It’s third term! I am officially over two-thirds of the way through my Junior year which has been flying by. With a new term I’m heading into AP exams, Tennis, ITEDs, SAT subject tests and all that other fun stuff… To kick off the term I thought I’d do a slightly random entry so here it goes.
I just wanted to briefly follow up on my blog entry on Egypt to discuss the status in Libya. As many of you have probably heard, what started as another protest against unjust government quickly turned into chaos as Libyan dictator Colonel Qaddafi deployed armed forces against rebels. By February 18th, it became clear that soldiers were using automatic weapons and even snipers to intentionally kill numerous unarmed civilian protesters. As days passed social networking sites and YouTube have brought videos and the news of these horrors in Libya to the world. And yet no action has been taken.
I must confess myself beyond appalled. Throughout its history, the United States has made it clear that violations of democracy and human rights will not be tolerated. I am not suggesting that we fully go to war with Libya, but I simply can’t understand the current stance of doing almost nothing! But it is my firm belief that the US must work with the UN to mediate the situation in Libya. Though talks and sanctions would be ideal, UN forces must be deployed if such measures fail to protect Libyan citizens and depose Qaddafi if necessary. For now all we can do is hope for the success of rebels in Ras Lanuf and elsewhere, and hope that our and other governments take action.
According to gallup poll data, the hypothetical happiest guy in America would be a tall, Jewish, Asian-American, married business owner who has children, lives in Hawaii and has a household income over $120,000 an year. That’s kinda like me… except I’m not married with children nor tall nor Jewish nor living in Hawaii nor earning over $120,000 but close enough.
A US Government Accountability Office report’s finding support the theoretical fiscal savings of replacing $1 bills with their equivalent coins. In fact, the US could save almost $5.5 billion over 30 years by making the switch.
And the reason for the huge savings is pretty simple. Bills stay in our wallets and purses a lot longer than coins which more often than not end up on the closet floor, under sofa cushions or in coin jars. And all money translates to uncirculated currency which is in effect a interest-free loan to the government. For this reason among others, Canada, Japan and several European countries have adopted coins of greater values. Maybe the US will be next.
There you have it. And if you reading this are a student as well, I wish you a great end of the year!
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