Copyright Matters

Fans give Elton John a standing ovation after performing the song, “Benny and the Jets,” which he wrote. Viewers watch the new Twilight movies because they know where they can find their favorite vampire characters. Readers buy the new Hunger Games book because they are aware that Suzanne Collins will be using her imagination and words to add on to the last book, which they could not put down. Copyrights specify material. They let audiences know what they are getting and from whom they are getting it. Without copyright, various problems would arise. Copyright is an important and vital legal protection that has been used for many years. It requires people to be creative and different when they are in the process of developing something. In return, this makes the world a much more interesting and detailed place. This legal right makes it so that everyone’s words and ideas are original. Thanks to copyright, those who work hard can earn proper credit for spending their time and creativity on coming up with something different and new. It makes each individual’s work more entertaining since readers and viewers will never encounter the same piece of work they have already observed. Without copyright, those who usually feel compelled to create something new, beautiful, or educational would most likely become discouraged from creating anything new. People would also become skeptical of letting others see their accomplishments from fear that viewers would replicate and take credit for their ideas. Copyright encourages people to find their own voice, present their different ideas and visions, and use their talents to make a name for themselves. Copyright gives individuals the right to be different.

 

-Katie Poole

Space Exploration Matters

 There are things that are known and things that are unknown; in between is exploration. -Anonymous

Outer space has always been a curiosity for the human race. The earliest people viewed the moon and stars with wonder and named the planets after Roman gods. The first astronomers viewed outer space through primal telescopes in the 17^th century and couldn’t believe what they saw. In the 1950’s amidst the Cold War, Americans and Soviets were also in a space race. Space was the next frontier. In 1957 Russia launched Sputnik as the first missile to enter Earths orbit. Since then Americans have put men on the moon, rovers on mars, and satellites among the stars. NASA has spent billions of dollars exploring and working to better understand space and what is in it. People know so much and yet so little about space. Space exploration matters because people have the need to understand. Who knows what beneficial resources might be found in space? It is amazing what modern technology has already allowed us to learn about space, but there is still so much more to learn!  A better understanding of the uncharted territory could solve problems such as pollution or yield a cure for cancer. The possibilities with space investigation are endless. It is important that people continue researching and exploring space to find out what we can harness. We now know that other planets than Earth in our galaxy can support . How amazing to find a way that people could adapt to living in zero gravity! Space exploration matters because without understanding space and exploring it we can never know what all can be done in space or what we could harness and use from space.    -Brianna Williams

Some information paraphrased from, History of Space Exploration, Solar Views.com, and The Space Race, History.com

Security Matters

Security is a vital part of society.  A feeling of security helps people function productively in their social roles and eliminates chaos.  Life is too valuable to spend living in the terror that it could end at any moment.  On September 11^th of 2001, the feeling of security in the United States was shattered by the hands of a radical jihadist group as thousands of innocent citizens were killed by the destruction of the World Trade Center and Pentagon building.  Our government, in retaliation, quickly took action to ensure its people would not have to live in fear of such violent attacks.   Since the terrorist attacks on 9/11, national security in the United States has been greatly increased to both prevent similar events from occurring and to give the citizens of our country a sense of safety and well being as they attempt to carry on with their lives in an unstable world.  The United States, in partnership with many like-minded nations, has deployed thousands of our bravest and finest men overseas to combat the threat of worldwide terrorism and to help make the world a more secure place.  We have also strived to ensure the safety of our nation by improving the security in airports and other forms of public transportation.  The actions of the government against terrorism have made it possible to live without the constant threat of death or persecution looming around every corner, but the fight for security has not ended.  It is our duty as human beings to support the effort to bring the feeling of security we have come to know to the rest of the world and to help ensure that all the inhabitants of the world can live in safety and without fear.  Security matters.  -Dalton Williams

