Commentary On Zach's "Changing Goals"

My classmate Zach stressed some really good pointers with this commentary, but i think he failed to mention the importance of what Algebra 2 brings to the table.
Algebra 2 is a math course that is either taken during the junior or senior year of high school. 
It is suppose to prepare the students for the future math courses that will be taken in College, which is College Algebra.  Algebra 2 involves critical thinking, and problem solving, which i think is why the majority of students find it difficult. With Algebra 2 off the curriculum in high school, it does not necessarily mean something easier will come along, because that's not the case. 

I do agree with Zach though, if they are going to drop Algebra 2 from the curriculum they should replace the class with something that is practical and will be used later in life. But those classes that are "used later in life" are usually in college, when you are closer to your major. 

The Texas Board of Education is trying to change the Texas Education little by little, as it shows, TAKS test have been replaced by STAR test, a test much more difficult. 
So maybe with the absence of Algebra 2 in high school will bring something better that will prepare the students in high school even more for the future. 

 As we all know traffic in Austin is dreadful, city planners did not plan ahead for the growth Austin has experienced in the past 10 years.  The Texas Department of Transportation is debating on expanding Austin’s MoPac Boulevard to eight lanes from six. The two new lanes will be tolled, giving people a chance to pay a toll fee to avoid the road’s congestion.  This is a bad idea because converting roads into tolls that have already been funded or paid-for is wrong.  Austin's tolls are the worst in the most taxed city in Texas, people don’t want to have to pay a toll fee just to avoid congestion on MoPac.  State leaders should provide locals a free pass and toll everyone else passing through.  The prediction for this proposal is that the private toll road companies will end up in debt just like the privately managed southern portion of the State Highway 130 did.  The privately managed company opened last year and has drawn less traffic than investors had predicted, leaving them in fear that they will be in debt by 2014.  Building more toll roads in Austin will not solve the solution for the congestion on MoPac and I-35, they should build them but people ride them for free.  San Antonio builds new roads and lets the drivers ride for free; Austin builds new roads and wants to toll the drivers.  It seems like every new proposal that is made involves more money, we pay enough taxes already and the growing population in Austin should be a wakeup call to act immediately without making locals pay more money.  

Commentary on Mildred's "Where is my plastic bag?"

 Mildred's commentary about the banning of plastic bags leaving people that work in the manufactories jobless is correct.  I did not stress this factor, but she has a good point.  What happens to the 4,500 people that worked in manufacturing plastic bags?  Will they be put to manufacture paper bags?  

 I don’t understand how plastic bags are effecting our environment, I feel like they are only effecting our environment if they are not recycled properly.   

Paper bags would kill our environment by killing our trees.  Is that what people prefer?   Maryland and Brownsville seem to have this plastic bag ordinance straight.

 Brownsville charges $1 for unlimited plastic bags. Maryland charges 5 cents per plastic bag at grocery stores.  That is a fair price, and it also leaves residents happy.  

A citizen reaction to the banning of plastic bags in Austin is like half content, half frustrated.  I work at a retail store myself, and there is constantly people complaining because we no longer supply plastic bags. If we were able to still keep the plastic bags and charge people a small fee, it would make local residents happy.  If we could just be able to let people choose what they wanted, instead of making half of the town mad.

Plastic Bag Ban Bad

As we all know, in March 2013, the City of Austin banned plastic shopping bags.  Plastic bags are one of the most common items in everyday life, so for many of us, it was inconvenient.  For me, it just meant that I now have to spend money on purchasing plastic bags instead of receiving them for free at any local store.  Banning the plastic shopping bags made many people in Austin angry, including me.  Plastic bags were used for many important things like cleaning up dog waste, garbage bags, and groceries.  Banning plastic bags only means the use of paper bags which means cutting more trees! People are now forced to spend money on buying paper and cotton bags and guess what, more taxes! The government also has to spend more money on providing the use of paper and cotton bags.  If it costs more money why do it? The majority of people in Austin that use plastic bags reuse them. Reusable and paper alternatives cost a lot more money as well as the environment to manufacture. Plastic bags may have a negative impact when they are disposed of incorrectly, but at least trees do not need to be axed to make them. Unlike paper bags, plastic bags do not destroy the environment before they are even sold or given away to the public.  Austin needs to enforce the reuse of plastic bags, not ban them.  Why ban when we can control? It cost way more money to make paper bags than plastic! If we are trying to save the environment, how are we saving it by killing trees and using paper? 

