OPINION

Opinion
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The Mentally Disabled are Denied Rights.

By Cayden Olsrud
(Sources: mayoclinic.org, disabilityscoop.com, eeoc.gov, workplacefairness.org)

“I hate the words 'handicapped' and 'disabled'. They imply that you are less than whole. I don't see myself that way at all” - Aimee Mullins. Mental Illness, what do you think of when those words come to mind; an insane man strapped to a chair screaming? Or even a person looking off into a far off place lost and not completely on this world. However this is not always the case depression and even bipolar disorder do classify as mental illnesses. However these people who are still human that are being treated worse than that, and even forced to work in some cases.
Infact in some schools they even force the mentally ill and special ed students to clean tables and even empty the garbage. Rather than giving students the education and other privileges they deserve, they are forced to clean for the other students. Not only is this a huge injustice by denying people their education which by the way is a violation of Article 26 of the Declaration Human Rights to which all people are entitled to. Not to mention it is just horrible to defend this by saying it is for life skills.
This however is not the end of society's mistreatment of the mentally disabled. Some disabled are even subject to electro-shock therapy. Electro Shock Therapy or ECT is a process of where a subject is given anesthetics and given electric shocks to the brain intentionally causing seizures. This is believed to reverse mental illness and is sometimes even used on people suffering from depression. However the side effects can be monumental causing things such problems thinking, fear anxiety, piercing headaches, problems eating, jaw ache, fatigue, nausea, and many, many more symptoms that are simply both too much to write and too horrible to go into. However this process is proven to work on severely depressed subjects and is somewhat supported by evidence but the worst part of this is that doctors who deem their subjects incompetent can force ECT on their subjects, which means they can force a process of which could cause memory loss. To me my memories are everything and being denied them simply because a doctor has ruled me incompetent would be horrible.
In fact, most people with mental disabilities are discriminated and even their families. People with disabilities are often denied work, and when they do the working conditions can be terrible. Working conditions can include harassment, being fired, and given unequal payment. Another example is how a family with a disabled child is denied access to sitting in the family room of a restaurant and has to sit outside. However, these discriminatory acts are considered illegal by the law and are not enforced seemingly at all. Showing societies’ lack of sympathy for the mentally disabled.
To conclude society needs to care more and help end the discrimination that the mentally disabled face daily. The law says it protects the mentally ill but does not enforce it and the mentally disabled are seemingly treated as second class citizens. Lastly the mentally disabled are entitled to Human Rights as all humans are and should in turn be given them as it was meant to be.





Minorities are Denied Fair Treatment In Schools

By Cayden Olsrud
(Sources: apa.org, u.s.com, ed.gov, brookings.edu, civilrights.org)

Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world” Nelson Mandela. Education is mandatory for the success of everyone. Even without a highschool education,  it's really hard to do what you want to do in life. Almost every successful person in this world has an education of some kind, however education is sometimes and often denied to people who really need it, mostly minorities.
In fact an example of education being denied to minorities is the fact according to ‘thenation.com’. In Preschool, African Americans are 18% of all Preschool enrollment but are 48% of all pre-schoolers with more than one suspension. African Americans are also expelled at a rate of three times more than white students, while African American girls are suspended at a rate larger than any other group of girls in the country. This shows a huge amount of disparities when it comes to African American children who are a minority in most schools, but are punished much more than other races. This denies the right to education for most students since they are too busy being punished.
Another example would be the fact that Native American and Alaskan Native students make up around 1% of the average student body but are 3% of all expulsions. Native American and Alaskan Native girls are suspended at a rate higher than that of white boys. Also less than half of all students that are Alaskan Native and Native American have access to full range math and science classes which would include classes such as Algebra II and Biology. Once again showing not only a rift between minorities and whites but shows that often times minorities are still denied education.
With this, we as both a school district and people must help make sure that we will not be part of these statistics. There are too many rifts and inequalities when it comes to education, and people that are denied education. We need to help mend this rift and to give better opportunities to people of minorities and to make sure that they get the education that they deserve.

