they do, we may be headed down a slippery slope.
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/dekalb-bans-smoking-in-parks/nSk8j/
Cheating in Atlanta Schools..... Again
For the second time the a couple of years, an Atlanta Public School System school is under fire for cheating. This time it is at North Atlanta High School where chaos has stricken the school, the principal has been sacked and five administers have been reassigned, Superintendent Erroll Davis continues to take blame and constantly hears calls for his resignation or firing, a teacher has been accused of racism (the teacher denied the claim but also has resigned), and the cherry on top- teachers have been anonymously accused internally for altering grades on not only basic assignments, but Mid-Term and Final Exams and final grades as well.
This type of behavior cannot be tolerated in the schools anymore. There is no way that these students are able to study and stay focused when they cannot even trust their teachers, administration, and school board to have their best interest at hand. It is quite sad that the students continue to face the problems that they do inside their schools; if school is supposed to be a safe place to learn and grow, why do these trials and tribulations continue to occur? If students are not able to feel like they are able to do such basic commodities given to them in the public school system, they just will not show up at all, spending their time on the street corner, not the classroom. This continues to parallel the trouble that APS elementary schools faced last year with the accusations of cheating on the CRCT, it continues to degrade the school experience and strike down all the gains these students make. If these situations continue to occur, these students will lose all hope. The true blame is attributed to the teachers though. Unlike anybody outside the nuclear family, teachers can have an enormous impact on a students life, and they need to step their game up. Please teachers, you are the students only hope.
Citations: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/more-controversy-at-north-atlanta-high-accusations/nSnr4/
This type of behavior cannot be tolerated in the schools anymore. There is no way that these students are able to study and stay focused when they cannot even trust their teachers, administration, and school board to have their best interest at hand. It is quite sad that the students continue to face the problems that they do inside their schools; if school is supposed to be a safe place to learn and grow, why do these trials and tribulations continue to occur? If students are not able to feel like they are able to do such basic commodities given to them in the public school system, they just will not show up at all, spending their time on the street corner, not the classroom. This continues to parallel the trouble that APS elementary schools faced last year with the accusations of cheating on the CRCT, it continues to degrade the school experience and strike down all the gains these students make. If these situations continue to occur, these students will lose all hope. The true blame is attributed to the teachers though. Unlike anybody outside the nuclear family, teachers can have an enormous impact on a students life, and they need to step their game up. Please teachers, you are the students only hope.
Citations: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/more-controversy-at-north-atlanta-high-accusations/nSnr4/
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Current Event Post #2: ‘I will kill you’ - Buford carjacker gets 15 years
Today, Rodolfo Esquivel was sentenced to 15 years in prison. He was penalized for stealing a woman's car after holding her at gun point. It is reported that he even fired a stray bullet to prove that "This is real." The victim was returning home when she noticed an unfamiliar car lurking outside her home. She approached the car which was concealing Esquivel's accomplice, who made a hasty excuse and drove off. Afterwards, the woman turned toward her home when Esquivel emerged from her garage. After it dawned on him that his 'friend' had abandoned him, he held up a gun and asked the woman for her car keys. The woman called the police from a neighbor's house shortly after the incident. Fortunately, no one was harmed. There are a lot of people who steal things and rob places and this story is just one out of millions. I started wondering why people in Esquivel's situation even bother to commit crimes in the first place. I managed to narrow it down to three different reasons: because of the way they are raised, they are desperate for what they're stealing, or they are being forced to thieve under a superior, which is a rare case.
Millions of people are born every day. All of these children are born to different people under different circumstances and around different milieus. Some, unfortunately, are born in crime-ridden neighborhoods with irresponsible parents who most likely also engage in crime. When a baby is born, its first instinct is to imitate what others are doing. But when everyone around a new born is committing crimes, what's the child to do? The kids are raised to mimic their surroundings. Under so much of these influences, a person's morals begin to diminish and they are less capable of differentiating wrong deeds from wiser ones. While others, who manage to maintain their ability to differentiate, simply ignore their conscience because everyone else's doing it. When you are raised to engage in drugs, bear arms, and participate in violent fights, breaking and entering a house seems like nothing. This rings true in Esquivel's case, as he is a former convict who was arrested two times before for illegal drugs. If there is no one to tell you what's wrong or right, how should you determine what you do? Instinctively, we do what is in our best interest. If all morals are stripped away, survival is all that's left, which brings us to our next reason for thieving.
