Favorite Holiday

My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving marks the beginning of the Christmas season, without those obnoxious people stressing over buying presents. I enjoy relaxing and spending time with my family over the Thanksgiving break without any stress. We get school off over Thanksgiving which comes as a nice break, and then of course there is the food!

Political Cartoon #3

This political cartoon was drawn by Nate Beeler, published by the Washington Examiner on December 12, 2009. The cartoon is acknowledging the recent push to get the Health care bill passed in the Senate before the winter recess. The cartoonist is saying that there is an urge to just simply get the bill passed by whatever means neccessary, as long as it's before break. Democrats are trying as hard as the can to sway the more conservative democrats into siding with the bill. They have it set in their minds that the most important thing is to pass the bill before this imaginary holiday deadline passes. I think it would be nice to have the bill passed before the break, but I am not too keen on them simply passing it just because they want it to be passed. It has to be done properly and with thought. It should not be rushed.

Should religous symbols be allowed for public display?

I certainly have no problem with religous symbols being displayed in public places. Though I am not the most religous person, I definitely do not get offended by displays of other religions. As long as all religions have the opportunity to display something on public property, and it's not just solely one religion allowed, then I think it is fine. People are too worried these days about being politically correct, and I think it is rather silly. Plus, once religious symbols are banned from public property, then starts everything else. There would be issues of what should and should not be censored and what exactly constitutes a religious symbol. There are religious symbols all around us anyway. Would then "In God We Trust" have to be removed from the dollar bill? Should religious symbols be banned from public property, then America would have a tiny bit less freedom, and it would just keep spiraling out of control. Seeing a different religion's symbol displayed does not hurt anyone, and people need to learn to stop with this political correctness.

Health Care Bill

The new health care bill is a big political issue right now. The House of Representatives recently passed their version of a health care billed, and a version of a new health care bill is now being debated in the senate. However, it isn't going quite as smoothly as some may want in the Senate as in the House. There is quite a lot of talk of controversy in the Senate currently. Republicans are basically completely against the bill and there is a big push for conservative democrats to vote for the bill. I agree completely with the universal healthcare concept, but I am not so sure what to make of these troubles getting the bill passed in the Senate. Though there is a huge push for the bill to be passed before winter recess, I honestly don't think it will be. This should not be a rushed effort, and I think a lot more people need to be on board with the upcoming bill in order for it to be passed.

Political Cartoon #2

This cartoon, Obama's Job Program, was drawn by Jimmy Marqulies on December 4th, 2009 in the Record of Hackensack, New Jersey. The point of it is basically to say that Obama is going the wrong way in beating unemployement. Since Obama is sending 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, the cartoonist is pointing out that this is not the way to decrease the unemployment rate. He clearly does not agree with the idea of sending more troops to Afghanistan in the first place, let alone it be a way for more Americans to get jobs. I hope troops will eventually be gradually be sent back home, and the unemployement rate can be lowered the right way.

Political Cartoon #1

This cartoon is basically showing the irony of the Foot Hood killings. Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, an army psychiatrist, killed 13 people during the Fort Hood Massacre. After soldiers would come back from Afghanistan with post traumatic stress disorder, they would go see Hasan for help. The problem is, Hasan really needed the help more than they did. Hasan is an Islamic Extremist who would go under ramages on Muslims being attacked by Americans. Hasan was not willing to fight against Muslims, but ended up killing his own people. Hasan was one of the only people the Americans could go to for help as a psychiatrist, but he was actually on the side of the extremists, the same people they were fighting. Those who went to Hasan for help were the ones who could tell something was up, that Hasan held extremist views.

http://www.politicalcartoons.com/cartoon/9b9f7e45-c595-4733-9d02-3e5c0c587c92.html

New Principal

Well first off, Mr. Bates was announced as the new principal of Herndon High School on Friday! As the new principal, he should have should have great leadership qualities. He needs to be able to lead and encourage students with great enthusiasm. He also actually needs to be involved in school activities, instead of being visible to students once in a blue moon. The new principal needs to be approachable as well, and needs to be able to listen to problems the school is facing and effectively change them. Also, I hope no silly new policies are implemented.

Personal Response: Swine Flu, What to do?

