B.C. family furious teen vaccinated without parental consent

In the article “B.C. Family furious teen vaccinated without parental consent” by Natalie Clancy, a 14 year old girl, was pulled out from her classroom and received vaccinations for tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (whooping cough) before the nurses consulted with her parents by giving them a consent form or checking her medical history. Dean Bootsma, the girls father was upset because he was not noticed. “The fact that they did this without our knowledge or consent sickens me, sickens me. I’ve never felt so violated,” said Bootsma. His daughter also developed a high fever afterwards.

Bootsma never thought that his were allowed to make their own decisions because of their maturity. According Bootsma’s daughter, she said “I didn’t really know what to do, and she didn’t really give me an option to not get a vaccine.” Her second quote was hypocritical and it contradicted what she said earlier. “She tried explaining it to me, I guess, but I couldn’t really hear her over everyone else.” Since the nurses explained it and gave her a chance to say no, they did not break any laws.

The nurses did follow the law of health. The Provincial Health Officer, Perry Kendall said “Children [could] make informed decisions if they [were] sufficiently mature enough” and it should be respected.

Under the B.C. Infants Act, parents’ consents are not needed for vaccinations if their children is over14 years of age.

Basically, the nurses did their job; nevertheless, children and their parents were unhappy due to the fact that they were not informed.

By the age of 14, children are entering the adolescence period and are maturing. They should be able to make their own decisions; however, they need to be informed about the decision that they are going to make. In the article “B.C. Family furious teen vaccinated without parental consent” by Natalie Clancy, Dean Bootsma’s child have been informed by the nurses and the nurses are doing their job.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/b-c-family-furious-teen-vaccinated-without-parental-consent-1.2570354

Keystone XL would endanger health of Americans, U.S. senators say!

In the article Keystone XL would endanger health of Americans, U.S. senators say, by Meagan Fitzpatrick, Keystone XL pipeline brings exotic crude oil from Canada into the United States. There are many pros and cons for this event. The two senators, Senator Barbara Boxer and Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, have held a meeting with Dr. John O’Connor who is an Albertan physician:

O’Connor told the news conference that carcinogens get into the food chain, water and air in communities downstream from the oilsands and that those toxins are linked to cancers occurring in those areas. He said he has “no political agenda” and that he is only advocating for his patients.

O’Connor have also shared his belief on high cancer rates. Through this action, Senator Boxer believes that adults and their children need to know about their own health risks; therefore, a study have been conducted and released a few weeks ago by the State Department. Currently, the report is being reviews and will last for 90 days.
The pros for this project is 45 percent more crude oil which is good for both the Canadian and U.S economy.

So far, Obama has not already given away any hints.

Should the pipelines be built?

Stay Tuned!

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/keystone-xl-would-endanger-health-of-americans-u-s-senators-say-1.2552425

Justin Trudeau apologizes for Ukraine joke

In the following two articles by Leslie MacKinnon and Laura Payton, Justin Trudeau, MP of Liberals made a joke about Russia losing a hockey game to Finland on Radio-Canada’s Tout le monde en parle. “President Yanukovych has been made illegitimate. It’s very worrying, especially because Russia lost in hockey, they’ll be in a bad mood. We fear Russia’s involvement in Ukraine,” Trudeau said.

Trudeau apologized for his mistake

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/justin-trudeau-apologizes-for-ukraine-joke-1.2550790

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/justin-trudeau-under-fire-for-ukraine-joke-1.2549392

Ukraine violence grows, as 18 people killed in fiery mayhem

In the article ” Ukraine violence grows, as 18 people killed in fiery mayhem” by The Associated Press, a protest in Ukraine occurred  with flaming tires. Thousands of riot police armed with stun grenades and water cannons attacked a camp in Kyiv. On Tuesday, after a day of battles on the street, left 18 people dead and hundreds injured. This is one of the most deadliest protest in the last three month:

With the boom of exploding stun grenades and fireworks nearly drowning out his words at times, opposition leader Vitali Klitschko urged the 20,000 protesters to defend the camp on Independence Square that has been the heart of the protests.

“We will not go anywhere from here,” Klitschko told the crowd. “This is an island of freedom and we will defend it.”

The people were trying to join the EU; however, the president wanted to join Russia because they offered them a $15 billion bailout.

