T. Mann: The Death Penalty

The death penalty has been around for centuries and I think that It would still remain that way unless all people rise up against it. But that is not the case, many people have lost their loved ones by murder, and those people who committed the crime are currently serving life in prison and waiting for their execution. Those people who lost their loved ones, the only thing they want is to have that person who committed the crime executed and if they could they could they would do it themselves, the only thing those people have toward that person is pure grief.

I thing that you can't say that it is harsh or barbaric to punish someone by executing them in prison, because you might feel differently if that person murdered your wife or your kids, or your best friend anyone that you love and close to. Right now if non of those things happen to you, you will feel sorry for that person and you would thing that they are treated badly and something harsh is being done to them. But on the flip side you have no idea what those people are cable of and what they've done. Those people have no life in them, they have no feelings, no pain, and no regrets. They will kill you at any chance they get. But they are also humans, only their acts and actions are different than the normal person, but they were once a little kid just like everyone else, their harsh acts is often a caused of a bad childhood. But anyways the reason that the death penalty is still going on is because, it has never been brought up, it seems that no one has a problem with it, and this is what I think, if you don't want to spend the rest of your life in prison and die in prison, its very simple, don't do anything that is against the law, stay out of trouble. To reach the death penalty you must of done something very out of the line unacceptable. One other reason that the death penalty still remains in our society is because the prisons are getting filled up, and the option to reduce the increase it to execute the prisoners by sending electricity through their bodes or injecting them with poison.

I must say the most most barbaric execution that I've seen was the execution of Saddam Hussein, although I do think that he deserves punishment but the punishment of hanging was too barbaric and medieval for me, and on top of that posting the execution on various website for people to see. I think that by doing so we are no different form those people, by executing them in those harsh ways, we are just as bad as they are. I understand that those people executed are our enemies, but even enemies can show respect. It is God's duty to judge people, not the government. We all did something bad in our lives and we still do, no body is perfect.

Healthy

obesity is a serious problem in America always has been and It will always be as long as there is no exercise and poor nutrition. "More than 66 percent of Americans are overweight or obese", but the numbers are growing. Poor eating habits can lead to serious health risks resulting in heart disease and high blood pressure which could lead to death. People should stop to consider what nutritional value their meals has instead of eating whatever is on their plate, and calories are on of the big factors of obesity, people can get cancer by consuming too much sugar. People who are affected by obesity include every race and ethnicity, gender, and age group, specially the children who now start at a very young age, some children are affected by obesity because of their parents eating habits and it becomes like a disease, in other words an addiction to food. People who are obese have a high risk of cardiovascular disease, and coronary heart disease is America’s number one killer and it could lead to disability. Being obese can also lead to hip, back, and foot problems making it difficult to walk and that's the result of the strain that obesity puts on the body and that can make walking and everyday activities difficult. I think that the problem of obesity is complex, like the French say its never too late to do good. The government needs to regulate the food industry and schools have responsibilities to children. They should include mandatory exercise programs in the school curriculum "People don’t know that a 20-minute walk burns about 100 calories,” said Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom and “People always overestimate the calories consumed in exercise, and underestimate the calories in food they are eating.” Schools should also remove candy and soft drink machines specially in Elementary schools, middle schools and high schools. Restaurants can also help by serving smaller portions but for the price's worth of course. But most importantly we should also take responsibility for our own health by watching what we eat and when we eat, because since I moved here to the United States what I noticed in people is that they eat what they want and when they want, there is no time management when it comes to eating. People can also educate themselves by simply learning about food and nutrition. Obesity is not a problem we have to accept, Although this disease can lead to serious health problems, there are solutions, and we have the ability to make the right changes.

http://www.nytimes.com/ref/health/healthguide/esn-obesity-ess.html

Commentary "The Iraq War"

I totally agree with Sara's point of view regarding the Iraq war, at first everyone believed that the war in Iraq was to fight terrorism and find the nuclear weapons that the government said that Iraq possessed but all of that did not exist at least the nuclear weapons, but even though we are the most powerful country in the world we cannot fight terrorism by ourselves its a big responsibility and by going to war the government got its self in a big pond of mud and they don't have the shoes for it. Before going to war president Bush asked support form China and mostly form former president Jacques Chirac but he refused and asked president Bush to wait and reconsider his decision about the war, but president Bush was pressured by vice president Dick Cheney and prime minister Tony Blair who by the way was his idea to announce war on Iraq.

