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TRICKEY CIRCUMSTANCES

Should cigarettes be classified as an illegal drug?

It's established on each carton of cigarettes the damage that occurs when used. Lung cancer, heart disease, and the incurable pulmonary disease are stated very clearly as the direct effects of smoking, and yet people, children even, are still smoking, same as always. Why is this?

The reason that smoking is still a viable commodity lies within a little something called the grandfather clause. The grandfather clause is a provision that states that an old rule may continue to apply due to exigent circumstances while new rules will be made for similar cases. When smoking was made available to the public all the way back in 1881, the factory owners and cigarette distributors convinced the public that there were actually health benefits to smoking. Obviously, there was no proof to this, but the misconception continued all the way to 1948, when scientists published a major article about the damage smoking caused to your health. The actual surgeon general's official warning didn't come until 1964, 16 years later. However, the warning was just that, a warning. Certain commercials were banned due to inaccuracy, but no actual legal action was taken due to the billions of dollars on the line after a very costly war. Thus, smoking was grandfathered in, and while many drugs were discovered and deemed unhealthy and addictive, the smoking industry continued to grow, causing instances of lung cancer to increase.

But even after this, does smoking fit all the criteria for being a drug? The FDA defines drugs as a chemical substance that affects the central nervous system, causing changes in behavior and often sparking addiction. Smoking does in fact stimulate the central nervous system in negative ways, as proven by the studies linking smoking to lung cancer. Smoking can cause behavioral changes, acting as a temporary antidepressant and mellowing out mood swings, and is a very addictive substance, and in some instances causes withdrawal problems. So yes, smoking does qualify as a drug by the FDA, but let's be frank, the definition the FDA put forward is vague, and we can't make something illegal just because it meets vague standards. We will have to put that aside for now.

What effect does smoking have on the economy? Smoking is a common hobby among all classes, but is especially prevalent among the lower classes due to the large amounts of financial stress they are commonly under. Smoking is also a very expensive hobby, with cigarettes costing upwards of $7.00 a carton. You can see where I'm going with this. I have come to a conclusion: The smoking industry was designed to reap profits off of addicting the lower class to cigarettes, a substance that also has terrible, life threatening side effects. This is part of a series of ventures designed to subdue the 99%, and make sure that the upperclassmen maintain their control of the population. Should cigarettes be classified as an illegal drug? Yes. Will they be classified as an illegal drug? No. The only course of action is to collectively stop smoking, something that not only puts your life at risk, but also puts your neighbors lives at risk, suppresses the populace, and makes you just another cog in the capitalist machine,. We need to reject the cigarette, move on with our lives, and be less cooperative the next time the establishment tries to do something like this again.

Sam Trickey, very ticked off at the smoking industry

curentn sevents squizzzy

1. The house of representatives passed a law this thursday that implemented more stringent screening procedures for Syrian refugees. This measure is popular due to the Paris attacks instilling a sense of terror in all of the western world. The senate is soon to take up this bill, but president Obama has promised to veto it. Syria and Iraq's refugees pose no threat, so this is unnecessary and makes it seem like we are being taken over by terror.

2. The Austin City council passed a decision this Thursday making it easier to build "garage apartments" the two benefits of which were that they provide additional housing options and provided homeowners with supplemental income. Kathie Tovo doesn't like the ordinance because the new places for garage apartments are mostly located in her district, which will negatively affect her and her house rates. Tommy Ates says that the bill will make his income higher, and the only way for him to live in his current neighborhood is through this supplemental income. Sabino "Pio" Renteria can only live in his house because of the tenant living in his backyard cottage. I don't have an opinion on the matter due to the information provided not being enough for me to make a decision.

3. Ora Houston

4. The FDA announced that a genetically modified breed of salmon was marked safe to eat, and it may now reach dinner tables. Opponents say that the studies were inadequate, and if the fish were to escape into the ecosystem, it could be permanently damaged. The Obama administration has been accused of delaying the decision due to the political backlash it may cause, but the FDA says it took so long due to it being the first of its kind.

