Greetings, and I am glad you found your way to our Blog (or Web log). In class, you worked on articulating a debatable issue and anticipating some opposing arguments. I would like you to create a 3-paragraph response to this post, where you do the same thing:
- Articulate (put into words) the debatable issue you wish to write about. In other words, what is the issue? who is affected? why is it important?
- Anticipate any opposing arguments about your issue. In other words, why would others believe or think differently?
- State your position clearly. Give at least three solid reasons for your thinking the way you do.
Each of these points should be in a separate paragraph.
I would also like for you to respond to ONE of your classmates. Let him or her know what you think.
HELLO MR. BLANCO
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Red light cameras should be a priority as an enforce deterrent against those who run red lights. Implementing this enforcement will reduce the number of accidents that are potentially possible at intersection by drivers who maliciously take the red light. I am all against anyone who goes through a red light, whether minor or major. Respectively, our emergency service vehicles are an exception for they are flashing their sirens for drivers to pull over and make a clear path for such that emergency time. Too many times potential risk to drivers themselves and other potential drivers occur that eventually someone or many others face harm due to people running red light unsupervised by a policing camera. Merely the sense of a police camera is to avoid those who feel the desire to not stop at a red light. We as citizen are affected by drivers who make bad judgments at the cross intersection. It is a horrendous situation for anybody to be in a car accident or die due to a car accident from a driver resisting to stop at a red light. Red light camera in this era would be a great investment for a city to promote safe traffic laws to get the message across every minute “behind the wheels” counts of being responsible for your driving. This message is so important because our country is model with roads that families and individuals drive on as a mean of travel; Going from one point to another point is primarily the purpose. Targeting this problem can assure a safe commute towards any individual who wish to travel on our state roads as a via of getting somewhere should be eyes by respectively agency like the police department to ensure no traffic laws are transgress where it can risk a life.
There are possible many views on traffic cameras like the red light cameras to deter anyone from running a red light. I can assure you, it will and in time to come will prevail as an great tool for cities, communities, and an agency like the police department, for our mechanism of the past are fading along with our future being forward to a technology era. Of those who might say the city is spending too much money on a technology that has no real outcome of justification other than to dig into people pockets for merely not yielding, and cross over the intersection when it is red, only allows for the safety of motorists. This does not include the pedestrians at risk. However, it’s a great cause to put up red light cameras at main intersection routes within a city. Although this new era to exist would likely generate a lot of fines from drivers, it’ll be a mechanism to prevail to the world of safeguarding our roads from senseless driving habits to come for some time.
Red light camera place at intersection as an additional eye on the roads will protect our interest of oneself and love ones from any potential risk of a collision due to red light runners. One reason why policing the road with a camera is to spot unfortunate ones or the malicious ones who clearly put the risk of other drivers in jeopardy when traveling upon an intersection. Say for example, it is Sunday, and you and your family are going to the mall to spend quality time. Along your route to the mall, someone just slams into your vehicle because he or she resisted to fully stop at a red light. By far, there is damage to your car. Also, injuries have to be assess to any one in your vehicle, and not to mention the unjustified vehicle. My proposal to place cameras at certain main intersection could hopefully prevent accidents. Drivers must adjust and follow the law. Secondly, it gives our cities or a city that vibrant of peace within the diversity of cultures around us. Knowing that an extra eye is monitoring our daily commute to work or to school, there is a commitment toward us to keep us out of harms way. Last, but thirdly, is to prepare for the future ahead of us. Being we are gradually expanding with advance technology, we as the citizen of our country make it to be what it is. This goes along with recycling, going green, and exercising, however, changing of how traffic laws are enforce is something to anticipate for as the future will change. For clarification, some time to come, an advance technology can detect a possible red light runner. Responding on this information, something like blinking lights as a warning to stop the driver. Another is possible sending a police officer after this law breaker to summon a ticket. Eventually, commuters will respect the camera lights with the intention of abiding to that city and its code to safeguard a life from potential risk takers at the intersection when the light turns red.
