Student Congress Speeches 1

Speech against:

A BILL TO ESTABLISH NATIONAL EDUCATION STANDARDS

 

 

In recent decades, The United States has fallen behind other world powers in terms of the education of our youth. Countries like India and China, who just two decades ago were not even considered modernized nations, are now better educating their students than The United States is. This is surely a problem we must deal with, why are we falling behind, and how can we make up some lost ground?

At first, it might seem logical to set a national standard and say, “If you meet this, you will get rewarded, if you do not meet it, you will be punished”. But this way of thinking is actually major contributor to precisely why the U.S. is falling behind in education, and is certainly not a solution to our education problem. The reason; national education standards of any kind, hurt poor schools.

All across America, particularly in the urban areas, public schools are massively under-funded and unable to adequately educate their students. Especially to levels that are required in this proposed piece of legislation. The Inner-city schools lack of funding is a main reason why these schools fail, and why they would be unable to meet the national standards called for in this bill.

Under this bill, poor schools that do not meet national standards because of their lack of funding, will have their federal funding eliminated. So the schools who do not have enough money as it is will get receive less, and therefore, be less able to educate their students.

The contents of this bill would not help the education system in our country at all, and in fact they would hurt it. Take the current policy of NCLB, it established national education standards, and it is widely regarded as ineffective and hurtful. National standards would force us to cut the budget of schools that desperately need more funding, not less. We simply cannot take a one size fits all approach to the education of our young people.

We should look at solutions that give money to schools that need it, and not policies that would hurt the poor.

 

 

Speech supporting:

A RESOLUTION TO PROTECT THE HOMELESS

 

All over our country, there homeless men and women, even homeless families. Homelessness plagues our country like a terrible disease. Some are unable to afford their homes, especially in the current state of our economy, and so are simply kicked out. While others, could never afford a home in the first place. With no place to go, they are forced out on the streets, for better or worse. They have to survive with minimal resources, with whatever food, clothes and shelter they can find. Not knowing when their next meal is, or even if they will live to see tomorrow. So you find yourself wondering, how can this be? How can we let this happen? Here in America? In the richest country in the world, in the land of opportunity, how can we have so many people who cannot even afford the basic necessities for life?

These people are in poverty. And remain in poverty simply because they have not the means to escape it. As the great economist and author Jeffrey Sachs said in his 2004 book The End of Poverty : “A large number of the poor are caught in a poverty trap, unable on their own to escape from extreme material deprivation. They are trapped by poverty itself”. Sachs explains poverty like a ladder, in which, the hardest part is getting yourself on the first rung of this ladder. After you are on the first rung, it gets easier to climb further and further up. But those in poverty, like the homeless in this country, are unable to grasp even the first rung. We need to help them get a grasp on the ladder, help them climb out of poverty.

 

 

It is the responsibility of the U.S. government to provide for; life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for it’s people. Therefore, we have a duty to help the impoverished of our nation so that they may experience life, liberty, and happiness.  

This bill would do exactly that, it would help the those who cannot help themselves. This bill would help thousands get on the ladder and climb up out of poverty. By opening unused government buildings to the homeless, we would be providing them with a temporary home. A shelter from their storm. They would use this building as a temporary sanctuary while they do whatever they need to, to get their lives on track and solve their problems.

These empty buildings are a great resource that we have long been over-looking. This is simply an incredible opportunity that we need to take advantage of for the sake of those hungry in America.

By passing this bill, we would also be creating a sub-committee that’s purpose is to address the causes, effects, and solutions to homelessness. This is sub-committee is sure to be a great long-term weapon against domestic poverty. By passing this bill, we would not only be fighting homelessness in the short term by housing thousands of people, but also in the long term by coming up with effective solutions to homelessness.

 

 

America is the land of opportunity, so let’s give opportunity to all.  

History- WWII The Codebreakers

WWII Code breakers.

 

At first,  the topic of breaking the codes didn’t appeal to me very much, I had been hoping for another topic, but as I began to research and learn more about the process the allies went through to break these codes. As well as the importance these codes had to the outcome of the war, my interest continued to grow.

I began my research of this topic by just doing some basic reading in our history textbooks. Then I moved on and began using Gale E-books, where I read two different articles on the topic. I learned very much from doing this research, I went from knowing virtually none of the specifics of the code breaking process to knowing how it all unfolded.

The British started trying to crack the axis’ codes before the war even started at Bletchley Park in 1938. Cryptologists began trying to crack the German code, known as “Enigma”, they labeled this “Operation Ultra”. Operation Ultra had limited success in the early phases of the war, but as the war went on their success rate improved.