5. Don Zimmerman made a proposal to prevent Austin from spending money on relocating Syrian refugees.  Greg Cazar and Steve Adler called the measure Xenophobic, and didn't agree with it. 1225 refugees arrived last year. Sid Miller, racist old coot, compares refugees to snakes in a controversial facebook post. Texas Democrats accused miller of fanning the flames of fear and xenophobia.

6. Raphael Holiday was convicted of setting a fire that had 3 kids killed. He is the 13th convicted killer to be executed this year in Texas, the other 49 had convicted 13 combined this year. Gretchen Sween thinks the case should be appealed because his court appointed attorneys abandoned him after his case wasn't reviewed. The trial lawyer filed an appeal due to both the conviction and trial testimony were both improper.The attorney general's office overturned both of these appeals.

7a UnitedHealth may end Affordable Care plans
I feel like there's some shady dealings in the healthcare business, as I believe healthcare shouldn't have a goal for profits, only a goal for lives helped. The fact that this corporation is doing poorly due to the staggering number of people getting help is good, but no healthcare is very bad. It's a fine line, and if we can get a good balance for profits and people helped, then we as a society may progress.

7b Film censors to mr bond; No kissing please.
Censorship is pretty stupid, and hypocritical as well. I know we aren't affected by India's censorship policies, but I truly feel that it is something that needs to be stopped. If you don't want to see two people kissing, you should at least try to not want to see the depictions of people dying in cruel ways. Sexual activity or implied sexual activity has such a social stigma while everyone is totally okay with death. It's unreal.

7c Syrian refugees turn themselves in at texas border
LET THEM IN!!!!!!! THESE ARE FAMILIES AND CHILDREN THAT AMERICA KEEPS OUT DUE TO THE REPUBLICAN OFFICIALS MONGERING FEAR AMONG THE RANKS OF MANY TO KEEP A FIRM HOLD ON THE GOVERNMENT. IF PEOPLE WHO NEED HELP CAN GET IT FROM US, ITS OUR OBLIGATION TO GIVE IT TO THEM.

1. Alfred Dewayne Brown was convicted for the crime of killing Charles R. Clark and Alfredia Jones during a bungled robbery.

2. Alfred said that he did not kill those two people, and that he was at this girlfriend's house at the time of the murders.

3. The closing argument was heard and the decision was rendered in October 2005.

4. Her article was published May 14th, 2014.

5. Brown's alibi was that he was at his girlfriend's house, and he placed a call to her there.

6. At the original trial, there was no evidence he was actually there, and people claim all sorts of things on death row.

7. A homicide investigator "found" some phone records placing Alfred at his girlfriend's house.

8. Another record showed that the prosecutors had requested these records and said nothing about it.

9. The appeals court has done nothing in response to the recommendation.

10. The author wants the appeals court to make up their mind, hopefully giving him a second chance.

11. I'm hopeful that he makes it out of this alive, however, this is Texas, and I don't think he did.

12. The piece is short, tries to convince you of something, and was written by an editor. This makes it a typical piece.

SUPER FOOD INDUSTRY INJUS TICE

1. The lead starts out by describing the work that a dishwasher does, humanizing them, then stating the injustice of their low pay. This is a good strategy because it strikes close to home with many ill compensated average workers.

2. The two related trends are the widening of the income gap and the explosion of the food industry.

3.Kingsbury puts down the argument that raising wages will decrease jobs by citing an example in califoria where an increase of wages will most likely lead to an increase in jobs.

4. Kingsbury uses fairness, the large amount of the workforce restaurant workers take up, and increases in the job market in result of higher minimum wages to argue her point.

5. Her statistics say that restaurant workers take up 10% of the jobs, and a huge amount of low wage workers in paragraph 5. She also says that restaurant workers have a poverty rate 3 times the average in paragraph 7.

6. She encourages consumers to pressure the industry and lawmakers to stand up to the demands of the NRA.

7. The NRA made Massachusetts make a "tipped minimum wage" which allows restaurants to give jobs with tips a lower wage.

8. Restaurants blame low wages and poor working conditions on low profits among large competition.

9. She counters these claims by saying that raising the minimum wage across the board would have no affect on competition, as everyone would have the same rules to play by.

