SPCA Seize

On Tuesday, the SPCA found two houses full of cats and dogs left unattended in unsanitary conditions. The cats smelled like urine, some of the dogs got into fights, and they are a few others with infections of their upper respiratory. The SPCA had taken in 50 animals so far and have more to still take in. 

The two houses that the animals were found in are both owned by a Bobbie Mael. She is an animal advocate who is the executive director of the Eastern Niagara Animal Welfare Alliance. Police say she has not been in the home for two weeks because she has been in jail due to a DWI charge and has only completed two weeks of the three month sentence. Mael says that volunteers were supposed to be taking care of the animals.

Officials say they don't know if the animals suffered these injuries under her care or the care of the people she left in charge. When these animals are taken care for, they will be sent back to the owners they came from, the shelters Mael got them from, or to other adoption agencies. The SPCA says the Mael had good intentions but she got overwhelmed with all of the animals. 

I think it is horrible that these animals had to go through this. I just can't believe that the owner is an animal advocate. It is her job to be taking care of the animals, not putting them in a situation like this. I hope she receives charges for her actions, which have not be given to her yet.

   

Republicans vs. Democrats

Core Beliefs

Republicans

Republicans believe that the people should be responsible for their own actions and that the government is there to only help a person have the ability to take care of themselves and their families. 

Democrats

Democrats believe that the government should take care of the people, even if that means the people losing individual rights. 

The Economy

Republicans

Republicans work to cut government spending and believe that the people should be responsible for their own and the government's pocket book. They also believe that the people should be the only ones to authorize an increase in taxes. 

Democrats

Democrats believe the government knows what is best for the economy and want only the federal government to control the government's spending and whether there should be an increase or decrease in taxes. 

National Defense

Republicans

Republicans believe that America should always have a means to defend ourselves. They believe that we should work together with another nation when possible and alone when needed. They also believe that there short be no shortage of spending on the military in order to keep a strong defense.

Democrats

Democrats want to make a smaller military and cut spending on the military. They also believe that national defense comes from negotiations between countries even if they do have terrorist ties and that we must ask other countries before we make moves outside of the nation.

Education

Republicans

Republicans believe that the youth should be well-versed in reading and math. They believe that having mastery in the English language, the youth would be ready for university level classes. They also believe that students should be tested to see where their weaknesses are.

Democrats

Democrats believe that tests take up valuable teaching time and that students that are failing should be forced to stay in school to get the education that they need. They also believe that literacy should be left for unions to decide rather than the local PTAs. 

Immigration
Republicans

Republicans believe that immigrants are coming to America to seek a better life than the ones they had in their previous country. However, they believe that the lack of security around the border makes it easier for illegal actions to occur, such as smuggling of drugs and the use of woman as slaves. They believe immigrants provide a lot of help to America and welcome any immigrant that takes the legal means of coming to America. 

Democrats

As America is a world super power, Democrats believe that it is America's right to help any citizen of another nation. They also believe in open borders and unconditional amnesty. 

Ferguson Fights

On August 9, Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, was shot and killed by officer Darren Wilson. Michael Brown and his friend were walking in the street when Darren Wilson stopped them from his car and asked them to move to the sidewalk. While doing so, officer Wilson noticed that Michael Brown fit the description from a burglary at a local drug store from earlier that evening, and in turn calling a dispatcher about the two men. There was then an altercation between the two men and officer Wilson then shot Brown multiple times and in turn killing him. The grand jury decided to not indicate Wilson of any crime. The major problems here were that the grand jury was made up of 9 white men and 3 black men in a black majority neighborhood. There has also been a history of problems between the police department, made of mostly white men, and this same black majority
neighborhood.



Recently in Atlanta, there was another protest during the annual celebration of Martin Luther King's birthday. One of the events that was stopped was when around 200 protesters sat in the middle of Peachtree Street and stopped a parade in honor of MLK. Protesters are saying that all of the events that have occurred, such as Ferguson or the Trayvon Martin case, are causing Dr. King's dreams to be diminished. As protesters argued with the old civil guard, they pushed their way into the parade and marched down Peachtree Street sharing their opinions of how MLK day became more of a corporate holiday and speech making and less of trying to get racism to really go away. The people that ran the events were frustrated but also accommodating because they knew what Martin Luther King and his fellow protesters had to go through trying to get their point across. After listening to the protesters, many of the people thought their passion was great but hopefully they will try to get their point across the right way.



