Internet Access

We live in an age in which we use the Internet every day. We use it to check the weather in the morning, to turn in our homework and to connect with family members and friends all over the world. It is clear that we college students really on Internet access, and we all know we go through a bad day when we have no Internet, or even a week signal. Kosta Grammatis is a former Avionics system engineer who is now bringing Internet access to rural cities, and villages that have never had Internet in their entire lives.
 Kosta Grammatis wants us to know that there are 5 billions people in the world without any Internet access, and he has now put it to himself, to bring Internet access to all these people. In 2009 Kosta Grammatis launched a program in which he was succsfully able to connect Internet in a Peruvian village that had never had Internet. This year Kosta Grammatis is launching a new project in which he plans to expand Internet access in developing countries, while at the same time providing low cost Internet access in already developed countries.
This past April 4^th Kosta Grammatis promoted no Internet day, in which he hoped to raise awareness on not having any Internet, and how these 5 billion people go through the same thing everyday. I believe that what Kosta has being doing for the past years is amazing projects in which he can now help billions of people have the same accessibility to internet as us. 
http://www.good.is/posts/good-100-meet-kosta-grammatis-bringing-the-internet-to-the-ends-of-the-earth/

Backward moving forward

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/18/montana-senate-bill-107_n_3113738.html?utm_hp_ref=politics

Even backward states are taking forward strides in the progressive gay rights movement. As this article states, however, only on paper is such a motion notable. In no way does removing a law that "criminalized" gay sex and equated it with "bestiality" really benefit the gay community aside from striking saving Montana some face.

The gay community still has major obstacles to overcome. This is easily apparent in our very own campus newspaper, wherein a student wrote an article honeyed with idealistic language and soured with hateful malice toward the gay community. The author stated, "As a Catholic and Marianist institution, it is tremendously surprising that St. Mary's is home to such an overwhelming number of students who avidly support gay marriage. Even more astounding, however, is the number of students both Christian and non-Christian, who have passively remained silent in this debate of ethics, morality and logic."

She too equates homosexuality with immorality, saying, "Christians should not advocate the practice of homosexual relations any more than any the act of lying, stealing, or murder." In this, it is clear that the elimination of this law does not mean the rights of the gay community are secured. Fortunately, our campus hosts more progressive thinkers, as another writer for The Rattler wrote, "the gay rights movement is about the rights of an individual, a facet of freedom Americans should strive for and pride themselves on. We are working against our own ideals if we deny homosexuals their rights."

Thus, although the world is generally progressing, those who speak for the underprivileged must not let up. For every step back, we must take one plus forward.

More Children in Greece are Going Hungry

This article makes notice of the economic crisis in Greece. The Greek economy is greatly falling and their is currently a 27% unemployment rate!!! People are getting laid off and no new jobs are being created. It is always sad to hear about children going to school hungry and even more-so when the children are asking their classmates for their leftovers at lunch. In Greece children must take money everyday to buy what they want for lunch because the government does not pay their lunch for them like we do here. Is the crisis in Greece something we should be concerned about? YES!!! This could be us in a decade. Our economy is not exactly getting better. We need to help others that way if we are ever in a crisis such as theirs they will not have to think twice about helping us out. We could easily donate to an organization in Greece that could help solve this issue.161 I know volunteering  for this cause would be a difficult task to ask of people but the least we could do is support by giving what we can. It would even be a great idea if fundraisers were held to earn money for the families in Greece that are unemployed or economically disadvantaged. Most of us would agree that our economy is bad but just imagine an economy where 27% of the population is unemployed. It is usually the little things that we do which can make a major impact in the lives of others.

The Progression Against HIV/AIDs

       For some of you that may not know, HIV/AIDs has taken a strong positive turn in regard to cure and prevention these past months. There have even been cases in which the immune system attacking disease has been cured in some individuals. In the article, “Fighting HIV the MTV Way,” by Georgia Arnold, these accomplishments are applauded. Arnold is quick to remind, however, that the fight is not over. Even though HIV/AIDs has been greatly reduced globally, the number of cases are still extremely high with the younger individuals of the population. This can be traced primarily to a lack of proper sexual education. The approach Arnold suggests to take, which she calls, “the MTV Way,” paints a vivid picture of a combined effort in the media, medical world, and education system in order to give proper insight on the disease. Arnold fears that the great advancements in medicine which have reduced HIV cases are causing people to let their guard down in the effort to stop this deadly condition. In fact, she believes this is the time to strike the disease while it’s down. With a boom in spread awareness, she believes that this disease can eventually be eradicated from the planet. I enjoyed this article because its sole purpose is to keep awareness where awareness is needed. Just because a problem is reduced or has been made easier to handle, does not mean that it is no longer a problem. We as a community should always strive to make the efforts to not only decrease, but eliminate the issues that affect us so greatly. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/georgia-arnold/mtv-staying-alive-foundation_b_3103232.html?utm_hp_ref=impact

More than just posting

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Lately it seems like there has been an increase in tragedies happening in the US caused by either accidents or disturbed people with weapons. Whenever tragedy strikes I’ve noticed many people go to a social media as an outlet to talk about their feeling toward what has been happening but with the recent explosion in West, Tx and the shooting in MIT I found myself to be a little annoyed by the comments.

