Speech—Gabriel Molina

I don’t know if you know anything about acoustic guitars or not, but I am absolutely in love with them. Recently my dad was looking to get me a new one, and there is a really prevalent brand called Taylor Guitars. You hear them just about everywhere. Almost every studio album is recorded on these guitars. The reason is because they’re easy for the music companies to edit, and they’re very consistent; every one of them sounds the same. But they also have a very distinct sound. Everywhere I heard them I liked them so I told my dad that’s the kind of guitar I’d like. He said “Sure we could get you a Taylor. But lets listen to some other guitars first just so you make a good decision.” So we heard some other guitars together without any edits, and I could not believe how much I disliked the Taylors! Every other guitar I heard was five times better! My perspective of them was skewed by all the popular artists using them and all the edits I had heard them with.

There are factors all around us that skew the way that we see God. The media and the people around you as well as many of your own experiences. But despite the many misrepresentations and obstacles battling to affect our perspective of God, at the core and truth of who He is, God is a good and personal Father.

I gave my life to Christ when I was four years old, but I’ve grown up in the same broken world you have. I’ve experienced both living for myself and living for Christ. I’ve been to good churches and bad churches. I’ve seen good churches fall apart for various reasons. In Connecticut my family attended a church that became a corrupt mess because of conflict in the leadership that was dealt with in the wrong way. I’ve seen the hurt in the world. I’ve seen religious confusion and hypocrites and everything that comes with that. I’ve experienced religion versus relationship. And in the midst of all these experiences that most of us share, I’ve been shown and have experienced the real character and person of who God is. Who I tell you again is a good and personal and loving Father.

We all want hope here. We all want grace. We all desire personal relationships. We all want to live a rich and satisfying life. No matter where we each come from I don’t think a single one of us wants to live a boring or discouraged or painful or dissatisfying existence. I want to show you that we don’t have to.

I’m not here to force you to follow Jesus. But like my dad helped me see clearly and make the right decision when looking for a guitar, I want to help you see who God really is. And you can make your decision from there. I’m going to address just a couple of the obstacles or barriers that tend to skew the way we see God. One of them being disbelief in His existence, another being the misrepresentations of the character of God that surround us. Lastly, I want to show you in just a few ways His real character.

Do you remember our discussion of credulity last week? Mindlessly believing things without finding out the truth for yourself? Lots of us have mindlessly believed that science has debunked the existence of God, when in fact nothing of the sort has happened. Look at your hand. See the detail and complexity and intricacy of it. Think about the absolutely unique design of your fingerprints; and how you think to move your fingers and they do as they’re told; and how your blood pumps to your hand, replenishes oxygen levels, and immediately rushes back to your heart again. Now think about the nature around you. Think about the beautiful colors of fall and how they never fail to show up at the same time every year. If you’ve seen a sunrise from a mountain at Red River Gorge you’ve seen the kind of beauty that an artist can’t nearly capture. And think about the interdependence of it: how everything in nature works together. I believe that it’s much more of a stretch to believe that all of this came into being by some cosmic accident, than to believe that there was actual thought and design put into it. That’s where we see the credulity again. We’ve been told that life has come from non-living objects completely by chance and we believe it when in fact, as scientist and biochemist Dr. Dennis Bogdan admits, the steps of this non-living-to-living process actually remain unknown.

If anyone has a watch on, look at it. Inside of that small disc are tons of tiny little gears that are crafted and designed to work perfectly. The design of a watch is so elaborate and complicated that there is no doubt there was a creator. In the same way the human body is just one of many testaments to the design of God. Think about the way that each part of your body works together in complexity and perfect harmony. Think about the creativity of the nervous system, for example. Touch your desk and electrical signals fire from your fingertips to your brain allowing you to feel the textures of it. It undoubtedly shows the mark of a Maker.

And finally the biggest proof of the existence of God is the real transformation of real people. There are dozen of stories I could tell about how God intersected people’s lives and everything about them did a complete 180, but for now I just want to share this one. It’s the story of a man named Moise Djigbenou, who grew up in a Christian home in the Ivory Coast. He came to the U.S. for college, was receiving plenty of money from his parents, had plenty of friends, and began to feel like he didn't need God. So he stopped doing everything he was raised to do and started doing what felt better to him. Eventually a war started in his home country and he lost contact with all his family, leading him to assume they were all dead. His parents couldn't send him money anymore and he felt like he had suddenly lost everything. He didn’t even want to turn back to God because he thought that He was mad at him. But he went back to church and started going every weekend again. At one service, the pastor told everyone to write down a list of their worries. He didn’t want anyone to see so he wrote his in french. However, the pastor began to address every single thing he wrote down in order. There was no way for the pastor to know, it was just God using that person to speak to Moise. At the end of the service there was an opportunity to receive Jesus and after feeling a continuous tapping on his chest, with no one nearby, he decided to accept the invitation and follow Jesus. Now he’s living fully in the blessing of God and he really is satisfied. I personally know this man and his story is absolutely real. And this is just one of millions of people who have experienced an intersection with God firsthand.

There’s all this clear evidence of the existence of God, and I haven’t even mentioned the full-blown miracles of healing I’ve seen with my own eyes and even been a part of. The existence of a God is honestly very hard to deny when you look at the evidence.