These protests and so many more that have been occurring are all in common because of the black men dying. The driving force of all these protests would have to be the innocent black people dying. They believe that the black people that have dyed have not gotten the correct representation for their deaths. It also seems to me that the protesters are being underrepresented. If someone was listening to their thoughts and concerns, they probably wouldn't have to go about interfering into celebrations, but they have to do what they have to do to get their point across.

Frantic France

The Charlie Hebdo company, located in Paris, France, was attacked by terrorists. The spark of the incidents was caused by certain cartoons and articles that the Charlie Hebdo magazine published. The magazine published articles that criticized the Muslim religion and Muhammad. The shooting was caused because of these articles and that they wanted to get revenge on the magazine.

Ever since the Paris shooting, you can tell that there is a big sense of unity in the country. One of the big events that happened was a rally that stood against terrorism. Around 40 world leaders and about 3 to 4 million attendees went to stand against terrorism. People put aside their differences to make this common cause known.

Many people are sad by the fact that 20 people died in this incident but glad that the country is starting to come together and feeling more unified than ever before. "Our entire country will rise up toward something better," French President Francois Hollande said.

It's sad that something this sad had to happen in order for the country to be unified. That's how Caroline Van Ruymbeke felt about it when she stated, "It's important to be here for freedom for tolerance and for all the victims. It's sad we had to get to this point for people to react against intolerance, racism and fascism." 

The US was represented by Ambassador Jane Hartley at the march and Secretary of State John Kerry made a statement from India stating, the world stood with the people of France "not just in anger and in outrage, but in solidarity and commitment to the cause of confronting extremism and in the cause that extremists fear so much and that has always united our countries: freedom."

I would feel safe traveling to France now. France will have heightened security since these attacks. They would have to keep a closer eye on who comes and goes into the country to keep their people safe. If you look at America since 9/11, they had definitely gotten tighter on security and there has not been a tragedy to that degree ever since. I would feel safe in France because all of their offices and other security agencies would be on high alert

. 

#FallinforFallon

Recently on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy made a comparison about how Niagara Falls is on both sides of the border and left some people on the US side a little upset. However, most of the tourism companies on the US side are taking that with a grain of salt and trying to get Jimmy Fallon to notice the good things that are happening on our side of the border and hopefully trying to get him to come see it for himself. They even started the hashtag #FallinforFallon.

Having worked down at the Cave of the Winds gift shop for two summers now, I've seen a few celebrities while I was working, such as Melissa McCarthy, Susan Sarandan, Kathy Bates, and the Long Island Medium. I love when celebrities come to either visit or even to work on a film. It brings more tourists down and hikes up business at the shops that I work in also. So, I hope it works out that he does come and take a visit to Niagara Falls, USA. 

House Fire

Yesterday there was a house fire in Monroe, La. killing Tashae Johnson (age 4) and Clifton Johnson (age 3). The two girls were left alone in the house while their mother, Ciarra Johnson, went for a hair appointment. She told authorities she left for a 1:30 pm appointment but investigators discovered that she had actually left the children home alone around 10 am. The house fire was called in around 3 pm and firefighters found both girls dead in their bedroom. When asked about arrangements for the children, Johnson stated that a local family was supposed to come watch the girls. Investigators found out that she made no such arrangements. The fire was started by two gas space heaters were turned on when she left. Investigators also discovered that there were flammable materials too close to the space heaters which started the fire. Ciarra Johnson is being charged with two counts of negligent homicide and will be taken into custody in the next couple of days.

I see two problems with this situation. First, the biggest problem is leaving your two preschool children home alone. If they were older, it would be a completely different story, but these two girls were too young to know how to react in a fire. I feel terrible that they had to go this way. It could've been avoided by having a family member watch the two girls. Supposedly there was numerous family members that were in the area and the mother could've made an appointment while a family member was able to watch the girls. Another problem is that she could've taken precautions to stop the fire by not putting flammable things next to a space heater. She should've used common sense before putting flammable stuff by a space heater, and if there was someone there, the person could've stopped the fire before it killed her kids and destroyed her house. I hope that the mother suffers consequences for her actions.

Is Obama the new Hitler?

There was an uproar on the twitter world yesterday when Rep. Randy Weber (Republican for Texas) compared President Obama to Adolf Hitler. This is what he tweeted: "Even Adolph Hitler thought it more important than Obama to get to Paris. (For all the wrong reasons.) Obama couldn't do it for right reasons." The representative was upset that Obama didn't join other world leaders in Paris after the recent bombings in France to stand against terrorism. "I think it's fair to say that we should have sent someone with a higher profile to be there," stated White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest in a press conference on Monday. People were quick to come back at the representative with comments and some even noticed that he even spelt "Adolf" wrong. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Josh Schwerin called Weber's comparison "beyond vile and insulting," He now wants GOP leaders to condemn Weber's wrong comments.

