FEATURES

                                 Is the War Over?

                    By: Elizabeth Brokenshire

                        

"Tonight I am announcing that the American combat mission in Iraq has ended. Operation Iraqi Freedom is over," Obama declared inside the doors of the Oval Office on Tuesday, August 31, 2010. In his 17 minute address to the nation, President Barack Obama sent a message that travelled around the entire world. As soon as it was over, many people reacted with varying opinions and feelings.  For the families of the soldiers coming home, the speech was a welcome sign after so many of their family members were on their 3^rd or 4^th deployment. As for the soldiers, “They’re leaving as heroes, and walking home with pride filled in their hearts,” said Col. John Norris, the head of the brigade. For those who don’t play a role in the combat mission, they are still in shock and in disbelief over the sudden departure.  Lastly, the families of over 4,400 lost soldiers, Obama stated, "As President, I have signed a letter of condolence  to the family of each American who gives their life in these wars." 94,000 troops have left Iraq since Obama’s inauguration, after his announcement America still has 50,000 troops still stationed in Iraq and these service members won’t be out until the end of 2011 for counterterrorism training.   

The Iraq adventure has seriously weakened the U.S economy by the loss of trillions of dollars.  At the website Cost of War, we can view the escalating war debt we are incurring second by second --  the amount is staggering.   Although American-led combat missions in Iraq may have ceased, we are still at war in Afghanistan, where 98,000 troops are stationed.; furthermore, our country is attempting to rebound from its prolonged economic recession and unemployment crisis.

From the Oval Office, President Obama praised his predecessor, President George Bush and his love and commitment towards the country:  “This afternoon, I spoke to former President George W. Bush.  It’s well known that he and I disagreed about the war from its outset.  Yet no one can doubt President Bush’s support for our troops, or his love of country and commitment to our security.  As I’ve said, there were patriots who supported this war, and patriots who opposed it.  And all of us are united in appreciation for our servicemen and women, and our hopes for Iraqis’ future.”

As you can see, this war has impacted our country in many ways; therefore, President Obama decided the Iraq war must end and has called for Americans to look forward to the next problems that await our country: putting down extremists in Afghanistan that may foster groups like Al-Quaeda and turning our attention to domestic problems at home. 

The damage to our country we need to repair. Obama now wants to focus his job of presidency to the middle class.  He said:

“Now, that effort must begin within our own borders.  Throughout our history, America has been willing to bear the burden of promoting liberty and human dignity overseas, understanding its links to our own liberty and security.  But we have also understood that our nation’s strength and influence abroad must be firmly anchored in our prosperity at home.  And the bedrock of that prosperity must be a growing middle class.

Unfortunately, over the last decade, we’ve not done what’s necessary to shore up the foundations of our own prosperity.  We spent a trillion dollars at war, often financed by borrowing from overseas.  This, in turn, has short-changed investments in our own people, and contributed to record deficits.  For too long, we have put off tough decisions on everything from our manufacturing base to our energy policy to education reform.  As a result, too many middle-class families find themselves working harder for less, while our nation’s long-term competitiveness is put at risk. And so at this moment, as we wind down the war in Iraq, we must tackle those challenges at home with as much energy, and grit, and sense of common purpose as our men and women in uniform who have served abroad.  They have met every test that they faced.  Now, it’s our turn.  Now, it’s our responsibility to honor them by coming together, all of us, and working to secure the dream that so many generations have fought for -- the dream that a better life awaits anyone who is willing to work for it and reach for it. Our most urgent task is to restore our economy, and put the millions of Americans who have lost their jobs back to work.  To strengthen our middle class, we must give all our children the education they deserve, and all our workers the skills that they need to compete in a global economy.  We must jumpstart industries that create jobs, and end our dependence on foreign oil.  We must unleash the innovation that allows new products to roll off our assembly lines, and nurture the ideas that spring from our entrepreneurs.  This will be difficult.  But in the days to come, it must be our central mission as a people, and my central responsibility as President.”

        While Americans may have differing opinions on the war in Iraq , it appears that we have given this country an opportunity to change its history and become a more open and more civilized nation.  Much more needs to be done, but the sacrifices will be mainly among the Iraqi people themselves as they struggle to maintain their form of representative government that meets the needs of the majority of its citizens.  As Americans know too well from past wars, freedom is never free.

