Problems in the Near Future

As many of us in Michigan got out to the polls Tuesday, November 4^th, we had the opportunity to vote on proposal one. Proposal one was for the legalization of medical marijuana. Proposal one passed very easily. This is very alarming and shouldn’t have happened. Ultimately, Medical marijuana should not be legalized.

We should be very concerned now that this proposal has passed. On top of all the everyday worries that we have now, we have to worry about marijuana becoming more accessible to people. Many people are going to take advantage of this by finding ways to receive or get the legal drug. We could see more break-ins happening, and more people getting arrested on drug charges. We, as modest people, cannot allow this to happen with all the problems going on in the state right now. These problems include marijuana use up by 11 percent according to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Doctors are supposed to have control over who can receive medical marijuana. In California some recent cases have come about, about these so called “pot docs” who are suppose to be the only ones who can subscribe pot to patients. They also determine who can receive pot. Well in California these physicians have been subscribing people with simple injuries to medical pot. A study by William’s shows that, “By 2005, fifteen pot docs had issued an estimated 50,000 marijuana recommendations. About 1500 other physicians, primarily AIDS and cancer specialists, issued the remaining fifty-thousand recommendations. California has 30,000 physicians.

These pot docs collect from 150 to 250 dollars from patients for each recommendation.” (Williams, 2)

Another serious case to arising is smoking marijuana, driving performance. According to Dr. Alan Ramsey, “marijuana interfered with peripheral vision as well as central vision to a greater extent than alcohol under a wider variety of task demands.” (Ramsey, 15) Marijuana stimulates the brain and causes a hormone to be released which enables hunger. With people being high and then trying to drive too fast food restaurants to get food it’s just not good. Marijuana according to Dr. Ramsey made a greater number of errors, even after being told exactly what to do, compared to people drinking.

There may be many people who support the idea of medical marijuana because it will help those in pain, but that argument is wrong because according to Doctor Robert L. DuPont, marijuana does more damage to the body than good. Marijuana contains a stimulant called THC. According to Dr. DuPont, “THC stimulates the brain reward centers, marking marijuana as unmistakably addictive Marijuana also impairs the user’s ability to form new memories. It diminishes motivation, leading to one of the most common complaints of the pot smokers I have treated: Pot makes them stupid and lazy.” (Dr. DuPont 1) Also, according to Dr. DuPont, marijuana also affects the immune system and reproductive system. Marijuana smoke is especially hard on the lungs. It contains 50 to 70 percent more cancer causing hydrocarbons than tobacco smoke. Because marijuana smokers inhale more deeply than tobacco smokers, puff-for-puff, the risk of cancer is greater with pot than with tobacco. Coughing is a common result of smoking pot, a clear sign of the respiratory damage done by this so-called “harmless” drug. (DuPont pg 2) With these last few facts found, how can people still be for the use of medical marijuana? With this drug doing worse than good for the body we need to rethink our judgment on this drug and how it supposedly helps people.

Parents, young kids, and anyone else who agrees with this statement, we as concerned adults or kids need to make our voice be heard that we have enough problems to deal with besides worrying about another drug being legalized, we need to rise and make it be heard that we will not stand for medical marijuana. We need to make sure that medical marijuana will not be tolerated in the state of Michigan what so ever. We need to believe that medical marijuana being legalized isn’t only dangerous, but wrong.

DuPont, Dr. Robert L. Marijuana…Why it’s America’s most dangerous drug. “ The Montgomery Journal.” Updated September 22, 2007

http://www.alexarends.com/Marijuana.pdf

Ramsey, Dr. Alan. “Marijuana and Health.” Third Annual Report to Congress. Secretary of

Health, Education, and Welfare. Published 1973.

Williams, Linda. Pot docs’ issuing ‘Get Out of Jail Free’ cards. Updated December 26, 2007.

http://www.alexarends.com/Potdocs.pdf

Nordic Skiing vs. Alpine Skiing

Living in the Upper Peninsula during the winter can be very depressing for many people. Ranging from the cold all the way to looking outside and seeing everything in a dull grey white color, I see why it can be depressing. For many people though, it is a time to get outside and hit the mountains and trails. Many people come to either down-hill ski or cross-country ski, which is a growing sport and recreation. Cross-country skiing and downhill skiing have many similarities, yet at the same time differ in many ways too.

For the most part, the size of skis all depend on the person and their body type. Most Nordic skis do not get longer than two meters in length and five centimeters wide. Alpine skis are similar to Nordic skis, averaging about two meters by about five centimeters wide or just a bit longer. Nordic skis come to a point at the tip of the ski. Alpines have an oval front and are wider at the front for better turning. Both types of skis have poles that are roughly about waist high and have sharp points at the end of them to help you grip into the snow to keep moving.

