From the mound to your computor screen

Just when everyone thought things couldn’t get worse for Nebraska basketball they did. In an article by Chris Heady of the World-Herald, he goes into just how bad it’s gotten for the Huskers (cite here). In the midst of their seven-game losing streak which is the worst of the season, Nebraska set a new Pinnacle Bank Arena low for shooting percentage at 21%, and points in a game at 45 against Maryland on February 6.Just when everyone thought things couldn’t get worse for Nebraska basketball they did. In a article by Chris Heady of the World Herald he goes into just just how bad it’s gotten for the Huskers. In the midst of their seven game losing streak which is the worst of the season, Nebraska set a new Pinnacle Bank Arena low for shooting percentage at 21%, and points in a game at 45 against Maryland on February 6.

I would like to say this fall apart by the Nebraska Basketball team is a surprise, but to anyone who has followed the team over the years, you would know this is like second nature. Come into the season with loads of confidence and expectations after a good year in the previous season, only to fall flat on their face to the disappoint of their entire fan base. Take the 2015 team for example. coming into the season, they were fresh off the NCAA tournament in 2014 and returning the Big Ten player of the year Terran Pettaway. They looked to be one of the best teams in the league and maybe the nation. Things quickly sputtered out of control with poor shooting and lackluster defense. A season full of promise ended with a record of 13-18.

Now this year’s team still has a chance to turn it around. It won’t and hasn’t been easy with the loss of second-leading scorer Isaac Copeland, who tore his ACL against Ohio State and is out for the season. Since Copeland has left the lineup, Nebraska shooting percentage has fallen off completely. Via stats of ESPN, you can see Nebraska never shot below 36% with Copeland in the lineup, since his injury the Huskers have shot 35% or lower in every single game. Players like Glynn Watson who have been high proficient passer’s and shooters have completely when cold. I know it’s some obvious, but the only way Nebraska is going to win is if they shoot the ball better then their opponents. They don’t have the luxury of second chance shot attempts, because they continually get outrebounded by their opponents. This is no surprise though because this is a problem Nebraska has been dealing with all season and quite frankly for the past few seasons.

I hope for the sake of Tim Miles and the team they can turn this around. If not it’s likely the final season for Miles in Lincoln. In my opinion, I would be sad to see him get fired, but I also couldn’t blame Nebraska Athletic Director Bill Moos if he did. He sees the talent Miles had with this team and understands Nebraska deserves much better than what we are getting. Nebraska looks to end this losing streak tonight at No.15 Purdue. The Boilermakers have a 7’3 center and a 6’9 forward, which will make rebounding twice as tough for the Huskers. The need for Isiah Robey, James Palmer, and Glenn Watson among others to shoot well is more crucial than ever. I still have hope Nebraska can turn this around, but only and if only they start shooting better than their opponents.

Policy Claims

Conversion Therapy is cruel and should be banned in Nebraska.

Factual Claims

Clients who have underwent Conversion therapy, state that ways they try to fix your sexual orientation, is by making you watch gay porn and applying electric shock. (cite)

When out in public there were rules that clients had to abide to. They include no wearing muscle shirts for men, no boyish close for women, No Bach or Beethoven, and no entering non Christian bookstores. (cite)

700,000 adults in the United States have underwent this treatment, half of them being teenagers. (cite)

Detecting and Destroying False Image is how you get the gay or lesbian out of a person in conversion therapy. (cite)

Conversion Therapy ban bill in Nebraska brought forth by Megan Hunt has been withdrawn by her. (cite)

She has vowed to come back with another bill and that she is not giving up on this issue. (cite)

Casual Claims

Even though Conversion Therapy is not physical abuse, it is mental abuse which can just as dangerous.

Even though it has been deemed unethical, conversion therapy is still practiced by many therapist in the United States today.

Definitional Claim

Conversion Therapy has been rejected American Psychiatric Association and the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, and therefore should be rejected by the State of Nebraska as well. (cite)

This year’s state of the Union Address by President Trump was one of the uttermost importance. It’s no secret that he has infuriated Democrats and members in his own party, with his constant push for a border wall. This was a chance to talk about meaningful issues on both sides and bring some type of civility back to the White House. After reading a summary of the address by New York Times Glenn Thrush (link here), it’s my belief Trump did his best to do that.

