Revealed JFK Tapes

        50 years ago in October, our country was involved in the Cuban Missle Crisis, nearly getting into an extremely dangerous nuclear war. President Kennedy was questioning the generals and advisors about his military and diplomatic options. Many people in the oval office were pushing for military action but President Kennedy restrained from getting involved in a deadly war. Just this past week, secret tapes that were being recorded in the oval office were finally released. In a conversation between President Kennedy and a CIA analyst, Kennedy is extremely calm in how he handles the situation.
For the first time, he is seeing the overhead photographs of a missle cite in Cuba. The horror of the situation is that the nuclear relationship between the Soviet Union and the US has changed because they now have a missle base in Cuba which is just 90 miles away from Florida. This is one of the biggest threats that the United States has recieved and it is amazing to see how well President Kennedy takes on the situation. A man in the oval office said to him: "You're in a very bad fix, Mr. President" and his reply was simply: "You're in there with me". He makes it clear that this problem does not just lie in his hands. The country as a whole was going to have to handle this situation.

Be careful what you Tweet!

      After Tuesday's foreign policy debate, conservative political pundit Ann Coulter tweeted that she approved of "Romney's decision to be kind and gentle to the retard". Not only is this word extremely disrespectful to the President of the United States, but it also offends all mentally disabled kids and adults living in America. What is most amazing about this is that it is not Miss Coulters first time using the "r" word in public text during this election.
        A special olympian with down syndrome named John Franklin wrote a letter to Ann Coulter expressing his thoughts on her use of the word. Franklin said that he wants to get people like Miss Coulter to understand that using the "r" word is an insult and he sees it as a symbol of slow, shallow, and stupid. Its sad to see how much one word can effect so many people. Yet, even after the first time, it seems as though his woman has no respect for the people that she is offending.

      What I found most astonishing is that 1,215 people favorited the tweet and 2,992 people retweeted her writing. The fact that so many people are supporting this coldhearted woman is disgusting. Many Americans just do not realize the harm in the words that come out of their mouths, or in this case, cell-phones. Although there was some support of those who were hurt by this tweet. Actress Sophia Bush tweeted: "@AnnCoulter You disgust me. That man is the president of this
country. (And I'm sure all of the disabled children in America appreciate you.) Recently is class, civil liberties has become a huge part of our daily discussions. Although freedom of speech is obviously respected in America, I feel that Ann Coulter should lose at least the title of her job for using the "r" word in public not only once, but two times. To read more on this subject read this article: http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/23/living/ann-coulter-obama-tweet/index.html?hpt=us_t5

Falsely Convicted?

           On February 17, 2004, Cameron Willingham was executed in Texas for a crime that he probably did not commit. Mr. Willingham was convicted of murdering his three young daughters after they were killed in a house fire. The evidence that was used to convict Mr. Willingham was based on testimony by the Texas fire marshal, who found “clear signs of arson”, and testimony from a fellow inmate. The inmate later changed his story. The science that was used by the fire marshal to determine arson has since been called into question. Mr. Willingham’s final words were: “Please clear my name. I did not kill my children.”

          While Cameron Willingham’s family tries to clear his name, the bigger issue is preventing falsely convicted people from being put to death. The Innocence Project in New York is currently working on 26 arson cases where faulty science may have led to a conviction. People are now starting to focus on more precise arson science. The Texas Forensic Science Commission was established seven years ago to examine faulty criminal investigations. This group found that the science behind the fire marshal’s report in the Willingham case was unreliable. It is believed that the Texas Forensic Science Commission will serve as model for the rest of the country. Four other arson cases in Texas are now under review based on the new science.

          Nothing can change the outcome in the Willingham case. If his family does receive a “posthumous pardon” from the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, it will be the first time in Texas history that an official Texas agency recognizes that an innocent person was executed. I believe that we must do everything possible to investigate all of the evidence in a case before someone is executed. Other than “burn marks” in the Willingham case, there was relatively no other evidence that pointed to arson. No chemicals were ever found. Science now indicates that the same burn marks could have come from a fast moving fire, not one that involved “accelerants”.  Even if one person is spared a death sentence based on these new reviews, it will be worth the effort.

Careless Behavior

    
        Yesterday in Wendell, Idaho, 3 workers at Bettencourt Dairies were fired after an undercover video revealed mistreatment towards cows. The footage showed workers and supervisors "violently hitting, stomping on, punching and kicking cows in the face and body". This farm has 13 milking facilities with about 60,000 cows in total and 500 employees working daily. All people who viewed this footage has described the actions of the men as inhumane and believed they deserved being charged with misdemeanor animal cruelty. Although this might be a small case of mistreatment towards animals, I believe it is happening throughout all of America in all different types of factory farms. This problem has increased over the years due to the higher need of food production and no one people are just starting to address the issue. Animal cruelty should not be tolerated in this country and I feel that the owners of these farms should keep a better watch out for the employees that tend his animals on a day-to-day basis.  (http://www.farmtina.com/2010/09/on-animal-cruelty-and-eating- myrabbits.html)>picture

     When I eat my food, I want to know that it came from a good farm that took care of its animals. Angela Wiggins, a spokeswoman at Kraft, says that: "While Kraft does not raise dairy cows or have milking operations, we want animals to receive proper care and be treated with respect. We have long believed high-quality dairy products begin with quality animal care". It is clear that people want their meat to be cared for properly, yet cruel acts are still happening among these animals. This production, along with many other in America, has become so focused on making the most possible money that many employees simply don't respect the wellbeing of these creatures. Do you think that as consumers of these American produced foods, we should become more aware of the farming process? To read more about this issue, visit: http://www.cnn.com/2012/10/10/us/idaho-dairy-animal-abuse/index.html?hpt=us_c2.