Monday, May 16, 2011

A Phoenix woman apparently wanted a little cuddle time after having sex with a man at the apartment of 19-year-old Paul Katoa over the weekend. The friend, Andrew McConnell, however, just got up and left the room -- which caused her to return to the apartment with a friend carrying a gun, resulting in the fatal shooting of Katoa.

http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/valleyfever/2011/05/phoenix_woman_has_man_fatally.php

-Okay, so this is just WEIRD! Never have I ever heard about killing just because of a "hit it and quit it" situation. Meaning just like what the guy did in the accident, a person would have intimate sex with an inidividual then after that they will leave and never contact that person again. To me a lot of people especially guys in our generation do it. Its not a good thing, but i guess to them its pretty cool. SMH. It say's that apparently the guy of the apartment, Paul Katoa was killed in the scene. It's sad to know because I see that he is a Pacific Islander. I guess we choose to hang with the wrong crowd, we end up having parties and ect. and moswt of the time it will lead to a fight or a shooting. I just hope these two get what they reserve, and that the Katoa family gets some closure from their son's death.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Shooting in Riverside.

-A gunman who shot and killed two people inside a gated Riverside community was shot and killed Tuesday by officers responding to the residence, according to authorities.

http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/121614494.html

-WOW! Two events within one week happened in our community. This is so rare especially around our community. Im used to it being so quit and nothing bad ever happens over here. It really shocked me that three people has died. Its really a tragic. I remember yesterday evening I happened to drive by and I seen all the bystanders, the police blocking the entrance and I wondered what happened. I wanted to stop and be nosy, but I didn't want the police to stop me or anything so I just came home and watched the news to see what happend. I don't know it just really shocked me and I hope nothing like this ever happens again.

Monday, May 9, 2011

Riverside girl ABDUCTED && DISORIENTED!!!

Riverside police say a 9-year-old girl taken from her home in the middle of the night was found disoriented and wandering the streets miles away from her home.

Click here for Video

-I did not know about this until one of my aunts who live in the same apartment complex had called my grandma and told her. I was highly shocked and surprised that such a thing like this has happened in our neighborhood. I live like atleast ten blocks away from where this happened, but its still close and it alarms me now. It surprises me the most because La-Sierra area is very quite and peaceful. Hardly anything really happens around here and that's why i like it. When I heard about this honestly it scared me. Now we have to double check on locking our windows and what not, and keeping a closer eye on my little cousins who stay with me. Not only is this affecting us but also iour llittle community because Valley View Elementry is right down the street, and who knows he might struck again. At this point we just got to watch closely and make sure everything around us is safe. Its really scarry especially because he got away.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Monday, May 2, 2011

OSAMA'S HIDEOUT

Relations between Pakistan and the West were under intense strain last night amid widespread incredulity at Islamabad’s claim that it knew nothing of Osama Bin Laden’s whereabouts.
Politicians and experts said it beggared belief that no one in Pakistan’s notorious intelligence service had any idea the terrorist leader was living in a vast, custom-built compound only 800 yards from the country’s military academy.
Critics said the circumstantial evidence suggested that instead, Bin Laden was effectively being housed under Pakistani state control

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1382861/Osama-Bin-Laden-dead-Hideout-800-yards-Pakistans-Sandhurst.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

-WOW is all i can say. After all these years how can they not have known where Osama was? Right under their chins. For more then 5 years? How was this possible? This is just so crazy, BUT now he has been captured and now is dead.

