Fact Or Belief

There is controversy about if and how evolution should be taught in public school. Evolution should most definitely be taught because it is scientific theory. Scientific theory remains true until it is disproven. It is therefore fact. Whether it is eventually proven true or not, scientific theory provides a base for any standpoint. In other words, one must be exposed to all research, failed and successful, in order to eventually allow the theory to be proven or disproven by someone. Along the way, textbooks definitely will be revised as different aspects of a theory are thrown out and/or added. The weakness in the theory of evolution is caused by a lack of evidence, which is understandable seeing how evidence about life decomposes and artifacts are destroyed over time. The opposing theory of intelligent design assumes that there is an existence of an omnipotent creator, which cannot be proven either true or false. This theory should not be taught as scientific theory. However, it is appropriate to discuss a belief in creationism during one’s exploration of evolution. With broad and open discussion of all current facts and beliefs, one can make an individual choice about what to believe. I do not believe in the existence of a g-d, and before I enrolled in anthropology I had a strong belief in the theory of evolution. However, since I have become more knowledgeable about the subject, my beliefs have changed to about fifty-fifty creationism vs. evolution.

Can You Multitask?

A city ordinance should be enacted banning the use of cell phones while driving. Most people are involved in a car accident during their time as a driver, but one's chances of causing an accident increase by almost 100% when a cell phone is involved. I am tired of having to swerve, dodge and/ or slam on my brakes because some idiot on his/her cell phone can not talk and drive at the same time. When a person is talks he/she is focused on internal thought processes. This can be dangerous if the person is not paying full attention to other people who are sharing the road. In the past month I have almost been killed by a person running a stop sign and also by someone who could not stay in his/her lane of travel, both of them were talking on their cell phones.

The people who text message while driving are worse drivers than drunks. The punishment for those causing accidents while using their cell phones should be the same punishment given to those who have caused an accident while intoxicated; in both situations the person knows before hand the risk involved in not paying close attention to the road.

An alternative to banning the use of cell phones while driving is to enact an ordinance that would demand a hands-free way of communicating while driving. This might prevent some people from talking or text messaging their way into another driver. I know some cities have introduced such ordinances. Although I am not sure how well these hands-free devises work in preventing car wrecks.

A Harmless Drug

Marijuana users have been convicted of victimless crimes and have been incarcerated for using a harmless drug. I don’t see why marijuana is illegal in Texas. It is certainly less harmful to society than tobacco and alcohol. The two highest drug related fatality rates are caused by those who use alcohol or tobacco, which are currently legal drugs for most of the population. Nicotine is one of the most addicting drugs known to mankind. It is also one of the most widely used recreational drugs. It is the primary cause of lung cancer and contributes to a number of other serious health conditions including heart disease. Second hand smoke from tobacco is also toxic. Tobacco is so dangerous that it can kill people who do not even smoke. Marijuana is a much less harmful drug. It is outrageous to see tobacco smokers killing themselves and others while a perfectly reasonable alternative as a social drug is illegal. I believe that tobacco smokers would switch to marijuana if it were socially acceptable, or legal in other words. Alcohol can be dangerous because it causes people to become foolish, distracted, and violent at times. Drunk drivers kill thousands of people a year on the road. Almost any drug can be safely used with moderation, which is the way alcohol is supposed to used. But, how many people do you know who only have one or two drinks? Probably not very many. When was the last time you heard about a marijuana user killing someone on the road? I have seen my fair share of violent alcohol abusers. On the other hand, I have not seen many violent marijuana users. Marijuana is a social drug which is much safer than tobacco or alcohol. I do not see how these drugs can be legal, while marijuana users are going to jail and being fined left and right. Lives have been ruined by the felon title given to marijuana users by the courts for a victimless crime. I say legalize marijuana. Legalizing marijuana would stop a huge amount of illegal smuggling into our country. The nation and state would be a much safer place if smugglers and drug dealers were cut out of the picture and the government regulated the usage of marijuana. Does use of marijuana make a person stupid or lazy, a traditional criticism against users of marijuana? The answer is: marijuana doesn’t make a person stupid or lazy. If one is stupid and lazy before one smokes, one will be stupid and lazy after one smokes. Finally, a marijuana plant can be used to make textiles, medicines, oils, and nutritional supplements. There are many industrial applications in which the plant can be used. There is an explosive potential for it in our market. For all of these reasons, I would hope to see marijuana legalized for social use in Texas.

