Monday
There were some interesting stories in today’s issue of the NY Times, but mostly it was just more about the financial stimulus package. I get it already. The most interesting thing to me though was the story of how Germany, after a few high-profile movies have been shot there recently, has been trying to become a bigger player in the movie-making industry. They talk of how Germany is trying to gather steam in creating more and more studios but has recently been denied by political officials. They talk of how many movies have been there recently and the type of money and attention it has brought to the country and it’s culture.
Tuesday
In all the stories that I read in today’s NY Times, the two I found most interesting were the one about General Motor’s trying to cut health care and the innovative medical methods used by football players in the Super Bowl. The General Motors one was interesting simply because I am still at a loss as to how they are in such dire need of money. How did this happen? It’s sad to see such a big, U.S. born and bred company struggle so mightily. The other article I found interesting was how two of the best players on the Steelers used their own blood as a regenerative technique in their bodies so that they could play in the Super Bowl. Quite a risky gamble, and quite a big reward.
Wednesday
As much as I found interesting today in the NY Times, I was utterly disgusted by the front page. Well, what’s going on in the world? A huge economic deficit, youth Medicare problems and a war that has gone on too long. And yet, what do we get on the front page? A picture of Alex Rodriguez’s teammates supporting him as he talked to the press for the first time since admitting to using steroids. I say now, is this REALLY as big a deal as any of the other issues on the front page, or for that matter, most of the pages? No, of course not. It truly hurt me to see that.
Thursday
How in the world does this stimulus package keep having new information come out on it every single day? Every newspaper we’ve read so far has had some mention of it on the front page! It’s crazy. I do have to say though that it was a nice tie-in with the front page picture, unlike the disgusting display in yesterday’s paper. A nice picture with a caption explaining how this grandson and grandmother now make a lower monthly payment on their house, right next to the story on the stimulus package. It helped to heal the wounds from yesterday a bit.
Friday, February 20, 2009
Friday, February 13, 2009
Week 2 Reading Blog
Monday:
Today had some interesting stuff, including the peanut plant problems and an interesting article on some colleges that are offering free tuition if you are accepted. In a time where the front page of the paper says that the bailout plan is going to partially rely on private funds, it’s good to see some people taking a stand and rewarding people and helping less fortunate families economically. If only we could get UNH to do some of the same…
Tuesday:
Today kind of irked me a bit. I am sports fan through and through, but seeing how Alex Rodriguez tested positive for steroids on the front page of the New York Times kind of put me off a bit. It is a sport! And you know what was below it? The elections in Iraq, something that could significantly help to end the war. But no, steroids in baseball (which weren’t even illegal in the game then by the way) are the bigger story to the editors. Come on! I had a little more faith in the NY times that the most important things in the world would be in the forefront.
Wednesday:
This edition of the NY times had quite some interesting stuff in it, but by far the most interesting to me was the government bailout plan. I had hardly realizes that $3.5 trillion dollars would be put into the economy. That is unbelievable. What is even more unbelievable is how much, or rather how little, is actually coming from the bailout fund. Only $350 billion is coming from it, which, while quite a lot of money, now pales quite badly in comparison to how much would be put back into it. Also, quite oddly to me, Wall Street reacted with a downturn. Really? More money means less money? Oh, how little I know about it.
Thursday:
Today’s paper wasn’t as interesting to me as it has been throughout the week, but there were a couple things that I found intriguing, especially internationally. There were a couple stories, one about a new prime minister in Zimbabwe and the other about a warrant going out for the arrest of the president of Sudan. The Zimbabwe one interested me because it told of how the old prime minister had to help swear in the new one and that they are rivals of one another. The other was interesting to me because well, it was about their president getting arrested! Also, it talked of the varying implications of such an action, something that could prove disastrous for Sudan if done incorrectly.
Today had some interesting stuff, including the peanut plant problems and an interesting article on some colleges that are offering free tuition if you are accepted. In a time where the front page of the paper says that the bailout plan is going to partially rely on private funds, it’s good to see some people taking a stand and rewarding people and helping less fortunate families economically. If only we could get UNH to do some of the same…
Tuesday:
Today kind of irked me a bit. I am sports fan through and through, but seeing how Alex Rodriguez tested positive for steroids on the front page of the New York Times kind of put me off a bit. It is a sport! And you know what was below it? The elections in Iraq, something that could significantly help to end the war. But no, steroids in baseball (which weren’t even illegal in the game then by the way) are the bigger story to the editors. Come on! I had a little more faith in the NY times that the most important things in the world would be in the forefront.
Wednesday:
This edition of the NY times had quite some interesting stuff in it, but by far the most interesting to me was the government bailout plan. I had hardly realizes that $3.5 trillion dollars would be put into the economy. That is unbelievable. What is even more unbelievable is how much, or rather how little, is actually coming from the bailout fund. Only $350 billion is coming from it, which, while quite a lot of money, now pales quite badly in comparison to how much would be put back into it. Also, quite oddly to me, Wall Street reacted with a downturn. Really? More money means less money? Oh, how little I know about it.
Thursday:
Today’s paper wasn’t as interesting to me as it has been throughout the week, but there were a couple things that I found intriguing, especially internationally. There were a couple stories, one about a new prime minister in Zimbabwe and the other about a warrant going out for the arrest of the president of Sudan. The Zimbabwe one interested me because it told of how the old prime minister had to help swear in the new one and that they are rivals of one another. The other was interesting to me because well, it was about their president getting arrested! Also, it talked of the varying implications of such an action, something that could prove disastrous for Sudan if done incorrectly.
Monday, February 9, 2009
February 9 Class Story
This morning, a 17 year old Sudanese refugee and a local police captain combined to miraculously save an unconscious 80 year old as he lay helpless in the wake of an oncoming train in Old Orchard Beach.
