Radiation From Japan Detected At O’Hare Airport

A small amount of radiation was detected on a plane coming into O’Hare Airport in Chicago from Japan. Officials say it is not a danger. President Obama says that dangerous levels of radiation will not reach America. The airport has been testing planes, passengers, and luggage for higher radiation levels.
This has to do with government because this has to do with our countries safety and the government has to make decisions about it.
I think we need to be very careful with the planes coming in from Japan. Obama wants all U.S. citizens in Japan to come back to America but will that be safe for everyone already here? We need to keep everyone in mind.
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2011/03/17/radiation-from-japan-dectected-at-ohare-airport/

No smoking in the car with kids under 14, Arkansas bill says

Arkansas is trying to pass a bill so that you cannot smoke in your car if you are driving with a child under the age of 14. This would raise the age from 6 which was passed in 2006. Only four other states have a law like this. In California the age that you can’t smoke in the cars with other children is 18. Almost 22 million children between the age of 3 and 11 are exposed to second hand smoke. Some people don’t agree with this bill because they think it is taking away parental rights.
This has to do with government because the government will have to decide to pass this bill or not.
I believe this bill should be passed. Second hand smoke is just as harmful as smoking. Also children’s bodies are fragile. Children also don’t know what is bad and good for them and can’t protect themselves from the smoke.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110329/us_nm/us_arkansas_smoking

Obama says too much testing makes education boring

President Obama is saying that standardized test makes school boring for students. He believes that the government should not just measure schools through these tests but through other ways like attendance rates. School should not be learning how to fill in a bubble sheet for a test and tricks to pass it, but about science and math. "And young people do well in stuff that they're interested in," Obama said. The President also pushes for technology in classrooms.
This has to do with government because the government makes up the guidelines for schools to follow.
I agree with Obama on this one. I think there is too much pressure on schools to have students pass the standardized tests. This makes teachers worry and spend too much time on preparing for these tests. It is also true that students do better when they are interested in what they are learning about. There are some things though that no one will be interested in, but they have to learn anyway.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_obama_education

Texas set to allow guns on college campuses

Texas is preparing to let students carry guns on college campuses. Texas has decided to do this because of all the big state universities they have. They would be the second state to do this, Utah was the first. Colorado lets the colleges decide if they will let their students carry guns. Many believe that this will be the best defense against mass shootings like what took place at Virginia Tech. Proposals to allow guns on college campuses have been rejected in 23 states since 2007.
This has to do with government because it is the government that makes the decision to allow guns on campuses.
I understand where some are coming from that this would help when it comes to mass shootings. I think having guns on campus would help a lot and keep students safer. At the same time I think this could be dangerous. There are a lot of parties with drinking at college. If a fight broke out at one of these parties someone could pull out their gun and start shooting. If this passes and guns are allowed on campuses I believe that they need to have strict laws against possessing a gun while you are intoxicated.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/02/21/national/main20034291.shtml

Gust Speaker

Today in Government class Mr. West came in to talk to our class about the government and his job. He is a lobbyist. A lobbyist is someone who helps interest groups promote their positions on things. They also help companies when damage happens. Who you know is important when you are a lobbyist, it’s about who you know, not what you know. Lobbyist also have to make it look like more people are interested in the opinion then there really are. Right now some of the projects Mr. West is working on include getting a charter school in Virginia and trying to stop a “one rate insurance policy” across the nation.
I learned a lot today from our guest speaker. I knew nothing about lobbyists and what they do. Now I know the role they play in our government. They are important because they share people thoughts with those in government positions. I had also never thought about how young people have an effect on our government. I had always thought of old men with white hair changing our government, but really it is us, the young adults, that have a big impact on our government.

