CPR Requirement in Schools

The American Heart Association and Red Cross have been pushing schools to require CPR certification for graduation. This should be considered a good thing right? This way, more kids will be prepared in an emergency. While I agree that this is an excellent requirement to have, in some schools, the amount of instruction is increasingly below what is needed in order to retain all of the information and to be fully prepared in an actual emergency.

                At John F. Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids, the CPR requirement was put into effect at the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year. The school has built in days in the regular gym classes for the CPR training and has offered extra classes after school on half days. The classes however, are only twenty minutes long and students that have attended have even reported finishing early. The first thought might be that maybe they are just really good instructors. How hard would it be to teach a simple task like CPR? It is only a few compressions and breaths in a particular ratio varying  on the age of the victim and amount of rescuers performing the rescue. Students would only have to learn to assess the situation before performing a task, checking for head and spinal injuries and a safe environment, then beginning with checking for a victim's response only after putting on their gloves. If there is no response, they would need to check the victim's ABC's; airway, breathing, and circulation. If there is a pulse the rescuers would need to go straight into the respiratory breathing, making sure to tilt the head back and letting the chest rise; if the chest rises continue breathing making sure to check the ABC's every two minutes and if the victim's pulse stops at anytime, they would then need to start compressions. If there was no pulse at the beginning of the evaluation, the rescuer would need to go straight into CPR and perform thirty compressions for every two breaths, sinking the compressions in two inches every time. If the victim is a child or infant, the ratio would switch to fifteen compressions for every two breaths sinking in one and one-half inches in the case of two people performing the rescue (If there is only one person performing the rescue the ratio would stay with the thirty to two ratio but still sink in one and a half inches.) After learning these simple steps the instructor would need to go into a bit more detail and explain the specific situations in the case of choking, strokes, heart attacks, the recovery position that would be used in the case of vomiting, and also explain how and when to use the AED.

                There is no way that someone could retain and understand that information in twenty or less minutes. There is of course a slim possibility that they might remember the steps perfectly, but again that chance is very slim. I am a certified lifeguard and I know from experience how much practice and repetition it takes to be actually prepared for an emergency. I have spent hours reviewing CPR and I still don't know if I would be completely prepared if someone stopped breathing in front of me. As stated earlier, CPR certification is a fantastic addition to the graduation requirement in schools. However, the CPR training should be taught for a longer period of time and should be refreshed throughout the school year. (583)

Television's effect on Presidential Candidacy

               In order to be the President, one must campaign. The way a candidate promotes him or herself and their political ideas is entirely up to them. In the early stages of America, I am sure a common method was mail, posters, speakers, or even their own travels around the United States. They must have worked pretty well because the same advertising techniques, with the possible exception of mail, are used today. When new technologies were introduced like radio, telephone, and television, candidates figured out that their usage of those technologies spread their views and values a lot faster than the traditional methods. However, faster is not always a good thing and has been proved over the past one hundred or so years. The introduction of campaigning on televisions for instance has become a nuisance in the public eye and seems to deduct from the pure politics that should be the main focus of elections.

                In my life, I have experienced my fair share of the media's role in elections. There is not a day that goes by during election season that I won't see at least one advertisement for a candidate on the television, usually degrading other runners. The type of political advertisement for the soon to be presidents have changed from being centered around the candidate's political views, values, and plans to their own images, and appearances. Even the political debates on television, whose sole purpose is to hear the candidates potential future actions, have transformed into something that is based on image and geared more for entertainment and better ratings.

                Ted Koppel, a newscaster on Nightline, wrote a journal on the televised debates. He called them a "joke" and "producing nothing but cotton candy for the mind."The debate consisted of two reporters asking candidates  each a question who were in turn given a minute and thirty seconds to do so. The candidate was then asked a different question altogether giving him a chance to contort one of his opponents responses. I think that the minute and thirty seconds is a direct example of the stations ambitions for better ratings. They are hoping for short, juicy answers that attract more people to the show. While the debate did give the candidates questions over their views, the minute and half response time was spent trying to twist the other opponents' answers around rather than answering the question in a straight-forward fashion. Even if the candidates had answered the questions in a noble and professional way, appearances still play a part in the reaction of the viewers.

                In The Making of the President 1960, Theodore H. White described the reactions of the 1960's presidential debate between John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. "People who listened to the debate on the radio scored it a draw; people who watched it though that, except in the third debate, Kennedy had crushed Nixon. He thought it was because Kennedy's image appeared "crisp" whereas Nixon's light-colored suit, wrong makeup  and bad posture showed a "fuzzed" image. The pure response of the people proves that television has made personal image a big part of the views on presidential candidates because of the radio listeners responses; they concluded the debate to be even. The television viewers saw the appearances of the two men and pronounced Kennedy as the winner.

                I am not the only one with the idea that televised politics are a little bogus. The television ratings for presidential debates from 1960-1966 published in Tracking the Presidential Election Years shows that people are beginning to see that televised presidential debates make no difference. In 1980, the debate between Anderson, Carter, and Reagan, reached a record 45.8 million viewers whereas the Clinton and Dole debate in 1996 was only watched by 30.6 million viewers. The table also shows a steady decrease of the debate's rating. Where the debate in 1960 had a rating of 59.5, the Clinton-Dole debate had only a rating of 31.6.