As I stated earlier, people are born into multiple diverse situations and being born into poverty is not an exception. Many people lack what is necessary for survival- food, shelter, water, and heat- and in effect, they turn to stealing it. If earning what is a basic need is not possible or not enough, what are you meant to do? Allow yourself to die? Many destitute people are faced with this dilemma and most, not surprisingly, choose survival. In order to carry this out, a life of crime is accepted. Some people are swept away in the joy of finally having sustenance and decide to 'borrow' frivolous items as well, which leads to a more frequent habit of thieving which results in higher chances of being caught. It can be argued that these people are simply taking what they deserve, after all, they wouldn't have to steal had the richer helped. Some people use this excuse to justify themselves however, under all lights, it is wrong. If you are not given what you need upon request, it is immoral of you to take it by force. Among the poor, there are still kind hearted people who wish to survive without having to harm others. These people are forced to find different methods of providing an income and some of these methods result in others being harmed, ironically, weather the destitute person is aware or not. One such example, a rare one, ties in with my next point- thieving for a superior.
Drugs are distributed in multiple ways, all surreptitious. People find that a lot of money can be made from this business and, if more people's effort is involved, profits augment. Soon, with multiple people collaborating, a hierarchy develops. At the top is the leader, the one who organized the whole system. At the bottom are the insolvent people. These people join to make a profit but soon find that once they are in, they cannot back out. The leader may ask the needy workers of many risky and illegal tasks and has his threats to enforce his orders. Many of these tasks require stealing from others for their profit. Another situation is not as dramatic. In this one, a profit-seeking soul entangles himself/herself in a debt that cannot be paid off. In order to get back the money, the lender may threat the person with his/her life and ask the debt-burdened to steal an item with high value to redeem his/her debt. The list of scenarios continues however, in each one, the minority is risking imprisonment due to one faulty mistake- placing himself/herself under the authority of the tyrannical superior. This reason for stealing may also be attributed to people who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time and get entangled into other people's criminal lives. This reason for crime applies to more people than the previous two because of bad circumstances that may befall anyone.
There are, of course, multiple other reasons that a person may take refuge in a life of crime. These, I believe, are the three most basic and general reasons that can be applied to a majority of situations. Esquivel may have been under any one of these circumstances which drove him to enter the woman's house. Esquivel's demise should show us that no matter how bleak a situation seems, it can always get better by doing the right thing. Resorting to crime always leads to a more complicated life and a far less enjoyable one, no matter what the reason for crime may have been. Esquivel's conviction is important for us to study so that more fates such as these may not befall others. His case can be applied to many others as well so that we have a deeper understanding of the criminal mind, the force of evil that rings in all of us every once in a while with different volumes, subjecting us to different crimes ranging from little white lies to what Esquivel has done.
-Jalees N.
Sources:
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/i-will-kill-you-buford-man-gets-15-years/nSnmM/
Millions of people are born every day. All of these children are born to different people under different circumstances and around different milieus. Some, unfortunately, are born in crime-ridden neighborhoods with irresponsible parents who most likely also engage in crime. When a baby is born, its first instinct is to imitate what others are doing. But when everyone around a new born is committing crimes, what's the child to do? The kids are raised to mimic their surroundings. Under so much of these influences, a person's morals begin to diminish and they are less capable of differentiating wrong deeds from wiser ones. While others, who manage to maintain their ability to differentiate, simply ignore their conscience because everyone else's doing it. When you are raised to engage in drugs, bear arms, and participate in violent fights, breaking and entering a house seems like nothing. This rings true in Esquivel's case, as he is a former convict who was arrested two times before for illegal drugs. If there is no one to tell you what's wrong or right, how should you determine what you do? Instinctively, we do what is in our best interest. If all morals are stripped away, survival is all that's left, which brings us to our next reason for thieving.
As I stated earlier, people are born into multiple diverse situations and being born into poverty is not an exception. Many people lack what is necessary for survival- food, shelter, water, and heat- and in effect, they turn to stealing it. If earning what is a basic need is not possible or not enough, what are you meant to do? Allow yourself to die? Many destitute people are faced with this dilemma and most, not surprisingly, choose survival. In order to carry this out, a life of crime is accepted. Some people are swept away in the joy of finally having sustenance and decide to 'borrow' frivolous items as well, which leads to a more frequent habit of thieving which results in higher chances of being caught. It can be argued that these people are simply taking what they deserve, after all, they wouldn't have to steal had the richer helped. Some people use this excuse to justify themselves however, under all lights, it is wrong. If you are not given what you need upon request, it is immoral of you to take it by force. Among the poor, there are still kind hearted people who wish to survive without having to harm others. These people are forced to find different methods of providing an income and some of these methods result in others being harmed, ironically, weather the destitute person is aware or not. One such example, a rare one, ties in with my next point- thieving for a superior.
