Children of the Water

 

The Children of the Water: Starvation amid heavy floods in South Sudan

ABC News’ David Muir travels to South Sudan where humanitarian workers are rushing to provide aid to families on the brink of famine.

Watch Part 2

Sudan Conflict: Diplomats and foreign nationals evacuated

1) Who are the 'Children of the Water?'

2) What challenges do they face?

3) What can we do to help?

Would the Real Terrorist Please Stand Up?

Who is the terrorist?  Suspect A, B, or C?

Yesterday marked 28 years since the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, which remains the largest act of home-grown terrorism in U.S. history. How is that act of political violence remembered now, and how are the shockwaves of extremism still being felt today?

Who is the biggest threat to our national security: threats from home or abroad?

Why do some individuals decide to break with society and embark on a career in terrorism? Do terrorists share common traits or characteristics? Is there a terrorist personality or profile? Can a terrorist profile be developed that could reliably help security personnel to identify potential terrorists, whether they be would-be airplane hijackers, assassins, or suicide bombers? Do some terrorists have a psychotic personality? Psychological factors relating to terrorism are of particular interest to government officials who would like to be able to predict and prevent the emergence of terrorist groups or to thwart the realization of terrorist actions.

The truth is written all over our faces. Take the online Micro Expressions Test described in this story and the basis for the new Fox TV show Lie to Me. Can you read the hidden expressions?

Death and Taxes

Albert Einstein once wrote, "The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax." The product of 95 years worth of additions, subtractions, deductions, and exclusions, it has become such a headache that many are calling for it to be drastically simplified or even removed altogether. With a looming fiscal crisis on the horizon, April 15th seems more like a scene from a B-Horror horror movie than a day to contribute to the common good of the nation. Political favoritism, ineffective social programs, and economic manipulations all reveal the need for tax reform.

What is an income tax and why are they important? What are the history of taxes in the United States? Why is paying taxes so complicated? Are they fair? Can you think of a better system?

What if there were no taxes?

July 4th: A History of Protest

What is the significance of the Fourth of July? What is the history behind the holiday?

This week, two Democratic members of Tennessee’s House of Representatives were reinstated after being expelled by their Republican colleagues for participating in a gun violence protest. In his speech on the House floor, Rep. Justin Pearson referred to the hypocrisy of being expelled the week before for protesting, by a group of people who celebrate historical protest on the Fourth of July.

In this lesson, students will read excerpts from Pearson’s speech and Frederick Douglass’s famous speech, “What To The Slave is the Fourth of July?” in order to compare, contrast and form their own opinions.

Think about the role of protest in U.S. History as well as the multiple symbolic meanings that days such as the 4th of July can hold.

Al Jaffee Folds-It-In

Mad Magazine legend Al Jaffee died yesterday at the age of 102.

Keep copying those Sunday funnies, kids, and one day you may beat Al Jaffee’s record to become the Longest Working Cartoonist in History.

You’ll need to take extra good care of your health, given that the Guinness Book of World Records notified Jaffee, above, of his honorific on his 95th birthday.

Much of his legendary career has been spent at Mad Magazine, where he is best-known as the father of Fold-ins. 

Look at the examples of his Fold-Ins posted below and then create one of your own using the paper given out in class: