Police: Father of missing boys lied about relationship with woman

Recap:

This article is about three boys who went missing in Michigan lat Thursday. The father who says dropped them off at a lady named Joann Taylor's house tried to kill himself shortly after he dropped them off. He sent them to Taylor's house because he didn't want his three sons to witness his suicide. His three sons are now missing, and police cannot identify the women as the father says is Joann Taylor, they cannot identify any relationship. The father is now being held in a mental institute and the rest of the family is trying to find these three boys. Skelton who is the father said that Taylor was supposed to take them to Toledo by 3 pm Friday, the boys never arrived and the police cannot come to a conclusion whether or not that his story is true.

Opinion:

This was a very interesting article, I'm not sure to believe if Skelton's story is true. I am shocked that he tried to kill himself even though he had three sons. I feel like that would be enough of a reason to live. This case seems almost kind of creepy in a way, Skelton says he dropped his kids off but no one really knows what happened. There are endless possibilities to what the truth may be.

Prince William and Kate Middleton set date and venue for wedding

Recap:

This article is about Prince William and Kate Middleton. Prince William is the second in line for the throne of England and him and Kate have just recently become engaged. They have chosen a date and a venue for their wedding which will happen next spring at Westminster Abbey. Westminster Abbey was an interesting choice as many family members have had their weddings and funerals their. Queen Elizabeth was married there and Diana had her funeral there. Many people believe that they chose this venue and not St Paul's Cathedral so that they could get away from comparisons to Diana and Prince Charles wedding. The British government is also considering making the day a national holiday to commemorate their marriage forever. Scotland is still unsure about this. The royal family will be paying for the wedding but the government will be paying for all security.

Opinion:

I think that it is great that they are getting married. They have been together a long time and this will be something that will go down in British history. I believe that the royal family should pay for everything involved in the wedding including the security because why should the tax payers have to help pay for something that will be cause by these two people getting married. Also I think that they may be having their wedding at a place different than Diana and Charles to avoid comparisons however they may just want to be different and may want to have their wedding in the same place as Williams grandmother. This was a great article and it told me everything about their wedding.

Palin: 'I am' thinking about 2012 bid

Recap:

This article was about Sarah Palin and her life. A lot of people have been talking about how she may run for the head of her party for the 2012 election. In an interview last week she said she was seriously considering running for president of the United States of America. This decision for her would be a very large one and it depends if her colleagues, family and friends support her. She said she fears for the country and wants to make it a better place and she could do just that if she ran for president. This could be a life changing experience for her. This article also talks about how she teamed up with John Mccain in the last election and that may give her an advantage over other candidates because she is known to the general public.

Opinion:

I think that she will run for president. I think that she may win because of Obamas popularity going down so much over the past couple years.I think that it is very smart of her to consider this decision with her family and not take too much on at once, running for president is an absolute huge commitment and she should consider this with her family before she makes any commitment.

Crippled cruise ship expected in San Diego on Thursday

Recap:

This article was about the carnival cruise ship that broke down early Monday morning. It is now approaching land and the passengers are very excited about this. They have been airlifting food to the passengers on the ship from another ship. They are bringing them simple foods, such as sandwiches, water and granola bars. The ship has been without power since it broke down on Monday.This means no air conditioning, refrigeration or  running water. This has been difficult for the passengers. the cruise line has offered a refund or a free replacement cruise to anyone on board the ship. Many people believe that these people will never want to go on a cruise again. Although this is a disastrous situation for the people on the ship, they say the crew are doing there very best to keep everyone happy and fed.

Opinion:

If I was on this ship than I would be disappointed in my vacation. I'm not sure if I would ever want to go on a cruise again, I feel like it would be difficult to get back on the ship. I think that it is not the end of the world for the passengers. Apparently the crew are working very hard to keep them safe and that is absolutely the most important thing. There trying to make the passengers happy. This is also a huge toll on the cruise line. This would be a huge expense and apparently they have cancelled one more cruise due to go out immediately after this one. That would cause them to lose a lot of profit.