Green Tea or Red Tea?
By: Eric Britt

When I walked into starbucks about to choose which Tea to get, Red or Green, I thought which one was better. I chose red tea not knowing any background of what red tea could do toward the body. I wasn’t sure so once I got home I did some research on to why I made a good choice on choosing red tea over green tea or a bad choice. I was sure I made a great choice because of the rich taste of the red tea. Now I will answer the question, green tea or red tea?
Red tea is great for your health. Red tea can help prevent heart disease, diabetes,Alzheimer’s and more! In red tea there is a flavonoid under the name of aspalathin. Aspalathin is a flavonoid used in red tea than can help the body in many more ways besides preventing heart disease. According to Underground Health Reporter “The flavonoid aspalathin carries many other health benefits, as well. By decreasing the production of adrenal hormones, aspalathin helps alleviate stress and suppresses metabolic disorders.” Also According to UHR “Aspalathin also helps to reduce excessive fat production, balances blood sugar, improves glucose tolerance, increase glucose absorption in muscle, and increase insulin secretion in the pancreas.
Also according to UHR “Studies have shown that rooibos tea health benefits improve lipid profile and redox status, two important factors to control if you’re at risk for heart disease.Results from a recent study made up of 83 men and women at risk for cardiovascular disease indicated that 6 cups of red tea a day…Increased polyphenols, a type of antioxidant that has been linked to a lower incidence of heart disease reduced cholesterol oxidation, a primary cause of heart disease Lowered levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol Increased levels of HDL (good) cholesterol.”
Not only does red tea help your body heart health wise, according to UHR “Japanese researchers have confirmed red tea’s anti-viral…anti-mutagenic…and anti-allergic properties, in addition to its anti-carcinogenic and anti-inflammatory powers.In addition, red tea helps lessen nervous tension…allergies…digestive upset…asthma…colic…and skin conditions such as acne.”
Now after hearing that red tea can help your body in so many ways, I believe that drinking red tea over green tea is the correct choice to go. Though not everyone is titled to the same opinion, if I had a chance to drink red tea or green, I would definitely choose red tea. In conclusion these are many reasons to why I now think I should get red tea over green tea.

Animal Rights - Pro
By: Leslie Ramirez
(Sources: freefromharm.org, Huffingtonpost.com, animalequality.net, aspca.org, cdc.gov)

Animals should have rights! Lot’s of people think that animals should not have rights.  Humans abuse animals all the time and it is not right!
The constant abuses that occur in a factory farm are too many and very harmful towards animals. Animals in farms are so crowded that they can’t even move to express their natural behavior. Another thing is that there are not many laws protecting animal rights according to aspca.org which this leads to 95% of animals being killed for food. Calf's get taken away from their mother just a few hours after being born so the mother’s milk can be used for food and milk for us to drink according to freefromharm.org. These calf’s have the right to be with their mothers for some time. This is so cruel that they get taken away from their mothers at such a short amount of time after being born.
Many people don’t understand how much this hurts animals. A lot of people see animals as objects instead of living things. Testing on animals as if they had no feelings, or hurting them as if they were nothing. We have to remember that these are living creatures and they are beautiful and amazing! Did you know that 56 billion farmed animals are killed every year for food? That is just too many animals that they are killing and don’t think that the animals they are killing are not always the healthiest to eat. Many people have heard of E.coli and that usually comes from farm animals which usually are cow’s, goats, and sheeps. This happens because many farms keep animals together and they get diseases and other things that get passed on to humans. Animals should not have to go through this!
Now, many scientists today test on animals but does that really help humans? Well the answer is no! Did you know that even though a test might be effective and safe on an animal there is a 90% chance that will be ineffective and unsafe to humans, according to huffingtonpost.com. So the question is why test on animals when there is no guarantee that it will help humans? Animals cannot speak for themselves, they cannot say that they don’t want to be tested on. This is exactly what I mean when I say that we humans just use animals as objects. Animals should not be tested on because first of all there is a big percentage that it does not work so why keep doing it? Another thing is that animals do not get humans diseases, another reason why people should not test on animals. It’s just not right.
In conclusion, animals are living creatures, they should have the right to be safe and not be separated from their family’s. Just like we humans don’t want to be separated from the people we love, animals feel the same way. Animals are so amazing! The different ways they look they are each so special. They can be very friendly and sweet. Just think of the harm that they go through everyday, just now, probably someone is taking away a calf from it’s mother, Or a pig being abused right now just for that bacon you are eating. Just think for the animals and their lives.

