Should adoption records be open rather than sealed?

This subject hits close to home for me, since I have been adopted. To answer this question plainly, yes records should be opened. My reasoning for this is because of medical reasons. It is often hard to get a clear cut background when these court cases are sealed. I understand the reasoning behind sealing the records however it is just my personal thought that these records should be kept open for at the very least, medical reasons.

To what extent should advertising aimed at children be regulated by law?

I think that any product that can harm a child should be regulated. This idea is on the same lines of regulation of TV, were it is important not to expose the hazards of life at too young of an age. Take for example, cigarettes, which in the last two years has changed from marketing to children, to more regulations towards what type of ads children may or may not see. This can be observed in the new law, where advertising cannot be within so many feet of a school. Ads may also not have color which evokes emotion from a younger crowd and makes them more likely to buy these products. This is exactly the type of regulation that is needed to keep children safe.

Should sex and violence on television or in the movies be restricted?

The simple answer is yes. The more complex answer is also yes. It has been shown over and over that violence and sex on TV has only lead to more sex and more violence. We have here, in the United States, a pretty good system in dealing with these topics. I think that this system which regulates what we Americans watch is a good one, however, there are shows and topics that I wished were censored more. However, this body which governs our TV, is for the most part fair. In the end, fairness is the only thing one could expect from such a group.

On a lighter note...

On a lighter note, and in a more perfect world, this cartoon should be of the utmost importance. In this more perfect world, I wouldn't have to watch political campaign ad attack another candidate about the most ridiculous topics. I saw an ad the other day on the TV, it went something along the lines of:

Single mom, one-on-one interview, talking about how Tom Emmer has a DWI, and how he should not run for governor. It had this real serious feel to it, almost like unsolved mysteries. It even stated that Emmer voted to raise the penalty on DWI. Don't Vote for Emmer was the message.

Okay, first of all, the fact that Emmer voted to up the penalty is a good thing, and I don't even like the guy! Secondly, how much did this ad cost? the cost of these ads is what is really troubling. Candidate spends millions on ads, which is just thrown away to bash another mans name. (Again, he is not who I will vote for, but this is part of my rant) 

Okay, this brings me to my cartoon. Image the only thing that candidates spent money on was positive ads like this one above with there face painted across it. It sends a clear message of what they want to do when in office, this shows how they are willing to help us, and we can hold them accountable for their actions. Just think how cheap this ad would be since I just made up the idea in five seconds. Again, I must snap to, and realize that this is not that more perfect world. I can't wait for the elections to be over. GO VOTE AND DO YOUR PART.....

What is one to make of this???

I don't know how many people watch the news or read the news paper but I, myself, like to do both several times daily. This has been a practice of mine for several years now, so it can be safe to assume that I have my opinion on the war(s) in the Middle East. I usually try to keep my opinion to myself, knowing that we might not see eye and I want to respect that other person's opinion. I do this because I know that as an American citizen I can make a difference by voting, which is a given right. Granted, sometimes it might feel like my vote doesn't count but it still is my right to do so. This brings me to this cartoon above. Here we have the president of Afghanistan having peace talks with what appears to be a Taliban  leader of sorts.
Even though this cartoon has light colors and is meant be funny, at least that how I took it at first, but now, how can we be sure that this isn't what behind these "peace talks"? Food for thought

Should animal experimentation be permitted?

I think that if we can do experiments on humans in the name of good medicine then yes animals are a good source to learn from. I know that there are places and groups out there that would would want to get into a verbal or even physical altercation because of that statement, but I really don't care. If lets say that a cancer medicine, that in theory could cure cancer, was ready to be tested. Now we are unaware of the side effects that may occur. Well it seems that we have ran into a problem, how can we prove that this medicine actually works without harming a human life. The answer is easy, use animals.
Although I understand that these are also Gods creatures and that they should be harmed, but come on we are at the top of the food chain, testing experiments on animals, to within reason( I know that could go either way).

Smoking Bans

My topic for this essay is all about smoking bans. I am currently trying to stop smoking which is one of the hardest things I have tried to do. Now I think that smoking bans in public places are a good idea. I also think that we could enforce a better public policy  which would in turn lead people away from smoking tobacco products. These habits which cost everyone from the tax payer, to the unborn child who could have problems if their mother is a smoker. These problems are something that needs to be handled. 

Should imports of foreign cars or other foreign products be limited or restricted by law

Oh course they should be. With as many people as we have on this planet, resources are in way too short of supply for things such as imported cars. These are simple economic concepts for a nation that was to be a power house in today's market. I didn't even know if this was up for debate. I am not 100% but I believe that one of the core reasons for America becoming America was its belief of no taxation without representation. Although not quite the same as regulating foreign good, but this idea is very close.

 

Does the American system of justice need reform to ensure that criminals are properly punished?

Yes it sure does. There is just too many cases where someone got off for killing someone because of human error, say because this guy forgot that and another guy didn’t sign the correct dotted line. This current method of law has it moment were it truly stands for justice, but then again it all comes crashing down with you get a case like I read about the other day in the paper, were this woman got off with 5 years of probation after she was drunk and crash her car into another car killing that woman and her baby. Situations like that shouldn’t have to happen.