Americans began trying to crack their enemies codes after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. As the U.S. entered the war, intelligence began focusing on decoding the Japanese code known as “JN-25″. The task force trying to break the code was known as “Magic”, and consisted of 738 Naval personnel. Magic was led by Commodore John Rochefort.

Chief cryptanalyst of the Army Signal Intelligence Service William Friedmen soon developed the ECM Mark III, which used complex mathematical analysis, IBM punch-card tabulating machines, and a cipher machine. Using the ECM Mark III, the U.S. was able to crack the majority of JN-25 by 1942.

The cracking of both the German code, Enigma, and JN-25 played major roles in the allies victories. Knowing these codes; the allied leaders could anticipate axis moves, and prepare. An example of this would be the battle of Midway. The United State’s victory in Midway turned the tide for the war in the pacific. This crucial battle was won because we learned of the planned invasion by reading JN-25. Knowing the Japanese code also played a crucial role in preventing the Japanese from invading Australia in the battle of Coral Sea.

Had the allies not cracked the secret codes of their enemies, the war could have turned out very different.  Through reading the codes, we learned very important information about the axis’ war strategy, and we used that to it’s full advantage.

CA- hospital painting

Dear Ms. Tuckworth,

I am aware of the difficult decision facing you of which of your paintings would be the best donation to the hospital. Lately, I have been considering the 4 options and I have come to a conclusion about which painting would be the best choice to place in the waiting room.

Because the waiting room must give those waiting in it a sense of comfort, tranquility, and hope “Up the river, late October afternoon” I believe would be a great choice. The easy-going scene of the painting, with the hazy sky and the grass of the field blowing in the wind would give people a comfortable feeling. What would be more peaceful than relaxing all day next to the river, just watching the clouds roll by in the sky? This painting would take those who look at it into a more peaceful state of mind. The bright colors that are used in this painting make you feel happier, like everything is going to be alright, this is the hope that people need to feel when they are sitting wondering if everything is going to be okay.

The other three paintings, while by no means bad paintings, do not fit the kind of atmosphere that a waiting room needs to have. “White River at Sharon” uses bleaker colors which gives off a negative vibe, like hopelessness. This painting also is placed completely in the wilderness, which would make people feel lost and forgotten. “Impression at the New York World Fair” is exactly the opposite of what we want in the waiting room. The painting is crowded, chaotic, and just looking at it would give people stress. “Terrace, Prospect Park” at first glance may look perfect for a nice calm, relaxing waiting room. But if you look at the fallen leaves, in a hospital waiting room observers mind these leaves could represent fallen lives, like the person they are waiting for.

Thank you for considering my choice, as well for your generous donation. I’m sure that the painting you choose will really add the atmosphere of the waiting room.

Thank you,

Andy Hellier

Questions for BP

Mr. Moore

1. What is your name and how do you spell it?

2. What is the title of your profession?

3. How long have you had this job?

4. Can you briefly describe what you do in this profession?

5. What is an example of a past or present project that you have done?

6. Do you think that you are effectively making progress towards your goal?

7. What is your motivation for working towards this goal?

8. Why are you here at our school today?

9. Do you think that BVN needs diversity training? Why?

10. What can BVN do to improve its acceptance of diversity?

11. Anything else that you would like to add?

 

Devin Clark

1. Name?

2. What extra-curricular activities are you involved with?

3. Why are you involved with these?

4. What are some achievements or things that you are proud of from these activities?

5. How did you become captain of the cross country team?

6. Is BVN diverse?

7. Do students here discriminate against minorities?

8. Have you personally been the victim of or seen any discrimination at BVN?

9. What can BVN do to improve our acceptance of diversity and end discrimination?

10. Anything else that you would like to add?

 

Robin Hobson

1. Name?

2. What extra-curricular activities are you involved with?

3. Why did you do these activities?

4. What are some achievements or things you are proud of from these activities?

5. Did you receive a basketball scholarship?

6. If yes, what school is it for? And what does it entail?

7. Did you expect to get this scholarship, or was it a surprise?

8. What went through your head when you first found out?

9. Is BVN diverse?

10. Do students here discriminate?

11. Have you personally been the victim of or seen discrimination here at North?

12. What can we do to improve our acceptance of diversity and end discrimination?

13. Anything else that you would like to add?

Kathleen Sebelius- An example for leaders

During the '08 election season, Sebelius campaigned hard for Obama.

 

Our national leaders need to look to Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius for advice on what to do about our economy and our national deficit. 