With that being said, with it being so obvious, why do so many of us reject Him? Which brings me to my second point: when most of us reject God, what we are actually rejecting is the embarrassing Christian “culture” that is paraded around us. This is a huge factor in the misinterpreted ways we tend to see God. I was thinking about it just recently, who really wants to be part of that group? The “got Jesus?” t-shirts and all that stuff. And when Paul said “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength,” I don’t think he was talking about doing five more pull-ups. But the misrepresentations of God that we see in people have no reason to determine how we perceive who He actually is. Music is a good parallel of this. You’d more than likely agree that music is a good thing. I’m sure you've got a favorite band or at least listen to some kind of music on a regular basis. And yet “artists” like Nickelback still exist. But that’s no argument that music is bad right? In the same way domestic violence is no argument against marriage and poorly made movies are no argument against television. Yes, there are embarrassing religious people out there. And yes there are Christians who say one set of things and live another. And yes there are churches in the world whose goals are not entirely pure. But none of these things, not a single one, is an argument against the goodness of God. People aren't perfect, Christians included. We cannot base our picture of a perfect God entirely off of flawed people. If you make the effort to separate the carnival of Christian culture around you from Christianity itself, you’ll be able to see a much clearer picture of Jesus and of the Father.

So I’ve dispelled a few oppositions to how we see God. Both the argument about His existence, and the fact that our view of God has been influenced by cultures that have misrepresented Him. Now finally, what is His actual character? Exactly what I opened with. There is an almost uncountable number of words to describe who God is, but I believe that above anything else, God is a good and personal Father.

The most common and maybe even the most compelling argument against God being good and loving, is the problem of pain and evil in the world. ISIS taking lives, school shootings, bullying to the point of suicide. No one can deny that evil exists. But author John Eldredge reminds us of this: “In order for love to be real, you have to allow people to exercise their own free will. Love is meaningless if it is not freely chosen.” When creating us, God chose to give us free will. The ability to make our own decisions. Otherwise He would be creating robots, not children. But by doing this, by allowing us to exercise free will, He allowed for the possibility of evil. He didn’t create it, but it became possible when He gave us the freedom to choose. The evil that we so lament in the world results from our choosing of it. So God isn’t the one who created evil, we are the ones who chose it. But the very act of giving us free will is an expression of God’s love!

Now another clear indication that God is good references back to nature as we talked about earlier. An evil God would not create the beauty that covers the earth. Sunrises and sunsets, the mountains, the oceans, forests, canyons, crystals, clouds, and all the beauty found in nature reflects the character of a good God. One who is loving; who is beautiful.

God has proved Himself to be a loving and personal Father countless times and in countless ways. But He proved His love to me specifically at the beginning of 2012. I used to live a deeply dissatisfying life. I was utterly broken. I didn’t know who I was, I believed countless lies about my place in my family, with my friends, basically every area of my life. I was lost. I spent all of myself chasing things like girls, grades, sports, whatever, all trying to find the validation I so desperately needed. Things looked okay from the outside, but on the inside I knew I was living a broken, bored, purposeless and unfulfilling existence you could hardly call a life. But in the midst of all this, in the middle of the direction I was going and when I was completely focused on myself, God came to me. When I was nowhere near searching for Him, He pursued me. He reminded me of His relentless and unconditional love for me, and of who He says I am. He never gave up on me. He chased after me even when I screwed up again and again and again. That is the proof of God’s love. That I can reject Him time after time and He will still chase after me.

The proof of God’s love became real to me at the beginning of 2012. And He wants you to know of His love as well. He wants to meet you in your brokenness. In the places where you think He would never receive you, maybe because of something you've done, my story is evidence that He will.

To recap, there is absolutely clear evidence that there is a God. Any time you forget, just look at your hand. Be reminded of the intricacy of creation, as well as the stories of real transformation in people’s lives. God created the Church to represent Him knowing that we wouldn’t do it perfectly. But we can’t allow that to change the way we see God Himself. And lastly, it is undeniable that God is loving, good, and personal because of His gift to you of free will, the beauty of what He created, and because He never stops pursuing us. He truly cares about us and every detail of our lives.

Don’t give up on your questions and your search for the truth of who God really is. Matthew 5:6 says “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” And in Luke 11:9 Jesus says “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” So if you want to know the character of God, seek Him for yourself. You’ll find Him.

Works Cited

Bogdan, Dennis, ed. "Abiogenesis." Wikipedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2014.

Eldredge, Sam, and John Eldredge. Killing Lions: A Guide Through the Trials Young Men Face. Nashville: Nelson, 2014. Print.

Quest Study Bible: New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011. Print.

A Story of Pursuit. Prod. Jon Tsang. Moise Djigbenou's Story. Quest Community Church, 7 Mar. 2013. Web. 16 June 2014.

Speech- Kaitlyn Nunnelley

Vaccines. A modern miracle. Before we’re 6 years old it’s recommended that we get 28 doses of 10 different vaccines, vaccines that protect us and the people surrounding us from deadly diseases. The first instance of vaccine use in the United States was in 1721 when Cotton Mather encouraged smallpox vaccination in response to an outbreak. Vaccination like we practice today started when Edward Jenner created the first smallpox vaccine using cowpox and vaccinating an 8-year-old boy in 1796. Vaccination has been around for forever, so why not make it mandatory?