Nordic skis, as everyone knows, are used for flat surfaces and medium grade hills and have a slight arch to them. With that being said, “Cross country skiing is the oldest type of skiing, having evolved out of a need to travel over snow-covered terrain. Along the way, about a century or so ago, some of these travelers realized that skiing could also be fun.” (Goodwin 1) Alpine skis are used for mostly downhill skiing and competition and have a flat surface on the bottom. Here is a little history on alpine skiing, “It was during the 1930’s that alpine skiing became a popular European pastime, as ski lifts were invented that eliminated the labor of climbing a mountain before experiencing an exhilarating descent.” (Author unknown 1) Nordic skis, because of their design, are meant to glide along with each forward motion you take. The arch is centered in the middle of the ski, so as weight is added and released, it will help move the ski forward. The boot you use for Nordic skis are a single snap on type boot. What this means is that the boot snaps on in the front, and is free moving up and down at the heel. Alpine skis do not have an arch in the middle of the ski. Because these skis are flat, they gain so much speed going down hills, that if you’re not trained properly on stopping, you could get hurt. These types of skis are also used for competition skiing such as in the Olympics. Alpine and Nordic skis, when setup right can be used for high air jumps.

On one hand, the types of competition that Nordic skis are used for are biathlons. How a biathlon works, is the cross-country skier will ski, and then stop and use a rifle for target shooting. They will do this so many times before there is winner. Alpine skis are used for slaloms such as the G-Slam. Slaloms are competitions where skiers start on top of a hill and have to ski through flags and record the best time. The bigger the Slalom, the harder the grade of the hill and the flags are setup to be difficult. Yet, both types of skis can be used for many of the same jobs as one another. Nordic skis can be used for slaloms though rare from what I hear, and Alpine skis can be used for plains skiing.

Alpine skis and Nordic skis have many similarities on how they are made. Alpine skis used to be made of all wood, but now are made up of materials such as glass fiber, Kevlar, titanium, other polymers, hardened plastic or composite materials, though many may still contain wood cores. Alpine skis also have a metal lining around the outside of the ski. On the contrary, Nordic skis are made up of materials such as aluminum and fiber glass. More expensive skis are made from graphite or carbon fiber. There is not a metal lining around Nordic skis. However, both types of skis use two poles for their respective sports. The poles have a sharp barb at the end to help break into hard snow for gripping. Poles also have a plastic disc called a basket that ensures the poles will not sink too deeply into the snow.

The two types of skis have different uses for wax too. Alpine skis use a heavy coat of wax, because as you go downhill the ski will melt the snow, creating a thin layer of water and the heavy coat of wax will allow you to fly. Nordic skis differ drastically. The types of wax they use are categorized into four groups: glide waxes, kick waxes, klisters and wax tapes. Glide waxes are used to make a ski move smoothly. Kick wax is to provide grip on snow when weight is transferred on a ski, as the snow becomes older and snowflakes lose their sharpness, in case of re-freezing or of water, kick wax cannot provide any more grip, and it becomes useless. One must therefore resort to klister, which is basically a glue-like paste. Finally, a wax less ski has a fish scale, cross-hatched or ridged pattern in the kick zone to provide grip. In certain circumstances both skis can use all these types of waxes, but mainly stick to the waxes developed for the skis.

Many people have never skied before in their lives. If they have, they probably have only tried one type or the other. Yes Alpine skis and Nordic skis are very different in many ways, but they also have a lot of similarities. I recommend that if you haven’t tried one or the other, you have to before you state which skiing type is the better of the two.

Goodwin, Tony. Cross Country Skiing 101. http://skiing.about.com/od/crosscountryskiing/a/crosscountry101.htm

History Of Skiing. http://www.speedski.com/HistoryofSkiing.htm

Alpine skis

Cross Country Skis

My Family Barn

Shoveling cow poop out of a barn, yeah it’s dirty, but a very rewarding job. My grandpa’s barn was the best place to be ever. I always enjoyed being outdoors, so it was fitting that I worked on the farm. I loved getting up early to help feed the animals. I loved this barn for the traditional rustic look, the hard working attitude I developed, and all the different types of animals.

My grandpa’s barn was not your typical red barn that looked all fancy. In fact, it didn’t even have paint on it to begin with. This barn has since fallen down due to old age; but was a stunning creation. The wood came right off the five hundred acres of precious hard woods, and wet, mosquito infested swamp land. The barn was constructed of twelve by six by eight inch brick for the first six feet, then all rustic cut cedar planks creating the outside. It was built by my family back in the early nineteen-fifties. From sixteen-inch nail spikes, all the way to the concrete, this barn was magnificent. The towering trusses which were about thirty feet long by twelve feet high towered about sixty feet from the ground like a one hundred story sky scraper. Hundreds of two by fours were used to hold this massive structure for the fifty years of its existence.

