Picture Worth a Thousand Words (Zimmerman Protests)

Photo provided by: huffingtonpost.com

By: Kelly Sarceno

After the innocent verdict of George Zimmerman, protests are fired up across the country to seek justice for Trayvon Martin.

As news spread of the innocent verdict of the Zimmerman trial, many citizens became photo journalists and captured the rage spread through out the country.

An article published by the Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/15/trayvon-martin-protests_n_3593469.html (07/14/20) talks about the innocent verdict of Zimmerman after his long and controversial trials; and depicts the gatherings, protests, vigils, and marches against the “innocent” result.

Well instead of telling us about the public’s reaction, the article decided to gather compelling pictures captured around the country.

The reason why this article captured my attention was because of the topic of the story. Many have been entwined with this trial because it was a huge American tragedy that even brought president Barack Obama to tears, and it has become a controversy involving race. It is a very timely piece, because it is a very relevant story and everyone cares about it as of now.

The article also interested me because of the fact that it is a photo journalistic piece. Rather than having a piece of photo journalism that consists of huffington post photographers work; all the pictures were citizen journalism pieces, and they all were pictures posted all around social media such as Twitter.

This article is a very compelling piece for it’s creativity in collaging together photos to get a message across. The message of the raged community. Its a very objective piece yet with an angle, that we must look at the anger our community is consumed with.

Personally I believe that this article is a very powerful piece, because rather than telling us about what happened, they showed us. People can feel a deeper impact with images rather than words, this article definitely did that for me.

Definitely check out the article, and truly take the time to look at the pictures. It’s something to think about. As my teacher would say “Some food for thought”.

American, Citizen, American citizen.

By: Kelly Sarceno

LONGMONT, COLORADO- The recent passage of the Colorado ASSET bill has provided undocumented students with access to rights previously only guaranteed to American citizens. This bill has complicated what it means to be an American citizen.

A recent mile stone in the immigration and education system is the Colorado Asset bill. After a decade of debate and 6 bills, Colorado Asset was passed this past April. Colorado Asset is a bill that grants in state tuition to undocumented students. In state tuition will make college affordable and a viable option for undocumented students. It will become a great return on investment, and  it will opens doors for students who seek higher education yet do not have the nine digits that say you are an American Citizen.

To some this bill seems progressive but to others it seems unfair. Matt Murphy, local high school student, argues that the bill is an unfair advantage for undocumented students who do not deserve in state tuition from a place they are not even from. Murphy states “Why would the government give in-state tuition to students who are not from here, not only from the state but not even from the country?” This is a sentiment shared by others who oppose the ASSET bill. The requirements for eligibility show that it is not an easy process to receive in state tuition. The requirements include:

• Have attended a Colorado high school for three years prior to graduation or finishing a GED.
• Be admitted to a state college or university.
• Provide an affidavit stating they have applied for lawful residency in the U.S. or will apply as soon as they are able.

After looking at the requirements students must meet to be granted the privilege of in state tuition, Murphy restated his response. Once giving Murphy these requirements that need to be met, he restates his answer by saying that they are American, but not citizens.

What it means to be a citizen is not easy to define. For Murphy, documentation and a social security number defines what it means to be a citizen.

Legally what does it mean to be a citizen?

Legally assuming you have a green card (resident) the pathway to citizenship is a complicated and time consuming process. Provided requirements given by  U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services office the requirements include:

• Be at least 18 years old
• Have had a valid Green Card at least five years. If you are married to U.S. citizen you may apply after three years with a valid Green Card. Or, if you have served in the United States armed forces during war, you may apply for U.S. citizenship without first obtaining a Green Card if you were in the United States upon enlistment into the U.S. military.
• Have maintained continuous residence in the United States for at least five years (or three years if you are married to a U.S. citizen)
• Have been physically present in the United States for at least two and a half years (or one and half years if you are married to a U.S. citizen)
• Have lived in the state where the Form N-400 is submitted for at least three months
• Be able to read, write and speak English
• Have a general knowledge of the fundamentals of U.S. history and government

Be a person of good moral character and willing to abide by the principles of the U.S. Constitution.

