HIV/AIDS Can Be Minimized

The HIV/AIDS epidemic is very common around the world, especially in Africa.  It is especially dangerous because it attack’s the body’s immune system, leaving it vulnerable to diseases.  It can be transmitted through the exchange of different kinds of bodily fluids.  Scientists are continuing to search for a cure.  In a news article I saw on Yahoo! recently, I read that a man has been cured of the HIV virus.  It was done by him getting a bone marrow transplant with a person who was immune to the virus - only about 1% of the world’s population has that trait.  However, this is not the solution to the epidemic, but it is a large step - that surgical procedure carries many risks, and it would be impossible to perform in on the millions of people worldwide who are affected by the disease.  Hopefully, that discovery can lead to an eventual discovery of an actual cure to the pandemic.

Nowadays, the having the disease is no longer a “death sentence.”  Years ago, when the disease was first discovered, there was nothing that could be done to stop it, and one infected with it would just eventually die from it.  Now, there are different medications (albeit expensive ones) that minimize the symptoms and extend one’s life who is infected with HIV/AIDS.  Also, much more is known about the disease.  Precautions can be taken to prevent one from getting the disease.  The main reason why it is so prevalent in countries such as Swaziland (which has the highest rate of HIV/AIDS in adults in the world, with about 30% infected) in Africa is because there is little education on the topic.  People do not know about the disease and how to protect themselves from it.  Until a cure and/or vaccine is found, a very important aspect to minimizing the disease would be educated the people of the world about it.

Unfair Immigration Laws in Alabama

Article: http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/06/09/alabama.immigration/index.html?eref=mrss_igoogle_cnn

Alabama has joined a list of states that have put into effect strict, controversial laws regarding illegal immigration.  This law allows police, while stopping people for another reason, to check their immigration status if they simply suspect they may be in the country illegally.  Additionally, anyone seeking to enroll in a school will have to have their citizenship status checked.  Furthermore, it will be illegal to transport or house an illegal immigrant - including for churches - and for businesses to knowingly employ illegal immigrants.  These unfair laws can result in many problems.

If police simply “suspect” one may be an illegal immigrant, they are permitted to check their status.  That can cause problems of racism - they may pull over many people who are not in the country illegally.  For example, many illegal immigrants are from Mexico.  If police encounter a person who is Mexican, they many force them to prove that they are in the country legally.  That is racist and unjust.  Innocent people who are in the country legally may have to suffer from these unfair laws.

Another potential problem is that it is illegal for one to transport or house illegal immigrants.  What if an illegal immigrant was lost, injured, or in danger, and someone was there, capable of helping them.  By helping them, they would be going against the law, and could be penalized for it.  Illegal immigrants are still human beings and that is completely unfair that they may not receive help in situations such as those.  One cannot just simply let on the side of the road and die just because they are an illegal immigrant.  Also, what if a person does not know that they are transporting or housing illegal immigrants - will they be penalized for being innocent?

Although illegal immigration is a problem in the U.S., this law, the law in Arizona, and other similar laws are unconstitutional.  This is not the way to solve the problem of illegal immigration, as it degrades certain populations of people.

Movies in History Class

History class has been especially interesting this marking period, as we have been watching plenty of great movies.  They are not just movies that have nothing to do with what we are learning - each one is directly related to what we have been going over.  Our latest topic we have been learning about is the continent of Africa.  I must say that I have thoroughly enjoyed each of the three movies we watched having to do with Africa (although we did watch small clips of the movie District Nine).

Cry Freedom was the first movie we watched. What was unique about this movie is that it showed, in movie form, much of what we read about in the novel Kaffir Boy in our literature class.  Both stories (each one being true) took place in South Africa under apartheid.  We were able to see the poor ghettos of the blacks, the government genocides on the protests, and the mistreatment and killing of Steve Biko in prison.  Before we started watching this movie and reading Kaffir Boy, I had never heard of apartheid and did not even know of the terrible things that happened in South Africa.

The second movie we watched, Hotel Rwanda, was a great movie as well.  I had never heard or knew anything about Rwanda, so this movie allowed me to learn of the conflict between the Hutus and the Tutsis.  It had a relatively happy ending, which I enjoyed.

Lastly, Invictus was the final movie we watched.  I remember seeing trailers for this movie a while back, and knowing little about it and not being a fan of sports, I dismissed it as just a sports movie.  However, after watching most of this movie, I was surprised about how interesting and factual this movie was.  It taught me much more about what occurred right after Nelson Mandela was elected president of South Africa and apartheid ended.  I look forward to seeing the conclusion on Friday.

Some Japanese Workers Have No Other Choice

Article: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/09/world/asia/09japan.html?_r=1&hp

It’s sad to know that Japan is still affected and will be for many years to come from the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami.  As a result of the disaster and the poor economy, many workers have no choice but to work at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi power plant.  Work at the plant is dangerous and demanding, and workers are often underpaid.  Most of the workers, especially those with more dangerous and taxing jobs, are in informal contract labor.  The bulky suits they must wear must be put on at a staging area about an hour away, and conditions inside the suits are hot and sweaty.  There are high radiation risks, and even at times higher than the government limit.  The average workers are estimated to be paid only under $30,000 a year, in contrast to the $94,000 a year made by the average Tokyo Electric employee.

