The iPhone of San Bernardino

On December 2, 2015, a Pakistani couple carried out a terrorist attack at a banquet in San Bernardino, California.  The attack left 14 people dead and 22 injured.  The couple fled from the scene, but were pursued and killed by the police in a shootout 4 hours later.  The two were confirmed to have pledged allegiance to the Middle Eastern Terrorist group known as ISIS over social media, but did not carry out the attack under their orders.  In other words, the attack was not carried out by ISIS, but the couple was inspired by them to do it.  An iPhone was found, belonging to the couple, that was suspected to have information related to the attack on its hard drive.  Apple was asked by the FBI to open the phone, but Apple could not due to its encryption.  In a statement published on February 16, 2016, Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, said, ”We have great respect for the professionals at the FBI, and we believe their intentions are good. Up to this point, we have done everything that is both within our power and within the law to help them. But now the U.S. government has asked us for something we simply do not have, and something we consider too dangerous to create. They have asked us to build a backdoor to the iPhone.”(Cook).  The FBI has asked Apple to create a new form of the iPhone operating system (iOS) that would have a weakness in the code (and therefore would allow access into the phone) and install it in that one iPhone.  Apple refused to do so, due to the fact that there is no guarantee that

a.) The FBI would only use it for only this case, as they stated, or that

b.) It would fall into the wrong hands, allowing evildoers to access the contents of every iPhone in existence.  
Honestly, I think that the attack itself was a terrible act, one that should be considered as terrorism.  I also think that if there is data on the phone that could be vital to the security of the people of the United States, Apple should develop that software and install it onto that phone.  After the data is retrieved, Apple can supervise the FBI to make sure that they dispose of the software properly.  This would be to make sure that the software does not fall into the wrong hands, what with all of the cyber-criminals surfacing these days.  That would be bad.  Of course, that raises the question, what if there isn’t any information on the phone?  So what if there is nothing on the phone?  There is a reason for suspicion, (Come on, it was a terrorist attack) so the phone should be investigated, even if it ends up that there is not any information on it.  Now I ask you readers, what are your thoughts on this incident?  What should Apple and the FBI do about it?  Leave your thoughts in the comment section below.  

~Laxman

Turkish Missiles Fly Into Russian Jet

On Nov. 24, 2015 a Russian plane gets shot down by Turkish F-16 missiles. The Airplane was flying on the border of Syria and into Turkey’s airspace. A law states that, one country may shoot down any unmarked plane in their own airspace. Since the law was enforced Turkey has the right to shoot down the Russian military jet since it was unmarked. Vladimir Putin was very unhappy with the outcome. He states that the event was a terrorist attack and that because of it the relationship between the two countries are poor. Barack Obama’s action on this was to talk to Putin about how Turkey had every right to shoot down the plane.

Image of Russian jet being downed by Turkey

Barack Obama looked at the problem and found the correct solution. Since the Russian jet was unmarked Turkey had no idea what was going to happen or who it was. Turkey took the obvious solution to protect its people probably the only one, which is to shoot the plane down. Vladimir Putin’s (Watch 1st video) statements about their relationship being destroyed is only his fault for sending an unmarked plane near the border of both countries. Turkey’s actions were not actions of terrorism it was the Russians who were striking terror into the Turkish people. Now I ask you, do you think Putin or Turkeys actions were the more reasonable one?

~Matthew

An “Army” of Volunteers Restore 14 Veteran’s Graves

After months of hard and detailed work, combing through death certificates, military and cemetery records, and contacting many families, the job was completed. The abandoned graves of 14 fallen soldiers have been restored with new headstones, fence posts, flagpoles, and flags. The wars that these veterans served in were from World War l to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. “We had a mission, and we got our mission done,” said Ed Messer, the senior vice commander of VFW Post 7369 of Naples. He says that the project was sparked by a call from a granddaughter, looking for information about her grandfather’s grave. Messer explained that the graveyard was prone to floods, and the original headstones had sunk several inches into the ground. Then, trucks started using the area as an access point, as there was no sign of any gravestones anymore. “Nobody knew they were there,” Messer said, “it wasn’t someone being neglectful.”