In 2002, Sebelius became the 44th governor of Kansas.  The second woman to do so.  She defeated her opponent, Republican Tim Shallenburger with a strong majority of votes. 

She won because in 2002 the state of Kansas was in an economic slump, with a looming budget deficit. 

Sound familiar?

Anyway, in 2002 she is elected Kansas governor, promising for help the economic state.  And did she ever!!  In her first term, Sebelius balanced the state’s budget without raising taxes on anyone! 

Sebelius won re-election in 2006, with a commanding majority of 57.8%.  Under her governorship, Kansas has prospered. 

The fact that Sebelius, a Democrat, can win the governorship of one of most red states in the nation twice in a row, both times with a strong majority of the vote, shows the fact that she can unite people and can look beyond partisan lines.  Exactly someone we need right now.

Now the nation is in a similar place that Kansas was in 2002.  Sebelius is again stepping up to help the economic situation, withdrawing her name from a list to be considered for Obama’s cabinet positions so that she can stay in Kansas for another 2 years and work on it’s problems. 

When Bill Richardson dropped out of being the nominee for Commerce Secretary people thought Sebelius was the next pick, because of her success in Kansas.  But she again repeated her claim that she wanted to stay in Kansas.

As a resident of Kansas and paying attention to what my state government is up to, I have to say, Sebelius has been a fabulous governor.  One of the best Kansas has had no doubt.  I would love to see her move up on the political ladder and be one of the national leaders in ending this crisis.  And i must admit that i am disapointed that she will not be joining the Obama team…

But in a way, i am comforted that she will be one that is working to fix whats broken in my state. 

In these times, we need someone who has proven themselves, someone who can unite the very divided nation.  Kathleen Sebelius is the perfect example of how to do this, and i urge our leaders to get her advice on issues.

-A. Hellier

The Death of Earth

The consequences of pollution

 

For over 100 years, we have been poisoning our planet. Dumping massive amounts of pollution into the air we breath and the water drink. The U.S. alone currently emits approximately 400,000 metric tons of pollution annually. As the population of our country and the world continues to grow, pollution will grow as well, unless we start moving toward a greener way of life. If we continue to destroy our environment without ever thinking twice we will face disasters of an unprecedented level.

The worst of these would be the threat of global warming. Global warming, often referred to as climate change, is the warming of our planet’s climate. Scientists all over the world agree that this warming is being caused primarily by pollutant gases that are emitted by humans, these pollutants create a greenhouse-effect. They are called greenhouse-gases, and they trap heat radiation from the sun in our atmosphere which warms the Earth, just like a greenhouse traps heat inside of itself.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a United Nations scientific research panel made up of the top climate scientists from all over the world. They researched if global warming was happening, if humanity was causing it, and if we were, what the effects of it would be. The IPCC concluded in late 2007 that humanity was causing global warming and that we needed to drastically lower our greenhouse-gas emissions immediately or face grave consequences. These consequences include a global epidemic of tropical diseases, the flooding of continental coast-lines, and the extinction of several of our planet’s plant and animal species.

Diseases such as malaria and tuberculosis are prevalent in the tropical regions of the globe and kill thousands of people every year. This is because they, and other fatal diseases like them, need a warmer environment like the tropics to survive. If we allow global warming to happen, our entire planet will be just the environment these horrible diseases need to survive and spread, we will face a global epidemic that will result in the deaths of millions.

The warming of our planet is already causing the polar ice caps to melt into the ocean. Imagine, all of the ice in both the North and South Poles melting into the ocean, sea levels around the world would rise drastically. Scientists say that water levels would rise so much it would completely flood our coastlines. Cities along the coast like New York, Boston, Los Angeles, and Seattle would suffer a similar fate as the legendary city of Atlantis, they would be lost in the oceans.

If the climate of our planet changes, then many species of animal and plant life will die out. Not only will these species be lost forever, but the natural cycle of the world will be disrupted because of these now missing links. The biosphere of our entire planet will be thrown into complete chaos.

If we do not go green and lower our air pollution soon, every major city will have a giant smog cloud over it just like Los Angeles. Furthermore, the more we pollute our air, the less clean and more harmful our air will be. This means our lungs would pay the price, and deaths from lung disease would skyrocket.

One of the most important effects of our pollution that is already taking place is that it is hurting our ability to grow food. Pollution kills the nutrients in soil that our crops need to grow. Since man-made pollutants have been getting into our soil, the organic materials that plants need have been cut-in half. More pollution will really hurt our ability to grow food, which means less food for a world with a growing population.

The survival of the human race depends on the survival of our environment. If we don’t act we will literally kill our environment, and if that dies, the human race will die along with it.

