Fire in the Fields
September 12, 2011
Around 3a.m. ET a fire broke out in Nairobi, Kenya. However, this fire was not like any other fire. Nairobi police and Kenya red cross report that a fuel pipeline had exploded early September 12, 2011. In a densely populated slum in Nairobi, from the explosion an estimated amount of 55 people were reported dead. Carol Nduta, from the Kenya red cross reports, "It leveled houses and burned some bodies to dust." Almost the whole village was blown to shreds. Nduta also says that more than 55 were actually killed in the explosion. She says that some of the bodies have not yet been recovered or cooled enough to be recovered. She expects the number of bodies to vary from 100-130. Police have gone on the record and reported that employees of the Kenya Pipeline Company tried to contain a leak in the pipeline and prevent people from stealing the fuel. These explosions are very common in Kenya, and Nduta says safety precautions should be adhered to more often. What are other countries planning to do to help these people who don't have the financial stability and resources to recover from this event? It's no doubt that this will open eyes to people in other countries to safely handle fuel pipelines.
My Opinion:
I couldn't believe that something of epic proportions could happen to such a remote town like Nairobi. It's so sad that people who really have no humongous influence on the world have tragic things happen to them that will change the world in a positive way, but from negative occurrences. I think the Company's employees should have payed better attention and took more careful steps. Now their lives and hundreds of other innocent people's lives have been taken. I hope the village and people of Kenya make a quick and full recovery. I hope other countries lend a hand to the people of Nairobi and do whatever they can to bring life back to the survivors and pay homage to the deceased.
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Killings in Yemen
September 19, 2011
For about 2 days now in Sanaa, Yemeni pro-regime forces have been dealing with both viloent and non violent protest regarding the regime. Security officials in Sanaa report that police stationed on the ground and sniper units on the rooftops have been trying to stop the riots since early Sunday morning. Within two days worth of protesting, an unbelievable amount of innocent people have been killed. It has been said that over 50 people have been killed so far in the protest. The protest, which have now become riots, were frequent in the country because of Yemen's 33 year long presidential term. The people of Yemen are asking their president to step down, but he thinks he belongs in office and is refusing to let go of his position. The officials said thousands of protesters armed with sticks overran a camp belonging to the Presidential Guards in Sanaa and that others were headed toward the headquarters of the elite force led by President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s son Ahmed in the south of the city. Tens of thousands of protesters demonstrated in Sanaa Sunday to press demands for Saleh to step down. Pro-regime snipers killed at least 26 of the protesters. After seeing all the innocent people killed and wounded i wonder what our country is going to do to help these people gain an election that will speak for the people. However, there isn't a clear answer to that question seeing as to how the United States once saw Saleh as a key ally in the battle against the dangerous Yemen-based al-Qaida branch. The U.S. withdrew its support of Saleh as the protests gained strength.
My Opinion:
Things like this always make me both angry and sad. I hate hearing about innocent people dying for something they believe in. The people in Sanaa deserve an election and deserve to choose who they want in office. In America we are brought up to believe in democracy so when we don't see it in other countries it always ponders me as to why they don't have the same principles. Of course, we are fortunate and other countries may not believe in the same ideas we uphold. This protest could possibly spark other protest and cause turmoil in the Middle East, something that the people of that region don't need anymore of. I hope to see us or neighboring countries help Yemen out and have the violence come to a stop.
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CIA Assassination
September 26, 2011
Recently in Kabul, an Afghan man employed by the U.S. government opened fire late Sunday night inside a CIA station. The shooter killed one American and another government employee. He also severely wounded another government employee. U.S. Embassy spokesman Gavin A. Sundwall described the building as an embassy annex compound, however many Afghan officials say that the building is used by the CIA. Sundwall went on the record as to say the motive of the shooting is unclear at the time but, "We mourn the loss of life in the incident as we mourn the loss of all life.” The fact that we are hearing about a shooting isn't surprising, but the fact that this shooting has happened only two weeks after the 20 hour attack on the U.S. embassy in Kabul is alarming. The trouble this country is facing affects both American and Afghanistan. Civil unrest is all but uncommon to the people who live in these types or areas. Sundwall says that, "The embassy has resumed business operation," but how can the embassy resume its business if no one is worried about what happened. With all the crazy things going on on a day to day basis in Kabul, someone has to take charge of the terrorist attacks.
