Favorite Holiday

My favorite holiday by far is Christmas. All though I love Thanksgiving I still put Christmas at the top. Christmas is my favorite because I still have an amazing meal and get to spend quality family time just like Thanksgiving but the best part of all on Christmas you also get presents. As selfish as it may sound the gifts is truly my favorite part of Christmas. The gifts put everyone in a good mood becuase you are happy when you get something you like and you are even happier when someone likes what you got them. This is why Christmas is my favorite holiday.

Political Cartoon 4

1. Cartoon by John Trever

2.Copyright 2009 Albequerque New Mexico

3.The struggle for Obamas healthcare bill to be passed

4. The message of this cartoon is that the bill is being pulled mainly by liberals and with a little support from moderates but that will not be enough to get it passed.

5.I agree with this cartoons message. I truly believe that if this healthcare plan ever wants to get passed it must gain support from atleast a small number of republicans. In the end the liberals are going to have to make compromises to gain republican support.

Religious Symbols on Public Property

I do not have any type of problem at all with religious symbols on public places. I do not see why anyone would have a problem if a religious symbol such as a manger or menorah is displayed publicly. By displaying a religious symbol like the ones previously mentioned I feel that you are celebrating your belief and culture with out putting down other people beliefs.
On a different note, regarding religious make up in America there is a huge Christian majoriy so I do not beleive that it would be a big problem for mangers to be displayed during Christmas time. Another point one could argue is that Christianity helped form the country we live in today. So when one is displaying a religious symbol it could be viewed as a celebration of the American culture.

Political Cartoon week 3

1.Cartoon by Bob Englehart

2.Published in Hartfort Connecticut, 12/11/2009

3.This cartoon deals with President Obama's winning of the peace prize and his actions he has taken on the war on terror.

4.The cartoon is basically saying "how can this guy win a peace prize if he is increasing the number of troops in Afghanistan" because increasing the amount of troops in war would not be considered peacefull by most.

5.Although this cartoon is clever and kind of funny I disagree with it's message for the most part. This is because I don't believe that increasing the number of troops in Afghanistan was really a bad thing. This action by Obama could potentially end the war quicker which would overall save lives.

Update on Health Care Bill

This Sunday president Obama will go to capital hill to address the senate about the health care bill. Prior to this the republicans proposed a change to the bill that would reduce the cost of the bill by 42.1 billion dollarsby making cuts to Medicare home health care service in the health care . However the senate voted for this not to happen. The Democrats philosophy for voting not to do this was because the cuts would be taking away aid for Americans that needed it most such as senior citizens. As a response to this Democrat Senator John Kerry proposed an ammendment to the bill that would limit "guaranteed" home health benefits. This ammendment was passed.
I agree with the majority of the senate and believe that the 42.1 billion dollar cut to the health care bill is not the best solution to this debate. I feel this way because the bill is already so expensive at 848 billion dollars that reducing the cost is not really helping much. I believe that by making this cut it would only make the bill less effective and it wouldn't affect the expense of the bill by that much.

Political Cartoon 2

1.Cartoon by Dave Granlund
2.Copyright 2009 Dave Granlund - All Rights Reserved
3.The increase in American soldiers in Afghanistan
4.The cartoon is displaying how although troops are being removed from Iraq more troops are being placed in Afghanistan. The message is that there is no real light at the end of the tunnel for the war against terror because when one war is decreasing the other one is increasing.
5.Yes I agree with this cartoons message. To me it seems like it will be awhile unitl we can end the war against terror, especially if we our increasing the number of troops in Afghanistan.

Herndon's New Principal

I believe that there are a few main characteristics that the new principal of Herndon should definitly have. One that comes to mind right away is responisibility. With over thousands of students and hundreds of faculty the principal has alot to deal with, so I feel that it is nesecarry for the new principal to be responsible. Also the new principal should always consider the faculty and the students when making important descisons invloving the school. I feel this is nesescary because the good teachers and awesome students is what makes Herndon the place it is so it is only fair that the new principal takes their views into consideration. Lastly I feel that the new principal should honestly care about the well being and reputation of the school. What I mean by this is the new principal should look at this as an oppurtunity to improve the school rather than an increase in pay check or as a stepping stone to help them get a better job in the future.

Politcal Cartoon 1-Health Care

1. Cartoon by Olle Johansson

2. Sweden,"Health Care Refrom" Posted 11/11/2009

3.Obama's plan for health care reform

4.Cartoon is displaying how Obama's plan for universal halth care for all U.S. citizens would be very beneficial for those in need and those who can't afford health care today.

5.Although I feel that universal health care provided by the federal government would be a great thing for the American people, I do not think that the government can afford to do that and this would just push the America even further in debt.

My Choice-Who is Joe Biden???

