sharing day... numero dos.

160 MILLION CHILDREN UNDER 5 ARE MALNOURISHED

270 MILLION CHILDREN ARE WITHOUT HEALTH CARE

6 OUT OF 11 MILLION CHILD DEATHS ARE ATTRIBUTED TO PREVENTABLE CAUSES

These numbers are what stood out to me while watching the video in Alyssa Charman’s blog presentation. This is because I came to realize that child labor is a huge problem that America is not a part of. I am grateful and proud that my country does not go to solve the problem of our economy by enforcing child labor. But, although my country isn’t a part of it, there are still millions around the world who are.



“Have I ever been sick and not able to see a doctor? No.” That’s what a teenage girl later on in the same video. I can relate to that; I have always had the option of going to a pediatrician when I need to. I agree that this is a problem that can't be ignored until solved. A way to start helping is if every time anyone visits the doctor, one dollar should be donated to a charity that gives their money to stop child labor.

sharing day... numero uno.

I visited Sarah Flurry's blog and went through her presentation. She researched Native Americans and how they interact with Americans. I learned that there were specific actions by the Americans that were inconsiderate towards the Native Americans. There have been Native American burial sites that weren’t taken great care of. The Americans mistook the space for an area that hadn’t been claimed for a sports park. When the bodies were discovered, they were moved into a different spot. Sarah says, “Native Americans are angry about this because the new burials have not been done with the aid of a Native American representative.” This shows how American’s can be so oblivious to hurting others.
Another example of America’s trouble noticing how hurt Native Americans are using their image as a mascot. Native American’s find this very offensive because they think of the mascot as mockery. They believe that it is a type of racism and that it should be stopped.
I agree with Sarah when she says how America should be more aware of who they are hurting in order to grow as a nation. Hurting those around you will not be worth the development the country will receive by the end of the day.

works cited post.

Feldman, Noah. "Universal Faith." Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center Document. 26 Aug. 2007. Web.

Lalli, Nica. "No religion? No problem." Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center Document. 6 Apr. 2009. Web.

Kenneth Jost. "Religion in Schools." Current Situation (18 Feb. 1994). CQ Researcher Online. Web.

Marshall, Patrick. "Religion in Schools." Overview (12 Jan. 2001). CQ Researcher Online. Web.

Gardner, John. "Redemption." Atlantic. Print.

Gladden, Washington. "Religion and the Public Schools." Atlantic Monthly,(January, 1915). Annals of American History. Web.

Washington Gladden " Religion and the Public Schools," Annals of American History.

"Brandeis University." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2010.

"Cotton Mather." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 10 Feb. 2010.

"Joseph Smith." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2010.

"Native American Church." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 29 Jan. 2010. "

Universal Faith (4)

In this article, once again the Supreme Court has been described as unhelpful when it comes to the controversy about incorporating religion into acedemics. The court determines if something is allowed in public schools based on the "secular purpose." The loophole that this resolution is that a person can decide whether or not one thing is used in a religious way or not. The new modification of this controversy is that the court can "expend resources to accommodate activities that are religious in the eyes of the believes as long as those activities can still be performed by the general public that interprets them as secular." Although there can be problems a common ground may be found through the chaos. For example, a public school in Maine has created a "wellness room" made for students and staff to relieve stress. Many Americans go to prayer in order to be rid of stress and concerns were brought up about what type of of practices will be allowed. The school's superintendent, McIntire, proposed a solution; "religious practice is allowed in school spaces outside of class time when it is not led or coordinated by school officials- which means that no practice of stress reduction would be excluded on religious grounds." This shows one way of "dual use" because the students are able to do yoga or pray in the "wellness room."

I think that this is a great way to incorporate religion without stepping on anybody's toes.

Religion in Schools. CURRENT SITUATION (3)

This portion of Religion in Schools is titled the Current Situation because it mostly talks about the most recent complaints and concerns influenced by religion in public schools. Religious Right groups have been mentioned multiple times through out this section. Religious Right is a group formed by people who believe the proper way to learn has religious affiliations incorporated. They are fighting with all their heart for their children to learn about their religion while in public school. "People for the American Way more conservatively identified 283 school board candidates- and just under 100 winners- formally backed by religious-right groups in 1992 and 1993."