10. Many restaurant workers have families to feed and will use every hour to do so.

11.  Filiberto's paragraph adds another layer of human interest into the article, making it more relatable.

12. Restaurant workers violate the law very routinely using wage theft.

13.Wage theft is very common in Boston.

14. Kingbury wants the mayor of Boston to pass an ordinance that prevents former wage thieves from renewing their license to operate a restaurants.

15.The conclusion paragraph ends with a quote and a one-liner, which I think i pretty neat. Usually, it's only a quote, and feel the author really went the extra mile on this one..

QUIZZIZIZIZIZIZkZiZiZIZiZ

1. A Texas abortion law may be reviewed by the supreme court over whether it is constitutional to close up clinics. We will know if it has been reviewed by next Monday. The Texan attorney general said that it is within the state's power to pass medical regulations.

2. The charges against the detective were dropped after the judge used a century old legal precedent to rule not guilty. The Supremacy clause is that legal precedent, it exempts federal officers from state law. This ruling will make it easier for the police to kill people in Texas and get away with it.

3. Texas did less cultural preparations than Washington for the trip to China. It is historic in that it is the first regular season inter-collegiate game featuring U.S. teams out in China. There are some concerns as to whether UT is actually ready for the game, coming from mostly Coach Smart.

4. Myanmar may be less military after the vote Sunday. It was a remarkable day, full of energy and excitement. The main fight is between Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy and the ruling Union's Solidarity Development Party. Suu's party is expected to win, which will be historic in that it will be the first change of government in 50 years.

5. Pope Frank has said that the leak of financial debauchery of the Vatican was a crime, but he will push for reform among their ranks. two books were released, "Avarice" and "Merchants of the Temple" detailing the financial mismanagement of several priests. I think the pope is trying to play the middle road by condemning both sides, which will probably not play out well.


6. "Sanctuary Cities" is the term used for cities that are used as safe havens for illegal immigrants because they do not have to enforce immigration laws. Matt Mackiowack thinks that these cities are bad, and enforcing immigration on a case by case basis is absurd. Ed Espinoza thinks that the Republicans are using immigration only to support their political standings, using it to garner votes and not really caring about the policies as a whole. Ed used the Republican hypocrisy to support this, Matt used a woman's murder by an immigrant as a go-to for deporting all of the illegal immigrants. Scott Byers uses not wanting criminals in America to the same effect as Matt. I agree with Ed on this one, I don't want immigrants to be deported willy-nilly.

The format is different from what we discussed in that it has two dueling opinions, rather than the one meant to represent the paper. It's a decent idea, but it requires someone to play the unpopular opinion, which might be dangerous for a public newspaper.

current events qquiz

CUERRRRTEBT AEVEJJFR QUIS S JSJ

1. Processed meats have a connection to colon cancer. It can marginally increase the risk.

2. The meat energy denied any consensus of the chance, Environmental groups want a sticker on the bacon.

3. It means that there was sufficient evidence found that bacon has a connection to several types of cancer, however it is still less dangerous than smoking.

4. Randy Bish portrays it as not having much of an effect on american diets as it should.

5. I think he's taking the opinion that although this may be a significant discovery, it wasn't really all that surprising and that as long as the FDA stays out of it no changes will happen.

6. I eat meat whenever I gosh darn feel like it, highest quality, once a month.

Tech Overhaul at McCallum-Final

Tech Overhaul At McCallum?

Most of the computers at public schools tend to be unreliable, with the standard computer used being (         ) It's a day to day hinderance that most students tolerate, and school still goes on with it, but have you ever considered the possibility of a technology overhaul at McCallum? Many teachers actually feel the same way. Mrs. Carrasco, the Pre-AP World Geography/AP Human Geography teacher, was all in favor of a computer overhaul. "We can't have online textbooks without a reliable way to access them." she said, "We have needed an update since about five years ago." Mr. Fidelman, who teaches the Business Information Management class said, "It's funny that you should ask that. The teacher meetings the school has periodically actually have that as a topic of conversation. AISD tends to be more on the reactionary side of things in terms of technology, very slow on the upkeep. The rules actually say that the computers of an AISD school must be updated and replaced once every five years, and many labs such as this one are in desperate need of an overhaul." 

