Cause and Effect

     I recently came across an article while browsing the web.  The headline read “Muslim teen who was arrested for clock mistaken for bomb says he’ll accept invite to White House, is looking for a new school.” I am absolutely flabbergasted at the reaction of the general public for their lack of concern for the safety of our children in todays rising school massacres. While I am completely sympathetic for the child that was arrested and embarrassed over the incident, I believe that the teacher that reported the suspected device and the police officers that attended to the matter should have been given more credit for following standard protocol. 
     I am curious as to why the media has made this incident a racial issue? The all important topic at hand has been overlooked and the emphasis on race is creating more animosity between different ethnic backgrounds. This issue may prevent teachers and other officials from wanting to intervene in any suspicious activity because they may fear being accused of race or culture hate. This should be a concern to all as these very actions can jeopardize the safety and security of our children and society as a whole.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/muslim-teen-arrested-teachers-mistake-clock-bomb-article-1.2362316

    

Electronic Direct Democracy Is A positive

      I feel that a direct democracy using electronic devices would be beneficial for two reasons: One, it would make our democracy more efficient. Two, it would make the voting process more available to the public and thus more democratic. Like any tool using technology, the internet only enhances and streamlines the process.  Why use punch cards when they’ve already proven to be unreliable and even confusing to the voting process?  Using simple programming would create innumerable efficiencies in a system that need not be troublesome.  It would save time and could be more accurate.
      Using electronic methods to enable citizens to have a direct involvement in our system,   we could involve all of those potential voters who may not normally participate in the process.  How many people have not voted because they couldn’t get off work?   Normally,  voting times coincide with our work schedules.  How many people have disabilities and cannot make it to the polling stations?  All of these citizen would now be able to vote.  In an age of voter apathy, we would be creating one less excuse if voting were as easy as reaching for your smartphone. Incorporated technology into voting could increase participation of younger voters.  The younger generation is increasingly more involved in political topics because of social networking.  They would be much more likely to vote via their electronic devices.  

Greetings!