Top 10 Things You're Greatful For This Holiday Season

List the TOP 10 things you are personally greatful for this holiday season.
Happy New Year :)

Automobile Cell Phone Ban

Read the following article and write a thoughtful response.

How plausible is this new proposed legislation? Apparently, accidentents due to distracted drivers is becoming more of an epidemic than DUI/DWI accidents. How willing would you be to adhere to this law? Explain the pros and cons involved.

http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/13/us/ntsb-cell-phone-ban/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

Oh, Holiday Tree! Oh, Christmas Tree!

Read the following article about the latest controversy regarding the holiday season.
Write a thoughtful response below.

http://www.wpri.com/dpp/news/local_news/providence/providence-tree-feud-to-be-brought-to-light?hpt=us_bn4

Happy Holidays

More and more we hear greetings this time of year expressed as "Happy Holidays" rather than "Merry Christmas." Because of that, we hear more and more dissatisfaction in private conversation over the use of this politically correct, generic greeting.

Are we becoming too polically correct in today's society?

Read the following article and write a thoughtful response.
http://theintermountain.com/page/content.detail/id/539318/Can-we-be-politically-correct-an---.html

Black Friday

Please read and reflect on the following piece about the possible boycott on Black Friday. Explain the recent backlash to this issue and your thoughts on this controversy.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2011/11/black-friday-employees-push-back/1

Pizza is a Vegetable???

According to Congress, pizza will now be classified as a vegetable.
Read the following ( 2 ) articles about school lunch politics at work. With childhood obesity rates soaring, are we taking a step backward in response to pressure from groups who see it in their interest to serve junk food in our schools?
Please offer a detailed response to this issue.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/16/pizza-vegetable-school-lunches-lobbyists_n_1098029.html

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2011/11/veggie-politics-how-budget-cuts-can-make-pizza-a-vegetable/

Penn State Scandal

Read the following editorial regarding the Penn State Child Sex Abuse Scandal. Reflect on the author's rhetoric and offer your views on this case. How persuasive is her argument?

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/08/opinion/jones-penn-state/index.html?hpt=hp_c1

Child Abuse

Read the following article/watch the video about a Texas judge who was videotaped beating his 16 year old daughter. This was recently released years after the abuse by his own daughter. The judge claims he was within his rights as a parent to discipline his child in such a manner. Should this have any bearing on his judicial career on the bench or is this simply a private family matter?

http://www.cnn.com/2011/11/02/justice/texas-video-beating/?eref=rss_topstories&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+rss%2Fcnn_topstories+%28RSS%3A+Top+Stories%29

Greed

Our country is feeling the aftermath of the 2008 Economic Crisis. Several weeks ago, a movement popped up in downtown New York City and has since moved to numerous cities around the country. People are protesting the outcome of greed among financial institutions and the lack of regulations, which have created a tsunami effect on our current economy.

Please copy and paste the following links and read the articles/watch video footage of the Occupy Wall Street Movement sweeping this country.


http://piersmorgan.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/26/michael-moore-of-wall-street-protests-its-going-to-spread-across-the-country/?hpt=pm_t5


http://www.cnn.com/2011/10/28/us/occupy-wall-street/index.html?iref=allsearch

The Power of Words

In today's society, many people often speak without thinking about how their words can affect others. Explain whether or not using religious, gay, or racial slurs is ever acceptable. How do we determine if using these words crosses the line and becomes offensive? Why are there so many people who still believe their freedom of speech is more important than being sensitive to others in terms of their ethnicity, race, religion, or sexuality?

Generation Me

Your generation has been often been called "Generation Me." Does your generation have a sense of material entitlement? Read the following article from Newsweek and reflect on the author's discussion of narcissism. Do you agree/disagree? Explain why. Please offer a detailed response.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/194640

To Friend or Not To Friend

How has technology (ie. tweeting, facebook, texting, etc.) changed our personal connections with others? for the better? for the worse?
Read the following article and write a thoughtful response.

http://www.parentdish.com/2010/11/12/tweets-texts-and-facebook-cost-young-people-true-friendships-s/?icid=main%7Chtmlws-main-w%7Cdl5%7Csec3_lnk3%7C183899

To Cheat or Not to Cheat.....that is the question!

Copy and paste the following link.
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/28/7-arrested-in-alleged-sat-cheating-scam/?iref=allsearchPlease read the following article and write a detailed response.

Please read the following article and write a thoughtful response.
Is cheating ever justifiable? Do the ends justify the means?

Money Changes Everything

When every dollar counts, parents are having to say no…when all they've ever said is yes. Has your outlook/habits with regards to money changed in this country's economic decline?
In this troubling economic time, is it important for parents to discuss their finances with their children? Should children know how much money their parents make?
How has the recent decline in the economy affected your outlook on your future?
job prospects?

Social Networking Dangers

Do colleges have the right to look at the social-networking sites of applicants? Why or why not? How careful are you about what you post on Facebook, Myspace or Twitter?

See Wall Street Journal Article below
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122170459104151023.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

9/11

Copy and paste the link below, and watch the following CNN video regarding 9/11.

Since this year is the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, I would like you to take a minute to reflect on your own experiences with this tragic event in U.S. history. How were you or others you know affected? Where were you and what do you remember most about the circumstances following the attacks?

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/us/2011/08/02/griffin.footnotes.9.11.cnn

To Drug Test or Not To Drug Test?

Is it a violation of one's civil rights to randomly drug test students? Has New Jersey gone too far by allowing random drug testing at the Middle school level? Is this the wave of the future? Can this be an effective preventative measure to stop drug use among young teens?

Copy and paste the link below and write a thoughtful response.
http://www.parentdish.com/2011/01/13/new-jersey-school-district-to-drug-test-middle-schoolers/?icid=main%7Chtmlws-main-n%7Cdl5%7Csec3_lnk1%7C195211

Gun Violence

Copy and paste link below and write a thoughtful response.
http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/01/13/arizona.shooting.loughner.university/index.html?hpt=T1

In the wake of the recent Arizona shooting, are gun control laws strict enough? Can incidences like these be prevented (ie. stricter gun laws, warning signs missed by others, parental intervention, etc.)? Should the gunman face life without the chance of parole or the death penalty for his part in the multiple murder rampage?

Armageddon

Read the ( 3 ) stories below and offer a thoughtful reflection.

Recently, numerous "signs" have been appearing in the US and abroad that seem to point to Armageddon/the end of the world. Can these events be explained, or should we look closer at these "signs" as a warning of things to come? Should we heed the predictions of Nostradamus's 2012 and The Bible's- Revelations Seven Signs of Armageddon? Or has Hollywood exploited these predictions and fueled our fears?

http://ac360.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/03/falling-birds-likely-died-from-massive-trauma/?iref=obinsite

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/03/what-made-thousands-of-birds-fall-from-the-sky/?iref=obnetwork

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/01/02/arkansas.fish.kill/index.html?iref=allsearch