Reflection (Immigration Discussion)

-Discussion on thursday was really good from my point of view. Everybodies key points,arguments, and everything was just good. But one thing I mainly disagreed on during the discussion was when some students kept saying "their taking our jobs." In my opinion I dont see any immigrants taking ANY jobs from citizens. Citizens have it more better at getting a REAL job. If taking a job means picking strawberries, working in the fields, construction working without a permit ect ect then i guess. But all of these are nothing compared to the much more better jobs out there. Many citizens who are actually legal sit at home and chill, while these illegal immigrants come to our country to find a life and cant even get a job at Mc.Donalds. Why do you think many women come to OUR counrtry and give birth to their children out here? So that their kids can have it good. Honestly, i have witneessed and experience many things that have been done to immigrants, and its not good at all. Immigrants come to our country because they think life will be better. It will be much better for them and it would be easy to provide for their families back in their homeland. My parent for example, both immigrants and they have been here for over 20 years. My father is STILL in the process of trying to get his green card, and i wonder why does it take SO long just to process this? It's just ridiculous. All in all I just hope ONE day, it will be MUCH easier for immigrants to live a good life, just like us LEGAL people.

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Polynesian Tattoos

Polynesian tattoo's can be VERY painful getting it done. At time s it is a very long process to do, it takes a very skilled person to do a polynesian taat. The polynesian tat's look very very good' && everyone of them at least has a meaning to it. My plan is to get my first tribal tattoo after graduation. I've been itching to get one eversense iwas sixteen. In our culture (tongan) its a BAD sign for FEMALES in general to get a tattoo. But it does not stop us from getting it. Its not that we are going against our culture or what not, but because the tat's also represent who we are and what not. I chose to blog about this because I think its very unique, the way us polynesians have our tat's done. Its done in a different way and it is like i said before VERY painful. But all in all, in the end of the we will be satisfied with what we got.
Here is an example of a polynesian tattoo on a female. It is located on her leg. It shows the before and after.
Now my piece, I don't want it on my leg but on my back right shoulder. Here is my piece designed by my cousin. My design shows' the flowers on the bottom represent I am an island gurl, the turtle represent my family from the begininning, the 2 on the turtle's back represent me as one of the generation in the family, the tribals represent Im a polynesian and the  music notes shows my fame in music. This was designed by one of my talented cousin's and in my opinion, i think its REALLY nice. This piece will take a long time and the pain will be very painful. A piece like this will be up for $350. But the price won't stop me from getting what I want :)
This last one is a picture of my brothers recent tattoo. The name is my grandmothers' which I was named after as well. It also has tribal drawings on it to show that he too is a polynesian.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Even Celebs are IMMIGRANTS . . .

“We will keep supporting those people,” said the singer, who goes by his first name Fher, during a news conference at the Billboard Latin Music Conference in Miami Beach. “Because they are the people, the workers, who really put the bread on Americans’ tables.”

-With him saying this I can say I agree with his statement. If you really search, you will come to find out that Immigrants are the ones who really do put in work in America. Not because they have the urge to Have to do it, but because it gives them a better living condition and what not.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/latin-rock-mana-promotes-first-disc-in-5-years-and-urges-us-to-pass-immigration-reform/2011/04/27/AFo6iA1E_story.html

Monday, April 25, 2011

EASTER WEEKEND

-So this past weekend was easter weekend. Starting with good friday. My church had camp && i attended it. The theme was "Just Do IT; be the hands&&feet of jesus" My experience there was just so great. I learned a lot more things about our god then i already knew. We learned more a lot on why our god died on the cross for us. What crusification was and how important it is to us in life. We had a couple workshops and also a debate. It was between us kids && our parents. Four kids were selceted from the youth and four parents were selected as well. We had a couple topics having to do with our culture and things that are different from our Tongan culture, about the American society and all that stuff. It was really interesting and fun to hear and watch what was said and the actions. All in all i can say that everything was a success && i learned so much at the camp.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Should Legal Immigrants Have the Same Gun Rights as Citizens?