The key aspect that people debate is the true milestone to becoming a citizen is the naturalization test. Yet, how can one say that this proclaims your success of being a true American citizen, if citizens themselves who have lived here their whole lives do not know the fundamental aspects of the country they have lived in their whole lives.

The New York Times UPFRONT The News Magazine for Teens published an article “It’s a Good Thing Citizens Aren’t Tested” which states that the test given to upcoming citizens is becoming harder and harder. A disappointing 42 percent of   U.S. “American” citizens can list the three branches of the U.S Government. And a mere 24 percent of Americans can name two U.S. Supreme Court Justices.

At the end of the day who is the most “American” . The one who knows about the country they have lived in and prove their knowing of it on a test, or the one who was simply born here? When this bears the question what truly defines being American; and what is the main difference with this and being a citizen?

I interview Hugo Juarez, 25. He has lived here since the age of six and currently works at a factory making cell phone parts, because his degree in psychology is not valued as much being he is an undocumented adult. Hugo starts off the interview by telling me what he considers himself to be.  “ I played baseball and football as a kid, probably one of the most American sports out there. I’ve gone to school here, I have learned my life lessons here. I reside here, and this place is all I know, Mexico to me is only a spot on the map. I am just as American as the next guy; accept I don’t have the piece of paper that says I am.”

Juarez qualifies himself as an American, morally and ethically he would indicate himself as being a citizen. But the government and other people in society neglect this idea that only a piece of paper or those nine digits separate them from the pack. Being marginalized and stereotyped is an annoyance that Juarez points out.

“I’m not some dirty Mexican that’s here to mess up the country. This country has helped me prosper, so why would I disgrace a country that to me is ‘my’ country and proud of it. But they do oppress “us” and it can be hard to be proud of a country who neglects my efforts to do well here.”

At the end of the day what is the difference between being an American and a citizen. You can be born here and simply declare your citizenship, or you can know everything about this country and the pride you have for it, yet born somewhere else and then still be considered “American”. Colorado ASSET seems to stray away from discriminating undocumented students and consider them just as American as anyone else who was born here. Anyone undocumented, documented, American, not American, yet reside here tend to have a dream to prosper in life, and a drive to explore, that seems to be the shared idea here, right?

Picture courtesy: http://www.newstaco.com/2012/07/04/7-activities-for-july-4th-with-a-latino-twist/

The Unknown Price of the CU Pre-Collegiate Program

 

Photo courtesy of precollegiate website

By: Luz Macias
Boulder: Some students wonder about their programs cost, a few don’t.

When student Alia Mendoza saw the image above for the first time a swarm of math consumed her thoughts. As she and another 92 students eat at the C4C daily and 3 times a day. “when I did the math in my head multiplied the approximate cost of each meal so 8 dollars times three, times the number of students.” The cost for one day of meals for the students is around 2,000 dollars, and for just a day. “I didn’t even know if we were considered visitors or students. All I know is I wouldn’t pay that.” Like Alia the students selected to be part of the pre-collegiate are asked for a minimum GPA of 2.5 In their high school grades and the attendance of two Saturday academies a year. In retrospect Pre-collegiate student Ashley Aragon calls it a small price to pay in order to enjoy the vast benefits of the program. The students receive the opportunity to stay up at CU boulder required in order to successfully graduate from the program.