Although it is not bad to show our respect to those who lost their lives and support to those that were personally affected by it, I don’t see how a picture or a tweet can have thousands of likes YET no one is actually going out and doing anything about it. I have seen a total of two people mention going out to help out, one went to donate blood and the other was a former police agent who went to see if he could be of service. On my Facebook I have people from all over and even the people from Boston are just commenting about how terrible the situation is but not really using the situation to do something productive.

The explosion in West has been the closest thing to us so I understand why I have not seen more people trying to get involved but once it happen the report said 100 people were expected to be hospitalized and 70+ buildings were leveled I don’t understand why our first reaction was “let me send prayers through social media” rather than “what can I do to help these civilians”. I personally cannot donate blood due to my iron deficiency, however for times like these I have what I call my “donation box”, which I constantly fill. Basically what I do is I collect random things that I do not need (or things that people bought for me that I didn’t like) in a box and it ranges between a lot of different items along with clothes that I rarely use and I would be willing to give away and when something like this happens I get what these specific people are in need of and I send it in. When someone loses everything anything that you can give him or her will really make a difference so I encourage you guys to do the same and start a little box of your own. I am more than positive sending five or six items to someone (as insignificant as you think they may be) will mean so much more to them than having 1000+ likes on a picture sending them prayers. Keep them and their families in your prayers anyway but I just think it’s time to get up from behind the computer and actually give back.
 useful links :)
 To donate blood
Ways to directly help West in San Antonio

Residents Complain about Catholic Worker House

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/news_columnists/gilbert_garcia/article/Catholic-Worker-House-targeted-by-city-neighbors-4440130.php

The Catholic Worker House, a charitable group who provides meals, clothing, and hygiene products to the homeless are being viewed as a major problem by the community’s residents. There have been four complaints about this service because CWH does not have a certificate to serve food from an unlicensed location.

Apparently, the residents say that the group reheats food donated by restaurants and hands them out to the homeless. According to the law, you cannot warm up food if you do not have a license. The residents claim that they are not worried about the quality of the food but about the possibility of the food getting people sick

Personally, I find this conflicting. I could not believe neighbors were filing complaints against CWH for reheating food in croc pots. I think that this group is doing whatever they can to help the homeless and as long as they are not feeding them rotten food I do not see a problem. I understand that complainers do not want anyone to get sick, but at the same time who else is going to feed the homeless? The article said that city officials tried to direct the homeless to Haven for Hope but this dramatically increased CWH’s intake of clients. Hopefully this gets settled and the homeless get fed. 

Church is Helping the Homeless

http://www.baptisttimes.co.uk/index.php/national-news/758-church-night-shelters-an-update-

Homeless people are those who don’t have adequate housing. Millions of people in our country are suffering from this issue. This is not something new. It is a social problem that most of the population is aware about. It’s time that we take action in order to solve this issue.

Imagine it’s December around the holidays. You are spending quality time with your family inside a warm and toasty home. Outside of the window, you can see snow slowly beginning to fall. Your mom brings out her famous hot chocolate, while relaxing on the couch. Now you have to think that everyone isn’t as lucky as you. What about those people who live out in the streets? How are they protecting themselves from the freezing weather?

I strongly believe that this country has many people who are narcissistic. All they care about is themselves. We need to drastically make a change. This is why I am very proud and content with what churches are doing. Churches are beginning to open their doors during the winter for the people who live out in the streets. Being out in freezing temperatures is very dangerous. There are very high chances that homeless people can suffer from hyperthermia. Not only are they providing a place where to stay for the night, but also a hot meal. For some of those people, that’s the only meal they will have for the entire day. The Church should continue their commitment to them. I’m pretty certain that they appreciate it. 

Creating climate justice

“The Dublin conference on hunger, nutrition and climate justice, currently underway, aims to inspire innovative thinking and solutions, by bringing together global development leaders with people at the receiving end of the effects of climate change and food and nutrition insecurity”- IDS

            When do we really worry about our environment? Do we contribute enough to have a better environment? When we think about the environment we think about pollution, the 3 R’s Reuse, reduce and recycle, and all those protests and campaigns that have happened in order to have a better world, to protect Earth and to have a healthier environment. But do we really care? This article inspired me to think more about what I do to contribute to the environment. Yes, we try to engage in activities that help our community such as homelessness, hunger, poverty, and many others; but what about the environment, what about OUR environment?

