Judge rebukes administration over few admissions for Syrian Christian refugees

article link

A federal judge has remarked that the Obama administration has let in a disproportionate amount of christian refugees from Syria in the last year. Of the 10% christian population in Syria that has been reported, only one half of one percent of Syrian christians made up the 11,000 Syrian refugees let into the U.S. in 2016. The information presented to states often in not sufficient by the federal government, and federal judge Daniel Manion has outlined that there has been no real explanation for this great discrepancy. State departments have tried to gain information on why, but one of the reasons, Manion cites, could be affiliation with Christian Militia groups in Syria which puts the refugees on lists not to be accepted, and that has dire consequences. The lack of information about the numbers is more troubling to people like Manion than the actual occurrence itself at this point.

1.) Should the U.S. federal government put more emphasis on providing reasoning behind their refugee loads each year to provide to news outlets everywhere?
2.) Why do you think there is a great discrepancy in Christian refugees coming from the large Christian population in war-torn Syria?
3.) Why hasn't the committee dealing with refugees come out with reasoning behind their choice to only let in 56 Christians out of 11,000 refugees in 2016?

Clinton is Now Focusing on Issues and not Trump

http://www.bbc.com/news/election-us-2016-37743890

This week on the 23rd of October, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton stated made remarks about what she was going to focus on in the last couple weeks until the election. One of the things she stated was about Republican Donald Trump : "I debated him for four and a half hours," said the candidate "I don't even think about responding to him anymore." This is a very important statement because, in these ending times before the debate it is important to ensure that the people know what a candidate is planning to do in office.

1) Do you think that this idea is a smart move on Clinton's part

2) Do you think that Trump should make a similar move to focus on policy

3) Do you thing that four and a half hours is enough to say what is needed about each candidate

White classmates accused of attacking black Mississippi high school student with noose

Link

This article explains how an african american high school student has recently been attacked by 4 male white students who threw a rope around his neck and tightened it (for those who are not aware a noose is a loop with a running knot, tightening as the rope or wire is pulled and typically used to hang people). The same 4 boys who were accused of wrapping a noose around the african american boy’s neck also came to school a month prior parading around confederate flags. The family of the harassed boy was told to keep quiet about this incident due to the connections to law enforcement that the white boys had. No punishments have been given by the school either.

Do you think the victim’s family should file a police report against the white men?

Why do you think the school hasn’t punished these boys for their actions?

What should their punishment be if any?                    

Raqqa Offensive Against ISIS to Begin Within Weeks: Ash Carter

According to Ash Carter in a recent exclusive interview, the United States secretary of defense, the offensive to eliminate ISIS from its capital, Raqqa, will be launched within weeks. The assault will be led by Arab and Turkish fighters with US support. When questioned about whether US troops or special operation forces would be sent inside Mosul or Raqqa, Carter replied: "our forces are not near Mosul at this time[...] We are not going to be part of the occupation or hold forces." Sending US troops in ISIS-controlled territory and cities is dangerous. Iraqi security forces and the Kurdish militia have already faced ISIS suicide attacks, car bombs and other attacks. Moving to the topic of Mosul, Carter said that the Mosul offensive is expected to take months, but ISIS resistance will certainly increase by a lot the closer the troops are to the inner areas of the city.

1. After a period of ISIS terrorism, the terrorist group is finally being dealt with. What do you think about the Raqqa offensive? Will this be the end of ISIS? Or will this end up taking months, like the battle in Mosul?

2. Knowing that there could be extreme danger, should the US send special forces or other troops with the Iraqi and Kurdish troops to the heart of ISIS? Why or why not?

As ID Laws Fall, Voters See New Barriers Rise

In states such as Wisconsin, Texas, and North Carolina there has been talk that they are creating their own regulations on how people must vote, such as bringing a state issued identification card and/or ones original birth certificate. Many of the election clerks are vocalizing that, “They’re changing things so quick that it’s hard for us to keep up,”. People are being told that they need their ID card in order to vote in hopes to stop voter fraud but the regulations are new and not publicized well enough for voters whom do not have their ID or original copy of birth certificate to get all the required documents ready in time to vote. Many have been discussing upon this issue and believe that these rules and regulations are being put in place to target minorities who want to vote but might not have all the documents set forth in order to request an ID or a birth certificate. 

What should be required to bring to vote in the election process?

Should states or the federal government decide the rules when it comes to voting?