Enhanced Learning in Public Schools

We need our citizens to be as knowledgeable as possible. Public schools are not what they should be. They seem more like daycare than school. I think we should set new goals to give our public school students the best education our economy can afford. Skilled teachers are needed to make a leap to achieve a better educated society, and higher compensation is a perfect incentive to attract and keep more teachers. Texas independent school districts should increase school funding and increase salaries for teachers and school administration. With higher salaries the level of teacher quality should be raised. We should not allow someone who barely knows a subject to teach it. Is a high school gym coach qualified to teach subjects such as economics or government? Is someone right out of college fit to teach a class full of students single handedly? Paying experienced and skilled teachers to stay on the job will correct these mismatches that we have all seen. Along with a salary increase, better benefits should be given to public school teachers. Existing free public school education should be enhanced. Today one can rarely get a decent job with just a high school diploma. A public school system geared to the needs of the 21st century in a disciplined way would set a new bar for the jobs one could get with a high school diploma. Finally, higher education should be free for all who wish to participate. As it is now, a higher education cannot be afforded by all. Graduates of enhanced public school education would be prepared to handle the transition to college and should be provided the opportunity. Resources are needed to create the learning environment described here. Implementing these ideas would cause higher taxes but it would be money well spent. The smarter our people, the better we can all serve our society, and having schools highly educating students would balance out the dent in the state budget over all. It is one of the most important investments Texans can make.

The Twisted Truth

Steven Kreytak’s commentary on the court case in which state officials, associates of Tom Delay, are accused of illegally laundering money involves the larger issue that Republican justices in the Austin-based 3rd Court of Appeals are putting politics above law. Two Democrat and three Republican justices preside over this court, and biased actions by the Republicans have instigated infighting among the judges. The Republicans view prosecution of their fellow Republicans for laundering corporate money for use in state campaigns as political harassment. They have been tying up the prosecutions for over two years. The district attorney and Justice Jan Patterson (Democrat) wanted Justice Alan Waldrop (Republican) to step aside, due to bias. Chief Justice Ken Law (Republican) refused. Justice Patterson tried to file a dissent. The news article discusses how Justice Patterson asked the Texas Supreme Court to intervene after Chief Justice Law stopped a county clerk from filing her dissent. The action taken by Law shows his bias as well as his intent to save the public face of his fellow Republicans. Steven Kreytak’s commentary simply states that Law denied any wrongdoing, and it quotes Law directly. Readers can plainly see that, when asked to respond to the Supreme Court, Law came up with the story that he did not seek to stop Patterson from filing a dissent, he only wanted her to use the court’s internal procedures by circulating her opinion first among the justices. Kreytak’s commentary is very effective because his use of direct quotes credibly demonstrates that Law has twisted the truth. The audience consists of voters, and Law is up for re-election. The facts speak for themselves, and Law is not fit to continue as Chief Justice.

Change Is Good

Police Chief Art Acevedo of Austin is now enforcing excessive force policies which many officers were violating with little or no consequences. Loopholes and exploitation have allowed officers to remain on the force after violating not only policy but the people whom they assault. I agree with the author of this article. It is about time that someone takes action to put an end to use of excessive force by the city police department. A group of officers can subdue a single 18 year old without the use of a taser gun or a 60 year old woman without shooting a flash bang, two situations which I personally know about. There must be a problem with a city administration that allows public employees like this to abuse power and let them keep their jobs. The article says that allegations were made against former police chiefs who may have played favorites, giving less punishment to officers they knew and more punishment to those they did not know, who committed the same violation. A change to raise the standard for officers is needed. Violating officers should not be allowed to remain on the force. Hopefully, Acevedo’s plan to clearly spell out the consequences of violation will help correct the problem. Also, consistent punishment for violators is a good idea so that abusive officers are not allowed to slip through the cracks. The author’s example of Gary Griffin is good because it states that not only did this misconduct cause pain and misfortune for Joseph Cruz, but it also cost the city of Austin a $55,000 settlement. His audience, the local Austin community can plainly see that, in more ways than one, we cannot afford for these abuses to continue.

Huricane Victims Can Not Help Themselves

I don't think our state officials are working together to take care of the problems caused by Hurricane Ike which some of our citizens find all too real. Some of our senators and other state officials are only thinking of the area of Texas in which they live. We have people in our state who are without homes and electricity, and some of these officials are proceeding with business as usual. For example, Representative René Oliverira has continued holding fundraisers. According to Oliverira’s spokesman, J.J. Garza, “Our area of the state is a good deal away from what's going on." The problem here is that we need all of our officials to be working on what to do after the disaster, not just during. Officials who are out running their campaigns could be out raising money to make a difference in the lives of the needy. Not all state officials are as inconsiderate as Oliverira. According to Mark Miner, Rick Perry's communications director, "it's not appropriate, as people are displaced, to be raising political dollars." I think these articles are worth reading because I don’t believe that many of our officials are doing a good enough job of staying on top of current issues. To have an impact on the enormous issues hurricane victims currently face, all of our officials need to be working together. I would like a better and faster outcome for those displaced by Ike than what occurred for Katrina victims, who have never fully recovered from the catastrophe in 2005. Thousands of Texans are in need of serious help, and our officials need to be out there aiding these people even though their area of the state is not badly affected.