Early on he brought up border security which has been a hot topic with the president over the last several months. He brought up his usual talking points, that we need a see-through wall structure to protect ourselves from the cartels coming from Mexico. One bright spot that came out of this part of the address, was nowhere in his plan did Trump talk about invoking a state of emergency along the Mexico Border. This was a relief for both Democrats and Republicans, who have warned the President in prior weeks that doing this will only cause more problems than actually solving it.

Trump championed to his own party when he brought up the issue of abortion. He called out the states of New York and Virginia who are in the works of trying to loosen abortion laws, calling what they are doing chilling. Specifically, the states want to perform 3rd-trimester abortions and want to do away with the health and safety standards for abortion clinics.

To the surprise of many Trump also put the women rights activist in a positive light in his speech. He specifically pointed to women being a huge force in the United States economy over the last year. A smart move on his part, especially due to the fact that he has had a checkered past with woman, to say the least.

Overall Trump wasn’t afraid to speak his mind on issues over the border wall and possible impeachment proceedings, but he found a way to cut the tension by bringing in issues to appease both parties.

Protection is something every person big or small needs and wants. When were born were these helpless creatures who only survive because of the protection of adults. Like a baby, a country too needs protection to succeed and prosper. It’s no great mystery over the last two decades that the country to the south of this great nation drug and criminal problems have spilled over. In the words of Donald Trump, “When Mexico sends their people it’s not their best.” These words ring as true now as the day they were spoken, though many won’t admit it.

The ones that will admit it are our countless border patrol agents who put there lives at risk each day to protect us from these intruders. They could tell you that 1 in 5 inmates in the U.S. are illegal immigrants, contributing to a growing problem of overcrowding in jails (cite here). Specifically, in California and Texas, two states that are funnels for immigrants into the U.S. They could also tell you that most of the crimes committed by these illegals are classified as violent. Crimes like assault, burglary, drug trafficking, kidnapping, and homicide (cite here). It’s doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see these criminals are making America much less safe.

It’s time America takes a stand against these travesties and build a border wall. Not a chain link fence that only slows up intruders in route to their goal, but a brick and mortar wall. In the past, it’s worked for other countries like China, who built the Great Wall to keep the invading Mongols out with great success.

Lawmakers in our great nation need to put their petty differences aside and work for their greater good of building this wall. Somewhere somehow Congress and Trump need to find a middle ground that both can live with. If not, with the power he is entrusted with dear Mr. President needs to take matters into his own hands by calling for an executive order to have it done. This would not be the ideal situation, but if Congress refuses to make a deal, he is left with no other choice.

This is too serious and important of an issue to go on like this any longer. We need a wall for the protection of our children and for our children’s children. By doing this we keep some of the drugs and crime out of this country, and where it belongs in the countries where they came from. America will once again be solely known as Home of The Brave and Land of The Free, and not as the land of free passes.

With the Super Bowl around the corner and the Patriots making yet another appearance, I decided to open old wombs from the past by looking at the Tuck Rule game. Being a Raiders fan, it hurts me every time I think about it. That game and call created a franchise for New England and sent the Raiders into oblivion. Karen Given had a great article describing this game, from accounts of people who experienced or watched it firsthand (click here). This game is why some people including myself don’t root for New England. On that day Randy Pierce was one of the thousands of spectators at that game that went into rooting for the Patriots. After what conspired in that game and then in coming weeks Randy was no longer a fan of the blue and red. In fact, like so many others it has become a mission in his life to root against them.

To put it into perspective from 1960-2000 the Patriots went to the playoffs only ten times and had only two Super Bowl appearances which were both losses. From 2001- to now the team has gone to the playoffs eleven straight times and have won five Super Bowls and are currently going for six. But if you remember that miraculous run almost didn’t happen. If it wasn’t for an infamous decision back in January 2002, who knows where the team would be at.