I also think that for capital crimes there should be a labor camp, Pres. Obama wants to redo the nation’s infrastructure but building new highways and projects of that nature. I also know that California is letting some of its convicts go early because of budget cuts. It seems to me that if these criminals need to serve their time, and we need new highways, we might be able to come together and kill two birds with one stone. I know that this would take away from jobs for law abiding citizens but a new transportation system, or at least a new highway system could really open up the lanes of interstate commerce. Maybe, who knows, we could learn a thing or two from the Japanese and get ourselves some bullet trains. 

FYI these are not criminals*that I know of* I just saw this picture and thought it looked than sitting in a jail cell and on the tax payers dollar!!

Are American Indians being treated fairly in the 1990s?

This question doesn’t really make sense to me. What does the 1990’s have to do with much after hundreds of years of disservice to one group of people?  The Native American community has had and still has its struggles. I am a Native American person who grew up in the 90’s, granted I was a young child, and yes I was treated fairly, for the most part,  but I can’t say for fact that was the case for all native children.  I think to answer tonight’s blog’s question, the natives have not been treated fairly period.

Why some people choose not to carry a cell phone

There is no reason not to carry a cell phone in today's world, none. Well I shouldn't be so narrow sighted but in all actuality, minus the few decent acceptations, cell phones are pretty much need today. Maybe its because I am totally glued to my phone and have been since I first got one that I can't see what I would do with out one. I would say that the longest I have gone without a phone is been about a week and that wasn't bad at all. 

The effects of racial, sexual, or religious discrimination

Who can’t feel some sort of effect from the said types of discrimination? Discrimination has been an ongoing battle since the dawn of man time. I am just happy that we live in a somewhat modern world. I use the terms happy and modern very loosely when I speak of this matter. There is some truth to those terms as well. Here in America there is a way to life, or rather a way to live so that you are not discriminating against anyone. Everyone has that right to live a peaceful existence. However for the sake of this blog, the effects of racial, sexual, or religious discrimination  are too many to write about in 75 words.

'My Trip to al-Qaeda' Visits HBO

Should mandatory (or voluntary) prayer be permitted in public schools?

Questions about prayer and religion are tricky questions to answer. I think that if church and state are to be separate, the act of mandatory or voluntary prayer should not be permitted. There could much be debate about this, but the “law of the land” sort of speak, is that there is a separation of church and state so we should follow that.
This does not mean that at a privately funded school, that school could make their own choices about prayer. This means that if a Private Catholic wants to mandate prayer for its students that they should in fact be allowed to make this choice.

Very Interesting Video on Woman in modern society, worldwide.

Click or copy and paste this link to see a video from CNN on woman in today's society.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/09/05/wudunn.women.oppression/index.html?hpt=C2

Gender Roles 2

This blog will be about gender roles as well. I will be taking bit of information that I found to be informative as well as useful to make a point. This information comes from the article The Rise of Wives written by Gwen Parkes. She states plain and simply that women are on the rise of being independent and self sufficient.

She first cites a study that says, "researchers have found that in 1 out of 5 marriages women are more educated and earn more money than their husbands". I think that this ideology that woman are not on the same level as men is insane and am personally glad to hear of such statistics. 


This same article points of that this new trend has its upside for men too. It states that there are benefits for the man in a relationship for having a female partner who is both economically stable and educated.  The three reasons for such a trend are given in the text are as follows," 1. Roles within marriages have changed, 2. Economic Factors, 3. Strides in Education".   With a two income family, roles have changed in the family. With this extra money, families are more stable during these tough economic times.  The education factor is just a win for both males and females, since we all benefit from higher education.


So although the author of the " The Rise of Wives" might think that since gender roles are reversing, that women in fact are rising. I think that this type of thinking would only look down on the man, so I suggest that this title should be, " The Rise of the Family". Because although the woman benefits directly, it is the family that will be better off in the long run. This title also puts the male and female on the same level. 


This check out this article for yourself please visit:   http://jobs.aol.com/articles/2010/01/20/the-rise-of-wives/ 

Gender Roles 1

           This first blogs ideas on gender roles will come from the essay by Judy Brady titled I Want a Wife. Since this article was written in the 1970's, the idea of the independent woman was in its infancy or early teens. The main premise behind I Want a Wife, in my opinion, is the fact that the role of "wife" can be played by anyone, and the role does not have to be defined by a woman in normal traditional sense.
            What made this article so powerful was the fact that, Brady, herself was a wife who had children. She pondered in self meditation, what it would be like if she herself had a wife. She wanted the benefits that come along with a stay at home mother, as per tradition in the early to mid 20th century. She goes on to list the benifits that she felt come along with a  having a "wife". All of which seemed to fit her arrangement.
              I also thought that it was very interesting in the fact that she never names the "wife" type as female. Another big movement of the time, was that of the homosexual community. They wanted equal rights and wanted to have families of same manner without prejudice. So if we were to take anything from Judy Brady's essay, we could in fact assume that it is alright for a wife of traditional sense to have a wife. And if that statement can be true, so can the statement that a "wife" does not have to a female. 

Very interesting essay with lots of food for thought.
                        

My first car

but new.....

Hello, my name is Joe Anderson Itzin. I am 23 soon to be 24 year old Native American man!! I am from the Oneida nation of Wisconsin. That is also where I was born but have been raised here in the cities for the majority of my life.

A bit of background information on me is that I enjoy being in school and learning. I have attended the U of Arizona, ITT Technical Institute for Computerized Aided Drafting and Design. I was one semester away from that degree, but instead I am here at MCTC to get some core classes so that I am able to transfer to the U of Minnesota to study either biomedical or civil engineering. I look forward to being in this class and hope that we all can have a great semester.