Rising oil prices could stall states' recoveries

With the price of oil rising it does not look like we will be getting out of this economic crisis anytime soon. With oil at $100 a barrel and $3.19 a gallon, it could stop consumer spending and business investment. "There is nothing more threatening to our economic prospects than higher oil prices," Moody's Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi. If the gas gets any higher many will have a reason to be nerves. Arizona is being hit hard with the price of gas rising. Arizona relies on tourist to bring in money and with the price of gas rising there will be fewer tourists.
This as to do with government because the economy is down and the government is $175 billion in debt so this is really going to effect the government and us.
It is really frustrating that the price of gas is getting higher. This effects everyone because everyone is driving each day. This is also going to make the economy even harder on everyone.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110227/us_nm/us_usa_states_oil;_ylt=ApygpRoqErtmM6wTQGnnTHtvzwcF;_ylu=X3oDMTJpa2psaGw3BGFzc2V0A25tLzIwMTEwMjI3L3VzX3VzYV9zdGF0ZXNfb2lsBGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMQRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawNyaXNpbmdvaWxwcmk-

NJ Gov. Christie signs bill to get more power plants built

The Governor of New Jersey, Chris Christie, signed a bill to get more power plants built and makes electricity cheaper. This will create more jobs for people in New Jersey. This will also help the people of New Jersey because they have one of the most expensive electric costs in the nation. Not everyone is happy about this bill. There are the environmentalists who feel we should not build more. Others feel that this will not create jobs but cause people to loose jobs already existing at energy facilities.
This has to do with government because the government creates the bills.
I think it is good that we create more jobs. We need to get out of this economic mess that we are in. It will also help people not have to pay so much. At the same time if people are worried that people might loose their jobs they should look into that first. I also feel like we need to protect our land, we can’t just fill up all the land we have.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110131/us_nm/us_utilities_newjersey_newplants

U.S. Warns Mexican cartels on cross-border violence

Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano warned Mexican drug cartels that if they bring their violence over the border it will produce a strong reaction. Since 2006 more than 34,000 Mexicans have been killed because of drug related violence; 15,000 of those deaths were just in 2010. President Obama has been getting a lot of pressure from complaining people to have more military protecting at the border to protect from drug violence and illegal immigrants. Last year Obama sent 1,200 National Guard members to the border and signed a $600 million bill for new Border patrol agents.
This has to do with government because our government determines the national budget. They also decide where to send the military. The government also deals with illegal immigrants.
I think we need good protection at our borders. We can’t just have illegal immigrants come freely. If you are going to come to America come the right way. I don’t want drug dealers influencing US citizens or creating violence.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110131/pl_nm/us_usa_mexico_napolitano

Will We Ever Reduce Military Spending?

The government announced that they are freezing all spending on the federal budget for the next five years, but nothing was said about the US spending on the military. The money given to the military accounts for a quarter of the government’s money. Also all the money spent on our military is more than any other nation.
This has to do with government because the military is how our country is protected. The government also decides how much will be spend on the military and other things.
The military is very important. They are the people keeping us safe. I am glad that our country does not just overlook our safety. At the same time we are in economic turmoil and we need to be very careful with our spending. I think we need to find a way to keep our military effective but decrease our spending in any way.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/atlantic/20110129/cm_atlantic/willweeverreducemilitaryspending6769;_ylt=AlRTt6Lu6EuDSxQwOC55mHeyFz4D;_ylu=X3oDMTNmbDVlYzhiBGFzc2V0A2F0bGFudGljLzIwMTEwMTI5L3dpbGx3ZWV2ZXJyZWR1Y2VtaWxpdGFyeXNwZW5kaW5nNjc2OQRjcG9zAzQEcG9zAzEEc2VjA3luX2hlYWRsaW5lX2xpc3QEc2xrA3dpbGx3ZWV2ZXJyZQ--

Man who mailed white powder to Obama, others sentenced

Jay DeVaughn mailed 13 letters filled with a white powdery substance to President Obama, members of Senate and others. He pleaded guilty and will serve 6 years in federal prison. DeVaughn has a mental illness and will go through treatment for it for three years. The white powder was first treated like deadly anthrax by the Secret Service and FBI until they determined it was a sugar substitute.
This deals with our government because these were government leaders that were being sent these strange letters. If it had been something deadly some of our leaders might not be alive. Just because you don’t like someone in charge does not mean we should kill them.
I’m glad that this man did not send anything deadly. I also am glad that the Secret Service and FBI treated it as something deadly until they knew it was not. That shows how well they are trained.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110128/us_nm/us_powder_sentencing`