Without the support of other countries we are now facing huge debts because we are paying everything from our pokets, while other countries sit and let America do all the dirty work. If this war is called "The War against Terror" than why are we the only once fighting it? other countries are affected by terrorism as well as we are look at what happen in Madrid and London for example. Like Sara mentioned in her blog those Billions of dollars that were spent on war could have been spent here at home by providing health insurance, education and many other things that we don't have the villages to because of this war. I remember when gas used to be 75c a gallon and now its $3.25 a gallon our economy is going down the drain, this war has caused nothing but pain and frustration it made the situation even worst, since the war began in 2003 I never heard anything good on the news about this war except for troops dying everyday, what a waist. I support Sara's statement that she made towards the end of her argument that " We are supposed to be living in a democratic country but yet are involved in a war that is opposed by a massive amount of the population". At this point I believe that the government has broken all the rules and does not listen to its people. Even if we pull out of war now it might make the situation even worst because the wound is too deep.

sarasworldofpolitics

Immigration

America has many problems and a full agenda. One of these problems is immigration, which has a dramatic increase in the population and has its own problems. President Bush requested for a change in the nation's immigration laws and proposed to create a quest worker program that would allow immigrants to enter the borders legally and once the time period provided in the U.S. expires the immigrants have to go back to their native country until next time, its like asking for a Visa.

I like the idea of president Bush and I respect his help towards Immigrants but how are we going to be able to control them after we give them the temporary documents, how do we know that they went back to their native country, I mean I know that the government might keep some kind of record that tells them when its time for the Immigrants to go back to their country, but I mean how would the government know for a fact that the immigrants went back to their country and not in the United States living without legal papers, in that case the government would still have a problem with Immigration and might lose money by trying to create this program.

When the Republicans took over the House they rejected President Bush's plan by creating a bill and instead requested for deportation of all illegal immigrants and said that it would be against the law to offer them any help. I agree with the republicans on this subject because if we were to give the illegal immigrants papers what kind of message are we sending to all the countries, if we were to give them papers then that means anybody can come in through the borders and it would be OK because don't worry America will provide you papers and you will be taken care of even though you crossed illegally LOL.

Indeed it is a felony and it is against the law, we have to show other countries and nations that we are tough not mean but tough in protecting our borders and our people, we have to know who is coming in. A group of senators agreed on a bill that would create a quest worker program and provide citizenship to illegal immigrants and President Bush gave his full support but the Republicans rejected it and called it an "amnesty" plan. In my opinion if the bill passed America as we know it will never be the same, there would be too many people, too many problems, too much money will be spent and a hell of a time to give each immigrant legal papers and like the Republicans said it is an "amnesty" plan you cannot hand legal papers to someone who crossed the borders without any government's approval and then give them a citizenship, its like giving them grand prize but only because they did an illegal thing.

It seems like we are encouraging more people to come in through our borders. The government should make a plan that would focus on the national security concerns and law enforcement concerns before moving into elements addressing quest workers and creating a route for illegal immigrants to gain legal status. The point is that we have to know who is coming through our borders because there could be anybody coming through like terrorists for example, just recently about 3 month ago law enforcement at the borders spotted an Iraqi making a brake trough the borders and was arrested for questioning, because its just weird to have an Iraqi crossing the border from Mexico, all I know is that we have to protect our selves and our borders and it is indeed illegal to provide a citizenship to someone who crossed the borders illegally. Because they might think to themselves that since they crossed the borders illegally and got away with it and nonetheless was given a citizenship, what else can they get away with.

Bush Says Iran Nuclear Project Raises War Risk

At a conference today Oct,17 President Bush warned that Iran would be raising a "World War III" if they possess nuclear weapons and believed that Russia still wanted to prevent Iran from developing such weapons. Iran contends that its nuclear program is purely peaceful, but President Bush said that "if Iran had a nuclear weapon, it'd be dangerous threat to the world peace," he also tooled people if they are interested in preventing World War III, it seems like they ought to be interested in preventing them form having the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon. Mr. Bush also mentioned that he takes the threat of Iran with a nuclear weapon very seriously. The united States has said that it is pursuing a diplomatic approach to Iran, including the threat of a new round of united Nations sanctions, but refused to rule out military action to halt Iran's nuclear program. But on Tuesday in Tehran Mr.Putin said that not only should we reject the use of force, but not to even mention it. President Putin has gone further, questioning what evidence the Americans and French have for asserting that I ran intends to make nuclear weapons.


