Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Is being gay really all that bad?


Is being gay really all that bad? Why is loving someone of your own gender seen as comitting a deadly sin? I believe that many people have no self-control over who it is that they're attracted to. Just because it is seen as right in the eyes of so many people to date one of the opposite sex does not mean to shun another for being an individual and doing what it is they feel is right. So why judge them for being different?


What is your take on this? Loving someone of your own gender--Is it really wrong? Do you think people have a choice to be gay or not?


Quantia Braziel

Video games--Good or Bad?

Are video games good or bad for our kids? Being a gamer myself, I would say they can be good, but only to an extent. They keep your hand-eye coordination up, and now the military is starting to use the controllers to fly unmanned aircraft into battle.

What is your take on this? Should the games children play be cut back on hours playing, or do video games help in some way?

Mike McClure

Should Drug Controls Be Reduced?

There are some people in America who feel the government should reduce restrictions placed on certain prescription medications. To get any kind of prescription medication today a person has to go see a doctor and get that doctor to write a prescription for them. This obviously places liability on the doctor and thus the doctor may be reluctant to prescribe certain medications without a thorough exam or as part of a step-up treatment plan. For some (those with good insurance) this isn't an issue. Good insurance can make doctors accessible and inexpensive. For those without insurance, this approach can be really restrictive.

The advent of the internet now puts more information than ever into an individual's hands. A person can look up their symptoms, find a likely diagnosis, and create a common treatment plan in minutes, rather than waiting perhaps days for a medical appointment. The a major downside to this approach is when symptoms are less obvious or might be indicative of a more obscure or far more serious illness. Also, treatments involving prescription drugs are obviously restricted for people who would diagnose and treat themselves.

The sentiment generally goes, "Drug laws aren't in place because of you or me. They're in place for the rest of society, who would find ways to harm themselves otherwise." Obviously, some drugs would have to be restricted in any case. Narcotics have too much potential for abuse, and antibiotics, if overused, could create drug-resistant bacteria. Besides those two classes of drugs, there are many drugs out there that may significantly improve people's lives but are hard to access.

My question is: do you think that controls on prescription drugs are too restrictive? Should individuals be allowed more freedom to make decisions that affect their own lives, or does government hold a responsibility to protect the individuals in society who might potentially harm themselves if drugs controls were removed?

David Nadermann

Overpopulation


Are we over populated?

How much is too much?

It begins growing very slowly, but over generations the growth rate increases more and more rapidly, similar to a snowball effect. It took the human population thousands of years to reach 1 billion in 1804. However, it took only 123 years for us to double to 2 billion by 1927. The population hit 4 billion in 1974 (only 47 years), and if we continue at our current rate, the human population will reach 8 billion in 2028. Doubling from our present count of 6.8 billion to 13.6 billion will have a much greater impact than our last couple doublings combined.

Will we run out of resources? Do you envision other problems caused by overpopulation on the earth?

Mohammed Ahmad