You don't have to go far to find a conspiracy theory concerning U.S. politics. From the Marines in Haditha to Valerie Plame, it seems as if everything dealing with the latest presidency is a little too blurry.
With eight out of 10 people older than the age of 25 classified as overweight, it seems clear that, as a nation, we have a serious weight problem. A fine line separates being overweight from being obese.
A series of bills known as the Coercive Abortion Prevention Act recently passed through the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee. As a protective measure against a form of domestic violence, the bills require a doctor performing an abortion to screen the woman seeking the abortion to determine if she was coerced into it. On the cover, the act seems right in line with protecting civil liberties and promoting safe relationships, but the bills go deeper than a first impression. Whether we ignore it or not, domestic violence, be it emotional or physical, does exist.
We all know the phrase "No taxation without representation." On one of the nation's earliest attempts at protest, we look back with proud smiles, happy that our rebel forefathers set the rules for our young country.
In catastrophes like this, it is imperative to come together as humans and look to a greater good beyond our differences. A tragedy hit closer to home last year when Hurricane Katrina devastated the coastlines of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
Think back to when you were in elementary school. Do you remember seeing the U.S. flag raised every day?
Open the paper to the classified section, and you will be greeted by more exclamation points and guarantees than you can handle at once.
Where do we, as citizens, begin to draw the line between vengeance and justice? This is a very important question to ask while taking a stand on the death penalty. Whether or not people support the death penalty, it is imperative that limits and boundaries are established concerning the issue. Without setting limits and boundaries, how do we distinguish what is cruel and unusual punishment and what is not? On Monday, the Supreme Court refused to consider a lethal injection case.
In the world of corporate business and messy politics, the media is often referred to as society's "watchdog." The media is responsible for relaying what's going on in the world as accurately as possible to the public.
The United State's influence can be seen in Iraq's new government. Just as President Bush wanted, democracy is now being practiced in Iraq.
Picture this — A woman is attempting to buy liquor. The salesperson asks for her license, and then for her pregnancy card.
Sometimes truth has so much power over our emotions that it weighs heavily on our beliefs. And whether you believe it or not, truth works in the same way with our government.
The big problems facing society have a snowball effect. We always start with one minor problem.
What came first, the noise or the ticket? Lately, it seems hard to tell. Between unnecessarily loud neighbors and overzealous police officers, there are undefined boundaries when it comes to East Lansing's noise ordinance. And with a specific definition of noise given by the city — with sounds ranging from whistling to musical instruments — it seems far too easy to be ticketed for everyday noises. For those of us who aren't police officers, we're quick to empathize with our friends — the down-on-their-luck, struggling students looking forward to the weekend to unwind, only to get a ticket for violating the noise ordinance. For those of us who can relate to the police officers handing out these tickets, it seems viable to want to suppress a certain level of sound at specific times. What it all comes down to is a give-and-take relationship.
We eat organic food. We do yoga. We drive hybrid cars. We blow up massive bombs stirring up radioactive material into the atmosphere. Which one doesn't belong? If all goes as planned, this June, a 700-ton explosive will be detonated 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, Nev.
It all began with the Patriot Act. The Bush administration started prying into our personal information in an effort to detect early signs of domestic terrorist activity by looking at our private lives.
Sometimes silence can say a lot. The national Day of Silence was celebrated on Wednesday across the country.
Remember those educational computer games you played in elementary school? Maybe you used "Mario Teaches Typing" to learn how to speed through school work and type faster. Even if you occasionally lost the game, chances are you enjoyed the process more than taking a regular class. With the theory that we can learn a lot through games, MSU and China Central Radio and Television University in Beijing is creating an online video game environment to teach students Chinese language and culture. It's all part of MSU's partnership with the Chinese government to create the MSU Confucius Institute, which will teach MSU students Mandarin Chinese online. Because of China's growing population and expanding global role, it's becoming important for students to learn Chinese. Students in China are undoubtedly learning English, and we need to keep up with languages that more people will be speaking. And for generations of students who have grown up with computers and are proficient with the Internet, integrating learning a language and playing computer games could help students struggling to grasp the language. The game allows students to navigate through Chinese culture, learning to interact with others who speak the language. If it allows students to learn at their own pace and level, it could help people who aren't grasping the material in traditional settings. It has to hold their attention and make trying to speak a different language seem fun. Although the game seems like it could be an interesting way to learn a new language, it shouldn't completely erase traditional forms of learning languages. Half the fun of learning a new language is getting to interact face-to-face with other people and speak to them, all while learning about the culture. A game shouldn't replace speaking with actual people, and to be effective, the game should be coupled with actual teaching. But for those who reveled in educational games like "Oregon Trail" as a child, this could be a big hit. Play on.
President Bush is finally getting the message that gas is too expensive and people are concerned about spending more per gallon. In an effort to show people he is concerned with something Americans have been worried about for months, Bush announced Tuesday a slew of new proposals to help lower the price of gas.
Shame on you, Indrek Wichman. Come on, you didn't really send an offensive e-mail to a prominent student organization with the notion that it was going to be kept private — did you? Well, you're saying you did, but that was a pretty irresponsible move for an MSU professor. Seriously. The Muslim Students' Association received an e-mail Feb.