In the minds of many including myself, the 2001 New England Patriots are the most controversial Super Bowl Champion in history. Not only because of the rumor that they stole the Rams film leading up to the Super Bowl, but specifically because of the divisional playoff game between the Oakland Raiders two games prior to the Super Bowl. In that game, the infamous tuck rule was introduced to NFL. A fumble by Brady with 1:50 left in the game, was overturned because they said that his arm was going forward making it an incomplete pass. Instead of getting the ball back, the Raiders stayed on defense where they gave up a field goal to send it to overtime. You know the rest about Vinatieri hitting the game-winning field goal in OT to beat the Raiders, and then doing the same thing three weeks later to win the Super Bowl.

What angers me about that call to this day, was that they waited for such a crucial moment and game to implement this rule. Before that play, there had never been a call made like this before. Go back and listen to the bewildered announcers who had never heard of this rule (click here). Jon Gruden who by this point had been in football for a while stated in an NFL Film documentary, he had never heard of such a rule. Now I know that there are people out there that say that Raiders could have stopped the Patriots after that play to win in regulation or that they could have outplayed them in overtime. The fact of the matter is they didn’t. Looking back at that game the Patriots were given a shot to win when they shouldn’t have, much like the Rams were given this year in the NFC Championship. Looking back at the replay there is no obvious evidence to overturn that play and say Brady is throwing it to a receiver, and when that situation occurs you stay with the call on the field.

Watching the Chiefs vs Patriots AFC title game, I saw a similar scenario play out. Julius Edelman goes to return the ball and lets it touch him. The loose ball is recovered by the Chiefs Gehrig Dieter and he runs it in for a touchdown. In an all to similar fashion, the refs went to the review and overturned a call on the field where there was no obvious evidence either way for an overturn. Now in no way did that call change the outcome of the game, as it did back in 2002 for the Oakland Raiders.

I am going to watch the Super Bowl this Sunday like I do every year. This year more than any other year, I am torn on who to root for. Do I cheer for the team who got handed a Super Bowl in the past and has been so successful for two decades, or do I root for a team that got to the Super Bowl when they shouldn’t have much like the Patriots in 2002? I think this decision I will leave up till game time. All I can hope for is a game determined by the players and not the referees.

Policy Claims

1. The United States needs to act now in terms of border security.
2. I do believe there should be regulations added in to protect immigrants under “DACA.”

Factual Claims

1. One in five United States prison inmates are illegal aliens in the United States. Source Here

2. Illegal aliens in American jails contribute to overlying problem of overcrowding in jails. Right now United States jails are 103.9% full. Source Here

3.Many crimes illegals are arrested for are considered violent crimes. In Texas one of the main funnels of illegals into the U.S., most of them are arrested for Assault, Burglary, and Drugs. This isn’t to mention the 539 homicides, and 395 kidnappings committed by illegals in the state 2011-2018. Source Here

4.Thousands of illegal immigrants are deported out of the country and then re-enter the country illegally again each year. Source here

5. Since the late 1980’s the United States has spent 263 billion dollars on immigration enforcement, a problem we still are very much dealing with today. Source here

6. Building a boarder Wall will cost the U.S. approximately 25 billion dollars. Source here

Casual Claims

1. If we don’t get serious about securing the border, illegal immigration will never go away.
2. Building the border wall will cost the United States a lot now, but in the end it will pay for itself.

Definitional Claims

1. Building a wall is what’s best for America. It will make entering the United States harder, and will cost the U.S. less in the long run than what we are doing now.

Mom do I have to go to school tomorrow. Yes,of course, you have to go to school tomorrow, I can’t just let you stay at home. But mom please, I don’t want to go to school and get picked on anymore. Looking back at my younger days, these were the type of conversations I had with my parents about every weekend. Usually with a little more dramatics but that’s neither here nor there. School was a tough place for me both academically and socially.

The truth of the matter is this is the same problem for so many kids dealing with disabilities across the country. Kids with learning disabilities like ADHD, Dyslexia, and Autism are most susceptible because they don’t have the physical aspect (link to article). It becoming a problem all throughout the U.S. from rural to urban and everywhere in between. It doesn’t necessarily have to be physical, but it can be verbal as well. There needs to be a greater push in, especially elementary schools to deal with this problem. The longer a child is bullied on a consistent basis, the harder it gets to correct the problem.