Drugs are distributed in multiple ways, all surreptitious. People find that a lot of money can be made from this business and, if more people's effort is involved, profits augment. Soon, with multiple people collaborating, a hierarchy develops. At the top is the leader, the one who organized the whole system. At the bottom are the insolvent people. These people join to make a profit but soon find that once they are in, they cannot back out. The leader may ask the needy workers of many risky and illegal tasks and has his threats to enforce his orders. Many of these tasks require stealing from others for their profit. Another situation is not as dramatic. In this one, a profit-seeking soul entangles himself/herself in a debt that cannot be paid off. In order to get back the money, the lender may threat the person with his/her life and ask the debt-burdened to steal an item with high value to redeem his/her debt. The list of scenarios continues however, in each one, the minority is risking imprisonment due to one faulty mistake- placing himself/herself under the authority of the tyrannical superior. This reason for stealing may also be attributed to people who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time and get entangled into other people's criminal lives. This reason for crime applies to more people than the previous two because of bad circumstances that may befall anyone.
There are, of course, multiple other reasons that a person may take refuge in a life of crime. These, I believe, are the three most basic and general reasons that can be applied to a majority of situations. Esquivel may have been under any one of these circumstances which drove him to enter the woman's house. Esquivel's demise should show us that no matter how bleak a situation seems, it can always get better by doing the right thing. Resorting to crime always leads to a more complicated life and a far less enjoyable one, no matter what the reason for crime may have been. Esquivel's conviction is important for us to study so that more fates such as these may not befall others. His case can be applied to many others as well so that we have a deeper understanding of the criminal mind, the force of evil that rings in all of us every once in a while with different volumes, subjecting us to different crimes ranging from little white lies to what Esquivel has done.
-Jalees N.
Sources:
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/i-will-kill-you-buford-man-gets-15-years/nSnmM/
stupidity
People are incredibly dumb.
Recently in Alpharetta, a African American man named Moses was accused of attacking a gas station clerk.
Over the price of a phone charger. It even went to the point where Moses was waving a knife at the clerk. He faces a felony charge of aggravated assault.
And that was pretty much it. I guess you can argue that there were racial tensions that came into play in this situation, but that's really nothing new.
So, why does Moses matter then? It seems rather trivial to report on a type of story that we've heard dozens of times. But Moses' job is to prove that point exactly. One of the most important purposes of news reporting is to inform the masses of the mistakes of certain individuals so we can learn and improve our own society. It's like a "informing so history doesn't repeat itself" sort of tactic I guess. But ironically, we hear these same ridiculous stories over and over again on the news, as if we've learned nothing. History does repeat itself in that way I suppose. I wonder if it's because we don't want to learn, or if we just can't see. I hope it's the latter. Moses may be dumb. But so are you.
The point is, we don't learn, not a single one of us. We continually make the same mistakes that were made hundreds of years ago by the ass-scratching cavemen.
We're all dumb. You are. They are. I am.
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/man-accused-attacking-gas-station-clerk/nSnnc/
http://www.wsbtv.com/news/news/local/man-accused-attacking-gas-station-clerk/nSnnc/
2nd post - current event: Is Being a Red State Good or Bad for Georgia?
A recent Associated Press article has noticed, as election day comes near, both candidates Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have spent a majority of their campaign money in key swing states such as Virginia Ohio, Iowa and Florida However, in this article the Atlanta mayor, Kasim Reed, has claimed that campaign spending in Georgia was lower than it was 4 years ago. Georgia financial monitors claim that the cause of this was because Romney was twice as popular in Georgia now than McCain was in 2008.
This is a noteworthy study for Georgia. Since Georgia is such a heavily Republican state, there are little incentives for the candidates to focus their time and energy in Georgia. For example, the study proved that Romney only invested $16.5 million whereas Obama invested only $7.1 million, which is lower compared to how much they invested in the swing states. They do this because first they would rather want to win the swing states since they tend to have higher electoral colleges than Georgia and second because Georgia is mostly likely going to vote Republican in the election inevitably anyway.
This study shows on a national level how elections have not done much increase to Georgia's economy when the candidates don't focus on it too much. However, regardless of which side it leans to, Georgia still accounts for 16 of the 538 national electoral colleges that decide who becomes future president of the United States.