If we do act, by going green, we will preserve our mother Earth and all of it’s beauty for future generations so that they can be amazed by the natural wonders of our world just as all of us have been. We would save our planet, and ourselves.

Going green is major, nation-wide changes that we need like using more clean, alternative energies to power our cars and homes, or finding ways to lower our greenhouse-gas emissions. But it is also the smaller things that each of us can do that make a difference. Like using the plastic trays at lunch instead of the Styrofoam ones (that will still be trash in 2,000 years) or throwing your trash away in a trash can as opposed to on the ground somewhere. The Environmental Protection Agency tells everyone of us to; reduce how much you use, reuse what you can, and recycle what you can’t. It’s that simple!

We have to love our planet, and we have to learn to live and grow with it, not off of it.

-A. Hellier

Obama’s economic plan, exactly what we need

President-Elect Barack Obama recently announced his plan to help the economy.  This plan is exactly what the country needs right now, it will not only create countless new jobs, but it will also repair America’s failing infrastructure and get us moving towards alternative energy.  His plan is to invest money in public works projects that will repair our infrastructure which will create millions of jobs, and invest in alternative energies that will create even more jobs.

As a country, our infrastructure is failing.  Our roads, bridges, highways, electrical power grids, water pipes, etc. are falling apart.  There is an urgent need to re-vamp our infrastructure, which this plan will do. 

It is no secret that we need to start moving towards alternate sources of energy, which this plan will do.

And perhaps most importantly, both of these things will create countless new jobs, which is the key to helping our ailing economy. 

Critics of the plan say that it will not work for various reasons.  They say things like; It won’t create enough jobs to make a significant difference to our economy, the jobs won’t be created soon enough, and that it won’t significantly impact our economy. 

I point these people back to 1932, the year Franklin Delano Roosevelt was elected president, and America was in the midst of  The Great Depression.  The Great Depression mirrors our economic situation today, and the key for solving today’s economic crisis is looking at what action FDR took at fighting the economic crisis in the ’30s. 

So the question is, what did FDR do to fight The Great Depression?  The Answer is he invested government money in public work projects and energy.  

First, he created the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) which hired people to do public works projects.  Which is what Obama is doing in his plan.

The CCC played a major role in ending the depression, it did public works such as building roads, planting trees, and helping in soil-erosion and flood-control projects. 

Another public works organization that Roosevelt put together delt with energy.  The TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority) transformed the Tennessee River Valley, it took advantage of the natural resources of the valley and turned them into energy, creating new energy and jobs.

Both the CCC and the TVA are considered two of the most successfull programs that Roosevelt created.  They both played a very significant role in ending the depression.

So creating jobs through public works and energy production helped us out of the worst economic crisis in our history, is it crazy to think that it will work this time?

-Andy Hellier

Thanksgiving Football Predictions

So the match-ups are like this:

Tennessee Titans @ Detriot Lions at 12:30 Eastern.

Seattle Seahawks @ Dallas Cowboys at 4:15 Eastern.

Arizona Cardinals @ Philadelphia at 8:15 Eastern.

My predictions are this:

The Tennessee/Detriot game is pretty much a no-brainer.  Tennessee is dominating this season and Detriot is……well not exactly dominating (0-11), even though the lions are at home, Tennessee should take this win easily.

I am from Seattle, I spent most of my childhood there, so I will always feel a connection to the seahawks, and they are who i will be pulling for today, but they are going up against The Cowboys in Dallas.  Dallas is having a much better season than Seattle, and you know they will be on top of their game on Thanksgiving since this is tradition for The Cowboys.  So even though I love the Seahawks I imagine Dallas should win this game easily.

The last game, Arizona @ Philadelphia.  This year it seems that The Eagles have lost something that they had in previous years.  Even though the Cardinals are the away team, they have the better record, and with one more they win clinch their division, something Arizona will fight hard for.  I predict Arizona will win this matchup but it should be the closest of the three games today.

So those are my predictions.  HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

-Andy Hellier

The Voice of the New Generation

The election of 2008 got the youth involved more than ever.  Young people, such as myself, have never had a major voice in a presidential election as much as they had in this one. 

This is a sign that the new generation will be one that really works on making progress on the problems of the world.  A college student by the name of Tyler Holmes is taking the role as the voice of the new generation.  Holmes ran for the Kansas State House of Representatives this election at the age of only 18.

Tyler Holmes graduated from my high school, Blue Valley North, last year, and now is a freshman at the University of Kansas. 

