Abortion

Abortion

Women of all ages will go to extremes to get a fetus out of them. It is controversial issue today. 

                                   CYBER BULLYING

Google / China Conflict

In 2005 Google China was launched. That might seem normal, just Google opening a new branch overseas, but China was a special case for two reasons. First, China has 400 million internet users, (The U.S.A. has a population of around 314 million people, total.) so Google wanted a slice of the market share there. Second, China has very strict internet censorship laws that conflict with Google's policy of freedom of information.

// Video here

The Chinese government has justified it's internet censorship policy, also known as "The Great Firewall of China", as protecting minors from pornography and other explicit content, but it also blocks out content that would the Chinese government would consider subversive, such as the Tienanmen square protests or Tibet separatism.

When Google launched Google China, they did censor their search results in accordance with Chinese law, along . Google only released Blogger and Gmail in China after the Chinese government agreed that they would not be able to view the confidential information of their clients.

In January 2010 a hacking attempt was made on the Gmail accounts of Chinese human rights activists. The attempt was only partiality successful, as only the subject lines of some emails were taken. Google responded by blaming the Chinese government for the hacking attempt, demanding they change their censorship policy, and briefly gave uncensored search results before switching back to censored search results without explanation. The Chinese government denied any involvement to the hacking attempts, and refused to change any policies.

Arctic Ownership

Artic Ownership

Angus Bryan

In late 2007, a Russian expedition team dove to the innermost reaches of the Arctic Seabed and drove their flag into the ocean floor. Although the mission was symbolic in nature, it is this action that sparks the international debate over the ownership of the Arctic and its valuable resources. What was originally overlooked has now become a spotlight in the eyes of many countries, including Canada and the United States of America. The Arctic now represents a valuable asset that has large stocks in petroleum and natural gas. While some may think that the Arctic is just another piece of land to be bargained and sought after, I believe that the Arctic is an invaluable part of both the environment and our society today.
The Arctic region is a large continent located at the northern-most part of the world. Continental shelves connect it to such northern countries as Russia, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, and the United States, who are using this information to support their claim on the Arctic. On the outside, the Arctic seems desolate and inhospitable, with temperatures reaching −60 °C and glaciers covering most of the surface. Underground, however, lies the riches that have attracted nations throughout the world. Oil and gas are a prime resource that runs people's day-to-day lives. They are a profound part of our economy. When the first surveys of the Arctic were complete, companies such as BP and Shell became convinced that the Arctic held unimaginable amounts of natural resources, beginning their campaign to stop and nothing to acquire them. Many other companies from countries such as Russia, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Canada are also prospecting the Arctic, while its future still lies in doubt.

There are many cons and pros to the question of mining resources in the Arctic. Some support the good of the people, while others protect the environment, peace, and the very basis of our morals and ethics. Although the extraction of valuable resources would benefit the economy, the damage to the wildlife and the environment would be catastrophic. The already unstable population of polar bears, who have made the Arctic their home, would spiral out of control and start a chain reaction that would collapse the entire eco-system in the Arctic region. The drilling into the ice may also cause the ice caps to break down faster than they already are, speeding up the effects of climate change and global warming. On the other hand, other researching done suggests that taking advantage of the Arctic's resources could have an effect on you and your government for the better. Billions of barrels of oil would make refuelling your car that much cheaper, and the vast amounts of natural gas would decrease the cost of heating.
The Arctic itself is not only an invaluable piece of land, but a part of our society and culture as well. The destruction of such a monumental symbol in our everyday life would not only affect us, but our later generations as well. The preservation of the environment should be more important than the success of industry and the economy. Even despite the scientific evidence, the chaos that would precede the negotiations of ownership would arise conflict between nations, and put stress on foreign relations. The decision weather to protect the Arctic or surrender it to a single country will be a monumental shift in power that will change the world forever.
I believe that the Arctic should not belong to any one nation, nor that it should be shared between them. The Arctic should be protected as it is a part of our culture and our future generations, as well as the profound impact that the desolation of it would have on climate change and the environment. The possible gain that could be made from extracting the resources would be counter-productive against the progress humanity has made in protecting the environment and recognizing the damage we are doing to it. I hope others will also see that destroying the Arctic would be a major mistake, no matter who would be doing it. The Arctic is worth far more that the resources it holds than to the people to whom it affects.

Resources

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic www.google.ca/images http://infotrac.galegroup.com/

 

oil prices

First Blog Post Assignment

Blog Post on a Global Issue of Your Choice

Write a short blog post on an issue of your choice. The blog McIntyre’s Social AP 10 Class has been shared with you and you can access it through school zone and Google Apps.  The address is social10ap.blogspot.com. 

Research your issue.  Use the databases Global Issues in Context, Discovering Collection and History in Context from Strathcona High School library to begin with. 

When writing your post keep the following things in mind. 

How is your issue global in nature?  Who is impacted?  What is the impact?  (Go beyond the ethnocentric view)?  When did the issue start? How did it become a global issue?  Why should we care?

After you complete your post, you will then create an Animoto video highlighting the issue. Go to Animoto.com and create an account.  Use the code a4eodeed547d4 when you create your account.  This will give you an educator's account that is not limited to 30 seconds.  This video will be embedded into your post.

To embed the video, open the Animoto video, click on the share button in the upper right hand corner, select embed code, copy.  Then go the page you want to embed the video.  Select HTML tab, go the exact place you want your video, click and select paste.  Make sure you hit update, otherwise the video will not appear.

You will marked as follows:

Exploration and research of the issue  /10

How well the video communicates the global issue  /10

Thought and Detail of Post  /10