Animal Rights- Opposition
By: Eric Britt

Now there is a huge topic today flowing around the world nationally on whether animals should have rights or not. Animal rights is the idea that some, or all, non-human animals are entitled to the possession of their own lives and that their most basic interests—such as the need to avoid suffering—should be afforded the same consideration as similar interests of human beings. Yes having animals rights may be a great idea! But, for future references. Throughout this article I’ll be explaining why allowing animals to have rights can affect human's appetites , How Peta is promoting Animal Rights, and to how animals act toward one another daily.
First of all there are four major groups of which humans typically categorize themselves in when it comes to food. These four categories are Vegetarian, Vegan, Omnivore and Carnivore. These categories are most likely familiar with you. The two mains groups are Vegetarian and Vegan which support Animal Rights. These groups use various tactics such as protesting or just simply changing their daily lifestyle diet wise. Vegans or Vegetarians always stick to the claim on how “If you become Vegan you are much healthier” but, that’s not the case. Vegans are deficient in some some nutrients. According to Authority Nutrition An Evidence Based Approach states that “There are some nutrients that can only be gotten from plants (like Vitamin C) and others that can only be gotten from animals.” They also stated that “ B12 is critical for life and isn’t found in any amount in plants (except some types of algae), it is by far the most important nutrient that vegans must be concerned with. In fact, B12 deficiency is very common in vegans, one study showing that 92% of vegans are deficient in this critical nutrient. But B12 is just the tip of the iceberg… there are other lesser known nutrients that are only found in animal foods and are critical for optimal function of the body.” Without B12 hearing the claim “If you become Vegan it’s healthier for you” will become hard and harder to believe. Next I will be talking about how Peta promotes Animal Rights.
As I said earlier that Vegetarians and Vegans typically use different various tactics to get the word out on how animals should have rights. There is a huge organization under the name Peta which consist of many Vegan/Vegitarian people battling for the same cost. Media today plays a huge role in advertising for a cause. So what great ways have Peta been using to advertise!?.... Sexism… Yes I’ve said it, they are using sexism to get heard. In the definition animals should avoid suffering. According to discovery kids “ If you’re aren’t a plant then you are an animal!” So if animals should avoid suffering why is Peta using sexism to get people’s attention when others can be harmed by this. According to Peta’s article picture shown at the bottom of this article it states that “All animals have the same parts.” That picture may be very offensive to Women considering the pose and the slim thick typical blonde white lady. Sexism may be taken to a whole other level but, seeing/hearing that from someone who believes that all animals should avoid suffering is just a huge disappointment. Now I will be talking about how animals act toward one another daily.  
In nature there is something we call “Food Chains” or “Food Webs”. In these would see Prey vs Predators and us humans would always fall on top of the animals. These Food Webs will show who eats who and who gets eaten by who. According to Enchanted Learning “Every organism needs to obtain energy in order to live. For example, plants get energy from the sun, some animals eat plants, and some animals eat other animals. A food chain is the sequence of who eats whom in a biological community (an ecosystem) to obtain nutrition.” When hearing that animals shouldn’t be killed or eaten it’s interesting because humans are animals that are on top of the food chain only doing what a normal ecosystem would do to survive, eating the weaker ones also known as prey. We only eat our “prey” for energy and vitamins to keep our body going.
In conclusion animal rights should not become to be because allowing animals to have rights can affect human's appetites , How Peta is promoting Animal Rights, and to how animals act toward one another daily. Though I did bring up points on how animals are like humans, prey shouldn’t be compared to the predators simply because predators are dominate.