            Climate changes affect us and we tend to ignore the fact that we depend on Earth and its resources. The problem here is that most of us have no idea on how climate changes and the harms to our environment affect us. Let’s think about it for a second. If we face severe climate changes and damage to the environment, how are we going to combat hunger if agriculture will be affected by these climate changes and therefore there will be no way of producing goods such as fruits and vegetables? Climate changes issue are put aside and separate from other issues that then lead us to ignore this issue completely. If we include climate changes into our other many issues then we can start by solving that one, or at least try to solve it because if we do not have a safe, clean and healthy environment then climate changes will often occur leading to disasters, leading to people with no homes, no resources, and leaving us with nothing.

            It is important that we address this issue soon and efficiently and we as a society should be more caring towards our environment. We need to better understand the ways we can help save our environment. The lack of support and knowledge about this issue is what will affect us in the long run. Getting informed and involved might be the key to a better environment, to a better Earth. The Dublin conference is really trying to show that putting this issue separate from other issues is not helping. It is rather harming us more and in the long run the damage can be irreparable.

Here is the link:

http://www.ids.ac.uk/news/creating-climate-justice-three-challenges

            

Kill terrorism

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Editorial/2013/Apr-17/213990-kill-terrorism.ashx#axzz2Qg0tAtJx



In the year 2001 the United States stated that any terrorism attack it is declaring war. The attack that hit on Boston this monday ,were an act of weak terror that in a sense is a sign of war. 

They don't know yet who was behind the attack but they predict it was a Muslim the one responsible of it. But they don't actually know why would a Muslim be behind this attack. 

Since the first Israeli and arab war, the Palestine honed their skills at targeted terrorism and the middle east has suffered a lot in the hands of terrorists. 

The Unites States has to be extra vigilant with this terrorist attacks since then because in the Middle East terrorism replace how governments work. 

The FBI is doing everything in their power to find out who was behind this attack that left more than 3 dead people and over 200 victims of the attack.

It is a good thing for the US to find out who is behind this attack but at the same time it could be very dangerous to get to the bottom of it. With all the political conflict going on in the Middle East and in North Korea and South Korea, a war can develop and it would affect the US a big deal.
Everyone is affected by these attack in Boston because we don't know what is happening next. This is a big issue because if this attack develops into a war or an attempt of a war, all of the people residing in the United States will be affected by it and not only them but all the people around the world that depend on the US. 

'Boston will overcome,' mayor vows amid bombing investigation

How could anyone be so evil as to plant a bomb that would murder an 8-year-old child, rip the legs off parents and devastate a celebration of athletics that is pure joy. These were murders that wrench the soul.
Monday's terror attack on the Boston Marathon killed an 8-year-old boy watching with his family, a 29-year-old woman loved by her family and friends, and one other person. More than 180 others were wounded, many losing limbs as a result of horrific twin blasts near the race's finish line, in the heart of the city. Its amazing how people now-a-day are making all these terrorist acts like a habit and constantly doing it. 

 I don't know what's more sad, the fact that this tragedy happened or the fact that there is marathon runners twice my age that could run circles around me.I wish all those who were injured a speedy recovery and those who lost limbs to look on the bright side of life. For that is the best you can do in a terrible situation.

I hope we find the people/group/organization behind this pointless crime and bring them to justice. We need this 

http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/16/us/boston-marathon-explosions/index.html?hpt=ju_c1

Jay Z and Beyonce in Cube - Rubio disapproves

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/marco-rubio-jay-z-cuba-154055155--politics.html

Jay Z heading to Cuba; I have mixed feelings about this.  In part, I don’t think we should have restrictions against Cuba, in our on-going struggle against their regime nothing good has been produced.  Our conflict with them is out dated.  In this article Rubio criticizes Jay Z and his wife Beyonce for going to Cube and for wearing Che Guevara clothing.  Yes, Che Guevara was a so called “murderer” but it was also war.  For all we know if we had not interfered with their way of government things would turn out fine.  In the same way the US takes the stance that the Palestinians need to forgive the Jews for the wrong done to them we need to let go of our issues with Cuba.  I do not agree with the ways of Castro or Guevara but this being dully noted I do not believe their actions to be those of greed, I think that at the time they believed what they were doing was the correct action.  I believe that their public persception was hijacked by our fear of communism and our issues with the USSR at the time.  We say that the regime is oppressing its people, but it is also the US oppressing the people of Cuba because of our policies.  Even within communist countries that are successful there is a cycle or process that leads naturally leads to some capitalism we only need to look at China and Russia to see examples of this.  Not to say that their way is perfect but neither is ours.  

