Sunday, March 22, 2015

3rd period 3/23-3/27

Due by Friday 3/27 at 3:30pm
Current Event guidelines for 2015
Directions: Your weekly current event is no longer filling in a form. You will free write your summary, reaction, opinion, and connection to Civics in two paragraphs.

Requirements: must be about government
  1. Article title:
  2. Article date:
  3. Summary/reaction/opinion/connection: TWO PARAGRAPHS (10 sentences minimum)
  4. Provide a proper MLA citation of the article:  Author’s Last name, First name. “Title of Document.” Page or site name. Document date. Full web address (Date of access)

Example:

Dohms, Elizabeth. “U.S. Supreme Court Could Determine Marriage Rights in Wisconsin.” The Chippewa Herald. 9 Feb 2014. http://chippewa.com/news/local/u-s-supreme-court-could-determine-marriage-rights-in-wisconsin/article_c160db9d-e37e-54a7-a128-5ee809d8b073.html (9 Feb 2014)

18 comments:


  1. Article Title: Charges against U.S. Senator Menendez possible this week: WSJ

    Article Date: March 22, 2015


    This article is about Robert Menendez, who is the United States Senator of New Jersey and a member of the Democratic is under investigation due to corruption. The Federal examiners are gathering criminal charges against Menendez. However, he has been under investigation for more than two years now. Menendez was involved in promoting the business of a Democratic Party donor in exchange for gifts that was held inside his office. Menendez has been denying his misconduct within this case. Yet, he did say he would not withdraw from the case.

    I can connect this article to what we discussed in class that dealt with the criminal justice system. For example, this case would be determined as a misdemeanor crime because it was just a tedious thing in which could lead to no more than a year in prison. My reaction to this is shocking. I think that he is most likely going to face some charges once the investigation is settled.

    Microsoft. "Charges against U.S. Senator Menendez Possible This Week: WSJ." Charges against U.S. Senator Menendez Possible This Week: WSJ. N.p., 2015. Web. 22 Mar. 2015. .

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  2. Medicare 'doc fix' bill passes House
    March 26th , 2015
    This article is about The House passing the Medicare bill . The Medicare bill finalized all Medicare for doctors and gives money to community health centers . Also a two year help with children's insurance . The voting with in the house tallied 392-37 . This made the president very happy as he spoke about them while in Birmingham .

    My thoughts on this topic are that this is something good for all doctors and also it's helping children along with people that do not have money to use at the community centers . No bad reaction can come from this . Out of all the bad in the world this is something good . Now it's up to them to with hold the standards they made in this bill .
    This could be a connection to Philadelphia and how we are currently trying to pass a bill that will allow more funding into our schools . The percentages that each school gets are not the same which is not fair nor equal opportunity with in schools .
    Walsh, Deirdre. "Medicare 'doc fix' bill passes House." CNN.com. 26 Mar 2015.http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/26/politics/doc-fix-house-medicare/index.html ( 26 Mar 2015 )

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  3. Source: http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/03/27/us/house-passes-bill-changing-medicare-fee-formula-and-extending-childrens-insurance.html

    Article Title: House Passes Bill Changing Medicare Fee Formula and Extending Children’s Insurance

    Article Date: March 26, 2015

    Summary: This article is about Healthcare insurance for children bill being passed. Now kids who couldn't afford insurance, can now get it because it's now affordable or free. With this bill doctors will get paid more to help so kids won't have to pay as much. My reaction to this is happy because Barack Obama has been fighting for healthcare benefits for all people. He even start Obamacare and it has been a huge success.

    My opinion on this article is a positive one. I think with this bill being passed, the United States are moving towards where Obama wants us to move. He as our president is helping this country. This bill being pass is just one example of how he is changing America for the better. I made some connection with the bill being pass to my civics class. In class we learning about congress and how each branch has check and balance when it comes to power. I'm happy that everyone came to get and voted to pass this bill. Better things are ahead in the future for the United States.




    MLA Format: Jennifer Steinhauer. "House Passes Bill Changing Medicare Fee Formula and Extending Children’s Insurance". New York Times. 26 March 2015. http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/03/27/us/house-passes-bill-changing-medicare-fee-formula-and-extending-childrens-insurance.html (26 March 2015)

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  4. Article Title US House approves bipartisan fix to Medicare doctors pay
    Article Date March 28, 2015
    The U.S House Of Representatives was able to approve a bill to fix the medicare problem. This should help the doctors and the quality of care. The bill focus on making sure that people that make more money have to pay more on there premiums. The government will pay less for little services and more based on quality of care. The problem with medicare was that the cost was more than the inflation rate. The government wants to make payment to patients outcomes and not the medical services .

