Blog #17

http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/29/living/campus-sexual-violence-report/index.html?c=us&page=2

This article is about a new report released by the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault that contained data about surveys taken of college students on whether they'd been sexually assaulted on campus. The report stated that one out of five women had been raped or otherwise sexually attacked while at college. The report also gave guidelines for educators and administrators on how to respond when learning that a student had been assaulted. This article also said that the government is in the process of creating a website that provides statistical data about assault for each college and gives support to victims of assault.

This relates to AP Gov. because the government is being proactive about helping to educate people about the truth of sexual violence on college campuses and what to do if assaulted. They're also providing online forms that victims can fill out to take action against their attackers if their school isn't defending them.

I think it's great that our government is creating this website. I think it's horrible how rape and assault victims are treated; I've read many accounts where colleges ignored these victim's claims and let the rapists stay in school with no repercussions. Now that these victims can file online forms on this new website, maybe they'll get justice.

Blog #16

http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/03/us/fort-hood-shooting/index.html?c=mobile-homepage-t&page=1

This articles discusses the shootings committed by an Iraq veteran at Fort Hood that occurred April 2nd, 2014. The shooter, Ivan Lopez, killed three soldiers and wounded sixteen others. Lopez had a history of depression and was in the process of being tested for PTSD, although his doctors didn't believe he would become violent and dangerous to others. Investigators of the crime do not know Lopez's motivation, as he shot himself after being confronted by a military police officer.

This article relates to AP Gov. because it deals with the US's military and gun control. Soldiers are not supposed to possess weapons on the base, yet the shooter shot his victims with his own personal handgun. It makes me wonder how the military enforced that law if Lopez snuck his own weapon onto the base.

I think this is a really sad event. All mass shootings are horrible and wrong, but Fort Hood already went through a shooting five years ago. I can't pretend I have any answers as to how to prevent these shootings, as they seem to be occurring more and more frequently. It makes me mad that people like Lopez can kill and hurt as much as they want and then take their own lives to avoid the consequences of their actions.