         All 50 states require vaccination for children entering public school. In 1855 the first U.S. state law mandating vaccinations for schoolchildren was passed. No mandatory federal vaccination laws exist as of now, but why? The Center for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that 732,000 American children were saved from death and 322 million cases of childhood illnesses were prevented between 1994 and 2014 due to vaccination.  

         The American Academy of Pediatrics states that “most childhood vaccines are 90 to 99% effective in preventing disease.” Vaccines save 2 and a half million children from preventable diseases every year, which is about 285 kids saved every hour.

         Many organizations that are dedicated to human safety and life protection state that vaccines are safe; CDC, Food and Drug Administration, Institute of Medicine, American Medical Association, UNICEF, US Department of Heath and Human Services, World Health Organization, and countless others. Some people say that companies like the CDC or FDA shouldn’t be trusted to make and regulate safe vaccines because their primary goal is selling drugs and making a profit. Why would they clear these vaccines if they kill people or don’t help? What would be the point in that? The WHO (World Health Organization) states, “vaccines are very safe” and Human Services states, “vaccines are some of the safest medical products available.”

         “Vaccines contain harmful ingredients” fact or myth? Aluminum is used in some vaccines and excess aluminum in human bodies can cause neurological harm. This is true but children are exposed to more aluminum in breast milk and infant formula than in vaccines. So if you restrict your child from vaccines because of the level of aluminum, why not restrict them from their food and sustenance in their early life? Children are exposed to more bacteria, viruses, toxins, and other harmful materials in one day of normal activity than are in vaccines. So why not protect them from these harmful substances that they’ll encounter anyways with the vaccines they need to fight it off? The FDA requires 10 or more years of testing for all vaccines before they are licensed. The vaccines given to us are safe and extreme cautions are taken so that they are.

         According to the CDC, all vaccines carry a risk of a life-threatening allergic reaction, anaphylaxis. Adverse reactions to the vaccines are extremely rare. However, the most common one is anaphylaxis but it occurs in “one per several hundred thousand to one per million vaccines.” “The MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella) vaccines does not cause autism…the MMR and DTaP do not cause Type 1 diabetes. And the flu vaccines does not cause Bell’s palsy, and it does not trigger episodes of asthma.” It’s all in the facts; vaccines do more help than hurt.

         Obviously vaccines save lives, but they also save parents time and money. Vaccines cost less in time and money than it does to have a sick child or pay for treatment or care for disability. Kids under 5 years old with the flu are contagious for about 8 days, and it costs parents an average of 222 to 1456$ in wages and 300 to 400$ in medical expenses according to a CDC study.

         Chicken pox, diphtheria, hib (type of influenza), hep A and B, flu, measles, mumps, pertussis, polio, rotavirus, rubella, and tetanus are all diseases we get vaccinated for, diseases you can die from. Diseases such as small pox and polio have nearly disappeared because of immunizations.

         Vaccines have saved billions of dollars and prevented millions of illnesses and thousands of deaths. In no way do the cons out way the pros. Making vaccines mandatory can save so many lives and end problems before they start. Without these vaccines the people around you can get sick and even die. Protect yourself and the people around you. Our modern miracles can help everyone and anyone.

        

          

Sources

"Vaccines ProCon.org." ProConorg Headlines. ProCon.org, 5 Sept. 2014. Web. 11 Dec. 2014.

Szabo, Liz. "CDC: Vaccines Save Lives." Www.usatoday.com. USA Today, 24 Apr. 2014. Web. 14 Dec. 2014.

Which Side Are You On? Dir. Lynn Hermstad. Perf. Lisa Masterson, Jillian Michaels. Stage 30, Paramount Pictures, 2011. Documentary.

Dochterman, Darryl. "Mandatory Vaccines- Pro or Con." Personal interview. 12 Dec. 2014.

Speech-Anne Russell

             In sign language, abortion is represented by a cradling motion followed by a downward swipe of a fist, representing throwing the fetus away, disposing of it. Terminating it. The online Webster dictionary defines abortion clearly as “the termination of a pregnancy after, accompanied by, resulting in, or closely followed by the death of the embryo or fetus.” Without any shadow of a doubt, abortion causes death. Why has our society become so desensitized to the word and to the practice? On the surface, it may seem like a quick, painless decision, but once it has been stripped down and the blinders removed, it is hard to believe it is legal at all. The science, logic, and immense consequences on the opposing side speak for themselves.

Taking morals, spirituality, and religion out of the question as a whole, the point at which human life begins must be established. The Pro Choice Network argues that “Personhood at conception is a religious belief, not a provable biological fact.” However, there is considerable scientific evidence that combats that rather ambiguous, wishy-washy statement. The earliest cell formed at conception is referred to as the zygote, the fertilized egg. First of all, is it alive? Based on its capacity for metabolism, growth, reaction to stimuli, and reproduction, it can be scientifically classified as a living organism. Secondly, is it human? The Family Research Council argues that “the zygote is composed of human DNA and other human molecules, so its nature is undeniably human.” The third, and perhaps most debatable, question: is it not just human, but an organism, a human “being?” While it may seem like a matter of religious preference or a debate about the presence or acquisition of a soul, science presents a convincing argument on this issue. Scientists define an organism as “a complex structure of interdependent elements constituted to carry on the activities of life by separately-functioning but mutually dependant organs.” Immediately upon its formation, the zygote fulfills this definition by initiating a program of development that will continue through all the phases of its life from pre-birth to death. It begins forming organs and systems that are designed to “carry on the activities of life,” as the scientists detailed in their description. Entirely through the eye of scientific reason, an embryo can be proven to be alive, human, and decidedly a human being.