I really enjoyed reading this article because its persuasive, making you want to read more and find out more about this issue. It also includes the French and the Russians president's arguments and opinions regrading this subject and also each others arguments. I personally fear for my safety and the safety of my country and it interest me to find out out about this issue and how is it dealt with , and what kind of actions are being taken. In my opinion I don't know why Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons while its people are starving and need more important things in their lives, what are they going to do with such weapons , are they going to fight Godzilla? similar to Korea who is developing nuclear weapons a poor country and it sounds weird that these countries are developing nuclear weapons. In this case I agree 100% with president Bush regarding this issue about Iran developing nuclear weapons. I think that it is in our best interest to keep our guards up on this, which Mr.Bush is doing and should be doing as a president. I recommend for everyone to read this article on the New York Times, it is very serious and it effects everyone.

Bush Says Iran Nuclear Project Raises War Risk

At a conference today Oct,17 President Bush warned that Iran would be raising a "World War III" if they possess nuclear weapons and believed that Russia still wanted to prevent Iran from developing such weapons. Iran contends that its nuclear program is purely peaceful, but President Bush said that "if Iran had a nuclear weapon, it'd be dangerous threat to the world peace," he also tooled people if they are interested in preventing World War III, it seems like they ought to be interested in preventing them form having the knowledge necessary to make a nuclear weapon. Mr. Bush also mentioned that he takes the threat of Iran with a nuclear weapon very seriously. The united States has said that it is pursuing a diplomatic approach to Iran, including the threat of a new round of united Nations sanctions, but refused to rule out military action to halt Iran's nuclear program. But on Tuesday in Tehran Mr.Putin said that not only should we reject the use of force, but not to even mention it. President Putin has gone further, questioning what evidence the Americans and French have for asserting that I ran intends to make nuclear weapons.


I really enjoyed reading this article because its persuasive, making you want to read more and find out more about this issue. It also includes the French and the Russians president's arguments and opinions regrading this subject and also each others arguments. I personally fear for my safety and the safety of my country and it interest me to find out out about this issue and how is it dealt with , and what kind of actions are being taken. In my opinion I don't know why Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons while its people are starving and need more important things in their lives, what are they going to do with such weapons , are they going to fight Godzilla? similar to Korea who is developing nuclear weapons a poor country and it sounds weird that these countries are developing nuclear weapons. In this case I agree 100% with president Bush regarding this issue about Iran developing nuclear weapons. I think that it is in our best interest to keep our guards up on this, which Mr.Bush is doing and should be doing as a president. I recommend for everyone to read this article on the New York Times, it very serious and it effects everyone.

Our Schools Must Do Better

"Our Schools Must Do Better" a very persuasive title from Bob Herbert from the New York Times discussing what is needed to improve our educational system. The article opens with Herbert asking a high school kid who the vice president of the united states was and the kid's response is " I don't know". The federal test results showed some improvement in public school math and reading scores but that is not enough, there is so much more that needs to be done. specially that now a four-year degree is all but mandatory for building and sustaining a middle-class standard of living in the U.S. says Herbert. Over the next 20 or 30 years, when today's children are raising children of their own in an ever more technologically advanced and globalized society, the educatonal requirements will only grow more rigorous and unforgiving. Herbert says that "What is needed is a wholesale transformation of the public system from the broken down postwar model of the pat 50 or 60 years. Herbert spoke with professor Thomas Kane who specializes in education and economics at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and this is what he had to say "We're not good at thinking about magnitudes. we've got a bunch of little things that we think are moving in the right direction, but we haven't stepped back and thought, OK.; how big an improvement are we really talking about?" The article goes on about the steps and the things that needs to be improved like teachers and to compare to other successful schools and to maybe learn from them. I really enjoyed reading this article and I am sure that you will too, in my opinion this is a topic that needs to be discussed and which needs to be addressed. What I liked about this article is the examples the author used and the resources and also by talking about this subject with professor Thomas Kane who has a background in education.