-So I was on a website looking for something to blog about and I came across a poll. So instead of blogging about the cuurent event I decided to blog about the poll. It's located on the bottom right. The question was, Should legal immigrants have the same gun rights as citizens? As the poll's said 49.41% said yes  and 50.59% said no. In my opinion I say that that legal immigrants should NOT have gun rights. I say this because the legal immigrants have family members and or friends that are illegal and you never know they can hand them the gun to use. Not only the legal immigrants but also the citizens too. They too have family members and friends that are illegal and will and can give them the gun to use. But then again you think about it, if the person that has the gun has its name under it, they might be smart and not let them use it. There's always two sides to the story and whether the person is a citizen or not, people shouldn't even have rights to a gun. If your a police officer or work with the law then that's different. Other then that for peoples safety citizen or non citizen no one shouldn't have the RIGHT to a gun.

http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2011/04/20/obama-seeks-new-beginning-failed-immigration-dialogue/

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Arizona sheriffs criticize White House immigration summit

PHOENIX - Arizona is considered the "Ground Zero" of the immigration debate, but the names most synonymous with the issue were left out of a White House conference on immigration reform.

http://www.azfamily.com/news/Arizona-sheriffs-criticize-White-House-immigration-summit-120255294.html

Monday, April 18, 2011

Immigration reform in the stae House && Senate

Immigration reform is moving along in the state House and Senate. The House is considering a bill that would make being an undocumented immigrant a state crime.
 
 
-In the video it says that a couple people such as one talk show hosts keeps questioning and stating that President Obama should show his birth certificate that way he can prove to the U.S that he is too, a citizen and not a immigrant. One why are people even thinking that our President is NOT a citizen? If he wasnt I believe he wouldnt even think of becoming a president and i wouldnt even think people would vote for him. I believe that our president is a citizen and that people shouldnt be questioning that.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Biz groups want immigration reform blocked, Scott sez doesn’t go far enough

Even as business groups are asking lawmakers to back down from proposed immigration reforms, Gov. Rick Scott supports giving law enforcement officers the ability to ask for proof of status when they pull someone over.

http://www.postonpolitics.com/2011/04/biz-groups-want-immigration-reform-blocked-scott-sez-doesnt-go-far-enough/

-In this case I would say that some officers will take an advantage and will pull over anybody they wish to pull over. I think that's not fair, and what if the person they pull over IS a CITIZEN and NOT a IMMIGRANT? what then? But this is just iun my opinion, i think this shouldn't conitnue just because a lot of officers who don't like the idea will choose to pull over folks for free. In this case many people including you and I can both agree to disagree.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Are we sending the worong message?

"We are not going to ship back 12 million people, we’re not going to do it as a practical matter. We would have to take all our law enforcement that we have available and we would have to use it and put people on buses, and rip families apart, and that’s not who we are, that’s not what America is about. So what I’ve proposed… is you say we’re going to bring these folks out of the shadows. We’re going to make them pay a fine, they are going to have to learn English, they are going to have to go to the back of the line…but they will have a pathway to citizenship over the course of 10 years."

http://dailynewspulse.com/immigration-reform-is-getting-extreme-are-we-sending-the-wrong-message/2217301/

-The first quote, is what the immigrants and other people are saying. Its what the government is doing to them and their families. Tearing them apart, and shipping their loved ones back to their country. Government is saying, No thats not what they are proposing, they are just trying to do whats right for them. That way they won't be labeled as immigrants, but as citizens of the U.S.

Immigration

So the topic in class now is about immigration in the U.S. In my opinion, I'm kind of in the middle with this situation. I mean immigrants are not only coming in from Mexico, but also from other countries as well. The main reason why these people leave their homeland and come to the U.S is to better the lives of their families. To get a better job that way they can provide for theirs. I say this not because i hear from others, but because i know people who come into the U.S to better their lives. I have personally witnessed a person who has came from another country, that is NOT a U.S citizen, and manages to get by. Not doing any illegal things, but getting their papers and such. When i hear the word "anchor babies", i think to myself, wow. Thats just not right for others to call a baby that was born from a illegal person a anchor baby. Honestly i would say that I, myself is a anchor baby as well. My parents came into this country and were both illegal aliens. They had me and my four brothers and it took them a while to get their papers done. But they managed too. But still, people shouldn't be really go against this whole situation because in my eyes, the immigrants are the one's who are really working their butt's off. Yes, so they can provide for theirs, but they do a really good job at what they do. So as of right now, i say that immigrants are not really harmful to us in the U.S. They are really dedicated to what they do, and i think that immigrants should be allowed to be in the U.S.