My Opinion:
I feel bad for the Afghan people and the things they have to go through on a day to day basis. This is the last thing they needed. They have many problems to deal with and i hope that our government and their government work together to do more to help the country, rather than hurt the country. I think that this isn't the last of the bombings in Kabul. After all, this has been going on for decades now. I think the security system in the embassy needs to be upgraded and taught how to detect signs of infantry. I hope that the troubles they are encountering doesn't become a domestic issue that we have to face.
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Italian Issue
October 3, 2011
In Italy a girl by the name of Amanda Knox has been convicted of the sexual assault and murder of her roommatee, Meredith Kercher. Recently, Amanda appealed her 2009 conviction and the court's final decision is scheduled to be sometime in early October. On Monday Amanda addressed the court and said, "I’ve lost a friend in the worst, most brutal, most inexplicable way possible,” she said of the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher, a 21-year-old Briton who shared an apartment with Knox when they were both students in Perugia. “I’m paying with my life for things that I didn’t do.” Amanda's boyfriend, Sollecito was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his involvement in the murder of Meredith. Amanda received 26 years. They both claim to have had no part in the killing of Amanda's roommate. Amanda explains that, “She had her bedroom next to mine, she was killed in our own apartment. If I had been there that night, I would be dead,” Knox said. “But I was not there.” This case has caught audiences worldwide seeing as to how Amanda is a foreigner and her boyfriend comes off as calm and soft spoken. Amanda and her family can only hope that the jury will hear her side of the story and show either justice or mercy.
My Opinion:
Personally, i don't even believe Amanda. Just like their was not "enough" evidence to convict Casey Anthony, there is not "enough" evidence to agree upon the fact that Amanda is innocent and had absolutely nothing to do with killing Meredith. I would need more proof. It is an American student so it is easy for us as Americans to say that they are treating her unfairly because she is American, but the truth is there is not enough sufficient evidence to show that it was not Amanda. Who else could have killed and raped her roomate? If the Amanda's DNA is on the knife then there is enough evidence to prosecute her. Meredith didn't stab herself to death, so obviously someone did.
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Make Money to Lose Money
October 10, 2011
All over America and all over the world millionaires and billionaires alike are livid about the unfair taxes being placed on them. To decrease debt, people who make alot of money have to pay a larger amount of taxes. In other words, "What’s happening now is that more rich are being disparaged as “undeserving.” Blamed for the financial crisis, Wall Street types top the list. During the 1990s stock market boom, about half of Americans agreed that “people on Wall Street are as honest and moral as other people,” reports the Harris Poll. This year, only 26 percent think so. Two-thirds believe Wall Street's most successful people are over-payed." When you make plenty of money like these stock brokers or self made billionaires, its easy to say that yuo don't want to give it to the government. However, when you're poor it's just as easy to say that they don't need all their money and can help other poeple out. Robert Samuelson reports that, "However measured, the rich are besieged; the attacks almost certainly will intensify."
My Opinion:
Personally, i think this is somewhat unfair. Yes, these billionaires can sacrifice a couple of thousand dollars in extra taxes, but who are we to make them give up their hard earned money? It isn't fair for the government to stick their hands in our pockets to increase their's or seize the "debt-crisis" that the people of America had nothing to do with in the first place. You shouldn't be able to take someone's money and use us for whatever you have planned, that's taxation without representation. America, and other free countries who practice democracy are often hypocrites to their own rules.
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Drug War Out of Control?
