http://s276.photobucket.com/user/feministing/media/burningkronor.jpg.html
A Swedish feminists group burns 100,000 kronor or the equivalent to 13,000 U.S Dollars, in protest of the Wage Gap between men and women, the group claims that the money represents how much each female worker misses out on every minute due to the gender wage gap
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=14f_1279854373
In the video, it shows the beheading of a member of a rival cartel (The video is very explicit).
Purpose: The cartel made this video in order to scare everyone. They wanted to demonstrate that they (the cartel) are very serious about getting what they want. In addition, they wanted to show that they are heartless. The cartels will kill anyone for control.
Value: The video tells me many things about my overall conflict, such as the affect that the cartels have on people and what they are willing to do in order to be in control. I can’t learn much about the video, but the circumstances are horrible.
When researching for my conflict, the Scottish Independence debate, I found a picture of a rally of a group of people who looked like they were at some sort of assembly, with Alex Salmond leading the speech. Alex Salmond is Scotland’s first minister, and the people at the event were wearing shirts that represented the Scottish flag, as well as waving Scottish flags. This leads me to believe that the speech was about gaining independence and what needs to be done to gain independence. I think that this picture shows that there are a lot of people in Scotland that want their independence and shows that they are very open about their opinion. Most likely the person that took the picture from the angle that he did was trying to send a message to England that the Scottish knew what they wanted and were determined to get it. This picture helps me with my understanding of the conflict because it shows just how empathetic the Scots were towards their goal.
You can view the picture and the article related at:
http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2013/sep/21/alex-salmond-scotland-independence
Stephanie Ratzlaff
10-2-13
Intro Redo
Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was an unconstitutional act that related social and economic issues for same-sex couples. DOMA was a federal law that was put in place on September 21st, 1996, which gave states the ability to refuse to recognize same sex marriage that was granted with in states that allowed same-sex couples to marry. (Government, 1996) DOMA was overturned June 26th, 2013 and was determined to be unconditional. (Matthews, 2013) The overturning of DOMA has opened so many doors for married same-sex couples. The case of United States v. Windsor was a turning point that helped to start this process.
In United States v. Windsor, Edith Windsor married her partner Thea Spyer in 2007 in Canada and lived in New York City where same-sex marriage was recognized. Spyer died in 2009. Spyer left her estate to Windsor. Before DOMA was overturned the federal government did not recognize same-sex marriage and because of this Windsor was denied a federal estate tax exemption for a surviving spouse. Windsor had to pay $363,053 in estate taxes. Windsor appealed for a refund and was still rejected by the IRS. Following this Windsor brought a refund suit against the United States Supreme Count arguing that DOMA was unconstitutional due to the equal protection clause which stated that her Fifth Amendment rights were being violated. Windsor has suffered economically do to DOMA. The District Count and the Count of Appeals had ruled in her favor and ordered the United States to refund her the $363,053 but the United States still has not refunded her. (Winsdor, 2013)
This country was founded on certain unalienable rights, among them being the rights of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. Yet, two hundred plus years after the birth of our nation, our government is now trying to trample on those by trying to restrict who can marry. There is just not an economic downfall because of this there is also a social aspect. The rights of homosexuals compared to the rights of heterosexuals. The government taking a stance on the right of marriage and being in favor of same-sex couples marriage as they are with opposite sex couples marriage would not only be fair but would help bring the nation to a whole; instead the way it stands today the nation is being divided into homosexuals and heterosexuals. This sounds all to familiar from nearly 65 years ago when the government did the same thing and denied whites and blacks to marry. The civil rights movement was such a necessary happening as is the gay rights movement is. If the United States as a whole can overcome racism in the civil rights movement and see that it is perfectly acceptable for interracial marriage; then the United States can do the same and accept marriage of same-sex couples. Therefore letting the American peoples live the life our forefathers stated in The Declaration of Independence “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Both articles discuss the conflict of Monsanto’s GMO products and organic farmers all around the world. The first article titled “Monsanto says sabotage may be behind GMO wheat in Oregon as more farmers file suit” , discusses how Oregon farmers complained after receiving contaminated seeds from Monsanto. Monsanto claims to have tested their wheat on fields all around the world, however they have several lawsuits from other U.S farmers because of pesticide resistant wheat. The second article titled “U.S House Votes To Extend ‘Monsanto Rider’ on GM Crops” discussed how the House of representatives voted on letting farmers continue to grow genetically modified food until court cases are settled. This decision created conflict between groups against GMO products and the one for it. Both of these articles show the conflict from each side. Although Monsanto is being proven to be contaminated with pesticides and other unhealthy things, the government still agrees to selling it for the financial benefits.
