Karla Akins Extra Credit, 112 90E

Monday Nights, Wabash

Inhumane Battery Hen Cages A half a billion eggs were recalled from two mega-factory farms recently. These were eggs laid by hens crammed into filthy cages called battery cages, with barely enough room to stand or sit. These hens are unable to turn around, spread their wings or extend their limbs. They arent able to do what hens love to do: take dust baths, nest and roost. Hens who live in these conditions suffer respitory diseases, eye irritation from exposure to fecal dust, and foot disorders and pain from standing in wire cages their entire lives. Some hens get trapped in the wire and die of dehydration. California passed a law last month banning all eggs that come from outside the state that fail to comply with with the battery cage ban. California hasnt had an egg recall in over a decade since banning the use of battery cages. There are more humane ways to raise laying hens. Cage Free hens can be kept in closed barns housing tens of thousands of chickens. According to the USDA guidelines, organic hens require some outdoor exposure. Pasture-raised hens are allowed to forage on vegetation and insects. Certified humane, as endorsed by the Humane Society of the United States, doesnt require access to the outdoors, but has standards for air quality and lighting.

Karla Akins Extra Credit, 112 90E

Monday Nights, Wabash

A Mosque in New York City at Ground Zero For families of the victims of the 9/11 attacks, a mosque at ground zero is an insult and affront to the memory of their loved ones. Some argue that the Burlington Coat Factory building isnt ground zero. However, part of the landing gear from one of the planes plummeted through the roof and down several floors, landed in the basement of the building, and rendered it useless. No one was hurt in the building, but it was still touched by the devastation the attack caused. The Muslims do have a constitutional right to build their mosque in this location, but there is the question of whether or not it is prudent. Will a mosque at this location build bridges or breed more animosity and hate? There is also the argument of whether or not this mosque is being built as a symbol of conquest because it is customary to do so in the Islamic faith. Another question is how it is being funded and by whom? Terrorists? Al Queda? That question should be answered for national security purposes.

Karla Akins Extra Credit, 112 90E

Monday Nights, Wabash

Anchor Babies Babies born to illegal alien mothers in the United States are called anchor babies. This is because the 14th amendment gives citizenship to babies born in the United States. This anchor baby then anchors the illegal family in the United States granting them access to governmentfunded services. According to birth records of Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas (the second busiest maternity ward in the United States) in 2007 70% of the women giving birth were illegal aliens. This added up to 34.5 million federal dollars, and 31.3 million Dallas taxpayer dollars spent on 11,200 babies in that year alone. When anchor babies turn 21, they are able to sponsor their family members to enter the United States. There are also the issues of costs for education. The United States is the only country in the world that deals with the issue of so-called anchor babies. There is the argument that the fourteenth amendment, drafted after the Civil War to assure freed slaves citizenship, needs to be clarified so that illegal aliens wont be rewarded for breaking the law.

Karla Akins Extra Credit, 112 90E

Monday Nights, Wabash

Should Police be Allowed to Secretly Place a GPS Device on Your Car Without a Warrant? The ninth district court of appeals ruled recently that it is legal for law enforcement to place a GPS tracking device on a car without a warrant for the purpose of surveillance. Privacy advocates argue that this new ruling is Orwellian and an open door for police to place the device on anyones car without having to justify the reason for doing so. For the 60 million people living in the ninth district, in order to secure a car from being tracked without a warrant, it would need to be in a fenced-in area with a no trespassing sign, or in a locked garage. The irony in this situation is that most people voluntarily carry cell phones which can be used as tracking devices, or have built-in satellite communication in their cars, other ways for the government to track them. However, the argument is that U.S. citizens have a right to know that there is the potential of being tracked. Whether or not it is constitutional to be tracked without ones knowledge or without a warrant from a judge lies at the crux of this issue.

Karla Akins Extra Credit, 112 90E

Monday Nights, Wabash

Bloodsport: Fox and Coyote Penning The practice of penning begins when coyotes and foxes are caught in a leghold trap that can tear flesh, cut tendons and ligaments and break bones. Often the trapped animal chews or twists the limb fighting to get free. Once the animal is removed from the trap, it is packed into a cage with other frightened, injured animals and shipped without food or water. Those that survive the trip are purchased by individuals with so-called wildlife enclosures. In the enclosure, packs of dogs chase the wildlife in trials that last for days, terrorizing and killing the foxes and/or coyotes by cornering them and ripping them apart. Wildlife agencies do not have enough manpower to police this activity. Strict laws are needed to make this bloodposrt illegal in Indiana and other states. Besides being cruel, penned foxes and coyotes that are relocated can spread diseases and parasites. In 1994 a strain of rabies was introduced into Florida from penned coyotes shipped from Texas. Distemper and tapeworm can also infect foxes and coyotes and spread to other mammals.