A case that was brought to my attention in this article was one of teaching creationism instead of evolution. "Fundamentalists board members in Vista tried three times last year to introduce creationism into high school science courses. Under threat of legal action from the local ACLU, the board backed off. Instead, the board adopted a resolution in August that says scientific theories should not be taught 'dogmatically' and that 'discussions of divine creation' should be included 'at appropriate times' in history or literature courses. Jordan Budd, staff counsel for the ACLU of San Diego and Imperial counties, calls the resolution 'meaningless' but says his group will go to court if teachers use the resolution to teach creationism." This is not the first case of problems with teaching creationism vs. evolution. Many people want their children to learn the story of the way the earth was made that goes along with their religion. But, other religions have different stories and then there is the scientific way of how the world was created as well, this is known as diesm.

No Religion? No Problem. (2)

Did you know that the fastest growing religious group in our country is having no religion at all? Or that roughly 1 out of 5 Americans are labeled as non-religious or non-believers? In 2007, 53% Americans of those who took a poll in USA TODAY said that they would not vote for an atheist. These are the realizations we have to come to deal with. Americans aren't accepting the new irreligious minority. "Atheists can tell you that they have faced problems-- some at work, some with family members or friends-- once their non-belief is stated publicly." The difficulties that non-religious Americans go through everyday is hard to believe. I know that there were times I felt atheist but then I found my faith later on. Finding out that others can't find their faith is hard for me, but I need to accept it just like other Americans. I know that I wouldn't ever put someone down because they don't think there is a God. It doesn't affect me so why would I push it? I guess others don't feel the same way because the non-believers get a lot of harassment for being who they are.

Religion in Schools. OVERVIEW (1)

The current event I have just read is about how often there are complaints about religious activity in publics schools. "'We receive two or three complaints a week...'" is what Steven Green says. Steven Green is the legal director of Americans Unites for Separation of Church and State. He thinks that there are so many calls because many schools don't know what is allowed and what isn't. This is because the Supreme Court supposedly left a lot of openings for loop holes that schools find. Jay Sekulow, chief counsel at the American Center for Legal Justice, claims that "It's not easy to draw the line between accommodating religious expression in a public school and endorsing religion." Those who are the most common complainers are the fundamentalists and evangelical Christian orgainizations.

Marshall, Patrick. "Religion in Schools." Overview (12 Jan. 2001). CQ Researcher Online. Web.

BACKROUND ANALYTICAL ENTRY

The Native American Church fought for the right to practice their religion. Because the government judged what they were doing, they choose to not tolerate it. The government said that the Church could no longer ingest peyote and decided to ban it. But, because the Congress finally came to realize that the religion was only trying to get closer to God and they shouldn’t be one to stand in the way of their beliefs. From this realization, the Congress made the American Indian Religious Freedom Act. This shows how America opened their minds to more religion and their tolerance grew.
Joseph Smith was someone who was “chosen” to express God’s will, or so the angel in his “visions” said. From the message, he created his own religion, Mormonism that at first wasn’t accepted by people outside his community. But, by the end of his life, became a religion that he himself couldn’t control. There were multiple accounts of Smith adding things to his religion. He must have felt that there were things missing so when he felt something was needed, he included it, for example, polygamy. This represents how open minded he was to change in the religious aspect.
Cotton Mather wasn’t open to unfamiliar aspects of life, such as witchcraft, as he started out in the Second Church of Boston. Because of his influence, he was thought of as a witness to the occurrences done from witchcraft. It can be said that because his father, Increase, held different views, Cotton developed a true interest for deism. He in turn started to be open minded to the scientific reasoning for the way things are. This shows how his religious tolerance came to be more near the end of his life.
Brandeis University was at first made for the Jews of America because they weren’t represented through academics. The founders wanted them to have a safe place to learn but then broadened their goal. Not only Jews are welcome at Brandeis, but they plan to have a very diverse class of scholars. The student population of Brandeis is a part of more than a dozen different faiths. From this account, you can argue that Brandeis University has become more tolerant of various religions.


Each one of these sources shows different types of religious tolerance. This tolerance is shown whether it is of a fellow citizen’s religion, their own religion, a new religion or their student’s religion.
The sub-topic of religion that has been chosen is religious tolerance. More specifically, the religious tolerance in the academic environment. This includes multiple factors: the parents of the children going to school, the child, the school (whether public or private,) the government, etc. These factors make religious tolerance important because everyone has their own opinion about religion and academics being incorporated. This plays a very crucial part in America because “the children are the future” and how they are raised will determine how the country is going to turn out.

