Senate's release of torture reports

NY times
huffington post

Recently, the Senate has released private information regarding the CIA's post 9/11 interrogation detention program and their methods on "torture," an international crime. Although the people detained were only suspected of having affiliations with the events that took place on 9/11, all of them were tortured in inhumane ways that were not only physically disturbing, but psychologically, as well. Of the 119 known detainees, it has been confirmed that at least 26 of the 119 were innocent. In the fight for slavery, Nat Turner fought for the freedom of the black slaves; however, in the process, he killed many white people even if they did not do harm to the slaves. Although some whites did not directly harm black slaves, they suffered for the mere reason of being white. Just because someone may be suspected of being involved in the events which have harmed another, is it right to immediately take action? Nat Turner and the CIA's post 9/11 detention program both were not 100% sure that the people they tortured were guilty, yet they took initiative into torturing and even killing the opposing side. Is that justified? Should the 9/11 detention program have confirmed whether the person was guilty before taking course of action?

India's "solution" to solving rape

India is known for having a lot of issues when it comes to people of the female gender in the social ladder, and the government has been trying to crack down on this controversy by doing something about it by banning certain things in India. However, the way that they are going about this is ridiculous, to the point where it's comedic. I do like how India is trying their best to solve their issues when it comes to females, but it's as though they are taking one step forward and about thirty steps back. What do you think that India should do to solve the problems that females face in the country?

Kobe Bryant and Teammates Wear 'I Can't Breathe' Shirts Before Lakers-Kings

A few NBA players took the initiative and wore a shirt saying " I cant breathe". These were the last words of Eric Garner, the man who was choked to death. The death of Eric Garner has struck a lot of controversy, because the officer who choked pleaded innocent. A question I have for everyone though is: Is this incident blown out of proportion because a white man is killing a black man? Would this topic be controversial if a black officer killed a white man? Is this more of a race problem or is it more of an officer abusing his powers?

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2295116-kobe-bryant-and-teammates-wear-i-cant-breathe-shirts-before-lakers-kings?utm_source=cnn.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=editorial&hpt=hp_t2

The Unreconstructed North

article link

The word that sums up this article is duality. As we simplify, we regularly misremember and therefore misunderstand. Although many of you have not grown up in the northeast, I did, a product of Boston, Massachusetts and Washington D.C. The truth is much messier than the myth, and if we are to overcome the unfinished revolution from the era of Reconstruction in the 1860s and the Civil Rights movement of the 1960s, then I think we need a movement. An organized, led, massive movement needs to form to bring this country forward. How do you think progress will be achieved? Gradually forward with intermittent setbacks? Or massive, organized protests?

Protesters Over Eric Garner Decision

http://abcnews.go.com/US/protesters-police-clash-york-city-eric-garner-decision/story?id=27383303

There have been many protests all over the country due to many conflicting controversies that have occurred over the years. For example, from the Trayvon Martin case, to the Mike Brown case, and now to the Eric Garner case. All of these cases have something similar and that is the fact that these three African American boys have been killed by White police officers. Many protesters have been acting on this card of a racial issue in all of these cases, while on the other hand many argue that if these men were white there would be no protests. I, however, do believe racism does exist in this country to this day, but however I believe that if our officers were better trained on how to handle situations like these, some of these cases could have been avoided. We can tie this back to the civil rights movement and how African American marched through towns fighting for equality. Many of these protesters protesting throughout this country due to these cases have the same intentions,mindset and goals that they want to reach. We can also see their determination for change which is a parallel comparison to the African Americans way back when the civil rights movement was taking place. My question is do you believe that these acts of homicide, by the white officers, were carried out due to the fact that these men were African American? Is this really a racial issue or is this issue really due to the fact that our law enforcers (police men) lack the proper knowledge and skills it takes to handle situations like these?

University of California Is Set to Raise Tuition

University of California has exclaimed that they will be raising the tuition by 27.6 percent over the next 5 years.  The universities panel said that this is needed because they aren't getting enough money from the state government. Governor Jerry Brown argued by saying that if they raise the tuition they will just keep giving them less money. But the universities keeps fighting by saying that this is what needs to happen for them to maintain there stature.This raise in tuition has outraged many students which has resulted in numerous protests on campus. Under this new plan the current tuition for in state students would rise from $12,192 a year to as much as $15,560 in 2019-2020. Out of state students who now pay upwards of $35,000 would have to pay around $45,000.  Do you think that it is right  that the governor to stop giving sufficient funds to the university? Will the university still remain elite if it cant be accessible to middle and lower class families as student loans are already an increasing issue in today's world?



http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/20/us/university-of-california-tuition-is-set-to-increase.html?_r=0

Orion, NASA's New Spacecraft

     This past Friday, NASA's Orion capsule landed in the Pacific Ocean after orbiting the earth twice in an unmanned test flight. This new capsule has been designed as part of NASA's effort to take crews past low-earth orbit, marking their first attempt since the Apollo missions in the 1960's. This new spacecraft would take crews not only to the moon, but far beyond. A NASA announcer has stated that "America has driven a golden spike as it crosses a bridge into the future." What do you think of this new project? Is this a significant scientific goal? Is this an appropriate way to spend money?

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Possible reprieve for Louisiana family's beloved pit bull

Discrimination has obviously been a big issue throughout our countries history. Yet in my personal opinion I believe one of the ideas you should never discriminate against is Mans Best Friend. Unfortunately this is the case for lots of breed most commonly Pit Bulls. An ordinance was set forth in a village in Louisiana banning Pit Bulls and Rottweilers. This has not been the first time a town has put laws against specific breeds. It is also stated that the laws against specific breeds are a waste of public resources. Do you agree? If a ban were to put on (dogs) should it be put on a specific dog breed or all dogs in general? Would you apply that idea to groups of people? Such as if one group does something should everyone get punished?

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Eric Garner chokehold death: No indictment for NYPD cop

Articel Link :

In July of 2014 a man named Eric Garner died after being put into a choke hold by officer Daniel Pantaleo. Garner was stopped for the suspicion of selling loose cigarettes. After months of investigation, the grand jury decided not to indict officer Pantaleo. Many citizens of New York and from around the country are outraged by the jury's decision because of the numerous amounts of evidence. A cell phone captured video of the whole conflict and you can hear Garner repeatedly say, "I can't breathe." Also, NYPD says that officers are not allowed to use choke holds, proving the officer had done something wrong. Adding on to the evidence, a medical examiner had ruled Eric's death a homicide. Many people are upset because they feel like this is discrimination, being that we also just recently had outrage over the Michael brown case. What do you guys think? Is there still inequality in our society that is becoming more prevalent? Or do you feel it was right to not indict the officer?