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Robertha Jean Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 2:10 pm
@Devon, I totally agree because it will reduce a lot of accident.
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Devon Reply:
July 30th, 2010 at 7:44 am
@Robertha Jean,
Thanks. Your point on school uniform as a lot of knowledge on the subject.
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Kimberly Capita Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 9:10 pm
@Devon,
You bring up alot of fine points in your paper though I think stating your thesis will give you more of a guide into adding structure to your paper.
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Devon Reply:
July 30th, 2010 at 7:52 am
@Kimberly Capita,
Hey Kimberly, I appreciate your feedback. I enjoyed reading on your points on teens venting… could be a major issue… Articulate and keep on articulating and I think you will have a great paper.
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Should public school students wear uniforms? The costs of today’s designer clothes are far more expensive than uniform clothes. So much, to where the cost of a designer outfit can cost more or equal to the amount of uniforms for two days. Wearing uniforms allow your kids to have more of a variety in clothes to wear elsewhere. It also allows your kids to express themselves on a much bigger scale in public verses public school. Uniforms are far more cost friendly, to whereas you can buy a week and a half worth of uniforms and that will last your kids for while. That gives you the flexibility to buy more when needed instead of buying because you have to. The question is “Should public school students wear uniforms?” I think they should. Public school students should have to wear uniforms.
When I was a kid in public school, the pressure of trying to wear the name brand clothes took over the focus of learning in school. Everyone was more focused on what the next person was wearing. Even teachers themselves paid a lot of attention to what kids were wearing. I really don’t know what today’s schools are like aside from what my kids tell. In the days of when I went to school, kids were getting beat up for designer clothes because their parents couldn’t afford those kinds of clothes. Being picked on because you’re not wearing the right clothes takes the drive, the attention and experience from school. Clothing also affects a kid’s social skill because now you don’t fit in with the rest of the kids. Clothes in those days either said that you were a cool kid or nobody.
On the flipside, I also do think that kids who have a hard time expressing themselves use their clothes as a way of expression. I guess in a sense that clothes are some sort of an art form, like music. To some parents, they would like their kids to wear what they want to wear because they can afford those kinds of clothes. From a parent’s point of view, my kid’s, wearing the clothes they want to wear are like an extension of me or a representation of their parents. I somewhat live through my son and my son loves to dress like his dad, so I guess I can understand the want of wearing the clothes you like verses uniforms.
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Jairo Gutierrez Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 10:12 pm
@GREG BORNO, I concur
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Should public school students wear uniform? According to this topic mysself and other parents we love the ease of shopping for school uniforms, school dress codes promote school safety and a positive learning environment. the benefits of school uniforms: the students stay more disciplined and focused in their studies and feel lees peer pressure. the students don’t look around at each other, they don’t see the name brands and clothing that often get them in trouble if their parents can not purchase the clothes, there are some students that get to steal so they can be up to date with the latest style. The school uniforms policy is very effective and places a very valuable role on the academic setting because the kids are more focused on their books over their clothes.
I get a lot of positive feedback on school uniform from other parents, especially when budgets are tights and no jobs. school uniforms also decrease the violence and theft, preventing gang members from wearing gang clothing at school, helping students concentrate more on classes. high price clothing often put students at risk of theft and violence from other students.Clothing that indicates affiliation with gang is also a problem and can cause intimidation and fear in school. supporting school uniforms as a way to reducing security threats and improving safety.
school uniforms help the student to have better self-esteem because without the name brand clothing, the students are placed on an equal level. Poorer parents does not have to feel that their kids are being tease at school or as inferior because they don’t have nice clothing. School uniforms create a unity between the students.
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stanley Jean Philippe Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
@Robertha Jean, i agree although i was anti at first but i see good points like less costs for parents and better self esteem, and i realize school is a learning ground not a fashion show.