Under the US Law Code, section 1111, murder is defined as “the unlawful killing of a human being with malice aforethought.” With this significant scientific evidence presented in support of the embryo as a human being, how can it be exempt from this blunt definition? How can it remain unprotected by this explicit law? Mother Teresa said, “And if we can accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?” While morality is a matter of debate, there are certain principles that society has reached agreements on. If it is immoral and thus illegal to kill another human being that is outside of the womb, it should be no less immoral and illegal to kill a human being that is inside the womb. The pro-choice argument that “there is no scientific consensus as to when human life begins” and that “it is a matter of philosophic opinion or religious belief” discounts religion for its subjective nature while simultaneously feigning ignorance of considerable scientific evidence. Their support is almost entirely subjective and opinion based.

On the subject of rights of the unborn vs. rights of the mother, there is much dissent as well. The Pro Choice Action Network argues that “bearing a child alters a woman’s life more than anything else…being born is a gift, not a right.” If you want a true feminist perspective, take it from the original feminist, Susan B. Anthony, who said “No matter what the motive, love of ease, or a desire to save from suffering the unborn innocent, the woman is awfully guilty who commits the deed. It will burden her conscience in life, it will burden her soul in death.” While I don’t have a solution besides adoption for those women who abort children out of believed “necessity,” I simply can’t make a case in favor of those women who abort out of convenience. There is no consideration of the child in situations when they are merely unwanted, as opposed to unable to be cared for. Abortion is not birth control and by treating it as such, we are sadly deceiving ourselves.

If you are still adamant about the necessity and legality of abortion, I challenge you to think about what comes after. Do you think after a woman has an abortion, her life returns to normal and the consequences are erased? It is quite the opposite. A multitude of problems that cannot be dismissed follow women that have abortions- problems that I would argue highly outweigh the “benefits” of the practice. Upon watching the documentary Life After Abortion, I was moved to tears by the heart wrenching stories of women dealing with abortion and its effects. They told of their experience with pregnancy: the panic and the decision to abort. They told of the horrible clinic: the cold tables, the disinterested doctors, the dishonest nurses, the refusal to show the women the ultrasound so they wouldn’t change their mind after seeing and becoming emotionally attached to the ever-growing baby, as opposed to the “clump of cells” they claimed it to be. Worst of all, they detailed the horrible process of the abortion itself: a vacuum sucking the innocent life out of their womb, leaving horrible scars that could complicate later pregnancies, and sometimes even lead to hemorrhaging that almost killed one of the videoed women. The emotional and physical tolls that came after the abortion were shocking and hard to listen to. The women became depressed, turned to alcohol and drugs, became even more promiscuous, some even became suicidal. One woman, at the point when she wanted to have a child, was devastated to find out that the only children she could ever have she had aborted. Even without taking into account the rights of the unborn, I’m struggling to see the benefits that abortion provided the women in that documentary. Not only that, but it revealed the deceptive motives behind abortion clinics. Aside from intentionally not showing women their ultrasounds to keep from losing their business, many abortion clinics have performed pseudo-abortions on women who are not pregnant! This process is more of a money-grubbing business than a necessary service.

The women in that video were not alone. Silent No More Awareness is a campaign that aims to reach out to those who have been hurt by abortion as well as educate the public about the very real negative effects, emotional, physical, and spiritual, that abortion has had, and will have, on women. Hundreds of women march around holding signs that proclaim “I regret my abortion.” Hundreds of men hold signs that read “I regret my lost fatherhood.” We need to realize that abortion affects more than just the potential mother. It affects her especially, but also her entire family. If you won’t take it from someone who has no firsthand experience with it, take it from those who do, those who regret their decision and beg others to think before making their same mistake. The testimonies all tell of remorse and loss. “I was never told how I would feel afterwards: the tremendous shame that would stay with me for decades,” said Michelle from Indiana. Stephanie from Texas said “Abortion steals so much more than the precious, priceless life of your baby, a unique gift from God. It steals what could have been from them, from you, and your family.” That’s what gets me the most: what could have been. We are taking human lives into our own hands, something that was never ours to take.

Ronald Reagan once said, “I've noticed that everyone who is for abortion has already been born.” I find it telling that proponents of abortion find it absurd to even consider rights of the unborn simply because they are within a woman who can make her own decisions. The child is still a separate being even if it must live inside of its mother for a short time. Just imagine how different the lives of those around you would be if you had been aborted by your parents. Now think about all the lives that would be touched by those millions of babies that are aborted every year. We will never know what could have come of them. Abortion should not be tread on lightly, and until we see it for what it is, we continue to foster the gray areas of society and dilute ever-fading morality.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

 

"18 U.S.C. § 1111 : US Code - Section 1111: Murder." Findlaw. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2014. <http://codes.lp.findlaw.com/uscode/18/I/51/1111>.