The Benefit of a Book

http://www.resilience.org/stories/2012-11-01/review-imagining-systemic-change

This article is one of my favorites. In the class, we have done an excellent of showcasing the need to change from ways that can hinder further progression as a society. However, this article shows that at least a single author has gone as far as to write a book showing the ways of change and just how much importance it contains.  Bruce Nixon, author of, “A Better World is Possible,“ focuses almost as a guide as to how we can focus and bring about improvements in a collective effort by people that have the ability to lead a revolution that is much needed. As morally intriguing as such a work can be to the audience, Nixon also portrays the unfortunate truths regarding the misinformation we are being told by CEO’s, companies and government officials. This is an issue that I am actually researching on my own time, hence my immediate interest in this article and book in general. Nixon then goes on to discuss the importance of smaller collective groups that advocate improvements in such a flawed system that can ultimately look to bring justice on a much larger scale. This is the criteria of the book that interests me the most. It does an excellent job of depicting the importance of groups for a common good that manifests its ideals into fixing the system. This article is a great overview of Bruce Nixon’s book along with highlighting all of the main aspects that can extent past the boundaries of its covers.

 

MAKING A DIFFERENCE

 

 

 

http://www.southtexasblood.org/Home/Blood/FAQ.aspx

 

Have you ever felt like you are living life daily

and going through it,

but doing it and feeling like you are not making any kind of difference in the world?

I think we all feel this sometime in our life, but I found a way where you can make a       huge difference!

Have you ever donated blood?

 

Why it is important;                                                                       

-one pint of blood can save three lives

-every 2 seconds someone needs a blood transfusion

-over 5 million people need blood yearly

-less than 38% of people are actually eligible to give blood

-this is one commodity that cannot be manufactured

-platelets from the blood only have a 5 day shelf-life

 

What are the requirements;

-must be healthy when donating blood, can't even have a cold

-must be over 17 yrs old (or 16 in certain states, and must have parental permission)

-must weigh at least 110 pounds

 

How often can you donate;

-blood donors, every 56 days

-platelet donors, every 7 days, but no more than 24 times yearly

-plasma donors, every 28 days

 

How to prepare for donating;

-drink plenty of fluids on the day of your donation

-wear comfortable clothes and loose sleeves that can be rolled up past the elbow

-bring list of medications you are taking

-bring an ID                                                                                      

 

Do's/Don'ts after donating;

-drink plenty of fluids afterwards

-avoid heavy lifting or exercise

-eat properly and try to include foods with high iron content

 

Contact information;

-American Red Cross

1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767)

 

            South Texas Blood & Tissue Center

6211 IH-10 West

San Antonio, TX 78201

Phone: (210) 731-5555

Toll Free: (800) 292-5534

donoreligibility@bloodntissue.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                                       NOW,

FEEL GOOD THAT YOU DID SOMETHING IMPORTANT

AND

YOU MADE A DIFFERENCE IN SOMEONE'S LIFE THAT DAY!!

                 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Citizen Journalism #civicengagement

!!!Article!!!

We live in a society where a lot of our communication has moved on the online world. With journalism dealing with a transition to a digital format there have been new additions to the structure such as blogging. Journalism is a way we see and become knowledgeable of what is going on in our communities and ideally it is a component of civic engagement on the citizen level. After all, the news close to home usually hits home when someone who can recognize the community where a newsworthy event occurs covers it. 


This article discusses how citizen journalism is becoming highly important and the gravity these stories hold due to a personal perspective. In the other side of the world, we can become aware of problems that occur on a daily basis such as Adele Raemer's story. Here we can have access to a woman's story of fear and frustration from rocket attacks due to the tension Palestine and Israel have. Not only can we relate to her fear but also through her story we can address the issue in a different manner. Here in the US we don't have the fear of rocket attacks from the other side of town and we should engage in assisting that problem in some form even though we aren't related to the person, as a global community we are to be hold responsible. At least, in my opinion. 


As college students we tend to forget that we can rely on one another to hear what's going on in this university and through citizen journalism we find out the majority of our on campus issue. The rattler does a great job of giving students an opportunity to pitch their stories and write them for exposure on an issue they believe should be known. This relates to civic engagement because journalism is a powerful object that can be used for good in addressing an issue and solving it, but at the same time with corporations holding the majority of what stories are published it could be negative with what they want us to read. Citizen journalism gives a voice to those that want to be heard and we all have a voice.