In my opinion, this idea really shows how much good there is in society today, hidden under all of the hate and sadness occurring at the moment. The fact that this group of people took it upon themselves to care for the graves of forgotten soldiers, and made sure they were honored for serving our country, proves that mankind is still helping one another, and that our people are always united through and through.

~Brendan

Roof-Top Dog Dangers

In San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, walking down the street is pretty normal, except for the constant sound of barking from up above. If you paused your walking and looked up, you would see dogs upon the roofs of many houses. Families in Mexico put their dogs on the roof of their home, so the dog can become a sort of watch dog, and look out over the street. Many people think families do this because they actually don’t have much room in their homes, which in some cases, is true, but for most these dogs serve as a sort of warning or alarm system.

Why do people need warnings and alarms? Why don’t they use another method instead of their pets? Isn’t this unsafe? What if the dogs fall off the roof? These are all questions that I personally have for people who make their dogs watch over the streets up on the rooftop. I think that this isn’t safe, and these dogs have a great risk for being injured. When some dogs see people or “intruders”, they bark and run around like crazy, which means that they could accidentally slip off the roof or jump off. In conclusion, leaving your dog on the roof to watch over your home is very dangerous and isn’t something that should be done.

~Jocelyn

 

 

How do you Treat Autism?

It was reported on May 15, 2015 in Brookfield, Wisconsin that a 13 year old female with autism was left alone locked in her basement by her guardians. In addition, another report goes into greater depth telling that the Waukesha County Department had received concerns from the girl’s teacher, peers, and neighbors about her life at home, but the department didn’t listen. Later resulting in this young girl being treated like an animal; living in a cold dark basement wearing a diaper and not being allowed to go near any furniture. Additionally, the child spent her time there from 6 pm to 6 am while being called stink by her mother. Even though the County Department had to go to the house several times due to claims of child abuse and neglect, the police could not charge the parents. This is just one case of children with autism being mistreated.

In my honest opinion, people with autism should not be treated with less importance or respect. Nobody really knows that I have a brother who has autism and he is picked on for having it. Why must people be so cruel and careless? This is because they simply have no life. There is no other answer, these people clearly have no heart to feel for these people or a brain to even imagine the struggles and hardships people have because of their disabilities. This might be just me, but I can tell when someone is pretending to be friends with a person with autism, and that must be the worst to do to somebody. Like seriously, who does that? Surprisingly a lot of people actually do this horrible act, and maybe you are one of them. But I will tell you, being friends, and I mean actual friends with someone with a disability is probably the most greatest thing you’ll ever do. This will bring a smile to their face and maybe even yours. For instance, my brother gained a friend about four years ago and now they enjoy every moment together doing fun and sometimes stupid stuff.

~Kayla

Can Living in Cheshire Affect Your Marriage Chances? The New York Times Says Yes

A new report from the New York Times has recently been published, showing the odds of people from different places getting married under age 26. The article’s data covers more than 5 million people worldwide who moved as children in the 1980’s and 1990’s and are now at least 26 years of age.. Economists think that geography plays a causal role in people’s marriage lives. Researchers came up with the “Small-Town Effect”, which shows less densely populated places seem to promote marriage. In simpler terms, people in small towns grow up together with a circle of friends and possibly a circle of enemies. Marriage is promoted between two children that might come from families who are friendly, and have known each other all their lives. Also, religion in less populated areas- such as Mormon in Utah, will also promote marriage at a young age. So, the big reveal- how does living in Cheshire affect your chances of getting married? Living in a liberal part of the country decreases your chance of marriage by 10% alone. Living in Connecticut decreases your chances by 6%. Finally, living in Cheshire decreases your chances of marriage before 26 by 7% compared to the rest of the country.