High School Bullying

By: Tom Wagner

In today’s society bullying has become a huge problem that affects more than just the victim.  Bullies hurt their victims either physically or verbally, and by causing such injury affect an individual’s personal self-esteem, academic focus, and social relationships.  Some people are so used to being bullied they live in a constant fear and expectation that sooner or later, they will be a target for more bullying, the effects of which may last a life time.

Boys have always had problems with bullying, whether it is because of social status, the way they act, or the way they look.  However, now girls are starting to become a problem.  Girls mostly bully other girls but guys will usually girls and guys.  Girls tend to verbally bully other girls and post rude and embarrassing things on the internet, known as cyber bullying. 

Seventeen year old Alexis Pilkington had it all.  She was a popular person with a soccer scholarship to Dowling College on Long Island.  None of this stopped people from posting rude and thoughtless comments about her on FormSpringMe.com and Facebook.  Facebook and FormSpringMe.com have both apologized to the Pilkington family and say they hope to stop those who exploit the system.  The cyber bullying has continued on pages dedicated to mourn the girl’s death.  Her parents feel as if the bullying hasn’t affected their daughter’s decision.  Fifteen states have passed laws making it illegal to harass or intimidate people through the use of an electronic device and a bill is going through Congress that will make cyber bullying illegal in all fifty states.

The best way to stop cyber bullying is to tell parents.  When a school tries to get involved they are usually sued because they exceed their authority and break a student’s first amendment rights.

I spoke with Mr. Trostle in our Guidance Department to ask him about the problem of bullying in our school.  He says bullying is still a problem but it is harder to see because most of it goes on outside of school.  There are still incidents but not nearly as many as there used to be.  Our school takes caution to prevent bullying by using anti-bully posters.  These posters are located in every classroom and can be found posted on walls around the school.  We also bring up the topic of bullying in many of our social clubs and groups.  According to Mr. Trostle if you see someone being bullied you should report it and get a teacher especially if the situation threatens to become violent but always be wary to get involved.

The best way to stop bullying is to ignore the bully.  Most of the time a bully enjoys the reaction he gets from hurting someone so when he sees no reaction he will eventually move on.  Another way to fix bullying is to tell two adults.  Telling two adults is critical because if one ignores you the other person might do something about the problem.  Try to comfort anyone who is being bullied.

Key Ways to Help Stop Bullying

   Ignore the bully and walk away.

    Do not get angry.

Do not get physically violent.

    Make yourself look confident.

    Get involved in other activities.

   Talk about it.

Find your real friends.

Will the Tea Party’s Victories Hurt the GOP?
By: Sarah Rudasill

The widely acclaimed grassroots Tea Party has swept the nation in a series of stunning upsets by conservative candidates in 2010 Senate, House, and gubernational primaries.  The Tea Party backed candidates representing its core values and aided them in ousting several well-established but liberal-leaning Republican candidates.  The Tea Party’s platform stands for a small government in which spending is slashed, debt and deficit spending are eliminated, and the Constitution is strictly followed.  According to the Tea Party’s website, it “calls awareness to any issue that challenges the security, sovereignty, or domestic tranquility of our beloved nation.”   These challenges include universal healthcare, stimulus packages, and government regulation of business. 

As conservatives across the country claim victory, many Democrats and political strategists say this outcome could ultimately hurt Republicans’ chances in seizing control of the House and Senate in November.  Since the Tea Party emerged and swept the nation in 2009, Democrats have hoped that its very conservative stance isolates liberal-leaning Republicans, making moderate Democrat nominees more appealing.  As the country debates the impact of the Tea Party and its possible implications, here is a look at some prominent conservative candidates that have succeeded in winning against their opponents in primaries:

1.       Marco Rubio (R-FL) – Rubio is officially heralded as the original Tea Party candidate.  He ousted Gov. Charlie Crist of the Republican Party when Crist was thought to dominate the election and keep his Senate seat. 

2.       Rand Paul (R-KY) – Paul pushed Secretary of State Trey Grayson out of the way and claimed victory in the Republican primary in Kentucky.  Grayson, who had the support of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, was easily defeated in an election that demonstrated the Tea Party’s power.

3.       Sharron Angle (R-CO) – The very conservative Tea Party candidate won her primary in a landslide, but her stance on issues such as Social Security will hurt her against incumbent Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. 

4.       Mike Lee (R-UT) – In one of the largest victories for fiscal conservatives, Lee defeated incumbent Sen. Robert Bennett on the Republican ballot and then proceeded to win the primary against businessman Tim Bridgewater. 