LITERATURE ANALYTICAL ENTRY

"And now, from nowhere, the black memory of his brother's death rushed over him again, mindless and inexorable as a wind or wave, the huge cultipacker lifting- only an inch or so- as it climbed toward the shoulders, then sank on the cheek, flattening the skull- and he heard, more real than the morning, his sister's scream." (254)This quote was taken from Redemption, a short story by John Gardner. Redemption was how Jack Hawthorne, the voice of the quote above, ran over his younger brother as a child. This tragic accident makes Jack try to find his faith in order to survive. He wasn't like his family; running to religion to get through the unfortunate event. Redemption can be related to the topic of religious tolerance because Jack's family wasn't able to come to understand Jack's decision. Jack was able to deal with the pain he felt by his brother's death because of music. Playing the French horn helped instead of religion. Jack's family didn't acknowledge his new faith. For instance, during dinner, his sister didn't understand why Jack didn't say grace before eating. In order to please her, Jack lied and told her that he said it in his head.

Except for Jack, each character in the short story uses religion in some way to relieve their heartache. Jack’s dad, Dale, was able to become dependent on God and faith but then when one tiny misfortune occurred, he made a drastic change to atheism. His mom turned to church work and teaching at the high school. His sister, Phoebe, went to praying and believing that David was in heaven. The different ways that religion is used shows how every person should be aware of each other. How there needs to be tolerance in religious affiliations because even if everyone were to be one religion, it doesn’t necessarily imply that everyone uses it in the same way.

I believe that this theme of tolerance is shown because John Gardner wants to convey how religion isn't always the answer. Not everyone works in the same way; therefore, each person can get over a travesty differently. In Jack's case it was music, in his sister's, religion. Even though they are both going through the grieving cycle, Jack's family didn't approve of the way that he is doing it. "But there was nothing they could do."

Redemption

Written by John Gardner, Redemption is a short story about a tragic accident that occured to one unfortunate family. Jack Hawthorne, a twelve-year-old boy, ran over his brother, David, a seven-year-old. David was killed in the accident because Jack was too shocked to step on the breaks. Racked with guilt, Jack goes through time trying to find an escape from his own thoughts; he not only killed his brother, but murdered him. David noticed how his family were able to deal with this unlucky death; having faith. Both his parents and sister went to their religion for clearification and closure. For instance, at dinner, David wouldn't say grace. His sister took that to mean that, "If he wouldn't say grace, then perhaps there was no heaven. Their father would never get well, and David was dead." So because he didn't want to scare her, he told her that he had already said it in his head. His sister prayed so that she would feel as though someone were listening to her and taking care of her brother, and in time, her dad. David didn't feel this way so he saught to get his mind off the death anyother way; through music. He played the French horn "more and more now to escape" and "those around him were concious enough of what was happening..." The way he becomes consumed by his music is helping him try to to find redemption for his brother. He feels as though it is all his fault and he is to blame but he is attempting at making it all better. This shows how people rely on religion to solve their problems, but for others, they might find the answer by doing other things.

Religion and the Public Schools

The document I have read about brings up the topic of religion integrated with schooling. I have been reading a lot about this subject for my project. In the beginning, it argues that if religion were to be entwined, it would go against the Constitution. "such an attempt would violate the spirit of our Constitution, which forbids the government to impose upon its citizens any religious observances..." It goes on about Roman Catholics and Lutherans more specifically; telling what they think about the integration.

Roman Catholics are taking their children out of public schooling to pay for parochial schools. The reasons that the Roman Catholics have for these separate schools are this: religion is the foundation of character and the first essential part of education. This is also supported by the Lutherans; "It can no more be seperated from education than light can be separated from color."

Why the Roman Catholics pay up to 15 million for education just to add a big of religion to the curriculum is beyond me. I do not think that anyone should have to pay that kind of money to learn about God. Especially in this economy, I don't understand why you would pay extra for something you can have for free. In public schools, they may not incorperate religion, but children can learn about it in a different manner. I took hebrew school a few days a week, those few hours were dedicated to teaching me about God and the history of Judaism. I learned a lot and think that I was held back because it wasn't integrated with my daily education.

Washington Gladden " Religion and the Public Schools," Annals of American History.

[Accessed February 10, 2010].

Where Am I Now?

