Something Special In The Air

Last Wednesday I saw a headline which read, “Women kept off flight for offensive t-shirt”.  For some reason, I assumed the t-shirt referenced terrorist attacks, Osama bin Laden, or bombing airplanes.

So I was a little shocked when I read the article to find out that the offensive t-shirt contained a pro-choice message, which read, “If I wanted the government in my womb, I’d f*** a senator”.  The woman in question was apparently returning from a pro-choice rally in Washington D.C. when she was told by an American Airlines flight attendant that the captain wanted to speak with her.  The captain then told her the shirt was inappropriate, and ordered her to change or she would not be permitted on her connecting flight.

Much controversy has arisen regarding whether or not the airline has the right to censor what passengers wear.  A spokesperson for the airline said, “The only reason she was asked to cover up her t-shirt was the appearance of the ‘F-word’.  The pro-choice message is irrelevant to our policy and had to bearing on our decision to ask her to cover up”.

We recently discussed censorship in class and what speech is considered “protected” under the First Amendment.  So my question to you is, “Do you think the airline should be allowed to censor what passengers wear?  If no, why not?  If yes, what kinds of messages should be censored?”  Answers are due no later than Wednesday, June 6^th, 2012.

Celebrating a 3-Day Weekend? Thank A Veteran!

I have been looking forward to the three-day weekend coming up for a long time. This year, I'm hosting a big cookout at my house for family and friends. The pools re-open, I get a free day off of work and more importantly, summer begins!

It dawned on me as I sat down to write this post, that the true meaning of Memorial day is often lost. Most people know that Memorial Day is to honor soldiers who have died in combat, but did you know that a national moment of remembrance, in the form of a moment of silence, takes place at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time? Another tradition is to fly the flag at half-staff from dawn until noon local time. Many people observe the holiday by visiting graves and cemeteries to honor family members who have died. Hundreds of volunteers place American flags on veteran grave sites across the country.

Both of my Grandpa's are WWII veterans. I remember how seriously my grandma took Memorial Day and her responsibilities to honor my Grandpa, the flag and our country. I realize that those duties have been lost on my generation, in lieu of BBQ, beer and the Indy 500. It made me realize that it is time to step up to the plate. So, this weekend, I pledge to do something to honor my grandpa's and others who have died in service of this country. My question to you this week is "How do you celebrate Memorial Day? Do you do anything to honor it's true meaning?" Answers are due no later than Wednesday, May 30th, 2012. To those of you that have volunteered to serve our country so that life is better for all of us - I honor and salute you! Have a happy and safe holiday weekend!

Got Milk?

Many of you know that I became an aunt for the first time in March.  Since I don’t have any children of my own, I’ve really learned from my sister about what new moms have to go through; sleepless nights, crazy hormones and breastfeeding – which can be a lot more complicated than I ever thought.

Now I’m not a person easily offended, and I definitely don’t get offended when mothers have to breastfeed their babies in public. That being said, I was shocked when I saw the cover of Time magazine last week in which Jamie Lynn Grumet, 26, was featured breastfeeding her 3 year old son.  You can see this cover, which has caused a lot of controversy here: http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,20120521,00.html

 The article which accompanied the photo was on “attachment parenting,” which encourages parents to be “physically and emotionally available and responsive” to their children. Save the Children, and other world health organizations recommend breastfeeding for the first two years of a child’s life. Grumet herself stated that she was breastfed until the age of six.  Critics argue that a child is able to eat by that age and the mother is no longer needed as a nutrition source.  Some even went as far as to call Grumet’s actions molestation.

 So my question to you this week is, “What do you think of the Time magazine cover?  Do you think their use of shock advertising was effective? How long do you think it’s appropriate for mothers to breastfeed their children?”  Answers are due no later than Wednesday, May 23^rd, 2012.

All You Need Is Love?

We discussed same sex maariage in class when we covered the Full Faith and Credit Clause.  I had no plans to blog about it this quarter, until this past week, when President Obama became the first President in history to go on the record in support of same sex marriage.  Since we have already discussed your views on same sex marriage, and whether or not gay and lesbian couples should have the same rights when it comes to marriage as everyone else, for this week’s blog, I would like to expand on that issue and discuss same sex adoptions.

Efforts to ban gay and lesbian couples from adoption are heating up all across America. Florida has banned same sex adoptions since 1977. In Mississippi, gay singles can adopt but gay couples can not. In Utah, all un-married couples are banned from adoption. Currently, sixteen additional states are considering bans of same sex adoptions, including Indiana.

Opponents of same sex adoptions, often say that children being raised with same-sex parents will have psychological issues, be bullied or teased at school, have unclear gender role models and perhaps even become gay or lesbian themselves.

Supporters of same sex adoptions include the National Adoption Center, the American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association and the American Pediatrics, all of which state that adoptions by gay or lesbian couples do not negatively affect children.

The issue of same sex adoption is one that inspires debate across America and will probably be left up to the courts to decide, however one thing is clear: we all want what is best for our children. So my question to you this week is, “What do you think of same sex adoptions? Why do you feel the way you do?” Answers are due by Wednesday, May 16th. To all the mothers out there - Happy Mother's Day!

Will Osama Help Obama?

This week marked the first anniversary of the death of Osama bin Laden. Last year, when bin Laden was killed, I wrote a blog asking students if they thought it was appropriate for Americans to publically celebrate his death.  You can read my thoughts, and your fellow students’ responses here: http://historicalandpoliticalissues.blogspot.com/search?q=osama

As we all know, 2012 is a presidential election year.  Many are wondering exactly how the capture and killing of bin Laden will factor into President Obama’s campaign. Many feel it’s the Navy Seals that deserve most of the credit.  According to Mitt Romney who is also running for President, President Obama did nothing special, stating, "There is no way that anyone sitting in that White House would not have at least done what he did."

That’s simply not true, says former President Bill Clinton, “Suppose the Navy Seals had gone in there and it hadn’t been bin Laden.  Suppose they’d been capture or killed.  The downside would’ve been horrible for [President Obama].” According to a Washington Post – ABC poll, American see President Obama as stronger than Romney on international affairs, with 53% saying they felt Obama was the stronger candidate on foreign policy versus 36% for Romney.

So, my question to you this week is, “Do you think President Obama should use the capture and killing of Osama bin Laden during his Presidential campaign?  Do you think it will help or hurt his re-election chances?”  Answers are due no later than Wednesday, May 9^th, 2012.