5.       Joe Miller (R-AK) – Miller handed down a stunning victory over incumbent Sen. Lisa Murkowski, but Democrats have claimed this outcome has put the Senate seat within their grasp.  The latest poll has shown that Miller leads by only a few points. 

One of the greatest wins for the Tea Party came in the Republican primary in Delaware, where conservative Christine O’Donnell defeated veteran lawmaker Mike Castle for the Senate seat.  Castle, a former governor, was the longest serving House member in Delaware history.  O’Donnell, who was endorsed by Tea Party leader Sarah Palin, beat Castle by a large margin to take the primary.  While the Tea Party is celebrating, Democrats are stating they now have a great opportunity. 

Nathan Gonzales of Rothenberg Political Report backed Democrats, saying, “This is an instant game-changer.  This is a clear case where a Tea Party victory has hurt Republican chances in the general election.”  Chris Coons, O’Donnell’s Democratic challenger, has agreed, stating, “The Republican Party is purging itself of moderate voices and embracing the radical.”  He went on to encourage Castle’s supporters to support him in the November election, calling himself “a way to continue Delaware’s tradition of electing moderate, independent voices.” 

So the history-making question is still left unanswered: Will the Tea Party destroy the GOP’s chances in November?  Democratic strategist Robert Shrum at New York University’s Wagner School of Public Service says most definitely.  “The Tea Party will prove to be the best thing that’s happened to Barack Obama and the Democrats,” Shrum stated.

 Ed Rodgers, a White House staffer to Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, completely disagrees.  “The Tea Party is a big problem for President Obama and his party this year.  Think of the Tea Partiers as the tip of an iceberg.  The ones we see on cable news channels are only a thin, visible slice of the opposition.  The much larger, submerged part is the roughly two-thirds of the electorate who think America is headed in the wrong direction, disapprove of Congress, and believe the President is handling the economy poorly.  The Democrats are about to hit the whole iceberg,” Rodgers said. 

The answer lies within the outcomes in November.  There currently is no accurate way to measure the impact of the Tea Party until the results of the elections are announced.  Only then will the country be able to determine whether the grassroots organization has made a positive or negative impact on the GOP.  After the November election, our country will also be able to gauge how the Tea Party will affect the crucial 2012 Presidential election.  As much as Republicans and Democrats alike have a strong desire to know the Tea Party’s implications, the only thing we can do is wait and see.  

Fall Elections Forecasting

By: David Malkin

            With the Fall elections looming in the near future. I would love to turn your attention to the U.S. Congressional primary race. With Democrats enacting some controversial legislation such as health care, Republicans are hoping to counteract the current majority in both houses and are expected to pick up more seats in the House of Representatives and in the Senate. The current held seats are 256 Democrats and 178 Republicans in the House of Representatives. 58 Democrats hold the Senate and 40 Republicans are in the minority in the Senate. However, the projected 38 or more extra seats in the House and 7 extra seats in the Senate will still leave Democrats with a weak majority in the Senate and an almost definite loss in the House. According to most polls, the Democrats are down 41 points to 51 points overall to the Republicans which means in general if a Republican runs against a Democrat the Republican is the expected winner.

            Gallup Polls are also saying that Republicans have the additional enthusiasm advantage at 47% for Republicans to 28% for Democrats.  According to a recent report put out by Fox news on Monday September 20, 2010 Republicans only need 39 seats in the House and 10 in the Senate to gain the majority. In general the mid election numbers are not looking very good for Democrats.

            Upon a close examination of the two party’s online stores, Republicans seem to be excited for this election season, with much more election-related merchandise. 25 relating to the election for Republicans compared to 3 for Democrats. You can visit and compare the websites for yourself at for the Republican Party website or their merchandise store . You can also visit the website for the Democrat Party  as well as their merchandise store .

            Although the November 2010 election looks like a shoe-in for Republicans, Tea Party candidates could hinder their progress by bombarding states with low populations with controversial political ads for their biggest Tea-Party candidates (see article above). An example of this is in Delaware where dark horse Tea-party candidate Christie O’Donnell upset Republican candidate Michael Castle in the Republican primary race, setting off some infighting within the Republican Party who view Castle as a better overall candidate but who lost out as a result of Tea Party “money-bombs.”
          