So long 2010, hello 2012

Recap:

This article covered the mid term election yesterday and who may run to be head of the republican party. It discusses who the prime candidates to lead the republican party are, they most likely are Sarah Palin who was the vice presidential candidate in the 2008 election, Mike Huckabee who ran against John Mccain for leader of the party in 2008, others include former governor Mitt Romney, and current governor Haley Barbour. They all have been campaigning for the party over the last few weeks which brings people to suspect that they all may want to run for president in 2012. It also discusses when they will announce if they would like to be head of the Republican party and how soon will they start there campaign. Many people believe that the lesser known people will start their campaign virtually right away while the better known politicians will wait for a while before announcing.

Opinion:

This was an interesting article, I'm surprised at how many people may want to run for the Republicans, I think we will see lots of people announce their campaign for the 2012 presidency. I also think that whoever becomes the candidate for the republican party has a good shot at making it into the white house, because after yesterdays mid-term it shows that the US is ready for change. Whoever leads the democrats may just be the change they need.

Top Democrats stump for candidates as crucial election looms

Recap:

This article was about how the democrats are making a last push so that they can try to hold control of the senate. President Obama is off the campaign trail however many of the top democrats are still out making speeches and trying to convince voters. Those still on the campaign trail are Vice President Joe Biden, First lady Michelle Obama and former president Bill Clinton. Many people believe that the democrats will lose control of the majority of the seats. Others like Dick Durbin believe they will keep their majority. Many people have said that they will vote for anyone but Obama. Obama believes that they will keep their majority, he said at a few rallies that the only way to help working class Americans is to keep the democrats in power. The mid-term election is tomorrow , Tuesday November 2nd. The democrats are at risk of losing seats in both chambers and potentially there house majority.

Opinion:

I think tomorrows election will be fantastic because no one really knows who's going to come out on top. I personally think that the Democrats will lose their majority. I believe this because of polls that people have taken on CNN.com and also because people have openly said that they don't agree with Obamas policies and what he has done in the past two years. One thing is for sure, tomorrow will be very interesting and I'm very excited about it.

Dawe humbled by victory

Recap:

This article discussed the victory of Geoff Dawe over Phyllis Morris for mayor of Aurora last week. IT talks about how Geoff Dawe is excited and nervous to start his term as mayor. He was very surprised but humbled by the margin he won by. The article also discuses Phyllis Moris' disappointment but she says she will still stay active in the community. She was voted into council in 1994 and has been on council or mayor since then. When Geoff Dawe was elected mayor he made sure to congratulate the others who were running. He won by nearly 5000 votes which is shocking but it also shows that Aurora is in need of change.Geoff and the council members will be sworn in in about a months time.

Opinion:

I think that it is amazing that he won by 5000 votes. I read up on most of the candidates and Mayor Dawe had his priorities straight and he knew what he would like to do and I think that is why he won. It would be an exciting day to be voted in and I'm sure many people are proud of Geoff Dawe!

Gov.-Gen. strips convicted murderer Russell Williams of his rank

Recap:

This article discusses how the Governor General earlier this week stripped Russell Williams of his rank. The article talks about how awful the things he did were and how his punishments and consequences were decided. Russell Williams was sentenced to life in prison with no parole for at least 25 years. He was charged for two first degree murders and two sexual assault accusations. He also pleaded guilty to 82 charges of break-ins or attempted break-ins. He would break into houses and steal women's underwear. It also discusses his pay and consequences that will come from this. His pension is one aspect of is life that the Canadian government cannot take away. It is a very interesting article.

Opinion:

This was an interesting story from the get-go. I was not surprised to hear that governor general stripped Russell Williams of his rank because he did some awful things. He pleaded guilty to all charges against him and I thought this was honourable of him because he didn't go to jail because a jury ordered him but because he decided that he had to plead guilty because he had done awful things in his life. He did some awful things and I think every consequence he receives is reasonable.

Six months later, what did we learn from the oil disaster in the Gulf?