-Immigration really catches peoples attention. There are a lot of killing and what not, and i think that people are dying for free just because of the race they are, people are getting pulled over just because the way they look. All because they are somewhat immigrants. But in my opinion, we are ALL human beings, people shouldnt judge or hate just because he or she is African American, or Hispanic or whatever. Just because of the color of the skin does not mean for others to hate. From the video we seen in class today, i watched and seen that the minutemen had killed a young girl and her father because they were immigrants.(if thats correct). No kind of heart or respect for the family. How can people be so cruel to others, i dont know i just think that this is just too much. Its sad to see people loose their loved ones just because they are immigrants. I just hope that one day, everything will come to a end.

Monday, April 4, 2011

Spring Break

-So my spring break was alright I guess. Nothing special was done. Just pretty much chilled at home. Went to Orange County to my parents house, then to Long Beacto my uncles house. The first day of Spring Break (Saturday) I attended my brothers funeral. It was so sad, but we were all glad that he is now at peace, although he is gone, but his memory still remains. The rest of the week like i said was just chill. Wasn't really in the mood to do anything. I was lowkey bored and wanted to return to school. (very odd). So there a little reflection about my spring break, and now we are back, im happy. LOL. Just a couple more weeks of school and then its graduation. Really happy, just gotta get my game on in this class and try to pass, and my english class. I decided to FREE blog because nothing really interests me at the moment. :)

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Michigan lawmakers cut unemployment aid for future applicants

The state Legislature beat a deadline to make Michigan workers eligible for a federal unemployment extension Thursday — but included a reduction in state-level benefits for future jobless workers.
Under a bill passed by the Republican majorities in the state House and Senate, federal unemployment checks will be extended for another 20 weeks for about 150,000 Michigan workers. But the bill permanently reduces state-level unemployment benefits from 26 weeks to 20 weeks for workers who file starting Jan. 15, 2012.

http://www.detnews.com/article/20110324/POLITICS02/103240373/Michigan-lawmakers-cut-unemployment-aid-for-future-applicants

Monday, March 21, 2011

Judge orders Loughner mental exam

PHOENIX—A federal judge on Monday ordered the suspect in the January shooting rampage in Tucson to undergo a mental evaluation at a specialized facility in Missouri as soon as possible.

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2011/03/22/apnewsbreak_judge_orders_loughner_mental_exam/

Friday, March 18, 2011

Reflection (Education Discussion)

The discussion we had on wed. was quite interesting. Especially because it was about education, which is something that we are in right now. Getting a education to me is NOT an oppurtunity, it is a must that children al over the world should get their education. I mean without it where would you be in life right? From listening to all the things that were said during the conversation, I came down to one thing that caught my attention. Which was tenure. Tenure is the occupation of an official position, or the length of time that an official position is occupied. Meaning that if a teacher gets fired by a administrator or who ever is in charge of that, they will not loose their job at all. This somewhat gives the teacher the oppurtunity to teach or not teach, just because their job is not on the line. In my case teachers shouldn't have tenure. They should take it away because its not fair to those teachers who actually teach. Its not fair to the students who want to learn because the teachers are taking the advantage of their pay instead of their education. From all of this i say that students should go on strike, just so that their voices can be heard because often times our voices are not heard to the school officials. Although i know they may not agree with what us students want, but atleast we are getting our voices heard.