Several students offered their opinions on what McCallum's tech department needed. "Aside from free iPads for all the students?" Elsa Roberts jokingly replied, "I think that a more organized and united way to access class papers and resources is necessary, along with faster wifi, if possible." Rachel Williams thought that if the school felt that the school felt that this was needed, then that's where the funds should be going. Ting Goodfriend felt that the library's computers were in need of an update as well, as they run very slowly. A student who wished to remain unnamed voiced against the possible overhaul, saying it would take valuable funds into an unneeded area. "Ok, unpopular opinion here, I don't think that the technology at McCallum is really in need of an update. If you need to get your homework off the internet because you didn't prepare for it in class, you deserve to struggle with the system for your irresponsibility. Please don't put my name in this."


Although the prospect of giving all the McCallum technology an overhaul is a nice one, there is still another side of this story. Is this plan within the budget? Even if it is, is it really the best way to allocate the scarce school funds? Perhaps it would be better to spend that money on the teacher's paychecks, or the special needs program, or even the lunches. 87% of the schools budget is spent on paying the teachers paychecks, much bigger than the 1.1% spent on supplies, which governs the computer allowance. This means that the same boost applied to supplies will have a much bigger effect than on the teacher's paychecks, or on much of anything else. The point is moot anyhow, as AISD rules specifically state that we will have another technology update, whether we need it or not.

Sam Trickey

QUIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIZ

1.  Two possible causes of the Hidden Pines fire out in Bastrop are either that it was a farm accident or that it was an intentional violation of the burn ban. At 10:30 wednesday morning displaced residents were allowed to return to their properties. 64 confirmed homes have been destroyed, 4600 acres have been destroyed, and the cost estimate reaches into the hundreds of millions of dollars.

2. Schools are now turning to digital textbooks instead of real textbooks in Austin area school systems.
The benefits of this development are that there are now more options for classroom development and the cost of buying costly textbooks is minimized. The Robertson family had trouble helping their daughter with her geometry homework with a user unfriendly computer system, so they spent $75.00 on a geometry textbook for home use. Melissa Prepster has been advocating for the integration of technology into school systems since she started teaching. The Eanes district is a rarity in Texas in that they give every student a handheld device for teaching purposes. The Leander district wishes to do this also in the future.

3.  Canada's newest prime minister has ended over ten years of hardcore conservatism by being liberal.
He plans on legalizing marijuana, dropping out of the U.S. led bombing campaign over the Islamic State, and pumping up Canada's infrastructure. Removing the 6 fighter jets they contributed to the bombing campaign may hurt relations with us, but it might put both of our countries leaders on the same page, philosophically. He is also in strong support of the United Nations.

4. Alan Guckian is a semifinalist in the 2016 Music Educator award. He was nominated by local musician SaulPaul. Guckian is in the top 25 for this award, and if he makes it to top 10, he is guaranteed at least $1000.00. He said he will use the money to have a pizza party.

5. The new UT coach is attempting to stress intellectual acuity and having fun on the basketball court. He is accomplishing this by giving the players Navy SEAL training.

questions

1. everywhere but events or activities that the reporter witnessed.
2. If followed as a rule, it would lead to ludicrous stories that are 90% atribution.
3. witnesses to crimes/accidents usually have a lot to say about them.
4. at the end of the sentence most often, this is because the quote is more important than the attribution.
5. one person per quote, because its confusing otherwise
6. transitional phrases are bad because it inflates the reporters ego.
7. in long quotes
8. in short phrases
9. In long phrases
10. said, because it's neutral
11. past tense said, reflective
12. fully identified
13. briefly identified
14. use commas to punctuate quotes
15.  direct quote means exact wording, and can't be for two people. indirect is the opposite
16. the speaker
17. when listing the speakers title
18.  "I'm proud of each and every person on this team," said Coach Ed Hullender.
19. Junior Laura Duke, the only Wheeler High student to audition who is not currently on the dance team, said "Dancing in the Super Bowl will be a once in a lifetime opportunity,"
20. "They're not real wrestlers, and I think it actually hurts the sport. I wish they would change their name from wrestling to acting," said Coach Steve Lattizori.
21. incorrect, fragment
22. incorrect, said should before if there is a title
23. correct
24. correct, but strange sentence.
25. incorrect, attribution should be after first sentence in quote
26. incorrect, comma should be inside the quotation