           With the election fast approaching, it is important that we pay close attention to the people who control the reins of our democracy. While some of us may not yet have the right to vote, the representatives, senators, mayors, and governors will be the ones in charge of passing key legislation that affects our lives in a big way.  The safeguard to a healthy democracy is vigilance. An educated citizenry is key to making an informed choice when we go into the voting booth.

Illegal Pet Trafficking                                                                           

By: David Malkin

Throughout the world, illegal movement of exotic animals goes on every day unidentified by the rest of us. Illegal animal movement is the systematic capture and smuggling of live or dead animals. Those who engage in this illegal activity for the same reason that most crimes are committed: greed.  One example would be for-profit trafficking of bush meat primarily from Africa and Asia. The most commonly traded animals are exotic birds. Anywhere between two million and five million exotic birds are smuggled every year. A large macaw could fetch almost one million dollars in some parts of Spain.

            The poaching normally occurs in central to South America and in Southeast Asia, and the hunters are paid a fraction of the money that the smugglers make for the animal. The animals are then prepped for smuggling and are normally smuggled into Spain because of the large market for exotic animals. 70%-90% of animals die on they way into the countries that they are smuggled to. Smugglers do not treat the animals properly such as they neglect them of water, food and fresh air. Scientists working for the rescue group Common Dreams reported “toucans with their beaks taped shut, parrots stuffed into stockings, birds that are drugged or whose eyes are perforated so that they will not sing in reaction to the light are just some of the passengers in these cruel flights."

People kill animals for food in more then 60 countries, in these countries wild and endangered animals account for one fifth of the animal protein that number is growing due to increased levels of poverty. The animals are also killed for leather, furs, and feathers to make into ornaments and clothing. Also most collections include wildlife specimens for museums and for private individuals.

             Animal trafficking is third behind drugs and arms trafficking, yet it is much less known to authorities according to Oscar Moctezuma director of Naturalia. "Trafficking in species is mostly tolerated by society, and that means that the perpetrator is not pursued by the authorities as much as drugs or arms traffickers," says Oscar Moctezuma. All birds regardless of species are harvested and sold for profit.

             TRAFFIC international does undercover research to determine the strength and depth of organized crime trafficking and farming wild and exotic animals around the world. TRAFFIC is a joint project between WWF and IUCN.  The problems these organizations face is they have a core dedicated group of supporters but due to the fact that this issue is underrated and overshadowed by drug and illicit weapon trafficking, they do not feel that they have a large amount of public support.

            Not all smugglers are successful, in 2002 a man attempted to smuggle 50 orchids, and four birds into a Californian airport. After the authorities discovered the other animals they also found 2 monkeys that the man had tried to smuggle in his pants. The monkeys aged three months and four months old were taken to the Los Angles zoo. The man was forced to serve six months in prison, rather then the usual sentence because he was suffering from full blown AIDS.

The Floods in Pakistan

By: Joey Letteriello

While it has not been in the forefront of the news, the flooding in Pakistan has led to a widespread humanitarian crisis affecting 14 million people in a very politically fragile part of the world. 

Thousands of houses have been lost, miles and miles of land have been turned into a lake. The floods in Pakistan have been going on since July 26^th, 2010 and the country is  still dealing with the effects of the catastrophe.  Millions of people remain homeless and are left with little food and water. Thousands have already died according to the UN with more casualties  expected to occur and creating the kinds of conditions that lead to epidemic. 

Towns all the way from North Pakistan to Southern Pakistan along the Indus River have been affected in some way, towns closer to the river have been heavily flooded and towns further away got little to no flooding. The minister of Pakistan said, "The flood is at its peak right now, and we expect the waters following to start to recede once these torrents have passed." 

30,000 troops and dozen of helicopters from the Pakistan military, and a U.S ship with extra helicopters and 1,000 marines have been used as a relief effort for the floods. Until the floods recede, the people affected will be living in shelters or tents and given food by donation and from the military until they can start to rebuild again.

Maurizio Giuliano, a spokesman for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)has  said,"This disaster is worse than the tsunami, the 2005 Pakistan earthquake, and the Haiti earthquake." 

Flood victims have attacked government officials due to their President, Asif Ali Zardari, going on with his tour in Europe when their country was in need of help. Yousuf Raza Gilani, Pakistan's prime minister, who is left alone while the President is on his tour said the floods would set them back years.

If you wish to help the people and towns affected by the floods in Pakistan you can visit Oxfam and give a donation to a worthy cause.