Police Captain Janet Paradiso rammed her car into that of Francois Truffaut, who had passed out on the train tracks, 30 seconds before the train barreled by. “It was that close,” Police Chief Brian Paul said.
James Laboke, a Sudanese refugee living in Old Orchard Beach for three years, was on his four mile everyday walk to work at the Eezy Breezy resturant when he saw a car stopped on the tracks, the engine still running. He found a man that appeared to be unconscious with the doors locked so he pounded on the windows with no luck. He then ran 100 yards to the police station.
The Amtrak Downeaster, a passenger train that runs from Portland, Maine to Boston, leaves Portland at 5:55 a.m. and is scheduled to go through the town at 6:10 a.m. Paradiso arrived on the scene at 6:05 a.m., traveling a mile after hearing the initial police call.
“I don’t remember a thing,” Truffaut said from his hospital bed at Southern Maine Medical Center. Truffaut also said he was a diabetic, connecting with the police report that said he may have gone into insulin shock just as he reached the railroad crossing. Truffaut had been coming to the tourist community from Quebec City since he was a child.
Laboke reported to work on time and humbly didn’t say anything about the heroics. “It doesn’t surprise me at all,” said Charles Champaigne, Labokoe’s boss at the Eezy Breezy. “That young man is one of my most responsible employees. He’s just a great kid.”
Laboke later said, “I never thought about it. I just knew I couldn’t let that man get crushed by a train.”
Police Captain Janet Paradiso rammed her car into that of Francois Truffaut, who had passed out on the train tracks, 30 seconds before the train barreled by. “It was that close,” Police Chief Brian Paul said.
James Laboke, a Sudanese refugee living in Old Orchard Beach for three years, was on his four mile everyday walk to work at the Eezy Breezy resturant when he saw a car stopped on the tracks, the engine still running. He found a man that appeared to be unconscious with the doors locked so he pounded on the windows with no luck. He then ran 100 yards to the police station.
The Amtrak Downeaster, a passenger train that runs from Portland, Maine to Boston, leaves Portland at 5:55 a.m. and is scheduled to go through the town at 6:10 a.m. Paradiso arrived on the scene at 6:05 a.m., traveling a mile after hearing the initial police call.
“I don’t remember a thing,” Truffaut said from his hospital bed at Southern Maine Medical Center. Truffaut also said he was a diabetic, connecting with the police report that said he may have gone into insulin shock just as he reached the railroad crossing. Truffaut had been coming to the tourist community from Quebec City since he was a child.
Laboke reported to work on time and humbly didn’t say anything about the heroics. “It doesn’t surprise me at all,” said Charles Champaigne, Labokoe’s boss at the Eezy Breezy. “That young man is one of my most responsible employees. He’s just a great kid.”
Laboke later said, “I never thought about it. I just knew I couldn’t let that man get crushed by a train.”
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Week 1 Reading Blog
Monday: Today was a bit of a downer, what with the massive amount of deaths in a Kenya explosion and the Cardinals losing. It’s terrible that I put those two in the same sentence, but whatever. The reporting on the Kenya deaths was interesting, as it brought into play further deaths in Kenya that had happened recently and how it would affect the political landscape of the country. It was interesting to see how the reporter tied a terrible story into the ongoing political intrigue of the country.
Tuesday: Today I found some interesting stuff, particularly the article about lithium in Bolivia. I hadn’t realized how big lithium may be; only knowing that it powers things like cell phones and laptop batteries and such. To be honest, I didn’t even know it was a mineral, but it seems to be key for the upcoming future of the auto industry and it was interesting to read about that and how Bolivia can make or break this future.
Wednesday: Again, there were quite a few interesting stories in the newspaper today, but the one that most piqued my interest was the article concerning the study showing the shoddy practices behind the concepts and procedures that put criminals behind bars. This was interesting to me because it would affect a lot of people if it were shown to be technically true. Would killers be set free based on inaccurate evidence? It would be bad for not only the society of America, but also a shot against the judicial system, one that would need to be reviewed in whole. It would be quite the mess.
Thursday: Today was definitely an interesting one that had quite a few interesting articles, including one that described how digital pirates were winning the ever-long fight with Hollywood studios. However, the most interesting article to me was how a huge snake’s remains, titled the titanoboa, were found in Colombia. It is said that at the time it was about 42 feet long and weighed over a ton! What was most interesting though is how it can show scientist just how hot it was back then and how organisms reacted to the heat, something that they believe can help today in projecting the potential future of global warming.
Tuesday: Today I found some interesting stuff, particularly the article about lithium in Bolivia. I hadn’t realized how big lithium may be; only knowing that it powers things like cell phones and laptop batteries and such. To be honest, I didn’t even know it was a mineral, but it seems to be key for the upcoming future of the auto industry and it was interesting to read about that and how Bolivia can make or break this future.
Wednesday: Again, there were quite a few interesting stories in the newspaper today, but the one that most piqued my interest was the article concerning the study showing the shoddy practices behind the concepts and procedures that put criminals behind bars. This was interesting to me because it would affect a lot of people if it were shown to be technically true. Would killers be set free based on inaccurate evidence? It would be bad for not only the society of America, but also a shot against the judicial system, one that would need to be reviewed in whole. It would be quite the mess.
Thursday: Today was definitely an interesting one that had quite a few interesting articles, including one that described how digital pirates were winning the ever-long fight with Hollywood studios. However, the most interesting article to me was how a huge snake’s remains, titled the titanoboa, were found in Colombia. It is said that at the time it was about 42 feet long and weighed over a ton! What was most interesting though is how it can show scientist just how hot it was back then and how organisms reacted to the heat, something that they believe can help today in projecting the potential future of global warming.
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