What is With All the Hatred Toward Police?



Alyn Beck and Igor Soldo
The two officers who were sadly killed in Las Vegas.

According to USAtoday, two police officers were killed in a CiCi's Pizza while they were having lunch by a man and a woman. However, before eventually being sadly killed, one of the officers had managed to fight back and return fire. Unfortunately, the officer did not manage to neutralize the threat and the two had managed to make their way to a Wal-Mart that was across the street from the CiCi's Pizza and killed another individual. It is unknown just what the motivation behind the attack was, but one of the suspects yelled, "This is a revolution," and articles of white supremacy paraphernalia had been found in the couple's possession during the investigation. This shooting had taken place in 2013, and, unfortunately, it has not been the only one, especially in recent days. Very recently, around the time of January 9, 2015, a police officer had been shot in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He had been shot on a busy intersection. Unfortunately, his condition was not released to the public. This event had taken place less than one whole week after another officer had been shot, but not killed, for what appeared to be a routine drunk driver. Perhaps these attacks have been in response to the recent "race shootings" by white officers against black civilians. Of course, I personally do not agree with almost every person in cities, as the all seem to believe that all police officers are racist and corrupt, which is just not true. However, due to the main media sources of America fueling the idea of race violence by police, many people seem to believe more and more that the "chokehold" of Eric Garner (Which was not a chokehold, by the way) and other shootings of "unarmed" black men by white officers are racist. Although, if people could set aside the concept of racism for a few minutes, they would see that all the "violence" and "brutality" are actually people performing their jobs properly when someone is attempting to jeopardize his or her life. I personally believe that all the hatred and disgust toward police is misplaced and unfounded in any logic or truth.

Boko Haram: A Long History of Jihadists in Africa

According to BBC, the jihadist group that is known as Boko Haram, meaning "Western education is a sin," has been attacking and kidnapping many individuals in the northern locations of Cameroon. Now, of course, this is nothing new to those who have been paying attention to the news in the past months and years. The motive behind such demonstrations of violence is what may be news to some. The attacks against civilians had truly begun once the Cameroon government began sending troops to search and assault locations of hiding that Boko Haram were using. I am not saying that it is the government's fault that civilians are being hurt by Boko Haram. Of course, something had to be done about them. However, due to a severe stress and fear, the group began to attack anyone they did not see as a member of their gang or a jihad. Unfortunately, this is not the only time that Islamic extremists have plagued Africa's beautiful lands with pain and misery. In 2013, Al-Qaeda had been present in the North African country of Mali. They had been causing great difficulty for the residents and civilians who lived in Mali, as Al-Qaeda usually does. Due to the Islamic extremists' actions, French troops were sent in to suppress the individuals. The French were worried about "a terrorist state at the doorstep of France and Europe," according to the French Defense Minister. In village centers, Islamic jihadists could be found beating, flogging, and amputating civilians. I know I have said it before, but I believe that it needs to be said again, all Islamic extremists must be stopped, especially the newest to the scene of terrorism, ISIS.

The only way to get rid of rabies is to shoot the animal.

So Much For Happily Ever After

Charles Manson and his 26-year-old fiancé.

According to CBSnews, the 80-year-old murderer Charles Manson will have his marriage license expire soon and he has yet to marry his 26-year-old fiancé. Unfortunately, you did read that right, his fiancé is 54 years younger than him. Their 90-day license of marriage is set to expire the fourth of February this year (2015). His fiancée is expecting to receive another 90-day license after the first one expires. She plans on marrying him because she appears to truly believe that he is an innocent man. Of course, he is not an innocent man and the possibility of his marriage would never have happened had Manson been sent to the gas chamber back in 1971. After the trial, when he was being led out of the courtroom, he had said, "you don't have any authority over me. You're not nearly as good as me." to the judge and jury. He was not the only one under trial for the same crimes. Due to the fact that Manson had created his very own cult, others, who were under the influence of the drug LSD, had murdered for Mr. Manson. Those two cultists that were in the trial had been dragged out screaming of the room. Obviously, Charles Manson had not gotten the death sentence as originally planned. Now, he plans on marrying someone who is way too young and is a little on the obsessive side, if I do say so myself.

The Diamonds of War

According to Al Jazeera, many dictators and warlords have taken advantage of the numerous diamonds to fuel their own avarice and greed. Their actions have caused civil wars and the abuse of human rights. Many of the mining expeditions to find such "blood diamonds" are located in Africa, as that is the locations of many unmined diamonds. The mining of diamonds in Africa has been used by corrupt governments to cover up the very corruption that had created the diamond trade in the first place. Conflict had and continues to erupt due to these very diamonds, no matter how minuscule they may be. This conflict is most known around the world in the West African country of Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone is a country that is abundant in natural resources, such as diamonds. From 1992 to 2002, Sierra had lain in the middle of a civil war. However, the war had been ended by Britain and the United Nations. Although, before actions were taken by such characters, approximately 17,000 foreign contractors, or soldiers for hire (for lack of a better term), went to the country to take part in the conflict and to play a role in the illegal diamond trade. Most did not care about laws when they received massive amounts of cash for their jobs of protecting the mining operations or other contracts they were given. The civil war in Sierra Leone was mainly funded by the trade and sale of "blood diamonds." To be honest, most African civil conflicts are funded by such objects. Sadly, no matter what laws and regulations are placed on the trade and passing of "blood diamonds," such beautifully devastating pieces of jewelry will continue to circulate. This truth was unfortunately demonstrated when Sierra Leone had placed laws on their diamonds, yet they still made their way out of the country and into numerous other countries, including the United States.