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Rest In Peace to one of my "brothers" . .Mosese "Moochie" Kalekale

So this week has basically NOT been my week at all. This past monday I lost on of my close friends who was basically like a brother to me. Mosese Kalekale. He was one of the most outspoken young boys I knew. We grew up together in Long Beach, and man he used to be the class clown. I had soo much great memories with him and now i hold on to them and cherish every moment i had with him. As we were little i would always remember he would always make fun of my name. Especially when we were at school. He would be like " Hey Takaua, you freaken cow come here " then he would laugh along with the other students. I just ignore them and once we got home I told his mom, and he would always get in trouble for it. lol. But now its sad to say that he has left the earth. He is now at peace, but he was gone too soon. August 6,1992 to March 15,2011.18 years young and his life was simply taken. But we all know that he is in a much better place now; watching over us and smiling down. Rest In Peace Moe; you ARE truly missed :(
- I chose to blog about my brother because it's just sad how he can leave just so suddenly. It's like it was just yesterday when we were young and now he is gone. But like i said he is now at peace and is in a much better place. I am truly going to miss you moochie! <3' you much.

R.I.P NATE DOGG!

-OMG this is REALLY shocking!!! One of my many fav. Rap/Hip-Hop/R&B artist has passed. Although all the songs he made was old by the time i was a little girl, i still GREW UP listening to him. All his music was just good to listen too, and some of them even inspired me! This is just soo shocking, news hasn't released why he died YET, but I read that he has had TWO strokes in the pass. My condolences are out to his family and his close friends.
REST IN PEACE, NATE DOG<3

-ONE OF MY fAVORITE SONGS BY HIM.
NEVER LEAVE ME ALONE-Nate Dog

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Infant Drowns After Police Say's; Mother Left Him Alone...

-WOW...this really shocked the heck out of me. I mean yes, i've seen cases like this before, but, apparently she put the kids in the bath-tub and left them there while she went to buy "milk". Instead of buying milk, she buys a box of ciggarettes, then goes to a pizza/wingstop. Police says she was gone for about 10-20 minutes and by the time she came back, her 9 month year old child was found dead.

I mean it's common sense! Why on earth would you leave your children unsupervised anyways? You have two hands, use them! Take the children with you to the store. Even if you have to walk across the street, or even stepping out the house. Take the kids with you and never leave them unattended. Man this is just devasting. I know this woman regrets what she did. Now she gotta pay for it, and i hope she gets what she deserves.

http://www.kktv.com/video/?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=5648941&flvUri=&partnerclipid=

Monday, March 14, 2011

Tongan flag leads to a fatal street bashing . .

TONGAN WOMEN killed by SAMOANS for wearing a shirt with a TONGAN FLAG
-Apparently this young women was on a walk with her friend. A group of Samoans Men and Women attatcked the two and they split up. After all the bashing, Mrs.Paraha was found dead. All of this because she was wearing a shirt with a TONGAN flag on it. I don't get it, this has been going on for decades. Samoans and Tongans has been beefing it for ages and I have a true feeling that it's never going to en. Its just sad because we as ONE should open our eyes and realize that we all come from ONE culture and everything. We shouldnt fight or beef, we should get along as one because life is too short for all this drama in the world.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/sunday-telegraph/tongan-flag-leads-to-a-fatal-street-bashing/story-e6frewt0-1226020403720

Friday, March 11, 2011

BON QUI QUI

LOL this is an old video but i just wanted to post it because of todays WHIP. It so reminds me of it just a little, with the exception of FIGHTING! More like ENTERTAINMENT :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2_mqLbbAmc

After 17 Day's they decide to leave...

The protesters finally decide to leave the Wisconsin Capitol after protesting for seventeen days.
 
Original date posted; March 3, 2011

Protests FINALLY leave

 Post by:
March 9,2011

So basically the people of Wisconsin are upset about a bill and have been protesting sense mid-feb. To this day they still continue to protest to make sure their voice is heard!
http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/03/09/voices-of-wisconsin-protesters-stand-firm-against-budget-bill/?hpt=Sbin

Original date posted; March 9,2011 4:31 p.m

Sex Slavery

Family Buisness

-A father and son work together to capture innocent women and sell them. Make them prostitutes and such.

http://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.com/2011/03/04/sex-slavery-a-family-business/?hpt=C1

Original date posted; March 7,2011 6:15 p.m

Gdahfi

CNN's Anderson Cooper reports on Wednesday's bombing in eastern Libya and earlier statements by Moammar Gadhafi.
http://cnn.com/video/?/video/bestoftv/2011/03/02/ac.kth.gadhafi.bombs.brega.cnn

Original date posted; March 2,2011 9:06 p.m

Death Penalty for a Doctor-Abortion (WHIP)

Prosecuters considering the death penalty???