During the 2008 election I feel that vice presidential canidate Joe Biden was often overshadowed by the others in the election. For starters the opposing vice president was a woman from Alaska, which was anything but ordinary and Bidens running mate was to be the first African American President of the U.S. So it only made sense that vice president Joe Biden wouldn't really be the focus of this 2008 election. However even after the election I feel that Joe Biden has been under the radar since taking office. Because of this I decided to do research on the current vice president to find out who exactly Joe Biden is.
Although born in Pennsylvania Joe Biden grew up in the state of Deleware. Biden later became a Senator for Deleware in 1973 at the age of 30 being one of the youngest senators in U.S history. Biden was a senator for Deleware all the way until he resigned right before he took office as vice president. In his 30 plus years as senator Biden was chairman of senate committee on the judiciary, as well as Chairman of the International Narcotics Control Caucus and Chairman of the senate comittee on foreign relations. One interesting thing I learned about Joe Biden was that he ran for president in both 2008 and 1988, both time he dropped out of the race rather early.

Current Event 6-Bay Bridge reopens

Six days after a construction accident on the Bay bridge the bridge is finally reopend. The construction accident contained two steel rods and a steel crossbeam falling from the span of the bridge. The Bay bridge conncects the cities of Oakland and San Fransisco, two of California's most important cities. The closing of this bridge caused a major problem for people commuting to and from these two cities. The bridge was finally reopened on Monday after passing a series of tests run by engineers.
When I read this article I immediately felt bad for the people of Oakland and San Fransisco. I think this would be similar to if the beltway were to close in our area, and I know how much chaos that would cause. This event also shows how something we depend on so much can brake at any second.

Who will win the Virginia Governor race???

The Virginia governor race is a close race however sample polls show that republican Bob McDonnell has a lead over democrat Creigh Deeds. The main issues in this race are transportation, the economy and eneregy/enviornmental issues. In recent debates McDonnell has attacked Deeds for plotting to raise taxes if he is elected governor. Meanwhile Deeds has attacked McDonnell for not knowing all the facts about global warming. Also Deeds has attacked McDonnel for writing a thesis back in college that mentions women working being detremental to the traditional family.
I believe that McDonnell will win this race because in a bad economy the last thing Virginians will want to do is pay more taxes which McDonnell claims Deeds will do. I feel that even though McDonnell might have flaws in enviornmental and social issues most Virginians will over look those and vote for him simply because he has a better economic plan. It will be interesting if McDonnell wins because the last two virginia governors were democrats and Virginia voted democrat in the 2008 presidential election.

Current Event 5-Obama declares H1N1 a National Emergency

Late Friday night President Obama signed a declaration that made the H1N1 virus a national emergency. Obama said that this was done because the number of people getting the virus in certain areas and communities was rapidly increasing and this would help these area get more supplies to treat this pandemic. By signing this declaration Kathleen Sebelius the secretary of Health and Human Services is allowed to temporarily change certain requirements to help health care facilities enact emergency plans to deal with this growing virus.
I think that declaring the H1N1 virus a national emergency was a good move by President Obama. I know that H1N1 is a serious problem simply becuase litterally half of my friends have been infected by this virus as well as a numerous amount of other kids at my school. I believe that since Kathleen Sebelius is now able to change the requirements of helathcare and medicaid the virus will decrease. This is because areas in need can get more vaccine which will eventually lead to a decrease in the pandemic. I hope that the gaining of more vaccine works and that the pandemic decreases so that I have less of a chance of getting the virus.

Biggest Political Issue facing VA

I feel like the biggest issue facing the state of Virginia is there transportation problem. Part of the reason i feel this way could possibly be because I constantly hear both my parents complain about the traffic coming home from work, but also I have personally witnessed this issue. The reason this issue is frustrating to me is because the state of Virginia gets the majority of their money from Northern Virginia because it is significantly more populated than the rest of the state. That money from the the Northern Virginians has recently been used on roads in other areas of the state like Richmond for example. I think it is just common sense that atleast a good portion of the money should be used on improving the roads in Northern Virginia.
Another way this problem could potentially be solved would be by expanding the D.C. metropolitain metro system to more parts of Northern Virginia. I am pretty sure that extension of the metro system to NoVa is actually in effect but obviously building an underground train is not an overnight job. I feel that this would definitly take a few cars off the road and help people get to their jobs more efficiently. Hopefully the Virginia government will come to their senses and actually use our money to help our transportation problem.

Current event 4-Arizona Sweatbox

On October 8th at the Angel Valley Retreat Center near Sedona, Arizona a group of about 65 Americans entered in the "sweatbox" a facility comparable to a sauna with steam and hot temperatures for 2 hours. This experience inteneded to strenghten one mentally and physically ended in a tragedy with 3 deaths and 18 seriously injured. Late saturday night a woman named Lizabeth Neuman, 49, a Minnesota mother of threee died at the Flagstaff Medical Center. The sweatbox experience was led by expert James Arthur Ray who is some what famous for his self help methods. Neuman's family has recently hired an attorney and will be taking action to figure out who is responsible for Liz's death.
I was honestly shocked when i heard about this incident. It makes you wonder about some peoples judgement. What i found interesting is that the people that participated in this bizzare event seemed to be average everyday americans ranging from 30- 65 in age. I feel that this shows how easily some Americans can be influenced to participate in unsafe behavior. I am interested to see who Neuman's family will blame for Liz's death.