Recap:

This article talks about the effects the gulf oil spill had on the United States. What did we learn from it and how will things change in the future because of what is being called one of the largest natural disasters in history. It discusses how the oil spill is an awful thing and everyone wished it hadn't happened but there are some positives that came from the event. 6 months later the US government has put restrictions and changed laws. The government will now conduct surprise oil rig inspections so that people will realize that being safe when drilling oil is the most important. The article also discusses that this could teach people to lower their energy usage. The root of the problem is that people need fossil fuels to live. We need oil and many people as referenced in the article are calling it an addiction. If we didn't use as much energy than we wouldn't need as much oil and this could have prevented the entire oil disaster in the gulf. Many people believe it won't happen again as safety precautions are being taken more and more seriously.

Opinion:

I think that this article was very interesting. I don't think that another oil spill this large will happen near the united states. It's important that the US government monitors safety regulations and obviously that will become their first priority after a spill this large. Another interesting thing is the recommendation that this could lower energy usage. If we didn't use as much energy this whole situation could have been prevented and I thought that was an amazing point because we do use too much. I know I leave the odd light on and I drive somewhere that I could walk and all these things are a waste of energy and after reading this article I think I am going to try to cut down on my energy usage.

Mine about to give ‘birth’ to 33 trapped Chileans

Recap:

This article talks about the 33 miners who are to be rescued tomorrow morning from the collapsed mine in Chile, South America. It discusses how they survived and all the media attention around them. They have kept a log book of what happened to them since August 5th, it's an amazing story and they hope to have their log book published. Also many people believe that with all the media attention surrounding them that it will be turned into a movie. It discusses the different miners and what they contribute to the group. Some have taken on leadership roles(mainly the elder men of the group). Also one has ran several kilometres each day through the hot tunnels so that he can stay in shape. These men are amazing amazing in different ways. It took 17 days to discover that they were still alive. Yesterday the men received training through video about how to handle the media and all they want to know. It's an amazing story and all these men are sure to be famous within a matter of days.

Opinion:

It's unbelievable that these men have survived for so long, they have the will power and the courage to carry on. I think that these men will become famous very quickly, I will be one of the millions of people that would love to read their log book and discover more about what happened to them. I would also love to see a movie about it.These men will become famous just like the men who survived in the Andean plane crash in 1972. The article mentions that these men are still asked to talk at functions all around the world and they gained fame when there was a movie made about them. I'm excited to hear the interviews and everything that surrounds the story as these men emerge from the mine sometime tomorrow.

In a wired world, children unable to escape cyberbullying

Recap:

This article focused on cyber bullying and the affect it has on kids. The article focuses on Jason, he's 13 years old and he is constantly made fun of. Not in person,but online. This hurts him and makes him depressed. He just tries to be himself and is made fun of for that. It also talks about Tyler Clementi who last week killed himself after two other boys filmed him having sex and then posted it on the internet. The average kid spends numerous hours in front of either the computer, his/her cell phone or even there xbox or playstation. They can be bullied on any one of these gadgets. The article also states that cyberbullying causes a deeper level of depression. This is really bad because cyper bullying is becoming more and more frequent each day. This is because kids don't have the nerve to make fun of someone to there face. It talks about a few other children who have been cyber bullied and how it affected them. It changes some peoples lives in numerous ways.

Opinion:

Cyber Bulling is an awful thing and I believe it is much worse than when someone bullies you to your face. Kids can't retaliate because there is no way of defending themselves which makes me think that people who cyber bully are people who act tough but are actually scared of what might happen. It's interesting that cyber-bullying causes a deeper depression, also with this increasing it could cause more depression in kids which would be really sad. I would hate to see one of my friends go into depression because of someone bullying them.