October 17, 2011
Drugs in American society is nothing out of the norm. Drugs and alcohol have been apart of our everyday lives since races of all kinds established communities on our homeland. It seems as if they made it this far, nothing can or will stop them. However, Texas governor Rick Perry, strongly disagrees with that statement. Texas is one of the most important states in which the Mexican drug cartels bring in their drugs. It's right on the border and poses as the easiest way to bring in the drug dealer's profit. Rick Perry on the other hand, firmly stands his ground against these drug lords and refuses to let them intervene with not only his state, but his country. Alone among his Republican rivals running for president, the Texas governor has a small army at his disposal. Over the past three years, he has deployed it along his southern flank in a secretive, military-style campaign that his supporters deem absolutely necessary and successful and that his critics call an overzealous, expensive and mostly ineffective political stunt. Recently, in what became a shootout on the border along the Rio Grande, Perry's officials seized more than 1,200 pounds of marijuana!!!! The drug mules where pursued but never apprehended.
“You shoot a police officer, you’re going to get shot back at,” said Steven McCraw, Perry’s homeland security chief and director of the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The only reason details of the operation became public —usually kept under wraps — was because of the shots fired. The dawn chase along the river resulted in no arrests, no prosecutions and no drugs seized on the U.S. side. Texas officials say three traffickers may have been wounded, but nobody is really sure, because all of them escaped. It isn't crystal clear if Perry's efforts have all been effective, but they sure as heck are necessary.
My Opinion:
Honestly i think if Perry wants to take on these Mexican drug cartels, best of luck to him. I highly doubt any one man, let alone our corrupted government, can stop the "Drug War". i mean seriously, do you really think these kingpins do this all on their own? That no U.S. officials can stop them? Come on. We have the resources, the technology, and the power to stop anything we very well please. We couldn't stop these guys if we tried anyway. It's too late in the game for that now. Perry is a nice guy, he's trying, i'll give him that. But, i'd advice him to let things be, keep a low profile on trying to stop the drug war, and stay out the way of these cartels.
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Voting Worldwide
October 24, 2011
Democracy is everywhere! It is in places all over the world. On Sunday October 23, 2011 the people of Tunisia were granted the right to vote in their first real free election. This was also the first election of the Arab Spring, which began in this small North African nation and sent shock waves through the region. There were few reports of fraud or violence, and election officials said turnout was higher than expected, with an estimated 7 million of 10.4 million people eligible to vote. Officials also stated that they would release the results either today or early Tuesday morning. Tunisia has set a standard for other bordering countries to adopt, or take back, their principles of democracy. Egypt is scheduled to hold parliamentary elections in a month, the first since the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, and, with the declaration of the formal end of the regime of Moammar Gaddafi, Libyans are expected to go to the polls in eight months.
“Whatever the outcome is, it is our decision, it is not imposed on us,” said Ismail Trabelsi, 42, an environmental engineer who went to vote in the middle-class neighborhood of al-Aouina at 7 a.m. He waited in line for more than an hour to cast his ballot in a school, one of more than 4,000 polling stations. “We’ve waited 55 years for this moment,” he said. Because corruption is such a big part in politics in other countries, officials warned violators that they would be killed or prosecuted. Overall, the elections appeared to be a success, officials said.
“Revolts spread from Tunisia to Wall Street, and now democracy will spread from Tunisia to the world,” said Thameu Jaoua, 46, a civil engineer who had never cast a ballot before Sunday. The people of Tunisia finally have something to look forward to, a real democracy.
My Opinion:
I feel like the people of Tunisia are very lucky. Of course, democracy is overlooked in our country because we are granted the right to vote since birth. Often times people tend to forget the struggles a country or the people of a country had to go through so that future generations could vote. I believe the U.S., Tunisia, and any other country partaking in democracy is lucky to be doing so. I hope that the new president is a good man and the officials working for him are going to uphold good moral standards and continue to practice democracy. In the future our generation's kids will be learning about these people getting the privilege to vote.