How "blood diamonds" are found in Sierra Leone.

Vigilantism Gone Terribly Wrong





A concealed carry holster under a jacket, similar to how
Clarence Daniels carried his handgun.

According to FoxNews, a man in Florida by the name of Michael Foster had seen another man enter Walmart with a handgun holstered underneath a coat. Foster proceeded to act in a manner that he thought would be heroic, but instead, he ended up being a fool. Foster followed the man inside the store where he commenced to tackle the man with the holstered firearm. While doing this, he was yelling, "He has a gun!" After the 62-year-old man named Clarence Daniels found himself on the ground, he repeatedly stated that he owned a concealed carry permit, legally allowing him to carry that firearm around public places in Florida. However, Michael Foster refused to listen, instead deciding it would be better to wait for Sheriffs to arrive. When Sheriffs arrived, however, Foster did not receive the result he had expected. Daniels was found to be carrying a permit that allowed him to legally carry the firearm, which in turn made Foster a criminal due to the fact that he had committed battery against a legal citizen. This entire situation could have been avoided had Michael Foster known of Florida's law which allows citizens to kill in the act of self defense without originally trying to flee from their assailant. The bill is called the "Stand Your Ground" law. Many critics stated that the law would create an all new "Wild West" in modern day. However, from the time the bill was passed in 2005 to today, everyday life in Florida and other states that have passed the law, have changed very little if at all. Actually, the critics' concerns were truly misplaced, as the crime rate in Florida after 2005 had dropped by 23 percent since the law was passed. Now, had Michael Foster known about Florida's pro-gun laws and the ability to carry a firearm, instead of being influenced by today's media, then Foster would not have been arrested and Daniels would not have gotten tackled. Am I the only one who just loves the pure idiocy of those who are not knowledgeable of firearm rights.



I could not agree more. More people should "Stand their ground"

"The Piano Man" Still Going Strong





Billy Joel today

According to USAtoday, Billy Joel had received two new awards for his music last year. At the age of 65, he had stated his sincere gratitude towards the rewards, but in a joking way, saying, "I'm starting to suspect that I have some kind of terminal disease. They keep giving me all these awards, and I'm thinking, 'Are you trying to tell me something I don't know?' I mean, I'm 65 — I'm supposed to be irrelevant. I keep trying to have a dignified exit, and getting pulled back in." The rewards he received were the ASCAP Centennial Award from New York's Waldorf Astoria and the Library of Congress' Gershwin Prize in Washington D.C.'s DAR Constitutional Hall. Of course, Mr. Joel does know he is getting up in age, however. He admits "[He] was a lot better when [he] was younger," but he will continue to perform "as long as there is a demand" and if he personally believes he is good. However, "The Piano Man" did have his fair share of mistakes throughout his career. As many famous and rich celebrities do, Joel had found himself performing substance abuse. After crashing his vehicle, he had decided to receive help from a rehabilitation center for substance abuse as a Father's Day gift to his daughter, Alexa, who was 16-years-old at the time. After a 10-day stay at the center, he had left the facility. Gladly, Billy Joel did not seem to stay on the path to self-destruction with drugs or alcohol and therefore we get to receive great music from an amazing artist that can actually make me enjoy the piano in a rock song.

Billy Joel's younger years

Apparently Schools Think Cans are as Effective as Firearms

According to Al Jazeera, due to the recent shooting of Sandy Hook, numerous schools have taken a great interest in the security of their students. One school in the state of Alabama had stated that, if the situation of a shooter or other harmful individual had intruded school grounds, students should attempt to disorient or even incapacitate the attacker with canned foods. Yes, you read that right, canned food. This decision has led many parents to become angry with the school, as they do not wish for their child to fight a harmful individual, they would much rather have them run and hide. However, the school assures the parents that they only wish to train the children if they should become backed into a corner with all their options exhausted, otherwise, they should attempt to run and hide. Many psychiatrists have stated that the training of children in the use of force against an attacker may cause trauma to the children's mental states. They also believe that the amount of metal detectors and other various security measures set in place at numerous schools create a sense of fear in students. Well, fear can also be created by a shooter, so I would rather have security in place. Of course, I would much rather have that security and teachers with firearms, just as many schools have put in place, one school in particular is Fairview School in West Plains, Missouri. In Fairview School, teachers have been trained to carry handguns concealed into their classes. This has been done so that the firearms can be drawn upon in case of an emergency, similar to the one faced by those in the Sandy Hook school, but of course, the situation would be very different since these teachers can defend themselves and their students. Now, I am only on board with this as long as the teachers that participate go through extensive training, a background check, and visit the range or tactical shooting classes regularly. I would definitely feel a lot safer in a school with armed teachers, that is for sure.

This is why firearms are necessary in schools.