For the past few months, all I feel like I have been hearing about is swine flu. Swine flu this, swine flu that. The media has certainly not helped this by hyping up the coverage about H1N1. Some people argue that schools need to be closed to stop the spreading of this flu. I do think that if the amount of kids out in each class gets too out of hand then maybe schools do need to close. However, right now schools schould be kept open. Children just need to wash their hands before meals. Also, if anyone is sick, they simply should not go out in public until he or she is better. The government also promised a swine flu vaccination but there is a shortage in the number of vaccinations available. That and, the vaccinations came out so late that they are predicted to be to late to even be helpful. I personally am weary of getting the vaccination because I believe the government was under so much pressure to get them out to the public that they may not be as tested as they should be.
I heard one statistic on the radio that said an estimated 60% of the population is predicted to get the swine flu this season. In my opinion, people need to just keep up with washing their hands and maintaining healthy immune sytems, schools should close if necessary, and people who are sick need to stay home until they are well again so the rest of the public is not uneccesarily exposed.

Current Event #6

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/oct/31/obama-fresh-signs-economic-growth/

Obama: Fresh signs of economic growth

I read an article from the Washington Times to get a more conservative point of view this week. Even though the economy is slowly beginning to grow, Obama laid to rest this excitement about a growing economy. More important on his mind is the huge number of unemployed Americans. September marked a 9.8% unemployement rate, and the article stated that October may in fact be higher. Obama made it clear that even though the economy is doing better, hard times will still be ahead.
I personally find it great that over July to September, the economy grew 3.5%. I also realize however that no one should be celebrating just yet. Just a few months ago, some were even predicting a second Great Depression. So though the economy is beginning to grow again, the unemployement rate is still substantially high. The employement rate is a key factor in a prosperous economy. I agree that one of the most important issues right now is stimulating the economy to be sure that jobs are created and saved. This new month of November should not top October's unemployment rate.

Current Event #5

http://www.cnn.com/2009/TRAVEL/10/22/airliner.fly.by/index.html

Airliner crew flies 150 miles past airport

This article talks about a Northwest Airlines flight overshooting its destination by about 150 miles. Communication was lost between Air Traffic Control and the plane for more than an hour. After the plane continued to fly 150 past the destination, communication was finally established again. The pilots claimed to have been in a heated argument, making them lose their sense of time and space, but they are actually being accused of sleeping on thee job.
In some ways, I feel like too big of a deal is being made about this, because mistakes are made all the time, but in other ways I think it is unacceptable for things like this to happen, especially after 9/11. Apparently the agency is investigating the matter, which I am in agreement with. If communication was lost, it sounds to me like something fishy was going on, whether it be the pilots were sleeping or if they were in a heated discussion over airline policy like they actually said. Either way, neither should be tolerated because people need to be able to trust that airlines will take people to their destination safely. For instance, there has been very few cases of pilots falling asleep on the job, once of them being in February of 2008, when two pilots fell asleep and flew past their destination 26 miles. The pilots we are talking about here traveled over 150 miles past, which is a big difference. It just sounds like something is being convered up. People need to be able to trust having safe travel on planes, and if agencies need to set the precedent by making it clear with these two pilots that sleeping on the job, or engaging in heated discussions is strictly prohibited unnecessary accidents happen, then so be it.

Who Will Win Virginia's Governor's Race?

Even though I don't necessarily agree with all of his views, I think that Bob McDonnell will win the race for governor in Virginia. I think his more conservative views will appeal to Virginia more as a whole than Deeds's will. In the few polls I have seen recently, McDonnell has been predicted to win the race. Virginia has long been a Republican state (although maybe not in the past few elections), and I don't think this election will be much different. McDonnell was in fact hurt by the social conservative views he expressed a while back about women, but I still don't think this alone is enough to stop him from winning. Deeds however was honest and stated that taxes were going to be needed to be raised for transportation, which I think will be very damaging. The people in Virginia are probably generally going to be very unsupportive of any higher taxes during these economically hard times.

