Sex Education

My classmate Ms. Christina Resas has posted a blog entry discussing weather or not Sex Education should be required to be taught in schools in Texas. Ms. Resas  does an excellent job using valuable facts and percentages to back her opinion up. Doing this it allows me as a reader and commenter to be able to be persuaded into her argument. I am already a strong believer in teaching students about sex education and this article helped solidify my reasonings. Even though twelve does seem like an extremely young age and maybe inappropriate to teach, I believe that in this age it is needed. Not only are kids able to connect with each other easier using technology I feel as though sex before marriage is becoming more acceptable into society. Almost in every reality or drama television show the characters have sex with each other as it is something that can prevent no harm, but sadly it is proven that sex sells. Ms. Resas states that teen pregnancy has declined which honestly surprises me! If I had to guess I would have guess that it has sky rocketed the past few years.
I hope that schools continue to teach sex education and I hope that one day Texas makes it a law that it must be taught in schools. I am happy to see that when schools do teach sex education they must promote abstinence and teach about all the different Sexually Transmitted Diseases that can be spread. It is something that I think will always be a touchy subject and always a question to when it is acceptable to teach children, however; it's better safe then sorry!

Tuition Raises

Is a college education needed these days? Do students in the state of Texas have the ability to attend a public university after they graduate from High School? Both should answer yes however; sadly for many students, college might not be an option due to tuition rates. Due to the bad economy in the past years and harsh budget cuts Texas Universities and Universities around the United States are raising their tuition rates up to 20% a year. With rates that high how is it possible for any average joe to attend college? Fortunately students today have options. Many students attend their local community colleges, Jr. College, join the military, and or work out of high school until they can afford higher education. Even though these are great options it is sad that some students will never have the chance to live the "college experience".

Is there something that the state of Texas can do to fix these tuition raises? For the past years many states funding for higher education programs have been fought off by elementary and second education programs because higher education is a choice. Even though higher education is a personal choice, in todays world with out a degree, finding a job is almost impossible. The average Texas college student attending a university pays on average around 9,000$ a year. Texas is hurting from money but soon so will many prospective students.

Is there something students can do to avoid this? Well parents can start teaching their children at a young age and cross their fingers and hope for their child to receive a full ride. Unfortunately, that is not practical and most students have to attend college by taking loans and hopefully graduating with a job in line to start paying off their student debt. Once again that is sadly unpractical. Tuition rates may be increasing but bank accounts have begin decreasing.

Abortion law constitutional or not?

My colleague Jessica Ready has written an argument paper over a piece of law that was trying to be passed over abortion. The law states that a women who is considering abortion has to have regular sonograms and before aborting the child has to listen to the fetus heart beat. I do believe that this piece of legislature is extreme however; I do believe that it is necessary. Many women each year become pregnant out of wed-lock and or many of them come from low income families. As unfortunate as that may be women from unstable backgrounds should know their limitations and know what they are possibly getting themselves into.
Is this bill unconstitutional? I do believe that it is unconstitutional but I do believe that it is necessary. Maybe a women who sees the heart beat of a baby she is about to kill will change her mind. Many families in America are looking for children to adopt and to me a heart beat is a heart beat, born or unborn.

It's Goodbye to A&M

For the past 118 years The University of Texas in Austin and Texas A&M University have carried on the third most played rivalry in college football. It has been a rivalry that has been embedded in Texas culture since 1894. Now it appears that this rivalry has come to an end. Texas A&M has announced their move to the Southeastern Conference and will no longer play The University of Texas on Thanksgiving Day. Texas A&M says this is the right thing for them to do but is it good for the state of Texas and the loyal fans of both teams?

 As the two biggest Universities in the state of Texas this tradition and rivalry has been natural. Aggies for yeas have had their signature phrase “Saw Em’ Off” which is popular on not only shirts but around the University. Both schools even reference each other in their fight song and are sang no matter who the opponent is. The Thanksgiving Day game put national attention on the two premier instate Universities, it was and has been great publicity for these two outstanding Texas academic institutions. Some suggest that the Texas Legislature should step in but according to the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal this is very unlikely. I believe that A&M decision to leave the Big 12 is splitting Texas and the hearts of many. Their choice to leave is separating the competition for two popular schools and in turn could be losing students who have dreamed of being apart of the tradition. Only time will tell if A&M decision is the right one and for now all Texans can do is sit back and watch. The end of this rivalry is more than just the end of a great annual football game; it is the end of Texas and A&M fans poking fun at each other and securing bragging rights for another year. For fans of both teams it is a tradition that has defined the heart and soul of Texas and is sad to see it end.  The farmers verses the t-sips is no more.