    I think it is good that the Democrats and Republicans can agree on the medicare bill. In my opinion, everyone should be entitled to quality health care at have lots of money should pay more on they insurance and the lower class should pay less. I have a retired grandmother that thinks this bill is a great way to fix medicare.

    Mangan, Dan, US House approves bipartisan fix to Medicare doctors pay, www.cnbc.com, March 26,2015, www.cnbc.com/id/102538349?-source=xfinity/mod&par=ifinity, March 26,2015

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  5. Article title: Obama Praises Affordable Care Act on Its 5th Birthday
    Article Date: MARCH 25, 2015

    Obama announced the fifth anniversary of his affordable health care act. He proved the ones who were in doubt of this health care plan wrong. Obama said that this health care act have decreased the people who are uninsured by a third. Now there are at least 16 million people who are insured in the goverment marketplaces. Although this is a big change, the republicans in the congress still does not agree with this act.

    I think that the health care act is beneficial. Not everyone can afford health care, so this plan makes it easier in order too. Having health care is important because it is beneficial to someone if they get either hurt or sick. My reaction after reading this article was surprised because i don't understand why the republicans are not happy with this health care act if it is helping people who cant afford it. A connection I can make is with my aunt because she has a job that pays a percentage of her health care. If her job did not help her pay for her health care, she will need Obama's health care act to help her have more affordable health care. Without it she would not have health coverage.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/26/us/politics/obama-praises-affordable-care-act-on-its-5th-birthday.html?ref=topics

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    Replies
    1. Missing MLA citation. Please follow guidelines given in the directions at the top of the page.

      Delete
  6. Article Title: Jesse Jackson, Jr. to be released from prison Thursday, Kennedy says

    Article Date: March 25, 2015

    The former congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr. has been released from prison on Thursday (today). He is also being transferred to a halfway house located in Washington, D.C.. Jesse Jackson ended up serving a 30-month sentence in a prison in Montgomery for pleading guilty to federal charges in 2013. He took $750,000 in campaign funds to use for his own personal use. Jackson's wife did a similar crime and is serving a one year sentence. Since Jesse Jackson and his wife have young children, they are both serving their sentence at different times. Jackson stated that he knows what he did was wrong and that he has learned from his mistakes.

    This article shocked me because I wouldn't think that Jesse Jackson's son would commit a crime like that. I feel bad for his children. They have to experience their father not being in their lives for a while and then their mother has to leave soon too for the same reason.

    Diamond, Jeremy; Stapleton, AnneClaire. "Jesse Jackson, Jr. to be released from prison Thursday, Kennedy says." CNN. March 25, 2015. http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/25/politics/jesse-jackson-released-prison/index.html (March 26 2015)

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  7. U.S. Ad Campaign to Challenge Value of E-Cigarettes in Quitting Smoking


    The Center of Disease Control and Prevention have begun to go against the 8 year rising smoking alternatives known as E cigarettes. The electronic Cigarettes industry is said to be false in getting people to quit smoking, however it is mostly known to turn those who are trying to quit back to the original cigarettes. Ads have been sent out recently across the city trying to appeal to the people that smoking e cigarettes has caused something that normal cigarettes would have examples such as collapsed lungs. The ads were derived from the campaign in 2012 and has been sent out to spook some of the people who have just gotten into the act of picking up cigarettes.They were re used to help some people into giving up on cigarettes and E cigarettes for good because switching to either of them is not good enough. More antismoking attacks have been released on multiple devices of media by the state of California, those ads generally declare E cigarettes as a health risk. Jason Healey, who is president and founder of Blu is not the slightest bit of worried about what the people will choose.



    This is relevant because many people seem to be believing that e cigarettes is helping them and know it is proving to be doing just the opposite and I can tell that it is pretty dire because the United States government has now taken into consideration that they are no good for former smokers and have stood up to do something about it. I believe it is good that the government is trying to get involved and save some peoples lives through advocacy. I thought that blu and other E cigarette companies were helping, apparently I was very wrong. Hopefully the ads that previous smokers have agreed to make will deliver their messages to the general public and that it will reach some in time to save them because it is needed.I myself am not a fan of smoking, my grandmother, step sister, and some other family members pursue it. Every time I get the chance I am either smacking it out their hands or trying to warn them about many dangers that come with it. I thought the e cigarette was bad at first too when my step sister had tried to explain to me that they help people quit. Since I now know the full truth you can bet that I will be talking to her about it shortly if she does not find out for herself first.