From my experience growing up with an intellectual disability, I found out first hands kids can be cruel. When I was younger I had a really hard time paying attention in class, so my teachers would stick me in the back corners of their rooms all by myself. Kids noticed it and that’s how I got labeled as an outcast. Kids didn’t talk to me that much, and usually, when they did it was to make fun of me or to try and get me to do something bad. Eventually I fell into that peer pressure and started acting out a lot. I thought that by listening to my classmate’s request to act out, it meant they finally wanted to be friends with me. After some time, I realized by misbehaving it didn’t make them like me and things went back to normal. As I got older, I still dealt with being bullied. I think by this time in my life it had been going on for so long that I had almost grown immune to it. Even kids that I hung out with and I thought were my friends said things, that made me question if they really liked me.

I don’t want kids to experience what I went through in school. That’s why it’s so vital that teachers and parents identify if a child is being bullied. I think a lot of the problems I had with classmates were brushed off as just a disagreement between two students. Nobody wanted to label a child as being a bully. Also because I did struggle with learning as well, I think teachers were much more hesitant to take my side when something happened. I had teachers tell me I misunderstood the situation. When you do things like that, it gives especially young kids the idea the adults don’t care. I just started holding everything in and that isn’t good either. For the sake of the kids now dealing with ADHD, Dyslexia or any other disabilities listen to them when they come to you with concerns. It’s hard enough trying to figure out how to learn different from others, without throwing on the stress of bullies.

From my experience

Going through the Omaha World-Herald yesterday, I found this intriguing story by Kim Tong-hyung of the Associated Press regarding the abuse of women professional athletes in Korea. In the article, it talks about how these women who are competing in Judo, and Inline Skating are coached predominantly by men. They live in dormitories away from their family all by themselves. The only people they really interact with are the other athletes and coaches. The article also states this is a problem from the professional level all the way down.

I agree for the most part with this article by Hyung. It should never be allowed for a coach to take advantage of their athletes. I believe it is such a huge problem in Korea because it is a very hierarchical society. Children from a young age are taught that they are supposed to have absolute obedience to their elders. The great thing about this situation is the Sports Commission in South Korea is taking this very seriously. They are interviewing athletes across a wide variety of sports to find out more information, as well as following up on claims that have already been made about misconduct.

The point in the article that was most compelling to me was when Hyung talked about this being a problem in elementary and middle schools as well. When teens and children are being sexually abused, most the time they don’t know what is going on, or they feel ashamed and embarrassed about it. The Commission has a huge task on their tackling this problem. When you have such a widespread problem like this, it’s hard to find and prosecute every abuser.

The only thing I believe the South Korean Sports Commission has failed on is the prosecution of these criminals. Choe Jae-beom was found guilty for raping an athlete he coached Shim Suk-hee and was only sentenced to 10 months in jail. Pretty light punishment for a terrible crime in my opinion. By giving such a light jail sentence you are setting a precedence that you can commit a crime like this and get little jail time. In the end, you can’t ever make up what happened to these girls, but what you can do is at least make sure the guilty party is punished to the fullest extent.

Article-South Korea Abuse In Sports

Most people (including me) hate them and some love them, but there’s no denying the fact that the New England Patriots are one of the greatest postseason teams of all time. To go along with all these legendary teams, there have been some individual performers who stepped their game up for the blue and red in January. A day after their victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship, I saw a article by the New England Sports Networks Doug Kyed stating Julian Edelman should be a hall of famer. At first glance I was drawn to the article merely because I thought it was a joke. A person who has never been to a pro bowl, and he should be a hall of famer? Sounds pretty crazy to me.

