Justin Bieber Found to be a 51 Year Old Pedophile

Hogwarts School of Satan

With the last installment of the Harry Potter series being released in theatres tomorrow I found it fitting to talk a little bit about the series. No other fantasy series has ever been associated with religion quite like Harry Potter. Praised by readers but plagued by devout Christians, the series has had its ups and downs. Many hardcore Catholics believe that the series produces satanic messages and teaches kids that its ok to believe in witchcraft. The irony is that the Harry Potter series has also been heavily backed by the same group. Many Christians also try to find symbolic meaning in the books and believe that the author, J.K Rowling, is writing in allegory to biblical themes. Personally, I don't think the series has any religous context at all. The books are all fiction and made for kids to enjoy. People read too much into them and they are for entertainment only.

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2010/11/harry-potter-and-religion.html?mbid=social_twitter

Stuck in the Middle

Although Obama has been widely criticized by both political parties about not enacting enough change or enacting too much change, he still is doing exactly what he said he would. In both of Obama's books "Dreams From My Father" and "The Audacity of Hope" Obama talks about how democrats are too quick to back failing government programs and how Republican's are too individualistic. He also criticizes the politicaly tense atmosphere in the United States. Since running for office Obama has preached slow incremental reform from legislation, and that nothing happens over night. The American people are asking too much of a president that came into office with the debt as high as it was and the system of legislation as chaotic as it was. Obama will be able to get America back on its feet as long as we give him time.

http://www.newsweek.com/2010/11/17/obama-is-doing-just-what-he-said-he-would-do.html

Comedian David Cross's take on Conservatives

Airport Attitude Adjustment

American airports were criticized by European officials today because of over security. The chairman of British Airways, Martin Broughton, remarked that the U.S procedures of taking off your shoes and taking laptops out of their bags. Executives also complained about the long screening times and drawn out process of getting in and out of the airport.

This seems like a reasonable argument, but we had a bomber try and fail on Christmas day just last year. I know that waiting in the airport can be ridiculously long sometimes, but thats mostly because of precautions taken after the bombing of 9/11. That was one of the worst events ever to happen in American history. If we were to go back on all of the precautions implemented after the attack we might leave ourselves prone to another. Now we are looking to implant full body scanners at airports to really crackdown. I believe its our duty to comply with airport regulations even if they are a hassle, for our safety and general welfare.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/28/business/global/28air.html?_r=1&hp

Slow and Steady Wins the Race

Obama recently went on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart for the first time since he became president almost 2 years ago. He remarked that “When we promised during the campaign change you can believe in, it wasn’t change you can believe in in 18 months. It was change you can believe in but were going to have to work for it.” Obama recently set into motion his healthcare bill, and has started regulations on automobile emissions to help out the environment. I think that Obama has been getting a lot of bad rap lately for not doing enough. But change never happens over night, and it will take years before we get our nation back on its feet. This program was a good reminder for Americans that our nation is in good hands and that we did the right thing by voting Barack Obama into office.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/27/obama-jon-stewart-and-change/?hp

Is Prop 19 Going Too Far?

With the November elections coming closer and closer Prop 19 has become one of the hottest issues on the California ballot. We know that, if passed, Prop 19 would bring our state billions of dollars a year and essentially bring us out of a recession. But is it really the right move? Not even Amsterdam has Marijuana laws this lenient. If passed, California would be the only nation/state in the world to legalize the sale, and smoking of marijuana from production to consumption. This article raises some interesting questions. Although it sounds like a great idea to pass Prop 19, everything might not go as planned. Marijuana also would impede many Californians driving and could lead to more accidents.

http://www.newsweek.com/photo/2010/10/25/countries-that-come-close-to-california-s-marijuana-legalizing-dreams.html