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/national-politics/20121025-voters-in-georgia-more-afterthought-than-battleground-find-ways-to-make-voices-heard.ece
This is a noteworthy study for Georgia. Since Georgia is such a heavily Republican state, there are little incentives for the candidates to focus their time and energy in Georgia. For example, the study proved that Romney only invested $16.5 million whereas Obama invested only $7.1 million, which is lower compared to how much they invested in the swing states. They do this because first they would rather want to win the swing states since they tend to have higher electoral colleges than Georgia and second because Georgia is mostly likely going to vote Republican in the election inevitably anyway.
This study shows on a national level how elections have not done much increase to Georgia's economy when the candidates don't focus on it too much. However, regardless of which side it leans to, Georgia still accounts for 16 of the 538 national electoral colleges that decide who becomes future president of the United States.
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/national-politics/20121025-voters-in-georgia-more-afterthought-than-battleground-find-ways-to-make-voices-heard.ece
Unhappy Cities-2nd Current Event Blog
Much like last week, I found another article this week concerning the crazy politics right here in Johns Creek. As residents of Johns Creek, many of us remember how only five short years ago we became a city. Most of the people our age, sixteen or seventeen, were too young to really remember why we became a city though. At the time, our whole "corner of metro Atlanta" was throwing a fit of sorts to make Fulton County give us the fair treatment that many residents did not feel they were recieving. Johns Creek, Milton, and Sandy Springs all became their own cities in order to get Futon County to be more fair which did not happen.
The three cities have even threatened to seperate from Fulton County, taking Alphreatta, Roswell, and MountainPark as well, and becoming their own "Milton County". This is not a new idea ,but it does seem that over the years, the cities tempers have come to a slow boil. The northern cities in Fulton are being charged double what cities in the south are being taxed and the money is being souly spent on the southside of the county. Much of the money collected in areas such as Johns Creek is going towards "poll worker training, printing and office supplies" and the roads systems as well. The real problem is that the two areas of the county are very different. The north end is mostly white, suburban, and republican while the southside is the exact opposite. It is mostly democratic and most people our age who live in our area refer to it as "sketchy". Politivians in the south who need the funds coming from Northern Fulton say that pulling off into our county would be like "smacks of racism" but politicians here say thats simply not true. After the creation of north Fulton's three newest cities, our relations with Fulton County have only become worse. While many county officials want nothing more than to be a untited county, it seems unrealistic and unfair to many of the people in our area who feel robbed and cheated out of what is theirs.
AJC Article: No love lost between Fulton cities
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/no-love-lost-between-fulton-cities/nQcwf/
The three cities have even threatened to seperate from Fulton County, taking Alphreatta, Roswell, and MountainPark as well, and becoming their own "Milton County". This is not a new idea ,but it does seem that over the years, the cities tempers have come to a slow boil. The northern cities in Fulton are being charged double what cities in the south are being taxed and the money is being souly spent on the southside of the county. Much of the money collected in areas such as Johns Creek is going towards "poll worker training, printing and office supplies" and the roads systems as well. The real problem is that the two areas of the county are very different. The north end is mostly white, suburban, and republican while the southside is the exact opposite. It is mostly democratic and most people our age who live in our area refer to it as "sketchy". Politivians in the south who need the funds coming from Northern Fulton say that pulling off into our county would be like "smacks of racism" but politicians here say thats simply not true. After the creation of north Fulton's three newest cities, our relations with Fulton County have only become worse. While many county officials want nothing more than to be a untited county, it seems unrealistic and unfair to many of the people in our area who feel robbed and cheated out of what is theirs.
AJC Article: No love lost between Fulton cities
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/no-love-lost-between-fulton-cities/nQcwf/
Choice Post/Rant #2: Monsanto
For those of you who had read my last choice post (on big pharma), you should know that I like to rant. I got pretty good feedback on the last one, so I thought "Hey, let's do more ranting!" That's exactly what I'm about to do. Prepare yourselves, it gets ugly this week. While last week I talked about essentially large scale legal drug dealers, this week, I'll focus on arguably a more unethical company, Monsanto.
Monsanto is an agricultural and biotechnical giant in our modern world. They are a lead manufacturer of pesticides and genetically engineered seeds. First, I'll talk about their pesticides.
Monsanto's main product, herbicide glyphosphate, commonly known as round-up, has been a huge destruction to the environment. It's been found in the air, on land, in rivers, and hundreds of other places around the world. The chemical goes in, and contaminates the environment, this destroys the ecosystem, and sets the balance of nature way out of wack. Just how much of the glyphosphate was found? Experts suggest the number is in the ballpark of 180 million pounds. That's 180 million pounds of toxic chemicals spread around countless ecosystems. Bottom line, it's a big deal.