The five-week experience High school students are immersed into the summer before their senior year provides them with many things,both material and intellectual. During their stay students live in a college dorm, eat at a college dining hall, and attend classes where college graduates or professors teach them. The tune resonating from their five-week summer lifestyle is college, college,and even more college. As the nation faces various financial issues many involving the matter of college tuition and funding it is something of a known fact that college is not cheap. Here we have a program that is dedicated to taking minorities and under represented students and giving them as close to a college experience as possible

Marlene Sanchez a student at Brighton High School and a member of the program since the seventh grade describes the first time she even began to wonder about the program’s funding. Marlene was preparing to board a bus that would take her to the Olympiad, a competition where various groups of pre-collegiate students would compete with one another. The day before the director had come into a seminar all the students attended and addressed the fact that only two guest per students where allowed as the price for meals was already at six thousand dollars. She described shock and a growing curiosity as to how much the experience cost. She stood in front of the bus thinking how the program affords a bus plus six thousand dollar sandwiches. Marlene’s curiosity only expanded as she spoke to students from other programs. The students from the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs pre-collegiate program do not stay in dorms on campus. They are dropped off and picked up from school every weekday, as the classes they take at the university are four hours long each. They must also pay for these two classes and their meals. “I do not pay for anything in this program nor do my peers” says Marlene.

As the students of PCDP have to be accounted for, the program employs alumni of the program as peer counselors. Sara Hernandez a general PC in charge of a peer counseling group and student participation and supervision. Sarah is paid in work study. Sara Hernandez along with the rest of the PCs receives forty hours of work study or as she says it “360 dollars a week”. When multiplying the weekly amount by the number of PCs which is 19 the final cost is 6,840 and that is only for a week. It is important to recognize that work-study emerges through FAFSA and is money paid from the school to the students. This process allows recognition of an affiliation between the program and the school. Recognition not guaranteed to be observed to every student of the PCDP whether because of no information on the topic being available or because it is not what matters.

One out of six interviewed students said she didn’t care where the funding for the program came from. Irle Hernandez daughter of a single mother prefers not knowing. She sees her journey in  PCDP as one wonderful and enriched she is just grateful she gets to be a part of it. For the rest of the student the the mystery of their programs funding is a topic of interest and something they believed they should have considered more early on.

The director of the program was requested to answer this list of questions

How long have you been the director of the PCDP program?

Why do you feel the program is important?

Where does the funding for the program come from?

How many students are in the PCDP program?

What affiliation does the PCDP program have to the University of Colorado Boulder?

What is the number of total staff members in making the CU PCDP possible?

How do you personally feel about the program?

Why do you feel this way?

What is the total budget for the PCDP program and what does that include?

Is it possible for anyone who wants to donate funds to the program or sponsor it?

On account of busy schedule she was not able to answer. As the time at Pre-Collegiate comes to a close is it important for many to know where their experiences funding came from. Whether the students wanted to know the cost of their experience or not the experiences described in the pre-collegiate were mostly all positive.

Ashley Aragonhttp
Irle Hernandez
Sara Hernandez
Alia Mendoza                                                                                                                                                                            Marlene Sanchez                                                 http://www.colorado.edu/odece/pcdp/employment.html                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

 

Boulder Residents Weigh In On Their City Being Ranked Second Happiest In America

Photo courtesy of http://www.esrl.noaa.gov

By Kamri Guzman

As a nation, we are all in competition with one another to be the healthiest or the wealthiest, but we are curious where happiness fits in. CBS News released a survey done by Gallup in 2011 that ranked Boulder, Colorado the happiest city in America; however, an updated list released in 2013 showed Boulder coming in second to Lincoln, Nebraska. This leads us to question what knocked Boulder down on the happy scale, what classified us as the happiest and what has changed in the past two years.

To come up with their results, Gallup conducted close to a thousand interviews a day (352,840 people) throughout 2010 asking respondents a series of questions and grouped them into six general categories.