Freedom Matters

It should be of no surprise to anyone living in the world today that there is an over whelming number of people who take freedom for granted. For the majority of us it is something we seldom think about and is just a way of life we are accustomed to, especially those of us who are blessed to live in “the land of the free.” I so often wonder when we sing songs like our National Anthem if we truly think about the words and what they stand for. Or, are we just waiting for our favorite sporting or other event to start. However, if someone were to ask a former slave or a member of the armed forces past or present, a wrongly accused prisoner or Malala Yousafzai if freedom mattered, they would probably answer yes. Freedom matters because it is what our fore fathers fought for. Freedom matters because it is a right set forth in our Constitution. Freedom matters because of all the men and women who have lost their lives fighting for it. Freedom matters because of those who are willing to give up everything or stand up against anyone to get it. Our right to freedom or those who aren’t fortunate enough to have it should make us value it even more. To me, freedom matters because it is something I was lucky enough to be born with, and because of the selfless sacrifice of others, I have been lucky enough to keep.  - Katlyn Drain

Language Matters

Is it possible to imagine a world without language? It would be void of almost every part of our modern culture. All of the luxuries people enjoy would cease to exist. Everything from literature to cultural diversity would not be possible. It is language’s power of communication that has allowed mankind to interact with one another since the dawn of time. Every aspect of human life depends on a language of some sort.

Foremost, our ability to form languages and communicate has allowed humanity to embrace writing as a form of expression. Without language, Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and even J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorceror’s Stone would not be possible; however, because we understand each other through language, we are able to explore elements of the human condition such as honor, tragedy, and love through works such as these.

Another part of humankind that is affected by language is culture. There are many different ethnicities and races, and an important part of these groups is their language. Whether they speak English, Chinese, Spanish, French, or one of the thousands of other languages in our world, language is a defining factor of a culture. It gives each group a sense of heritage, and allows us to see that, though we are all human, we are individuals with rich histories and backgrounds.

A life without writing and culture would be unimaginable for a civilization such as ours that depends on these things every day. As a result of our need to express ourselves, language matters. -

Nicholas Johnson

Justice Matters

According to dictionary.com, justice is defined as “the administering of deserved punishment or reward.” With the many tragedies this nation has faced, including the 9/11 attacks, and the shootings at Columbine, Virginia Tech, and the theatre premiere of The Dark Knight Rises, justice has been on the minds of many people. However, people tend to have different views on how justice should be served. For example, some people believe the death penalty is an appropriate punishment for convicted murderers, while others believe it is cruel and unusual. Regardless of how justice should be served, I personally cannot think of a single person who would say that justice does not matter. It can be very frustrating when justice is not served. As a result, some people take justice into their own hands by seeking revenge to obtain retribution for the wrong done to them. Their judgment is clouded by emotion, which usually only leads to more problems. Without a formal justice system, this would become an even larger problem. That is why it is crucial for our country to have a justice system that is swift and accurate, so that justice will not be left to grieving families of murder victims or survivors of rape who have lost their sense of security. Justice does so much more than punish a criminal. While it cannot bring loved ones back who were taken away before their time or retrieve stolen property, it can bring peace of mind and closure to those who have been wronged. –Kaitlyn Tew

Charity Matters

The dictionary defines charity as “provision of help: the voluntary provision of money, materials, or help to people in need.”  Ultimately it is an act of kindness. It allows people who are very fortunate to help those who are less fortunate. Most people’s toughest daily decision is what they are going to wear the next day or what they are going to eat for dinner. But there are some people in the world who only have the clothes on their back and don’t know if they will even get to eat dinner. Charity can change this. It can mean giving someone a few bucks, or giving him or her a place to stay. Yes, there are some people in the world who are too proud to receive charity and think that it is a way for rich people to show off how much money they have, but that is not always the case. Charity is usually an act of the heart.

There are many different charities that have been created and that help people daily. There is also a very wide range of charities. There are charities that help fight poverty, care for orphans, and even promote breast cancer research and that is just the tip of the iceberg. I’m sure that there has already been a charity created for any issue imaginable. There are large charities that function throughout the world, and there are community charities that only focus on the needs of people within a community. These types of charities are very important because in most cases donors know the person they are helping, and this makes it even more special. This just goes to show how many good people there really are in the world. I am positive that the world would not be near as good of a place without kind people giving charity.   - Hannah Palmer