Capital Punishment

Capital Punishment is a heated debate in our country. Some people want it so we can get rid of all the dangerous people. Others don't want it because it makes us hypocrites. I personally do not think we should have the death penalty. One major argument in the death penalty is that it will prevent people from murdering due to fear of being put to death. People who are against the death penalty say that that does not make sense because murders are done in a heat of passion when one is not thinking rationally. Another argument to make capital punishment illegal is that putting someone to death does not rehabilitate them and make them ready for society again. The whole point of the legal system is to correct people so they are fit to reenter society. How is someone supposed to be reintroduced to society if they are dead? Putting someone to death does not fulfill the mission of the United States Prison System. Another argument that is very circumstantial is that what if the wrong person is convicted. If someone is framed and is convicted of murder, how are they supposed to acquire evidence of their innocence if they are sentenced to death row. Also you could be committing murder on an innocent person. The death penalty does not discourage murder.   In 1958 the 10 states that had the fewest murders –fewer than two a year per 100,000 population -were New Hampshire Iowa, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Rhode Island, Utah, North Dakota and Washington.Four of these 10 states had abolished the death penalty. The 10 states, which had the most murderers from eight to  fourteen killings per 100,000 population were Nevada, Alabama, Georgia, Arkansas, and Virginia - all of them enforce the death penalty.  The fact is that fear of the death penalty has never served to reduce the crime rate. They also argue that no matter what it is a cruel punishment. The knowledge that you are going to be put to death on a certain date and the wait for it would be one of the worst feelings someone could have.
 People who are for the death penalty argue that the death penalty will discourage murder, but as shown before, this is not the case. One of the strongest arguments for the death penalty is that is provides complete justice to those who are affected by the murder. If someone murders someones son than the parent would want that guy to meet the same fate that he put upon his or her son. People say that it is only fair, a life for a life. People who are for the death penalty argue that it is not cruel because the condemned would die before they would feel anything. 
Personally I believe that the death penalty should not be legal. I feel this way because committing murder is the worst thing someone could do and we would only be hypocrites if we were to murder someone for committing murder. I believe that the death penalty will not defer people from committing murder because murder is committed in a fiery heat of passion and that you don't really think about what your doing when you do it. If you're not thinking rationally about what you're doing than you are not thinking about the consequences. I also think it is cruel to know the date that you are going to die and have to spend it in prison. Also the prison systems job is to rehabilitate someone and make him/her fit for society again. If you kill this person than the prison system is failing at its job.

http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/ornellaspaper.htm
http://listverse.com/2013/06/01/5-arguments-for-and-against-the-death-penalty/
http://deathpenalty.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=002000

Thorium Reactors

Thorium reactors are the future of energy. They are a more advanced nuclear reactor allowing them to be more safe. Thorium reactors works by heating water to a boil by the fission of Uranium-233. Uranium-233 is harvested from the abundant material thorium. thorium is much cheaper and easier to mine than uranium so it is more cost effective. Thorium reactors also produce more energy, and less waste than Uranium reactors. The only set back of replacing Uranium reactors with Thorium reactors is the start up costs. The start up cost is extremely expensive, around 1.1 billion dollars. Companies would definitely need some financial help from the government for these reactors to come into fruition so we may see some tax raises or new taxes, but the benefits we can reap from these reactors are amazing. The integration for this system is extremely easy, it works just the same as a Uranium power plant. The steam turns a turbine, the turbine generates electricity, the electricity goes through wires to a grid where it is stored and distributed. Unfortunately once the reactor is in place and hooked up to a power grid, it is very difficult to change grids or not use a grid at all. Even though there are a few drawbacks to Thorium reactors, we should invest in them because of the benefits they offer. They are not nearly as dangerous as Uranium reactors, the produce more energy, and they produce less waste than previous reactors. Thorium is also four times as abundant as Uranium, estimates say that strictly using thorium, there is enough of it to power the United States for 1,000 years. That amount of energy would solve our energy problems until the year 3,000. One ton of Thorium produces as much energy as 200 tons of Uranium, and 3.5 million tons of coal. It is also a lot safer because it is nearly impossible to create a practical nuclear weapon from Thorium waste. There is also a fail safe plug at the bottom of the reactor so that if something happens and the Thorium gets too hot, it melts the plug and is drained into a tank for safe keeping eliminating the risk of a meltdown. Thorium is also much easier to mine. Ore deposits generally contain more Thorium than they do Uranium, and they congregate in larger deposits. This makes mining it safer, more cost efficient, and more environmentally friendly than mining Uranium. It is time to make the switch to Thorium reactors.