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victoria fitzpatrick Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 8:29 pm
@Robertha Jean, im 100% with students wearing uniforms, but im also aganist it a little because their are so high school students wearing uniforms and i dont think as a high school student you would wanna be caught die wearing uniform.
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Jose M. Blanco Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 9:36 pm
@Robertha Jean,
Roberta, you make some very good points.
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Does the American Dream still exist?
The American dream… What comes into your mind when you hear those 3 iconic words I know what springs into mine, I see a beautiful struggle, why Beautiful? Its simple a lot of good character traits arise out of hardworking people striving for a better life. Courage is one for example, so is respect for knowledge, education and devotion. So where I am steering you into is basically the idea that I still believe whole heartedly in the American dream. This is the right of all citizens to larger lives, and the idea that if you work hard and smart you can make it in this great nation. Thousands of people still flock to America’s in search of the American dream. It has been branded in their minds since discovering America’s beauty and lore. It is important that this dream remains relevant and thriving, because this is what America was built on. We are all a part of the American Dream all one has to do is to look into our past and you will see that this dream has affected us then and now. Look into our bloodlines and you will see stars and stripes beckoning to persecuted people, captured people, newly freed people and forgotten people.
I know that others would rather buy into the European dream due to changes economically all throughout Europe. They believe that the American dream has faded into the horizon never to be spoken of again. They argue that Europe brings a more solid sense of unity and a more relaxed way of living. Jeremy Rifkin the author of the book The European Dream argues that the European Union will one day be a true economic, cultural and political rival of the United States of America. He also states that in addition to the E U having more people it has the potential of becoming an economic super power, they are proving that slowly with a good amount of very exceptional banks and companies. I admit that Europe is great with international relations and that’s one of the many reasons others will push for the European Dream. They will also contend that Europe has higher literacy rates than the U.S. . . . And also others will preach strongly that Europe is more tolerant of change and welcomes adversity.
But now here are my three main points for why I strongly believe that the American dream still exists. America was built on the American dream; researchers say that the idea of the American dream is rooted in the second sentence of the Declaration of Independence which states that all men are created equal. In the past immigrants flocked to America in search of a better prosperous life, the opportunity for one’s children to grow up and receive an American education, and good career opportunities. We as Americans go through the everyday struggle to succeed, from working hard in college to land in the right career path, to starting from a bagger in a grocery store to eventually becoming the manager of that very store. America was built on this dream from in the past when America was still young and people from the big cities in the east moved out west to find their own piece of land. America was built on immigration which is due to the American dream among other reasons such as the freedom to express their selves and practice any religion they please.
You can be a Farah Gray, Master P, Bill gates, Russell Simmons; these individuals are good examples of the American dream.
But that’s not all that the dream is, the dream also meant that man and woman could be able to reach their highest peak that they can reach.
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Devon Reply:
July 30th, 2010 at 7:58 am
@stanley Jean Philippe,
Great attitude. Go straight to the point.
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spending more money on prison cells than classroom
50 states spend more than $49 billion on corrections in 2007. the increasing rate of prison cost is times greater than higher education cost/spending. reports say 2,319,258 adults were held in u.s. prisons at the start of 2008. kansas and texas has a slow growth of immates, they feel community supervision for low risk offender is a way to lower the immate population.the two states also ensure that there is enough beds for violent offenders, while still helping less serious offenders. immate population has increased in 36 state and federal prison. the largest percentagewas in kentucy, which was 12%. their crime rate want up 3%in the last 30 years but immate population want up by 600%.
