Microsoft vs. US Government

BBC News covers an article called; Microsoft sues US government over secret data requests. In the first sentence Dave Lee gets right to the point of his article. Microsoft is suing the government because it is against the law to invade people's privacy. The government asked Microsoft to release data without the knowledge of the public. Microsoft felt that it was their obligation to let their clients know what was going on.

Because of the contracts and court requirements, Microsoft was forced to keep things secret and so they are fighting back by making this issue known. Microsoft felt that the whole secrecy things was a way for the government to stretch their use of power and felt that the rights of the people were being exploited.

Mr. Brad Smith the President and Chief Legal Officer of Microsoft said in a blog post, "We believe that with rare exceptions consumers and businesses have a right to know when the government accesses their emails or records. Yet it’s becoming routine for the U.S. government to issue orders that require email providers to keep these types of legal demands secret. We believe that this goes too far and we are asking the courts to address the situation."

Everything that Mr. Smith says in his blog post is highlighted in the BBC article by Lee. Lee breaks down the facts of the infringement on our rights and leads the article with his stand on the issue. Lee brings in the facts such as the Electronic Communications Act. This is a very important issue that cannot be taken lightly. Lee does an excellent job bringing in additional credible sources to introduce their points and grounds for the issue.

In response to: College Education for Inmates?

I could not agree more with exactly what Alyssa Villalobos comments about in her blog The United States Government 2016. Her approach to the New York Times article about bringing education to those imprisoned is right on point. I really appreciate the feedback she has as she makes her input available right alongside the facts she has acquired.

Hearing her perspective gives insight to the injustices we have in our prison systems. We can not overlook this educational opportunity to make people better. Just like one goes to the hospital or rehab the goal is to get better. Why not have the same philosophy for our jails?

People who go to jail especially for minor crimes so exit from jail with a better understanding of their world which will help them understand how to live a better life. I enjoyed seeing the facts and numbers, it helped break down the big picture. It is easy to become overwhelmed with unnecessary data. Alyssa is able to simplify the important facts. After reading her blog I felt a new profound feeling that we need to fix this injustice.

Education is Costing Me My Dreams

For the longest time I put off going to college because I knew I couldn't afford it. I am now in my second semester and as it turns out... I still can't afford it. However, the difference between the 20-year-old self and the six years I have since acquired is the fact that I realized I couldn't get any further in my career path without a degree. I understood fully as I signed my life away to the climbing debt that it would mean I would be a slave to my education until I can repay the fortune I borrowed.

What really bugs me is the lack of help that comes from the government. The 6 months to repay the loan is ridiculous. All that does is force someone to easily give up on their dream job to find some sort of income to start repaying their debt. This is also why most students end up going back to school to put off repaying their loan. Our wonderful government should consider is providing a tax break to employers who hire college graduates. Much like they do for those who are on unemployment. I mean the money is still coming from the Government either way. Whether you borrowed it for school or on using it because of a lay off.

Why shouldn't there be incentives to get people to work? Shouldn't we reward those who are doing the right thing? I mean after all that saying of stay off drugs and go to college was reinforced often throughout the public education system. So why are we being punished?

To Be or Not to Be: Automatic Voter Registration

Jon Green writes in his blog about the state of Connecticut. His intended audience is to anyone willing or concerned with voter rights. He has a background in politics and comes with a B.A. in Political Science. His topic of choice is found in AMERICAblog under the title of Connecticut Secretary of State proposes automatic voter registration through the DMV.

This particular blog is fully equipped with knowledge and factual information surrounding his opinion. He states facts and provides links to reports that support the cause. The issue itself is pretty brilliant. In fact, he points out that this legislation to put automatic voter registration into play is actually modeled after some other states such as California. Green goes on to validate this issue by saying, "Including Connecticut, automatic voter registration bills have been proposed in fifteen states in 2016 alone. In 2015, 20 states, plus Washington, DC and the federal government, considered automatic voter registration legislation."

I couldn't agree more with such an outstanding cause. Finally, something that makes sense to help solve one of the reasons for disconnection between people and the polls. Green proves the benefits as he brings up the fact that Oregon had already implemented this change and the positive results from it. He goes on to prove those facts by including an article from Brennan Center for Justice.

What I appreciate the most about this particular blog is that fact the Jon Green is pretty straight to the point. His blog was structured well and accurately. Making it easy to read and his points well understood. I also liked that in his conclusion he gives his honest opinion. He introduces another article he has written about debunking the opposition. He plainly states, "As I’ve written before, there aren’t any good arguments against automatic voter registration, although there are a few bad ones."

unlAWFUL POLICE searches

In the opinion pages of the New York Times you will find an editorial made available by their editorial board called The Supreme Court and Police Searches. The topic centers around the police and their ability to make arrests to help profit their investigations whether criminal or not. On top of this the Supreme Court is equally as guilty for bending the law to make exceptions for illegally obtained evidence. The case that is brought up is from Utah; where a man was arrested during a "routine check" all because he was under suspicion of being connected to a drug case. The authors also bring up the Fourth Amendment and how any evidence gained from this arrest would violate it. The whole point isn't about if the police got the "bad guy"! It's to point out that we cannot allow our police, the ones who are sworn to serve and protect us to simply walk among us and start working against us for their noble causes. I wholeheartedly agree with this argument. Should this behavior continue who knows what type of big brother environment we will end up in? This is also the concern and the reason for the ruling against allowing this type of governing to continue. Justice Sonia Sotomayor cleverly points out, “What stops us from becoming a police state and just having the police stand on the corner down here and stop every person, ask them for identification, put it through, and if a warrant comes up, searching them?” It is a behavior that had to be stopped and must be protected for the common person.

Detroit Teachers

There has been talk about a crisis going on in Flint, Michigan about issues with the water not being clean and safe for residents. I know personally, I have visited Michigan and have seen Detroit and it is is clear that the living conditions they face are very different from what I experience here in Texas. I came across this article about Teachers actually boycotting their schools due to problems with the working conditions and the concerns they have about the well-being of the students they are trying to teach. You can read all about it right here The Christian Science Monitor. It is upsetting to me how the Mayor isn't really taking ownership over these issues or at least trying to fix them. Instead he is basically saying to these teachers to get back to work. Well, that is impossible when you don't have the right tools and at least the bare minimum to foster a functioning area for students to learn and grow. It is just baffling to me because, well I work for a daycare. And the amount of state regulations we have to follow is astounding. It varies from ratio of children to teacher all the way up to how food and snack is handled. I just don't understand how these teachers are being almost talked down for not being at work and preventing children from learning when there are rodents running around in the school among the other problems. At what point does this get national attention? At what point does the federal government get pulled in to fix these issues. I mean the bare minimum of education for grades 12 and under should at least be guaranteed.

Hello all! I am looking forward to starting this blog! Hopefully, I have created this well enough!