I felt honored to work for the three years that I did in this barn. To see the whole structure of a barn built fifty years ago was vividly amazing. Stacking hay in the top loft above where the cows were held at night took a lot of work. During hay season, with help, I would stack hay all the way to the roof of the barn. The only downside to stacking hay is sweating and stacking hay, I would break out with rashes that would itch as if I had chicken pox all over again. My crew and I would stack hay from early morning, until late afternoon. I learned to have a lot of patience with stacking hay. After stacking hay, came the exciting job. Out of the many jobs to do, shoveling cow poop was not my favorite. I hated stepping in fresh droppings especially falling on them. From this experience I guess I learned anger control. One of the times of working, was feeding time. I learned that when you feed animals you have to be on-time, fast, and most importantly, equal. Every animal knew when feeding time was, and if I was late, I would not only get scolded by Gramps, but by the animals too. When I was late, the animals would start to let out bellows of noise, and start to get restless in the holders. The cows would fight for all the food, so equal portions would have to be put out, but the pigs were terrible. They would fight each other for all the food and scraps.

Having worked so hard, so many times, I felt I gained respect for all the animals in the barn. From the cows, all the way to the sparrows, well maybe not the sparrows because they pooped all over the place. Anyhow, feeding thirty cows umpteen times a day kind of gave me a sense of respect for them. I realized how hard they worked too, to produce all the milk they did every day. Even the chickens and pigs did their part for us. The pigs may have been mean and stubborn, but they cleaned up scraps. Not to mention the fun of riding on the backs of the pigs like riding on the back of a mean old bull in a big time rodeo.

Nowadays, not too many people get the opportunity to work on farms, or even experience the fun and hardships of working hard every day. Too many young people spend all their time playing video games, or watching television. I feel I gained a better work ethic that will help guide me through life and put me one step ahead of most young people. I thank this work experience for making me a better team player and stronger person. I loved this barn for the traditional rustic look, the hard working attitude I developed, and all the different types of animals. I was miserable when my grandpa retired and sold off the animals, because I loved being a part of a team of men and animals.

The Shot

It was five o’ clock A.M. when I woke up to “Paradise City” by Guns N Roses going off on my cell phone. I walked over to the wood stove in my home, rustled up some hot coils into some aluminum foil, and placed the red-hot, burning foil into my hunting boots. While my boots were warming, I proceeded to get my hunting gear on. Then, being tired still and forgetting about the hot foil in my boots, I slid my right foot in my black, size fourteen boot, and screamed at the top of my lungs because of a hot foot.

After I removed the foil from my boots I made myself a delicious breakfast which consisted of eggs, bacon, toast, and hot tea. After breakfast it was about six O’ Clock and I knew I had to leave my home and get to my friend Tyler’s house before sun rise. I knew I was late because of breakfast, so I sprinted to the gun cabinet and carefully grabbed my Marlin 30-30 lever action, as not to bump the scope and possibly break the lens. I laid the gun in the case and closed and locked it. After grabbing my car key, I dashed out the door, and left for Tyler’s house.

On my way, I kept on having this strange feeling I was forgetting something. Going through a mental checklist in my head, I couldn’t figure out what I was forgetting. I have my gun, knife, deer license, cell phone, wallet, camo. What was it? By the time I got to Ty’s house it was already quarter after six. He met me out by my car.

“Hey, how are you doing man?” questioned Tyler.

“Not too awful.” I said very mono-toned, still thinking about the forgotten item.

“Well, let’s head out to the blind.”

“Let’s get us a deer.”

Tyler and I walked stealthily out to his blind. Now the sun was rising and we could see somewhat into the woods and standing in the tall brown grass was this massive buck. This deer towered over the grass and other deer around him. I couldn’t get a good shot off at him, so Tyler and I continued to the blind. At last, after walking for about twenty minutes, we reached the blind. As we approached the black cubicle, Tyler noticed a herd of deer about thirty yards away. “Hey, get in the blind and get set up because there are about ten to fifteen deer in the bait pile,” whispered Tyler.

“Maybe I can get a good shot right now.” I declared.

“No it’s still too dark to get a good shot.”

After a minute of deliberation, I decided to wait. After we settled into the blind,

Tyler got my video camera out so he could film my kill if I got one. Then, out of the blue I remembered the one thing I knew I was forgetting, the one thing that was vital, and the one thing that I love the most. BASKETBALL! “Tyler I have basketball practice at eight!” I yelled.

In a hushed tone Tyler said, “Dude its seven right now, and be quiet man. You are going to scare the deer away.” This is where I realized I had a huge problem: hunt or basketball practice. I knew I couldn’t be in both places at one time, so I decided to work the system. “Ty you know what I’ll do? I will say that I over slept and miss half of practice, then I’ll leave the blind and go to practice.”

