Thursday, May 21, 2009

Father Albert, you have a Girlfriend???

Father Albert is a very popular priest and very well-known in the hispanic population. I am not sure if he is so well-kown for others but in the hispanic population everyone has now heard about the issue with Father Albert, you know the priest who was caught with his girlfriend. Well I am not Catholic but I respect what everyone thinks. A lot of people are pointing their fingers and talk badly about Father Albert but, in my personal opinion I think he is not doing anything wrong. Like I said if someone feel differently it is okay with me but I feel like everyone is human and has just as much right as another to have a family or someone to love. I don’t see having a couple as committing a crime or a sin. What I do understand is that he should have told his congregation and the people who followed him about this earlier. Also instead of lying to the church he should have told them that something unexpected had occurred. Although he may have been critiqued by the church he could still be devoted to the religion and have a life with someone he loved. Something I feel very strongly about is that it is much better for him to have a life partner instead of committing other horrible things that are sins and crimes such as sexually abusing little kids. I noticed that when a priest sexually abuses a child there is controversy but now that one was caught with a woman doing normal things, the controversy is much greater. Also although Father Albert is a priest, he is also human like any other man he is not a God or free of sin.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Michael Vick to be Release on Wednesday

The former football star of the atlanta falcons is expected to be release from prison to home where he will complete his remaining term. The big news is whether he will be allowed to play in the N.F.L. this year. Every body is weighing in on the issue and there are mixed opinion on whether he should be allowed to play again or not.
My opinion he that he's serve his term and punishment and so he should be allowed and given a second chance. Every body makes mistakes in life some piont in time and I think it's very imperative that Americans starts to recognize that and move. We often judge people when they fall short but don't realize that we ourselves are not perfect. Vick is a good man and his involvement in the dog fighting scandal was embarrasing but he is just a man. I am quite sure he has realize his mistake and is ready to move on never to take part in such a brutal ill treatment of animals or any living thing anymore. We have too many big problems in the world today than animal cruelty not to diminish or take side with him in any ways but realy we have a lot to take care of. There are millions of people dying of hunger and sicknesses all around the world that are forgorten. We need to care for those people first before crucifying people for killing dogs. I don't mean to offend any body in any way but lets face the truth here there i no where on earth that people will take the life of a dog or animal over that of a man.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Abortion

Every year, thousands of women are impregnated either by accident, lack of contraception, incest, or rape. These are women that do not have the money to afford a baby, they are usually teenagers, and are not responsible enough to raise and support a child. These women do have a way out; they have the option to have an abortion. There are approximately 3,700 abortions per day in the United States. According to John Keown, the professor of Christian Ethics at the Georgetown University, "As early as the mid-thirteenth century the common law punished abortion after fetal formation as homicide." The first case that allowed abortion legally was Roe vs. Wade case in 1973. The Supreme Court had decided that abortion is protected by the right to privacy. Abortion is a very controversial issue in society now. Those who are for abortions say that it is the women’s rights to decide whether to keep their babies or not, and those who are against abortions say that the fetuses are human beings and that their rights should be protected as well. Those who are against abortions have run a campaign to protest against abortion law ever since the constitution allowed abortions as legal.
I think that abortion should be allowed to prevent social inequalities. If abortion is prohibited, then low-income households would struggle more and not be able to provide a kid a good care with much love. According to Jennifer Barber, the research associate professor of sociology, a recent study documents the negative effects of unwanted childbearing on both the mother and her family. Women who have had unwanted births sustain lower quality relationships with all of their children, not only the child resulting from an unwanted birth. These lower quality relationships translate into socialization problems for the children, affecting their development, self-esteem, personality, educational and occupational attainment, mental health and marital relationships. Women would lose a right as a mother to choose whether to keep a pregnancy or not. Rape victims would have no way of performing an abortion other than performing illegally privately. Before arguing abortion to be allowed or prohibited, the social inequalities that might occur related to abortions would have to be solved; until then, to prevent greater problems with social inequalities, an abortion law would have to stay as now but also provide funding to poor women for abortion again.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Going Green.




Going green is easier than ever now to do, and it's so simple! With all the famous stars wearing green t-shirts, I wonder if they know why they are wearing the shirt, and how big of an issue this really is. It's going to take a lot more than just wearing a cute t-shirt. Why should you go green? Humans and animals use CO2 every time we exhale. CO2 is a greenhouse gas, along with nitrogen oxide. Nitrogen oxide, which is given off by cars as we drive them and by coal-burning power plants as they generate electricity. Some scientists now think that the average temperatures on Earth could rise by between 3 and 10 degrees Fahrenheit by the middle of the next century. Air pollution is also a very serious problem, if it gets too dirty you can get very sick. Another reason is that we are running out of landfill space, which is where all of our garbage goes. So recycle! The main way that we can all help save our enviorment is using less electricity, and it's easier than you think. Just turn off all of the lights and turn the t.v off before you go to bed, this can make a big difference. Unplugging lights, computers, hair dryers, and any other appliances can really make a difference. We all need to use less so we can live a happy and healthy life. Green isn't a fashion statement, it's a lifestyle.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Polar Bears

Many scientists believe the current warming trend jeopardize the survival of the species known as Polar bears. The major danger posed by global warming is malnutrition or starvation due to the loss of habitat. Polar bears hunt seals from platforms of sea ice. Rising temperatures cause the sea ice to melt earlier in the year, forcing the bears to shore before they have built sufficient fat reserves to survive the period of scarce food in the late summer and early fall. The decline in sea-ice cover also forces bears to swim longer distances, which further drains their energy stores and occasionally leads to drowning. Thinner sea ice tends to warp more easily, which appears to make it more difficult for polar bears to access seals. Lack of nourishment leads to lower reproductive rates in adult females and lower survival rates in cubs and juvenile bears, in addition to poorer body condition in bears of all ages.
In addition to creating nutritional stress, a warming climate is expected to affect various other aspects of polar bear life: Changes in sea ice affect the ability of pregnant females to build appropriate maternity dens. As the distance increases between the pack ice and the coast, females must swim longer distances to reach favored areas which they prefer to den on land. Thawing of permafrost would affect the bears that traditionally den underground and warm winters could result in den roofs collapsing. Disease-causing bacteria and parasites would thrive in a warmer climate.
If we continue to do nothing to help change global warming Polar bears as well as many other species of animals will become extinct. We all can do our part in even a small way to help save the Polar bears. The effects of Global warming are extensive and irreversible. The sooner we make a change the more animals we can save.

