Pregnant Soldiers Could Be Courts-Martialled

Summary: As of November 4th, a new rule was enacted that prohibits "becoming nondeployable for reasons within the control of the soldier," which include "becoming pregnant or impregnating a soldier... resulting in the redeployment of the pregnant soldier." The exception is pregnancy from sexual assault. Maj. Gen. Cucolo commands 22,000 soldiers, of those 1,682 are women. He also stated that his female soldiers are "invaluable" and he wants to make sure the fulfill their deployment.

Opinion: If the men and women who are involved with each other then where is the protection. Pregnancy could have been avoided buy using safe sex. But for those few women that suffered from sexual assault im very sorry and its disappointing to see that our soldiers who fight for us can just violate the rights of a fellow soldier no matter the sex.

The First of Eleven ID'd

Summary: 52 year old Tonia Carmichael was found at the house of a sex offender in Cleveland, Ohio. She had been missing just short of a year. The family said in the missing persons report that Tonia was addicted to crack so we be gone for a few days at a time. They new something was wrong when she hadn't come and picked up two pay checks. The FBI ran a DNA test to figure out the first body. The same test is being done on 10 other bodies. All eleven were found at the house of Anthony Sowell. It appears that seven of the bodies had been strangulated. The other five were too decomposed but it is assumed they were also strangled. Any of these bodies could be from within the last five years. Back in 1989, Sowell was charged with rape and was imprisoned from 1990 t0 2005 and since release was living the home where the bodies were found.

Near by neighbors thought there was a smell permeating from the sausage factory across the street from Sowell's house but come to find it was the bodies. Five were burried out in the back yard, seven in the house and a skull wrapped in a paper bag in a bucket was in the basement.

Opinion: I guess i just wonder whether or not sowell was on a supervised probation? It just amazes me how people like this can get away with things for so long but the people who actually think there plans and motives out get caught. These sex offenders who are deemed dangerous need to be watched much more closely than they have been. For the five bodies that were so badly decomposed...i hope the DNA test helps your families find peace.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/11/05/cleveland.bodies.identified/index.html

Is your neighborhood safe?

Summary: Somer Thompson went missing Monday after school. She had an argument with her brother and sister and ran off from them. Its said that her siblings lost sight of her when she ran off into a crowd of people. On the morning of Thursday, October 22 she was found 55 miles from her home in Florida in a Georgia landfil. Later that day, Deina Thompson (Somer's mom) warned her daughters killer. "I want you to know that I will not sleep until this person is found. I hope they get you and I hope they make you pay for a long, long time. You don't take from somebody. You didn't just take her from me. You took her from my family, you took her from all these people. And you don't do this to a little baby and put my baby in the trash like she's nothing. That's not OK, this is not OK." $30,000 rewards are going out to anyone who has information concerning this case.



Opinion: First, my prayers go out to the Thompson family and Somer's loved ones. The person who did this to that little girl is sick and disgusting. How can someone do that to someone so young and innocent? I can't imagine how the mother must feel. Know i would feel extreme guilt for letting my child walk home knowing there are 160 registered sex offenders just in my neighborhood. I hope this doesn't have to happen again but as long as there are people in the world like the person who did this to Somer then who knows.



http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/10/22/georgia.landfill.body/index.html

Paygo

For many years medicare has been spending more in payments than it has been pulling in from tax and revenue or interests on its investments. These entitlements make up a big part of our federal budget.Trustees have predicted that the funds for medicare will be expended by 2019 but is now said to be 2017. The program owes 13.4 trillion dollars than it can afford. Social Security is also said to hit zero in 2037 and also will be spending more than they are receiving. The high unemployment has been part of this issue because it lowers the amount of tax that is coming in for these programs. I think if people were to paygo it would stop the increasing deficit.

I think that if we use paygo that it will help with the hole that's been dug. President Obama announced that he was sending legislation to congress to restore the "pay as you go" law. I think it would be a good idea. The fundings would be used just for Social Security and Medicare. Not for the other Gov't programs.

http://backstroker321.blogspot.com/

http://dawnjblog.blogspot.com/

Congresswoman's Husband Dies

Summary: U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney's husband dies at the age of 71 while mountain climbing in Tibet. One spokesman said that he was at 27,000 ft. and went back down to 23,000 ft. to a base camp to rest and sleep. He died of natural causes in his sleep. A second spokesman said that he died in a mountaineering accident. According to Artz, Maloney told a traveling companion that he was the happiest person because he just reached the top of a beautiful mountain. Clifton Maloney was the founder and president of C.H.W. Maloney & Co., Inc. which is a private investment firm.

Opinion: I think that Clifton Maloney was a very adventurous person. I know if I was 71 yrs. old I probably wouldn't be out mountain climbing, but that's just me. It must be hard on Mrs. Maloney losing her husband, especially out of the country.

President Obama's Speech Outburst

Summary: Ex President Jimmy Carter spoke out on the incident that occurred during Obama's speech to congress. Carter stated that was "based on racism" of having a black president as well as many other americans. The outburst came after the president had stated that illegal aliens will be ineligible for health insurance. Republicans were upset and let them know by making sounds of disapproval along with Congressman Wilson's outburst. Wilson's son defended his father by stating that there is not a racist bone in his dad.



Opinion: It is so easy to see that having a president who is African American would be hard on our country. I think that Carter's statement about Wilson being racist was a little bit too much just because he didn't agree with what the president had to say. Yes, it was disrespectful to make such an outburst but to make a comment saying that someone is racist because our president is black is rude. People i think don't know how to react or feel about having an African-American president who had once been muslim. It's a big step to turn christian for a country you want to be the president of. I guess I feel that having a black president will open up this country and help us move further and progress.



http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/15/jimmy-carter-wilsons-outb_n_288003.html

9/11 Mourners

Summary: September 11th was declared as a National Day of Service by Barack Obama as his first year of presidency. Mourners wrote letters to soldiers and gathered at ground zero to read off the names of the loved ones that were lost eight years ago. Michelle Obama helped paint a room for the Habitat for Humanity house in Washington. Volunteers from all over donated food and made meals for the homeless, some sent packages to soldiers over seas. Hillary Clinton said, "Sept. 11th will always be a day that represents humanity at its worst and humanity at its best."

Opinion: What happened eight years ago affected everyone, not just those who lost loved ones. I remember where i was when my family and I heard the news for the first time. We had just left my grandpa's house on our way back home. The rest of that week in school all we did was watch the news and grieve for those who had lost their lives. I'm a senior this year and last week I was surprised when the school didn't ask for a moment of silence. It made me feel kind of upset. Like we had disrespected the people that were lost, injured, who volunteered, and families that lost loved ones. I won't ever forget that day and what had happened.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32795800/ns/us_news-911_eight_years_later/