Commentary RE: Bag ban-The impacts

In this blog presented by one of my classmate titled, "Bag Ban-The impacts" I think that he did a good job of laying out the pros and cons of a topic that has recently affected all of us Austinites. I think that Wes did a good job of laying out his opinion but at the same time making points that were honest, and which I am sure many of us felt this same way initially for instance, when he said that at first the thought of this bag ban was more of an annoyance and resistance to change more than anything else.

 I agree with him that after initially hearing about this ban I thought to myself, that is going to be a pain to remember my reusable bags, or I thought it was some kind of an inconvenience. As Wes stated after a few months of forming the new habit of bringing my bags along with me, I find it to be not that bad and if this little act can save our planet in even the slightest I am all for it.

I found Wes' blog to be well thought out in his presentation and informational about the facts that supported his thoughts on this topic. I especially found it to be interesting when he brought up the fact about this ordinance making it easier for shoplifters, which I had always slightly thought this to be a possibility but I wasn't aware about the facts behind it.

Overall, Wes did a good job of commenting on this topic as well as putting forth his opinions about it in a reasonable and honest fashion.

Original Comentary #2 Texas and gun control

Texas is notorious for having some of the most leniant gun laws, the concerns over this fact have risen over time because of the violence that has occured due to the lack of laws. One of the reasons that Texas has such low rankings in its laws is because there is not a minimum legal age requirement for gun posession which consequently can lead to more violence. In 2009 it was recorded that in Texas 65,561 offenses were reported for violence involving a concealed hangun for those 21 and over and only 101 of those convictions was the person carrying a concealed hangun license at the time of the offense. There is also a concern about the increasing amount of violence in Mexico and at the border which raises concern that the violence will be brought into the United States.

With the fact that Texas does have such lazy laws when it comes to handguns, it is important that people are aware of the magnitude that these weapons can have and this is enforced with measures sch as calls for restrictions on gun shows, child access prevention laws mandating the locking up of guns, and bans on assault weapons. Enforcement of measures such as these are crucial in keeping people safe, because guns are not always placed in the hands of someone that is capable or in a right state of mind to be possessing such a weapon.

With recent talk about passing laws such as handguns being allowed on capuses and in schools it is apparent that Texas doesnt intend on getting rid of the posession of these weapons anytime soon. While this topic may be controversial it is the reputation that Texas carries in being supportive of handguns and treating them without strict force when compared to other states. If Texas is going to continue its ongoing affair with its affinity for hanguns the only hope is that we can do so in safe manner and always keep in mind that even though these weapons are meant to protect and provide safety, they are also often misused in instances that lead to violence, crime, suicide, and tragic events.

Commentary on article: Why did the Fetus cross the road?

I found the article, Why did the fetus cross the road to be very organized in the information that was being presented as well as a good insight upon such a touch subject. The facts that were presented about why a woman would chose to have an abortion in the first place are not only truthful, but honest. Stating that maybe its possible that a mistake happened, birth control failed, or factors are present that are not allowing you to care for a child at this particular moment in time. I particularly agree with the statement about how clearly ironic this topic even is seeing as how the Senate proceeds to pass a bill prior to this not allowing women to get the birth control that they need to prevent having babies, and then they chose to pass a bill that prevents aborting the babies that they have caused due to lack of resources. That combined with the so called "protection" this bill will provide women when in all actuality it leaves more reasons for women and young girls to turn to unsafe conditions to have these abortions, leads me to believe these people don't know what they are talking about. I think that the author of this article did a good job of laying out good information based on this topic and provided a good argument for those that agree with pro choice and the rights of women. I am a big believer myself in these rights.

Original commentary #1

When it comes to the Texas justice system, its wide range of cases it has to deal with each year is tremendous ranging anywhere from enforcing traffic laws to the ultimate criminal punishment. The enormous budget that the justice system has, stating it is somewhere around 3.3 billion dollars annually in public safety and corrections and another 175 million for the court systems, goes to show the effort that it takes to keep the system running smoothly and to maintain all of these efforts.