In nov. of 2008 students at the University of Cailfornia protested that tuition increase by 32%. The state higher educationsystem has experienced years of reductions in state and tuition hikes. Budget cutters took more than $1 billion out of the state corrections progran if you reseach spending in cailfornia over the last 30 years. You’ll see that its a tag of war between education & prison spending. The corrections funding has gone up and state colleges has tumbled. “the state is saying we have a better future in prisoners than unversities”. Unversity of Cailfornia president Mark Yudof. california legislature passed a consitutional amendment that require state spending more on college classrooms than prison cells.
as a college student and taxpayer i am against spending more money on prison than education because paying for an immate on death row and house arrest isnt fundamental as an college education. why should immates be reward for their crimes, television, phone calls, is it really necessary. as a prisoner you shouldnt be able to have these thing because you being punish for your up ruded beavior.as a college student we should not have to suffer because a prison has an immate waiting to appeal death row, or an repeated offender retuning back to prison. i rather pay for a teacher than more prison cells and immate play time.
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Greg Borno Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 10:23 pm
@victoria fitzpatrick,
Very good points! Way to many stats for me to remember. But your right, that’s why the people that commit these crimes don’t mind going to jail.
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Devon Reply:
August 10th, 2010 at 12:51 pm
@victoria fitzpatrick,
I like your argument, Victory,we as students need to know in the future that we can rely on teachers to guide others of education. I myself look forward to teach other potential individual of knowledge in an environment of schooling, and I will be disappointed to acknowlegde on how the prison system operates in their funding to house violent offenders. Your topic is very important, and I think your paper will be excellent. Remember, to capitalize and watch your spelling…want/went…
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Is sensoring what our children watch on television decreasing or increasing domestic violence among teens?
Every time we turn on our television sets to watch news we see offenders in handcuffs become younger and younger. Although this cannot be blamed on parental control alone. Teens today have been proven to take out their aggressions towards another person or group more violently rather then verbally. Through my research, I believe this is due to the lack of family bonding, most teens don’t know how to vent their feelings and the diversion programs established by most public schools does not reach most teens.
Most busy parents who worry about what there children are watching on television turn to parental control as a device to solve all their problems. Parental control may solve the obvious problem and so parents are able to work with out worrying what their child is watching on T.V. However parental control does not make up for a parent being to busy for their child and being unable to bond with their child. Thus this problem may make it harder for a teen to learn to communicate their feelings in school.
Venting is one form of communicating that can be good or bad for a teen. When there is no room for a teen to vent. In a social environment, their feelings about being bullied or not making the football team can be negative. This can lead a teen to regress in their environment and imitate school shooting such as the Columbine high school shooting of 1998.
All is not lost. Public schools have come up with diversion programs to keep delinquents off the streets. The only problem is it doesn’t reach the teens that are the ones being bullied. It doesn’t reach the teens that didn’t make the football or soccer team. So a teen that’s been bullied and rejected by society has no where to turn to in order to vent, but to go home and go through the whole routine again.
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There are those that oppose to the thought of children garnering more income for things that they are most likely never to use ever in their lives than insuring that human living conditions in prisons remain humane. These normal citizens would rather pay for a teacher that would not want to teach those kids than an inmate who would most likely want to get out.The funding for a state should focus more on prisoners having a better living environment.
Prisoners have the right to live in an environment that is clean and serene. The inmates that are in most prisons now live in damp clustered rooms that push a group of men or women into small cots. They should be able to have a single room for themselves where they are allowed some sort of privacy. There are prisons in Sweden that have comfortable living conditions for their inmates, they have a comfortable bed and a tele to watch. If the swedish can have a humanitarian way of housing their inmates why can’t we? Instead of caging them all up and limiting their free time as if they where zoo animals, not even then, zoo animals have more freedom than they do. We should change their living conditions.
Giving inmates a better living place is a great idea, but i can understand where the other side comes from. Giving more money to teacher may give them an incentive to teach kids more, or to teach them better than they have already. The extra money could also go into bettering the schools, so that the children do not have a dirty place to go to. This extra money can also help the children with better food, to increase their nutritional intake. With more money there is also the possibility that their students will have a higher grade due to better study methods, they will also have better tools and textbooks. their sports team and recreational classes will also have the material they need.