-I asked myself, why would a human being even think about doing this? Its understandable if your still young or if your not ready nor dont want any children, but thats still no way to have abortion. Unless you cant take the pain. Women shouldne have abortion because these are one of gods many blessings given to us. Instead women care more about theirselves and decides to abort the child. What ever this man has in store for him i truly agree with his punishments. Although there are other doctors out there who do this too, but i guess you can say that that's different.

http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/03/02/doctor-to-face-death-penalty-trial-in-late-term-abortions-case/?iref=allsearch

Original date posted March 2, 2011 8:57 p.m

Teacher fired for BUMPER STICKER

Can A bumper sticker on your car cost you your JOB?

http://cnn.com/video/?/video/bestoftv/2011/02/28/exp.HLNBumperSticker.hln

-Apparently a teacher in Arizona had a bumper sticker on her car saying "Have Your Kid Been Drugged Today"...School officials don't like the fact that this teacher has it on her car. They ask if she can park somewhere else or take it off. I guess she chose to fight for her right and they fired her. In my opinion i think that this teacher has every right to put whatever she wishes on her car. After all it is her ride. She owns it and she pay's the bills. The school officials and the parents who are against have no right to be mad. Although the message is kind of disturbing a little, Yes, but then again there are both positive and negative views to this situation. Wish the best to this teacher, and hope she gets her job back.

Original date posted; February 28,2011 9:12 p.m

Male wrestler forfeits to a female

Forfeits his opponent (female)
The high school wrestler in Iowa who forfeited a match against a girl in a state tournament last week says he objected both to "compromising" positions that such a match could entail and to the idea of inflicting violence on a girl.
“Wrestling is a combat sport, and at times it gets violent, and you get put in moves and holds that are comprising,” said Joel Northrup, a sophomore. “I just don’t believe it's right that a boy and a girl should, in this manner, wrestle.”
Northrup’s dad, Jamie, said that the decision to forfeit was his son’s alone but that it reflected the family’s Christian convictions.
“Even though there’s no specific Scripture that addresses wrestling with girls, there is the biblical Christian principle of treating women with respect and dignity,” Jamie Northrup said, “and not looking at them as objects to be defeated on the wrestling mat to be, in some cases, groped or slammed.”
Joel Northrup, of Linn-Mar, forfeited a match Thursday to Cassy Herkelman, a freshman from Cedar Falls, who then advanced by default.
Both Northrup and Herkelman lost subsequent matches and were eliminated from the tournament before the finals.
But Northrup said Wednesday that he would forfeit a match against a girl even if it meant giving up a state championship.
“I would give up the chance," he said. "I wouldn’t wrestle a girl, whether it’s finals or any other meet or districts.”
Northrup said female wrestlers should face other girls

-My thoughts about this situation is just, well, really speechless. This is the first time i've ever seen such a thing. But i do not blame the young man forfitting the young lady.
“I would give up the chance," he said. "I wouldn’t wrestle a girl, whether it’s finals or any other meet or districts.” says the young man and i strongly agree with his reason. That's how you know this young man was brought up right by his parents. He has much respects for his female opponent and thats very good. Many guys might not forfit and will just go on with the match. But in this case this young man has really showed that he is a real gentlemen.