"Abortion." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2014. <http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/abortion>.

"For Expecting Mothers: Deciding Whether Adoption Is the Right Choice." Healthywomen.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2014.

Life After Abortion. Dir. Barkley, Brian. Crown Entertainment, 2011. Film.

"Misconceptions About Abortion." THE PRO-CHOICE ACTION NETWORK. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014. <http://www.prochoiceactionnetwork-canada.org/abortioninfo/misconce.shtml>.

"Quotes About Abortion." (121 Quotes). N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Dec. 2014. <http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/abortion>.

Schwarzwalder, Rob. "Family Research Council." Family Research Council. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2014. <http://frc.org/arguments>.

The Silent No More Awareness Campaign. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2014. <http://www.silentnomoreawareness.org/>.

"Slideshow: Fetal Development Month by Month." Webmd.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2014. <http%253A%252F%252Fwww.webmd.com%252Fbaby%252Fss%252Fslideshow-fetal-development>.

"STAND FOR LIFE." : The Abortion "Sign" For The Deaf: A Two-Second Video Tells A Thousand Words. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Dec. 2014. <http://www.standforlife.net/2013/06/the-abortion-sign-for-deaf-picture.html>.

 

Speech-Leah Noble

It’s 3:15 and it has been a long day full of quiz taking, essay writing, and lecture listening. School is finally out for the day and what do you do? Many of you further tax your brain, whether that be doing your calc. homework or trying desperately to figure out how to do the physics web homework. For some of us, homework is pushed aside to make time for sports practice or some sort of volunteering activity. In between your rush to get everything done, you probably check snapchat, twitter, or Instagram, maybe even find time to post that selfie that you took at lunch. When you sit back and take time to think about your day, it becomes very obvious just how full our lives are of stuff that we have to get done in 24 hours. This constant feeling of “I have to get everything done” creates pressure that leads to stress, which we all know is not a pleasant feeling. There are always new studies being done that  you hear about on the news about how stress early in life affects you later on and how bad it is for you, but how do we combat this? Well, what I propose to you as a remedy is learning to play a musical instrument.

Not only does learning to play an instrument relieve stress, but it also has many positive cognitive and social effects.

A recent documentary by Dr. Anita Collins said, when you listen to music “fireworks go off in your brain.” It also established that the difference between listening to music and playing music is actually substantial, saying that when you play music different kinds of “fireworks go off in your brain”; fireworks that cannot be created by any other type of stimulation. Now you’re probably wondering why exactly do I want “fireworks” going off in my brain. Well, those “fireworks” activate almost every part of the brain, making the brain stronger and sharper, increasing memory capacity and concentration. Similar studies have also shown that in both children and adults, learning to play an instrument can increase your IQ by up to seven points.

In my hunt for information about the benefits of playing an instrument, I ran across a study that after numerous tests and surveys concluded that “the effects of music are much stronger than those of sports, theater, and dance.” Now this doesn’t mean I want you to give up dancing or playing sports or doing theater, but it does show just how important and beneficial creating music could be in your life now and in the future if you learn to play an instrument.

In addition to the cognitive benefits of playing an instrument, there are numerous social benefits also.  I won’t stand up here and tell you that learning to play an instrument is easy. For some it is, but for most it comes with challenges. But that’s the beauty of it; having to push through the difficulties and anger that making music can sometimes cause, gives you an enormous sense of achievement when you finally get it right. Everyone needs to feel that, especially when everywhere else, all you get is more and more pressure to do better, instead of being able to relish in your accomplishments. Plus, who cares if you mess up the first couple or hundreds of times? There aren’t any negative consequences for getting it wrong, which means there’s no pressure to get it right.

About 8 months ago, I picked up a guitar for the first time. I saw lots of people I knew were playing guitar so I decided to try it out, it looked interesting enough. When I first started playing it was a major struggle. I was frustrated because I couldn’t get my fingers to go where I wanted them to and make a noise that was somewhat pleasing to the ear at the same time, but I liked it and was continually drawn to it; always wanting more. I kept trying to get it right and I quickly figured out that that old saying “practice makes perfect” actually had some merit to it. I eventually got to a point where I could make the sounds that I wanted come out of my guitar. I can’t say that I have completely mastered guitar, I actually still have a lot to learn, but I am now able to pick up my guitar and use it to escape from the stress and hardships life may throw at me. I know now that this is why I didn’t give up on playing an instrument. And just like it did for me, playing an instrument for you can act as a release, a getaway from the increasing pressure and stress you encounter every day.

You’re probably wondering, “If my life is so busy, when am I going to have time to learn to play an instrument?” I can almost speak for all of us when I say that when there’s something that we really want to do, we make time to do it. Those 20 minutes you waste on social media could be time spent improving not only your cognitive ability but also the emotional and social aspects of your life.

You don’t have to become an internationally known musician, you don’t have to play in a band or orchestra, you don’t even have to take music lessons. All you have to do is decide that this is what you want for yourself.

Who knows, maybe it will help you forget about that impossible physics web homework problem.

 Works Cited

Alleyne, Richard. "Playing a Musical Instrument Makes You Brainier." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 27 Oct. 2009. Web. 11 Dec. 2014.