"What's Love Got to Do With It?"

The past two months have been filled with political campaigns for the upcoming Presidential election in 2012. The debates have been heated and filled with new ideas from all opponents, but are we as voters listening to them carefully on what they plan to do? In this article from Big Jolly Politics written by Ed Hubbard titled "What's Love Got to Do With It?", Hubbard discusses how compassion has vanished from our society today. He states that in public policy today many conservative politicians will not bring up the subject because they believe that is something we should live through our private life. But as citizens we know that our private lives do not always uphold the standard it should.

In this article the author, Ed Hubbard, does an excellent job getting readers attention. He has examples of what compassion looks like through and even references a biblical story, "The Good Samaritan". He does this to give an example of how compassion should be shown through others and through politics. I believe that the author is trying to attract the attention of people who are planning on voting in the upcoming election, and even elections to come. Hubbard also embedded another article that gives facts and statistics to support his argument. I believe that Hubbard has a strong opinion and supports and backs his argument in a powerful way. As a reader I was attracted and persuaded to the authors opinion and I believe that is how an article should be.

Walking the Fight of Obesity

On October 2nd, 2011 Austin will be hosting their annual "Be Well Walk" around Lady Bird Lake to promote child obesity. In the opinion section of the Austin American Statesman a statistic showed that in the Austin Independent School District, 35 percent of children from third to twelfth grade are obese or overweight. It states in this article titled "Let's Walk the Walk in Fighting Obesity in Austin" that many of these children come from low-income families. As a community the Austin Independent School district has realized what an impact economics has had on the health of their students.  The committee that has organized "Be Well Walk" has chosen 15 local nonprofit organizations to be apart of walk and to help raise money. Nonprofit groups such as ACTIVE Life; Austin Sunshine Camps; Born to Run; Camp Fire USA Balcones Council; Explore Austin; Lone Star Circle of Care; Marathon Kids, and many more. Each nonprofit organization has to raise $5,000 and register at least 100 walkers. If these goals are met the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation will be matching $5,000. 

While reading this article I was unsure of the argument until I went back and re-read through. The argument in this article is asking the hidden question; as an Austin community are we as citizens doing and or providing enough opportunities to fight the growing obesity problem? The author is speaking directly to adults in Austin in hopes they will recognize this problem in themselves and or their children. I feel that Austin is an exercise friendly city, meaning that there are many places that provide exercise for free; including Lady Bird Lake which is one of the more popular places. The path on the lake has different exercise stations  and even provides water stations along the lake. I believe that the author did a good job promoting "Be Well Walk" and addressing the obesity issue in Austin. The author used facts and different persuasive techniques to capture the readers attention. I believe that the author is pro-"Be Well Walk" and is possibly walking the walk as well.

 Obesity is a growing problem in Austin and all across the United States and is something that is not slowing down especially with how society stands economically. As a community we are joining together to make Austin a healthy city.

Teachers Cleaning Up Their School's Budget Mess

Texas has had some major budget cuts this past year, one of them being in school districts. Many schools have had to lay off staff members including teachers, librarians, specialist, and custodians. According to an article in the Texas Tribune, the teachers at Dripping Springs High School have been safe from the budget cuts, however, custodian staff has been dramatically cut. Teachers at Dripping Springs are now required to clean their home rooms after a long day of work. They even have cleaning checks to make sure that teachers are following up on the new school rule. Teachers are even offering students community service hours for coming and cleaning their classroom.
I believe this article is worth reading because budget cuts are a big deal in the community. Students are now cleaning up classrooms for community service instead of actually going outside of the school walls and serving the community. Budget cuts are something that our state needed, but did the state make the right choice?