Current Event #4

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/16/AR2009101602613.html

Fairfax County Schools Facing Budget Shortfall, Drastic Cuts

This article talks about the projected $176 million budget shortfall next year in a system very close to home, the Farifax County School system. Even though Fairfax County is Virginia's largest school system, it gets much, much less of the budget allocated from Richmond than other school systems such as Prince William County and other areas in need. However, next year it seems that Fairfax County is going to be in need as well. A $176 million budget shortfall is too much money to even think about making up and continuing with the school year as if nothing has changed. As the article stated, for example, even if Fairfax County removed all foreign language instruction from all elementary schools, only $2 million would be saved. Removing full-day kindergarten from 67 schools would only save $13 million. Even if all the plans for saving were approved, Fairfax County would not even come close to filling in the $176 million gap. Clearly, all the cutting back on programs is really going to negatively impact Fairfax County. Not much else but cutting programs can be done to help the budget until the economy improves. I know last year when the high school swim program was considering being cut to help for the budget this year, I would not have minded paying an extra fee to still be a part of the team. However, students cannot pay for everything, and some things will have to be cut. Some people may protest all the cutting of staff and prgrams, but if there is no money, there is really no choice. Next year is going to be a harsh year. Oh well, at least it is my last year in FCPS. But as for my brother and sister...

Biggest Political Issue Facing Virginia

I believe the biggest political issue currently facing Virginia is the lack of funding for adequete transportation.The funding of transpotation needs to be a much higher priority for Virginia's political leaders. With the congestion in Virginia's traffic as bad as it is, there is clearly a need for improvement. The traffic here is terrible. However, the question is, where is the money going to come from for that improvement to happen? For new roads to be built, taxes would need to be raised. However, no one wants to pay higher taxes with the state of the current recession. This is why it is such a problem.

Current Event #3

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33251876/ns/politics-washington_post/

Nobel-winner Obama stirs passions yet again
Deluge of response includes all the divisiveness of presidential campaign

This article talks about the nobel peace prize which Obama recently won. Obama became the third sitting president in history to get the award and was just as surprised himself to recieve it as was the public. There has been two reactions to Obama being awarded this--one, a positive, celebratory attitude in which supporters view Obama as deserving of the award, and another attitude in which critics view Obama as undeserving. Those who are in support of Obama recieving the award believe Obama is bringing the world together- bringing hope for progress, and has made history by becoming the first African American president which opens up equality to all. Critics view Obama is only being awarded it because of his charismatic ways, and his ability to talk a great game. They say he has not actually accomplished anything, and is therefore undeserving.
As for me I think Obama was absolutely deserving of this award. It will remind him of what he initially set out to accomplish and promised to accomplish and it will bring hope to the public for progress. Obama has changed the perceptions of many abot racial equality, and has made America's image to the rest of the world much better. Obama now needs to carry out his plan for progress in America and like Obama said, "I will accept this award as a call to action."

Grade Obama

Overall I would give Obama a C+ (the war on terror really brought his average down), but here is how I would break it down for each section:

Economic Downturn - B: First of all it is fair to mention that it is not Obama's fault that he now has to sort through the mess of the eight years from George Bush, where capitalism was running strong. He can't be expected to turn around the economy in such a short period of time. Therefore, I give him a good grade because of his effort for trying. I like that things are beginning to improve on the whole and that he is introducuing accountability which is the responsible thing to do. However, he shouldn't have allowed the millions of dollars of bonuses to the CEO's to pass through when workers were being cut from their jobs right and left.

Health Care- B: I am giving Obama a B on this too because I agree with him that the health care system absolutely needs to be reformed. Everyone should be entitled to health care regardless of income because it is not humane to exclude people based on their ability to pay. He is trying to reform it despite the opposition from those who have probably never had to deal with not being able to afford proper health care for their families, therefore he gets a good grade from me.

War on Terror- D+: I believe Obama was naive in his election speeches- he promised to bring troops home but so far little has been done concerning that matter. Since his election, reality has kind of set in about the war, and the fact that he is not just going to be able to send troops home like he had promised. What he has done is just switched the focus to Afghanistan, and is now sending troops there. Afghanistan is a much worse place to fight. There will undoubtedly be more deaths from Afghanistan because of the rugged terrain which is going to be almost impossible to fight in. There is generational hatred in Afghanistan, where every generation exhibits hatred towards America becuase they have lost their grandparents, brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, you name it from killings by America. It would be better to just cut the losses nowand just get out rather than dealing with many unnecessary deaths of Americans. However, it should be mentioned that Obama did come into this in a tough position.