    Mickle, Tripp. “U.S. Ad Campaign to Challenge Value of E-Cigarettes in Quitting Smoking” The Wall Street Journal 26.March.2015 ( 3/26/15)









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  8. Article Title: Welfare Agencies Are Failing to Help Poor People Vote

    Summary: Massachusetts is now listed as the latest state to have settled the battle for providing the people with voting registration. The welfare offices are suppose to supply these forms when one signs up or applies for government assistance. The people blame the office, because they fail to give these out. In 1993, the National Voting Rights Act made it a law that agencies offered these forms and help with completing and submitting them. Over 2.6 millions registered to vote from the public assistance; however, over that number has dropped drastically. By 2005-2006, voter registration at public assistance offices was nearly 80 percent lower than in 1995-1996.
    My first reaction to reading this was expected. The government is all for voting, but they also are very sneaky and for the number to drop almost 80 percent is sad. I feel as thought every mine should have an equal opportunity to vote, and if they choose not to, so be it. Also, this should've been looked into, because the dropping number should've have been obvious. You can connect this to society and the governments lack to take matters into their own hands before it's too late.

    Wogan, J.B. "Welfare Agencies Are Failing to Help Poor People Vote." Welfare Agencies Are Failing to Help Poor People Vote. N.p., 26 Mar. 2015. Web. 27 Mar. 2015.
    http://www.governing.com/topics/health-human-services/gov-welfare-agency-massachusetts-voter-registration.html.

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  9. Webpage: http://gawker.com/5825010/police-beat-gentle-homeless-mentally-ill-man-to-death
    Article Title: Police Beat 'Gentle' Homeless, Mentally Ill Man to Death
    Summary: On July 5, a homeless man in Fullerton, California was brutally beaten. 37 year old Thomas Kelly was beaten by six police officers, after the police said that Kelly refused arrest. The police officers received a call stating that a men was going around breaking into cars. The police stopped kelly and questioned him, then tried to arrest him. Kelly refused of course, and that's when the beaten started. They beat him so bad he had to go on life support, and later died.
    My reaction towards this article is that I hope police officer start treating others the way they would want to be treated. It's a lot of abuse that shouldn't be happening in this world. My opinion towards this is that I wish that all of this amusement will stop and that everyone will be able to understand each other.
    Apple.Lauri."
    Police Beat 'Gentle' Homeless, Mentally Ill Man to Death ". Gawker. 7/26/11.http://gawker.com/5825010/police-beat-gentle-homeless-mentally-ill-man-to-death. (3/27/15)

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  10. Article title:NCAA 'concerned' over Indiana law that allows biz to reject gays


    2. Article date:Thurs March 26, 2015


    3. Summary/reaction/opinion/connection: Mike Pence had made a decision to sign into law a measure that could allow businesses to turn away gay and lesbian customers. Indiana is the first state this year to have this decision happen in which affects those of the LGBT community. The NCAA had mention for days that the bill that was passed would allow businesses to challenge local laws that forbid discriminating against customers based on sexual orientation. this could intentionally ruin the city's reputation as a host of major sporting events such as basketball. Jason Collins who in which came out about his sexuality last year had made a statement to pence asking "going to be legal for someone to discriminate against me & others when we come". In 2014 they had looked to see if Indiana's constitution to ban same-sex marriages but, were beaten back by a strong well put together organized coalition of Democrats.Indiana doesn't have a law on the books protecting Hoosiers at the moment from discrimination based on sexual orientation But, a dozen counties do as of now. I believe this whole bill is very unfair and truly breaks the equality between gays just by being the way that they are. This is quite unjust and it should be a better ruling to overcome this bill since those that are highly religious feel some type of way that gays shouldn't be able to be serve or so by being a gay customer. A connection that could tie within this is the inequality of how some places don't want to hire people do to race, religion and their sexuality which is highly un called for.


    4. Provide a proper MLA citation of the article: Bradner, Eric. "Pence to Sign Bill Allowing Businesses to Reject Gay Customers - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network, 26 Mar. 2015. Web. 27 Mar. 2015

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  11. DOJ targets racism in police forces, eying Fort Lauderdale
    Thu March 26, 2015

    Jason Holding, James Wells, and Christopher Sousa were fired from the police department for being racist toward the black community.The officers used racially derogatory terms to the people they bothered while on duty and talked about "killing n******," according to the documents. Howard Finkelstein were one of the people the officers messed. He said this is not the first time it has happen. Before it happen he told the police department and they did nothing. The officers felt comfortable to make a movie about their comments. These are not the only four officers, there are many more but these the four who they have now.

    I feel like these officers are really stupid. Really? It's 2015 and you're a racist cop. So these tells me that if they were on duty and they saw a black man getting beat they would act like nothing happen. Im happy they have been fired, it was the right thing to do. People have to grow up. If you a cop, you supposed to be a role model to your community. Not hate the next black.