However, the damage of their product doesn't stop with the environment. Glyphosphate also causes birth defects, DNA damage, Neurotoxicity, cancer, and many other diseases. This stuff is toxic and has caused animals and humans alike to suffer major consequences.
This, in itself, makes a company evil. What's worse is that Monsanto executives allegedly had known about this for a long time, yet chose to hide it from the public. Why you may ask? Why does anyone do anything? Money.
If Monsanto would have gone public with this environmental hazard, they would have lost billions. So, instead, they kept their mouth shut and let this monstrosity happen.
While it can't be definitively proven that in court that Monsanto knew about this, there have been "confidential" company documents labeled "read and destroy" that implicate the giant, and confirm they had known about this for decades. Around various lakes, Monsanto workers have found bleeding fish with serious neural damage as a direct result of their pesticidal dumping. But instead, they turned a blind eye, as their product was extremely profitable.
Now you're reading this thinking that this company is full of scumbags. I wholeheartedly agree with you.
But wait, there's more!
Monsanto, as I previously said, is not only a pesticide provider, but also a seed giant. And genetically modified seeds at that. For over 30 years, Monsanto has been the lead manufacturer of genetically modified seeds. In this course of this time, they've accumulated over 650 biotechnical patents, much more than any other company. In this, they have even succeeded in patenting life forms. Yes, Monsanto owns certain species of plants. Also, farmers who purchase Monsanto's seeds (which they almost have to, Monsanto is getting closer and closer to a monopoly over the seed business.) must sign an agreement saying they won't sell their seeds, and also that they can't reproduce the seeds. In agriculture, seeds have been being reproduced for thousands of years, yet Monsanto has banned this, as it hurts their profit. The result of this is that farmers must buy new seeds every single year, and they have to buy them from Monsanto.
Now, your first question is "How in the world can this company stop farmers from reusing seeds?"
This is where it gets bad.
In order to make sure farmers aren't reusing seeds, Monsanto has hired countless private investigators to go to farms, secretly videotape farmers (without consent). Their actions have been compared to the mafia as well as the gestapo. This has coined the term "Monsanto's seed mafia." Seeds are expensive, and with the agricultural market being shaky at best, most farmer's can't afford to buy new seeds every year, so they end up having no choice but to cheat Monsanto's system. If caught, the farmers are often sued and they lose everything. All to Monsanto. If this goes on, we may face a world where every farmer is fully dependent on this company, which, as you can see, is not the type of company you want to be dependent on.
Citations:
http://www.naturalnews.com/033699_Roundup_pollution.html
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/07/08/tthe-most-evil-company-on-the-planet-monsanto.aspx
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A46648-2001Dec31
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto
Monsanto is an agricultural and biotechnical giant in our modern world. They are a lead manufacturer of pesticides and genetically engineered seeds. First, I'll talk about their pesticides.
Monsanto's main product, herbicide glyphosphate, commonly known as round-up, has been a huge destruction to the environment. It's been found in the air, on land, in rivers, and hundreds of other places around the world. The chemical goes in, and contaminates the environment, this destroys the ecosystem, and sets the balance of nature way out of wack. Just how much of the glyphosphate was found? Experts suggest the number is in the ballpark of 180 million pounds. That's 180 million pounds of toxic chemicals spread around countless ecosystems. Bottom line, it's a big deal.
However, the damage of their product doesn't stop with the environment. Glyphosphate also causes birth defects, DNA damage, Neurotoxicity, cancer, and many other diseases. This stuff is toxic and has caused animals and humans alike to suffer major consequences.
This, in itself, makes a company evil. What's worse is that Monsanto executives allegedly had known about this for a long time, yet chose to hide it from the public. Why you may ask? Why does anyone do anything? Money.
If Monsanto would have gone public with this environmental hazard, they would have lost billions. So, instead, they kept their mouth shut and let this monstrosity happen.
While it can't be definitively proven that in court that Monsanto knew about this, there have been "confidential" company documents labeled "read and destroy" that implicate the giant, and confirm they had known about this for decades. Around various lakes, Monsanto workers have found bleeding fish with serious neural damage as a direct result of their pesticidal dumping. But instead, they turned a blind eye, as their product was extremely profitable.
Now you're reading this thinking that this company is full of scumbags. I wholeheartedly agree with you.
But wait, there's more!
