Iran opens Nuclear Power Plan in March 2010

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8472771.stm

Iran had a contract with the state of Russia to have a nuclear power plan built in the 1990's, it has been delayed but reports show that Iran will have their first nuclear power plant running by March 21st 2010. Russia's state nuclear corporation's chief, Sergei Kiriyenko said, "There is absolutely no doubt that it will be built this year. Everything is going according to schedule." Russia is controlling the use of the uranium; so there won't be any extra for a weapons program.


Personally I think nuclear power plants are great for making energy and states have rights to have them but Iran needs to be watched so they do not use uranium for a weapons of developing anything other than energy for their state.

Marijuana so good or no good?

Marijuana has been passed in New Jersey for medical use. There have been many stories of people where Marijuana has helped people relive pain (mostly walking or leg pain) but the question still remains whether or not the drug is medicine. The beneficial effects marijuana has had on people with nerve problems and appetite has doctors recommending it for patients; however, the turn off of the drug is that many patients request to doctors the use of Marijuana. The medical society is aware of how many supporters of the legalization of the drug are just tyring to get a safe way to buy it.

I think that Doctors should be given the right to heal in anyway they seem most effective. If the medical society supports the prescription of Marijuana I'll give it a thumbs up.

info > http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703626604575011223512854284.html

Bin Laden endorses bomb attempt on U.S.

http://news.aol.com/article/bin-laden-endorses-bomb-attempt-on-us/870915

On Christmas day there were failed attempts to blow up a U.S. airliner. Supposedly Bin Laden was associated with this attack. A recording was released of Bin Laden admitting that he was in on the attacks, and that it basically easily happen again. The Saudi and Yemeni leaders of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula do have contact with Bin Laden, and it is possible that they sought the approval of Bin Laden before taking action. Bin Laden wants to claim the leadership position for the jihad movement. There is no way of telling for sure if the recording was really Bin Laden, but it does resemble other recordings in the past from Bin Laden. Questions are arising to just how much power Bin Laden has over these groups that act out.

Bin Laden was quoted on the recording in saying, "If our messages had been able to reach you through words we wouldn't have been delivering them through planes." What do you think of this statement? Do you think had the U.S. had better communication that none of this would have happened in the first place?

UAE to Build Nuclear Power Plants

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/international/2010/01/21/mme.1.going.nuclear.cnn?iref=allsearch

Despite vast oil reserves, the United Arab Emirates is seeking to meet future electicity demands with nuclear power. It has contracted a South Korean company to build and operate 4 plants by 2020. These plants would supply 25% of the country's electricity demand, which is set to double in 10 years. According to the contracted company, nuclear power is a more attractive option compared to other alternative energy supplies like wind and solar because it generates electricity at a steady rate instead of providing an intermittent and unreliable supply. Other countries in the region like Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia are also pursuing nuclear power and/or fuel enrichment.

Do you think the US will take issue with these efforts as it has in the case of Iran's supposedly peaceful nuclear program?

Researchers Find Study of Medical Marijuana Discouraged

After the recent legalization of Medical Marijuana in New Jersey, researchers have spoken up about government control of their work. Scientists attempting to grow and perform controlled experiments with medical marijuana are finding it harder and harder to conduct research, due to the fact that the federal government still places constraints on it. One researcher, a professor of plant sciences, stated that he has been trying to gain permission for nearly nine years and is still trying to this day.

My question is this: With marijuana being the only major drug for which the government controls the only legal supply available for research, what do you think they are trying to hide? Marijuana being far less detrimental to the body than other major drugs, what are some possible reasons as to why they are not allowing research outside of their own?


