Senior Reflection #2

This past baseball season was one of my favorite high school experiences. While we didn't meet all of the goals we had set for ourselves in the beginning of the season, we were very successful. We finished third in the district, which is an accomplishment since in the past Herndon baseball has had to fight not to finish in last place. I also had a really good season. I was finally able to put everything together and play baseball with the success that I'd always hoped for. Being voted 1st Team All-District was a huge honor and really made me feel proud of all I had accomplished over the course of the season.

Current Event #2

Summary: This article discusses two new developments in the NFL. First, owners could vote to hold the 2014 Super Bowl in New York. This would be the first cold weather Super Bowl in years.

Tampa and Miami are also in the running. Some owners are not keen to give the site to New York, but it appears that New York will win when the vote is taken. Second, a vote amongst owners could potentially apply the new postseason overtime rules to the regular season. These rules make it so an overtime game can't be won by a team kicking a field goal on the first possession of overtime. Owners worry that this extra time could put too much physical stress on players.

Opinion: I think that both these should be put into place. New York is a perfect place for the Super Bowl. It is the biggest city in the US and a cold Super Bowl would bring back some history of the NFL. The new overtime rules should also be extended to the regular season. The current rules allow teams to win games simply by winning the coin flip. It subjects the winner of the game to chance. The new rules makes it so the winner truly has to outplay the other team.

http://views.washingtonpost.com/theleague/nflnewsfeed/2010/05/owners-set-to-consider-ny-super-bowl-new-ot-rule-in-regular-season.html

Senior Reflection #1

Next fall I am going to Virginia Tech. It was my first choice school, so I'm very excited to go there. I am going to major in engineering. I like math and science, so engineering seems like a field of study that will let me enjoy them. Engineering is also a career on the rise, so a lot of jobs will be available to me when I graduate. I'm also excited for the sports at Virginia Tech. I plan on going to as many football and basketball games as I can. I would also like to play club baseball in the spring. I can't wait to go to Virginia Tech because it is the beginning of a new chapter to my life.

Current Event #1

Summary: This article talks about the lack of sense the Phillies seem to have in signing slugger Ryan Howard to a five year $125 million contract. This contracts keeps Howard as a member of the Phillies into his mid to late 30s, when player's production typically begins to decline. This deal is questioned because it goes against the style in which the Phillies have built their mini-dynasty, with short contracts. The deal guarantees a lot of money to Howard for unknown levels of production.

Opinion: I think that the Howard deal is extreme and will eventually hurt the Phillies. While Howard is a great player, the Phillies can't be certain that he will continue to produce at the same level into his mid 30s. Because of this $25 million a year is too much. First base is a position that can easily be replaced due to a lot of talent, so locking up so much money in Howard is a bit ridiculous. This deal could either guarantee the Phillies success or cause them to lag behind the rest of the NL East.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/baseball-insider/2010/04/howard_contract_good_news_for.html

Editorial #5

Summary: In this editorial, the editor talks about how Obama's overhaul of education is a step in the right direction, but it doesn't go far enough. Instead it should require all high school graduates to attended two years of college and for the government to make that financial accessible. He believes that this is necessary for America to keep up with other countries. While some may be skeptical because of our countries growing national debt, the editor shows that the trillion dollars that has been spent of wars could easily begin to fund this new education system and take the burden off of state and local governments.

Opinion: I think that the editor's idea of all high school graduates being required to go to college for at least two years is a very good idea. Having more college graduates will help make our country more productive and successful. However, I don't think that the editor's idea of how to get his idea to happen is very realistic. The wars we are currently fighting won't just suddenly end and we aren't able to get any of the money back that was spent on them, so that leaves the government without much of any money to fund this new college program. If Obama could find a way to create a program of this sort, he greatly improve the success of his presidency.

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2010/03/column-obama-education-plan-doesnt-go-far-enough-.html#more

Source for Editorial #4

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2010/03/column-how-old-is-too-old-for-drivers-license.html#more

Editorial #4

Summary: This editorial talks about the dangers of older drivers being just as great as those of young drivers. The editor says that as a senior citizen he realizes that mental and physical dexterity diminishes. He says that this loss happens in a person's 60s and 70s. The editors solution is to require driving tests for senior citizens when they get their licenses renewed and for drivers licenses to be taken away at 100.

Opinion: I definitely agree with the editor of this article. Senior citizen drivers can cause just as much, if not more, danger as teen drivers can cause. As people age, they become less alert and their reflexes begin to slow, making them less effective and safe drivers. I think that drivers test for senior citizens is good idea. They would just make sure that the onsets of old age aren't effecting their driving abilities too much. While it would be unfortunate for some senior citizens to lose their license, they may not have the ability to drive in a manner that is as safe as it should be.

Opposing view: Stick to troop timetable

Summary: The editor believes that no matter what way you look at the U.S. presence in Iraq, it has been unsuccessful. It has cost our country many lives and a lot of money. Since we can't go back in time and avoid sending troops to Iraq, the editor believes that the current timetable for the removal of troops should continue to be followed. The timetable says that all combat troops will be removed by August and all troops will be removed by Dec. 31, 2011. If this timetable is followed, the negotiations to improve the Iraqi government will finally be able to be carried through.

Opinion: I agree with this editorial. I think that the presence of U.S. troops has been unnecessary. There are a lot of things that the money going towards combat in Iraq that could have been used in the U.S. to make improvements. If troops were never sent to Iraq, then our economy may not be having so many problems. The timetable needs to be followed because the only way we can know if the new Iraqi government will be successful is by leaving and watching.