Monsanto, as I previously said, is not only a pesticide provider, but also a seed giant. And genetically modified seeds at that. For over 30 years, Monsanto has been the lead manufacturer of genetically modified seeds. In this course of this time, they've accumulated over 650 biotechnical patents, much more than any other company. In this, they have even succeeded in patenting life forms. Yes, Monsanto owns certain species of plants. Also, farmers who purchase Monsanto's seeds (which they almost have to, Monsanto is getting closer and closer to a monopoly over the seed business.) must sign an agreement saying they won't sell their seeds, and also that they can't reproduce the seeds. In agriculture, seeds have been being reproduced for thousands of years, yet Monsanto has banned this, as it hurts their profit. The result of this is that farmers must buy new seeds every single year, and they have to buy them from Monsanto.
Now, your first question is "How in the world can this company stop farmers from reusing seeds?"
This is where it gets bad.
In order to make sure farmers aren't reusing seeds, Monsanto has hired countless private investigators to go to farms, secretly videotape farmers (without consent). Their actions have been compared to the mafia as well as the gestapo. This has coined the term "Monsanto's seed mafia." Seeds are expensive, and with the agricultural market being shaky at best, most farmer's can't afford to buy new seeds every year, so they end up having no choice but to cheat Monsanto's system. If caught, the farmers are often sued and they lose everything. All to Monsanto. If this goes on, we may face a world where every farmer is fully dependent on this company, which, as you can see, is not the type of company you want to be dependent on.
Citations:
http://www.naturalnews.com/033699_Roundup_pollution.html
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2008/07/08/tthe-most-evil-company-on-the-planet-monsanto.aspx
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&contentId=A46648-2001Dec31
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsanto
Crazy people 2nd current event blog
Child abuse, the physical, emotional, or sexual abuse of a child is becoming more of a problem in modern America. The economic situation in America has forced stress onto many people which in turn is making people make wild and irrational decisions such as child abuse. Access to drugs and alcohol has made the world a more chaotic and unstable place where people are not in their right minds. Child abuse is honestly just insane, no parent should ever abuse a child that came from themselves, especially when children are heavily influenced by their parents. Child abuse just leads to more child abuse in a never ending cycle which is empirically proven except in certain outlying cases.
Recently, Tony Wawrzynski's life was changed when he found out that the son he lost 15 years was found wandering in a Los Angeles bus station. 15 years ago his girl-friend took off while Tony was at work with his 3 year old son "Mitch." The girlfriend actually eloped with a acquaintance from Arizona named Paul Comer whom he and has his girlfriend has worked with in the past. A Georgia detective called Wawrzynski and told him that his 18 year old son had been locked away and held hostage in his own home by his mother and step father. Mitch had been deprived of adequate food and medical care at the hands of his own mother. He was a breathtaking 87 pounds when he was found in Los Angeles which just goes to show just how abused he was. Wawrzynski even hired private investigators and searched for years with no fruitless results until recently, the Georgia detective contacted Wawrzynski because he found a letter from him at the Comer's house asking for his son. Although Tony Wawrzynski was devastated by the news of such abuse of his son, he is happy that he will be reunited with his long lost son. You will be happy to know that Paul and Sheila Comers are in Paulding County Jail on 7 counts of child abuse.
The fact that such child abuse happened in Paulding County, Georgia is simply appalling to me because Georgia is such a chill place to live. It has been proven that most domestic violence and child abuse come from alcohol abuse and parental influences. If you haven't notice in local and national news there are more and more crazy people who are doing irrational things in recent years. The rise of alcohol abuse because of the economic depression has caused a chain reaction of violence and abuse. Just go to Ajc.com and the local news section and you will see it flooded with similiar abuse and violence stories. Frank Sinatra said, "Alcohol may be man's worst enemy, but the bible says love your enemy." He was a man who could handle his alcohol and used it to channel his creativity, we need more of that and less of the people who use it as a catalyst for violence.
Source: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/paulding-abuse-case-teens-biological-father-speaks/nSnLH/
Recently, Tony Wawrzynski's life was changed when he found out that the son he lost 15 years was found wandering in a Los Angeles bus station. 15 years ago his girl-friend took off while Tony was at work with his 3 year old son "Mitch." The girlfriend actually eloped with a acquaintance from Arizona named Paul Comer whom he and has his girlfriend has worked with in the past. A Georgia detective called Wawrzynski and told him that his 18 year old son had been locked away and held hostage in his own home by his mother and step father. Mitch had been deprived of adequate food and medical care at the hands of his own mother. He was a breathtaking 87 pounds when he was found in Los Angeles which just goes to show just how abused he was. Wawrzynski even hired private investigators and searched for years with no fruitless results until recently, the Georgia detective contacted Wawrzynski because he found a letter from him at the Comer's house asking for his son. Although Tony Wawrzynski was devastated by the news of such abuse of his son, he is happy that he will be reunited with his long lost son. You will be happy to know that Paul and Sheila Comers are in Paulding County Jail on 7 counts of child abuse.
