Sexuality in the Sports World (found poem)

Dominant basketball player comes out as gay
Treated with such nonchalance
It was a woman
If it was a man who did the same exact thing
Everyone's head would have exploded
An N.F.L. player was going to come out (didn't)
That story got 10 times the traffic.
There are 2 stereotypes in the sports world;
No gay male athletes
Every female athlete is a lesbian

Reflection:

While reading the article, I wasn't shocked at all. I found that it was bringing to light what's really going on, not just in the sports world, but in the WORLD period. Writing this poem wasn't hard at all. I just picked out the things that stuck out to me, and wrote it in a poem form. The hard part was finding an article that stuck out to me. The New York Times paper was honestly boring, and almost EVERYTHING was about Boston. I'm not trying to be inconsiderate or anything, my heart goes out to those who lost loved ones However, I just felt like story seemed repetitive. I just wanted to do something new. Bring awareness to what's really happening in the world....




 

North Korea against the World

North and South Korean Flags

In the article, "Korean War Part 2?" Choe Sang-Hun brings to light the possibilities that there might be another World War. She talks about North Korea and their current leader, Kim Jong Un. The article talks about the differences between North and South Korea. North Korea is secretive, and they have a Communist government. On the other hand, South Korea is vibrant, and democracy is their government system. Finally, North Korea is poor while South Korea is rich.

The article states that their could be another World War due to the threats of Kim Jong Un. He threatens to shoot a missile at the U.S. or South Korea. However, the article also states that he's unpredictable. One day he's saying that he will shoot it, and another, he's saying that he would never do such a thing.

No one really knows what his intentions are. They could be just to scare us, or maybe he's just a coward.

I have no clue what to think of this. This article is saying that there might be another World War, while people everywhere else are saying that the missile would never hit the U.S. That's just the situation of the missile. My opinions of Kim? He's scared of the U.S. He just wants to try and be a threat to the U.S. because the U.S. is such a threat to him. In all reality, he's just a coward. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm right. I don't care! They are just my OPINIONS!

Also, I think that the way the U.S. is responding is great. They are sitting down, not making a move. Usually we would shoot them before they shot us, but what they are doing, I feel is the right thing. Sure, if the missile actually does hit us, then they should do something. They should also have a little something prepared if it does happen. Maybe sitting back is them being scared, but it doesn't matter, this is how you do it. Eventually Kim will see that we don't want any problems, and the possibilities of another War will be over. Again, these are just my opinions!

Raise in Minimum Wage

In the article, "Time for a Raise," Patricia Smith talks about Obama's decision to raise minimum wage. He wants to raise it from $7.25 to $9.00. If he gets his way, this will be the first raise since 2009. Smith quotes Obama saying, "This single step would raise the incomes of millions of working families. It could mean the difference between groceries or the food bank, rent or eviction, scraping by or finally getting ahead. For businesses across the country, it would mean customers with more money in their pockets."

Of course, there are people who oppose the decision. Companies that hire low-wage workers have opposed this decision because it will increase the cost of doing business. "Small employers have to operate under very slim profit margins. An increase has to be shouldered by the employer." Randy Johnson says. Johnson is of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which represents business.

This article was basically saying that if minimum wage goes up, it can help workers, but can kind of hurt the business's profit. It can hurt the business's profit because they would have to pay expenses + an expensive worker. That would bring in less of a profit.

I think a raise is a good idea. It's a good idea because people deserve it. People work hard and don't earn as much as they deserve. And though $9/hour is still not enough, the raise would show a little bit of sympathy.

I feel like those who are against it are stingy. They don't want to share a little bit of money with their workers, who are most likely diligent. Granted, not all workers deserve this raise, but that's not what the business owners are looking at. Business owners' complaints are about the profit. Yes, this is important, but that's honestly not a good reason to try to get yourself out of a raise. It seems like every time Obama wants something good for the middle class, the rich people always are against it. Not all of them, but enough to make sure this decision doesn't get passed. I just don't think it's fair. The rich have A LOT OF MONEY! Giving a few extra dollars will not hurt them!

I looked at this article differently. I looked at the excuses people had. "Excuses are tools of the incompetent." Think about it....

Kevin Ware's Sickening Injury (choice blog)

The article, "Kevin Ware breaks bone in leg," the author talks about the gruesome injury suffered by Louisville Cardinals' Kevin Ware. It says that his right leg was bent in a really weird way. Cardinals' coach, Rick Pitino and some teammates were weeping, Pitino wiping away tears.

A lot of people wonder how this happened. The article says that Ware was trying to block a 3 point shot by the opposite team, Duke, and fell at about a right angle. His leg buckled, and broke. His bone was sticking 6 inches out of his leg, but, according to Pitino, all he was saying was, "Win the game, win the game." Pitino says that he has never seen anything like that in his life.

The article also states that all of his teammates were in shock, too. Even people from the other team. Ware's teammate and closest friend, Chane Behanan said that Ware was saying, "Don't worry about me, I'm good, I'll have my surgery tonight. Go win it for me." The article says that the team had a hard time regaining strength at first, but that they found it, and won for Ware.

I watched the game with my family on Easter. We were all screaming and yelling when we saw his bone. My cousin and I cried like little babies. It was painful to watch, so I can't imagine what it felt like to him, and those who were actually there. After reading the article, I found what Ware was shouting about. Now, knowing that he wanted the game to go on and wasn't even worried about his leg, I think that he is a strong young man, and a great teammate.

I can't begin to imagine if I were put in this situation. If my bone was sticking 6 inches out of my leg, I'd be yelling and screaing out in agony. Yes, I'm a girl, but does gender really matter when your bone is sticking out of your leg? I get the itchies just thinking about it. The video is at the bottom.
*WARNING: WATCH IT AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION! VERY, VERY GRAPHIC!