The growing population of Texas over the years has led to an even greater emphasis on crime and punishment and with that being said creates more tension as Texas already demands a strong punishment when it comes to acts of crime. Unfortunately the lack of funds sometimes creates a problem in the justice system and keeps it from running as smoothly as it should.

The attorney general in office plays an important role in the justice system and is constitutionally bound to keep up with important tasks such as,

• defend the laws and the Constitution of the state of Texas
• represent the state in litigation
• approve public bond issues

One of the hardest problems facing the justice system is that it must at all times treat people fairly and equally and not make decisions that are based too much in either direction. It must always be well informed and in touch with its resources but at the end of the day always be accountable for the information and knowledge they put out there. This task is extremely difficult. The involvement of Texans in the issues that face our world is an important factor in keeping the system in balance and running the way we want it to.

The six percent

In the article titled “The six percent” author Harold Cook puts a humorous spin on today’s political issues. He is applying his own witty banter on topics such as the abortion bill being passed and the question of who really won or lost this battle the democrats or the republicans. He states that the Democrats probably thought that they won a big one among the sea of republicans. Cook appears to be very opinionated upon topics such as the abortion bill and his sarcasm is apparent throughout this article.

He does back up his information with solid facts and numbers but he his delivery of his opinions and views are very one sided and could appear to be interpreted badly by those that disagree with him, which appears to be on purpose and probably amusing to his sense of humor. I do agree with his opinion on the topics that he is discussing, fully believing as he that the abortion bill would be highly unconstitutional and would cause many more problems than it would do good.

The backbone of his article is very much a battle of the good old democrat vs. Republican Party and it is obvious looking through his sarcasm, that he is in favor of the democrats and rooting for them to “kill this bill.” Which, in this case I can’t say that I disagree with this particular statement. 

Austin would be ill-advised to ban plastic bags

In the Austin American Statesman an article titled Austin would be ill-advised to ban plastic bags, author Burnett speaks about the topic of Austin choosing to ban all plastic bags in all retail stores. In his opinion it would be a bad idea for this to occur. He argues the case that it has been argued the reason behind doing this is because plastic bags account for 2.2 percent of the cities liter, which in reality is false. He says that this information has been exaggerated by Gedert who's information turns out to be all wrong. Steven Steins correction to this mis representation of information was that the correct numbers was 0.6 percent, this number even being higher because it includes the numbers of other plastic wastes such as industrial wrappin, dry cleaner, and trash bags. The other argument that is made in this article is that the ban of plastic bags also takes away jobs from Americans. Because, plastic bags are produced in America the stopping of this production and using of more reusable bags, which are made in China, gives more opportunity for China to succeed in this business production, while Americans are left out of work. Austin businesses will lose sales and tax revenues due to this ban as well. In another point that the author made, which I think is a good one, is that plastic bags are not generally only used once, but for multiple purposes inside of the home. Plastic bags are used for trash, animal waste, and diapers. Without these bags it will likely result in more purchasing of plastic bagies for these purposes. This article was obviously posted prior to this ban being enforced in the Austin area in March of this year, but I found myself agreeing with many of the points that the author made throughout this article. Though I am all for keeping our city of Austin beautiful and reducing liter, I was unaware of some of the good points and numbers that he used to back up his opinion. It appears to be that the author of this article had a solid opinion of this matter and he backed it up with subtancial information.

Controversal abortion bill now goes to governor

On KVUE on July 13, 2013 there was a posted article titled "Controversal abortion bill now goes to governor" This article touched base on the very controversial topic of abortion and the new bill being passed. Hundreds of people, both pro-life and pro-choice, showed up in downtown Austin to share their opinions about this bill being passed and many pro-life supporters were dissapointed by the outcome. This debate is much larger than just in Texas, invloving many other states. It stated that 17 other states have passed bills on the issue of abortion whcih leads us all to believe that the topic of this matter will not be going away anytime soon. I think that this article is worth reading because this is a topic that for the majority of us we have a clear side that we take, whether that be pro-life or pro-choice. It is important for us as citizens to keep up with issues that are happening such as this one and to show our support whatever your opinion may be.