Airline Security has Crossed the Line

After reading my classmate Alan's  blog I am now nerves to go fly somewhere. I can’t imagine going through such an intense security check point that I come out crying. I agree with Alan’s opinion that TSA has really gone too far and that they should be cut because they haven’t helped with airport security at all. I agree with the Allied Pilots Association that airport security has become more of sexual molestation than a safety measure. While reading what Alan wrote about the 61 year old man named Tom Sawyer my heart broke for the man. I cannot believe that airport security would humiliate a man so much and then not even listen to the health issues that he has. That is just ridiculous and makes me not even want to fly anywhere because a trip some place is not worth being gate raped. I think that Alan’s idea of having people with licenses to carry guns ride on board the plane is the way to move to stop terrorism. Besides Alan’s right, whenever a terrorist was caught it was on the plane, not a security check points.

WikiLeaks

          If you have read about the recent leaking of hundreds of classified military documents then you are probably just as disturbed as I am. What concerned me the most was that the article posted on CNN stated that earlier this year there was a first batch of documents leaked but it seems like the military has waited until this recent incident to take any action. What worried me even more is that Whitman, a Pentagon spokesman, stated that “it is now much more difficult for someone to get access and move information outside of authorized channels”. This bothers me because there’s still a good chance that this could happen again, and this time the wrong person could gain access. Not only is there a chance that someone else could gain access again but Whitman also said that the technical solution they put into place was temporary. I personally think it’s a good idea to have our troops on the front lines able to access these documents that might be vital to their survival, but I think there should only be two people within each sector that can access them. This would further help prevent another solider from doing what Bradley Manning did. I do however like the steps that the Defense Department is taking. Such has restricting the number of systems where data can be moved from a classified computer to an unclassified computer and it also takes two people to move data. I hope that the department keeps adding more restrictions and restraints on gaining access to extremely important documents.

Marijuana should be legal

In my classmate Noree’s blog, “Marijuana Should be Legal Across the U.S.”, she talks about how an author names Sal Rosano thinks that marijuana should be banned across the nation due to abusiveness and potential hazard. I personally agree with Noree’s opinions about this topic. She states that no matter what law enforcement does or doesn’t legalize adolescences will still have illegal ways to obtain the drug. She goes on to state the she believes marijuana should be legalized but only for patients who have been approved because of medical reasons. I have to disagree with Noree on this topic. I believe that it should be legal nationwide for many reasons, one being that there has never been any proof the marijuana has harmed anybody in any form. Why should we allow people to smoke something that we KNOW for a fact will eventually kill them, yet we make something perfectly natural and safe illegal. I’m sorry but how in the world is that logical at all. Other than that I agree with Noree’s facts and opinions on the matter and she makes a good argument has to why marijuana should be legalized.

"Don't ask, Don't tell" policy

In 1993 president Bill Clinton introduced "Don't ask, Don't tell" policy under compromise with legislators who opposed a complete repeal of the 1982 Department of Defense Directive 1332.14, the prior ban on gays in the military. The policy bans gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender people from serving in the military. The policy also bans military officials asking questions or pursuing investigations of soldiers suspected of being homosexuals. Any service member that openly reveals their homosexuality through words or actions is discharged from service. On September 9, 2010, a federal district judge declared the policy to be unconstitutional. On October 12, 2010 Federal Judge Virginia Philips granted a worldwide, immediate injunction prohibiting the Department of Defense from enforcing or complying with the Don’t ask, Don’t tell policy, and ordered the military to suspend and discontinue any investigation or discharge, separation, or other proceeding that have been commenced under the policy. On October 19, 2010, military recruiters were told they can accept openly gay applicant. On October 20, 2010 a federal appeals court in California granted a temporary stay reversing a worldwide injunction against enforcement of the US military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy maintain the DADT policy.

