In 1948 the United Nation created Israel. The purpose was to provide Jews with a safe-haven against religious persecution after World War 2. One problem. Palestine occupied it. So the U.N created two-separate Jewish and Arab states. Did that work? No. In 1967 during the six-day war Israel annexed much of Palestine including the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. The best way to solve this problem is a two-state solution , where both countries retain their land and freedom. This is for the benefit of both countries. Also both of these countries hold claim to the land.

     The two-state solution is beneficial for both countries. Palestine is mired by poverty and has lost hope. Diplomatic talks collapsing between Israel further threatens a two-state solution. According to the Washington Post “Recognition of a Palestinian state would be a huge political boost to Palestinian supporters of two states by providing symbolic achievement of a long-desired national aspiration.” Currently Palestine is not considered a country by the U.S. Meanwhile, Israel has spent billions to protect and annex Palestine’s territory, to cease annexing would decrease Israel’s debt. It would also aid their International image, which has deteriorated over the years.

    Israel and Palestine both have claim to the land.Israel is the homeland of the Jews and Jerusalem is the most holy city for the Jewish people. Depriving the Israelis of their land and capital is unjust and threatens all Jewish people.However, Israel has been conquered and occupied by numerous countries, the most recent one being Palestine. Palestine’s claim may not be the most ancient but it is still strong and should be respected.

    

    Some people are advocating for Israel’s eradication, and Palestine being reinstated as the leader of the state.But since Israel has become a strong and thriving country with a profitable economy, while Palestine is crumbling it would be foolish to give Palestine that power, and to disband a powerful country and ally.

    In conclusion after years of suffering on both sides the two-state solution is the only fair and peaceful resolution to this conflict. I encourage both Israel and Palestine to return to diplomatic talks, and the U.S and its allies to participate in them while giving the two countries the freedom to make their own decisions.

          Michael Jordan VS Lebron James. This has been a talk for a long time now but I think it should come to an end with Michael Jordan on top. There are many reasons, like Micheal Jordan having more points per game and more championships and more MVPs with in my opinion harder competition than Lebron. 

          The 1st reason why I think Jordan is better than Lebron is because he averaged more points per game than Lebron. Some evidence for that reason is that Jordan averaged 30 points to Lebron 27. You can find this stat almost any website you look at.(ESPN, CBS SPORTS) Another supporting detail for my first reason is if you look at the top ten defenders of all time on bleacher Report you will notice that all ten of them played when Jordan was playing and not when Lebron was playing. So therefore Micheal Jordan had to play against better defenders and still scored more points than Lebron.

          My second reason why Jordan is better than a Lebron is because Jordan won more championships. A fact to support that claim is that Jordan has won 6 championships and 6 final MVPs to Lebrons 4 championships and 4 finals MVPs. A second supporting detail is that Lebron James has had better teammates that he played with and still doesn’t have as many championships. Some evidence to go along with that is that Lebron has had 7 hall of fame teammates to Jordan’s 3. 

          Some people might say that Lebron hasn’t played for as long. This is wrong because Lebron is going on his 18th season and Jordan played 15 seasons. 

          Michael Jordan is the best basketball player to ever live and if you started reading this thinking that Lebron was then, have I changed your mind?

Junk food can make you fat, only this point can make you have a certain probability to get more than one disease. In How Junk Food Affects Your Health “Scientists say that obesity and physical inactivity may be the cause of 25 to 30 percent of several types of cancer, including colon, breast, endometrial, kidney, and esophageal.”  cancer most of us know, and it has very less possibility to be fully recovered, so to stay healthy and not gain weight is an important issue. Another thing is that you will get some heart disease “Many junk foods have high levels of saturated fat. The unhealthy fat causes cholesterol, a soft, waxy substance, to build up on artery walls. As the cholesterol collects on the artery walls, it forms a plaque that can clog the arteries. If a blood clot gets stuck near the plaque, it can block blood flow to the heart. When this happens, a heart attack occurs. If the clot blocks blood flow to the brain, the person has a stroke.” The heart is very important, because your heart gives you blood, the kid is young they might don’t feel anything, but when you are older they will have some problems in their heart and they will be very miserable.

In addition it is a disadvantage to do the work, because it is bad for the brain. 

First, It can cause memory and learning problems. In American Journal of Clinical Nutrition a study published in 2011 showed that the people who are healthy just ate junk food for 5 day, and when they were tested on their speed, attention and mood, they performed poorly. This because “This probably stems from the fact that a poor or toxic diet can cause certain chemical reactions that lead to inflammation in the hippocampus area of the brain which is associated with memory and special recognition.Diets that are high in sugar and fat can suppress the activity of a brain peptide called BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) that helps with learning and memory formation. Moreover, the brain contains synapses which are responsible for learning and memory.(5 Harmful Effects of Junk Food)”  imagine a kid is learning, but they eat junk food for several days, and that can make children forget the work and knowledge. Furthermore will increase the risk of dementia. “Just like in the case of Type 2 Diabetes, with higher levels of insulin, the brain stops responding to this hormone and become resistant to it. This can restrict our ability to think, recall or create memories, thus increasing the risk of dementia. (5 Harmful Effects of Junk Food)” this text shows kids are the flower of the world, and this is a huge problem to the children. Parents, don’t you want your children to be healthy and smart?

