Should Junk Food be banned in school cafeterias?
Today is about learning about America, the land of the free and obese. Based on the articles written by Steven Witherly, food scientist, medicaldaily.com, and Norton Center Infographic, every American school board is discussing if junk food should be banned from school. Many wonder whether or not to ban junk food at school. School cafeterias should ban junk food because it creates addictions, many can be affected by low-income communities, and it causes obesity.
Junk food should be banned in school cafeterias because of addiction. “Bland ingredients are purposely made into junk food so that you crave more or you add enough salt or sugar until your mouth explodes with flavor,” says Michael Moss, author of Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us. Once sugar or salt touches one's tongue, favored is the burst of flavor from the plentiful amount of salt or sugar, so this is what keeps wanted to be tasted, but there is no more room to consume anymore. Not only that, but Steve Witherly, a food scientist, says that children who get addicted to junk food, will most likely be addicted to crack or other drugs as an adult.
    Furthermore, junk food should be prohibited in school lunches. The issue with school lunch is that it may be a not so healthy meal in which case could be the only meal a student gets a day. Access to a healthy meal is not so easy. Therefore, junk food should not be given as part of a school lunch because of the low-income communities. Based on Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” campaign page, over 31 million children eat school lunches. If a school is dependable for offering a meal to a child who doesn’t eat outside of school, the meal should be provided with healthy foods. Fast food is not always healthy but is easily accessible. Unlike junk food, healthy food is expensive and hardly accessible. Due to this cause, families with low incomes have a smaller possibility of having the chance to eat healthier. However, with junk food out of the way, the school board will have more room for more nutritious meals to give to the students.
    Finally, obesity is a huge effect of junk food. Junk food starts in school cafeterias, where many students eat. Because of junk food in school cafeterias, most of these students then become overweight or end up obese, which lead to health issues and sometimes even death. According to the Norton Center Infographic, there are many health issues based on school cafeteria junk food. The infographic includes how “25,000 children in the United States are overweight or obese,” (Norton Center). “Since 1970, childhood obesity rates have increased by 500%.” Many children in the United States become obese, this is not new news. In 1970, obesity was made up of a small percent of people, but due to an increased amount of junk food, rates moved up as well. Additionally, The New York Times Upfront, the newsmagazine for teens, states, “America is facing a crisis because of our eating habits. Sixty million adults (roughly 70 percent) are obese.” America’s eating habits have dangerously increased with about 300,000 deaths included because of obesity. This problem starts at an early age. Nevertheless, junk food should be banned in school cafeterias.
To sum up, junk food is one cause of people being in an unhealthy situation. Junk food can create not only physical problems like obesity, but it can cause mental problems like addiction, or be affection by low-income communities. Junk food can create differences between a healthy and unhealthy person by affecting their physical differences and creating new health issues.

Is Google negatively affecting our intelligence?
    What would life be like if we never had internet access? In today's society, with internet access and google all we have to do is just click a button and we’ll find it. Is google negatively affecting our intelligence? Google is negatively affecting our intelligence because we get distracted, we remember less, and we learn less.
    Firstly, we get distracted easily. In source A titled, “Is google making us stupid?” it states, “The faster we zip across the Web, clicking links and skimming words and pictures, the more ads Google is able to show us and the more money it makes.” When we are googling something, ads and notifications pop up all the time. When they get our attention we get interested into the notification or ad and end up online shopping or on social media instead of doing what we are suppose to be doing. For example, your googling something for school on your phone but then you get a notification from instagram. It gets your attention and you end up scrolling through instagram instead of researching what you needed for school. In source A it also states, “When we use our computers and our cellphones all the time, were always distracted.” Our devices in general are not only used to google information. We can use our devices to go on social media and play games so when you go on your device to google something you end up getting distracted doing something else your not suppose to be doing.
    Secondly, we remember less. In source C it states, “With engines available all the time, we often don't encode the information internally, because when we need it, we will look it up in the internet.” Our first instinct when we need to search something up is the internet. Now with internet access we don't take the time to research something because it's very easy research. In source C, it also states, “when information is saved externally, we usually don't memorize it, but rather remember the places where we can find it.” Since its very easy to search something up on google we pay more attention to where we found the information than the actual information. We are more likely to remember where we got the information than the actual information.
    Lastly, we learn less. In source C it states, “ with the internet access, everything is just a click away. When we don't know something, we are primed to turn to the computer to rectify the situation.” With internet access, researching something is very easy because you just need to click buttons and then you find it. We learn less because we don't take the time to learn more about something because since it's easier to research something with internet it's faster. In source C, it also states, “without internet access, if we wanted to know about something, we had limited source options to research it, like the available books in the nearby library.” We learn less because when there wasn't internet access, people would take the time to research something, like searching for books then reading the book to learn more about it. Now with internet access its just a click of a button.
    In Conclusion, google makes us stupid because we get distracted easily, we remember less, and we learn less.