Should Ukraine join Russia or European Union?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ukraine-violence-grows-as-18-people-killed-in-fiery-mayhem-1.2541403

Ukraine president Victor Yanukovych will scrap anti-protest laws

Ukraine’s president want to stick close to Russia; however, the citizens of Ukraine wants to be together with the EU. This creates large amounts of controversies.

Ukraine’s “beleaguered” president agreed to cancel harsh anti-protesting laws which releases bloodshed between protesters and the government. Protesters will be released from prison unless they stop buildings or camp in tents on Kyiv’s Central Independence Square. President Viktor Yanukovych was under pressure ever  since he pushed harsh laws through; therefore, he eliminated the severe laws.

Also, the Ukraine government offered the protesters a deal. They would release of dozens of protesters currently in jail in exchange for ending demonstrations.

Last week, three protesters were killed. The police insisted that they will not use hunting rifles; nevertheless, 2 of them were killed by it. Protesters are getting worried:

They have been afraid that authorities were preparing to                             end the spreading demonstrations by force, but the foreign                         ministry said earlier the government has no immediate plans to               declare a state of emergency.

The protesters still occupy three large  buildings in downtown Kyiv, including City Hall. During an assault on Sunday, hundreds of protesters threw rocks and firebombs into a building where 200 police were sheltering. Next, the police left.

Throwing fire bombs was wrong because they are extremely dangerous. The people who threw bombs during protests should be arrested. Those two people who were shot dead might violate  laws.

Do you think the protesters are protesting fairly? Do you think the government was unfair to it’s people?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ukraine-president-victor-yanukovych-will-scrap-anti-protest-laws-1.2512218

Couple Thinks that they were Robbed by 25% Interest!

In the article  “Couple  feel robbed by 25% interest TD car loan” by Kathy Tomlinson, a poor couple thought that they were robbed by 25% interest. “We’re paying $21,000 for the loan  then $23,000 in interest,” said Angie Hauser of Kelowna. “They’re making money off of people who have no money.” In total, they paid, $44,000 on a car worth 15,000. The worst part was that the “rich people [were] getting rich off the poor.”

A TD advertisement stated that there will be no problem if the loaner was poor, bankrupt, slow payer and so on. TD will always offer the best rates. They are promised that they got the best rates; nevertheless, they think they were cheated. Furthermore, it was the buyers fault because the interest rates were shown on the  papers.

According to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms section 2 (b), the buyer had the right to share their thoughts about being cheated and TD has their right to not believe them.

The bank did not cheat anyone. The interest rates were state on the contract; therefore, it was the buyers fault. 25% interest is not high compared to other countries across the world.

A solution to this problem is to buy a cheap second hand car without mortgage. Do you think the bank is cheating?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/couple-feel-robbed-by-25-interest-td-car-loan-1.2483342

NSA intercepts computer deliveries, says report!

The article “NSA intercepts computer deliveries, says report” states that a German magazine exploited the National Security Agency Hacking Unit (NSA) is intercepting computer devices, exploit hardware vulnerabilities, and even hijack Microsoft’s internal reporting system to spy on their targets.

This is a major concern for us because the NSA has everybody’s information. Anyone born during the 21^st century is not going to understand privacy. What is privacy? Privacy is a moment to themselves, a moment of peace and a movement with out the government spying. Again, this is serious.

This speech is made by Edward Snowden during Christmas and he will be discussing about privacy.

Ice storm effects linger as tens of thousands still in dark

The article “Ice Storm Effects Linger as Tens of Thousands Still in Dark”, stated that the power is out in Ontario, Quebec and North-eastern US. This event occurred  during the week of Christmas.

-About 54,800 Toronto citizens

-In Quebec, some 9,000 customers without electricity

-In New Brunswick, more than 19,000 homes and businesses remain off the grid.

-Ice storm linked to at least 17 deaths in U.S., Maine and Michigan among states affected.

Power outages left around 100,000 Canadians with no electricity or a warm place to live. “Toronto Hydro CEO, Anthony Haines said the remaining 18 per cent of customers without power, about 54,000, down from a peak of 300,000, might have a longer wait. ” (n.pag.)

The major problem was that the citizens of Toronto have no electricity. No electricity meant no heating system. The Hydro was doing the best they can to help the citizens; however,  this process was slow. First, the Hydro needed to connect electricity to important places. The next priority would be individual homes. This is a major problem because electricity is very important to humans.

Is this fair? According to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms section 15.1 everyone has equal rights. Should everyone get there electricity up at the same time?