Holmes ran for the Kansas state house against Republican incumbent Pat Colloton, and though Holmes was defeated (the district he ran in is heavily Republican) he established himself as the main political voice of the new generation.  His story is very inspirational to any young person who is interested in politics. 

Tyler’s story is one of over-coming the odds, and following your dreams.  Tyler followed his dream of going into politics and making a difference in this world and he managed to run a great campaign and get his name known for future elections.

Though Holmes never expected to win his race, him and his supporters tried the hardest they could to get as many votes as they could.  If you were driving through the district where Holmes was running you couldn’t drive more than 5 minutes without seeing a “Tyler Holmes for State Rep.” road sign.  Countless cars had the “Tyler Holmes 08″ bumper sticker on their back.  The halls of Blue Valley North High School were covered in stickers shouting support for the school’s alumni.  Holmes even had a televised debate with his opponent. 

Holmes promised to work to get Kansas to expand its Wind Energy programs, and to have the state become a leader in developing alternative energies and ending the addiction to oil.  As well as focus on improving education by focusing on the individual students interests and talents rather than on testing. 

His story is very inspirational, the fact that an 18 year-old college freshman can get so close to being elected shows that miracles do happen, and that the voice of America’s youth is starting to be heard.

Though he was defeated on election night, Holmes is not done with politics.  This was just a trial run, to see how Tyler could handle it, and to get his name out there.  Expect to see Tyler Holmes run in future elections. 

Tyler Holmes,18, ran as a Democrat for The Kansas House of Rep.

I write for a paper called ’The North Star’ and in one of the past issues there is a great article written by my fellow staff-writer Abby Fromm about Holmes i urge you to read it.  Here is the link:  http://www.bv229.k12.ks.us/BVN_LMC/Website/Oct.%20Issue/Pages/ready%20for%20gilman/sent/page%202.pdf

Comment and let me know what you think,

-Andy

How Christmas is dying and what you can do!

Remember those christmas specials you would watch as a kid?  The ones that taught you the values of the holiday season; peace, love, and above all; family.   

I love christmas and the holiday season.  My alarm clock is turned to 98.1 KUDL, which is Kansas City’s christmas music station, every morning i wake up to a different cheery X-mas jingle.  Winter in general is very inspiring and uplifting to me, especially during the holiday season.

Christmas should be a time for bonding with your family, for realizing how important they are to you, as well as a time for taking a step-back and standing in awe of the natural beauty of that our world has during winter.  A time for watching the snow fall and forgetting the world.  A time for snuggling up with the person you love and drinking cocoa.  It is a time for giving, and loving, sharing, and caring. 

But in recent years it seems that Christmas has changed into being about something completely different.  Christmas, and indeed the whole holiday season has turned into one big advertisement. 

There is no plot to kill Christmas by some secular-progressive conspiracy, but the heart of the Christmas season is dying, not because of the “Godless liberals” that apparently hate christmas, but rather from the major U.S. companies.  Companies are turning the holidays into nothing but a money making opportunity. 

Another victim in this has been Thanksgiving.  Remember when Thanksgiving was a major holiday? Now, there is no Thanksgiving season and in many ways Thanksgiving is no longer a major holiday.  This is because Christmas is much more profitable to companies than Thanksgiving.  So companies have started forcing the season of Christmas on us so we will buy christmas decorations, clothes, and of course; presents.  If we have the Christmas season forced upon us than there is no way we will be albe to feel in our hearts what the season should be.  Because companies are turning Christmas into a marketing opportunity the christmas spirit of giving, love, and family is quickly fading away and turning into production, sales, and money. 

Christmas use to be something different, the connection between companies mass marketing christmas and the death of the christmas season might be hard to see, but consider how the holidays were before mass-production.  It was a much simpler time, when people concentrated on family, love, joy, and nature.  People hardly mention those things anymore.

That is why, in my own little protest against the death of the holiday spirit, instead of going out and buying christmas presents for my friends and family i will be writing a series of short stories and poems that are inspired by winter and giving them that as their present. 

I urge you all, instead of spending money this christmas season, make something from your heart that represents how much you care about the person you are giving it to.  Doing this will revive what Christmas should be, at least in your own heart.

Don’t let Christmas die for you, think about what the season means to you and keep that in your heart.

I write for a paper called ‘The North Star’ and in our last issue we had a wonderful article, by my fellow staff-writer Andie Davidson about this same topic (infact, its what inspired this post).  I urge you all to read it.

Here is a link for it:  http://www.bv229.k12.ks.us/BVN_LMC/Website/Nov.%20Issue/done/page%2014.pdf

Thanks,

Andy