Current Event 3- Obama addresses Gay Right

On saturday night President Obama gave a memorable speech to the largest gay rights group at dinner for Human Rights Campaign. This speech was very important to gay rights activists because gay rights was a significant part of Obama's campaign when running for office. However gay activists thought that Obama had put this issue on the backburner once he got into office. In his speech he praised the gay community for making significant strides for equality. More specifically President Obama called for the repeal of the ban on gays in the military.
I found this article interesting because I was not aware that Obama was pushing for gay rights. I think this was a good move for Obama to give this speech because he now has significant support from gay rights activists. I also 100% agree with Obama's decision to call for a repeal of the ban on gays in the military. I think it is ridiculous to deny someone to serve and protect our country due to their sexual orientation.

Obama report card week 3

If I were to give President Obama a grade on his performance as president I would give him a B. When regarding the issue of health care Obama's bill for helath care is yet to be accepted and has taken lots of criticism. As far as the economy and nthe economic downturn the country is still in a recession and in debt. This being said the economy was so bad before he took office that it would be ridiculous to think that he could solve this problem in his first few weeks of office.
Obama has made strides in other political issues such as the nuclear weapons problem in Iran where he called for an inspection of their powerplant. Also he is making strides for gay rights when he recently addressed the gay community at the dinner for the Human Rights campaign. Another issue he is taking care of is removing prisoners from Guantanamo bay.

Political Issue I'm interested in- Iran Nuclear Weapons

After much speculation of Iran's power plant containing nuclear weapons and materials, the United Nations have decided to inspect the nuclear powerplant for nuclear weapons. Although Iran claims that there plant is only for peaceful purposses, the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) feels it is completely neccessary to evaluate it. The inspection is said to take place on October 25.
This issue interests me for a couple of reasons. The more obvious being that if they had nuclear weapons or materials for them it could lead to use of these weapons on countries one possibly being the U.S. Another interesting side to this issue is that Iran is requesting enriched uranium from the IAEA to help treat cancer. The IAEA is reluctant to give them this uranium because of their advanced nuclear system. I find this interesting because it brings up the question if the IAEA should do this for them. I am very interested to see what the U.N and IAEA find during the inspection on the 25th.

Current Event 2- Eight U.S troops killed in Afghanistan

On Saturday hundreds of militants attacked U.S forces. 8 american troops were killed and 2 members of the afghan nation security force also died. According to military reports hundreds of militants targeted and attacked 2 U.S-Afghan outposts. Air support came in 30 minutes but was too late as 8 U.S troops were killed. The 8 U.S troops killed is the largest number of military casualities in a single day in over a year.
I feel that this tragic event is very important to our country. Not only did 8 of our soldiers get killed, this shows that the war against terror is not close to being over. For all the Americans that thought the war was coming to a hault this event proved otherwise being the most violent day in over a year. I also feel that this event may alter the Obama administration's plan as to when he will take troops out of Afghanistan. I am very curious to see how president Obama will react to this.

Whay political party are you most closely aligned with?

Although I wouldn't say I have a strong political party affiliation I would most closely align myself with the Republican party. Both my parents are republicans and I believe they have an influence on me but, I would not say that I am a republican simply because they are. The main issue that I agree with the republicans on rather than the democrats is their stand on the income tax. In many cases of wealthy americans money wasn't simply handed over to them they had to work hard for it. I don't believe that those hard working Americans should have to give more money to the goevernment than those who make less. Another reason I lean towards the republican side is because I belive in economic freedom and believe that the federal government should not have too much regulation in the economy.

Current Event week 1 Closing Guantanamo Bay

In his first Month of office President Obama declared that he would shut down the controversial prison Guantanamo Bay, setting a closing deadline of January 2010. Now defense secretary Robert Gates says that the closing of the prison might take longer than planned. Many Americans see this delay as showing weakness in the Obama administration, however Gates says as long as singnificant strides are being made in closing the prison it shouldn't matter too much if the process takes a little bit longer. The closing of Guantanamo was already a heated topic becuase many republicans stated that they didn't want dangerous criminals on American soil, while others thought that the brutal prison showed a bad image of our country.
In this case I agree with defense secretary Robert Gates. This is because the Obama administration is not putting the closing on hold, but due to complications of the process they are not able to accomplish the goal exactly when they planned. In everyday life people set goals and deadlines that can't always be accomplished and I believe this isn't a problem as long as they dont give up on their goal or deadline.