The Scarlet Letter Quote

" 'He did not send me!' cried she, positively. 'I have no Heavenly Father!' " 
        (Hawthorne, Pg. 90)

In the Scarlet Letter, Hester Prynne is impregnated by Reverend Dimesdale. Her daughter, Pearl, has some early childhood issues. During the early years of her life, around three years of age, Pearl was showing some troubling signs. She was not a team player because she despised and did not get along with the other children. Living in a strictly puritan community where pleasing God was everything, Pearl stuck out like a sore thumb. After Hester jokingly and playfully said (although did not mean) that Pearl was not Hester's, but was given to her by the Heavenly Father, Pearl replied the aforementioned quote. She said this because she clearly does not believe in God. Her atheist views are due to a variety of factors. The first and foremost is the lack of a family structure. Her single mother has trouble raising her. Hester is an individual of questionable moral values, and what Pearl learns is from Hester. Pearl is also aware that she was born from sin. This psychological trauma has caused her to rebel from the strict Puritan culture and therefore not believe in God and more importantly God's laws or rules. The audacity of a three year old to be the only character in the novel to commit verbal blasphemy is impressive, and shows how much trouble Pearl really is.

Drone Protests in Pakistan

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/24/world/asia/in-pakistan-rally-protests-drone-strikes.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=0

Streets in Islamabad Pakistan were filled with thousands of protesters. Pakistani's were protesting the usage of American drone's on their land. They vowed to stop NATO activities if the United States did not stop. The United States has been under major criticism by Pakistani's, the international community, and even its own citizens regarding drone strikes. If one forgets about the inaccuracy of drones and the innocent lives that have been taken away from their families and communities due to drones, one cannot forget that drone strikes on other soil is infringement of sovereignty. If the United States truly did not want to see the Taliban and Al-Qaeda grow, then the United States should not have funded them to weaken the Soviet Union. What is the logic of supporting the "lesser evil" whether for a person or a nation. It is sad to see that the current rulers of Pakistan, although publicly not supporting it, have privately endorsed the use of drones. Both governments have long lost the vision of doing good for the world. Pakistan and the United States of America are clearly not focused enough on the well-being of their citizens, especially economical. What hope is there left in this world?

Hiring in Boston Massachusetts (while it was still a colony)

http://matsumoto.eesd.org/tm28/col09/colne.html
http://www.usahistory.info/colonial/customs.html
http://livingconditionsnew.weebly.com/new-england-colonies.html

Boston, Massachusetts was and has been one of the most important cities in what we call today the United States of America. It has served as the most vital city during the Revolution, was important for trade, and even today is home to the most advanced universities of the world. Living in conditions in Boston have changed throughout time. Today one can be a janitor, a stay-at-home-dad, and even a CEO in Boston. Times have changed, however. People used to have a wide array of occupations during the 1600's. Fishing was a very common occupation. Men and children both enjoyed the art of catching the sea-life. After fishing, a very common occurrence (although used much more in other parts of the colony) was farming. Subsistence farming was key to the diet of many families.Carpenters and shipbuilders were also common. Less common occupations included harvesting, basket-weaving, brick-making, shoe-making, and silversmiths. A very powerful occupation was that of the religious leader. The religious leader was essentially the ruler of the people, because of the strict Puritan devotion to the Church, and the belief that the Church should govern the way of life. Other colonies had government officials, but the simple life of Boston is a bold reminder of how much humans have changed.

Bullying in the NFL...What else is new?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/15/jonathan-martin-nfl-meeting-statement-dolphins_n_4285140.html

The National Football League has been under scrutiny for many problems its players and staff members have endured, much more than ever. It is only now where players of a sport who collide with others and the ground have learned that it is possible to receive a concussion. Now the National Football League is being criticized by the press due to a recent incident regarding harassment. Miami Dolphins player Jonathan Martin is the center of a scandal revolving around harassment by his fellow teammate, Richie Incognito. Incognito has admitted to calling Martin racial slurs (Martin is black while Incognito is white), making verbal death threats, and even threatening to slap his mother. Logically, this is not acceptable behavior. But Incognito's comments are (according to him AND most of the Dolphins team) part of "locker room culture." Players of the National Football League almost unanimously said that the "locker room culture" of teams should not be changed. Only time will tell how this event will end. Will it be years until the next "harassment" case comes up, or will it encourage "victims" to speak up? All that is known is Jonathan Martin has talked to investigators and Incognito has been suspended until the verdict of the courts, the National Football League, and ultimately the public are given.

Education by Emerson SOAPST

Literature is worthless....without the proper analysis into depths which the deepest oceans cannot compete with. Analysis is key to understanding anything, but when it comes to literature SOAPST is very useful to scratch the surface of a text. Ralph Waldo Emmerson is a highly regarded writer. His famous works are a great read, but all his works require analysis. "Education" is no different. Education is what molds the future members of society, and Emerson knows this quite well. Although he wrote about this topic in detail in the early 1800's, they are more than applicable to today's world. The acronym SOAPST stands for six important aspects of a text: speaker, occasion, audience, purpose, subject, and text. The speaker in this case is Ralph Waldo Emerson, a well-known transcendental writer of the 1800's. The occasion is between 1820's and 1830's and because he sees issues with the system of education. The audience is everyone, but specifically teachers, parents, and students. His purpose is to inform, to inspire, and to reform. The education system lacks all three, and in turn needs all three. His subject is education, but more specifically the problems the education system faces. And finally the tone of his text is confident, informative, thought-provoking, and friendly.

News Blog. Glasshouse felon...

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/11/03/bernard-kerik-prison-reform_n_4208504.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

The famous song by System of a Down "Prison Song" and another song of the same name by "Graham Nash" are not just musically enjoyable but have lyrics that are not just emotionally passionate but are factual. The article in question is about mandatory minimum sentences. Former New York Police Commissioner was a not-so-law-abiding after all, because of tax fraud and lying to the George W. Bush Administration. After serving eight felony counts in a federal prison, Mr. Bernard Kerik has rekindled his passion for effecting law enforcement by announcing his position on mandatory minimum drug sentences. Mandatory minimum drug sentences affect even non-violent convictions of some substances. The equation is simple: five grams of cocaine in one's possession  is equal to ten years in prison. It might seem logical to some, but rotting away for 10-years in a federal prison because of possessing the amount of cocaine equivalent to the weight of a nickel is ridiculous. After his time in prison, Kerik apparently felt sympathy for his fellow inmates. Attorney General Eric Holder along with other members of the Justice Department and White House have been promising prison reform, because the system is "outrageous" for the American public. The author of this blog, Aram Manoukian, has had some experience with mandatory minimum drug sentences. He has met the social action director of Participant Media, a politically active production company, who has recently released a Dwayne Johnson film, "Snitch." It is socially relevant because the protagonist's son is facing hard time in prison because of mandatory minimum drug sentencing laws. This shows that this is becoming a serious topic for discussion.