Poverty

Information This growth of poverty level is largely due to misunderstanding poverty. Measures controlling poverty should be linked to the suitability of the country, as reasons of poverty changes due to social conditions of the country. For example, countries like India and other who has thick population and dominated by illiterates and semi- literates (semi-literate means with less literacy level which deprives them from employment in high tech or medium industries). This category does not fit into high tech industries. For them agricultural, small and cottage industries are most suitable. 

Court case In the court case of Pikangikum v Nault is a glimpse of an answer to the age-old Canadian question of how so many first nation communities in this country continue to suffer appalling conditions and ruinous poverty even as Ottawa throws millions and millions and millions of dollars at impoverished reserves.

Current event Almost half of the world-over 3 Billion people- has to survive with less than $2.50 per day. The current events unfolding in Thailand, India and Kyrgyzstan have a lot more to do with the problems of poverty and social injustice than conventional ideological issues. In Thailand, the Red Shirts are the poor from the rural areas fighting for a small share of the pie controlled by the urban elites and the military. In India, the economic boom has left most Indians behind, and the Maoists movement is getting a popular boost because of it. If, as a global community, we do not seriously reconsider our model of development and urgently address the issues of poverty and social injustice, it is likely that the social unrest unfolding in Thailand, Kyrgyzstan and India will become more widespread.

100$ for every child could end poverty

I think that it should become more than just a theory. if it can help those living in poverty, we should give it a try. Many of those poor children and adults only dream of having one hundred dollars which is a dream that we can make come true. The more we help, that happier they are.

Rape! :'(

Background info Rape is an act of violence by one person against another. It is an act of power that aims to hurt at the most intimate level. Rape is a violation, whether it occurs at the hands of a stranger or within the home at the hands of an abusive husband or partner. In the United States, state laws on marital rape vary. On July 5, 1993, marital rape became a crime in all fifty states. In thirty-three states, however, there are exemptions from prosecution if, for example, the husband did not use force or if the woman is legally unable to consent because of a severe disability. There is still a tendency in the legal system to consider marital rape far less serious than either stranger or acquaintance rape. An analysis of data from the National Violence against Women Survey, sponsored jointly by the U.S. Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, estimated that 1.5 million women and 834,700 men are raped and/or physically assaulted by an intimate partner each year.

Court case A case against Nicholas Morales was heard in front of the Supreme Court Wednesday. He's accused of raping his niece Tanya for years while she was a little girl. "He thought he got away with it for so many years" she said. As an adult, Tanya came forward. In 2005, prosecutors charged Morales with rape, more than 20 years after the alleged crime. However, there used to be a 15-year statute of limitations on first-degree felonies, like rape and murder. That means prosecutors only had 15 years to charge a suspect. The State Court of Appeals ruled that police and prosecutors hadn't charged Morales in time. Now, the State Supreme Court has to decide if the legislature intended for the new law to be retroactive.

Current event Football Hall of Famer, Lawrence Taylor, charged with rape and arrested in May of 2010. Taylor, 51, was charged with statutory rape and soliciting a minor prostitute, both of which he denies. The rape charge carries a four-year maximum prison term and the prostitution charge could add an additional year. Ramapo, N.Y., Police Chief Peter Brower told reporters that Taylor "engaged in sexual intercourse with a child less than 17 for which he paid the victim $300. "The alleged victim, a runaway from the Bronx, N.Y., was allegedly brought to Taylor's room at the Holidome Hotel in Montebello, N.Y., by a man police identified as Rasheed Davis, who has been charged with unlawful imprisonment, assault and endangering the welfare of a child.

Current event 14 yr old declares herself raped and weeks before fer court date, commits suicide. Case is dropped because no testimony can be given!

Has accurate justice been served?

I, personally, do not agree with the court on this particular case. Although the victim has passed which makes it difficult, the defendant could very well be guilty. Something had to push this young girl to take such a drastic action as suicide, and the supreme court should realize that and further the investigation.

Read more: Rape and Sexual Harassment Around the World - Marital Rape - Women, Wife, Violence, Intimate, Reported, and Husband http://www.libraryindex.com/pages/2057/Rape-Sexual-Harassment-Around-World-MARITAL-RAPE.html#ixzz1Ab6pimeN

Gay Marriage!

Same-sex marriage (also called gay marriage) is a legally or socially recognized marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Same-sex marriage is a civil rights, political, social, moral, and religious issue in many nations. The conflicts arise over whether same-sex couples should be allowed to enter into marriage, be required to use a different status, or not have any such rights. A related issue is whether the term "marriage" should be applied.
         Kristin M. Perry v. Arnold Schwarzenegger: A federal judge in San Francisco struck down California’s voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage, handing a temporary victory to gay rights advocates in a legal battle that seems all but certain to be settled by the Supreme Court. 

 

Current Event: Gay Public High School Opens!

The first stand-alone public high school for homosexuals in New York City will open this fall with 100 "gay" students. According to a report in the New York Post, the new Harvey Milk High School currently is undergoing a $3.2 million publicly funded renovation. The homosexuals-only program has operated with just two classrooms for two decades, but now is expanding.