Video
http://cnn.com/video/?/video/living/2011/02/23/am.iowa.wrestler.forfeit.cnn

Original date posted; February 23, 2011 8:29 p.m

Youth Alive

Life Savior
 
So this past weekend i went on a church camp. It was called Youth Alive and the theme was "Life Savior". This camp goes on every year in the month of february in Riverside at the Riverside Convention Center. I go to church in Orange County in Santa Ana. There was 11 of us who were chosen to go this year and represent our youth and as well as our church. First United Methodist UMC. My youth goes every year and I was finally chosen to go the last year of highschool. This program is for young adults who are still in high school. All the churches who are in te Cal Pac division attends. It was really a great experience for me. It was also a real eye opener for me, not only for god, but also for my life and my family. My youth and i left on saturday morning and came back monday afternoon. While we were there we had a program called Kaleo. During this time we were all gathered in one hall and we sang and praised god. We had a few testimony's and a sermon by one of the Youth Pastors. After each Kaleo we would have A workshop or a thing called the Jesus 360.  Sunday night we had a Carnival and it was really a blast. The last day on monday, we had the last Jesus 360 and the last Kaleo. During the kaleo after the last sermon was given we had sacrament and it was really heart warming. I had a really great time and especially because it was my very first time. I am really looking foward to going again next year, but this time as a chaperone :)

Original date posted;  Feb 23, 2011 9:00 p.m

New Zealand Quake

(CNN) -- Morgues in Christchurch have identified 76 victims of Tuesday's quake, according to Police Minister Judith Collins, but hundreds are still missing -- among them, nearly 30 Japanese students.
As more bodies are recovered and as the identification process continues, authorities acknowledge that the number of fatalities will rise.
Some 431 people have been admitted to hospital emergency rooms since the quake, according to Iona Wassilieff with New Zealand's National Crisis Management Center. Authorities say another 1,000 people have been treated for minor injuries.
Currently, 27 Japanese students are among those missing, according to Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Most of that group is from Toyama Foreign Language College; two are students from another language school in Tokyo and five are on personal study trips from other parts of Japan.
Japan's Asahi Shimbun newspaper interviewed two victims from Toyama Foreign Language College who were pulled from the rubble in New Zealand. Kento Okuda and Norika Masutani are both 19-years-old and students at the language school, and now both are patients at Christchurch Hospital.
Okuda said he was in the cafeteria having lunch on the fourth floor when he felt the first, big shake, according to the paper. The floor gave way and he felt himself falling, but said he had no no idea how far he fell. The entire building was dark, he said, and he realized he couldn't move his right leg because it was trapped under heavy rubble.
Masutani was also on the fourth floor when the quake hit, Asahi Shimbun said. She said she panicked when the floor gave way.....

-When i first heard about this devastating situation i thought to myself,  OMG i have a lot of family members living in NZ. But then again my grandparents told me that they are not located at ChristChurch. But still this news still devastates me because knowing a lot of people has been buried alive and even passed. I wish i had something to do, something to donate because ive been watching the news and these people hardly have anyhing to survive with. Now im just hoping that a miracle will happen to those who are out there, and that they keep their faith in god.


Original date posted; Feb 23, 2011 8:40 p.m

Mosque (Refelection)

I was truly surprised on the way numbers had changed  by the end of the discussion. Although i didnt day much, as i was sitting there analyzing everything i have learned a d found out actually a lot.  To be honest i was really into checking up on the Egypt thingy on a daily basis. But as my classmates were talking amongst each other about why the mosque should be built or not, it really taught me to really get into the problems within  our society, country and the world. In the beg. i was on the maybe side. Just because like Mr. Palo said both sides have great reasons. But as the discussion was coming to an end, i realized that our world in general can  be very judgemental, and that goes for all causes and situations. A lot of our people in society look for the negative things about that particular event or situation and drag it in and basically focus on that. But in reality there's also a positive side to this situation. At the end i really thought about it, and yes, although muslims are known to be terrorists in our country, the majority are not on that side. There are many muslims out there who are NOT terrorists and that will not destroy our country. People shouldn't be put down for what they believe and what they don't believe in because it is a FREE country and people are welcome to worship and believe in what ever they wish to believe in.