I think that this data is definitely true, and that the “small town effect” certainly makes sense, but personally I don’t think that not living in a small down and not bettering my chances of getting married younger is necessarily a disadvantage. I would not want to have the “small town effect” working on me, because having this effect active in me would mean that I would feel pressured to marry any family friend at a young age. I do not think this is necessarily a good thing, because I’d rather not up & marry someone that I don’t love and end up divorcing. Than I would be unhappily married and divorced instead of just happily married at a later age. . Although I think that the New York Times article is very accurate and interesting, I don’t believe that the way the article depicts not being married before 26 as a bad thing.

~Kelsea

 

 

Boston Marathon Bomber’s Sentence Reignites Death Penalty Controversy

The 2013 Boston Marathon was not expected to be any different than the 115 times the race was ran before. On Boylston Street, near the finish line, a bomb went off, followed by a second one, only 12 seconds later. The bombs consisted of pressure cookers filled with nails and ball bearings, all concealed in a back pack. There are instructions online on how to make a pressure cooker bomb. The explosions left 2 dead and hundreds injured. Just 4 days later, police suspected 26-year-old, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, and 19-year-old, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, to be responsible. In a shootout with the police, Tamerlan is wounded, and would eventually die, leaving his brother to face 30 federal charges.

Opening statements in Tsarnaev’s trial would begin on March 4, 2015. The U.S. would call 23 times as many witnesses as the defense (92 to 4), and testimonies would continue through 15 days. 11 and a half hours of deliberations push 30 guilty verdicts on Tsarnaev. Now the case would go into penalty phase, leaving the jury to decide if the death penalty would be in order. A 14 hour deliberation positions Dzhokhar Tsarnaev to be executed.

Of course, controversy will arise whenever someone is sentenced to be killed. Some arguments are made more directly to the Tsarnaev trial, others are kept more broad. In the end, if a jury all agree someone deserves to be killed, I believe that the death penalty is made just. Some may argue that there’s no sense in taking another life, and that it will not change anything for those affected by lost loved ones. However, I feel if you were to ask those people affected, they would want the bomber to be held accountable for his actions. The death penalty, in many cases, is a necessary and favorable thing to do for humankind. You must remember, we do not sentence random people to death, instead, only those who pose a threat to our country and our people .

~ Tyler

Does the Government Dislike Families with Homeschooled Kids?

Recently on May 5th, Kentucky government raided a family’s home, arrested the father, and took away the ten children in the family. This was simply because the government disagreed with the family’s lifestyle and educational decisions, because all ten children in the family are home schooled. On that Wednesday of May 5th, police entered the home, and even blocked the road leading to the home. The mom of the family, Nicole, was home with her two oldest sons. The police immediately took the children, and Nicole was then arrested for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Later, the father of the family, Joe, was forced to give up the other eight children or be arrested for felony charges. The  police’s main argument in this situation is that the children were not being treated properly, but the neighbors say they always see everyone having a good time.

Police Seize 10 Children From Off-Grid Family Because They’re Homeschooled

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In my opinion, this is both horrible and ridiculous. Parents should be allowed to make their own decisions on their children’s education. Police coming and taking that away is wrong in every possible way. Just because this one family’s life is a little bit different, doesn’t mean that they should be punished for it. The police even say that the children were living in bad conditions, and their needs weren’t being met, yet Joe and Nicole post weekly pictures on Facebook showcasing their kids. The kids look completely healthy, and their house looks like any other. The family’s neighbors also observe them often, and say that there is nothing wrong with them at all, and they are one-hundred percent happy. Yet, police are still trespassing into the family’s house, and also stealing loved ones. This makes me wonder: is the government out to get homeschooled kids?

~Connor

Police Officer’s Force: Excessive or Essential?

In recent months, police brutality has become a rising topic with many, many different sides and thoughts. One case imparticular that has caused a lot of chaos and controversy is the shooting of Michael Brown which took place late last year. In this case, an African-American man died because of a white police officer. Many people, mostly African-Americans, believe that Michael Brown was killed simply because of his skin color. However, many other people, mostly those who are not African-American, believe that African-Americans are simply using excuses to get out of violence and other illegal acts.