Should this be decided nationally or should this be taken on by the specific states themselves?

How could the voting process be made more fair?

http://nyti.ms/2eAQKld

Hillary gains the lead

http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/25/opinions/hillary-clinton-must-not-sit-out-campaign-zelizer/index.html

After the debates, there has been a steady incline in support for Presidential Nominee Hillary Clinton. As we all saw, the debates proved disastrous for Donald Trump. The polls after ever debate stated that Hillary Clinton had won. Not only that but media has been attacking him belligerently. Some states like Colorado, which has been typically a Republican state has been slowly turning more Democratic. Even personally, I know some conservatives that are voting for Hillary because Trump is just too extreme. It looks like the chances of Hillary becoming President are high. However, this piece talks about how Hillary needs to do even more to make sure that she wins the election. What do you think?

Should Hillary put even more effort into the race so that she can go into Election Day knowing she won?

Is putting more resources into the campaign futile seeing that she already has a really high chance of winning?

What do you think Trump can do it in order to lessen the gap between himself and Hillary?

Indiana officials investigating possible voter registration tampering

  

                           Indiana officials investigating possible voter registration tampering

Because voting has already started, and this election is making history, people are looking more closely than ever at every little thing concerning this election. This exact thing happened in Indiana concerning voter fraud scare. Many voters say that they experienced a change on their paper forms regarding their name and date of birth, and contacted state officials when they noticed the change. According to Indiana Secretary of State Connie Lawson, "[they] have found no indication it has been compromised." This is not the first time though that Indian has seen something like this, just earlier this month, 56 counties in the state have been affected by something similar. What steps do you guys think should be taken in order to prevent future events like this? Will this have an impact on the final result? On voter turnout?  

Russia and Syria Pause Bombardment of Rebel-Held Parts of Aleppo

Article Link
On Tuesday in Aleppo, Syria Russia and Syrian warplanes halted their bombardment of rebel-held districts. An eight-hour pause in attacks has been promised by Russia for Thursday October 20th. They have done this as a good will to allow civilians and militants out of the city. However, this is not enough time for humanitarian agencies to provide aid for those wounded. Most medical workers,, residents, and activist do not trust the Russian offer. There is no word on whether groups would halt their mortar attacks that have killed hundreds and more recently several children. The United Nations officials said that they welcomed any reduction in violence especially in civilian areas. With these attacks there have been warning that Aleppo could become a site of mass killings like those that occurred in Rwanda.

1) Can we trust Russia to halt their bombings in Aleppo?
2) Should the US intervene in Aleppo to provide military or humanitarian aid?
3) What is the best way to stop rebel forces in Syria?

Ailing Obama Health Care Act May Have to Change to Survive

Article Link

Obama, Clinton, and the Democrats are calling for a public option to give consumers more options on healthcare marketplaces. Other Democrats prefer the Bernie Sanders plan for single payer, which would essentially expand Medicare throughout the health care system. Donald Trump prefers a private option where people contribute to health savings accounts. The problem with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) is that individual plans on the marketplaces remain too expensive. Despite the ACA providing 20 million more Americans health insurance, President Obama acknowledges that more health care reform is needed. Donald Trump would work to repeal the ACA.

Discussion Questions:

1. Should health care be provided to all and funded by the government as Bernie Sanders suggests?

2. Will adding a public option to the existing private options on insurance marketplaces help make health care more affordable and accessible to those who don't have it? (the Clinton/Obama plan)

3. Are Trump and the Republicans right that health insurance should be private, offered through employers, and optional for consumers and businesses?

For Clinton & Trump There's Little Debating a Climate Change Divide

For Clinton & Trump There's Little Debating a Climate Change Divide

From our Wednesday debate topics, we can expect the Presidential candidates to discuss immigration, but likely not climate change at their final debate on Wednesday night. Americans do in fact care about this issue, but its not at the top of most priority lists. Clinton is concerned about climate change and has a detailed plan to address the issue that would include giving climate guru and former Vice President Al Gore a prominent role on her environmental team. Donald Trump believes climate change is a hoax, would pull the US out of the 2015 Paris environmental agreement, and expand fossil fuel exploration. Given that scientists regularly warn of the growing threat posed by climate change, this election offers a stark contrast in how the candidates would respond to this issue among many others.

Discussion Questions:

1. How much of a priority do we need to make climate change? Does it deserve top priority along with issues such as the economy, education, health care, and foreign policy or is it more of a side issue?