Current Event #2

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33161911/ns/politics-health_care_reform//

Health care bills could mean hardship for many
Middle-class Americans would still struggle to pay insurance

This article covers the current issue of affordable health care insurance for all. Currently Obama is trying to change health insurance so that all Americans would be required to get insurance, whether it be through work, government programs, or paying for it themselves. With the proposed plans, a big empasis of government subsides is being given to those families who are classified as poor- families of four averaging a total family income of $22,000 or less a year. Wealthy Americans would also have no problem paying for health insurance. The problem, however, is that the middle class Americans seem to being getting forgotten. As a family's total income increases, the amount that the government would give for breaks in health insurance in subsides greatly decreases. Middle class families with solid incomes would not be given nearly enough help to cover the cost of insurance. For a lot of families, this would be fine since most big employers generally pay for health care through work. However, this would be a major problem for those middle class families who are self-employed or work through a small buisness. Clearly, this plan needs to be looked at again. If Obama's goal is to be sure all Americans have coverage, all social groups need to be taken care of. I feel like this is a step in the right direction, but more needs to be done to make sure that middle class Americans aren't paying a huge chunk of their salary towards health care while others are only paying a small fraction. No groups should be left behind.

Discuss one political issue you are personally interested in

One political issue I am particularly interested in is that of health care. No one should be denied adequete health care because of his or her inability to pay. Approximately 60% of Americans have private health care insurance, while 15% of Americans have no health care insurance. With about 15 out of every 100 Americans with no health insurace, clearly there is a need to reform. Heath care should be affordable to everyone. No one should be denied something as basic as his or her own health and well-being. America is definitely behind the game, with almost all other industrialized countries offering universal health care. I am not saying that universal health care is necessarily the best option for America because it does have it's drawbacks, but it is clear that the current way the health care works in America does not work. I think this is an important issue because it is something that affects all Americans, whether they have health insurance or not. No one wants to see someone close to them fall very sick because he or she is unable to pay for treatment.

Current Event #1

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33044676/ns/us_news-education/

Obama would curtail summer vacation
President says American kids spend too little time in school

This article recently published on msnbc makes apparent that the schools in the United States are falling behind adademically compared to the rest of the world. The United States has been lagging behind internationally for years, with countries in Europe and Asia outperforming the United States in categories such as math, science, and literacy. In the article, Barack Obama states, "But the challenges of a new century demand more time in the classroom." This is saying that the United States needs to build the schools back up because if the United States falls behind with it's schools, then the country as a whole will also fall behind the rest of the world technologically and economically. The United States needs to keep up with the new advances that the rest of the world is making, and the way to do this is to go to the core of where the learning starts - the grade schools.
In the article, it becomes clear that American schools simply do not have as much classroom time as other schools worldwide do. Obama and other supporters, such as Arne Duncan, the Education secretary, feel that adding extra school time to public schools would help close this educational gap. The article compares the best ways to add extra time to public schools, whether it be adding extra hours to the school day or adding extra days to the school year. From prior studies, test scores have been increased more when minutes have been added to the school day rather than extra days added per year.
Personally, I believe the most effective way to add in more school time would be to take away the long summer and change the system to year round schooling. The agrarian days with kids working on the field during summer break are over, and the long summer holiday sets students back because the first few months back at school have to be spent refreshing students of what was lost over the summer. Also, I think another effective way of boosting the test scores of the United States as a whole would be to add more after school programs for students. This would be especially beneficial to students who are more disadvantaged because they would be safe and be able to get extra adademic enrichment that they may otherwise not be able to get. One last point I would like to add is that in Northern Virginia we may not be able to see this lagging of the United States because we are in a sort of bubble from the rest of the country, but it is definitely a major problem.

What political party are you most closely aligned with? Why?

The political party I would most associate myself with is the democratic party. This is mainly because I believe in money being spread out, rather than a small percentage of the populatioin controlling a large portion of the money. Utility companies, for example, should be government owned rather than being there to make a profit. Also, I believe in benefits to the working class. I think things such as health care should be available to all, not just those who can afford it. The poor, elderly, disabled, and unemployed should be allowed access to health care just like others and should not be disadvantaged just because of their social status. I also believe the democratic party is just more geared towards the average American, rather than the few wealthy Americans who have ridiculous amounts of money.