Animals Run Wild

I was on my way to school when i first heard the story of animals escaping from a zoo in Ohio. Now, this is not something you hear everyday so I had to actually turn up the volume on the radio for the once in a great while. I sat there in traffic with this huge smile on my face listening to this story that I could not help but find funny. When I finally decided to switch the station to find some actual music this story was being told on pretty every station I encountered. This is not a story that is suppose to be funny, or amusing but is actually quit sad when it comes down to it.

On October 18th 56 exotic animals escaped from a zoo in Muskingum County. 49 of these animals were killed, one was never found, and then the remaining six animals were rescued by officers. As for the owner of this zoo he was found dead in his house. It was assumed that he had let all of these dangerous animals out of their cages before taking his own life. However, the animals he had caged in his house were the only ones never let loose. Overall, it is just so sad that due to somebody letting all of these beautiful animals out - a baboon, three leopards , three grizzly bears, three monkeys, three wolves, three mountain lions, six black bears, eight female lions, nine males lions, and eighteen tigers- that so many animals had to be hunted down and killed.

As I heard this story the thing that made me smile was hearing about such an odd story and imagining driving down the street or looking out my windows to see exotic animals just roaming freely. Due to all of this schools had to be closed down. Then, the surrounding highways had signs up saying "Exotic Animals, drive slow, stay in the vehicle". The thought of just driving down the highway and reading these signs just seemed like the funniest thing to me, but at the end of the day it really is not that funny when you think of all the innocent animals killed because Ohio did not have the animal rescue teams necessary for the job. Moral of this story, Ohio needs to get some rules on regulating the sale and ownership of such animals because at this point in time there are no rules.

This story to me deserved to be considered one of the best writings on the webs simply because of the story itself. It is an amusing piece that definitely catches your attention. This was one of the rare stories you do not hear about often because if does not happen often and that alone made this piece stand out from others I have read.

-Britney Villafane

Internet Censorship

November 16 appeared to be a seemingly routine day, that is until I logged onto Facebook after classes. I noticed a lot of people posting and sharing links warning others about the new bill in congress that is currently being debated. This new bill is about the U.S government censoring the internet, or completely shutting down sites all together. This bill is very important for the future of certain websites such as Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr because these websites allow users to share their thoughts almost completely uncensored.
This bill is not a new idea though. The Motion Picture Association of America brought up the idea to congress in 2008 when the association became nervous of movie pirating. And in 2009 with the Cybersecurity Act which allowed the government to access anyone's online forms/ records without a warrant.
As you can imagine, this is causing and uproar for many. It comes across as a violation to our 1st amendment as United States Citizens. The internet has become a way of life for everyone. It is used every day and helps with everything from big business' sharing files to friends reconnecting. But according to Sen. John Rockefeller, "Would it have been better if we’d have never invented the Internet." That is probably the stupidest thing I have ever heard. The internet has done so much for us and has allowed us to advance in technology and education immensely. Sure people break the law on it and make threats toward governments, but you can do that without the internet as well.

-Paul Poremski

http://www.asiantribune.com/news/2011/11/16/us-contemplates-unprecedented-internet-censorship-bill-proposes-web-site-closure

Blindness Not Enough To Sideline California Teen

http://www.npr.org/2011/11/06/142031957/blindness-not-enough-to-sideline-california-teen?ps=cprs

At first I was looking at blog entries about the Penn State scandal to write about, but then somehow I found this article about a boy who plays high school football. This isn’t just any typical boy though. Tim Howell, a fifteen year old who plays center, is blind. I found the story to be very inspiring so I thought it would be a good idea to share it here on this blog.
Tim Howell was diagnosed with cancer as a baby and after a year of radiation and chemotherapy, he lost both of his eyes. Most people would be discouraged by this, but not Tim. Ever since he was little, he has been achieving what most think is the impossible. He learned the alphabet in Braille when he was only in preschool and now as a sophomore in high school he’s on the junior varsity football team. He is treated like everyone else when he is on the field too. At times he can take some hard hits, but compared to what he has been through, he is used to taking hits as they come. Even though he is not given any slack, his teammates are always there to help him. Simple verbal cues can help a lot for Howell such as where he needs to be before the play starts or where the ball is.
This story was inspiring to me because despite all of the odds Tim faces, he still acts like a typical teenage boy. We can all learn a lesson from Howell. Not only has he made the football team, but his ultimate goal is to make varsity and even possibly play in college. He doesn’t let his disability stop him from doing anything.

Rachel Bullard