I think it is very wrong that he made this comment about Obama. He should realize that the president is a very busy man and I believe President Obama would have joined if he didn't have something that was a more pressing matter. I hope that Representative Weber makes an apology to President Obama for his comment.  

Abandoned Dog

On January 2, a dog was found tied to a railing in a Scottish train station located in South Ayrshire. The male shar-pei crossbreed was found with a suitcase full of food, bowl, a toy, and a pillow. The dog had a microchip and the original owners of the dog was found. However, the owners sold the dog online and does not know the address of the new owner. The SPCA says this is the exact reason why you should not sell your dogs online because people are buying a dog they know very little about and could lead to a situation like this. In Scotland, the act of abandoning a dog is a crime and can ban you from owning an animal for a certain period of time or even for life.

I believe this is a horrible act. I don't understand why someone would just leave an animal unattended in a train station. It doesn't make sense why they couldn't just bring the dog to the SPCA so it will go to a good home. At least there was no sign of physical abuse on the dog.

The SPCA says that they will look after the dog until they are able to find a suitable owner.

Gas Prices

Recently I went on a trip to Florida and passing by a gas station I notice the price of their gas, it was $1.97 a gallon! I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the gas below $2. When I got home I noticed the gas was around $2.80. That's not even the worst of it, the national average is at $2.19 per gallon, making our gas about sixty cents over the national average. I wonder why Western New York has the most expensive gas in the country.

Last night on Channel 2 news they questioned senator Chuck Schumer about the big difference of gas prices. His response was, "We did not like what the [Federal Trade Commission] did a few years ago. We've asked the Energy Information Administration to do a study. They are doing it now. As soon as we get results, I'll let you know." Channel 2 reported that crude oil fell below $50 a barrel, so I don't understand why our gas is not coming down to around the national average. But we can't complain that much because the gas is still under $3. Hopefully, they will fix the problem soon.

Lancaster Snow Piles

Even though the "Snovember" Storm was over a month ago, residents in Lancaster still have huge piles of snow blocking the sidewalk. The Village of Lancaster did cut the citizens a break during and shortly after the storm and dropped the law saying you must clear your sidewalk for that period of time. However, a month after the snow storm residents are still having trouble removing the snow piles which have now turned more into ice. These piles are very dangerous for people because they will have to walk in the street instead of on the sidewalk. A concerned resident called WGRZ news station and had one of their reporters investigate the story. The reporter went to a village official who said it is the landowner's responsibility to clear the sidewalk. He then went on to say that the village will help anyone who contacts them. And the village did send out workers to clear some of the sidewalks the reporter did come across. I'm glad that the Village is doing something about it but they should have done something about it before a citizen had to reach out to a news station.

Cat Killer

Last week, a man was walker his German Shepard in Batavia and ended up killing a cat. He came across the cat, threw it in the air and stomped on it a few times until the cat was dead. By the time the police arrived, the man and his dog were gone. There is now a $500 award out for whoever finds the man. 

I think it's horrible that someone would just kill a cat for walking in front of him. There was no reason to hurt the animal, he could've just kept walking. I hate when people hurt animals like this. There is just no place in my mind where I can figure out why people would do this sort of thing. It is believable that the man has something wrong for just killing an innocent animal and hopefully they find him and give him the help he needs. If anyone with information is asked to Batavia Police at 585-345-6350.

The "Drip Plan"

Last year if you lived in Niagara Falls, you might have had your pipes freeze and not have had water for weeks at a time. Well the city of Niagara Falls is saying to leave your faucet running all winter. They want you to turn a sink in your house on, preferably the lowest one such as in the basement, and turn the water on until the water coming out is an eighth of an inch in diameter, or the size of a pencil lead. The city notified the people that had this problem last year with a letter stating these instructions. Now many citizens have problems with this. They feel like the city is not doing anything about it and just giving them this "band-aid" solution. Also in the letter, it states that if you have more than an eighth of an inch of water coming out, you will be charged extra. This could be a problem for elderly people who might not be able to decipher an eighth of an inch. Do you think the city should be making more of an effort to try and fix this or just let this minor solution be the end of the problem. Also, should the city pay for the extra money that is being charged to the citizens that have to leave their water?