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Bad News Bats
October 31, 2011
In the spirit of Halloween, I chose a story that surely fits this season and holiday well. Recently, alot of the bats that inhabit the U.S. have died off. Bats in America are near distinction. There are almost none left. In states like New York, Virginia, and Vermont, almost all the bats that once lived there are either dead or dieing of a widespread disease. The disease is known as, white-nose syndrome. A survey of six species at 42 sites in those states found that their numbers have declined by almost 90 percent. Alot of the local scientist and members of each state's health programs agree that an aggressive fungus known as, Geomyces destructans, is the reason behind all the death occurances in the bat population. Fortunately, the fact that scientist and geologist know what it is that is killing the bats, may lead to studies constructed around finding a cure for the disease. "It gives hope that a treatment could be found that would slow the progress of the disease", wildlife biologists said. However,t already be too late to save some bats in the Northeast. Two species could become extinct in Mid-Atlantic states in as few as seven years, scientists said. In 2009, biologists said at least 1 million bats had dropped dead over three years.
“And it’s absolutely gotten worse since then,” said Mylea Bayless, a conservation biologist for Bat Conservation International in Austin.
“Easily, the number of states and sites where it’s been found has doubled,” she said. “It’s probably far more than a million, or likely millions” of dead bats. The significant loss of insect-eating bats could lead to greater damage to agricultural crops and force farmers to spend more on pesticides. Geomyces destructans has been called athlete’s foot on steroids. It burns holes in the membrane that allows bats to flap their wings. Bats found alive amid hundreds of corpses in caves are often experiencing death spasms. Gudrun Wibbelt, a veterinary pathologist in wildlife diseases for the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research in Berlin, called it “a horrible death.” Bats plummet into a deep sleep during their winter-to-spring hibernation, driving their heart rates down, causing their bodies to cool. That’s when the disease, which covets low temperatures, strikes. Lesions develop on the hair and exposed skin of bats and a cotton-like fuzz often covers their noses. Small bodies plop on damp cave floors along the Appalachian trail from North Carolina to Vermont. If we as a country don't do something soon, there may never be another bat in our state, country, or films.My Opinion:
I think that something needs to be done. Not only does something need to be done, but it needs to be done soon. Bats rarely harm people and they are a big part of our ecosystem. If anything, bats kill insects, and seeing as to how i can not stand insects, bats are good in my book. I feel bad for these little varmets. They are dying a slow cold death and i sympathize for them. Maybe we can help scientist and geologist find a cure. Whatever can be done, should be done. If all we have to do is find the dead bats, and use the alive ones to make breakthroughs for a cure, then so be it. The bats deserve a chance to fight the disease!
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Wealth!
November 7, 2011
The wealth gap between younger and older Americans has stretched to the widest on record, worsened by a prolonged economic downturn that has wiped out job opportunities for young adults and saddled them with housing and college debt. The typical U.S. household headed by a person age 65 or older has a net worth 47 times greater than a household headed by someone under 35, according to an analysis of census data released Monday. While people typically accumulate assets as they age, this wealth gap is now more than double what it was in 2005 and nearly five times the 10-to-1 disparity a quarter-century ago, after adjusting for inflation.The analysis by the Pew Research Center reflects the impact of the economic downturn, which has hit young adults particularly hard. More are pursuing college or advanced degrees, taking on debt as they wait for the job market to recover. Others are struggling to pay mortgage costs on homes now worth less than when they were bought in the housing boom.The report, coming out before the Nov. 23 deadline for a special congressional committee to propose $1.2 trillion in budget cuts over 10 years, casts a spotlight on a government safety net that has buoyed older Americans on Social Security and Medicare amid wider cuts to education and other programs, including cash assistance for poor families. Complaints about wealth inequality, high unemployment and student debt also have been front and center at Occupy Wall Street protests around the country.
“It makes us wonder whether the extraordinary amount of resources we spend on retirees and their health care should be at least partially reallocated to those who are hurting worse than them,” said Harry Holzer, a labor economist and public policy professor at Georgetown University who called the magnitude of the wealth gap “striking.”