Tech Overhaul At McCallum?-Rough Draft

Tech Overhaul At McCallum?

As most students and teachers know, most of the computers at public schools tend to be unreliable, or at the very least outdated. I recently interviewed several teachers and students about the possibility and need for a technology overhaul at McCallum. Mrs. Carrasco, the Pre-AP World Geography/AP Human Geography teacher, was all in favor of a computer overhaul. "We can't have online textbooks without a reliable way to access them." she said, "We have needed an update since about five years ago." I then went over to Mr. Fidelman's room, where he operates a computer lab for his Business Information Management class. "It's funny that you should ask that," he said. "The teacher meetings the school has periodically actually have that as a topic of conversation. AISD tends to be more on the reactionary side of things in terms of technology, very slow on the upkeep. The rules actually say that the computers of an AISD school must be updated and replaced once every five years, and many labs such as this one are in desperate need of an overhaul." 

I also asked several students their opinions on what McCallum's tech department needed. "Aside from free iPads for all the students?" Elsa Roberts jokingly replied, "I think that a more organized and united way to access class papers and resources is necessary, along with faster wifi, if possible." Rachel Williams thought that if the school felt that the school felt that this was needed, then that's where the funds should be going. Ting Goodfriend felt that the library's computers were in need of an update as well, as they run very slowly. A student who wished to remain unnamed voiced against the possible overhaul, saying it would take valuable funds into an unneeded area. "Ok, unpopular opinion here, I don't think that the technology at McCallum is really in need of an update. If you need to get your homework off the internet because you didn't prepare for it in class, you deserve to struggle with the system for your irresponsibility. Please don't put my name in this." He then walked off and bumped into a door. 

My opinion on this whole thing is pretty simple, McCallum needs technology from this millennium, and holding off on this will not be better in the long run.

Sam Trickey

Cool Guy in Chief

QUIZ QUIZ QUIZ

1. The perk that was raising eyebrows in Austin was that members of the Parks and Recreation board would get free tickets to ACL. Tom Donovan is the recipient in question, and the board is defending giving him a ticket by saying that they were for work purposes only. Two other members offered the passes declined them, saying that they wouldn't be comfortable using up a sizable portion of funds for something that doesn't seem to actually matter. Sabine Romero has sent an email saying it was okay for the mayor and council members to receive free tickets. Ann Kitchen has used the passes for herself, while Ora Houston gave the tickets to 311 operators filling in for her as a "Thank you." I don't know if these passes are really that important, as its just a dozen or so council members taking up the space, so I'll play it safe and say that its ok for them to do this, morally.

2. The state of Oklahoma implemented a stay on using lethal injection drugs due to the complicating legality of such drugs. Tennessee has authorized the use of an electric chair in lieu of the drugs, and Utah has authorized a firing squad. Midzolam is the drug used in the injections, and the supply, demand, and legality has made it so there's much more controversy and mistakes than normal.

3. Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu has banned all parliament members from visiting a contested holy site in the Old City. He has ordered police to enforce this. He attempted to use this to quell unrest and riots, however, he only succeeded in making a lot of people angry. The banned members have attempted to visit, where they were unsurprisingly turned away. Muhanad Halabi was a student shot and killed recently, which kicked off the riots in the first place.

4.Svetlana Alexievich won a Nobel Prize for literature yesterday, which is strange considering her work was nonfiction. In her works, she blended literature and journalism. She plans to create much more works of literature, and doesn't plan to lose her footing now.