Where am I now? Hmm. That is an easy question but hard to answer. I am pretty behind in my journal entries for this project. But I have already come up with a schedule to follow so that I can get back. I know that I am going to find my current event articles in class today and for homework, I will respond to them... I am trying not to stress about it but maybe that stress will push me more to get on top of the posts. eeek. wish me luckkk!

Brandeis University

Because I am currently a junior enrolled in Deerfield High School, i have been looking around at colleges. The colleges I research are those that I might want to apply to. Brandeis University caught my attention. I kept studying Brandeis and realized that the history and backround of it could very well be incorperated into my research project for class...

Brandeis University was made for the Jewish Americans in 1948 founded by Louis Brandeis. This college was very important to have because of the discrimination that Jews had gone through. This college wasn't only for male Jews, but female as well. This wasn't popular for admissions during those times because of women's rights and all those shenanigans. Although Brandeis permits entrance with freedom of religion, the academic calendar and the Jewish religious calendar are combined. In addition to that, the University has a number of programs designed specifically to serve the broader Jewish community. From the American History database I learned these facts, I read that, "Today, Brandeis students are drawn from more than 100 countries and represent more than a dozen different faiths. As a nonsectarian university that takes pride in its Jewish identity and is open to students, teachers, and staff of every nationality, religion, and political orientation, Brandeis affirms America's heritage of cultural, ethnic, and religious diversity, equal access to opportunity, and freedom of expression."

"Brandeis University." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2010.

Mathers

Son of Increase Mather, Cotton became the youngest student accepted into Harvard at the age of twelve. Five years after graduating he was ordained at the Second Church of Boston to join his father. Cotton held this position until his death.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Both Cotton and Increase were a big part of the Salem withcraft trials held in 1692. Cotton was voice heard when the court choose to listen to specter evidence. Spector evidence is a witness' testimony that the shape or spirit of the accused was seen doing harm rather than their physical bodies. There were twenty seven suspects for practicing witchcraft and the nineteen of them who refused to confess were executed.Increase wrote a book titled, Cases of Conscience Concerning Evil Spirits in 1693 about the trials. He wrote against the use of "spectral evidence." Increase thought that it was better for ten guilty witches to escape than for one innocent person to die. This helped end the trials. Near the end of his life, Cotton Mather became more tolerant of other religions and deism. Deism conveys scientific reason for things rather than superstition and mysticism. It originated from ideas of Isaac Newton and John Locke. These men showed that the world was operated in an orderly and rational way. Cotton wrote more than 450 books, many of which were about science. From these books, he showed his thoughts about the natural world. Cotton also explained that he didn't see a conflict between his religious beliefs and science because nature was the best cure for atheism.

I feel as though Cotton Mather was a man who was once open to the possibilities of the devil and pure evil, but then was introduced to the scientific side of things. It looks as if he had changed his mind very drastically from the Salem witchcraft trials to writing books discussing a more natural way of how things have come to be. In my opinion, the way Cotton supported deism near the end of his life reveals his true colors. Cotton came to realize that a lot of the superstitions he believed in, such as witches, wasn't authentic. I might believe in karma, but I don't think that there are such things as witches and magic. Maybe there is such thing as fate but science explains a lot and shows the interpretation of why things are the way they are.

McGuire, William, and Leslie Wheeler. "Cotton Mather." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 10 Feb. 2010. .

joseph smith

So I have been reading up on this influential man named Joseph Smith. He experienced "visions" during the end of the Second Great Awakening. These "visions" were of an angel coming to Smith and telling him not to join any of the sects because God's will wasn't represented by any. Because of these "visions," he wrote the book titled, Book of Mormon. In this book, Smith wrote about the ancient, primitive Christianity of the Hebrews in America. This religion he thought of as that sect the angel spoke about. Smith then founded the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. At first, only Smith's friends and family members were a part of it. But then, people heard of his so called, great powers of being able who is allowed into heaven. Smith moved his community around a little bit but then was able to stick in one place; Illinois. Nauvoo was where they settled and here in Illinois (my home sweet home!) was where Smith was given the spot in government as the mayor. It was apparent that Joseph Smith enjoyed leadership because he loved to dress in fancy uniforms and call his followers the Mormon militia. Once Smith publicized that he wanted to run for president, his luck had run out. This announcement's timing wasn't of the best because there was already chaos between the Mormon Church and those from outside the Church as well. These were because Smith had added polygamy to Mormonism. The media talked badly about Smith and his religion. Smith's reaction was to have those in charge of the media destroyed and because of that, he was thrown in jail. A few days later, a few non-Mormon's shot Joseph Smith. 1805-1844. Joseph Smith's influence on those in the Mormon religion were appreciated greatly. Without him, the religion wouldn't be in existence. Those followers of the Mormon religion then went to Brigham Young to lead them

"Joseph Smith." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 31 Jan. 2010. .

