Investigators on way after waves kill cruise passengers

A Louis Cruise Lines ship traveling off the coast of Spain was hit by three waves, each one about 26 feet (8 meters) high. It happened 24 miles off Cabo de San Sebastian. These "abnormal" waves killed two cruise passengers. Maltese government officials were sent to investigate the deaths. The two people killed, both male, one Italian and one German, were on deck five when the waves hit. They smashed five windows on the bow of the 14-deck ship. Vito Sgobba, the cruise ship's hotel manager, rushed to the scene immediately after the waves hit. The two deceased died instantly; they were brought to the ship's hospital but they didn't make it there alive. The victims were a German man, 69, from North Rhine Westphalia, and an Italian man, 52, who was traveling with his family. Fourteen other passengers were treated for light injuries. The next cruise has been canceled, and the ship is currently in Barcelona for repairs.

This article shocked me when I read it. I went on a cruise myself about 5 years ago, and I never imagined that something like this could happen. I assumed that many precautions were taken to avoid this sort of thing, but I guess you can't be guaranteed safety on a cruise ship. I'm wondering, though, if the families of the two deceased men could file a lawsuit against the cruise ship company. Is the company liable for this freak accident that caused the death of two passengers? I think that, while no one was at fault for this accident, the families of the two men should be compensated in some way or another. The men were on their cruise ship at the time of the accident, so the company should be held responsible for any deaths that occurred there. People are dying in so many ways that I never even thought about lately; it's kind of upsetting to me how some of these deaths happen. Just when people think their safety is assured, something goes wrong, just like on this cruise ship. I'm sure it will make some people think twice about going on a cruise after this accident.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/03/04/spain.cruise.ship.wave/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+(RSS%3A+Top+Stories)

L.A. middle school, students struggle under budget cuts

In a South Central Los Angeles neighborhood school, budget cuts are becoming very evident. At Markham Middle School, a student talks about how her history class has had 10 different teachers (substitutes) during only one semester. This is because, district-wide, 2,000 teachers were let go as state budget deficits. All these cutbacks to the California school system are hurting the students' learning experience, and it's affecting how much they learn. But it doesn't stop there; the principal believes that there will be more teacher layoffs coming this summer. The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit saying that these layoffs take away from the rights of the inner city students to an education. They believe that the children who need more help, such as the children in the poverty-stricken neighborhood of Watts, should have the resources to succeed in their education even more than others. If the ACLU lawsuit is passed, there will be layoffs, but not at Markham Middle School.

I think that it would affect a student's education hugely if they don't have a proper teacher. Sharail Reed, the student who has had 10 different teachers in her history class, talked about how it made it more difficult to learn from these new teachers who don't even know her name. The changing up of these teachers halts the learning process and is not desirable at all for a student's education. I don't think that, just because of the budget, they should be cutting back on the teachers. The students in Watts need an education just as much as everyone else. As for the ACLU lawsuit, however, I am not sure if I agree that these students need teachers and an education more than everyone else. Each and every student deserves the right to a good education. We shouldn't transfer the teacher layoffs/budget cuts to another school. We should be looking for a way to provide the students with a good education without depriving someone of this right. If cuts are necessary somewhere, why should it have to be in our schools?

http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/03/04/layoffs.education/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+(RSS%3A+Top+Stories)

Toyota hit with grand jury subpoena

On Monday the Toyota company received a subpoena related to the problems with the brakes and unintended acceleration of its newest model, the Toyota Prius. They also received one from the Los Angeles office of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Toyota's Prius has had many problems with acceleration and braking since it came out in the beginning of 2010. More than 8 million vehicles were recalled for safety reasons. Toyota knows that they made a mistake and they plan to cooperate with the investigations. The Toyota president will testify in Washington on Wednesday about the subpoenas and the vehicle's problems. They will discuss federal auto safety regulators and how the company had let these problems slide.

I don't know how the Toyota company could have let these problems slide, or not notice this major problem. They should be devoting time to each and every vehicle to make sure it is safe and secure enough to be ready to be sold to the public. They seem to be getting careless with their products. They need to retain the image that people have of their company by making sure every vehicle that they make is top-quality. Wouldn't it have been easier to just make sure every car that went out their doors was in proper working condition than to recall all of them because of this problem? People could have gotten seriously hurt. Toyota is one of the biggest names in cars, and this could tarnish their reputation. I am not sure if they deserved a subpoena for it, but they definitely need to tell their story and come to their senses. They need to ensure that their customer's safety will never be in jeopardy from purchasing one of their products.

http://money.cnn.com/2010/02/22/autos/toyota_subpoena/index.htm?hpt=T2

Issue #1: War Dollars

Summary: The Constitution states that the president of the United States is the commander in chief of the armed forces, so he or she is able to choose what we spend our money on- whether to fight or not. But congress has the "power of the purse", which is a power that gives Congress the authority to approve the federal spending needed for the war. Congress has denied president's requests for funding fighting before, such as Reagan's request to fund the fighting in Nicaragua. There is a debate as to whether Congress should be able to use this power or not. People who are not happy with the war in Iraq want Congress to be able to use this power to stop the funding of the war. It has cost billions of dollars to taxpayers and some believe that Congress is going about it the right way by using their "power of the purse". Some are opposed to Congress's interference, however. They elected this president and they want him or her to decide what to do with the war situation. According to them, the president is better equipped than Congress to decide what will be best for the war effort, and best for a victory.