5. Professor Emeritus Daniel S. Hamermesh has decided that he will not be returning to his job next year due to the new dangerous concealed carry laws in this state. His departure became public after he sent a letter to the president of UT, which was then published in the Daily Texan newspaper. It was also a factor that he was already planning to retire before the concealed carry law went into effect.

6. The new metal gear solid game is a very good game, with excellent controls, graphics, and replay value. This article is reviewing it.

The Viability of High School Football

I think that the last article, the one written for the Grantland website, really struck close to home, touching on the fact that high school football is a dangerous sport that children are allowed to play. The first article is simply factual, trying not to take sides, as a widespread news provider should. The second article attempted to consider itself above all the riff-raff, trying to do something similar to the first article but simply coming across as elitist and holier-than-thou, and asked way to many rhetorical questions. The third article was the one that actually talked about how the kids being killed by football was morally wrong, and that the NFL was doing shady stuff in the name of future profits.

Observation Assignment

OBSERVATION ASSIGNMENT

For my observation assignment, I observed a photography class that my friend was taking in one of the nearby portables, No. 5. to be exact. When I entered the portable, the first thing that I noticed was that it was very dark. The lights were off and it was very cramped inside. The air conditioner seemed to be working, which was very nice and unexpected.  There was a student near the front making his presentation over the different techniques photographers use. The student up front had taken several photos prior to the class, and had organized and labeled them in his presentation, this was the assignment that had been assigned in the previous class. The student was graded on how good of a picture a photo was and how well it encapsulated the photography value currently being shown. I had a hard time finding the teacher; she wasn't sitting at her desk. Instead, she was sitting along with the students, listening to the presentation and making comments on it. The class was very casual, and there weren't any taboos about speaking out of turn or raising your hand. I noticed that the teacher liked the color red more than other colors, and it showed in how the portable was decorated, with red font displaying motivational phrases along the walls. I didn't smell much of anything, which I suppose is a good quality for a class to have, you can not please everybody with some strong perfume, but you can make sure that no one will be uncomfortable due to the smell. The class has a certain relaxed feel to it; it really seems that you would learn something that would actually interest someone, rather than the memorization of trivia some other classes are. They talked about horizontal lines, perspective, patterns and how all of these things made the viewer of the photo feel, and why these unquantifiable qualities were so important to the average amateur photographer. I was almost sorry that I had to leave so soon, and I wished I could be there to see the end of my friend's presentation, but sadly, lunch approached, and I needed to return my notes to my backpack so I could later condense them into this paper. Overall, I highly recommend any aspiring artists that are not very good at painting to go to this class. 8/10

quiz 3

1. Pope Francis made a speech about the dangers of global warming the other day. He addressed America and called them out on placing money of the environment in terms of importance. This was the first time the leader of the catholic church has defended religious liberty as well as same sex marriage. Congress invited him to make this speech.

2. Some people believe that the football players were right to attack the allegedly racist referee at the football game. Others believe that they shouldn't have even if he did make the racist comment. The two football players will be attending an alternate school until Jan. 15th, where they will be returning. Mack Breed, the assistant coach involved with the incident, will not be returning to the school. The negative attention that the school has been getting sure is breaking Mike Motherol's heart.

3. The movement of a 6th grade teacher to another grade has shifted the amount of students in a class to almost 30. This was done due to there being to many students in the 3rd grade, and they didn't want to pay another teacher any of the limited education funds. The 6th grade has been hurt due to many of the students having gifted and talented and special needs requirements, and it's been very hard for the 6th graders to adjust.

4. The legal opinion over the gun carry law over weapons being banned on school property has been filed to determine if this includes parking lots and the vicinity of the school. This law takes effect Jan. 1. Whitmire is of the opinion that it does include the vicinity of the school. The legal opinion has 180 days to be answered and may not matter anyway due to it being non-binding.

5. A tour bus has crashed with a duck boat bus on the freeway recently, killing four people and injuring several more. The tour bus carried foreign college students, and apparently the duck boat swerved into the bus with intent. The duck boat driver had too much pressure on him, trying to be a driver and entertainer all at once.