“That might just wor…. What was that?” squeaked Tyler.

“I’m not sure. There, over there coming in from behind the tree.”

“I got the camera rolling. Are you going to take it?”

“I’m not sure; I’ll wait to see what it is.”

This was the moment of my life. I was stoked. I hoped the noise was coming from the big buck we saw early in the field. But it wasn’t. The noise was coming from a doe. With basketball practice getting closer, I didn’t know what to do. Let the doe go, or take it and miss basketball. “Hey what are you going to do?” asked Tyler.

“I’m going to take it.”

“Just let me know when.”

With my heart racing a million miles an hour, I could feel every beat of my heart through my jacket. After checking the deer out a few more times through the scope, I swiftly moved my finger just over the trigger. Taking my final breaths, I looked through the scope, then back at Ty, “Here it goes.” BANG! The sound of a gunshot echoed through the blind. I saw the deer jump in the air, and run off into the woods. “Nice shot.” “You got a clean hit; now let’s wait a minute or two before we go get her.” Tyler said excitedly.

“Man that was intense!” I exclaimed.

“Let’s go get that deer.”

After getting out of the blind, Ty and I followed the blood path for about ten yards, until we found the deer lying on the ground, dead. I dragged the deer off to a covered area so while Tyler and I went and got his six-wheeler, so no predator animal would come and eat the deer. Walking back to the house I called my basketball coach to let him know that I was going to be late, but for a good reason because I got a deer, and he understood. Coach told me not to rush to practice. When we returned back to my deer, I cleaned it, loaded it onto the six-wheeler, and brought it back to Ty’s house.

We placed the doe in the back of his truck and drove the truck to the local butcher shop so I could have my deer processed. I was so enthusiastic because that was the biggest deer I have got yet. I learned a lot of things on this day. Being honest is always the right decision and having just a little patience can lead to great accomplishments, such as getting a deer.

Columbine

After watching this movie I think that this movie made a very good point about gun control. I feel there is an excellent gun control now but different things could be done to prevent another disaster like this one. The only thing that needs to be done about gun control is better safes. This is what I got from this movie that these kids had easy access to guns becuase they weren’t locked up properly. Even gun shops need to keep guns locked up better to prevent stealing. Other than that  I believe that this movie made a good point about how all the violence is shown in tv and games and movies. But this is just part of life and being a hunter i support the NRA.

Websites

I really dont have too many favorite websites but i would have to say my favorite website is espn. com. I am a big sports fanatic so maybe that explains why. So without any further delay here are my top ten favorite websites.

1. Espn.com

2. Addictinggames.com

3. cnn.com

4. yahoo.com

5. google.com

6. cabelas.com

7. walmart.com

8. bassproshop.com

9. facebook.com

10. myspace.com

Hunting

Many people around the area are big hunters. What I can’t stand is when people amke abig deal about killing animals. I have heard a few people talk about how they are against deer hunting. Well they must be the ones who also gripe that when their new car gets totaled, its becuase the deer population is out of control. If these animal rights people would stop griping and letthe government let us hunt with out a limit for a couple year, and ween out the deer population things would be better.

Pet Peeves

I dont have many pet peeves but the one I do have really do upset me. Some of these may sound weird, and I’m not even sure if i have ten or not.

1. clean room

2. Clean vehicle

3. Clean house

4. When my sister misplaces my hunting clothes

Obama!

After last night’s election turnout, I am happy for Barrack Obama. He I beleive is the right man for the job, and he will do just fine as our 44th President. This goes to show that our nation has come along ways since slavery and as of recent thirty years ago. Look at all the southern states that voted for Mr. Obama. This shows that people are getting over the whole black and white picture and seeing everything in a  broader view. Our society isn’t about whos better, or what color you are, or what culture you come from, it’s about being a whole nation, not just an individual. This election has I believe let the world know that America is about believing, and with Barrack winning last night just further shows anybody no matter the race, religion, or gender, anythings possible. The world has reacted very well to this too. Many have regained respect for America after years of frustration with us. This makes me happy becuase this could signal the end of conflicts between many nations and end the war in Iraq, and Afghanistan.

Debate Anyone?

My family and I most of the time really don’t debate over issues, we more agree with each other, until that is at a family reunion. My family and I will usually debate on subjects such as gas and how it still needs to come down, or the war and our different view points on that. Most of the time we debate on our economy and whether it will turn around or will it keep plummeting like it is.

the top ten things i like to debate or talk about are

1. Gas

2. Economy

3. Government

4. Sports

5. Food

6. War

7. Money

8. Hunting

9. Environment

10. School