I personally agree with federal judge Virginia Philips worldwide injunction prohibiting the Department of Defense from complying with “Don’t ask, Don’t tell” policy. I don’t see how allowing openly gays into the army could harm anybody. Being openly gay doesn’t affect the knowledge and skills you have to have to survive in the army. I really don’t see any difference between people being in the army and not being openly gay and them being openly gay. Yes it may offend some people but if those certain people let openly gays affect the way they perform their duties then that would be the responsibilities of the judgmental people, not of the openly gays. I would like to see the “Don’t ask, Don’t tell” policy gone for good, there is no reason why it should even still be in effect.

Memo to President

In John Aravosis’s blog, “Memo to the President: No one is asking you to be Superman”, he expresses the some of the nations’ lack of trust in President Obama’s ability to govern. He states that while no one expects the president to be Superman, supporters would like to feel Obama is at least trying to do his job and keep up with promises made during election campaigns. Instead, Aravosis believes Obama “prefers to avoid what he considers "controversial" issues all together”, leaving some doubt of whether or not Obama realizes the full extent of his job as our nation’s leader.

According to Aravosis, Obama supporters contend that this president prefers to work behind the scenes, taking his time while contemplating the nation’s biggest problems with little wasted emotion. This kind of leadership became evident in the initial downplay of the BP oil spill disaster. Our country expects its leaders to lead and “show [their faces] when a crisis arises”.

Aravosis further accuses the President of not “[grabbing] onto an issue like a dog with a bone, tenaciously working it until you get the best deal possible, even if all your hard work goes on under the radar, behind the scenes.” He further notes Obama prefers to make a public statement about his goals and then sit back “until things are ready to fall apart”. Aravosis makes reference of this action on Obama’s health care reform, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, immigration, as well as lots of other campaigned issues. Aravosis believes the President sits back and lets his staff and Congress work on the issues until the last minute, and then take credit for the deal, only if the outcome turns out favorable.

Aravosis bring up some good arguements when he states the different topics that President Obama has yet to work on, keeping in mind that all he seems to be doing is taking the credit.

I agree with everything Aravosis is saying which is sad because I will soon be voting in my first presidential election and I have little trust in its (Presidents) office as of now.

"Will the Win Endure"

On August the 21  2010, Ralph Peters posted an editorial about the U.S. winning the war in Iraq and most of our soldiers returning home. Ralph Peters served in the US Army both as an enlisted man and officer for over twenty years, has written twenty-four books, and has been with the New York Post for about eight years. Because of Peter’s strategic experiences and dealings in seventy countries, one may tend to side with him and his article, “Will the Win Endure”, as it talks about Peter’s opinion of what will happen now that “President Obama has disengaged just when we need personal involvement at the highest level”. Peters seems to be afraid that all of our successes in Iraq such as “a major Arab democracy, and defeating a horrific dictator along with Al Qaeda”, might “go south”. “Iraqis have begged us to help them. They've pleaded with this administration to stay in the ring and referee their pols. They desperately want us to keep some token troop presence beyond New Year's Eve, 2011”. But with President Obama’s recent change in focus the Iraqis could believe that we have given up on them, and the effect of this could be the Iraqis giving up on themselves. “We're so close . . . it would be unforgivable to fail for want of a little high-level attention to Baghdad.”

Quotes from http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/will_the_win_endure_gv9gL0NEMHhS1IOWjjcJMK

Bio info from http://www.nypost.com/columnists/ralphpeters

Chilean Minors

I have never been interested in politics or any kind of governement really. When i read or hear about what politicians are doing or even thinking about doing it usually pisses me off and makes me wonder what the H*** they're thinking. I really cant understand why everybody gets all worked up over parties, i think that there shouldn't be parties and that politicians should have to relay on just their beliefs. So after that rambling i found an articla that has nothing to do with politics but does make me thankfully that these men will be safe.

Chilean miners who have been trapped 2,300 feet underground since August 5th are getting even closer to being rescued. Workers have already made 12 inch bore holes which are being used to drop down food and other necessities. Workers just need to widen the latest hole inorder to lift the minors out. Officials are hoping to get them out with in the next 6 weeks.
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2010/09/new-bore-hole-reaches-trapped-chilean-miners/1