“Ice storm effects linger as tens of thousands still in dark.” ice-storm-effects-linger-as-tens-of-thousands-still-in-dark. (2013): n. page. Web. 26 Dec. 2013.

RCMP head, Bob Paulson supports DNA collection on arrest!

In the news article “RCMP head Bob Paulson supports DNA collection on arrest” by Alison Crawford, the head of RCMP believes that taking DNA upon arrest can help solve crimes a lot faster. A piece of DNA can tell the RCMP who that person is and who he or she is related to. The main problem is whether or not we will let the RCMP take our DNA on arrest:

[DNA is] a person’s genetic footprint. [It can] tell [us] a lot
more information than just the identity of the person… There
is a whole range of privacy issues. [Bob Paulson said.] (n.pag)

One’s DNA can contain more information than what the RCMP need. So far, 266,000 people’s DNA have been taken by the government. In the United States, the government takes DNA from people after arrest.

NDP believes that taking DNA from someone before charges on them is wrong. This action is against the criminal justice system. Randall Garrison said that he believes there are innocent people and taking DNA from innocent people is wrong. “[RCMP still do] have the presumption of innocence in this country and so I would have serious concerns of DNA sampling upon arrest rather than conviction.”

Bob Paulson concluded by saying that taking DNA is a good idea in fancy words. “It [will] be an administrative, logistical challenge, but I think we’d be up to it. [Said Bob.]” He believes that DNA collection on arrest is good and it should start happening. So far the government has not changed DNA Collection Act. If it is changed, this legislation can start a challenge on the new constitution.

A major controversy in this article is privacy versus public protection. Is anyone going to let the police take our DNA? If one did nothing wrong and he are arrested then, why is he afraid to give the government his DNA? DNA is a genetic marker. We can view this controversy in many ways by looking at the pros and cons of this action. We can also look at whether or not this process is safe.

Before we look at pros and cons of taking DNA, I should explain the dangers with DNA. We are living in the 21st century. Computer Hackers exists everywhere and they can hack into the government database. If the government has our DNA, there is a possibility that someone might hack in to databases and take our DNA. So why is stealing DNA important or how does this action affect us? DNA is our identity. DNA can help to access bank accounts or property. That is just the beginningof the devastating effects of stolen DNA. If it is taken, someone can forge our information, identity which means that they can pretend to be us. The thief or hacker can use our name to do things! If we are scared of other taking DNA from us, why not think deeper. If someone wants our DNA then, they take a piece of our hair easily. No one should not be scared.

The government can use DNA to do things too! They can identify health issues and diseases. If someone who was arrested is protesting, the government can say that the arrested person has health issues and goes crazy. This medical disease is proven from the sample of DNA which we collected. Who is everyone going to believe? They are going to believe the government!

The government can also use our DNA to do scientific research. A company called Myriad did cancer research with a person’s cells and gave that person no credit.

DNA collection on arrest contradicts with the Charter of Rights and Freedom. Section 11 d of the charter states that “Any person charged with an offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law in a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal”. It states that we are innocent until we are proven guilty. Therefore, the Canadian government has no right to take DNA from anyone if they did not break a law.

This news article “RCMP head Bob Paulson supports DNA collection on arrest” by Alison Crawford is bias because she only stated that If DNA is collected, crimes can be solved a lot faster. She did not state the dangers of stealing DNA from the government. Our DNA is a material which determines who we are.

DNA collection upon arrest is just wrong. No one should give their DNA to the RCMP just because they were arrested. Over the years, RCMP made quite a few wrong arrests and mistakes. Another major concern is the change in law in the government which might allow the government to disclose our DNA.

This is a hard argument and it can go both ways. Without DNA collecting after arrest, criminals will are hard to identify.

I think a solution to this problem is that the RCMP should dispose DNA after the crime scene is over. One must trust another if he wants to live in this world.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/rcmp-head-bob-paulson-supports-dna-collection-on-arrest-1.2452462

Canada to file Arctic seafloor claim this week!

Sometime this week, the Canadian government is going to extend Canada’s boundary to the Arctic.  Canada’s deadline is Friday to apply to a United Nations commission for rights to what is likely to be another 1.7 million square kilometres of Arctic seafloor. The arctic sea can provide decades of work and 200 million dollars to the public. That is a lot of land.

Russia and Denmark also wants that land. To whom does this land belong to?