This was a crazy week in the news. There are so many stories I am having a hard
time deciding which one to choose from.
Below are a summary of my top four:
Pope Benedict XVI
Resigns
Pope Benedict has decided to retire after 8 years of
service. At the age of 85 he no longer
feels as though he can completely fulfill the duties of the Papacy. This breaks a 600 year tradition of the Pope
serving until death. The news of his
chosen retirement has sparked many questions.
We may be witnessing the start of a new tradition of the Pope retiring
instead of dying in office. He has set
the date of February 28 as his last. The
speculation of who the next Pope will be extensive until the Cardinals meet to
elect the new Pontiff.
The State of the
Union
The President’s annual message to Congress was delivered on
Tuesday evening. This is the time for
the President to reflect on the accomplishments of the past year and set the
presidential direction for the coming year.
With our current economic situation, many Democrats and Republicans were
supportive and critical of the president’s ideas about how to best support the
continued growth of our nation’s economy.
I have not read the complete text, but I did read about money dedicated
to fixing bridges and roads in addition to a proposed increase in minimum wage.
In addition to the economy, the
President addressed other matters of foreign affairs, including North Korea
(see below).
Christopher Dorner,
former LAPD, is thought dead after massive manhunt
Christopher Dorner, a former member of the LAPD, has been at
large for the past week. After being
released from his position as a police officer, this former Naval reservist
vowed to bring revenge on the police force and their families for his
firing. He killed the daughter and
fiancé of a former co-worker last week.
After evidence indicting Dorner was found, a manifesto was discovered on
Facebook in which he listed the names of his potential victims. For the past week he has committed numerous
crimes over and above murder. On Tuesday
evening he was allegedly found in a cabin in the mountain resort of Big Bear. A shootout occurred between police and Dorner
which resulted in an additional death and injury of San Bernardino
officers. Eventually, Dorner’s cabin
caught on fire. The police are still
investigating to ensure Dorner was in the building at the time.
North Korea Third Nuclear Test
On Monday evening, North Korea conducted its third nuclear
weapons test. The U.S. Seismological
Department detected an earthquake with a 5.1 magnitude in the mountains of
North Korea. Later it was discovered and
confirmed to be a nuclear tests carried out by the North Koreans. North Korea is a communist state. It is estimated that at least 25% of the
country’s children live in absolute poverty.
One of the contributing factors is North Korea’s continued investment in
nuclear warfare instead of investment in the necessities for its people. This test was held against the direct wished
of the United Nations and their biggest ally, China. North Korea has continued to invest in
weapons of mass destruction in order to defend itself against the cruel
treatment and ongoing aggression of the United States. Although many experts agree it will be
sometime before North Korea will possess the ability to launch an attack
against the United States, with each test they get one step closer.
Have you heard of any of the above stories? What about the stories interests you? Which story do you think is the most
important and why?
Thomas B.- I have heard 2 of them. I have not heard much about the nuclear testing in Korea. That one is actually quite scary that they are attempting to make gigantic bombs. I think that it takes a lot of courage to step down from such an important role like the pope did. It is also very scary that the someone that was supposed to protect us, started to kill innocent people. I think that the pope resigning is the most important because it is religious and because it is very rare that a pope would resign.
ReplyDeleteGrace- Obviously, we have probably all heard about the Pope since we discussed the matter in religion class. I heard a little about President Obama's speech. Last night at dinner, my family discussed the ex-LAPD officer. Honestly, this story does not interest me. It makes me sad to hear that he killed innocent people. I suppose if I lived in LA then it would interest me more, and I would be alert of this man. The story about Korea interests me because they detected an earthquake. The earthquake really puts in perspective how much damage nuclear bombs and such can cause. I think the most important story is between the Korea one and the story about the LAPD officer. People can be harmed or even killed by the LAPD officer. A nuclear bomb could kill hundreds of people. Actually, I take it back. I think the Korean story is more important because so many people could be killed if they gain possession of nuclear weapons.