Editorial #2

Summary: This editorial discusses the recent problems that Toyota has had with its vehicles. The president of Toyota apologized earlier in the week and said that the companies priorities had been confused. Expansion of the company began to become more important than safety. The editor says that Toyota repeated the same mistakes that American car companies had made and has started to fall to that level. The solution: getting back to their roots. They need to publicly deal with their problems and then make safety Toyota's priority once again.

Opinion: I think that the editor has some very good ideas for Toyota. The problems that Toyota is currently facing could possibly run the company into the ground if they aren't dealt with correctly. I think that dealing with them publicly will help restore people's trust in their cars. Also, making safety their top priority will help rebuild their success. If people know that Toyota makes safe, quality cars then that will cause sales to rise by themselves. Right now, Toyota needs to accept their wrongs and begin to move on in a positive direction.

Editorial #1

Summary: In the USA Today article "Opposing view: Tackle costs first," a member of the opposition to President Obama's health care reform discuss how it will actually raise prices for Americans and make the system into a mess. The expansion of Medicaid will increase costs on hospitals and doctors, so in return, doctors and hospitals will raise prices on everyone else. New taxes on insurers will also cause a rise in premiums. This will eventually cause young Americans to forgo insurance, leaving a larger at risk group. The article then proposes some new ideas for improving the health care system like allowing people to get insurance across state lines and for states to lower mandates on insurance companies. The key is to lower costs and increase competition.

Opinion: I think this editorial makes a good point. Health care reform should cut costs for all Americans, not just a few. If it raises costs then what is the point? I think that President Obama is well intentioned in his attempts to reform health care, but his ideas so far don't sound like they will be very effective. Lowering costs and increasing competition sound like they could be effective, but they could also raise costs for some Americans. Health care reform is a complicated issue because one group of people is always going to feel the negative effects. Since no one actually wants to feel the negative effects, it will take a long time to develop a plan that benefits all people.

http://blogs.usatoday.com/oped/2010/02/opposing-view-tackle-costs-first.html#more

Mark McGwire: The Newest Steroid User

Mark McGwire came clean this past week, by admitting to using steroids. McGwire was hired as the St. Louis Cardinals hitting coach and felt that he needed to "clear the air" of the suspicion that he used steroids. Now the question is whether or not McGwire will ever make it into the Hall of Fame. I think he will. McGwire played in a time when steroid use was rampant and Major League Baseball just let it slide. There weren't as many banned substances or any strict policies, so players were able to get away with it. Major League Baseball needs to accept that there was a major steroid issue in the past, move on, and focus on preventing steroid use in the present, rather than punishing those from the past. It still took a lot of skill for McGwire to be as successful as he was. He still hit all of those home runs; its not like the numbers were fudged. He just did what everyone else was doing at the time in order to keep up and help recover from an injury. The 1990s was a dark time for Major League Baseball. They turned their backs to all of the steroid use then, so it is pointless to go back now and try to do something about it.

Source for Political Cartoon #6

Source: http://politicalcartoons.com/cartoon/0b69abaf-8f39-46c9-8d27-de3cc3c4c061.html

Political Cartoon #6

Who drew the cartoon? John Cole

Where was it published? The Scranton Times-Tribune 1/15/10

What issue or event does the cartoon deal with? The earthquake in Haiti and aid from other countries

What is the cartoon's message? The cartoon is saying that other countries are having a difficult time providing aid to Haiti after the devastating earthquake because they are tangled up in their own affairs.

Do you agree/disagree with the cartoon's message? Why? While I think aid needs to be given to Haiti, I agree with this cartoon. Countries, like the United States, are going through tough economic times, so it is difficult for them to find money to give to Haiti. A country's internal problems are going to come first, so giving aid to Haiti will go on the back burner.

Outlook on Obama in 2010

I think that Obama has laid down much of the foundation for a successful 2010. While he hasn't actually accomplished anything big, he has brought about ideas that could be beneficial to the country, like the healthcare bill. I hope that the Obama will do something that can push our country past this economic downturn. Once the economy is in a more stable state, I think Obama will have more opportunities to put some of his new ideas to use. It will be interesting to see what happens with Afghanistan and Iraq in 2010. Obama has set timelines for when troops will be removed form these areas, but who knows if these timelines will be followed since it was a surprise that Obama increased the number of troops in Afghanistan. I think for Obama to be the most successful in 2010, he needs to focus on the issues in our country that are effecting Americans on a day to day basis.

Political Cartoon #5

Who drew the cartoon? Taylor Jones

Where was it published? Politicalcartoons.com, 1/6/10

What issue or event does the cartoon deal with? This cartoon deals with airport security and how people of Middle Eastern decent or with Middle Eastern names are often subject to extra searches.

What is the cartoon's message? The cartoon is saying that racial and ethnic profiling is bad because most people aren't terrorists. The artist is saying that racial and ethnic profiling is so out of hand that Obama, who's middle name is Hussein, could even be stopped just because he has a middle name that is associated with the Middle East.

Do you agree/disagree with the cartoon's message? Why? I agree with the cartoon's message. I think it is unfair that someone can be subject to extra searches at airports because of their name, race, or ethnicity. Airports should rely on new technology to make sure people will not commit terrorist acts. With new advancements in new searching technology, profiling of passengers shouldn't be necessary.

Source: http://politicalcartoons.com/cartoon/0ac11c3f-df95-4858-a6f9-171bd769429b.html