Gay Marriage

In a classmates blog she writes about gay marriages in the US. She feels that gays should have equal rights as heterosexuals and that gay marriage should be legalized nationwide.

She argues defending gay marriage and backs up her argument by responding to three major questions. Firstly, answering the question, "Should gays be allowed to be married?" with "Why not?" The second question addresses how gay marriage is forbidden in the Bible. She doesn't address this question specifically. Thirdly, she answers the question about gay people and their inability to procreate, by saying that "men are created equal" and these thoughts are uneducated.

Finally, she goes into detail about how being gay is biological and certainly not a choice. She even quotes a NY Times article about the nerve fibers in the brain. She ends with a long defense of how being gay is genetic and they are being treated unfairly and in the future, we will recognize our mistakes.

Illegal Immigration

With over 12 million illegal and undocumented people living in our country, it is not good for America’s security and safety. Not to mention, it makes it an easy conduit for terrorists entering our country. There is also a huge cost to our country, with the costs of overpopulation and welfare, medical, and education systems increasing more each day. They are abusing the system and not paying their share of taxes. Our system cannot sustain immigration the way it used to be. It is hurting our economy and affecting our country in a very negative way.

To resolve this issue or at least reduce the number of illegal immigrants, we need to enforce our laws. Every US resident should be documented and accounted for, and then deport the illegal aliens. The employers who hire illegals should also be fined. By eliminating illegal immigration, it would help the job market and lower the crime rate. They need to follow the legal process in order to become a citizen here.

Global Warming

In a classmates blog she talks about the climatic changes and global warming. Global warming is the increase of the earth's temperature mainly caused by human uses of fossil fuels and deforestation of rain forests, which in turn causes the Greenhouse effect. The rise in the earth's temperature causes ocean waters to warm, glaciers and frozen tundra of the North and South Poles to defrost, droughts in warmer parts of the world and many other earth changes. All of these warming trends have a dramatic effect on our animals, mammals and plant life.

Some people believe that there is no global warming; however, scientists have proven that the temperature of the earth has risen since the Industrial Revolution. In her blog she talks about the impact it’s having on places such as Houston, one of the most heavily populated cities in the US. I agree with her that it is a major threat facing our planet. We should all make simple changes such as recycling, reusing, and buying energy efficient products. These are just a few solutions to reduce global warming.

US Unemployment

Over seven million jobs have been lost in the US since 2007. Unfortunately it is not getting better, and the unemployment rate is steadily increasing everyday. The October unemployment report was 10.2%, and was the highest since 1983. This percent doesn’t even include the people who have lost their unemployment benefits and are currently unemployed and have given up looking for work. This deep recession has made a massive impact on many workers. Because of the national budget crisis and strain on unemployment insurance, it has made it even more difficult to cover unemployment benefits. This creates a real crisis for the people and families who cannot afford basic needs. If the unemployment extension passes then people will hopefully be able to retroactively receive their benefits. In Texas, the unemployment rate has been the lowest in the country because of the low cost of living, no state income tax, and a more stable economy. The number of unemployed in the US is forecast to reach its peak in 2010 during the first quarter and then gradually decline; however, this might be too optimistic. This will probably take several years before we start seeing much improvement and back to the levels prior to this recession.

National Review

I read a blog article about the public health care option on the National Review website. One aspect of the bill is the overall costs. The article mentioned how the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) is giving estimates on how much the reform bill will cost. But Congress is using these estimates as actual costs. The CBO stated that it has no real firm grasps of the final costs and their estimates are just theoretical exercises, and the estimates are not definite. It’s important to realize how complex this bill has become, and nobody has a complete handle on the entire impact upon society and the national budget.

In the second paragraph is states, “Now, just three months later, House Democrats are saying that the bill they were in such a hurry to pass during the summer is old news and irrelevant. What matters now, they assert, is their “new and improved” version of reform, which they promise will be much better and easier to pass. Of course, they aren’t sufficiently confident in its virtues to open it up to public scrutiny just yet. No, they assert the bill will be different even though the legislative plan is clearly going to be just as it was in July. House Democrats are hoping to unveil their updated version of Obamacare as close as possible to a vote, probably in November, so that there is no time for public opposition to stop it.” It also mentions the cost will rise to $900 billion in the next two decade. Obama is still committed to the public option, people are confused if he has enough votes to pass the health care reform bill. Many are angry that it will destroy competition and is insufficient.

Student Loan Bill

The New York Times wrote an article about student loans. The House will vote on a bill; Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act, H.R. 3221. It will end subsidies that banks and private lenders receive for student loans that are guaranteed by the federal government. The house will vote to simplify the system which would save billions of dollars in the next few years.

The article is aimed for the American taxpayer and citizens who get student loans. This bill the House will vote on will save taxpayer money and it will stop the banks and lenders from getting unnecessary subsidies.

The NY Times one of the most well respected newspapers in the country and it has nothing to gain by reporting their opinion on the passage of this bill. The argument is saving billions of dollars to federal government. It’s fiscally responsible to pass the bill.

National Debt

I read an article in The Los Angeles Times about the national debt in the US. We are currently $9 trillion in debt. The primary causes are expenses towards the war and healthcare. The writer states “Longtime budget analysts, however, have seen this problem coming for years, even decades. They cite two primary factors: healthcare costs that have been growing faster than the economy since the birth of Medicare and Medicaid, and the looming conversion of a generation of wage-earning baby boomers into Social Security beneficiaries.”After World War II, there were masses of people born: the baby boomer generation. This is putting a major strain on the budget because there are more people than money. In the past, more money was coming into Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. However, these days the government has to pay out more than what’s coming in. It’s an even worse recession because tax revenue is much less. The article also states, “That's the main reason the anticipated deficits add up to such headline-grabbing numbers. Yet even though the economy will come back to life, the bailouts and stimulus programs will end and tax revenue will rebound, the long-term picture isn't pretty.” The government needs to start cutting back because they are spending money we don’t have. This is an important article for citizens to read because it is a major concern for our future.