Sources:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_fluoride_thorium_reactor

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium-based_nuclear_power

• http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/Current-and-Future-Generation/Thorium/

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Chernobyl

Chernobyl was a disastrous event in history where there was a nuclear meltdown that made a nuclear wasteland in Ukraine. Chernobyl was a nuclear power plant that was running routine tests when it all went horribly wrong. When the workers at the nuclear power plant shut down reactor 4 in an emergency situation test, there was a sudden spike in power causing the nuclear rods to heat up and cause the water coolers to turn to steam and explode from the pressure. The explosion revealed the graphite moderator to air which in turn reacted and exploded sending fire and radioactive material into the air. The immediate explosion killed 31 workers but the nuclear fallout caused many more problems that are still apparent today. The death toll due to radiation in 2008 was 64 people. The majority of the radiation deaths were from cleanup workers or other workers who were on site when the explosion happen. Other deaths include children who got cancer from nearby towns and cities along with others. The explosion did not just affect people, it affected the environment as well. Groundwater in some places became to dangerous to drink. A forest directly downwind from Chernobyl turned red then died. A massive reservoir, Dneiper, became dangerous to drink, although it became safe again shortly after. Chernobyl was classified as a class 7 disaster, the highest class of nuclear disaster. The area affected by the disaster is unparalleled by any other disaster having an effect on 162,000 square miles around the plant. The response to this disaster was way under par. After the explosion, no one alerted the nearby city Pripyap and several people fell ill and got radiation sickness. It wasn't until a day later did they announce that there had been an explosion and that people should evacuate. The only announcement that was made to the world was a twenty second broadcast that hardly told anyone what had happened. The announcement was as following: 

There has been an accident at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. One of the nuclear reactors was damaged. The effects of the accident are being remedied. Assistance has been provided for any affected people. An investigative commission has been set up.

—Vremya, 28 April 1986 (21:00)

The evacuation was set up and announced as followed:

 For the attention of the residents of Pripyat! The City Council informs you that due to the accident at Chernobyl Power Station in the city of Pripyat the radioactive conditions in the vicinity are deteriorating. The Communist Party, its officials and the armed forces are taking necessary steps to combat this. Nevertheless, with the view to keep people as safe and healthy as possible, the children being top priority, we need to temporarily evacuate the citizens in the nearest towns of Kiev Oblast. For these reasons, starting from April 27, 1986 2 pm each apartment block will be able to have a bus at its disposal, supervised by the police and the city officials. It is highly advisable to take your documents, some vital personal belongings and a certain amount of food, just in case, with you. The senior executives of public and industrial facilities of the city has decided on the list of employees needed to stay in Pripyat to maintain these facilities in a good working order. All the houses will be guarded by the police during the evacuation period. Comrades, leaving your residences temporarily please make sure you have turned off the lights, electrical equipment and water and shut the windows. Please keep calm and orderly in the process of this short-term evacuation.

—Evacuation announcement in Pripyat, 27 April 1986 (14:00)

The evacuation came after over 60 people were affected by the radiation with 2 deaths. 

Facebook and Globalization

Facebook is a relatively new invention that has changed the world. It has brought the world closer, increased connectivity, and more advanced advertising. Before Facebook, there were no real efficient ways to communicate with people who are across seas or even across the country. The fact that Facebook is free communication over unlimited distances has opened the door to people who either could not afford to pay for long distance, or did not want to. 