BUT that is not a very likely scenario, the students would only benefit from it for such a short period of time. Of course I am stating that we should have better living conditions and more money to help those in prison for a much lesser offense than those in high security prison. those people in prison for petty offenses, where they do not really need to be locked up with the great stains of society. More money should be spend to help those poor souls that have no alternative than to be locked up in a small cell.
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Devon Reply:
August 5th, 2010 at 4:36 pm
@Jairo Gutierrez,
Another point is to release those prisoners less violent. Your points are great. In your essay, I hope you can have coherent on all your thoughts.
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it was very interesting to read grammar-worksheets.com
I want to quote your post in my blog. It can?
And you et an account on Twitter?
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Yes, of course. Please email me the details and the nature of you site. Thank you. Jose
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Some time or another we made judgmental perception of something. For this purpose, solely on an individual will be the focus of content throughout my paper. People are mature speakers that their skills draw you to make an assumption of curiosity. Their point may or may not motivate you, but their presence welcomes a comfort to make an interpretation. My stereotype is not of anything bad like name calling. It mostly deals with me associating with that person of actually thinking knowing the individual. That person character is never given a chance to prevail because my gross intellect refuses to accept anything to be true. For this reason, today I want to change how I conduct my free thought of expression upon a person. Furthermore, build a relationship with such a person or have cross messages with each other known as feedbacks. Interpretation of people conform by wisdom burdens me to mature, to guess, and to collect.
Of anything before, this issue throughout my ordeal of anticipating a college degree has been an area I would love to practice at being better. Has time progresses, I notice my individual cognitive towards others. My stubborn attitude leaves no space for others to attach with me. Let alone, the presence of each other made things slim at achieving. Things like simple conversation, opposing views, everyday progression, and etc…through the fault of dedicating my stereotype. Those examples were never of a decision by me unless the speaker acknowledges anything of its interest to gain more information to fulfill at an intelligent point of view. Something like, a one on one conversation. On my part, I could care less, for my mind had already made up its mind to stick around the person at little means. During professional presentation, I make a stereotype of the individual. When I am at a restaurant, I stereotype the waitress or waiter. This belief may get by the person, but what about the future? Can I succeed in the real world without bonding? Never get to recognize whom or who that individual really was? A smile here and there is good; however, eradicating simple nonsense of interpreting knowledge which is not accurate is something I need to work on better.
Those of you may argue that I am selfish, ignorant, spoil, immature, foolish, and etc… towards my approach of a person. Why selfish? I give no body the time of day to exploit their good ways, and if so, not enough to know the person. Why ignorant? It is my nature of never changing until shown differently. Why spoil? My favorite is to say, how I was raised. Others could mention on that. Why immature? Not enough of my peers to be around with. Why foolish? Others may think I am great. Even you, as the reader may compliment me. Or view me as uninteresting. Moreover, arguments could be for me to enclose on attaching around people to get familiar with their emotions, feelings, opposing views, and the likes of the person’s character as an overall start. A stereotype may or may not be a misguided belief of someone. We all form an opinion some point or another. Hopefully, I get you to support my stereotype as I want to change the way I go about it, especially during a setting point of presence. Being more collateral towards a person and understandable towards the person is my goal.
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“Beauty or inner beauty” Do you agree that “no matter what your parents, teachers, and clergy” tell you, “inner beauty’ is a big laugh in this culture”? If it is, why is it a big laugh? The magazines of today tell us that beauty is everything & speaking it over rated. It’s all about how you look, what you wear, what you drive, and how others view you. No one looks at a person and say “wow, I wonder if he or she is intelligent”. It just doesn’t happen, because in today’s society we as people are told to be a certain way, to look and to act a certain way. The mainstream magazine shows us pictures on what’s in and out of style. These are pictures of hopes, and dreams that most women and men will never reach. So for the people that will never obtain these goals, what happens to them?