Sources:
Knowles, D.(2013, September 30). Monsanto says sabotage may be behind GMO wheat in Oregon as more farmers file suit. New York Daily News. From http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/monsanto-sabotage-behind-oregon-gmo-wheat-article-1.1365598.
Reuters. (2013, September 30). U.S House Votes To Extend ‘Monsanto Rider’ on GM Crops. Chicago Tribune News. From http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-09-20/news/sns-rt-usa-agriculturegmo-20130920_1_gm-crops-rider-u-s-house.
Many people believe that the United States is the best place to raise a healthy child in the world due to the country’s wealth and good education systems. However what many people don’t relies is that it could be better if the government put in place more policies to help support working mothers. For example “Finland was ranked #1 place to be a mom by State of the World Mothers in 2013”. This is because of their government services, generous work policies, and better child and maternal care. Before the baby is born mothers in Finland receive baby boxes from the government that contain all the necessary equipment for a newborn baby. Mothers in Finland also receive mandatory maternity leave of three months and an additional 6 month of paid leave after the baby is born. However, State of the World Mothers ranked the United States was ranked #30.This is because of poor child and maternal care and lack of government help. In the United States receiving paid maternity leave and is not mandatory. In the United States Good prenatal care depends on their type of insurance, amount of income and what hospital they are in. While battle in congress to pass an act that would give more mothers the opportunity to spend more time nurturing their baby while still receiving living wages is still in action, many women and children aren’t receiving the proper care they need to keep them healthy and happy. These issues are leading many U.S. citizens to petition the government for mandatory maternity leave and more resources for mothers from the government.
Khazan, O. (2013, July 11). The Secret to Finlands Succes. The Atlantic. Retrieved September 13, 2013, from http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2013/07/the-secret-to-finlands-success-with-schools-moms-kids-and-everything/277699/
Subramanian, C. (2013, May 10). 10 Best Countries for Moms | TIME.com. NewsFeed | Breaking news and updates from Time.com. News pictures, video, Twitter trends. | TIME.com. Retrieved September 13, 2013, from http://newsfeed.time.com/2013/05/10/10-best-countries-for-moms/
Many of the news articles I’ve read on my conflict, has pretty much been the same. But these two articles tell of one of the biggest strikes to occur in years. The strike began in NYC where there was very angry fast food employees demanding for better pay to accommodate the continuously rising cost of living. The strike spread all the way to the once before pro Jim Crow, low wage pay, South.
NBC news talks about the strike being huge in 50 U.S. cities. Workers demanded $15/hr, while restaurant owners defending the wage saying it’s appropriate and reasonable. The article says that a lot of the minimum wage jobs go to adults that are supporting their families, rather than teenagers. “Only 16 percent of fast food industry jobs now go to teens, down from 25 percent a decade ago. More than 42 percent of restaurant and fast-food employees over the age of 25 have at least some college education, including 753,000 with a bachelor’s degree or higher, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.” In defense, the National Restaurant Association says that only 5% of workers earn minimum wage. McDonald’s defending them by stating, “McDonald’s aims to offer competitive pay and benefits to our employees. We provide training and professional development for all of those who wish to take advantage of those opportunities” Michael Saltsman, EPI’s researcher director, says that raising wages will mean raising prices, eventually losing customers and possibly having to automate the jobs, which men less entry level jobs.
NY daily news article was very similar. It also agrees that Thursday’s strike was one of the biggest nationwide, usually strikes occur in one city. An employee tells of both she and her husband struggling to make ends meet, the recently could afford to buy a kitchen table, they used to eat on the floor. Another employee Simon says, “We don’t think it’s too much to ask, we’re still going to struggle on $15 an hour.” McDonald’s states that, “the raises “would potentially have a negative impact on employment and business growth in our restaurants, as well as value for our customers.” The article ending stating that minimum wage was last raised in 2009, and that President Obama hopes to raise it to $9.
Both articles simply just state the opinions and views of both sides. The question that’s still in the air, is if $15/hr is too much to ask for?