Abortion Funds: Bridging the Gap in Reproductive Health Care Where Texas and Hyde Won't

On Sunday, October 20, 2013, The Burnt Orange Report released a commentary about abortion funds.  This commentary is about the funds for abortions being relatively low, and how the Hyde Amendment comes into effect with the abortion funds.  The Hyde Amendment provides certain federal funds to pay for abortions with exceptions for incest and rape.  So that means that women who want to have an abortion as a choice have to pay out of pocket.  The cost for an abortion is expensive, it can be anywhere between $400-$2000.  The price is different for every woman, it is depending on how far along she is in her pregnancy. Health care benefits do not cover abortions, due to the Hyde Amendment.  The author is strictly directing her argument for women living in poverty, which are blacks and hispanics. The author's argument about the Hyde Amendment is credible, i think that women should be able to have access to a safe abortion no matter the reason.  The author believes that there would be more health justice if the Hyde Amendment were repealed, if Texas expanded Medicaid under the new health care law, and if Texas took a real initiative to make reproductive health care services accessible to all people.  I agree with the author's argument, i believe that if health care was not so limited the percentage of uninsured people will decrease.  As of now, Texas has the highest percentage of uninsured people in the entire nation.  The author states that with Hyde in place, Texas should act on every opportunity to enhance the state of our health care. Until that happens, and until Hyde is repealed, abortion funds will continue to work to ensure that all people can access crucial, life-saving abortion care. 

Some SAT News is Discouraging

On Thursday, September 26, 2013, The Star-Telegram posted an editorial titled Some SAT News is Discouraging.  This editorial is about a low percentage of students who take the SAT's further their education to a college career. Only 43 percent of high school students actually take the SAT's, this number is relatively low.  The College Board announced that it has been virtually unchanged for the past 5 years, meaning they do not need to take action on it.  However, College Board President, David Coleman said the stagnant scores are "a call for action."  His proposal was dramatically increasing the number of students in K-12 who are prepared for college and careers by transforming the daily work that students do in classrooms.  I agree with Coleman, I believe that we need to make some serious changes in our Texas public schools. Significantly, more students are taking AP exams rather than the SAT's.  Why?  Presumably, the SAT tests are not related to the coursework that students do. It is far more complex, causing students to get discouraged to take them.  When I attended high school, I did not take the SAT's due to the fact that I was not pushed to take them, and it was not an important factor in my high school.  They cared more about preparing students for the TAKS tests instead of the SAT's.  For that matter, I was not at all prepared for college, much less a university.   I believe that Coleman's proposal should be affected immediately because our Texas public schools need that dramatic change.

UT Rolls On New Approach to Massive Online Courses

On Monday, September 6, 2013, The Texas Tribune published an article titled UT Rolls On New Approach to Massive Online Courses. I believe this article is worth reading because it is slowly expanding our education system here at The University of Texas at Austin.  The UT faculty and staff is currently configuring a new way of expanding online educational classes by broadcasting a psychology class on a televised film for free!  As they began the class, up to 800 UT-Austin students logged onto their computers and participated in the course of the class. UT staff is currently working on ways to improve these online televised courses and considering the best way they can get more non-UT students to participate.  These televised courses are not considered a college credit, but the purpose of this is to get more students enrolled in school. I certainly believe this is going to be a great success! Don't you?