Hille, Adrian, and Jürgen Schupp. "How Learning a Musical Instrument Affects the Development of Skills." SOEPpapers (2013): 2-33. Web. 13 Dec. 2014.

How Playing An Instrument Benefits Your Brain. By Anita Collins. N.p., 2014. Web. 13 Dec. 2014.

Matthews, Michael. "18 Benefits of Playing a Musical Instrument." Effective Music Teaching. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.

Skoe, Erika, and Nina Kraus. "A Little Goes a Long Way: How the Adult Brain Is Shaped by Musical Training in Childhood." The Journal of Neuroscience (2012): 11507-1510. Web. 13 Dec. 2014.

Speech - Julia Wilson

Ronin Shimizu was a 12 year old boy from Folsom, California. Ronin loved cheerleading and was the only boy on his school’s cheerleading team. On December 3rd, 2014, Ronin committed suicide because he was harassed intensely by kids at his school.

Cases like Ronin’s are clear-cut examples of extreme bullying. But not all cases are so apparent. On a larger scale bullying is much, much more subtle than teasing and harassment. More subtle than the stereotypical jock vs. nerd “give me your lunch money” type deal. Bullying is exclusion. Purposefully leaving someone out because they’re different from you. It’s seeing someone sitting alone in a room full of people and pretending they’re not there. Bullying is acting like someone is lesser than you because of the color of their skin, the clothes on their back, or the things that they love. Bullying is whispering about somebody and stopping the minute they walk in the room, making it oh so clear to them who you were just talking about.

I’m sure that everyone in this room is guilty of being hurtful to somebody else at least once. Everyone has been a bully at some time in their life. Because the problem is, as humans, being mean is inevitable. It’s in our blood to think about ourselves more than others. At times it’s so easy to lash out at other people; like when you’re in the middle of a mood swing and the idea of being pleasant is so unfathomable. Or when you’re going through a tough time and can’t help but project your sad, angry feelings onto other people. Or if you’re around somebody that you just simply don’t like. But despite all of these reasons that make being mean seem excusable, we need to start learning, as individuals, that’s it’s not. Because small hurtful comments that seem benign can build up to be something serious.

Adam Lanza. Eric Harris. Dylan Klebold. These are the names of people who have committed unspeakable acts of mass murder through school shootings. There is a common characteristic that can be seen in all three of these men, and it’s that they were bullied or socially ostracized by their peers. Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that bullying causes people to shoot up schools. There are so many other factors that go into it, and they vary from case to case. However, 45 studies have shown that there is a correlation between bullying and acts of violence, and that victims of bullying are twice as likely to carry a weapon to school. Other studies have also shown that many people bullied as children develop long-term mental and emotional problems as adults.

But forget science for a moment and just think. Think about how much sense it makes that those who are treated poorly as youth would end up treating others poorly as adults. It’s a cycle. A public shooting is an extreme case, but it highlights the point that bullying can create unproductive, and sometimes detrimental members of society. Think of how much more pleasant our world would be if everyone were just a little nicer. Think of how Adam Lanza may have grown up differently if just a couple more people had been a friend to him.

Now, there are always going to be bad people in the world no matter what anybody does, that is an unfortunate truth. But if we as individuals worked just a little harder to be friendlier, we could improve the well being of our society as a whole. So how do we do that?

We do that through simple acts of kindness and making small changes in the way we relate to one another. By smiling at others instead of blindly walking past them. By including those who seem left out. By keeping our hurtful thoughts in our heads and not in the harmful hands of gossip. It’s easier said than done. And sometimes it may be uncomfortable. Sometimes it may seem impossible. But we have to try. Because our simple acts of kindness will make society kinder, and a kinder society means a decrease in problems like violence and bullying. If Ronin Shimizu had grown up in a kinder society who knows what amazing things he could have accomplished.

Works Cited

"12-year-old Folsom Boy Who Killed Himself Was Bullied for Being a Cheerleader." ABC7 Chicago. ABC7, 5 Dec. 2014. Web. 14 Dec. 2014.

Bully. Dir. Lee Hirsch. The Bully Project, 2011. Netflix.

Culp-Ressler, Tara. "If We Were Better At Preventing Bullying,

Could We Prevent More School Shootings?" ThinkProgress RSS. N.p., 11 June 2014. Web. 14 Dec. 2014.

History.com Staff. "Columbine High School Shootings." History.com. A&E Television Networks, 2009. Web. 11 Dec. 2014.

Stoller, Gary. "The Mystery of Adam Lanza, the Sandy Hook School Gunman." USA Today. Gannett, 26 Nov. 2013. Web. 13 Dec. 2014.

Zielinski, Sarah. "Bullying's Long-Term Effects Seen in Both the Bullied and the Bully." National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 12 May 2014. Web. 13 Dec. 2014.

Speech- Scott Street

Concussions: The Ugly Truth                                                                         Scott Street

            Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Logsdon: I have come here today to present a solution to an issue that we all know is an issue throughout the National Football League: Concussions. A concussion is “a traumatic brain injury that affects the way your brain functions.” Judging from that definition, you can infer that this is a serious matter. Lives are affected because of concussions, whether it’s in the short run or in the long run. The NFL has attempted to cut down on the number of concussions inflicted by instituting safety measures, yet the concussion rates have not declined since these regulations were implemented. So what can we do? And how can we help to decrease this number and improve the lives of the people who put their very lives in danger for our own entertainment?