2. Who would you trust to lead our nation in responding to the issue of climate change? Why?


3. What should the role of the US be in addressing climate change given that its a global issue?

Melania Trump: Donald Trump was 'egged on' into 'boy talk'

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Earlier this week, Melania Trump met with Anderson Cooper for an interview with CNN. It was the first time she spoke out about the tapes of Trump. Melania disregarded Trumps comments as "boy talk." She furthered the comment of "locker room banter" to "boy talk." She also goes on to say that all boys talk like this and believes that Trump was egged on by the other people in the room during the recording. Although Melania has told Trump that his words were wrong, she still believes her husband. She believes that he respects women and that he is a good person. She also states that he has never said anything negative regarding women in front of her. Finally, Melania denies the allegations of Trump's sexual misconduct.

1. Do you believe that Melania truly thinks that he is being truthful?
2. Is Melania's comment only further damaging the thoughts of our youth by creating a rape culture?
3. Could this be a stunt to help out Trumps campaign? Having his wife behind him on allegations of sexual misconduct and denying encounters that she has had with his alleged victims?

Hurricane Matthew Floods in N.C. Cause More Than $1 Billion in Damage

article

With the continuation of Hurricane Matthew, hundreds of thousands of homes and buildings have been destroyed in North Carolina, racking up an estimated $1.5 billion in total damages and this is said to be only the beginning. John Dorman, a state emergency director, states that water only reaching the basement level will only cost around $300, while water reaching higher levels, will double in price. Although the total damage cost seems large, that figure does not take into account repairing roads or bridges, nor does it count the replacement of damages inside buildings. Among the damages increasing, so is the death toll. In North Carolina, there were 26 of the said 46 deaths. But what is not talked about very much is the death toll in Haiti, which is nearly 11 times larger at 500 deaths, only 300 less than Hurricane Katrina.

Discussion Questions:
1. Why do you think that the death toll in the U.S. is talked about more than the death toll in Haiti?
2. How can people from other states, that were not affected, help those in the affected states?
3. Should the discussion of how to help those affected by a natural disaster be in the election debates?

US in Yemen: If you threaten us, we'll respond

The US recently attacked three radar installations in Yemen because a US Navy destroyer was threatened by Iranian forces. Soon after, Pentagon officials made it very clear that if any more threats or actions are made towards the US, then the US forces will immediately respond. One of the reasons Iran attacked the US ship was because of all the violence that has been going on in the area around there. Especially with all the influences ISIS has been having, it's no wonder that both sides would be very quick to attack or to respond to an attack from either side. This connects to our current election because whoever becomes President will have a say in what to do in situations like these. All candidates have their own opinion on how we should deal with attacks like these and with terrorism in general. Here are some questions to think about:
1. Do you think it was right for the US to react like this to a minor offense?
2. If not, how do you think this should've been dealt with?
3. How do you personally believe the US should handle conflicts with ISIS and other violent groups?

Trumps path to victory is narrowing

Polls taken after the release of the recordings of Donald Trump talking disrespectfully about Women in a sexual manner, show that 3 major swing states (Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin) are now leaning towards Clinton. Many State Polls now show that Trump's path to 270 electoral college votes is now extremely narrow. After the tapes release, Trump campaign also pulled resources from Virginia, basically giving the states votes to Clinton. Studies show that Trump will need to win one of the three major swing states that are now leaning democratic, in order to gain the 270 electoral college votes.

1. Is it right to lean away from Trump because of recordings from over 10 years ago?
2. Was it stupid to pull resources from Virginia, a big swing state in the election?
3. How do you think Trump can come back from the recordings being released?

http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/13/politics/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-swing-state-polls-2016-election/index.html

Hurt syrian girl image goes viral

There have been many disturbing images of children in Syria being hit by an airstrike. The video shows an 8 year old girl  named Aya covered in dust, blood running down her forehead and nose. The poor girl looks scared, confused and keeps calling for her dad. She keeps on sobbing and wants her "daddy" during the nurses are cleaning her up.  An airstrike hit their home in Talbiseh on Monday. At least two people died in Aya's town,  her siblings and parents are wounded as well. Aya has been reunited with her family and are fine. They are trying to find a home due to their house being destroyed by an airstrike. The city of Aleppo has been the epicenter Syria's war thats been going on for five years. 

Questions: 

1) What should the U.S. do to stop these children and people get hurt? 

2)  What would you do if you were in this situation ? 