Anorexia Treatment and Cost

Anorexia Nervosa is a serious and potentially life threatening eating disorder. There are an estimated 7 million women and 1 million men in the US who suffer from eating disorders. 1 in 200 American women suffer from anorexia. 10-15% of people with anorexia are males. Eating disorders have the highest morality rate among mental illness. It is the 3rd most common chronic illness in the midst of adolescents. Only 1 in 10 people with an eating disorder receive treatment, due to insurance companies not considering treatment to be a medical necessity. Majority of insurance companies do not pay for treatment of eating disorders even though it is considered a mental illness. Treatment of an eating disorder varies in cost from $500.00- $2,000.00 per day. The average rate for an inpatient facility is $30,000.00 per month. On average the patient should be given 3-6 months of inpatient care. Following the inpatient care comes the outpatient/follow up care which includes a nutritionist, therapy, medical monitoring, and any other treatment may end up costing up to $100,000.00, which again is not covered by insurance.
Most people are not able to afford the treatment. The irony in the situation is that majority of insurance companies will provide assistance to those individuals who are obese and seeking treatment in similar facilities as persons with anorexia. Until the insurance companies choose to view this mental illness as the serious, chronic, life threatening illness that it is people will continue to suffer from this illness, and will not be able to receive the treatment they need to get the help and guidance they need to help battle this illness.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Swine Flu

Media coverage on the Swine Flu has encouraged an all around panic and over reaction what appears to be almost globally. Each year there are around 36,000 deaths of the common flu that everyone expects to show its face as the weather turns in the fall. We may hear of a few of these if they are local to our area but I have never heard of that many Flu related deaths myself.
I have heard over the past few days the terms deadly, pandemic, epidemic, global, I even heard one radio talk show host suggest a national lock down. Looking back over the course of this topic it could have all been kept into perspective on day one had the media not needed something new to obsess over. To start with, the first panic was the child passing here in the states. Very unfortunate that he passed, but the media blasted the first us death. Had that been express a little more clearly they would have found a way to express in the headlines that the young child had just arrived here within hours of dying for the purpose of medical treatment, and was not someone in the U.S. per say. The other misleading piece from the news that swayed many into their frenzy was the death toll that they were taking in Mexico that had never been confirmed were all cases of the flu. It is only recently that the numbers have been “confirmed” and although it seems to be quickly spreading the deaths thankfully are not following. This could also be explained by the specific location in which the wide spread in Mexico took place. It wasn’t until yesterday (Sunday) that it was shown what kind of living conditions the majority of infected deaths took place. Many of those cases did not have the opportunity to seek medical attention. Of the many cases that have been confirmed of the virus here in the states they are being described as mild. The word pandemic is being used in every report without explaining the meaning. Pandemic is only referring to the ability for it to spread, not the number of lives it takes. In perspective this is another virus that is going to go around just as every other virus that hits us every year. I have had the flu before and although it was 8 days of hell the flu is not always lethal.

No More Horsing Around

I often have personal conflicts with my choice to be a meat eater. The term meat eater is taken a bit more generally with some people. The most common meats that you would think about would be fish, pork, beef, and chicken. I think what companies do to these animals in bad enough let alone getting into the “specialties” and “delicacies”. Veal for example is just a baby that has been kept in a much smaller cage so the meat is tenderer. Lamb in my opinion should be used only for its coat that it supplies us with not for a nice rack of ribs. And even that could be gone about much more humanely in many places. I think of the Native Americans that killed only what they NEEDED and found a purpose for everything that came from that life. I could go on and on about an endless number of issues about livestock but I want to point out one that is probably in the top three of the worst I have ever seen.
In Europe and very few places here in the states horse meat is considered to be the cream of the crop. These animals that have transported us from point a to point b, pulled farm equipment to feed our families, and to date are often our pets, are now being bought, smuggled, tortured, and butchered to feed the whim of the rich in my opinion thoughtless. Granted the slaughtering of the most common of meats is still inhumane, the ways in which the horse slaughter houses here in the states is unacceptable. The two most common ways they kill them prior to butchering them is by cutting off a portion of the leg until they bleed to death or shooting them in the head with a nail gun. Neither of these is quick and easy per say for the horse. It often takes hours for the horse to “give up” with its injured leg. With the nail gun it often takes a few before it receives a fatal blow. All the while the animal is aware of what’s coming and usually, in the plants that this takes place, able to see the horses that have gone before them hanging by their hind legs being “bled”.
I understand that not everyone is going to stop eating meat; many probably wouldn’t cut down on the amount of meat that they eat. It’s very hard to say that one animal is ok to kill and another is not but we have to stop somewhere. Why is it that we have gone beyond the few animals that some believe are needed to have a balanced diet. Why do people need to have more, more, more? How is that so many people have come to enjoy the suffering of another living being so they can impress someone at the dinner table with the most expensive meat they could buy? I wish that we could go back to the time where we only killed what we needed and used all we took.