Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in The Swamp.
Why American Gun Control Won't Happen
Whilst I think many people will question American gun laws in the light of recent outrages, I want to examine why it’s not a total call for changes. With so many people dying, it seems to those outside the states that a change should be obvious, that assault weapons should be banned and general gun sales limited. In America it appears though that excuses are made for each atrocity and that little attempt is made to change the laws. The N.R.A seems to have control over to many aspects of the attempts to change the laws and their influence seems to hold sway over people’s opinion.
By ASHLEY SMITH8 years ago in The Swamp
Why Is It Like This?
Today, death seems to be a normalcy. We turn on the news and hear about another 30 people killed and it sucks; But we move on cause you know... What else can we do? We go to work and we hear about a president who seems to spew more hate than he actually speaks about politics. We hear theories that the earth is flat and, "THEY'RE LYING TO US!" Distrust comes out more often than truth and worst of all, hate always outshines love.
By Jonathan Norton8 years ago in The Swamp
Why It's Important to Vote
It’s currently election season in 2017, so we’re not voting for a new president, and, save for New Jersey or Virginia, we won’t be voting for new governors either. 2017 is what’s considered an “off-year” meaning that the focus of this year’s elections is mainly local. That said, these “off-years” are not always the most popular or favorable time for people to go out and cast their ballots.
By A. Alexis Kreiser8 years ago in The Swamp
Here's the Thing, Taylor Swift
Is there any celebrity more careful about her reputation than Taylor Swift? Even as she begins to change her image from the good wholesome girl that many have come to love to the bad girl that she thinks she is in her head, Taylor wants to control what the press says about her. Such is the case with the burgeoning feud Swift has with blogger Meghan Herning. The issue is that with the internet and bloggers becoming more of the mainstream media, Taylor can't control things the way she used to.
By Edward Anderson8 years ago in The Swamp
America Really Needs to Address Its Gun Problem
At the time of writing, the website massshootingtracker.org has the number of mass shootings in the US currently at 377, with the number killed sitting at 542 for this year alone. The fact that such a website even exists is startling, but the numbers make for some truly horrifying reading.
By The One True Geekology8 years ago in The Swamp
The Right Age to Vote
The British Labour party is calling for voting age to be reduced to 16. I have never known a person aged 16 years, including myself, that I would trust to make sound judgments about the future of the entire nation. It takes several more years of responsibility to teach a young adult how to make judgments. At 16 years old, the amount of responsibility experienced by any individual is not enough to teach sound judgment.
By Peter Rose8 years ago in The Swamp
The Sotomayor-Gingrich Controversy According to Standpoint Theory & Identity Politics
The focus of Judge Sonia Sotomayor’s speech at Berkeley Law School in 2001 is that in order to argue for more women and people of color to be present on the bench, a new definition and description of Latino identity must be created. Sotomayor expresses in her speech that her “Newyorkrican” nationality and her experiences growing up in a rich Latino culture surrounded by her Puerto Rican family mean she identifies as such, but she questions how, in America, the tension between a celebration of ethnic diversity and a need for color- and race-blindness can ground a person’s true cultural identity. In order to reach a conclusion on the issue of identity, Sotomayor makes the claim that, though there has been a “quantum leap” (Sotomayor, 2001) in the number of Latinos and women in legal positions, there is still much to be done to show a complete representation of men and women, but specifically women of color, behind the bench. Sotomayor received backlash from former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who called Sotomayor a “racist” in 2009 for her remarks during the speech that she hoped the experiences of a Latina woman would help her make better judging decisions than a white male who has not had those experiences. The controversy over Sotomayor’s speech about creating a definition of identity for women of color in legal positions and Gingrich’s uninformed comments can be situated within two theories of feminism: Kimberlé Crenshaw’s theory of intersectionality and Nancy Hartsock’s feminist standpoint theory.
By Olivia Cyr8 years ago in The Swamp
Who Is Next In The Mueller Probe?
Recently, we witnessed potential history as the investigation into the Trump-Russia ties took another step forward as special counsel Robert Mueller announced the first indictments against former foreign policy George Papadopoulos, former campaign manager Paul Manafort, and Manafort associate Rick Gates. They were indicted on charges of, amongst other things, money laundering and conspiracy against the United States. This major announcement has many people wondering where Mueller's investigation will lead next. I have a few ideas about that. Just a few. I'm not saying that what I'm about to say is all I have to say about this issue. I'm saying that because not only does this matter to Americans, but it also matters to the rest of the world, because the American president has always been considered the "leader of the free world." However, Trump is slowly degrading that every single day, making other countries understandably view the United States of America - again, the "leader of the free world" - very unfavorably.
By A. Alexis Kreiser8 years ago in The Swamp