3)  Do civilians deserve this type of violence ? 

Link : http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/11/world/syria-wounded-girl/index.html 

Hurricane Matthew Leaves Destruction In Its Path

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/hurricanes-cost-chaos-lingers-water-logged-carolina-42718346

Recently Hurricane Matthew has swept across the East Coast and had caused severe flooding in North Carolina. An evacuation has been ordered, yet some people have ignored it. As tensions ran high in the flood zone, a trooper shot and killed a man who approached and drew a gun on him. With rescue becoming increasingly difficult, due to people who willingly ignored the evacuation order, many people wonder if it should be up to people to choose whether they stay.  In addition to this, in all the chaos, there have been sporadic accounts of looting. The current death toll due to Hurricane Matthew is 34.

Discussion Questions

1. Should evacuations be mandatory for everyone? 

2. How should America prepare to deal with hurricanes in the future?

3. What should the government do to stop looters during states of emergency?

Syria conflict: Heavy air strikes resume on Aleppo

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-37625785

In Aleppo, Syria, 25 people, including several children, have been killed by aerial bombings by Russian planes. These bombings began after the Russian and United States’ ceasefire fell apart last month, following a period set by the Syrian Government to allow civilians to leave unharmed. The Air Strikes came as President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, cancelled his trip to France, where he was going to work on a resolution with President Francois Hollande of France. French Sources indicate that Putin wants peace talks confined to Syria. President Hollande suggests that Russia could face war crimes for these bombings.

Currently in Aleppo, Aid organisation Medecins Sans Frontieres states that there are only 11 working ambulances, and activists have shown footage of toddlers’ corpses wrapped in sheets, held by distraught parents.

The UN had a proposal to stop the bombings, proposed by France, but last week it was vetoed by Russia.

Questions:

1.      Why do you think Russia refuses to back down from this assault?

2.      Should the UN look for a restructure of power so that there cannot be such a blatant abuse of it?

3.      Why do you think Putin refuses to discuss terms of peace with France?

Clinton and Trump Head to Head in Ohio

A new poll in Monmouth University shows that Clinton is only two percent behind Trump. This surprised people because they believed that Clinton would have been ahead due to her win in the opening GOP debate of 2016. But Trump had 44% of the votes while Clinton had 42 percent in the poll, and the other options got the other 6 percent. But over all it was practically neck and neck as we reach closer and closer to election. This is interesting to me because of how close the voting was. Also Trump was estimated to win the state of Ohio and no president since 1964 has not won that state when elected president.

Discussion Questions:

1. Do you believe that trump will win the state of Ohio?

      2.How does this effect the way you see the presidential race?

      3. Why do you think people still lean towards Trump even though Hillary won the debate?

 Link: http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/05/politics/ohio-monmouth-poll-clinton-trump-tight-race/index.html

US election: Trump 'fool' and Clinton 'weak', say VPs

On Monday, Trump was speaking in Herndon, Virginia and says "When you talk about the mental health problems, when people come back from war and combat, and they see things that maybe a lot of the folks in this room have seen many times over – and you're strong and you can handle it – but a lot of people can't handle it” (Trump).  Foxnews.com along with Retired Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn, say that the media is taking Trump's words out of context.  They are saying that Trump is not calling those veterans who deal with PTSD not strong and they "can't handle" the stress of war.  Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn also states that the media is propaganda for Hillary Clinton and are "deceiving voters and veterans."  




Do you think that the media is taking Trump's words out of context?

Do you think Trump has the qualifications to make that sort of judgment about veterans?

Do you think the media is attempting to take voters away from Trump in order to help Hillary win in November?


http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/10/04/trump-camp-slams-media-over-out-context-frenzy-on-ptsd-remarks.html

GOP distances itself from Trump -- again

GOP distances itself from Trump -- again

Donald Trump has been piling up controversies one after the other, such as his poor debate performance, his rudeness concerning beauty queen Ms. Universe Alicia Machado, his statement that military suicides are caused by people who can't take the pressure, and most notably the controversy over whether he paid taxes. A New York Times report claimed that he may not have paid any taxes for 18 years, which has not been denied by the campaign. Contrastly, the campaign seems to be asserting that his tax evasion is an example of his talent as a businessman. When directly questioned about the assertions, Trump said that he had been a "big beneficiary of the unfairness of the tax laws". He claims that his actions in the asserted tax evasion showed his great knowledge of the tax laws and that this means that he is the one qualified to fix them. This controversy has thrown him back into the spotlight after his dismal performances as of late, and gives him a new angle to push. A number of famous republicans have come to his defense. Speaker of the house Paul Ryan claims "I think people who don't like him are going to continue disliking him." This is very possible, as Trump himself is trying to turn tax evasion into a positive, increasing his reputation among his supporters. This may very well make him gain supporters. Donald Trump may after all be a Teflon Candidate who simply is unaffected by criticism. If this sort of controversy had been revealed with Hillary Clinton the general public would be launching an assault on her credibility, led by Donald Trump.