Source: New York Times

Nuclear Power in Europe (Current Event)

With every discussion of energy costs, comes the talk of nuclear power, which is readily used throughout most of Europe. There are some countries like Germany and Spain who are dedicated to phase out nuclear power, but then there is the rest of Europe. France is a major exporter of nuclear technology, they have 59 working nuclear reactors and have plans too construct an improved third generation plant, which is expected to be finish in late 2012. Even the Ukraine after the Chernobyl disaster which was a nuclear explosion of the number 4 reactor, has future plans for nuclear power, by 2030 they hope to two more nuclear reactors and plan to have eleven more. Most European countries have nuclear power plants and have further plans for them. So my question is, is the world ready for a new nuclear age?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/ukfs_news/hi/newsid_4710000/newsid_4713300/4713398.stm

EU: Somali pirates release Greek supertanker

source: http://www.philly.com/philly/wires/ap/news/nation_world/81951557.html

Summary: Last Monday, Somali pirates released a Greek supertanker with its crew of 28 after being attacked by another rival pirate group in an attempt to steal the ransom. Upon delivering the supertanker, Somali pirates were attacked by the rival group and ironically, had to call anti-piracy forces for assistance. The EU naval forces, however, did not intervene. It is believed that on Sunday the Somali pirates collected roughly about $5.5 million from the ship and released the supertanker Monday morning, which is the second oil tanker captured by Somali pirates. The International Maritime Bureau stated last week that sea attacks worldwide increased 39 percent to 406 cases. Somali pirates committed 217 of the attacks and had seized 47 vessels. This is a significant increase from 2008, when Somali pirates launched 111 attacks (42 which were successful). As of now, there is not enough action being done to prevent these acts of piracy. The U.N. is "too busy fighting the Islamist Insurgency to arrest pirates."

Question: What steps should be taken in order to prevent these acts of piracy? There is nofear instilled that there will be consequences to these crimes, so how could the E.U. naval force and U.N. ensure that they will stop?

House Democrats Seek Changes in Senate Bill

http://prescriptions.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/05/house-democrats-target-changes-in-senate-bill/

On January 18th the Democratic leaders of the House of Representatives said that they would insist upon changes to the Senate's draft of the health care bill. This creates a problem because if changes are made it would be sent back to the Senate for an additional vote. If no changes are made it can be sent to Obama for signing. Currently the Democratic leaders are struggling to get enough votes to pass the bill through. The House bill contains a public option which the Senate bill had to drop in order to gain the votes of centrist Democrats. Nancy Pelosi, Democratic House speaker, said that she is confident that the Democrats in the House and Senate can agree on a bill and get a draft to the President relatively quickly. The House Republicans are angered because all of the discussions about the bill are in closed-door conferences. Obama made a campaign promise to have open-door discussions for the American people concerning health care.

Is it wrong for the Democrats to be having closed-door conferences about the health care bill? Are the concessions made in the Senate worth giving to get the bill passed?

New Jersey Senate defeats same-sex marriage bill

http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/01/07/new.jersey.same.sex.marriage/index.html?iref=allsearch

A bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state of New Jersey was defeated last Thursday by a vote of 14 for to 20 opposed. Co-sponsors of the bill, Sandra B. Cunningham (D) and Nia H. Gill (D), compared the fight for recognition of same-sex marriage to the struggles of African-Americans throughout American history. Gay rights activists hoped to have the bill passed under former Democratic Governor John Corzine, but are now challenged by new Republican Governor Chris Christie, who opposes same-sex marriage. Although supporters of the bill were disappointed, they are still confident that they would redeem themselves in the courts and overturn the ban, since many churches want to perform same-sex marriages but are not allowed to.

Do you think the supporters of the bill will be successful in court? If so, will this lead to other states granting same-sex couples the right to marry?

Haiti Earthquake Could Trigger Possible Medical "Perfect Storm" (Current Event)

Though 50,000 people have been estimated dead from tuesday's 7.0 magnitude earthquake, there are more, protentially larger problems are yet to come. Haiti's medical system wasn't very well established before the earthquake, and it is now crippled. Breakdown in housing, sewage, and lack of clean drinking water are major concerns. Experts say that diarrheal infections, diarrheal diseases including typhoid fever and cholera, along with bacterial infections such as shigellosis (which causes diarrhea) and salmonella enterocolitis (a common type of food poisoning) may lead to the deaths of tens to hundreds of thousand of survivors if they do not get help. Dr. Peter Holtez, of George Washington University Medical Center, is able to think positively of the situation despite the obvious tragedy. "I have the hope this situation may lead to improvements, because it's bringing lots of attention and help to the area," Kaplan said. "There's that silver lining."