Opinion: I believe that Congress should be able to "interfere", as some call it, in the president's decisions and powers for funding the war. We need a second body to go over the decisions made by the president. His or her decisions about war may cost millions of dollars, and Congress should be there to look over it and decide what is really necessary. They should be able to "override" the president if his plan will do more harm than good to the people of America and the war effort. If Congress uses their "power of the purse", then we can ensure that we are not funding useless war efforts that will get us nowhere. I think that, while the president should have some power to choose what to do in a war situation, they should not be given complete power over these decisions. We need to decide what is best for the people, not just what one person thinks is better. Many Republicans believe that the war needs to be ended and that the President should not have all the power, according to this article: http://moodle.alexandria.k12.mn.us/file.php/3/Dem_v_Rep_Addendum.htm

Issue #2: http://alyciass2.blogspot.com/2010/02/federal-budget-blog-entry-issue-2.html

Issue #3: http://kariscurrenteventsblog.blogspot.com/2010/02/social-insecurity.html

Climber found dead in Mount St. Helens crater

Joseph Bohlig, a man who was climbing on the Mount St. Helen's volcano on Monday and fell into a crater, was found to be dead on Tuesday. Bohlig was standing on a piece of the volcano and it crumbled, which caused him to fall 1,500 ft. down into the volcano. He was posing for a picture on the side of the volcano when he fell in. He was a veteran climber, and Scott Salkovics, another climber with him, witnessed his fall into the volcano. Although there are warnings all around the crater of unstable cornices, the pair decided to venture closer for a picture anyway, which led to the death of Bohlig.

I found this story to be very interesting; you don't often hear of someone falling into a volcano. I don't understand why this man would want to be so close to an open crater in a volcano, though. As stated in the article, there were signs all around the opening/crater of unstable cornices, but these men went right ahead to the very edge of the volcano anyway. Just one small slip, one small misstep, and this man lost his life. We talked about this in my Senior Social I class today, and he was still alive when we talked about it. I was very suprised to hear more about it, and that he had died. I assumed they would find a way to get him out safe, but it was too late. Also stated in the article, thousands of climbers just like Bohlig go to the very edge of the crater each year. There should be more safety precautions if Mount St. Helens if it is going to be a place open to the public. People should not just be able to fall into volcanoes. There should have been, and should be, more safety measures taken for the safety of all those who visit this volcano. This accident could have been so easily avoided.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/02/16/washington.hiker.volcano/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+(RSS%3A+Top+Stories)

Snow-weary region expects second wallop

The mid-Atlantic region has gotten a record amount of snow in the last few weeks. After just recovering from a very large snowstorm, the Washington area had to close down schools and businesses because of another huge snowstorm at the end of the weekend on the seventh of February. The snow has completely covered the streets, making it very dangerous for anyone who is driving in these conditions. The snowfall comes up to the hip in some areas, and the winter blizzard is delaying many flights. Airlines are waiting for the okay to make sure it is safe to fly again. This snowstorm wasn't as large as the one in January, however, when a record 32.4 inches of snow fell.

The storm that happened in the mid-Atlantic region of the country was much like the snowstorm that we got here in Alexandria. Many schools here were closed down and the road conditions are very dangerous because of the huge amounts of snow and ice. I was thinking that once that first storm was over, it would be smooth sailing until spring, but I was wrong. This winter has been very tough in Minnesota. I know that I am definitely sick of this icy, snowy weather and the icy roads that we all have to go through. On days like today, I think that the school closing was completely necessary to our safety. That should always be the first priority; if accidents can be avoided, then they should be avoided at all costs. I hope that we can get through the rest of the winter without another huge snowstorm and get to spring very quickly. I think we've all had enough winter for one year.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/weather/02/08/winter.weather/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+(RSS%3A+Top+Stories)

Powell in favor of repealing 'don't ask, don't tell'

Colin Powell, former secretary of state, believes that the "don't ask, don't tell" law should be repealed. He believes that things have changed in the last 17 years and that it should no longer be a law, but he thinks President Obama should have the last say. They believe that their main focus should be on how to best prepare for the possible repealing of the law. The Human Rights Campaign believes that this is a step in the right direction. They are for equality in all people.

I personally have no problem with this law being repealed. I believe in equality and equal rights for everyone, no matter what their race, religion, or sexual orientation. This shouldn't make any difference if someone wants to join the army and help fight for our country. I think that it is admirable to offer your services to your country. If someone wants to help, let them. Don't discriminate against someone just because they are different from you. The "don't ask, don't tell" law worked fine for a while, but it's old and outdated, in the view of some. I think people are much more accepting of people now, and will be willing to give them those rights that should have been theirs to begin with. I am not sure if this law will actually be repealed. If it stays in place, I would hope that no one is discouraged from helping our country if they want to. But if the law was repealed, I don't think our military would much any different. The only difference would be that there would be no suffering in silence.

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/02/03/powell.gays.military/index.html?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+(RSS%3A+Top+Stories)