The fact that such child abuse happened in Paulding County, Georgia is simply appalling to me because Georgia is such a chill place to live. It has been proven that most domestic violence and child abuse come from alcohol abuse and parental influences. If you haven't notice in local and national news there are more and more crazy people who are doing irrational things in recent years. The rise of alcohol abuse because of the economic depression has caused a chain reaction of violence and abuse. Just go to Ajc.com and the local news section and you will see it flooded with similiar abuse and violence stories. Frank Sinatra said, "Alcohol may be man's worst enemy, but the bible says love your enemy." He was a man who could handle his alcohol and used it to channel his creativity, we need more of that and less of the people who use it as a catalyst for violence.
Source: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/paulding-abuse-case-teens-biological-father-speaks/nSnLH/
2nd Current Event: Wrongful Gallows
10/25/12
Twenty years ago, in the state of Georgia, a man, Troy Davis, was killed by a lethal injection. Allegedly, Davis shot and kill a Savannah police officer which is why he was killed. Although, currently, evidence has been found that shows Davis never had a weapon. And seven out of nine eye witness have come forward admitting that from current evidence, they chose the wrong verdict.
Davis, sadly, is not the only victim of false evidence which lead to the death penalty. Hundreds others have been falsely accused and sentenced to death. By law, verdicts are to be chosen by "beyond reasonable doubt." But it is well known that this is not the case, as so many have falsely died. '
Several political and goverment men are strong supporters of the death penalty. Yet, these supporters are well known for claiming that the government cant do right, and for arguing that schools, health care, taxes and more are being messed up by the government. The main problem is not that they these politicians believe the government is doing wrong with taxes and such, but that these politicians think the government is doing wrong except for the death penalty. It is utterly naive that the politicians think that the government can do no wrong with the death penalty.
This issue is important because the people need to be aware of what the government is doing. As the elections are coming up soon, we need to self aware of the problems in our government and which candidates would do best to fix those problems.
Twenty years ago, in the state of Georgia, a man, Troy Davis, was killed by a lethal injection. Allegedly, Davis shot and kill a Savannah police officer which is why he was killed. Although, currently, evidence has been found that shows Davis never had a weapon. And seven out of nine eye witness have come forward admitting that from current evidence, they chose the wrong verdict.
Davis, sadly, is not the only victim of false evidence which lead to the death penalty. Hundreds others have been falsely accused and sentenced to death. By law, verdicts are to be chosen by "beyond reasonable doubt." But it is well known that this is not the case, as so many have falsely died. '
Several political and goverment men are strong supporters of the death penalty. Yet, these supporters are well known for claiming that the government cant do right, and for arguing that schools, health care, taxes and more are being messed up by the government. The main problem is not that they these politicians believe the government is doing wrong with taxes and such, but that these politicians think the government is doing wrong except for the death penalty. It is utterly naive that the politicians think that the government can do no wrong with the death penalty.
This issue is important because the people need to be aware of what the government is doing. As the elections are coming up soon, we need to self aware of the problems in our government and which candidates would do best to fix those problems.
2nd Current Event: Can free speech really go too far?
A man living by Emory University has been tacking up offensive signs all over his property. Some may argue that this is okay...due to the freedom of speech right the first amendment gives us. In most cases I would say that to take away one's freedom of speech is harsh-however can this freedom be stretched to the point it does more harm than good?
This 50 year old man has scattered signs demeaning posters mixed with halloween and Christmas blow up decorations on his property... he even went as far as using a cross in which stuffed animals were hanging off of. Some may make the argument that he has a right to do these actions per the first amendment rights; it's gotten to the point fellow neighbors are afraid to walk by his house. This is a little over the top; people aren't just uneasy by this fact, by degrading his yard with these unappreciated posters and signs he has hurt the neighborhood finically. There are several cases out there dealing with the freedom of speech and typically not much is harmed. He has had run in's with the codes of DeKalb county...but this time he's requesting to go to court. To fight this case he will need to prove that his actions haven't damaged or violated simple codes of the county. This will be hard to come by; the facts are there and this has caused somewhat of a financial flaw within the community. Don't get me wrong here, I'm a big believer of freedom of speech. I do however think in cases such as this one, something needs to happen. You can't bring about damage financially.
