Blog #8 Comment on a colleague’s work #2

I am writing this commentary in response to my classmate’s blog “Our Government” titled the “City of Austin Leads in Nationally Certified Teachers”.

For the seventh straight year, the Austin school district leads the state with more National Board Certified Teachers than any other school district in Texas.

The National Board for Professional Teaching Standards has announced that 21 Austin teachers have earned National Board Certification, bringing to 189 the total number of National Board Certified Teachers in AISD.

Wow, am proud to be an Austin Citizen? Kudos to AISD, for hiring Certified Teachers in our Schools. If all the school districts in Texas would make this a requirement, it would positively impact our student’s academics. Everything is bigger in Texas and our education should not be the exception. I could not agree with you more, the fact that Austin is the Capital of Texas perhaps also has a lot to do with this as well. It is a shame though that more teachers in other Texas towns and cities are lacking on their certification. I have a nephew in a different school district in Sugarland, Texas who is having some academic issues, his parents just found out that the teacher is not certified and feel that this is not helping his situation. All the Students should have an opportunity to excel academically and what better way to do this then by having the knowledge and support from a certified teacher. A big aspect that played an important role in our family relocating to Austin was because I have a son that goes to Middle School and I learn that Austin has outstanding schools and teachers. He will have a better change excelling academically in Austin.

Blog #7 "Arizona immigration law is far from 'reasonable'

In an editorial from Austin American Statesman about the Arizona Senate Bill 1070 the column reads “Despite attempts by Arizona state officials to assure that a tough state immigration law will be fairly enforced, a question Gov. Jan Brewer failed to answer indicates otherwise.

Arizona Senate Bill 1070, which takes effect in 90 days after the state's Legislature adjourns in May, authorizes state and local peace officers to stop people if they have a "reasonable suspicion" — the law doesn't define "reasonable" — that the people are in the country illegally.

"Reasonable suspicion" is a broad standard that legal scholars say invites racial or ethnic profiling, the brunt of which will be directed at Latinos, regardless of their citizenship or immigration status.

The Arizona Senate Bill 1070, is totally unconstitutional! It is unfair for Gov. Jan Brewer to target the Hispanic community. There are White, Black and Brown skin Hispanics. How can anyone be trained to make this distinction. My family is Hispanic, but if you were able to look at them, most of them are light skinned with colored eyes, my brother however, looks the opposite, his skin is really dark and his eyes are black making him look Puerto Rican. So how can a trained Peace officer make this distinction? I really want to know?

With the exception of the Native Americans, everyone else came here from other countries, Ireland, England, Germany and yes even Mexico. This country was founded by immigrants, were they here legally? We all want to prosper and to become successful. This is a free Country. We should have the Freedom to go anywhere without fears. But with this new bill, anyone that resembles someone with dark skin and dark hair will feel uncomfortable and yes, even frighten. I am a U.S Citizen, born in the windy city of Chicago, Illinois from a Mexican Heritage. Personally, I get a bit frightened when I see a cop car, is my normal instinct, I always feel that I have to be even more careful for fear of getting a traffic violation, not that I am doing anything wrong but the uncomfortable feeling is there. I can only image how hard it will be for people in Arizona how are they going to feel if they have dark skin, hair and eyes when they see a peace officer. It will not be a good feeling.

Why are Hispanics the only ones getting target anyways? How does an immigrant look? The Bill 1070 sounds more like a reason to discriminate than anything else. When Gov. Jen Brewer was ask what reasonable criteria could be used to establish suspicion of someone's legal status, she answered: "I don't know. I do not know what an illegal immigrant looks like." Well who does? How can anyone be trained?

In the Editorial President Obama said “The law is misguided, the U.S. attorney general will review the law for potential civil rights abuses”. Thank you President Obama for standing up for what this great country is known for.

Blog #6

In a response to my classmate’s article “Response to Health Care” from her blog “Texas My State" discussing that the Health Care Bills has passed. The bill states that we should “Stand with the people of Texas and not their party…support our liberties; A majority of Americans believe that the Democrats' tactics in passing Obamacare constituted an abuse of power."

As a citizen, I think the “Health Care Bill” will help. We should stand with the people of Texas and not their party. The bill is about all the right reasons to help the people that are in need of Health Insurance. How can we monitor and keep healthy without insurance? Keeping healthy is not just important, it’s a necessity and in particular to single parents like myself who have to provide and care for the health of our children.

Every American should have access to quality, affordable health care coverage. This will not only prevent illnesses from become chronic which will save us, Americans, millions of dollars a year but save countless lives at the same time.

Blog #5 "Time is right for metal detectors at Texas Capitol"

This Editorial was found in the Austin American Statesman is about adding metal detectors at the Texas Capitol. In a 5-1 vote, reason prevailed over Gov. Rick Perry on Tuesday when the State Preservation Board, chaired by the governor, decided it is time to utilize metal detectors and X-ray equipment at the entrances to the Texas Capitol.