6. An obituary is a brief summary of a person's life and death. you will rarely find information that is less than flattering about the deceased. I would totally write all the obituaries, and become death itself, and rule over what people thought of the dead.

Quote of oak

"I am not a fan of the American media, however, Japanese media, such as anime, greatly interests me"

-Oak Ward
2015

Current Events QuiZZZ

1B. Yesterday's presidential debate included four second tier republican candidates who didn't quite make the cut in terms of being seriously considered for the presidency. This helped them get an opinion out to the media. Donald Trump was a very pivotal part of the discussion, and took priority over the others even though he was not on stage for the event.

2. The current director of the CIA was at U.T. this Wednesday in order to release 2500 daily briefs addressing national security concerns belonging to Lyndon B. Johnson and John F. Kennedy to the general public. The saddening trend of the government repeatedly doing shady dealings and not releasing them to the American people is what John Brennan is attempting to address with this new openness. You can access the documents on the CIA's official website. A PDB is an acronym for presidents daily brief, a document for classified information only sent to the presidents most trusted officials.

3. Hungary's law enforcement recently turned high pressure water cannons on asylum seekers who broke down a fence into Hungary. Alternate routes for the refugees go through active minefields, and are not safe at all.

4. Ahmed Mohamed was recently detained for building a homemade clock because a teacher thought it was a bomb. The authorities have defended their actions, stating that the reaction to the clock would've been the same, regardless of race. Half a million people, including Barack Obama, have rushed to the boy's defense, exclaiming that this kind of racial profiling is unacceptable in this day and age.

Current Eventz Quis

Current Events Quiz #1

1. In 2012, the University of Texas hired Darren Gay, a man convicted of a hate crime against a gay man along with his brother Glen back in 2005, as a teaching assistant. Glen was also hired as an unpaid  volunteer worker. UT officials said that federal laws concerning student information prevent the school from releasing the information concerning the two men and how they ended up having jobs at an esteemed university, but last February, Darren Gay is not listed as a teaching assistant anymore. I believe that some corrupt higher-up in the school's system wanted these men and their opinions in the school to perpetuate said higher-up's similar homophobic opinion.

2. This Tuesday, a deal was made between the city of Baltimore and the family of Freddie Gray for 6.4 million dollars. Around five months ago, Freddie Gray was fatally injured while in police custody, inciting riots all around the city of Baltimore. The mayor, Stephanie Rawlings, has full support of this settlement, saying "It is in the best interest of the city, and will avoid costly litigation.", to say nothing of the racial qualities of the mistreatment. This settlement is not a verdict, as the trial of the police department and officers involved is still pending.

3. Yesterday, Vice Chancellor Sig-mar Gabriel announced that he would allow half a million refugees into Germany each year for severTal more years to come. Critics have denounced this policy as enticing more migrants into making the dangerous journey to Western Europe. Sig-Mar has replied to these concerns, saying that the crisis of war refugees has not been adequately addressed by major countries such as France and Germany, as well as reducing the amount of cash handouts given to refugees, instead giving them food-stamps and first aid.

4. Donald Trump was recently invited to an anti-Iran nuclear deal rally by Ted Cruz in Atlanta. This is very unusual, seeing that most of the GOP conservatives hate Trump for his extremist values and immigration policies. Cruz explains that inviting such a controversial figure will bring the media with him, increasing the much needed coverage for Cruz.

5. Hillary Clinton recently apologized over the use of a private email account as secretary of state. In order to try and incriminate her, two high ranking republican senate chairmen have contacted Bryan Pagliano, who was paid to keep the personal server running. This story was commingled with a previous story from 2008, where Hillary claimed to have accidentally voted for invading Iraq.

6. Two John Jay high school football players attacked a referee at a game recently for allegedly using a racial slur. The assistant coach was also suspended, due to people involved saying that he may have said something to incite the two players against the referee.

very serious test post

ITS JOOOOOOOHHHHNN CENNAAA

do do do do