From learning about Joseph Smith's life, I have taken away how much one person can do in such a short time. Smith still affects those in Mormonism even though he has passed. This makes me think about what I will be able to do in my lifetime. I doubt I will be able to make as big of a difference as Smith but I want to be able to say I improved and influence at least one person's life during the opportunity I was given on earth.

Native American Church

I have been up for an hour because I fell asleep so early tonight; eleven oclock PM. Yeah, that is actually considered very early for me. Well, because I am up, I figured that I should do my American Studies homework knowing its due later today. I was looking up articles that I could write about in this here blog of mine and I found one named, Native American Church. It talks mostly about a cult that has been turned into a religion. Do you know what peyote means? If you dont, click it. There is a small definition of it for you. I found out what it is just moments ago while reading the article. Knowing what peyote means is important towards understanding why the religion was banned in multiple states. Peyote is a small cactus ingested by the Native Americans to harmlessly bring the church members closer to God during ceremonies, social gatherings, marriages, and funerals. The Congress finally acknowledged that and made the American Indian Religious Freedom Act in order for the religion to use peyote. That was the result after several successful court cases arguing that peyote use is integral to the religious freedom of Native Americans. I chose this article to write about in my blog because for my research project, I wanted to learn more about other religions. This article taught me that the Native American Church share similarities between both Christianity and Indian rituals. These rituals weren't accepted by the Americans until 1918 although members were still practicing the religion behind closed doors. This interests me because I have never had to hide my religion through out my life. I have always been able to let people know the religion I am and be proud of it. I can't imagine those who believe and are faithful to something such as religion, without voicing their ideas.


This is my citation:
"Native American Church." American History. ABC-CLIO, 2010. Web. 29 Jan. 2010. .

religion

I have become interested in religion because I am very faithful towards my own. I go to my congregation during the high holidays and even got confirmed last year with a handful of other classmates. Normally, Jewish people don't get confirmed to Judaism but in my synagogue, you have the option of visiting with the Rabbi every Sunday for two hours with a group of other sixteen year olds. The year prior to confirmation in Hebrew school, we did nothing but study other religions and visit other spiritual places. I missed a majority of that year because of travel soccer so I want to find out what I have missed. I want to know more things about christianity and the different types and levels there are of it. Or things such as how dependant people can become on God depending on what religion they are. How do the muslims believe we all got here on earth? Do they have a different version of the way God made the world in seven days or do they think that the world was made by the big boom?

Obama's State of the Union Speech

So who watched Obama's speech last night? I did. I am always so captured by his skills at presenting speeches. He spoke about how he has many ideasthat will help the United States get back to where it once was. "I do not accept second place for the U.S." I really like the passion he conveys about the United States and the way he believes that we can get out of our slump. The many goals he has were brought up through out the speech. One that stood out to me was the one about exporting as many good as possible. Obama wants to double the amount of exports in the next five years so that it can require two million Americans to get a job helping do so. Also, he spoke about the scientific evidence of a climate change. He believes that clean energy will lead global economy. Barak Obama wants to creat jobs by building infostructures of the future. There will also be rebates for homes that are made to be more energy efficient which supports energy efficient jobs. This will keep employees in the U.S. and make it better for the economy at the same time. Education is a very high priotiy to Obama, too. He thinks that, "no one should become broke because they chose to go to collgeg." He mentioned the best anti-poverty plan. That plan includes world class education.

Obama will do what it takes to make for a more hopeful future.
If you didn't see him last night, here is a link of a few minutes of it...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jp26YZvK1f0

cheez.it

I love cheez.its and im going to talk about them because this is my first ever blog post and I am not sure what else to write about. But okay, I won't actually go on talking about cheez.its although Kenny would love me to do that. FoFo, AKA Kathleen is writing about me in her blog saying I will keep blogging in exchange for something to eat and it is pretty true. Class is about to be over so I am gonna wrap it up now..


go see a movie though, maybe you will see me working at the movie theatre.
http://www.moviefone.com/theater/amc-theatres-northbrook-court-cinema/2569/showtimes