Big
Spring High School
Newville,
Pennsylvania
Teacher: Mrs. D. Whitmoyer
One Step at a Time
By Janette Lehman
11th grade
Every one
needs to step up and take action if they want to improve their community. Three things that are wrong with our communities
today are crime levels, education levels, and poverty.
Each one is serious and can be changed for the better if everyone tries.
First, I
would like to start with crime. There is a
lot of crime in the US, and mostly it is in the big cities.
I'm not saying that there isn't any crime in small towns, but the crime rates are
lower because they are less populated. Many
crimes may start out small, like stealing candy or some thing small, but they become
worse, like killings. I think the reason
crime is such a problem because of television. The
news is a large source of seeing and hearing about crimes.
Too much publicity may cause others to imitate or copy what they see on TV. Shows based on crimes are not always a good thing
either. They may possibly show someone how to
commit a crime. The internet is not always
helpful either. When on the internet, a
person can see how to make pipe bombs, helping them in their crime. Convicted felons have even reported getting ideas
from TV on how to commit a crime, and have done so successfully.
My second
point is on education. There are so many new
things out there to learn, so why is it that my generation is labeled as lazy, not doing
their work or getting good grades in school? Is
it the educators fault? Maybe students get
bored being in a class that is moving to slowly for them.
Maybe they don't see it's relevance to their future.
I also feel education is slacking more in the south.
Maybe it's because there is more crime down there, distracting them from their
work. I think our generation just needs more
guidance now more than ever with the new technology.
This way, we are using what is helpful to us, not what is harmful to us. I also think there should be tougher punishments
on those who break the rules in school. If
kids aren't worried about looking "cool" to others then they could concentrate
more on their education. Coed education may
be detracting from the learning process as well. Girls
may be more intimidated having boys in their class and may not want to look stupid in
front of the boys. One the other hand, the
girls may not want to look intelligent in front of the boys because the girls may be
worried that the boys are not interested in smart girls.
It may also hinder the boys' learning as well.
They may not want to look stupid in front of the girls, or they may try to show
off, not paying attention to what is going on while they are trying to be the class clown.
The last
point to improving life would be lowering the poverty level. Right now, the unemployment rate is at a very low
level, and that is good. This way, people are
getting the money they need to make a living. If
people have money, they can get a house or apartment to live in and can pay their bills. If people have a place to live, they are off the
streets and out of the weather. That is a
good thing because everyone needs shelter. If
they are getting paid, they can buy food, and that is another thing everyone needs. The only problem with this is that people living
in poverty are the ones that really need the money, but the only openings are for the low
income jobs, meaning that the people living in poverty don't make enough money to live on
with out taking on a second job. That way,
they get more hours. More hours means more
money, which is exactly what they need.
If everyone
steps in to try and fix a little bit, everything will get better. That's because if everyone in the US did a little
bit, it would turn out to be a lot. By doing
this, the quality of life in the United States will go up, and everybody's community will
become a better place to live.
Answers To Questions Re: Required
Reading
1. There is
greater emphasis on marriage in Manus than in the US.
In the US, less and
less people
are getting married and it's accepted. In
Manus, marriage is more of an investment and the marriage is worth more the longer the
couple has been together.
2. The first
person has been married twice, the second marriage lasting 18 years, and their advice was
to compromise. The second person has been
married once, lasting 21 years, with the advice to respect each other. The third person was married once, lasting four
years with the advice to trust your spouse. The
fourth person was married twice, with the second marriage lasting 42 years, had the advice
to listen to each other. The fifth person was
married once, lasting 12 years, with the advice to share with your spouse. The sixth person was married four times, the most
recent marriage lasting 6 years. Their advice
was to have a sense of humor about everything. The
seventh person was married once, lasting two and a half years, had the advice to
understand how your spouse feels. The eighth
person was married once, lasting 57 years, said to have similar long term goals, like
wanting kids. The ninth person was married
three times, and the last marriage lasting eight years, said, "Don't go to bed
angry." The last person was married
once, lasting 38 years, said agree to disagree.
3. Richard
Eckersley says our collective goal should be to live to change the world into a better
place. Not concentrating on our material
belongings and other things, but to work to make it a better place for everyone, not just
ourselves.
4. A goal
for the Newville community would be to stop littering.
There is not much litter around, but it would look even nicer to go to the dam and
not see trash lying around. It would be a
more attractive place to visit.
5. I think a
toy that reminds a child of a family member is a good thing for them to have because it
may help them so they don't feel lonely, or it could help them get over a tough time in
their life.
6. Lawyers
help make deals between people and settle disputes. In
a Democracy, they protect people from tyranny of the majority and they create public
responsibility and accountability. They help
with diversity because there is more conflict and less agreement. With wealth and size, they help the small people
deal with the big people.
7. I think
punitive damages are better because of the example given--McDonald's coffee. It's harder to enforce rules on how hot coffee
should be.
8. There are
three ways society would benefit from retirement of Baby-Boomers: they will become entrepreneurs, offer services to
younger generations and give opportunities for the young.
9. I think
it will work. First, I like the President's
theory that there's no time like the present. If
something's going to happen, let's do it now and not wait.
That's a great start. Second, he's
enabling them to become consumers. Third, he
wants to spend the money in our own country, therefore, benefiting us.
10. Three things Cathy and Lewis have in common, they
are retired, they are church-goers, and they help out with programs at schools.