Vegetarian: a person who does not eat meat, and sometimes other animal products, especially for moral, religious, or health reasons.

Vegan: a person who does not eat or use animal products.

Omnivore: an animal or person that eats food of both plant and animal origin.

Carnivore: an animal that feeds on flesh.


Picture Peta Used




Just eat it! Watermelon addition
By.Valarie Caruthers
Did you know that there is over 300 different types of watermelon?!
I suggest if you like watermelon you read this story! According to www.watermelon.orgThe origins of watermelon have been traced back to the deserts of southern Africa, where it still grows wild today. The ancestor of the modern watermelon is a tough, drought-tolerant plant prized for its ability to store water for tribes crossing the Kalahari.
The first recorded watermelon harvest occurred about 5,000 years ago in Egypt and is depicted in Egyptian hieroglyphics on walls of their ancient buildings. Watermelons were often placed in the burial tombs of kings to nourish them in the afterlife. From there, watermelons were brought to countries along the Mediterranean Sea by way of merchant ships. By the 10th century, watermelon found its way to China, which is now the world's top producer of watermelons. The 13th century found watermelons spreading through the rest of Europe via the Moors.” Crazy right?!
And if you're thinking about growing some watermelon yourself http://www.watermelon.org/Watermelon-101 can help you on that!
“You need three things to grow watermelon: sun, bees and water.
Farmers generally grow watermelon in rows (8 to 12 feet apart) and in raised beds (4 to 12 inches high) composed of well drained sandy soils. Tiny watermelon plants from a nursery are transplanted into soil beds.
Honeybees must pollinate every yellow watermelon blossom in order to fruit. In a month, a vine may spread 6 to 8 feet, and within 60 days, the vine produces its first watermelons. The crop is ready to harvest within 3 months. The rind of a watermelon is not as tough as it looks, so it is hand picked. Watermelon pickers look for a pale or buttery yellow spot on the bottom of the watermelon, indicating ripeness.”
And do you know how healthy watermelon is?! “For a long time, watermelon has been taken for granted as a sweet, tasty summertime fruit, made of sugar and water, and nothing more. Over the past years, nutritionists, medical professionals, scientists and researchers have taken an interest to find out more about watermelon's health benefits. As it turns out, watermelon is incredibly healthy! The Watermelon Board is proud to say that watermelon is the Lycopene Leader among fresh produce. In addition to its healthy properties and effects on women, children, men and pregnant women, watermelon is an important part of a healthy diet. Nutritionists have long appreciated the health benefits watermelon provides. Watermelon not only boosts your "health esteem," but it is has excellent levels of vitamins A and C and a good level of vitamin B6. Vitamin A found in watermelon is important for optimal eye health and boosts immunity by enhancing the infection-fighting actions of white blood cells called lymphocytes.Vitamin B6 found in watermelon helps the immune system produce antibodies. Antibodies are needed to fight many diseases. Vitamin B6 helps maintain normal nerve function and form red blood cells. The body uses it to help break down proteins. The more protein you eat, the more vitamin B6 you need. Vitamin C in watermelon can help to bolster the immune system's defenses against infections and viruses and can protect a body from harmful free radicals that can accelerate aging and conditions such as cataracts.“
Also “ A two-cup serving of watermelon contains excellent levels of vitamins A, B6 and C, and also serves as a valuable source of potassium. At 92% water, watermelon delivers needed fluids and nutrients to the body, including lycopene – which has been studied for its potential role in reducing risk of heart disease, various cancers and protection to skin from harmful UV rays – and citrulline – which can help maintain blood flow within the heart and cardiovascular function.” Watermelon is so healthy , and yummy there's no reason you shouldn't eat it! m