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Devon Reply:
August 10th, 2010 at 1:06 pm
@Greg Borno,
You couldn’t ask your question any better, Greg. Our modern time is not only a reflection of what is to appear in the future, but on generation of generation of creative styles worn by famous or establish human beings that grows. Unfortuanetly, not all people could really look so attractive and appealing if they wanted to. Why? There are many reasons. People have beliefs where it contradicts with their religion to express such looks we see in magazines. Alot of jobs see to it that individuals do not carry their self unprofessional. Money is another issue. However, the point is if other people want to copy, repeat, get to styling or grooming their image, Kmart and all sort of retail franchise of like Kmart can make it possible to have the very elegant features these magazines depict of human bodies. Maybe certain days of the week people can depict an image of someone to look like or depict an image to express to the world.
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His and her chivalry.
When people hear the term chivalry they may think opening the door for a lady, or a man confident about himself and the world around him. Chivalry is dead that is what most people say. So is it safe to say that men or young men are no longer confident about themselves or the world around them. It is not safe to say this because in today’s generation a woman does not need a man to open a door for her. Just as the young man who is afraid to open the door for a lady because he’s afraid his friends will demean or question his masculinity, a woman can get her own door. Not assuming that she dislikes having the door held open for her by the opposite. Today there has been many false perceptions, including interpretations in assuming what is chivalry, what isn’t and is it really needed in today’s society.
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Devon Reply:
August 10th, 2010 at 1:23 pm
@Kimberly Capita,
I think your term of being a gentleman is necessary. For one, parenthood on raising a child, a boy, can influence on his social behavior. I surely would like to know my son held a door for a girl, lady, or woman because he felt it was right; being a gentleman. If an individual does not coexist with say on chivalry he or she would not expect to hold a door for someone. There is neither a right or a wrong. It is common for a woman not to want a man to hold her door open. These time, a woman is more independent than every before. Her position shows power. You may see someone like Sarah Pallin with guards hold a door open for her presence, but does she want these men holding a door for her. Being a gentleman reflects on years of ego created by I guess the era of knights. In addition, if someone holds a door for you in the future, look at it as a perspective of being a gentleman.
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Kimberly Capita Reply:
August 13th, 2010 at 12:51 am
@Devon, you should read my paper.
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Who are you? This is one simple but complex question that has been perplexing mankind for ages since the removal of Adam and Eve from Eden. Culture, language, and tradition are just three things that make up one’s identity, not to mention gender. See my parents are from the beautiful republic of Haiti, Hailing from modest hard working families. Haiti’s ideology contains some of the same traits as America’s; Haiti fought for and won its independence but of course as history shows us America went farther and put itself amongst the elite countries. But they still share the same rebellious attitude that sparked their inception in the first place. This is what many Haitian refugees admired when seeing America through TV and newspapers.
As I have grown up both cultures have served as my reality, to me they are intertwined but I would have to say I did experience a change in identity. I was born on U.S. soil so I am regarded as a Haitian American in the documents and the eyes of the government. Being that I was born here it was hard to stick to one culture when both appealed to me strongly. Haiti intrigued me from the first time I heard its name spoken proudly from my family’s tongue. Everyone’s soul seemed to have renewed fire once their minds ventured sweetly back to their beloved Ayiti.
Their eyes would mist like a beautiful sun shower rain reminiscing about childhood games and journeys through taken the wild untamed woods. I consider myself lucky to have been to Haiti and experience firsthand their beloved homeland’s secrets, cuisine, storytelling, and tradition. So I have adopted both Haiti and America’s ways which have been proven useful.
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Devon Reply:
August 10th, 2010 at 1:31 pm
@Stanley,
Your point of view is creative. I am glad you can share a culture you recognize. Maybe you could run for the presidency here in the U.S. One close aid to the Obama’s administration has Haitian’s roots. May want to research to get name and his title. Believe in your roots and be aware of your country and second country has we love to travel for vacation or settling.
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