• The first category was a life evaluation where interviewees scored their current life on a scale of 1 – 10.
• The second was based on physical health where respondents were asked to report any health issues that prevented them from participating in age-appropriate activities, and how many days in the past month that had been ill enough to cancel their plans. Gallup was curious about current physical ailments that may be causing respondents chronic pain. Boulder ranked number one in this category.
• The survey asked about healthy behavior, including cigarette smoking, weekly workouts consisting of 30 minutes or longer, and how many days out of the week interviewees managed to eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables.
• The fourth category dealt with emotional questions, asking if respondents were treated with respect all day prior to answering these questions, however this did not include data about teenage kids. The survey also asked if respondents smiled or laughed a lot the previous day, and if they learned or did something interesting the day before.
• Work and career questions were also a category which questioned if participants were satisfied or dissatisfied with their job, if they get to use their strengths to the best of their ability. Gallup also examined if supervisors behave like a boss or a partner and if the supervisor created a trusting and open work environment.
• Gallup’s final category included questions concerning medical history, dentist visits, and health insurance. More specifically it asked about the respondents’ satisfaction or dissatisfaction with their city/region, their access of fresh produce, and how safe they felt to walk alone at night.

 

Boulder ranked first in 2011 with an overall score of 73.7. Business Insider released 2013’s survey results this March, which ranked Boulder as the second happiest city in America, second to Lincoln, Nebraska. Boulder’s composite score for 2013 was 72.7, and interestingly enough, Lincoln beat out Boulder with a composite score of 72.8.  Gallup Wellbeing explains in-depth the scores and how they were calculated.

In an effort to discover what other citizens think of Gallup’s survey, I interviewed various people who shared their thoughts about happiness and how it is being measured in the survey.

Steven Gordy, a twenty-year old Chicano student at CU Boulder has resided in Boulder, Colorado for two years. After giving him background information about Gallup’s survey and the six categories that respondents were questioned about, he shared his thoughts on the survey’s effectiveness and gave me insight to living on a Boulder campus. 

Q: Is this an effective way of analyzing happiness, why or why not?

A: Yeah, I think so, only because that last one more specifically, as far as basic access; physical health and emotional health and all that kind of stuff comes from a more rooted place. As far as access to things that last one [basic access] accounts for all of them because the more access you have to things the better all of these things are going to be, theoretically. I think because of the fact that it takes into account basic access, it is effective.

Q: As a resident of Boulder, do you agree with Gallup ranking Boulder as the second happiest city in America? Do you feel like you live in the second happiest city in America?

A: No, because I feel like when you think about access again and what people have access to, I have found in my experience how interactions with people that a lot of the [people] that have had more access – I don’t know if I’m confusing happiness and mutual respect, because somebody could be disrespectful or rude, but that doesn’t mean that they’re still not happy. They could be happy with what they have. It’s hard.

Q: Would you agree that it isn’t the most effective to rank a person’s happiness based on where they reside?

A: Yes.

Q: Currently, Boulder is the second happiest city in America, where as it was ranked number one in 2011. Do you feel like anything has changed over the past two years, for you personally, regarding these six categories, either positively or negatively?

A: My physical health has improved because [I live on] campus and I walk everywhere, so something as small as that is making a big difference. I think it’s hard too because this study sounds really broad; is it accounting for just the city or the University [of Colorado at Boulder]? The University is different because you’re going to have more options as far as work opportunities.

Q: The campus is more a community within itself?

A: Yeah.

Q: So to clarify, you do feel things have changed based on where you reside?

A: From where I used to live before [Denver, Colorado], I do feel like I have a lot more even in terms of basic access living in Boulder than where I came from.

                Steven brought up many intriguing factors, such as if a person’s happiness can be accurately judged based on where they reside. Is it rather a matter of how they live their life and their experiences?

                To get more than one person’s thoughts on the subject matter, I interviewed Anika Griffin – a twenty-year old female who identifies ethnically as other. She has lived in Boulder for the three years she has attended CU Boulder. Anika was also given background information about Gallup’s survey.

Q: Do you think this is an effective way of analyzing happiness, and why or why not?

A: I think as far as you can get, very technically about happiness, I think yes. This is a pretty good way to measure it. I think in general, it’s just a difficult thing to measure happiness because I know a lot of people who are without [basic access] who are very happy. I think for the most part, this is a very accurate way to go about measuring it.