ReplyDeleteAdriana: I have heard 2 out of the 4 stories this week.The stories that i have heard of are the LAPD officer one and the pope one. The thing that interests me the most about the pope would have to be that this is the first time in many years that the pope would retire while still alive, because usually they die while they are still in office. The thing that interests me the most about the LAPD one would have to be how he just killed three innocent people, just because. He had no reason to kill those innocent people and whats sad is that their families will have to live with that for the rest of their lives. That they were murdered by some cop because they were at the wrong place at the wrong time. I think that the most important story would have to be about the pope resigning because we don't know who the new pope will be and if he makes any changes to our church, or mass.
ReplyDeleteHayley: I have heard 2 out of the 4 stories. I knew the Pope one because we talked about it in religion class and it is all over the news and radio. I also new about the ex-police officer. I think that the ex-police one is a little bit scary. He must be really loco up in the head to kill the family's of the people who had him fired. I think the Pope should do what he thinks is right for him and the church. I think he served the job well. The Pope one interests me while the ex-police officer does not. I think the Pope one is important because we need to figure out who is taking his place as Pope.
ReplyDeleteAndoni-I have heard of 2 out of the 4 stories. I think that we have all heard about the pope retiring. I also listened to some of State of the Union. I haven't heard about the ex cop running loose in L.A.It sounds the most intriguing and the scariest. Its hard to believe that someone who was so close to the law could lose it and go on a killing spree. It's also cool to be alive to witness such momentous time in our religion. I think that the story about North Korea is the most important.It seems like our, and other countries security could be in jeopardy.
ReplyDeletePatrick- as well I have heard of 2 of the 4 stories, the LAPD officer and the pope story. The stories interest me mainly because they are all huge event that don't happen every day, i think a man killing 7 people was the most interesting to me because i watched the entire thing on the news. I also thought the pope story was cool to me because after he resigned lightning hit a big church which i thought was cool. I also think the pope story is cool because we need to find a new pope.
ReplyDeleteClaire-I have only heard about the pope story and it is the most important, because a pope has not resigned in 600 years. This story interests me because I am Catholic.
ReplyDeleteThe North Korea story also interests me because it says it could launch an attack against us. I think it is a waste of money to spend on these nuclear weapons tests.
Nate- I heard about both the Pope resigning and the North Korean nuclear tests. As a Catholic, I believe that the Pope retiring is the most important story. The interesting part is how no Pope has done that for six centuries. That's quite a long time. As far as the nuclear tests go, that is the scariest by far. Many people in North Korea hate America, so when they finally develop a bomb capable of reaching North America, or any other country for that matter, things could get very, very bad.
ReplyDeleteNatalie- My family watches the news every morning, so yes I have heard of all of those stories. I think that the Pope retiring from his service to the church was smart, because you could see how frail he was. As far as the State of the Union address goes, I really hope that they do follow through with what he proposed and hopefully increase the minimum wage. North Korea is probably the worst so far. If they develop a nuclear weapon that can reach the U.S, they could, and probably would, launch it. That really scares me, and I guess that is the most important story to me.
ReplyDeleteTomas-The only story i heard about was the pope's one. So he finally wanted to retire, Eh? The story that interested me most was the Nuclear bomb one. I dont know why that they would want to make more nuclear bombs. If they fire a bomb on a big country like US, then they could begin a third world war. I think it also the most important one.
ReplyDeleteRyan- Well I heard about the Pope and the that's about it. I really hope that the State of the Union doesn't increase minimum wage because if they do it's not like they're going to pay all their employes that much so some will be laid off. I think the most important is the bomb test in Korea because it could cause huge problems.
ReplyDeleteLuke- I have heard of the LAPD cop going out for revenge. This story also intrests me because it sounds like something out of a movie. I think that the pope retiring is the most important because it is breaking a 600 year tradition.
ReplyDeleteJohn-I have heard the story of the pope and the LAPD cop. The story about the pope interests me because he decided to retire and their is going to be a new pope. The story about the former LAPD cop interests me because after he was a cop he killled people. I think all of these stories are equally important because they all have different reasonings that are important news for the world.
