Sharing Your Beliefs
At the University of Illinois, a professor by the name of Ken Howell who has taught at the school for nine years was recently fired. A student came forth with the claim that this instructor was engaging in hate speech during a Catholicism course. All the professor said was that he agreed with the church’s teaching that homosexual acts are immoral. Robin Kaler who is the school’s spokeswoman said that his firing was a personnel issue and declined any further comments. Of course the student was not even brave enough to come forward on his own. He had a friend register the complaint and has chosen to remain anonymous.
Cary Nelson, president of the American Association of University Professors says that teachers are allowed to express their own beliefs and that he should not have lost his job over it. Or course, if things were flipped the other way and the professor said that homosexual acts were perfectly fine, then he probably would’ve gotten praised for it. No way would he have gotten fired for being so tolerant towards homosexuals. We should be allowed to share our beliefs and not be punished for it, especially if they are more conservative in nature. Why should the liberals try and control what we talk about?
Environment vs. Economy
When it comes to going green and conserving the economy, this is very important and something people should be proactive about. Yes, the earth is important and should be preserved, but the earth is also her for people’s use. If people are too afraid to live normally and expand and increase modernization and improve the economy at the expense of the environment, then things are a little backwards. Why would you want to preserve the environment so much that you can’t even live in the world the way you want to!? I’m not saying the extreme is good either. Like all things, there must be balance. But when it comes to saving the environment, I believe some things take more precedence. When automobiles need more gasoline, more oil should be drilled. We should not simply go backwards in life because the ozone may be depleted. We can slow down or be careful and cautious, but all life should not stop simply because there is a possibility of harm. Fear gets people nowhere, but sound reasoning based on true facts are understandable and should be properly dealt with. Assuming humans really are making a huge impact on the quality of the ozone and the environment, then people should follow more sensibly conservation efforts. People can turn off the car when they are parked, instead of letting it run. People can strive to drive at a more uniform pace to decrease the amount of stopping and starting, which can use up more fuel. Other simple conservative efforts people can participate in that will improve the environment, but not really hurt the economy or people’s quality of living so much if at all, include: recycling, no littering, only buying and eating what they need, and using minimal hair spray.
Please Don’t Ever Insult Obama
General Stanley A. McChrystal was relieved of his duties this past week by President Obama because of a couple of comments McChrystal made to Rolling Stone that were a little negative. McChrystal is held responsible for everything that was published in the article even though many of the quotes came from his aides.
Suspended for Wearing American Shirts
Five students in a California high school were asked to take off their shirts with American flags on them on May 5th, 2010. Here is a link to the article.
Don’t we live in America? Aren’t we supposed to show our patriotic spirit throughout the entire year? They told the kids that they could wear those shirts on any other school day, but not on Cinco de Mayo. Last time I checked, we lived in the United States, not Mexico…
Arizona Immigration Law Affects Local Officers
For the past several years in Madison, Wisconsin, a sheriff has been reporting non-citizens in his jail to the federal authorities. The City Council in that area have now passed a resolution that would stop him from doing so anymore. The council cannot do anything to enforce it, but wants the sheriff to report non-citizens to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement only for suspects on felony charges.
What started as just a state debate in Arizona has now become a huge national dispute over current immigration laws. I’m not sure why this became an issue to debate over in the first place. Doesn’t the term illegal immigrants mean that they are going against the country’s laws? Aren’t there supposed to be consequences for that?
Plus, I’m not sure that everyone really understands this immigration law in Arizona. Many assume that police can pull over and question anyone who looks like they might be an illegal immigrant. Not true. Police are only going to ask for proper documentation after they have made a “lawful stop, detention or arrest”. There is no problem with this if the police are sure to ask everyone they pull over or arrest to show them the required documents. Why not kill two birds with one stone if the opportunity is there?
Arizona, We Support You.
Isn’t it interesting that Arizona would institute a law that only goes to support a federal law, and because of this law they are accused of being unconstitutional?
The premise of this debate is interesting. When an immigrant comes to our country without the proper documentation, they are illegal. This means that they have broken a law. Is this to be tolerated, or even accepted just because a group of people feel that it is too hard to be a law abiding citizen?
Well, if this is the way that we are going to run our country we have to be prepared for the repercussions of the resulting anarchy. When it just becomes too hard for a group of people to not steal, should we then legalize stealing?
Granted, they can have a perfectly justifiable argument. Maybe their children are starving, their spouse is sick or the thief himself is starving. Is that a frustrating, detrimental, potentially life threatening problem? Yes, yes it is. But, the law does not see these problems in these terms.
Instead, the law simply sees that stealing is illegal.
Yes, immigrating to this country can be hard. The process is long and arduous, and many cannot afford to gain legal citizenship. Nonetheless, if you are not a legal citizen and you are residing in our country you are breaking the law. Have some respect for our country, for my country.
America is a great place to live, and one of the integral reasons that this country has been formed into a great country is because of our laws. Abide by our laws, and you are more than welcome to join us in America.
Once you have joined us in America, you are an American. Yes, your heritage is important and it does make you who you are, but you are an American. This means that your loyalty and your pride should be an American pride. The fact that American school systems believe it is okay to send American children home for wearing shirts with the American flag proudly displayed is absolutely despicable.
Yes, it was cinco de mayo. Yes, there were many students proudly displaying their mexican flags. Yes, those children that are attending American schools and using American tax dollars have the right to proudly flaunt their flags. But, so do the Americans.
Be proud to be an American. Be proud to support the American laws. Be proud to be part of a country that has become so prosperous and great that people from around the world continually try so hard to become a part of what we have.