Q: As a resident in Boulder, do you agree with Gallup’s ranking of Boulder as the second happiest city in America?

A: Sure, yeah, I don’t know the data but at least from my experience I would say it is a very happy city.

Q: Do you feel like you live in the second happiest city in America?

A: I guess all I can say to answer that is that I’ve lived in other places in the past and the nicest people are here [in Boulder], the most active are here. I can’t speak for the rest of the nation but I can say that most of the people that live here are pretty active and healthy and happy.

Q: At the moment, Boulder is the second happiest city in America, where as it was ranked number one in 2011. Do you feel like anything has changed over the past two years, for you personally, that would make you happier than you were two years ago?

A: Based on those criteria, no, nothing has changed.

Q: Is there anything you would like to add?

A: I think the only thing I would add is that I don’t know that much about happiness but I would say to refer to Boulder for its health statistics throughout the nation because I think [Boulder] is like the second or third healthiest city in the nation, because those [health and happiness] probably go together; there is some correlation there.  

                Based on the data I researched and collected, some Boulder residents do feel as if they are living in the happiest city in America, as opposed to others who don’t have much to compare their residency in Boulder to. Interviewees also added that basic access is the most important aspect and also one directly related to the way people live, so basic access will definitely affect one’s happiness.

However, other categories asked about in Gallup’s survey, like physical health, cannot necessarily be related to one’s happiness, directly. A woman in California can jog 30 minutes a day and feel accomplished and happy, and a woman in Colorado can do the same, regardless of where either women live.

Although when measuring happiness, there are many aspects of life that must be taken into account, but not all are directly related to where someone resides and if that place makes them happy, as well. Gallup’s survey is most likely as efficient as calculating happiness will get for the time being, but I am curious, like some of those I interviewed, about how this survey can be altered and improved to accurate analyze happiness.

It’s crucial to evaluate our lives every so often and open our eyes to what may be fueling our happiness or extinguishing it. Every part of a person’s life correlates to where they are and who they surround themselves with. So as a nation prospering exponentially, we should know that we won’t always be happy but there are actions to take that ensure we surround ourselves with positive people and opportunities. By exploring the world around you, you can obtain a more educated outlook and positive view of the world, and who knows, you might find some happiness along the way.

 

* http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505123_162-41142308/the-10-happiest-and-saddest-cities-in-the-us/

* http://www.gallup.com/poll/146645/Boulder-Colo-Leads-Metro-Areas-Wellbeing.aspx?utm_source=alert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=syndication&utm_content=morelink&utm_term=All+Gallup+Headlines+-+Healthcare+-+Social+Issues

* http://www.businessinsider.com/happiest-and-healthiest-cities-in-america-2013-3?op=1

* http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/csd/events/GK2012/

 

Youth Community and Their Thoughts on Gay Marriage.

Picture courtesy of Mashable.

By: Ashley Aragon

Published: July 11, 2013

BOULDER- When a teen from today sees two men walking down the street holding hands; they see no problem in it and just see it as a normal everyday thing. Might it have been at least a decade ago the couple would not only have received dirty looks but talked down to as well.

Homosexuality is not a new concept in today’s age. For example in ancient Greece, homosexuality was very common. Ancient Greeks saw homosexuality as a matter of preference rather than a moral issue. According to Religion Facts “Attraction to males and homosexual relationships in the active role with one’s social inferiors was common, approved by society, and could even be regarded as a sign of masculinity.” In ancient Greece they only saw homosexuality acceptable if it was between two men and not two women. Back then social status was very important, as well as the difference between the active and passive roles in male homosexuality. The main difference in ancient Greek sexual relations was between taking an active also known as the “insertive role” and the passive also known as the“penetrated one.” The passive role was acceptable only for inferiors, such as women, slaves, or male youths who were not yet citizens. Sex between freemen or sex between equals, however, were problematic for status: if two adult citizens were to engage in homosexual activity, the one who played the passive role would lose respect. 