The Crucible
“The Crucible” is a play written by Arthur Miller in 1952, reflecting on the Salem witch trials that took place in Massachusetts in 1692. In the play,”The Crucible” Arthur Miller demonstrates how one’s name plays an important role in one’s life, as it is tied to one’s identity through wealth, reputation, and one’s beliefs.                                     Firstly, wealth is tied to one’s identity in the play because some want to gain more, characters in the play are jealous of others and want their things like their money. For Example, in the play Giles Corey was speaking to Judge Danforth and exclaims, “The Proof is there! If Jacob hangs for a witch he forfeit up his property--That’s the law! And there is none but Putnam with the coin to buy so great a piece. This man is killing his neighbors for their land!” Giles Corey is explaining to Danforth that he has proof that Thomas Putnam is using his daughter to accuse others of wizardry so that they can be sentenced to jail, hung, and they would have to give up all their land. He just wants to ruin others names and claim their land for his own.
Secondly, characters reputations are very crucial in this play, if one's name is exposed their reputation can easily be ruined. Either one wants to ruin another's reputation or one wants to save their reputation. For example, in the play John Proctor confessed to Judge Danforth that he was having an affair, Danforth then was forcing him to sign a testimony to being a wizard. John signed the testimony but then realized something, he did not let Danforth take the paper. Danforth proceeds to ask why. John Proctor exclaims,” Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on my feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given my soul leave me my name!” He was going to sign the testimony and falsely confess to being a wizard which would let him live. But he realized that everyone would associate him to being a wizard and noticed that his reputation and his name was more significant than living. Another example of why characters reputations are very important in this play, Abigail is in love with John Proctor, Elizabeth Proctor’s husband, she would do anything to be with John. She eventually accused Elizabeth for being with the devil and said this to Reverend Hale, “ Why, I am sure it is, sir. There be no blush about my name. My name is good in the village! I will not have it said my name is soiled! Good Proctor is a gossiping liar!” Abigail does this because she wants to ruin Elizabeth’s reputation so she can be with John Proctor.
Lastly, one’s name is very important in this play especially through one’s beliefs. One can be affected by what others think of them. For example, in act 3 John Proctor admitted to Judge Danforth that he was having an affair, so Danforth called out John's wife Elizabeth Proctor and asked her if John was having an affair. Elizabeth did not know what to answer because she did not know if she should tell the truth or lie. She was trying to make eye contact with John but Danforth did not let her, she eventually said, “ My Husband-- is a goodly man, sir.” Danforth proceeded to ask her, ”so he did not turn from you”, Elizabeth replied, “no, sir.” After this they arrested John Proctor because Elizabeth lied about John not having affair and so they thought that John was the one lying. Elizabeth Proctor did not know John confessed to having an affair, she lied to Danforth because she believed that John did not confess and that she would be helping him.
One last reason why one’s beliefs can affect one’s name, in act 3 Judge Danforth asked John Proctor, “Courage, man, courage--let her witness your good example that she may come to god herself. Now hear it, Goody Nurse! Say on, Mr. Proctor. Did you bind yourself to the Devil's service?” John Proctor replied, “I did.” Danforth then asked Rebecca Nurse, “I say, will you confess yourself, Goody Nurse?” Rebecca answered, “ Why, it is a lie, it is a lie; how may I damn myself? I cannot, I cannot.” Danforth was asking John Proctor about seeing the devil and binding himself to the devil's service and John Proctor agreed to that happening. He then asked Rebecca Nurse if she saw the devil and binded herself to the devil's service but denied and believed that she would rather be executed then confessing to something that she did not do. ​

NFL Players Taking a Knee
On August 26, 2016, 49ers’ quarterback Colin Kaepernick, refused to stand up during “The Star-Spangled Banner” to silently protest racial injustice and police brutality in the U.S. Colin refusing to strand left many people shocked and offended finding what he did disrespectful for our flag, country, and troops. It is not disrespectful for NFL players to take a knee during the national anthem as a sign of silent protest because people took it the wrong way and they have the right to.
Firstly, it is not disrespectful because because people took it the took it the wrong way. In Document A it states, “There’s a lot of racial and social injustice in the world that are going on right now. We just decided to take a knee and pray for the people who have been affected and just pray for the world in general….we were not trying to disrespects the flag or be a distraction to the team, but as men we thought we had the right to stand up for what we believed in, and we demonstrated that.” When the NFL players did not stand up many people saw it as they were disrespecting our flag, country, and military troops but they took it the wrong way. In Document A, a person against the NFL players stated, “Pray before or pray after. Taking knee during the national anthem these days screams disrespect for our flag, our country, and our troops. My son and the entire armed forces deserve better than that.” This person out of many, took the NFL players kneeling the wrong way. The NFL players were praying and kneeling during the national anthem because they believe that there are things in the country that oppresses black people or people of color. People took it the wrong way and thought they have no respect for troops but they do.
    Lastly, it is not disrespectful because they have the right to. In Document A it states, “A letter signed by 35 U.S Veterans stated that ‘Far from disrespecting troops, there is no finer form of appreciation for our sacrifice than our Americans to enthusiastically exercise their freedom of speech.’” After many people were saying that the NFL were disrespecting our troops, a letter signed by Veterans stated that they did not find what they did disrespectful and thought that its good that they used their voices. In Document A, it also stated, “Not standing for the nation anthem is a legal form of peaceful protest, which is a First Amendment right. President Obama said Kaepernick was ‘exercising his constitutional right to make a statement. I think there’s a long history of sports figures doing so.’” The NFL players have the right to express what they believe because it says so in the First Amendment. They have the right to let their voices to be heard and show what they believe in.
    In Conclusion, it is not disrespectful for NFL players to take a knee during the national anthem as a sign of silent protest because people took it the wrong way and they have the right to.

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