My father is not letting my sisters go to school tomorrow.
And I'm only going because I have a field trip that leaves right when school starts.
Apparently, a "hit list" was found at Jeff High School. Frankly, I don't find this news, this kind of thing happens frequently from what I hear. However, due to the VT tragedy, the entire town is in an uproar.
I understand that all threats should be taken seriously, but taking your kids out of school due to fear, that is a bit over the top.
From what I hear, Jeff is a scary place. Gangs run rampant and police are a noticeable presence. At my school, it is quite the contrary. We have a nice school with nearly invisible police presence and I would never think of my school when I think about school violence.
Shouldn't parents feel safe enough with the security at their schools to send their kids there? I personally would still go to school, because if I don't, they win. These people are nothing more than terrorists, end of story.
While there isn't a clear thesis to this blog, the point is that kids need to have the courage to speak up when they see something happening, and responses need to be quick. And we need to stop treating evil with kiddie gloves, unless we want to anti-up with 32 lives.
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Welcome!
I should tell you this right from the get go-
I’m a Republican.
I am a republican, I support the war in Iraq, I think global warming is completely fictitious, and I support the President completely. I know, writing this is the city of Lafayette is like willingly throwing myself into a pit of lions, but it’s the truth.
And that is the point. Nowadays, people are attacked for their political beliefs more than ever. I remember a time, back when gas had just crossed $1 a gallon, and when our nation was unified in a fight against those who viciously murdered over 3,000 of our citizens. Back when liberals and conservatives joined together to pass legislation to make that fight easier, and back when we all agreed that Saddam Hussein was a threat that needed to be taken out
Those were the good old days.
The political divide today is greater than ever before. Democrats who were so eager to go after bin Laden and Hussein six year ago are now saying they were misled, that they had no idea what they were voting for.
Misled? What is so misleading about bin Laden sending his followers to hijack airplanes and kill thousands of Americans? Or how about Hussein killing hundreds of thousands of his people? Our intelligence about weapons of mass destruction may have been wrong, but so was Britain’s intelligence and Russia’s, and Russian doesn’t like us enough to fake intelligence reports to our benefit.
But the real question is, do elected officials ever know what they’re voting for? Most politicians never read the entire write-up of a bill before voting for it or sit for all of the hearings about the bill. So, you could say that every politician is misled and has no idea what they are voting for.
Another problem with the American political system is that people refuse to acknowledge any views of facts from the other side. Democrats refuse to see the link between Iran and the violence in Iraq, and Republicans refuse to see that there are any detrimental effects to the environment. It may sound completely bizarre, but what happens in a small African country can, in fact, have huge ramifications here.
Here is an example. Last month, Iran captured 15 British sailors and took them hostage. Iran is already in hot waters with the world community. As soon as they took these people hostage, oil prices skyrocketed. Oil prices have a direct relationship with gas prices. And what do you need in your car to take your girl/boyfriend on a date? That’s right, gas! And if Iran keeps interfering with world events, I have a feeling you’ll be less and less likely to drive all over town on your dates.
Now, more than ever, we need a revision to the American political process. I know that the 2004 election was hyped as the most important we will ever see, but this is not so. In 2004 we had an incumbent president whose ideals we all knew and understood. In 2008, the field is wide open. The pool of possible presidential hopefuls, grows by the day. All of them have ideas as to how American needs to proceed, and at least one of them is still hopeful enough to think that real change can come.
Over spring break I received a piece of mail from Rudy Giuliani’s Presidential Exploratory Committee. In the letter that came with it, Giuliani (or his professional letter writer) wrote about how America is in need of a new sense of optimism. I believe this is true. Americans need to stop watching Survivor and start watching Studio B. They need to believe that they do have a say in the government, no matter what politicians may imply. Then, and only then, will American start to change.
And maybe, if we’re lucky, become unified once again.
That is probably the best introduction I can give to me. It is my latest editorial for my high school paper. While I am only 18, I am very involved in politics, and hope to pursue a career in journalism. This blog will be my place for ramblings, praise, punishment, and calling out those who I think are spining the truth faster than a top. Enjoy! It's going to be a bumpy ride...
I’m a Republican.
I am a republican, I support the war in Iraq, I think global warming is completely fictitious, and I support the President completely. I know, writing this is the city of Lafayette is like willingly throwing myself into a pit of lions, but it’s the truth.
And that is the point. Nowadays, people are attacked for their political beliefs more than ever. I remember a time, back when gas had just crossed $1 a gallon, and when our nation was unified in a fight against those who viciously murdered over 3,000 of our citizens. Back when liberals and conservatives joined together to pass legislation to make that fight easier, and back when we all agreed that Saddam Hussein was a threat that needed to be taken out
Those were the good old days.
The political divide today is greater than ever before. Democrats who were so eager to go after bin Laden and Hussein six year ago are now saying they were misled, that they had no idea what they were voting for.
Misled? What is so misleading about bin Laden sending his followers to hijack airplanes and kill thousands of Americans? Or how about Hussein killing hundreds of thousands of his people? Our intelligence about weapons of mass destruction may have been wrong, but so was Britain’s intelligence and Russia’s, and Russian doesn’t like us enough to fake intelligence reports to our benefit.
But the real question is, do elected officials ever know what they’re voting for? Most politicians never read the entire write-up of a bill before voting for it or sit for all of the hearings about the bill. So, you could say that every politician is misled and has no idea what they are voting for.
Another problem with the American political system is that people refuse to acknowledge any views of facts from the other side. Democrats refuse to see the link between Iran and the violence in Iraq, and Republicans refuse to see that there are any detrimental effects to the environment. It may sound completely bizarre, but what happens in a small African country can, in fact, have huge ramifications here.
Here is an example. Last month, Iran captured 15 British sailors and took them hostage. Iran is already in hot waters with the world community. As soon as they took these people hostage, oil prices skyrocketed. Oil prices have a direct relationship with gas prices. And what do you need in your car to take your girl/boyfriend on a date? That’s right, gas! And if Iran keeps interfering with world events, I have a feeling you’ll be less and less likely to drive all over town on your dates.
Now, more than ever, we need a revision to the American political process. I know that the 2004 election was hyped as the most important we will ever see, but this is not so. In 2004 we had an incumbent president whose ideals we all knew and understood. In 2008, the field is wide open. The pool of possible presidential hopefuls, grows by the day. All of them have ideas as to how American needs to proceed, and at least one of them is still hopeful enough to think that real change can come.
Over spring break I received a piece of mail from Rudy Giuliani’s Presidential Exploratory Committee. In the letter that came with it, Giuliani (or his professional letter writer) wrote about how America is in need of a new sense of optimism. I believe this is true. Americans need to stop watching Survivor and start watching Studio B. They need to believe that they do have a say in the government, no matter what politicians may imply. Then, and only then, will American start to change.
And maybe, if we’re lucky, become unified once again.
That is probably the best introduction I can give to me. It is my latest editorial for my high school paper. While I am only 18, I am very involved in politics, and hope to pursue a career in journalism. This blog will be my place for ramblings, praise, punishment, and calling out those who I think are spining the truth faster than a top. Enjoy! It's going to be a bumpy ride...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)