Courtesy of MPR News.

Just like people can support gay marriage other people can oppose it. Luz Macias, a local Brighton High School student explains that everyone should have equal rights to marry whoever they want. She feels like people who oppose gay marriage are “discriminating” because everyone as humans should all have equal powers and rights just like any one else. On the other hand there are people who believe marrying someone of the same sex isn’t right. For example, in TFP’s article it explains 10 reasons why gay marriage is wrong. The article states that “it’s not marriage” arguing that marriage has always between a man and a woman. The article also states that “it offends God” saying how God created Adam and Eve, a male and a female, to reproduce and love each other.

Courtesy of PoliticsPA

Today’s teens are more open to the topic of gay marriage because they have grown up around a society where they are learning how to accept marriage between two people of the same sex. According to the Washington Post 81 percent of the people who are in the ages between 18 and 29 believe gay married should be legal. For example my roommate Kai, a local student at Boulder, explains to me how she fully supports gay marriage and sees nothing wrong with “seeing two people who truly love each other get married.”  She also explains to me how she was raised in a very liberal family that believes being gay is acceptable. She says “It’s not like we’re getting married to them” and believes that it is truly everyone’s individual choice.

The progression of gay activism has truly changed throughout the years. it may take time for the majority of people to accept it. It can be said that in the period of 20 years gay marriage will be accepted by majority of the people because of new gay law rights being passed and extensive support from younger generations.

• Kiaya Harmon PCDP Student
• Luz Macias PCDP Student
• http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2013/03/19/why-support-for-gay-marriage-has-risen-so-quickly/
• http://www.religionfacts.com/homosexuality/ancient_greeks.htm
• http://www.tfpstudentaction.org/politically-incorrect/homosexuality/10-reasons-why-homosexual-marriage-is-harmful-and-must-be-opposed.html

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Concealed weapons: Is it a problem or protecting citizens?

http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/121213-concealed-carry-hmed230p.380;380;7;70;0.jpg

By: Catherine Quijada

Published :July 11,2013

 

Whether we like the idea or not, now a days the world gets dangerous. As you hear one the news that there has been a shooting in a local area Citizens wonder when will the madness in this world stop and when will they ever feel safe. In the year 2012 two biggest massacres in two different location that that killed many innocent victims . This has been the biggest cause that made citizens to think about their safety and what should be done. It’s been debated by both Citizens of the US and legislatures for a while and finally the decision had been concluded that concealed weapon law has been made stating that Citizens who by a concealed weapon has to go through background check and take classes in order to own a gun. Schools also are in debate, but is it the right choice and will people ever feel safe if professors or students are allowed to bring their weapons. Concealed weapons have been the biggest issue that people are dealing with and now they aren’t really happy.

In 2012, in what is now known as the Aurora theater shooting twelve were killed and the shooter James Holmes is still on trial to see what will be the saying on what will happen to him. At Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut, a shooting killed twenty young students. After the shooter killed the innocent victims he not only killed his mom before the shooting had happen, he killed himself after the shooting as every news had announced it. In the Aftermath of Newtown killing, nearly 43% of people who supported gun control and saying that we should still own guns had dropped and are now against the whole idea of owning a gun.

After all these massacres finally the debate was on both Democrats and Republicans argued on what should be done The Washington post reported that Republican state representative Loris Shaine stating,said “That’s what this bill is really about: It’s gun confiscation. That’s the difference between this and what we have in current bill.” Republican representatives aren’t happy about what Democrats are wanting to push forward. As Republicans believe that citizens should be allowed to own their guns since it is on the second Amendment. As they believe people kill people.