A Presidential Triple Plea for Haiti Relief Fund

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/01/16/a-presidential-triple-plea-for-haiti-relief-fund/

George Bush and Bill Clinton, on Saturday, began their endeavor to raise money for the Haitian relief effort, while President Obama carried on his efforts to encourage American reaction to the disastrous effects of the earthquake. The Bush, Clinton, and Obama launched their commencement of this endeavor at the Rose Garden. The unknown deaths caused by this terrible disaster gave the three men a common point to come together to convey the belief in the "American spirit of giving". Bush suggested, despite wanting to send water and blankets, Americans should just send cash. They all recognized the massive task to come as the number of people who are able to be rescued diminishes and and the full impact of the damage becomes more evident. Currently, American teams have only been able to rescue 15 people--half Haitian and half American. Mrs. Clinton flew to Haiti with relief supplies and word that we will offer unwavering support and sympathies.

What else can/should we do to offer our help and support to the Haitians?

Same-Sex Marriage, Civil Unions, and Domestic Partnerships

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/s/same_sex_marriage/index.html?scp=2&sq=same%20sex%20marriage,%20civil%20unions%20and%20gay%20partnerships&st=cse

The controversy over gay marriage began in 1993 when the Supreme Court of Hawaii ruled that denial of marriage licenses to three homosexual couples was sexual discrimination. In retaliation, Hawaii's legislature passed a 1994 bill defining marriage as between a man and woman who could procreate. Conservatives worried about the court case succeeded in getting the "Defense of Marriage Act" passed through Congress and signed by Bill Clinton. The first state to allow same-sex marriage was Massachusetts in 2004, after the state Supreme Court ruled that it was required under the state constitution's equal protection clause. Connecticut followed in 2008, and in April 2009, Iowa's Supreme Court ruled in favor of gay marriages. New Hampshire and Vermont legislatures have allowed same-sex marriages, along with California and Maine, although in the latter states voter referendums have revoked them. 26 states have passed constitutional bans against gay marriage. Barack Obama has claimed that he is against same-sex marriage, but supports gay and lesbian rights and the repeal of the "Defense of Marriage Act."

Is the national trend for or against legalizing gay marriages in the near future?

New Jersey Vote Backs Marijuana for Severely Ill Current Event

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/12/nyregion/12marijuana.html

Although the gay marriage legislation may have failed, supporters of medical marijuana won big in New Jersey as the state became the 14th state to legalize the practice. While not decriminalizng the drug, it will allow those with chronic diseases such as AIDS, cancer, and Lou Gehrig's disease to have controlled amounts given to them by the state. The decision is coming from Governor Jon Corzine just days before giving leadership to opponent of medical marijuana, Governor-Elect Chris Christie. Christie in others point to California as an example of medical marijuana gone out of control but New Jersey's requirements for obtaining the treatment appear to be much stricter than that of California's. Despite potential reservations, the bill based relatively easily in the General Assembly and State Senate.

Do you guys feel that this is a slippery slope towards more drug abuse or merely providing patients with needed relief?

Sharp Words Open California Same-Sex Marriage Case(Current Event)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/12/us/12prop8.html?hp

It is obvious that the right for same sex couples to get married has heated up dramatically in the passing weeks. The case has been opened up by a claim made by a homosexual couples claiming that Proposition 8 goes against their rights. The rights in question are within the 14 Amendment, and the fact that the ban on interracial marriages was removed by the Supreme Court as well. The judge was very questioning in the opening statements of the plaintiffs, asking how domestic partnerships hurt same sex couples. The men's lawyers responded in saying that it singled out gay men and lesbian women and said that they were different. It is said to take up to three weeks for tor trial to end, and it is easy to see that the trial will only get more intense.


Question: The Judge made a comment that, "same-sex marriage would “radically alter” traditional marriage and could decrease marriage rates for heterosexuals". Do you believe this to be true? Why or why not?

Did You Know?

Congressional Committees

http://www.contactingthecongress.org/cgi-bin/committee_list.cgi?site=ctc