Canadians warned of potential terror threats in Europe

Recap:

This article discusses the terrorist threats that exist all over Europe at the moment. Countries are closely monitoring all security situations across Europe. This includes Canada and the United states who have both put out warnings about these threats to Europe. It is believed that the Al Qaida are behind the attacks with Osama Bin Laden being the head of it all. If this is true, the article states that this would be the largest attack he's been involved with since September 11 2001. The article talks about what people should and how they should be aware of what is going on. It says that tourists and citizens should frequently check warnings and other things like that and also they should be aware of their surroundings at all times.

Opinion:

This was an interesting article that shows that it is important to be aware. I think this article would be useful to anyone who is traveling to Europe within the next couple of weeks. My parents are going to Europe in two weeks so I look at this as a useful article because of that. It gives tips to tourists on how to stay safe and what is really going on and how officials are trying to help with the situation.

Obama, Biden head back to school to reach young voters

Recap:

This article discussed the upcoming mid-term election and what Barack Obama and Joe Biden are doing to convince voters. Both President Obama and Vice President Biden going to be at rallies supporting the Democratic party over the next few weeks. The majority of these rallies are aimed at young people. Obama next week is at University of Wisconsin and Biden is at Penn state University. Obama and Bidens reasoning behind these rallies is that 11 percent of voters in the 2008 election were first time voters and 70% of them voted for Obama. Polls also show that a large part of Obamas supporters are under the age of 30. It also talks about how important this election is although it is only the mid term. It is said that many of the senate seats are expected to be won by the Republican party which would make this a very important election for Obama, Biden and the entire Democratic party!

Opinion:

It's an interesting article as it shows that Barack Obama wants as many votes as he can get. I think it's a great idea to appear at universities as this is where hundreds of thousands of young people can come and see you speak. I don't know everything about the election although from the articles I have read over the past couple of weeks, it seems to me like the republicans don't have a good chance of holding on to open senate seats and governorships. I'm excited to see what will happen in the mid term election as it is only a month and a bit away.

Georgia baby sitter, 11, charged in death

Recap:

The article I read was about a an eleven girl who lives in Georgia. She was babysitting a girl late Saturday night when the two year old girl she was babysitting died. The mother of the two year old victim called 911 from the babysitters home. She was brought to the hospital and when she arrived she was eventually pronounced dead. The eleven year old said that the 2 year old fell out of bad and she just immediately put her back to bed. The autopsy revieled that she had blunt trauma to her head and a few other parts of her body such as her torso and buttocks. Her eyes were wide open when she arrived to the hospital. The eleven year old babysitter is being charged with murder but they are unsure whether or not the case is going to be held in juvenile court.

Opinion:

This was a very interesting article. Astonishing story as you would never expect anything like this to happen. It's something shocking and I surprised that this happen. I'm not sure if the eleven year old actually killed the little girl. I think the case should be held in in juvenile court. It's an interesting case! It's really tragic to see a little girl die like this and I feel bad for the family, it's a terrible story.

Gulf well permanently plugged, U.S. says

Recap:

This article discusses how the BP oil spill has officially ended as of this morning. This past weekend they poured cement to try to stop oil from spurring out and this morning it was announced that it worked. The articles other focus was the cost of the cleanup and the effect it will have in the long run. Fisherman say it could seriously hurt their business, they believe the waters are clean enough to fish but many people are too scared to buy the fish that are from the gulf. Also it discusses how much BP has invested in the clean-up, BP spilled 206 million gallons of oil and it had cost them 9.5 billion as of Saturday and they have promised another 20 million to pay for the costs of the clean up. CEO Bob Dudley believes it will cost them an estimated 32 billion by the time it's all over. Another topic within the article was the government. Many people believe that Obama did not help with oil spill soon enough and therefore ended up making it worse in the long run.

Opinion:

My opinion on the matter is that it's fantastic that its finally plugged. After 5 months of clean up I'm happy to see that all the efforts actually finished with success. I think it's an unbelievable amount of money that BP had to spend on the clean up, if it ends up costing them 32 billion then it's a huge toll on their company and could hurt them a lot. Another thing is the fisherman, I feel bad for them as they had nothing to do for the past five months, certain men said they helped and BP would pay them for it but it's another major toll on their fishing company. I believe BP is doing the right thing by reimbursing people for their troubles and the federal government for their clean up efforts.

