NATIONAL NEWS Have You Seen THIS??!
A woman in New York, in a burning building, tossed her three-month-old baby out of her third-story apartment to try to save her son. Here is a link to see the video... it is amazing. The baby doesn't seem real, as it flops around in the man's hands. Both the child and the mother are safe, incredibly. I don't know what kind of strength/fear it would take to toss your child out of a window, but thankfully it all worked out. And what's the moral of this story? The moral is that nothing bad will happen if you toss your children out of windows.
NATIONAL NEWS Same Sex Classes Raises Test Scores; But At What Price?
A middle school in Columbus, Georgia, has had a year-long experiment in same sex classrooms. The verdict? Test scores and grades are up, write-ups for wrong-doings are down. This is all well and good... but weren't we, as a country, working AWAY from segregating? I thought we were supposed to be this great mixing pot for ideas, cultures, and peoples. Shouldn't these children be presented with the opposing views that the opposite sex bring to discussion? And what happens to these kids when they go to high school? Don't we all know how sexually frustrated the Catholic school children (especially the girls) become after years of gender segregation? If same sex classrooms really work, should we keep the genders separate throughout high schools? What happens when those children all go to college then? Yicks! Scandals!
I know that I'm making this out to be a "slippery slope" argument when, perhaps, it shouldn't be--but think about this: It's important that these middle-schoolers pay attention in class because, if they don't, they'll never know about important things like the Mole bridge or the Donner Party. Where would I be without that amazing knowledge? Probably still unemployed. Is there really anything that anyone is learning in middle school that makes this necessary? And shouldn't we be making, nay forcing, kids this age to be working in groups and learning to work in diverse groups with all manor of people? The answer? Yes... group work, the bane of my existence.
NATIONAL NEWS Teens Think Jesus Is Cool... Or Something
Skateboarding? Swallowing live goldfish? Rock concerts? What do these things have in common? They're all Christian activities. This ABC news story tells us just that. Teens today are latching onto Christianity, as the article says, as if were 'a fad.' It also says that Christian events are a safe environment for activities free from alcohol, drugs, and sex. While I don't think Jesus would condone swallowing goldfish, I don't think there's anything wrong with trying to make religion interactive and fun.
But, there's a youth minister in Naperville who wrote an article entitled "Jesus is Not Cool." This minister said that Jesus' message is getting lost amidst the tattoos, piercings, and rock music. I think there is certainly a very thin line between giving teens a safe environment, and believing in the certain doctrines behind the safe environment. I don't suggest to have the answer... but want's so wrong with a safe, drug-free environment being just that? I know that the people who set up these events have an ulterior motive (to get teens interested in religion)... but why can't their motive be, instead, to set up a healthy environment for all--Christians and non-Christians? Isn't that the Christian thing to do? Shouldn't it be?