Why Recycling Is Important

By:Daniel Vega

Source:Dosomething.org,Recycling Awareness ideas.com

   Did you know that 40% of lakes in America are too polluted for fishing, swimming and aquatic life?
The average person makes about 4 pounds of trash a day and 1.5 tons a year, we should really start taking care of our planet. I think it’s sad that over 1 million seabirds and 100,000 sea mammals are killed by pollution each year, which we are to blame for if you think about it. We need to recycle more,it is estimated we only recycle about 32% of garbage,while studies show about 75% of garbage can be recycled, let’s pick it up!
Recycling saves energy,did you know one aluminum can power your t v for up to 3 hours?

Recycling can save energy by reusing again and again, for example aluminum cans can be recycled again and again,glass jars can be used to make new glass jars, this way we wouldn’t need to produce more and more natural resources.
   We need to save the earth, rain forests are being cut at a rate of 100 acres per minute, while half a million trees are being cut just for the Sunday newspaper. We need to realize the effects we as a human population,make daily. If all our newspaper was recycled,we would save about 250,000,000 trees each year! We need to start making a change and take care of where we live.
Pollution is affecting our earth badly,plastic bags in the ocean are killing about 1,000,000 sea creatures a year.In 2010, eight million tons of plastic bags ended up in the ocean from coastal countries-far more than the total that has been measured floating on the earths surface in the oceans “garbage patches.”In 1975, the National Academy of Sciences estimated that ocean-based sources, such as cargo ships and cruise liners had dumped 14 billion pounds of garbage into the ocean.Let’s start recycling more and avoiding throwing recycling products in the garbage,we can save animals,less pollution,we can save energy,we can save the planet!


Why go vegan!
By: Leslie Ramirez
(Sources: onegreenplanet.org, peta.org, and nursingdegree.org)

Vegan food guide by 0Night-
Ever thought of going vegan? Did you know that 8 million people are vegans in the USA according to onegreenplanet.org. Also 33 % of Americans do not eat any animal products even though they are not vegan or vegetarian.
Now, What is being a vegan? Someone who is vegan does not eat any animal products. This includes no milk,eggs,honey,meat,etc. This may not sound really good but actually it is! Vegan food is amazing ! There are so many things that you can eat that don’t include any animal product. You will also be saving a lot of animals! Animals are so creature’s too, they have feeling’s just like us. Animals are our friends not our food. Did you know Vegans save up to 100 animals every year according to peta.org?. Also being vegan can include using things that are not tested on animals.
Vegan is healthy! Many people think that veganism can be bad for your health, but false! Veganism is actually really healthy because it can prevent a lot of diseases ;for example, diabetes, heart disease, blood pressure, breast cancer and lot’s of more things according to nursing degree.net. The normal American diet consist on a lot of animal protein, cow’s milk, eggs, and lot’s of sugar! Why kill animals and steal baby cows milk when we can eat other things that will not harm the animals?. For example, instead of drinking regular milk try almond milk! Also according to peta.org they have found that in a swedish medical study that women who drink milk are a lot more likely to sustain fractures than those women who don’t really drink milk. Being vegan can really give you lot’s of health benefits!
So what can you eat as a vegan? There are many options! There are not only vegetables and fruits. Want pancakes for breakfast? Go ahead there are many recipes on how to do vegan pancakes without using eggs or milk and they're still very delicious! Someone who is vegan can still eat pasta, ice cream, bagels with vegan cream cheese, bean burritos and many other things! But of course you have to eat fruits and vegetables to be healthy!
In conclusion, being vegan is great! You will be feeling really healthy and good about yourself. Also you will be  saving a lot of animals. The main goal for vegans is to save the animals and do great for the world. But of course, at the end of the day you can choose how you want to eat.

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