More Democrats break with Obama on tax cuts

Recap:

This article discusses whether the Bush era tax-cuts will come to an end or not at the end of 2010. President Obama wants the tax cuts to end. However there is a catch, he only wants to raise taxes for people/families who make over 250 000$ per year. 31 democrats have signed a letter to extend the tax breaks after the conclusion of this year. People who have signed this letter such as Gary Peters believe the tax cuts should continue because raising taxes could hurt the economy at a fragile time like this. Many of them believe in recovery after the recession and believe they shouldn't raise taxes. Obama wants the Bush era tax cuts to end and the republican party disagrees. Now that there is a bill circulating with 31 house democrats supporting the tax cuts to continue, it is looking like the republican party may get there way.

My Opinion:

I truly believe that they shouldn't raise taxes. In one of the other articles I analyzed, it discussed how Obama wanted the tax cuts to end because he said it could cost the USA government up to 700 billion over the n ext decade. I truly believe that taxes should not be raised for anyone. Yes, it is important for people to invest in the economy and that's what the taxes would be doing, however raising taxes for the upper class may do that but I truly believe as I stated in one of my other posts that people should invest in the economy on their own will. Raising taxes would force them to do it. I truly believe that what the 31 house democrats and the republican party is doing the right thing by trying to freeze the tax breaks for another 2 years.

Obama attacks Republicans as mid-term elections approach

Recap:

This article was about how Obama is saying that the Republicans care more about politics then there countries financial state.  He states that the majority of republicans have disagreed with all of his proposals since he has entered office. Also as many people know the Bush era tax cuts come to an end at the end 2010 and this article also talks about how Obama would like these tax cuts to end as they would cost the American government 700 billion over the next decade. The article also discusses John Beohner and how he stated two weeks ago in a press conference in Ohio that Obama was "job killing" president. Obama who was also in Ohio referenced him many times in his speech. Obama believes that they shouldn't cut taxes because the government can't afford to lose 700 billion. Also he believes that the upper class(families who make more 250 000 $ per year) should not have tax breaks because they should be the people investing in the economy.

Opinion:

I think that Obama is right in the fact that the republicans should vote for bills that help the economy and the country and they shouldn't only care about politics. I also truly believe that the tax cuts should stay in place. Yes, the middle and upper class drive the economy but also they work harder. Obama stated a few times in his speech that they didn’t want to end the tax cuts to pick on the upper class but because these people should be investing in the economy. I agree with that but I also think they should only invest on their own will. Ending the tax cuts makes it seem like we're forcing the upper class to invest and I agree with this fact.

Me and Jake discussed what was above and we basically agreed on all of our opinions. We thought this was an interesting article because of the different views from politicians but also because it will be an intriguing debate whether Obama will raise taxes or will he keep the tax breaks. Also it is exciting to see who will win the midterm.

Justice Department 'expects it may sue' BP

Recap:

The article that I read was about how the justice department of the USA may sue BP for additional clean up costs because of the oil spill. They can potentially sue BP under the Oil pollution act and the clean water act. The clean water act could potentially allow the justice department to sue BP for up to 3400$ per barrel spilled in the deepwater horizon spill. It also talked about what the government would want compensation for. The main thing attorneys say they would want compensation for are loss of tax revenue, destruction of natural resources and a few others. BP has already paid the government 390 million to help clean up the oil spill and have promised to put aside 20 billion over several years to compensate what the government will have to do to get things back to normal.

My Opinion:

I believe that BP should have to pay for the cleanup on the gulf coast. The oil spill has affected the water, natural resources and living organisms dramatically.They have promised to put aside a lot of money over the next several years but I understand fully why the justice department would want to sue them for additional clean up costs. Another large factor is tax revenue. They lost a large amount of money due to the loss of the amount of oil in the gulf. I believe that BP should compensate all the money that the government has lost and has to spend on the clean up.