                                                             I support gay marriage! I don't believe that it is fair for someone to judge another person for what they believe in, or limit that person to what they can do about their beliefs. Regardless of their sexes, if they love each other than that's all that matters. Would it be okay to you if people had to vote on whether or not you could marry your lover? I have gay friends and they are great people who don't deserve that :)

Marijuana

For most of human history, marijuana has been completely legal. It’s not a recently discovered plant, nor is it a long-standing law. Marijuana has been illegal for less than 1% of the time that it’s been in use. Its known uses go back further than 7,000 B.C. and it was legal as recently as when Ronald Reagan was a boy. The hemp plant has also been used for everything from fabric and rope to ethanol fuel. Hemp was such a critical crop for a number of purposes that the government went out of its way to encourage growth. The United States Census of 1850 counted 8,327 hemp “plantations” (minimum 2,000-acre farm) growing cannabis hemp for cloth and canvas as well. Marijuana has been used throughout history in many different cultures to change mood, perception, and consciousness - in other words, to get high! Its effects range from increasing creativity to provoking mystical experiences, to heightening the capacity to feel, sense and share. After alcohol, it is the most popular of what are called "recreational drugs."
Gonzales v. Raich, (2005), was decision by the United States Supreme Court ruling that under the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution, the United States Congress may criminalize the production and use of home-grown cannabis even where states approve its use for medicinal purposes.

 

Californians vote on legal weed

Current event(2010): California residents are expected to vote this year on whether legalization should be approved to raise nearly $1.4 billion in state revenue. That's based on an estimate from the State Board of Equalization, a tax administration agency. This form of legalization is not restricted to medicinal use of marijuana. The bill proposes that marijuana be regulated and taxed in a similar way to alcohol. According to the bill, people would have to be 21 years or older to possess, cultivate, or transport marijuana for personal use. Californians would not be permitted to use the drug in public or within the presence of minors, and would not be allowed to possess it on school grounds.

I honestly do not believe that anything positive or constructive could come from legalizing marijuana. Why make it okay for people to damage their own bodies and minds, and then potentially the people around them? I mean sure the crime rate would be reduced if it becomes legal but the crime rate would also decrease if burglary and murder was allowed. And if the state of Cali would legalize marijuana as another way to take someone's money, then that's just selfish. What good can come of marijuana?

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/politics/2010/11/01/rowlands.ca.marijuana.vote.cnn?iref=videosearch

Health Care:)

Health care costs have been rising for several years. Stemming this growth has become a major policy priority, as the government, employers, and consumers increasingly struggle to keep up with health care costs. In 2008, U.S. health care spending was about $7,681 per resident and accounted for 16.2% of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product; this is among the highest of all industrialized countries.Although Americans benefit from many of the investments in health care, the recent rapid cost growth, coupled with an overall economic slowdown and rising federal deficit, is placing great strains on the systems used to finance health care, including private employer-sponsored health insurance coverage and public insurance programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.

In August a federal judge in Richmond, Virginia, refused to throw out a lawsuit filed by the state's attorney general challenging the constitutionality of President Barak Obama's planned overhaul of the nation's health care system. An 18 Oct federal court hearing in the same city will decide  whether the national health care law complies with requirements of the Constitution or exceeds the powers granted to Congress. The case represents an opening volley in the legal challenges by Republican-led states to the Democrat-led overhaul. Few observers expect the issue to be settled until the Supreme Court has weighed-in on the mandate that Americans buy health insurance by 2014 or face a fine.
Total Health Care Spending


Does our government's health care plan need reforming?


Yes, i think that everyone should be provided health care. There are many people who's lifespan depends on health insurance. People are dying everyday w/o having any health insurance at any time because the government hasnt acted apon this issue. My grandmother suffers from diabetes as well and i want to when is the govt going to take action.

what do you think<3

Abortion

The background history of Abortion goes back to the 1800's when laws forbid the act after 16 weeks of conception. By the early 1900's the act was completely outlawed but even at that, women were still having abortions. Back then the procedure was very unsafe but even with the risks involved there were those who still sought after unscrupulous physicians who would do the procedure. So when did abortion become legal? The procedure became legal in 1973 through a well known Supreme Court case. This ruling took precedence over state laws that banned abortion.
           In 1973, in the landmark case of Roe vs. Wade, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution provided a fundamental right for women to obtain abortions.

Is abortion wrong if the fetus cannot feel pain?

Dr. Janice Crouse(arguing from a conservative side) believes that life begins a the time of conception while others believe that life doesnt begin until the egg develops into a fetus and it is able to feel pain. Monica Potts(arguing from a liberal side) says: conservatives use fetal pain to prove that abortion is wrong. Liberals say that abortion is more of a public health issue. Women are hurting themselves by getting back-alley abortions and whatnot. They also say that most abortions are done early in pregnancy before the fetus is actually a baby. It all boils down to the womans rights or the baby's rights!

I, myself, am more pro-life than anything. Yes i understand that there are some circumstances where it easy to consider abortion but there are other alternatives such as adoption. Whether the fetus can feel the pain or not doesn't matter. Once it is conceived, it has a right to its life just as much as you do to yours! If someone is paralyzed from the neck down, is it okay to kill them since they cant feel any pain? I didn't think so