Questions:
1. Why do you think Trump is seemingly immune to controversies that would sink Clinton's campaign?
2. Does this indeed demonstrate that Trump has economic experience that would be applicable to the presidency?
3.Should Donald Trump receive federal punishment for tax evasion?
 

http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/04/politics/donald-trump-republicans-reaction/index.html 

Philippinee Duterte Tells Obama to 'go to hell'

 During a speech to local business executives Mr.Duterte had mentioned that he was disappointed with the criticism from the US due to the Philippines' tactics to combat the drug trader. Dueterte then continued on saying that he felt that instead of helping, the State Department was the first to criticize.  Later on Tuesday he warned that he may break apart from the US and unite with Russia or China. Russia and China had already assured him that they would give him what he needed. The Philipine which used to be a  colony of the US has a long relationship with Washington but Mr.Duterte made it very clear last week that while Obama is in office these would be the last join military exercises.

Do you think Mr.Duterte was right for telling Obama to go to hell ?

How you do think President Obama reacted to this ?

President Obama Urges Swift Action on Climate Change

As the elections come closer and closer, American citizens are forced to think harder and harder about who they want to run their country. And with the main spotlight being on Clinton and Trump, things such as their debate really show how they will operate differently and how they believe is very different things. But as Obama’s last term comes to an end, he is trying to make his last impact on America by trying to influence the vote and guide Americans to a better future.

On October 3rd, President Obama held an art and ideas festival called South by South Lawn, inspired by an event called South by Southwest which occurred earlier this year. During this event, they discussed ways to make a positive difference on the country. One of the main events was an hour long panel with atmospheric scientist Katharine Hayhoe, actor Leonardo DiCaprio, where they talked about climate change and a new documentary about climate change called Before the Flood which comes out on October 30th. The film follows DiCaprio as he travels to 5 continents and met with Obama, Pope Francis, and Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX and CEO of Tesla Motors and talks to them about the effects of climate change and how it is threatening the future of our planet as a whole. Obama states how "climate change is happening even faster than predictions would have told us five years ago or 10 years go" and how " we're in the race against time" as the effects of climate change are soon going to become irreversible.

The film will be screened across the country but its main focus is the swing states. Its purpose is to help people realize how real climate change is and how we should be doing something to solve this issue. DiCaprio has stated that one of his reason for making this documentary is to make people rethink how a president who thinks climate change is a hoax will affect the future of the nation.

How do you think people like DiCaprio will affect the environmentalism movement?

Do you think more non political public figures will have major contributions to the movement?

What do you think will happen to the country if Trump gets elected and refuses to acknowledge climate change?

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/10/obama-leonardo-dicaprio-white-house-lawn-before-the-flood-btf/

Hurricane Matthew: Jamaica, Haiti brace for 'life-threatening' storm

On Monday, a hurricane reaching 140 mph winds is threatening to bring destruction to Haiti and the other islands surrounding it. It is continuing to move throughout the Caribbean Sea. This rainfall will continue to produce flash floods and mudslides. So far, 2 people have died from this hurricane in the past week and Haiti is continuing to rebuild from its natural disasters within the several years. The latest news states that Haiti and southwestern Dominican Republic can expect 15-20 inches with isolated downpours up to 40 inches. They have began to urge many of the residents who live there to leave Haiti as soon as possible. Hurricane Matthew is expecting to move north toward Cuba to make another landfall on Tuesday night. The winds will continue to exceed to 100 mph.  The Jamaican officials have opened storm shelters, this is also the nations first major hurricane since 1988. Some Jamaicans believe that they can surpass this storm with putting their trust in power. This storm is expected to continue moving north towards Cuba.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/03/americas/hurricane-matthew/index.html

Questions:
1. Should the US do anything to help this country?
2. What would you do if you were a resident in this situation?
3. How can we save more lives from getting lost?