Original date posted; Tuesday, February 15, 2011 11:41 p.m

SOTU PROJECT



1. Education, the key  to everything in life.
2. Freedom, everybody has freedom of speech for anything.
3. Faith, something we should all have, no matter what the situation is.
4. Congress, the people who legislate the US.
5. People in the government have debates on whether things should be done or not.
6. The democracy, people who are either with the Reps or the Demo's .
7. People should have passion, to stay focused with their work
8. People in congress work hard to keep our country safe.
9. If you belive and have faith in everything you do it will be reality.
10.Its the  Presidents responsibility to protect the nation from harm and to change the things thats needed to be changed.
11. A lot of citizens are in struggling and during recession, the economy is truly affected by it.
12. Education is the one thing the government should pay attention to the most. Should provide better oppurtunities and provide more supplies that way the students will become successfull and will be more educated.
13. America many generations and Health Care has still not been a settled issue.
14. A lot of people in congress use their immgination, but it needs to come to reality.
15. Immigration another issue that still lives on for decades and decades.
16. Government should come up with an idea to progress the rules and laws of the US.
17. The children of the US should benefit on a much better education.
18. The world faces many challenges, but we should be proud of ourselves because although they are painful we still manage to over come them.
19. The governments work is very productive.

Original date posted; Saturday, February 12, 2011 11:08 p.m

PART of Obama's Speech from the SOTU

President Barack Obama defended the new health care law during his State of the Union address
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/video/state-of-the-union-health-care-reform/article1882843/

"Lets fix what needs fixing and lets move foward"

Indeed I hope that by the end of this year this Health Care Situation will be settled and that our country will get the service they need.

Health Care Reform

 

Federal judge tosses out sweeping health care reform act

A federal judge in Florida has tossed out the sweeping health care reform law championed by President Barack Obama, setting up what is likely to be a contentious Supreme Court challenge over the legislation in coming months.
Monday's sweeping ruling came in the most closely watched of the two dozen separate challenges to the law. Florida along with 25 states had filed a lawsuit last spring, seeking to dismiss a law critics had labeled "Obamacare."

By Bill Mears, CNN Supreme Court Producer
January 31, 2011 6:30 p.m. EST

Original date posted; Monday, January 31, 2011 7:22 p.m

Serial killer in Long Island

 

Original posted date; Tuesday, January 25, 2011 9:34 p.m

 Four Prostitutes Found Dead

The four women whose bodies were dumped along a desolate beachfront strip on Long Island were all prostitutes who booked their clients online and were probably slain by a serial killer, authorities said Monday.

I dont get it? How can a human being do such a thing to another human being? How can they live with it? In my opinion this is just soooo hurtful and is a very bad thing to do. Whatever this person gets for doing the crime he deserves it.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/video/serial-killer-at-work-in-long-island-police/article1882099/

Oprahs visit to Aussie :)

Original date posted; Tuesday, January 18, 2011 11:16 p.m.

All of Australia was positively giddy when Oprah Winfrey came to visit last month, lavishing praise and attention on the country's many tourist hot spots.
Now, Australia may be counting on Winfrey's Midas touch more than expected, as it deals with a natural disaster that's prompted some travelers to cancel trips to parts of the country.
On Tuesday, U.S. television audiences will see the first of four shows Winfrey taped Down Under during an eight-day trip that took place in December.
But the happy images will be in stark contrast to the scenes of utter devastation that have been dominating the airwaves as the northeastern Australian state of Queensland struggles with a deadly flood crisis.
Worried tourism officials, who have noted that some travelers are shying away from destinations not impacted by the flooding, have high hopes for the Oprah Winfrey exposure.
"The timing of the shows couldn't be better and will send a clear message that Australian tourism remains open for business," said Kristen Malaby, a spokeswoman for Tourism Australia, in an e-mail.
"Every part of Australia will benefit from this project."

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

2 students shot in L.A. high school; suspect arrested

A 17-year-old boy arrested after a handgun in his backpack accidentally discharged and wounded two other high students Tuesday was able to bring his automatic pistol on campus apparently because the Los Angeles school does only random metal detector checks, police said.

By Michael Martinez, CNN
January 18, 2011 8:34 p.m. EST