    "DOJ Targets Racism in Police Forces - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2015.
    http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/26/politics/doj-police-racially-offensive-text-messages/index.html

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  12. Article Title: Justice Dept., Criticizing Philadelphia Police, Finds Shootings by Officers Are Common
    Article Date: March 23, 2015

    This article mainly talked about the police brutality that has been going on for years. One event the article used was the bombing police did in a standoff. They stated that police dropped a bomb on a house and did not attempt to put the fire out until an hour later. This resulted in 6 adults and five children being burnt alive. This event also left 250 people homeless, after 61 homes were destroyed. Lastly, they stated specifically that Philadelphia has the longest history when it comes to police violence and corruption.
    Reading this article makes me feel optimistic because the Justice Department is reviewing a lot of events where police brutality has occured. It makes me think they will review previous cases that freed police, who actually did abuse their power and potentially ruined another human being’s life. In my opinion, police brutality is in fact becoming a trend and starting to be very common. I am thankful that I have no connection with this kind of situation and hope I never will.
    MATT. "The New York Times." Justice Dept., Criticizing Philadelphia Police, Finds Shootings by Officers Are Common. N.p., 23 Mar. 2015.
    http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/03/24/us/justice-dept-criticizing-philadelphia-police-finds-shootings-by-officers-are-common.html?referrer=. Web. 27 Mar. 2015.

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  13. "Obama Phones Putin as Ukraine on Brink - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2015.

    Obama is trying to create an peace treaty with ukrain. This event will be taking place in Belarus. I believe this was a reasonable decision because it would stop conflict before it get to big. Obama only wants to bring peace and fairness because he doesn't want any to be harmed. When obama first ran in to office he wanted to bring home our troop before he leave. I think this a brave and bold decision because if they do leave early the conflict in iraq will continue. Then he would be blamed for tring to create peace. I think it will be hard for Russia to agree to peace because it is a place of great strength. With great strength they might want to test thier might and see what damage they can do. Overall if we do create peace that will be one less problem to deal with.

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  14. Article Title: "New Bergdahl letter outlines torture"
    Article date: Thursday, March 26,2015

    Bowe Bergdahl was charged with desertion and misbehavior when he was in the military before he got kidnapped by ISIS. Bergdahl's attorney stated that Bergahl had been tortured by the group and chained on all fours. They want him to be innocent and let go on honorable discharge. The reason for his innocence is due poor health and malnourishment. They are saying that President Obama violated the law by not telling congress about the trade between Taliban and the U.S. That he should adhere checks and balances.

    I thought that President Obama did disobey the law because he took and individual action without congress.Congress has the right, according to the constitution, to veto the president when it comes to trade. A connection to this article is lessons in class about checks and balances. There were many stories about ISIS except the victim in this story is also at fault.

    Bradner, Eric."New Bergdahl letter outlines torture."CNN. 27 March 2015 http://www.cnn.com/2015/03/25/politics/bowe-bergdahl-charges-decision/.( 27 March 2015)

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  15. Article Title: U.S. reconsidering 2016 Afghanistan troop withdrawal, defense chief says
    Article Date: February 21, 2015

    On a Saturday, February 21, President Barrack Obama has voiced his concern for the troops in Afghanistan. He at first believed they should stay, but recently changed his mind. What sparked this change was the devastating events occurring in the center area of Asia. He believes that it would be help the country because it will keep Afghanistan from attacking us. However, this is not the case. Congress sees the other side of it. They think that the troops should be attacking and defending us against ISIS. the argument between the two is expected to rise in the next week.

    I feel that troops should be defending us against ISIS. It would help us. They cannot attack if we block them. Afghanistan is not worrying about attacking us either. Also, we get to help others and defend them too.
    "Defense Chief: U.S. Rethinking Afghanistan Timetable - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 27 Mar. 2015.
    http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/21/us/afghanistan-carter/index.html

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  16. Article Title: Federal judge: Obama immigration actions 'unconstitutional'
    Article date: December 17 2014
    What happened? Summary: This article is about the events that happened based on the immigration actions of unconstitutional due to the branch of legislative to executive. President Obama legislative action had breached the separation of powers under the United States Constitution and the Take Care Clause. The Take Care Clause is a clause in the United States Constitution that impose a duty on a President to take care the laws. President Obama made changes that would allow up to 5 million illegal immigrants whose children are citizens or legal permanent residents to meet the criteria.
    Why is this event relevant? (Why did the author write the article now?) This article is relevant because it has been discussed a lot over the news.
    Reaction (describe feelings or attitude toward article, event, or people involved): President Barack Obama is upholding his actions being made within the Constitution and has progressed on immigration legislation and power with the Executive branch.
    Opinion (I think…): I think that the legislative branch is one of the significant branches of government provides it gives additional powers that is given to the executive branch of government where the President can pretty much do what he please which is to influence and make changes to Congress.
    No name. Federal judge obama actions unconstitutional. “Foxnews”. December 17, 2015.
    http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/12/17/federal-judge-obama-immigration-actions-unconstitutional/( March 26 2105)

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