ReplyDeleteRaquel- Over the few days i have heard about those stories. the things about the stories that interest me is how i never really realized that the president reflects on the year and prepares for the new year of presidential direction. it's cool that it happens at the time of lent because its when us Catholics also reflect on our accomplishments and failures and prepares for the new year, i personally thought that was kind of cool how that tied in with each other. I guess the story that really catches my attention is about the pope i bet alot of people agree with me. i dont think that we should all be worrying and stuff but we should just pray t
ReplyDeletehat we pick a new pope to help us through the year and years to come.
DeleteJustin-I have heard of all 4 of those stories. I was most interested by the former LAPD guy because I thought it was weird that someone who had been a cop had started killing people. I think that the North Korea story is the most important because if the Koreans decide to start using those bombs on people it would be bad. Happy 50th MJ
ReplyDeleteIsabel- Recently I've heard about all the stories exept for the nuclear war testing in Korea. Out of these four stories the North Korea story is the story that interests me the most because the closest United state property to North Korea is Alaska!I think it is kind of scary that a nuclear bomb could be launched to a state where my friends and family live.
ReplyDeleteNathan- I've been watching the news often, and I guess that is how I heard of all 4 of these stories. From the fact that we are Catholic, I guess the pope story should interest me a lot, but the one that really caught my attention was the hunt for Christopher Dorner.. I was watching the TV for a long time while the hunt was occurring. They said this was the biggest manhunt in Californian history. It reminded me of the hunt for John Wilkes Booth, even his death was similar. I PERSONALLY don't think the North Korea story is to important. I mean, even if they did use nuclear weapons, everyone on Earth would die. I don't understand their point in threatening other countries, when they themselves will also die due to these weapons of mass destruction. The State of the Union was important, but I think that during the weekend, the most important thing was the hunt for Christopher Dorner.
ReplyDelete*Actually, I think the most important thing this WEEKEND was the meteor that hit Russia. I love space, so this was highly cool. :)
Nathan- I meant it was cool (the phenomenon) and watching it was nice, but the amount of lives lost was not cool. Just want to get that out there.
Deletekeelie: yes i have heard of the stories above. not all in detail so these summaries were nice. anyways, the one that interests me most is the man who killed all those people. i think north korea is most important because, even though i know it could never happen, but still they could hurt people with all the nuclear testing. i bet people have been hurt, too. if it were big enough to be thought of as an earthquake.
ReplyDeleteRylie:
ReplyDeleteI have heard about the President Obama story, but the one that interests me the most is the Pope resigning, because this is all about our faith and what is going on at the Vatican. I think the North Korea is the most important story because, that is pretty much Global. Anything that other countries do affects everyone, especially Nuclear testing. If that is in the air, it could affect everyone.
Bailie- I have heard about the Pope story, and that is the story that interests me most because it hasn't happened in over 500 years. To me that is very interesting. the story I think is most important though is the North Korean one because it makes me fear the future because North Korea might fight America. And they are getting closer with every test like the blog said. I just hope America can fight back.
ReplyDeleteMegan- I have heard of the Pope, the State of the Union, and the Nuclear bombing. I think the most interesting one would have to be the Pope resigning because someone hasn't done this in 600 years! Also I thought it was crazy that in that moment lightning hit St. Peter's. I think that is also the most important one because it will start off huge news chaos in trying to find a new pope. I will be crazy!
ReplyDeleteLauryn-I have heard the story about the pope. This one interest me a lot because it hasn't been done in a long time. I think this one is very important because it will effect our school because we are a catholic school. I think many people are disappointed but we will eventually survive through it.
ReplyDelete*resigning hasn't happened in a long time is what i ment above.
DeleteAubrie-I think that everyone at St. Joe’s has probably has heard about the pope and his story. The only other story that I have heard about is the North Korea third test. The thing that I found most interesting was the story about the Pope. I found it interesting that there has not been a Pope who retired in 600 years. The most important story was the one the President’s State of the Union speech on how our economic standpoint in the world is changing. I thought all of these stories were interesting in different ways.