Facebook has also helped businesses advance and create more active advertising and quick updates on what the business is doing. Before Facebook, a company may come out with a new product but have to wait several weeks or months to create the advertisement, film it, and get it on the air. Also the price for advertising is very high so the choice of free advertising is essential to smaller businesses. For example, my cousin started a small business selling bows and made a page on Facebook. Someone in Germany found her page and ordered a couple bows. Prior to Facebook, this exchange could never have happened because she would not have the advertising in Germany. It is truly amazing how a in home business could have the reach to get orders from across the seas because of globalization and Facebook. 

Facebook also tracks what you search online and offers advertisement that attracts you the most. For example if you search blue sweaters online or amazon, an advertisement will come up on Facebook like a banner that has some kind of sweaters.

Electroconvulsive Therapy, yay or nay?

Electroconvulsive Therapy has been used for over 60 years. Although it has been used for so long no one knows how it works, so there is a huge cloud of controversy surrounding it. Some say that it works wonders, others say it does more harm than good.

Electroconvulsive Therapy has many good aspects to it. It is a quick and easy solution to problems that could takes long term medication and therapy. Rather than taking months of therapy and medication, you do Electroconvulsive therapy for a few weeks and has the same effect. One of the most common places it is used is for severely depressed people who cannot wait for antidepressants take effect or if the medication failed to help. Electroconvulsive Therapy has shown up to 80 percent improvement in severely depressed patients. Another way ECT is used is to help Schizophrenic patients. ECT has shown to reduce the seriousness of core issues with Schizophrenia such as hallucinations, delusions, and unorganized thinking. It can also be used to help with a sub illness of Schizophrenia called Catatonia. Catatonia causes the patient not to speak, have extreme periods of excitement, remain motionless for long periods of time, or have rigid, odd muscle movements. ECT has also shown improvements in Mania. Mania is a psychotic illness that causes people to have elevated moods and ECT calms them down.  ECT has shown improvements in Catatonia, Mania, and Schizophrenia but is not as well tested as it is for severe depression patients. With all the amazing things ECT can do it’s impossible to imagine why anyone would not want to use it.  With every great medical advancement, there are side effects that can be harmful. That is where the controversy lies.

Many doctors are for Electroconvulsive Therapy while others are completely against it. Those who are against it say that the side effects outweigh the benefits. Electroconvulsive Therapy should only be used as a last resort after all other options are exhausted. The way Electroconvulsive Therapy works is scary, they sedate you and hook up a machine to your head that sends pulses of electricity to your brain to cause a seizure. They do this for about 12 seconds about 3 times a week. The patient has short term memory loss after the procedure, forgetting what happens before and after the procedure. The patient will also experience confusion for up to a few hours directly following the treatment. Other than the procedure being scary, no one really knows how ECT works so doctors are hesitant to use it. ECT has also been known to cause memory loss after multiple exposers to it. The patient may have trouble remembering things that happened up to a few years before treatment and they have trouble remembering what happens during the weeks they have treatment. The patient may also experience muscle pains, spasms, nausea, vomiting, headaches and jaw pain. Research has also shown ECT to only be effective for up to 4 weeks after treatment so it is only a temporary fix. Patients who experience Electroconvulsive Therapy have a high percentage of relapse after they finish treatment. In the long term it is more beneficial to use medication.

Electroconvulsive Therapy has a bad reputation because it has not been handled with care and with proper training in the past. In reality Electroconvulsive Therapy is a marvel of modern technology that can help people with serious Depression, Schizophrenia, and Mania. Perhaps in the near future we can figure out and create a more precise and safe method to ECT to reduce the risks involved.

http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net/ect

http://www.patient.co.uk/doctor/Electroconvulsive-Therapy.htm

http://www.webmd.com/depression/guide/electroconvulsive-therapy

http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=About_Treatments_and_Supports&Template=/ContentManagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=142939