My Opinion:
I think this story is something that a lot of people will look at and just think nothing of the matter. However, this is mroe important than a lot of things that grab our attention. The fact that there are only a few multi-billionaires that are Americans is both alarming and disappointing. With all the advantages our society has to offer, it is sad to hear that the wealth gap is continuing to grow. People need to step it up a notch and decide on whether we are going to keep on the path to nowhere. The wealth gap not only affects us and our parents, but our kids and our grand kids as well.
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Hermain say, She say
November 14, 2011
Recenttly, the presidential primary elections have been heating up between both the Republicans and the Democrats. The current president, Barack Obama, is already suspected to be the primary for the Democrats. However, the Republican battle for primary is just starting to heat up and gain national exposure. Alot of the their debates have been nationally televised and have been on news channels and radio shows all over the country. There has not been alot of drama surrounding the race until recently. In recent news, four women have come forward and admitted that Hermain Cain, one of the forerunners in the Republican election, had previously sexually harassed them. The charges where never proven or even brought to light until recently. Many people working with the Hermain Cain election campgain have denied the allegations and call them, "A way to stirr up negative conversations." A few days ago, Gloria Cain, Hermain Cain's wife, vouched for her husband and said that, "You hear the graphic allegations, and we know that would have been something that’s totally disrespectful of her as a woman. And I know the type of person he is. He totally respects women." In recent polls Cain's support from Republican women only dropped two percent, but i wonder will these allegations whether they be true or false, hurt him in the long run.
My Opinion:
Hermain Cain is not doing what he needs to do to get these allegations dissolved. If he did not do what these girls say he did, why won't he stand up for himself and show some guts? Why don't he just ask for cold hard facts, evidence, and proof? That will make people believe him if he is really innocent. Cain knows that this is going to hurt him whether he wants to admit it or not. He also knows that this national exposure comes at a price. People are going to lie and find out things about him that he may want to keep secret. It is up to him to step up and knock back all the rumors, or just simply tell the truth.
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Accused in Syracuse
November 28, 2011
In recent news, a lot of big time coaches at high profile D1 schools have attracted the spotlight. The spotlight however, has not been a bright one. As many of you may know the assistant football coach at Penn State was fired for molesting children, now there are een more coaches being accused for wrong doings. Syracuse's assistant man basketball coach,Bernie Fine, was fired Sunday by Syracuse University after a third man accused the assistant basketball coach of molesting him nine years ago.
“At the direction of Chancellor Cantor, Bernie Fine’s employment with Syracuse University has been terminated, effective immediately,” Kevin Quinn, the school’s senior vice president for public affairs, said in a statement.
The 65-year-old Fine was in his 36th season at his alma mater. He had the longest active streak of consecutive seasons at one school among assistant coaches in Division I.
Zach Tomaselli, 23, of Lewiston, Maine, said Sunday that he told police that Fine molested him in 2002 in a Pittsburgh hotel room. He said Fine touched him “multiple” times in that one incident.
He was the third accuser to come forward in the investigation of child molestation allegations against Fine.
Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said he supported the university’s decision to fire his longtime assistant and expressed regret for his initial statements that might have been “insensitive to victims of abuse.
“The allegations that have come forth today are disturbing and deeply troubling,” Boeheim said in a statement released by the school. “I am personally very shocked because I have never witnessed any of the activities that have been alleged. I believe the university took the appropriate step tonight. What is most important is that this matter be fully investigated and that anyone with information be supported to come forward so that the truth can be found. I deeply regret any statements I made that might have inhibited that from occurring or been insensitive to victims of abuse. Boeheim still supports his long time friend, but people everywhere are wondering, who's next on the list?
My Opinion:
I think Fine is an idiot. People know that touching little kids is gross, and even if they don't know that much, they know it is illegal to do so. Touching children is a crime and you would think that people who easily attract media attention wouldn't do anything to jeopardize their families, themselves, or their schools. Fine is going to go to prison just like the assistant at Penn State who got caught. I also wonder if Boehiem is going to suffer as well, just like Joe Paterno did. Whatever happens next, I hope the people who were harmed by Fine can find closure and carry on with their lives. People are sick!! Hide your kids, hide your wife, hide your husband, because they are raping everyone out here.