            Junior Seau was a professional football player. He had 19 year tenure in the NFL with three different teams. 19 years is a long time for anyone to be playing in the brutal National Football League, and as a result, concussions will come into play in the life of a player. This was especially true for Seau. He suffered from CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy) immediately after he retired from football, and he suffered from this damaging brain disease for the rest of his life until he committed suicide about two years ago. His death was directly linked to this disease, and his death has prompted a drastic increase in safety protocol in the NFL. New policies, such as penalties in the game and fines outside of the game, have been implemented, but the numbers have not decreased as commissioner Roger Goodell had thought they would. According to The Washington Post, concussions in 2013 were down 13% from 2012, but bear in mind: The number of concussions remains astronomically high in the NFL, and a much larger drop is needed for an impact to be made. My proposition is for tackling to be prohibited completely and the NFL reverts to a flag football league. (Pause) Wait, do I hear Roger Goodell in the room? I’m totally kidding about that. All jokes aside, I believe more policies need to be implemented in order to help decrease the number of concussions. In addition to implementing new rules and regulations, I believe some new, safer equipment could be used. For example, I heard that the NFL was trying to get more protective helmets to be used in gameplay that reduce the impact of hits to the head. If everyone were to use these more protective helmets, along with more policies and rules regarding violent collisions during games, I believe the number of concussions could be cut into.

            Now, there’s only one thing about doing all this safety stuff, and that’s taking away from tradition of the game. I could not find a poll to back up this evidence, but I would say a rather large portion of people watch football partially for the violent collisions. Take that how you like, but I personally believe it says something about your typical American football fan. Anyways, if all of these supposed policies and new regulations were to be implemented, there is a good chance that the NFL could lose these viewers that enjoy seeing violent collisions. That would be a detrimental hit to ratings and revenue, which is why I believe the NFL has been reluctant to immediately implement these safety precautions. But, the way I look at it, if we are putting the very lives of players in danger, we should do whatever we need to do in order to ensure the safety of these players. Take, for instance, Jovan Belcher. He was a starting linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs and he seemed to have his life in order. He proved us wrong one early morning in Kansas City, where he killed his girlfriend at his home and then drove to the Chiefs’ parking lot and killed himself as well. Autopsies of his brain were done, and after they were completed, he showed signs of CTE, similarly to Junior Seau. This is just another example of how deadly concussions can be not only to the people directly affected by CTE, but also by people associated with a person with the disease, such as the life of Belcher’s girlfriend.

            Concussions will be a part of the NFL; there’s nothing anybody can do to completely eradicate the NFL of concussions. However, there are certain measures that could be taken that could assist in bringing the numbers down from what they have recently been. These measures would be difficult to implement all at once because of the public opinions of many people that watch football, as they would not approve of the league eventually leaning against heavy contact. But I strongly and firmly believe that if we are providing these people their jobs, lives, and incomes, we should also try to accommodate them in a way that would be proper for any other work environment. We wouldn’t want to put a businessman to work in an office and not give him a computer to work on; that would be rather unproductive. The same thing goes with the NFL. If we cannot provide adequate work conditions, then eventually people will stop applying. As a matter of fact, this is already happening. According to an NBC News/ Wall Street Journal poll, 40% of Americans would rather their child play another sport other than football due to the risk of concussions. This is a massive increase from before, as far less parents would have said the same thing previously. At this rate, there will be drastic decreases in the number of kids who grow up playing the game. If regulations are not implemented, the league could be in danger of losing the talent that it is so perceived to have. If we follow my proposition, we could not only help cure the issue of concussions in the NFL, but we could also save the NFL as well.

Works cited

1. "Concussion." Definition. Mayo Clinic. Web. 14 Dec. 2014. <http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/concussion/basics/definition/con-20019272>.

2. Frontline: League of Denial: The NFL's Concussion Crisis. PBS, 2013. Film.

3. Holloway, Lynette. "NFL Player Jovan Belcher’s Body Exhumed for Brain Exam." The Root, 15 Dec. 2013. Web. 14 Dec. 2014. <http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2013/12/nfl_player_jovan_belcher_s_body_exhumed_for_brain_exam.html>.

4.  "Number of Concussions down 13 Percent This Season, According to NFL Injury Data." Washington Post. The Washington Post. Web. 14 Dec. 2014. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/football-insider/wp/2014/01/30/number-of-concussions-down-13-percent-this-season-according-to-nfl-injury-data/>.

Speech- McKenna Elliott

            Cigarettes contain over 4,000 dangerous chemicals, including 43 known cancer-causing compounds, and causes around 500,000 American deaths annually, yet are still legal. Marijuana has less than ten percent of that amount of chemicals, many of which are natural, 61 of which are unique to the cannabis plant, and has caused zero deaths, yet it is still illegal. Does that seem fair to you? Marijuana was legal at one point in American history, and was only made illegal due to many factors not related to the drug itself. After the Mexican Revolution of 1910, many Mexican immigrants were fleeing to the United States, and many Americans feared them. When the Mexicans introduced using marijuana for recreational purposes, people had a tendency to associate their fear of Mexicans with the use of marijuana, giving them a misconception of the drug, leading to the illegalization of it and the controversy that still exists today. If there are so many proven mind, body, and economical benefits, what is holding back American citizens and politicians from legalizing it?