I believe that Rick Perry has the right indeed to amend the plan for deletion of this equipment. Just because one person in a million made the decision to act crazy is not reason enough to begin adding metal detectors. If we start adding metal detectors due to this one incident then what will be next. Will we have to start adding metal detectors at food stores, churches, malls etc? There will always be mentally ill people that will want to pull out a gun a perhaps be famous for an instance but I don’t believe that the shooting that happened at the Texas Capitol in January is motive enough to make the other hundreds of thousands of visitors uncomfortable.

I have visited the Capitol with family and friends more than one occasion and so far it has been a pleasant and fun experience my son loves it but I assure you that once they install metal detectors and x-ray equipment I will not have my son be treated as a suspicious individual, I will not go back. I left my Job as a Flight attendant because of all these not only uncomfortable but even awkward moments and in particular for a woman. Yes, indeed we need to protect our people, our building but as Rick Perry commented there are other ways to protect the public without metal detectors and I am all for it.

Blog # 4 "Women, stand up and count"

This article was found on the Austin American Statesman.

This article was written by author Sangita Nayak “Women, stand up and count” was published on March 5, 2010. The author’s purpose is to ask women in the United States to fill out the census form. The intended audience is for all of us who care about the census and particularly for women. The author’s main claim is that it is important for women to fill out the census form so they can be counted fairly.

First, a myriad of federal programs rely on the census to set funding levels. By completing the census forms we will ensure public education, child care and public transportation among other important issues. Second, funding for many programs designed for survivor of domestic violence rest with allocations determined by the count.

The author also claims that women with previous domestic violence are scared of reporting residence information, women in migrant families might also be skeptical about reporting their residence but women should not be scared to fill out the census forms because their address would be confidential and the census will not shared their residence information, it is in fact against the law to share this information. The author states that 9to5, rely on vital services that could go underfunded if women don't fill out their census forms. For women who care about their households, their communities and their nation's public services, taking a few minutes to complete a census form will go a long way toward getting a fairer distribution of resources. Crucial services such as the provision of food stamps and the funding of child care depend on an accurate count. I found the author’s argument persuasive mainly because I have personally experience the fear of filling out the census form by thinking that it was going to affect me at some point. The author is not able to offer many actual facts they are mostly human experience that some of us women have probably been through.

I believe the author was very persuasive to the intended audience, particularly using the strategy of how important it is for women to complete the census form and get fairly counted. The author Sangita Nayak is the lead organizer at 9to5 Milwaukee, she wrote this for Progressive Media Project, a source of liberal commentary on domestic and international issues.

Huffman: Austin is leader in protecting natural resources

The article was written by Author Laura Huffman, she is The State Director of the Nature Conservancy of Texas, which is the organization that maintains more than 35 nature preserves and conservation projects across the State and has worked with numerous partners to protect more than 750, 000 acres. “Austin is a Leader in Protecting Natural Resources” was published in March 11, 2010 from the Austin American Statesman. The intended audience is all of us who care about having good natural resources in the City of Austin for generations to come. The author’s main argument is that we can indeed through collaboration and science develop solutions that preserve the beauty of our community and support a thriving economy at the same time. Conservation of natural resources matters because protecting Texas’ lands and waters means that our grandchildren can experience a real walk in the woods and while the work in Austin is by no means finish, you can appreciate the work that has been done as you drive through the hill country. The author’s claim is that we should celebrate two things that happen in Austin which resulted in safeguarding our own natural treasures and resources. First, Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar visited Austin, Texas to announce the findings of a comprehensive vulnerability assessment of birth species across the United States, and second the Austin City Council, approved the acquisition of a 13-acer tract located near two favorite swimming holes, Twin Falls and Sculpture Falls. I find the authors argument being very persuasive because of the facts mentioned above and also because she has extensive knowledge in the matter. The credibility of the author proves that we are not only on the right path but we are a leading community in Texas and in the United States in protecting our most valuable resources.
Austin is leader in protecting natural resources.

Perry wins GOP nomination

Rick Perry, the incumbent Texas governor of Texas currently serving his second 4-year term, will be the Republican candidate for the gubernatorial election in 2011.

Interestingly, the article states that Perry capitalized on voter's who are in disagreeing with the presidential administration's aid programs.

This article is worth reading because it is important to know how Rick Perry proposes to act towards the Educational Budgets. Perry was elected Governor in 2002 and has run for a second full term in 2006. Perry's overall poll ratings have gone down since the 2002 elections, plagued by budget problems, battles over school financing reform, and a redistricting battle. He has established several priority's for our state, such as strengthening education opportunities increasing access to quality health care, improving transportation, innovating water sources, and improving our border region.

Austin American Statesman article