Democrats on the other hand think that guns create more problems and violence in the world. As one of their state Rep Rhonda Fields stated, “ When you combine domestic violence and guns that is a lethal problem, those two things do not mix.” They believe that all guns should be banned. Or democrats advocate for legal change because at a fundamental level guns kill people. They want to make citizens feel safe and by having guns how on earth will citizens will be able to walk out their doors and feel safe?

As the battle went on for both Democrats and Republican representatives finally it was official there will be a law for concealed weapons as the New York times stated. In the state of Colorado Governor Hickenlooper signed the bill mandating background checks. Some citizens liked the idea yet others were upset by this new bill that was signed in the state of Colorado as we see on the news are hear about their opinions nation wide or on articles about concealed weapons. Nick Decarlo who owns a bird hunting preserve on the prairie Northeast of Denver told to CNN that his clients were unhappy that they’re to the point where it’s like they feel Colorado is being stereotyped as a gun control place. Although some hate this idea everyone will have to follow this law.

Even though the concealed weapon law continues , now some schools are wanting to allow or not allow students and/or professors to bring guns to school. Chris Vasquez, a student who goes to the Colorado school of Mines stated, “I feel like professors who have guns will make students feel less safe because they might not know how to use it and might accidentally cause an accident to him/herself and students. Students shouldn’t bring guns to school because could cause a lot more problems because they might not know how to use it and they’ll just mess around with it.” Although he didn’t feel strongly about the idea of guns being allowed in school, he truly liked the idea of the new law over concealed weapons. “I think its going good because all the background checks are preventing weapons to be in the hands of the wrong person. This law is good to remain revised because again it’ll help that weapons don’t go to any random person. As they say people kill people because guns don’t kill people.” Vasquez had quoted. Many have different opinions going back and forth there won’t be one answer.

As for the University of Colorado in Boulder, the rules are quite different. Students were allowed to have guns in their dorm but it all changed. In Huffington post they stated that students were allowed to have their concealed weapons in their campus and in their dorms, but now undergraduate students aren’t allowed to have their guns in their dorms this goes to the University of Colorado in Colorado, Springs as they changed their policies. Those who have weapons will be asked to either be relocated to the University apartment or be released from their residence hall. CU student Joe Duarte, despite not having a clear bias expressed his opinions about gun control. “ I guess I’m not really in both sides I’m an open minded. I see how people want it for protective sides of the spectrum. I feel like almost anyone can get a gun, especially with all these shootings its like the wild, wild west all over again, but there are both sides to this. It’s scary to know that anyone can own a gun someone can get mad and one day you could be taking a test and they could take out their gun and shoot. As a student you never know when the next shooting will be and I could see why they want to be protective.” Duarte said. He has no sides to choose, as he is an open-minded person he believes in both sides and understand the goods about owning concealed weapons, but also the bad parts on owning a concealed weapon.

Although concealed weapons have pros and cons, in a way this whole topic continues to be a major issue. No one knows when there will be an agreement just not soon enough where everyone can be happy with the rules. Everyone wants to be safe and protective, but its been difficult to make that happen.

○      http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/19/us/colorado-gun-control

○      http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/apr/24/colorado-gun-control-advocates-respond-to-critics-/

○      http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/17/university-of-colorado-ba_n_1799296.html

○      http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_15642968

○      Chris Vasquez Colorado school of mine student

○      Joe Duarte CU Student

○      http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/18/us/politics/senate-obama-gun-control.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

 

 

Toddlers Purchasing Power

By: Luz Macias

Picture courtesy of Koin

The modern day and age is one where from the very start children begin adapting to technology and subconciously learn to use apliances just as grownups do.How many times do we not hear a child screaming because he wants to play angry birds and he wants to play at the momment and his mother wont let him. It is normal to know a child who owns an ipod or a tablet children from as early age of 4 years old. koin.com put out an article where a father let his 14-year old toddler play with his phone and she ended up digging through his applications until she found ebay and continued to purchase a car. The car cost 225 dollars and the father did not know about it until he got an email from ebay congratulating him on his purchase.The article per say is short and only explains this one incident but in a country where technology is growing it is a great example of what can happen when we give small children a arguably complex device.This article helps recognize the inability of small children to comprehend things such as the internet and this type of technology and gives a real world story of the repercussions.

http://www.koin.com/2013/07/09/toddler-buys-1962-austin-healey-on-ebay/?hpt=us_bn10

Runaway Train Disaster

Picture courtesy of CNN.