Some people might say that junk food is fast and cheap, but it compares to your children, which is more important, your children, time or money. I don’t think most choose time and money.  So I say my position is junk food is not good for kids.

Now do you know why I don’t think junk food is good for your kid. Because it will make your kid to have lost memory, increase the risk of dementia, heart disease and cancer. So what you choose, and trust me I will be on the right side.

The death penalty targets certain people. https://deathpenalty.procon.org/  states, “targeting people of color (racist) and people who cannot afford good attorneys (classist).” If the death penalty is able to target people, it would be very unfair. Imagine the death penalty was targeting you, how would you act? Would you act more careful? Why should some people have to be more careful than others? This wrongly gives the government the ability to take a life. 

People can change. According to https://www.cnn.com/2013/07/19/us/death-penalty-fast-facts  22 people have been executed between 1976 and 2005 that were juveniles. If they had put the victims in jail, they could have changed. Many people have a bad childhood. For example, Nick Sutton’s childhood was terrible. His mother left and his father abused him. His father also introduced him to drugs at a young age which led to his drug addiction. This led him to killing 3 people. But by the time of his execution, the families had forgiven him, and one of the prison workers said that he would welcome Nick into his home. The young kids could have been like Nick. If they gave them a chance, they could have changed and became better people. 

Some people might say, but not everyone changes. https://go.gale.com/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=T004&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=SingleTab&hitCount=17440&searchType=BasicSearchForm&currentPosition=18&docId=GALE%7CA652599663&docType=Brief+article%2C+Letter+to+the+editor&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=&prodId=SPJ.SP24&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE%7CA652599663&searchId=R4&userGroupName=mlin_m_wellmid&inPS=truenm  states, Otherwise, we all become complicit in a make-believe world in which the voices of those we kill are silenced forever.” In other words, if we just kill them, we will never get to hear their story. I agree that some people don’t change. But others do and we need to listen to their story. In conclusion, the ability to take a human life, no matter what they did, is wrong. Remember when your parents used to give you a time out so you could think about your actions? If we let people who have done bad things have a time out, they could think about their actions and try to make up for them. 

The first reason there should be a federal law that mandates mask wearing is that too many people are letting their mask slip. In the article, Is the mask slipping the new man spreading? The author James Gorman says “I realized it’s not a Democratic thing. Or a Republican thing. Or an inaugural thing. It’s a male thing. It’s like manspreading, but with masks. Call it manslipping.” In this article James Gorman also says that “Experts continually remind us that to protect ourselves and others against the coronavirus, a mask should cover your face, from the bridge of your nose to under your chin. But too many of us are letting our masks slip.” Now someone might say something like “ since I wore my mask for a while I don’t need to wear it anymore” that is not true, you need to wear your mask when you are in public, or if your around people until the government says otherwise.

 Another reason there should be a federal law that madates mask slipping is because social events have been canceled or changed due to mask-slipping. in the article Coronavirus: What are the rules for face masks or face coverings? It says that social events have been canceled and schools have been changing a lot because people are mask slipping. The Scottish government says all secondary school pupils should wear face coverings in corridors and communal areas, and senior pupils (years S4-S6) and their teachers must wear them in class. In this article it also says that in England and Northern Ireland the police can issue a £200 fine for not following the rules. In Scotland and Wales, a £60 fine can be imposed. Repeat offenders face bigger fines. Now some people might say something like “ why should I be fined for not wearing something I don’t want to wear.” People should respect others trying to stay safe and if they are selfish and don’t respect others than they will spread the virus more and make it worse for themselves.

In conclusion I think there should be a federal law that mandates mask wearing so the virus doesn’t spread more. I want you to ask yourself what can you do to help this happen?

First of all, a study in Princeton and the University of California has shown that people who took longhand notes were better able to answer questions on the lecture than those using a laptop. One of the theories for this is that computers have many more distractions than there are while writing on paper. For example while typing on a computer you are more likely to notice an ad that you will get interested in. There was a study that shows that about 57% of students get some sort of distraction that they fell for such as youtube and facebook.

Secondly, laptops and other electronic devices need many other external factors to operate. You need internet access, a functioning computer and electricity/power to take on an electronic device but for paper all you need is a pen. In addition the more you look at a computer the more chances you will eventually get an eye problem. The Healthline has conducted a study and found that 35% of kids suffer from nearsightedness because of constantly being on their phone or electronic device.

Finally, many of you will think, “but typing is a lot faster than writing by hand.”