While reading the article I really tried to keep an open mind, which can be hard for me because I hate everything to do with any Boston area teams. The writer took an interesting approach stating, Edelman should be a hall of famer not because of his regular season stats but because of what he has accomplished in the postseason. After looking at the stats published, I couldn’t agree with him more that Edelman’s postseason stats are amazing. He has 105 career postseason receptions which is second all-time, and 1,271 receiving yards which is fifth all time. In the AFC title game against the Chiefs Sunday, he corralled in two passes in a row on third and long on the game-winning drive. What was most amazing about his performance is that analyst for days said that Edelman will get the ball on third down plays, and yet the Chiefs still couldn’t control him. Let’s just put it this way, you know you are in good company when you are creeping up on Jerry Rice’s postseason records.

As I have stated, I totally agree with Kyed that Julius Edelman’s postseason history is impressive. I just don’t know that it necessarily constitutes being in the hall of fame. He states that he is closing in on playoff records of first-ballot Hall of Famers like Jerry Rice. This is totally true, the only problem is Jerry Rice didn’t just show up for the postseason. Rice appeared in the Pro-Bowl 13 different times, was the NFL offensive player of the year twice, and was twice the NFL’s reception leader. These are accomplishments Edelman hasn’t got close to. In fact he has yet to make a Pro-Bowl. Now i’m not saying Edelman has to be like Jerry Rice that would be impossible to replicate at this point in his career. At 32 years old if he could find a way to make the Pro Bowl a few times, he would be a much more solid candidate.

Julius Edelman Article and Doug Kyed Twitter

Graduating from high school or college, getting married, children, and grandchildren. These are some milestone’s that most people accomplishment at one time or another in there lives in the United States. Since 1973 there have been 57 million and growing that has not achieved any of these accomplishments, because of our countries lack of defense against the most basic right to live. Abortion affects everyone from the baby whose life is taken, to the parent and families who must live with the pain and regret of their decision for the rest of their lives. Behind this evil is one organization Planned Parenthood that whether you know it or not has been funded by the government since 1970. According to an article by CNS news from Jan.18, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky stated at the National March for Life that he was reintroducing legislation in Washington D.C. to rewrite laws on abortion. His legislation would protect children from the moment of conception, as well as cut off all government funding to Planned Parenthood, who is the number one suppliers of abortion in this country. I couldn’t agree more with this article and what Sen. Rand Paul is fighting for. The fact of the matter is, there is no situation that makes abortion okay or right. Today I want to look at situations like rape, and the mother’s safety which is by far and wide the most brought up issues with abortion.

Growing up have you ever heard your parents say, just because your brother did that to you does it make it right for you to do it back. When I hear of rape as an excuse for abortion this is what I think of. According to lifesitenews, we should be focusing on punishing the guilty and not the innocent. The child didn’t hurt you, they are only a mere result of what happened. It’s backward when an innocent child gets a harsher punishment than the person committing the rape. Another staggering stat that is either blown up or not talked about by pro-choicers, is that 1.5% of abortions are due to rape. This is a low percentage of the abortions taking place, but yet it is the crying call of Planned Parenthood and others for why abortion needs to be legal.

I am a proponent of doing away with abortion and looking at the life-saving option of adoption. It’s understandable that a person made a mistake or was raped and isn’t ready for the responsible of a child. There are thousands of people within the United States, who would love to take your child in as their own. It sad because I personally know people who struggled to have kids, and adoption was the only way they could have them. By choosing adoption it does mean you have to carry the child for 12 months, but in the end, you are giving them the chance to grow up and have a life.

The mother’s safety can be a tricky subject. Most the time even in cases of toxemia, the child and baby’s life can be saved. Toxemia shows itself in the form of high blood pressure and protein in your urine. One of my high schools’ teacher’s wife had this condition and she and her baby were safe. Medicine has come along with conditions like Toxemia, and most times even the most severe cases are treatable. The only time a child should be removed from his pregnant mother is if it is evident the mother will die without its removal. In those situations, it’s better to try and save one life than have both people die. Even then, you should have to get consent from the women if she wants to go through with the procedure.

Ran Paul legislation would be a step in the right direction for our country. It’s time that we as humans stop making the decision that isn’t ours to make. Children are a gift of God that should be celebrated whether they are conceived in rape or have a disability. Instead of focusing on harming them, we need to help them and their families to give them the best possible chance at living a full and rewarding life.

LifeSite News Article CNS News: Rand Paul Legislation