Facts about the Michael Brown Case

To begin, the Michael Brown incident took place on August 9, 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri. Eighteen year old, Michael Brown was shot and killed by police officer, Darren Wilson. Brown and his friend Dorian Johnson, were both robbing a convenience store of several packs of cigarillos. Officer Wilson heard over the police radio from another officer at around 12:00 P.M. of the robbery. Wilson originally approached the two men, not knowing they were the robbers and he simply asked them to walk on the sidewalk instead of in the middle of the road. Brown, clearly angered by this, supposedly retorted back, “What the —are you gonna do about it?” During this time Wilson went to get out of his vehicle, but Brown pushed the door back shut, preventing him from getting out. Wilson told him to step away from the car, but then Brown hit him in the side of the head with his fist. By the way, Brown was much heavier than Wilson and Wilson stated in an interview, “I felt like a five-year old holding onto Hulk Hogan” (“Darren Wilson explains why he kill Michael Brown”). At this time, Wilson drew his gun and told Brown he was going to shoot him if he didn’t back away. Next, Brown reached for his gun and both men were fighting for it. When Wilson finally was able to get both of his hands on it, he pulled the trigger but nothing happened. Again, he pulled the trigger, but same thing. No bullet came out. Finally, he shot for a third time and the gun did fire, hitting Brown in the shoulder. Brown, only became angrier and began beating on Wilson more. The officer tried shooting at him twice more, but the weapon wasn’t working. Brown along with Johnson, both eventually took off running. Wilson yelled at Brown to get on the ground. Then, Brown stopped, turned around, and began charging at the police officer. The officer shot multiple times, hitting Brown 6 times before he finally dropped dead.

Racist or Coincidence?

Honestly, I feel that this was just a police officer doing his job and trying to stay alive. When you have a man, double your size, beating on you with all of his might, you will do anything to not die. Now the question is, was Officer Wilson racist? I could not disagree more. This case had absolutely nothing to do with race, in fact if anything, I think Michael Brown was the racist. I personally feel that if Wilson had been an African-American cop of around the same size, he might have chosen his words and actions more carefully. Is it sad that a young man died? Of course it is, but he would still be alive had he not caused the trouble himself. A police officer literally just asked him to walk on the sidewalk. That is not asking for much at all. There is no reason why Brown could have just walked to the side of the road and kept his mouth shut. To make matters worse for Brown, Wilson didn’t even bring up the fact that Johnson was holding a bag of cigarillos. Do I think that there are some racist police officers out there? Yes, but you could say this about any profession. There are racist dentists, but does that mean that all dentists are racist? No, of course not. Thus, although this story caused a lot of anger and sadness, hopefully in the future people will finally live in peace and harmony without discrimination.

~Samantha

 

Controversial “The Interview”

The Interview, a new blockbuster movie is stirring up trouble all over the country.  This movie is about two people, regular guys who work with a news network that are called to work with the CIA to take out the leader of North Korea, Kim Jung-un.  Sony, the company making the film, has recently been hacked by a group called “The Guardians of Peace” and people are thinking that this group could possibly be from North Korea.  Seeing as though North Korea is one of the most dangerous places in the world, naturally people are a little concerned that North Korea and Kim Jung-un may take this new film as a war threat.  The Department of Homeland Security is tracking who may be behind “The Guardians of Peace” and are very close to finding who it is and where the hack came from.  Many movie theaters have decided not to premiere this movie including Regal Entertainment, AMC Entertainment, Cinemark, Carmike Cinemas and Cineplex Entertainment.  This came after receiving a 9/11 like threat from the hackers (Knibbs).

I personally think that it is a good idea for people to not air the movie.  I think this because, if people air the movie, that could be taken as a direct threat to North Korea and if they are behind the hacking of Sony, could be getting ourselves into a war.  Another reason I think this is because of how terrible it was when 9/11 occurred and how long it took the country to recover from that terrible day.  Many people lost their lives on 9/11 and I would hate to see even more people lose their lives, especially when the people were innocent.  I do realize that Sony may accumulate extreme amounts of debt if people don’t air the movie, but I also think that life is more important than money and that if there is a threat toward harming people or even killing them, the movie should not air.

~Lila