By: Ashley Aragon.

Lac-Megantic, Quebec – On Saturday a train started to roll downhill and was derailed and exploded into a huge fireball into Maine border, a city of 6,000. At this moment the counts has risen to 20 deaths and 30 people still missing but are considered to be dead. The engineer thought to be responsible is being investigated to see what went wrong and whether or not he pulled all 11 brakes. This article is very informative and non-bias. It really doesn’t take sides on whether the engineer is responsible or not.  This article also informs the reader of on what happened before and after the train disaster.I believe this article is relevant because it is breaking news on a disaster that has killed many people. Also because people want to keep informed because they might have family in that city. Well I really think that this article is a good one about the news.

http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/07/10/19396092-death-toll-at-50-as-30-missing-now-presumed-dead-in-quebec-train-crash-engineer-suspended

 

Loss of 19 firefighters in Arizona blaze ‘unbearable,’ governor says

http://http://www.csmonitor.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/content/2013/0702/0701-19-firefighters-killed/16249519-1-eng-US/0701-19-firefighters-killed_full_600.jpg

http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/01/us/arizona-firefighter-deaths/index.html

By Holly Yan, Eliott C. McLaughlin and Jason Hanna, CNN

July 2, 2013

This article is important because it affects others and how they live. No one knows when they’ll be alive or not each day. These 19 firefighters in Arizona risked their lives trying to stop the destruction of the wildfire that was important. Sadly those 19 men were killed by the fire as the wind had shifted. Thedeath of the firefighters are still being invesigated. The reason for why I picked this article is that it just opens up our minds on how unpredictable life and how bad wildfires can get. No one knows when it’ll happen or how. Wildfires can be a very dangerous natural cause and its important for others know what how people risk their own lives just to save there. Those firefighters are heros because although they didn’t make it at least they did a good job in the past years stopping they fire.

 

By: Catherine Quijada

Paris Jackson Hospitalized

   By: Kelly Sarceno                     

           Los Angeles (CNN) – After cutting her wrists Paris Jackson is rushed to the hospital. As if being the daughter of the king of pop, Michael Jackson wasn’t enough to make headline news, Paris begins to self harm. Many stopped in their track to call it a suicide attempt but many call now it a “cry for help”. 

            After calling a suicide hotline early Wednesday morning 911 was quickly connected and went to the Jackson home in Calabasas California. Finding Paris Jackson with a slit wrist, which then they rush her to the hospital. 

            Why is this news? We all seem to care when a celebrity – or the children of probably one of the biggest stars out there gets hurt. This could have been a tragedy in my eyes and personally I think we should all take this article in account, because even people that you think might be happy, are not. 

      This article is very objective and informative. No opinions are subliminally melted in and it is a very neutral piece. The article is not dull at all, for it even adds Paris’ tweets that many would have called it to be signs of her derailment. Tweets such as 

“i wonder why tears are salty?”

“yesterday, all my troubles seemed so far away

“now it looks as though they’re here to stay”

 

         It is sad to see that a girl with such a great family history is slowly becoming a case of social negligence. The piece is also very accurate because it adds direct quotes within the article from Paris’ grandmother, Katherine Jackson. The quotes from Katherine adds to the emotion with in the piece. The piece also adds a media film which just informs the readers a little bit more than what the text provides. 

        All in all, I do think that this is a good piece of journalism with a hard hitting topic that many should take the time to read, get informed. 

http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/05/showbiz/paris-jackson-hospitalized/index.html