ReplyDeleteNikita- I thought it was interesting how the pope resigned and broke such a large tradition. I think the pope resigning is a huge story because he is the head of all Christianity. Him stepping down, especially breaking the tradition of dying in office, is huge. Good for him, though, for knowing his limits and stepping down so another could take his place.
ReplyDeleteNekane-I thought it was a shock how the pope resigned and that was such a big shock to everyone.The same thing the pope resigning was a big story i think. The pope him stepping down was a big deal i never thought he would but he did and it was a shock to all. Its not every day that a Pope steps down.
ReplyDeleteSean- I heard of the chris dorner one verry well, since a guy related to a popular (but offensive) site called 4chan, where as a response to this he replied with sarcasam and made a PC game called Chris dorner's revenge, where you played as chris dorner and did what he did, then the boss battle is a giant arnold schwarzanagger as a care bear weilding dual gatling guns, it was verry offensive to a lot of people, and then FOX heard of it and is trying to sue who did it, but little did they know evreyone on 4chan is anonymous, literally, and since I admin the facebook page, that is how i found out
ReplyDeleteLily- I have heard two out of the four stories. I think everyone knows about the Pope resinging. He did brake tradition, but he made a smart move. He knew someone who is yougner could get the job done. The new Pope could go more places and do more things to help out the Catholic Church. The story is all over the news and is going to be talked about for a long time. The nuclear testing is extremly dangerous, and we need to resolve that. All of these stories I read about are very big in the news right now, and I hope we can figure things out.
ReplyDeleteSean- My whole paragraph on this opted out, but to sum it up, I admin a facebook page for 4chan, a web based bulletin board, mostly OC (Offensive Content) and one of the other admins told me about this guy who made a game of the Christopher Dorner incident, and then posted it on 4chan, so then FOX heard of it and is blaming 4chan for it, and so are many other small broadcasting networks, and i looked into the incident and so that is how i heard of it
ReplyDeleteI take that back
DeleteSydney- I only have heard of the Pope resigning and the State of the Union address. What interests me about these stories is that most of them haven't happened in a really long time. I thought that the Nuclear test was one of the most interesting along with the Christopher Dorner accident. The one I thought was most important would be the nuclear bomb testing. There could be a chance that it could affect a lot of the world.
ReplyDeletePetie-I have heard about all but the nuclear test one. I found the nuclear testing one very very interesting. It shows that Kim Jong Il is thinking about something, defensive or offensive. It also shows that Korea is a bit edgy, and ready to attack.I also was interested in the Christopher Dorner incident. I was watching the manhunt take place, when they burnt him and killed him. I found it sad that the Pope is resigning. It has been a good spiritual leading during his time.
ReplyDeleteLiam~ I heard about the Pope resigning, and I thought that that was a day to remember in the Catholic church. I don't blame the Pope for his decision, in fact I am kind of glad to see him rest. The most important one that I thought was there was North Korea and their nuclear testing. Since they have continued to pursue in nuclear weapons and knowing that they don't like America, we should keep a close eye on them.
ReplyDeleteWes- I heard about all of them except for the state of the union address. I thought the most important one would be either the new pope or the third nuclear testing because when the pope resigns all of the catholic people want to know who will be a new pope and the nuclear testing because of how it might mean he's getting ready for something... big.
ReplyDeleteTodd-Yes, I have heard of the Pope retiring its all over the news! It sure is crazy to think that the Pope who is set to be in his position till his death is going to retiring. I was most interested in this story as it such a huge deal for us being Catholic. This is going to so exciting I know that it is a rigorous process to elect a new Pope and take over a week on average. I'm glad I will be around to see this happen, not sure how long it will be till the next!
ReplyDeleteLiza- I've heard about a lot of these, I haven't heard of the manhunt though. It sounds really interesting,though, I think the most interesting is the pope stepping down. It's really important to me because, even though I may not be the best at knowing who is pope and who was pope before him, I finally know about something that is so significant in our religion that I actually get to live through. I do think that the most important is the testing in Korea. It's important to know about what is going on in the world, even if it's about your enemies.You know what they say, keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. Even if we hate some of the people in Korea, it's really important to know about the world and what is happening in it.
ReplyDelete