Links:
Sandoval, E., Paddock, B., & Mcshane, L. (2013). Fast-food workers strike to protest low wages at McDonald’s, Taco Bell, other chains. NY Daily News. Retrieved from http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/fast-food-walkout-workers-u-s-protest-wages-article-1.1440232
Cox, J. (2013). Fast food strike go super-sized in clash over wages. NBC News. Retrieved from http://www.nbcnews.com/business/fast-food-strikes-hit-cities-across-country-8C11028643
The articles that I chose to discuss are called Syria chemical attack: What we know now from BBC news and Syria believed to be moving “some” chemical weapons” from CNN. Both articles discuss topic of the chemical weapons in Syria. Both articles also use video clips along with their stories. The BBC news videos are clips of what they believe were the effects of the weapons on the population. Syrian civilians sent in these clips. The BBC mentions that they are not one hundred percent sure whether the videos are real or fabricated. The CNN video involve a very small clip of Syria but is mostly set in the United States. It involves live footage of US government discussion about this issue and future plan of action. This article was before the actual chemical attacks. Both articles believe that Assad’s regime is behind all the chemical weaponry activity but both are not positive of this or of its intention. The reported CNN article speaks more specifically of US action and how these new findings of chemical weapons effect or could affect the US. Both articles never directly or specifically mention sources other than video received by civilians. They both use the phrase, “sources say”. Both articles serve as news because they involve immediacy. These articles discuss very current news in Syria, which involves chemical weapons.
Work Cited
Kendall,B. (2013, September 24). Syria chemical attack: what we know now. BBC News Middle. Retrieved from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-23927399
Starr, B. (2012,July 13). Syria believed to be moving “some” chemical weapons”. CNN News. Retrieved from: http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2012/07/13/syria-believed-to-be-moving-some-chemical-weapons/?iref=allsearch
On 6 July 2013, Chinese military police fired upon a crowd of Tibetans, while they tried to celebrate the birthday of the Dalai Lama, their exiled spiritual leader, and injured six Tibetans, as describe in the articles “Reports say six Tibetans hurt in shooting incident” and “China tightens the screw after shooting Tibetan worshippers in Tawu”. Nevertheless, while they are about the same story they do so in different ways. The first article takes a more neutral standpoint in the incident as explains the situation at hand while not being influenced by bias, the same however, cannot be said about the second. The second takes more pro Tibet standpoint, condemns the action of the Chinese, and considers it a “crackdown” on Tibetans. This is because the second article comes from the website that promotes the Tibetan quest for autonomy. The first article comes from a Chinese newspaper that is not owned by the government and as such is a free newspaper that is not influence by the Chinese government to run stories that are against them. These articles show a great deal of importance because they both describe how the Tibetan quest for autonomy, a conflict that has raging for decades, still affects the lives of people today in the most serious of ways.
References:
China tightens the screw after shooting Tibetan worshippers in Tawu (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.tchrd.org/2013/08/china-tightens-the-screw-after-shooting-tibetan-worshippers-in-tawu/
Associated Press in Beijing ( 2013, July 2013). Reports say six Tibetans hurt in shooting incident. South China Morning Daily. From http://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/1278142/reports-say-six-tibetans-hurt-shooting-incident
I critiqued the new york times and fox news about the Dream Act. In the new york times post it discusses the story of one person which was Angie Escobar. In the new york times it relates back to Angie’s life and reflects on how she wants better for her family. In the article Angie states “I could relate to him, to have the desire to go far in a career but not being able to even begin”. (Escobar, Angie). This shows how the new york times really wanted to link into someones life who was actually effected by the Dream Act. While in the fox news article it explains how there is some flaws in the Dream Act and how the information they are putting out there is not accurate. In the fox news article they state ” But the descriptions of the DREAM Act voiced by President Obama and his cohorts are not accurate. And the consequences are never told.” (Smith, Lamar). This quotes express how he wanted to show the outcomes of The Dream Act. While in the new york times they wanted to give a real life situation. The two articles are completely different because the new york times speaks highly and is for the Dream Act, while the fox news article was more against it and talked about its flaws. The times use an actual person for its source, while the fox news uses information from the act itself. This information is news because its discussing a matter that was very controversial and important to the people at the time.
APA citation
Otis, J. (2012, November 25). Following Her Dream, And Hoping For The Dream Act. The New York Times, p. A24. From http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/26/nyregion/pursuing-dream-of-us-citizenship-colombia-native-applies-to-stay.html?_r=0
Smith,L. (2012, March 20). The truth about The DREAM Act. Fox News, p. B6. From http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2012/03/20/truth-about-dream-act/
Information Literacy: Conflicts 