PB&J Drive

With the lack of the true Christmas Spirit I have been talking about, I want to bring you some more stories of people helping the community like the person that dropped the gold coin in the Salvation Army Kettle. There is a group of people from Lewiston, NY that have started a peanut butter and jelly drive five years ago. Their goal is to help hungry children by filling shelves of food pantries with food kids will eat and enjoy. A lot of food pantries have a lot of canned foods but its food that children will not like or eat. In five years of doing this drive, the collection of jars has grew from a few hundred to about 13,000 jars last year. They then take these jars, separate them, and take them to various pantries including the Salvation Army in Lockport, which feeds 200 families a month.  "It'll help a lot of children and a lot of people," said Robert Drinkwater, Salvation Army Director of Social Ministries. "And you don't really realize when you see people who get it how appreciative they are that it's there." This is a great group of people that continue to not only help men and women but their children too. I'm glad there is people out there that remembers to put Christ in CHRISTmas!!

If you want to donate, you can find a list of drop off locations on the Peanut Butter and Jelly Facebook Page. For more information you can call 510-7108, 735-7061 or 799-4013.

The surprise in a Salvation Army kettle...

Recently the anonymous "gold coin" donor has visited a Salvation Army kettle in Mebane, North Carolina. This random person has repeatedly dropped coins like this in Salvation Army kettles in this area for a few years. A few days after he drops the coin, he does call anonymously to make sure the coin arrived safely to the Salvation Army. The coin this year was an Australian Kangaroo $100 gold piece which is estimated to have a value of $1,200. Captain Jimmy Taylor with the Salvation Army once again thanked the donor for his generosity and how he donates in such a fun and unique way.

Following my post from yesterday, this is a great example of how people should be during the holiday season. We should always remember the people that need our help year round, but especially in this time of year that people are always giving. Try to remember what Jesus told us to do and take time to help the others around. Even if you can't afford to donate a lot of money, you can donate your time to help out at a soup kitchen or volunteer to be one of the bell ringers for the Salvation Army. Once again, remember the true reason for the season!

A Bargain-filled Christmas

The above political cartoon was recently made by Andy Marlette from Pensacola, Florida. The cartoon shows the Three Kings following the North Star way earlier than usually. Andy is trying to show that in the recent years stores have been competing to start holiday shopping earlier and earlier. From most people that I've talked to, I hear that they hate the holiday season starting before Thanksgiving. It is kind of ridiculous to start holiday shopping earlier each year. I also think people are getting carried away with these bargains from stores and forgetting about the true meaning of Christmas. I feel that in the recent years, all I hear about is the bargains that people made and not reflecting on the true meaning, which is Jesus. We should focus on helping each other, having a good time with family and friends, and especially focus on the story of how Jesus was born, which is why we even have Christmas. So take some time this Advent season and thank God for all that he's done for you and especially for Jesus and letting him come into this world.

What happened in Ferguson?

If you are like me, you don't really know the whole story as to what happened and is happening in Ferguson, Mo. So here is the story... On August 9, Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, was shot and killed by officer Darren Wilson. Michael Brown and his friend were walking in the street when Darren Wilson stopped them from his car and asked them to move to the sidewalk. While doing so, officer Wilson noticed that Michael Brown fit the description from a burglary at a local drug store from earlier that evening, and in turn calling a dispatcher about the two men. There was then an altercation between the two men and officer Wilson then shot Brown multiple times and in turn killing him. Last night the grand jury decided to not indicting Wilson of any crime. The major problems here were that the grand jury was made up of 9 white men and 3 black men in a black majority neighborhood. There has also been a history of problems between the police department, made of mostly white men, and this same black majority neighborhood. I feel that this case was properly handled. The way our system is made is to have the prosecuting attorney chooses the jury. This also caused controversy because the defense attorney was not present in choosing the jury. However, I believe that justice was served best to how the system is made.

Black Thursday?

This year a numerous amount of stores will be opening on Thanksgiving. With this, do you think that stores should be allowed to do this? I believe it is wrong to open on Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful for what you have already. Not to go out and try to get the best deal on a TV. I mean I love a good deal, but I'm not going to leave the family table on Thanksgiving to go get a deal. Being an avid Black Friday shopper, I love to go out at 4 in the morning, but now I feel that I would have to leave Thanksgiving evening when my family is still eating to go get the best deals. Also, they are giving more deals on different days, so is it even worth going out and shopping on Black Friday or even Black Thursday?