It’s terrible that conditions are so bad that many workers have no other job choices than this to work in.  Many had to travel far to work in this plant.  Some even had their houses destroyed in the tsunami.  It is unfair that they are in such horrible conditions.  Many employees are poorly trained, and very little monitoring of radiation exposure has been done since the catastrophe.  These poor conditions can possibly lead to health risks, including cancer later in their lives and death due to an accident in the facility.  Many of the older workers say it’s too late in their lives to expect to have another type of job after their current job.  They are stuck with their current job as their only way to make money.

Work should be done to further educate the employees, give them more pay, and make working conditions safer for them - including minimizing and keeping track of radiation exposure.

Is "Kaffir Boy" Worth Reading?

Kaffir Boy is in many ways a great piece of literature.  An autobiography by Mark Marthabane, it effectively shows the harsh realities of growing up as a “Kaffir boy” subjected to a life of misery due to the sinister laws known as apartheid in South Africa.  What makes this novel so effective, aside from the vivid, descriptive text and authentic storytelling, is that Mathabane is able to capture and keep the reader’s interest throughout the novel.  He makes it exciting to read and hard to put down.  By keeping the story interesting and faithful, he is able to deliver to the readers a lucid painting of the cold truths of what really happened to the blacks under apartheid.

Many of today’s American youth have never even heard of apartheid.  This story is a great way to educate them about it.  Being a true story, it paints an accurate depiction of the ghettos black lived in while the whites lived in luxury.  It shows in much detail the violent acts of murder performed by the tsotsis, as well as the vile child prostitution.  Also seen are the merciless police raids and the government crackdowns on innocent protesters.  Mathabane, unique for his vast success at school and playing tennis, comes to learn that although there are many cruel white people treating black people below that of slaves, there are also white people who were friendly and were against apartheid and segregation laws.  He befriends several white people, who help him to become a better, more educated person headed for success and likely to make a difference.  Famous tennis players even choose to sponsor him, and despite his failures, he manages to keep going.  He joins the rebellion against apartheid, along with many other black people.  Mathabane’s story is one that is inspirational, informative, and entertaining all together at once.  One should without a doubt read it.

Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism

I found it interesting to learn about Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism in history class.  Confucianism involves the belief in the importance of an educated, proper, and orderly society.  Taoism involves the belief in the importance of a natural, balanced society.  Lastly, Buddhism involves the belief in the importance of following the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.

Overall, I think Buddhism sounds too difficult for me.  Closely following the Eightfold Path in order to end desire would be too difficult.  To me, the ideal philosophy would be a balanced mix between Confucianism and Taoism.  I like the idea, with Confucianism, of an educated society.  It is important for people to be knowledgeable of the world around them.  It is also good with the idea of respecting relationships.  The young must respect their elders, and vice versa.  Rules and order are also good to have in a society, because it prevents people from attacking or taking away from other people.  However, I also like the ideas of Taoism.  It involves everything in the world being in balance.  Accepting the harmony of the natural world is an important part of Taoism.  Taoism is more about “going with the flow,” following the nature of events as they come.

Confucianism and Taoism are often thought of to be opposites, just like the Yin Yang.  Confucianism is more proper and orderly, while Taioism is more relaxed and in balance with nature.  I think the ideal belief would be a mix of the two.  It would include having an orderly society, but still in harmony with nature.  It would be proper and educated, yet at the same time relaxed and “going with the flow.”  It would also respect the Five Basic Relationships.  The idea of a mix between the two beliefs would also go well with the idea of Yin Yang.

Is More Security Needed For Standardized Testing?

http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2011-04-07-dcschools07_ST_N.htm

In the Washington, D.C. public school system, school board officials are concerned with the possibility that a security seal on text booklets might not be protective enough against tampering with the answer sheets.  However, I think that security on standardized testing is a little too protective.  It is good that they make attempts to prevent cheating with security measures, but sometimes they go a little overboard.  For example, tearing the wrong seal could result in an invalidation of one’s test as well as disciplinary actions.  What if someone did it by accident?  Most people who would happen to tear the seal likely would not be doing it for the intent of cheating, but rather by mistake.  The tests can be somewhat nerve-wracking due to the intense security.  I tend to worry more about accidentally doing something wrong security-wise rather than the content of the tests themselves.

In this case of this story, however, adding an additional seal that can only be broken by the student during testing probably would not be too bad.  It should reduce the amount of tampering, so in that case, it would likely be beneficial.  Reducing the amount of tampering would be more fair for everyone and would also improve the accuracy of statistics.  However, the security should also be altered in that consequences would not be as harsh for people who simply breached the security on accident.  Doing something such as breaking the wrong seal is not too difficult to do, and one should not be strictly disciplined for doing something they did not mean to do.  The ideal changes that could possibly happen would be the addition of additional security measures paired with the reduction of consequences for those who breach security by mistake, allowing the innocent to be able to take tests with less worries.   Hopefully, however, the rate of cheating or tampering will decrease over time, and standardized tests would become more fair for all.