Extra Credit

Death by lethal injection is a horrible way to go, regardless of the acts that convicts carry out, it is still challenging to view let alone be apart of. I myself have had a close friend who's father died lethal injection. I remember that it was a very challenging time for him and although he new that his father wasn't an upstanding man that it is never easy to say goodbye.

 In the case of Mr. Panetti however the controversy is that he was mentally inept and unable to make sound decisions. And although that has been proven to be true considering that he showed up to court pleading his trial in a purple (10-gallon) cowboy hat and calling upon Jesus Christ, Pope John Paul the II, and JFK to the stand. This is just one of the many mentally challenged decisions that he has carried out.

The myth that is stirring up all of this controversy is that mentally ill patients are never to be sentenced to death, which has come to be through incorrect information from TV and the internet although it  may be proven wrong considering that Mr. Scott Panetti's set date for lethal injection was postponed by an appeal's court issuing a stay allowing Panetti's lawyers to find more evidence supporting the claim that he is mentally unstable and that death row is unconstitutional.

I stand by Mr.Bagby in his view on this article and I believe that his writing is well structured and overall an enjoyable read. In the matter of Mr.Panetti I am somewhat torn. The fact that he murder his in- laws is a horrible and unforgivable act, but does taking his life amend that? Wouldn't it be more of a punishment to make him sit in prison for the next 30 years? I guess it truly is up to the Gov. Rick Perry and the courts of Texas.

Blog 8

Patirck Zeno wrote a very eye-catching piece titled "Free Mother Cannabis,"that I personally agree with. In this day and age people are so quick to jump to conclusions in regards to various topics but more specifically in regards to marijuana. "Its bad for your body." "Its a gateway to more serious drugs." "Its worse than alcohol." All of these statements and many more are backed up by very close minded opinions and to believe them would be the same thing as believing everything you read on the internet or watch on TV.

In his article Zeno speaks of all the different people such as Ms.Tran in "Say 'No' To Marijuana;"and how it discusses all of the negative side effects of marijuana but none of the substantially positive ones such as pain relief for various illnesses (i.e. cancer, glaucoma,etc.) You cannot fatally overdose on marijuana while alcohol can easily be overdosed on. I myself have a cousin who suffers from extreme anxiety and the only solution that has proven to provide her with relief is medicinal marijuana. 

She was even able to cease the usage of three anxiety relief medications once she started the use of Ms. Mary Jane. All in all I believe that there are circumstances in which people who are on the effects of marijuana make bad decisions which in turn causes the general view of marijuana to be negative. I enjoyed reading Mr.Zeno's article, being that this is a critique on an editorial I would say that he executed this piece very well. He provides supporting evidence along with a well structured literary piece. And I believe I can speak on behalf of Mr. Zeno when I say that residents worldwide would benefit form the various aspects of medicinal marijuana and that he overbearing regulation of the government on this matter will only stop it from doing so. 

Immigration Overload

Immigration is the movement of something or someone from one place to another. Usually it is urged by a desire or a want of something that isn't attainable in ones current standing/place. Immigration is  important dating back to pre-colonial times, without it there would have never been any exploration and discovery of the "New World." However there are forms of immigration that have had the exact opposite effect; causing harm and negatively impacting society, more specifically illegal immigration.

People coming primarily from South America and Mexico who have no citizenship or legal right to be in the US. This looming problem is causing a domino effect in many instances but mainly on the growing US debt. In the Texas Tribune just the other day there was an article in regards to another $86 million dollars being approved for border control, to keep the operation afloat.

It was a unanimous decision to increase the spending on the high-profile border surge operation. It began in June in response to a mass influx of illegal immigrants from Central America. This new round of money will be utilized to station hundreds of DPS officers at the state border through August and maintain the deployment of National Guard troops though March.

DPS executive director Steve McCraw said that his agency will apply some of that money towards technology that will allow them to shift the agency's overall border strategy; moving from and I quote "to a saturation of cameras from a saturation of people." All in all this is an immensely important topic that needs to be handled. I personally feel that there should be more money to fund border control due to the fact that it is very costly to maintain and it is detrimental to the security of the US and its citizens if not properly regulated.