The simple facts about marijuana reveal that it is harmless, and professedly beneficial to the health of one’s body and mind. THC’s interaction with the neurotransmitter called anandamide in the brain, which creates the happy, relaxed, and sleepy euphoria experienced by those ingesting or inhaling marijuana. There are also cannabinoid receptors in the endocannabinoid system, located near the amygdala, and the receptors regulate pain and appetite, so therefore when they are activated by cannabis, they decrease and regulate anxiety. During a high, one’s creativity is spurred through the release of dopamine in the brain, which gives you the serene, euphoric feeling associated with marijuana, and decreases your inhibitions and “inner-editor” so that when a person is drawing, writing, or doing anything of that sort while high, their thoughts move freely. Studies have also shown that the use of marijuana increases hyper-priming, which is when a person is able to make connections between things that are seemingly unrelated.  Overall, marijuana stimulates the brain and body in a positive manner. It has a very low addiction level, if any, and if one were to be addicted to marijuana, it is seemingly impossible to overdose because researchers have found that one would need to smoke around 20,000 blunts to overdose. In comparison to alcohol, it causes much less physical damage to the body as well as a person’s surroundings, so it is therefore safer. Compared to other illegal drugs, it is much safer to the person and society because a person who is smoking marijuana likely does not feel a strong desire to go rob a bank or shoot someone, but rather to lie on the couch with a bag of chips. Keeping marijuana illegal is like keeping the freedom of our mind, body, and soul illegal. Does that seem fair to you?

Those who oppose the legalization of marijuana are usually against it due to common misconceptions about the short-term and long-term effects. The reality is that marijuana has very, very few, if any health risks. It’s actually been proven to have various health benefits. Journal of the American Medical Association tested the lung function capabilities of 5,115 young adults over the course of 20 years, and the study found that Tobacco Smokers lost lung function over time, but marijuana smokers actually showed an increase in their lung capacity. This begs the question of why citizens everywhere are legally allowed to self-medicate themselves with something as detrimental to their health as cigarettes and/or alcohol, but a safer, more benefitting alternative is illegal.

Yes, marijuana is legal in some states, but other than just a couple, it is strictly for medical purposes. Those who are permitted to use it medically have not reported any major problems using the drug, so why not open it up to the public? Some people spend thousands of dollars on therapy, psychologists, prescriptions, and many other resources for things that could easily and more economically treated with a joint. A prime example is my sister who has had problems with anger, anxiety, depression, attention span, along with other things, her entire life. She has been prescribed a wide variety of medicines and coping techniques that never seemed to work because the only thing that has ever been able to soothe her body and mind of her abnormalities is marijuana. She has been living her life unable to get the medication she needs because it is illegal, all while in the presence of my grandmother dying a slow death at our home for nine years due to emphysema from smoking cigarettes, which she thought harmless due to their legality, for 45 years. I have seen the mental and physical oppression firsthand and it is not an enchanting sight. So tell me, does that seem fair to you?

Marijuana legalization has the potential to reduce healthcare costs for millions of Americans because they will be able to freely  and more cheaply medicate themselves with what works for them, rather than wasting their own money or government money on other resources. It has been proven that marijuana can treat glaucoma by reducing the amount of pressure in the eye and can also slow the progression of Alzheimer’s, which currently affects around 5 million Americans. It has also been shown that it can help treat veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and even treat life-threatening seizures.

Yes, stoned driving is a potential danger to the marijuana user as well as those around them, but if marijuana were legalized, it could be treated like alcohol in the sense that if a person is pulled over and marijuana is in their system, they are issued a DUI. Legalization of marijuana could increase chances of drugs falling into the hands of minors, but the simple solution to that would be to have a legal marijuana use age, just like we have a legal drinking age. It would not keep the drug out of the hands of minors totally, but as much as the government and other organizations try, is alcohol really kept out of the hands of kids either?

             The facts are all there, marijuana is less harmful than many things which are legal in our country, and is even more beneficial to our health and well-being than those things, such as alcohol and cigarettes. It is not as detrimental to a person as other illegal drugs like meth, cocaine, and heroin, so therefore should not be classified into the same category as them when dealing with law and justice, and should be legalized. By keeping marijuana illegal, the government is oppressing our health, creativity, and even our freedom. Does that seem fair to you?

 

Works Cited

Easter, Brian. "The Science Behind Cannabis and Creativity." The Nebo Blog Interactive Marketing Design Ramblings. Nebo Agency, 30 Nov. 2012. Web. 13 Dec. 2014.

Loria, Jennifer Welsh and Kevin. "23 Health Benefits Of Marijuana." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 20 Apr. 2014. Web. 11 Dec. 2014.

Ray, Oakley. "What Chemicals Are in Marijuana and Its Byproducts? - Medical Marijuana - ProCon.org." ProConorg Headlines. Procon, 8 July 2009. Web. 14 Dec. 2014.

Tilley, Dylan. “Marijuana: A Chronic History.” 2014. The History Channel website. Dec 14 2014, 1:32 http://www.history.com/videos/marijuana-a-chronic-history.