source: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/free-speech-limits-tested-in-dispute-between-neigh/nSm73/
This 50 year old man has scattered signs demeaning posters mixed with halloween and Christmas blow up decorations on his property... he even went as far as using a cross in which stuffed animals were hanging off of. Some may make the argument that he has a right to do these actions per the first amendment rights; it's gotten to the point fellow neighbors are afraid to walk by his house. This is a little over the top; people aren't just uneasy by this fact, by degrading his yard with these unappreciated posters and signs he has hurt the neighborhood finically. There are several cases out there dealing with the freedom of speech and typically not much is harmed. He has had run in's with the codes of DeKalb county...but this time he's requesting to go to court. To fight this case he will need to prove that his actions haven't damaged or violated simple codes of the county. This will be hard to come by; the facts are there and this has caused somewhat of a financial flaw within the community. Don't get me wrong here, I'm a big believer of freedom of speech. I do however think in cases such as this one, something needs to happen. You can't bring about damage financially.
source: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/free-speech-limits-tested-in-dispute-between-neigh/nSm73/
False expulsion in Atlanta school
A boy at a local Fiquett public school brought a unloaded pellet gun and, immediately realizing his mistake, notified his teacher. But, despite the honest mistake, police still considered this a serious "felony." The zero-tolerance needs to have set boundaries. Even a Gwinnett County school student as recent as last February was suspended for doing what every school children is taught to: turn in weapons.
I think this incident really shows to how conservatism is hurting the wonderful state of Georgia. The nature of the local population is such that there is not reasoning or purpose to a lot of actions. Had Georgia citizens been more progressive minded, a small child's education carreer could be saved for doing the right thing. This is a prime example of how the progressive mindset works to the favor of humanity.
-Devansh
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/boy-does-right-thing-school-suspends-him/nSnwD/
[5] :)
I think this incident really shows to how conservatism is hurting the wonderful state of Georgia. The nature of the local population is such that there is not reasoning or purpose to a lot of actions. Had Georgia citizens been more progressive minded, a small child's education carreer could be saved for doing the right thing. This is a prime example of how the progressive mindset works to the favor of humanity.
-Devansh
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/boy-does-right-thing-school-suspends-him/nSnwD/
[5] :)
Best Buy Stock Decline
Best Buy Stock Decline
Current Event #2
When you think of the highest stocks on Wall Street, you probably think of Apple and Microsoft. Interestingly enough, these two public companies are known for their electronics. Americans are known for needing the best and newest electronics. The iPhone is never good enough and new, new, new becomes a necessity. Americans don't think twice about tossing out their two month old TV set for a brand new one. With this idea in mind, you would think that the electronic industry is booming... especially during the holiday season.
Best Buy is a retailer that sells virtually any electronic product from: cell phones, washing machines, TVs, to headphones and movies-- the typical American "dream". But on October 25, their stock dropped 10%. With this industry easily being the most popular, it's easy to ask "why?". With the holidays so close, it's only expected that this stock company would be booming. Is it because their are other retailers that are starting to take over the industry or is this a reflection of this holiday season.
These two points are considered, but it is hard to tell what is the actual reason for the Best Buy dry spell. Competitors are definitely contributing to the decline of Best Buy. With stores such as Walmart and online stores, such as Amazon, Best Buy has a reason to be concerned. These retailers had successful years while Best Buy slowly showed signs of struggle. This is not the only reason for this decline. Top executives for Best Buy plan on leaving by the end of this month and by the end of this year. With nothing but bad luck, what is there to be expected from Best Buy? It will be interesting to follow the sales in the upcoming months. We hope that this is not directly related with the future economy.
Current Events-Unemployment
Jobless
Rate Drops
According to the Georgia labor
officials, the unemployment rate in Metro Atlanta has dropped to a mere 8.4%.
Previously it was only 8.8%. Labor officials claim the decrease in unemployment
rate was the cause of 4,446 fewer layoffs and the employment of 31,606 people. According
to the article, Athens has the lowest unemployment rate of 6.4%. Dalton has the
highest with 11.2%.
This
article can actually affect our lives. Living in/near the Atlanta area, this
percentage includes the jobs our parents may have. Personally it includes me
because my dad works in downtown Atlanta. If this rate goes up then it may
affect the jobs of people near us and even our parents. Likewise, if it goes
down, it shows the improvement of our area and the economy of Atlanta. The
economy can affect what goes into our school funding, and thus relates to our
everyday life.
In
another way, this relates to the Presidential election coming up. Both
candidates have an opinion about the unemployment rates and how to change them.
If the new president affects for good or for bad then it can directly affect
the jobs of our parents. It also can cause a toll or benefit our economy.
Employment rate has a greater effect on us than we even realize.
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