I agree, typing in some cases is faster than writing but there are many problems with that. Without auto correct typing would be useless because you would most likely have many spelling mistakes. Spelling mistakes means that you have to go back and correct, spending more time. While in handwriting you go slower and that gives you more time to process what you are writing. If you think that is irrelevant then I will bring up cursive writing. Cursive is also a type of writing and it was originally created to be fancier and faster. It is proven faster because while writing in cursive you are constantly writing a line (one movement) but when typing you are doing many movements that lower your chances at spelling a word correctly. While in school I noticed that nearly no one uses pen and paper on a daily basis, but out of the ones that do only a small percentage actually know how to write in cursive.

    In conclusion, I think that schools should start implementing handwriting (and cursive) back into school. Not only will that boost grades but it helps avoid serious damage to your eye (which can not be replaced). I hope many people can make up their mind and decide what is more important, good grades and no eyesight problems or speed, chances of hurting your eyes and not so good grades.

The first paragraph is connected to the article https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/04/world/europe/uk-britain-gender-children-john-lewis.html?smid=url-share. In this article there is a mom and little girl who go to telco supermarket and realize the girls section is filled with shirts like “beautiful” “hey” and “I feel fabulous” and the boys section has shirts like “think outside the box” “desert Adventure awaits” and “hero” the mom and daughter post a video online about this. The owner John Lewis sees the pro lot and decides to take the labels off like “girls” and “boys”.

The second paragraph is talking about the article https://www.businessinsider.com/best-gender-inclusive-clothing#the-best-streetwear-7  and https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/19/style/gender-neutral-clothing.html. This is a unisex brand called Stuzo, apart from being a unisex clothing brand it’s a Black women owned business and it empowers to live true through their bold clothes. In the link there are many people talking about how they finally feel like they are wearing what feels right for them and not some “costume” that they did not feel good wearing. It is reported that the generation gen z is about 37% of the unisex clothing buying consumers and that this genrating is lambing more the ideas of genders. one important factor is that unisex on both websites I looked on are more expensive “normal clothes” the explanation for this is becasue since both genders are going to be wearing the clothes they need to find a way to make the clothes fit both bodies with is a struggle comapered to clothes for each gender. When they find out the way to do it it’s more expensive to make clothes that fit both genders.

There are many counter Claims one of them is “why don’t they just go to section of clothes they want'' or “ it’s just making it harder for parents to find things.” The first claim “why don’t they just go to the section of clothes they want'' some people as I stated before don’t feel comfortable in either genders clothing, they want something that is in between that you can’t tell if it’s “men’s” or “women’s”. The second claim is “they're just making it harder for the parents” in some cases even if it’s a little harder for the parents to find the clothing for their child then it’s worth it because that way children can see what type they want and not what they are “supposed to wear”.

Everyday there are more and more unisex clothing brands added to websites and shops. I love the idea of people wearing what they want and what they feel comfortable in and not what society has defined them to wear.

Making healthy food affordable is important for many reasons, one being that it will save lives. According to the American Heart Association, lowering the price of fruits and vegetables by 30 percent can save nearly 200,000 lives over 15 years. Obviously, saving lives is important and we should do as much as we can to do that. If making healthier food options more affordable is going to save lives, why not? Your heart's health has a lot to do with the food you eat. At the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology/Lifestyle meeting, they reported that a 10% drop in prices could prevent 515,000 heart-related deaths and 675,000 heart attacks and strokes by 2035. People shouldn’t be suffering because they can’t afford food that is good for them, instead they should be able to get the food they need within their budget. 

For many people it is a struggle to reach the daily recommendations for fruits and vegetables because of their high prices, causing them not to be able to take care of themselves. Taking care of your health is very important and lowering prices of healthier food is going to help you do that. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) studied more than 13,000 high school students across the country and  found that only about 7 percent of the students met the daily recommendations for fruit, and only 2% met the recommendation for vegetables. High School students should be able to take care of themselves and it is not fair to not let them do that by putting prices that they can’t afford. The CDC also says that across the country “just 12.2% of American adults are meeting the standard for fruit, and 9.3% are meeting the standard for vegetables.” Many people in this world have a hard time taking care of their health because they can’t afford to. 

Some people may say that “healthy food options aren’t even that much higher and even if it is, there is a very small difference between healthy food and unhealthy food prices. The Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) states that the healthier diets cost $1.50 more per day than unhealthy diets. $1.50 dollars per day might not sound like a lot but if you pay for that everyday for a year, it is $547.50. Not a lot of people are willing to spend that much money per year just to get healthier food when you could save that money and get unhealthy food. For some people it isn’t even a choice, they just can’t afford it. 

In conclusion, healthy food should be a choice, not a privilege and it isn’t fair to take the opportunity away from people just because they can't afford it. Next time you go to the grocery store, pay attention to what you are purchasing and make sure you aren’t paying for more than it’s worth.