                While television may be a great campaigning method an idealized world, it has only proved to be the ground for transforming presidential elections into a competition based on self-image, mud-slinging, and better television ratings. 

Presidential Candidates for the 2012 election - continued

And the candidate list continues...

            Rick Perry, born and raised in Paint Creek, Texas, is a sixty-one year old candidate. He grew up with his dad, a tail gunner in World War II, who provided a loving and caring household even through financial insecurities. Perry was the first in his family to attend college and graduated with an animal science degree. Following graduation he joined the United States Air Force and became a pilot of a C-130 tactical aircraft. Five years later he was honorably discharged and returned home where he married his high school sweetheart. After settling down, Perry set his sights on politics and was elected into the House of Representatives and finally Lieutenant Governor of Texas. When George W. Bush resigned as governor, Perry took over the job and has since served three more full terms. If elected President, Perry will focus on stimulating new jobs, cutting the budget, reform the healthcare and social security, and will also focus on the environment and global warming. Information attained from www.rickperry.org/

Charles “Buddy” Elson Roemer III was born and raised outside Shreveport, Louisiana. He graduated high school at 16 and went to attend Harvard University. After graduated to immerged himself into a political career and spent many years in Congress. He became Louisiana’s governor in 1988 and lifted the state out of financial and environmental disgrace. Roemer left office in 1992 and moved to a business career track and banking. If elected president, Buddy will work towards ending the corruption in Washington D.C., balancing the budget, creating jobs for suffering Americans, and strengthening National Defense. Information attained from www.buddyroemer.com/

            Mitt Romney, 64, is from Boston, Massachusetts. His mother used to be an actress and his father went from a paint salesman to the head of American Motors and finally to governor of Michigan. Romney married his wife in 1969; they had known each other since kindergarten. She was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and has recently fought breast cancer. He graduated with a business degree from Brigham University in 1971 and earned duel degrees from Harvard. After graduated, Mitt started his career in business. Mitt Romney was never a career politician and spent most of his life in a private sector, giving him an economical knowledge advantage. He was elected to be Massachusetts governor in 2002 where he restructured the economy and made it more stable. His plan to improve America is to reduce taxes, spending, and government regulation and hopes to increase trade and production. His overall goal is to get America back to work. Information attained from www.mittromney.com/

Presidential Candidates for the 2012 Election

On January 3, 2012, a presidential caucus will be held in community centers, churches, and other meeting centers all around Iowa. There will be both a republican caucus and a democratic caucus although the leading story lies with the republican caucus because the leading democratic candidate and most likely pick of the party is President Barak Obama. In the following blog I will give a brief summary of all of the potential candidates in hope to educate the readers in the views and candidates. The information on the following candidates was acquired from their campaign websites.

Michelle Bachman, who is 55 years old and was the leading candidate in the straw poll but has now moved down in ranks for the upcoming election. She grew up in Minnesota and spent five years as a federal tax litigation attorney. In 2000 she was elected to the Minnesota state senate and in 2006 she became the first republican woman to be elected to Congress. Bachman currently lives in Stillwater Minnesota with her husband of thirty years. The couple has had five children and opened their home to twenty-three foster children. Her family has served as an important base for her political views. Michelle Bachman believes that the government has been over-spending, wants to reform taxes, decrease government size, and adhere to the constitution. Bachman removed herself from the race the day after the Iowa caucus. Information attained from http://www.michelebachmann.com/

Sixty-eight year old Newt Gingrich is from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Gingrich began his career as a soldier and then became a professor of history and environmental studies at West Georgia College and is the author of twenty-three books, thirteen of which are NY Times best sellers. He hosts and produces award-winning documentaries with his wife Callista and is a proud father of two daughters and the grandfather of two grandchildren. His basis in the military caused him to fight for freedom in everything he pursues. If elected president, he hopes to achieve a better health system by promoting research, prevention, and wellness. He also hopes to create jobs and work on cleaner energy. Information attained from  http://www.newt.org/

Jon Huntsman is fifty-one years old and is from Salt Lake City, Utah. At a young age he traveled around the world and became a successful businessman through his experience as an executive in his family’s business. After a mission trip to Taiwan, he became a U.S Ambassador for Singapore and helped to negotiate free trade with African Nations. In 2009 he was asked by President Obama to be the China ambassador. Huntsman is an advocate for market-based health care reform, consumer freedom in the marketplace, and is anti-abortion. Information attained from http://jon2012.com/welcome/home.html

Ron Paul is a seventy-six year old candidate from Surfside, Texas. He grew up in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania and graduated with a medical degree. In the 1960’s, he served as a flight surgeon and in 1969 he and his wife Carol moved to Texas where he started a medical practice in obstetrics and gynecology. Today they are the parents of five children and eighteen grandchildren. Paul was elected into Congress where he has been serving for twenty years. He continually votes for a limited government and promotes a legislative return to the constitution. Information attained from www.ronpaul2012.com/ 

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo - Finished Annotation

Larsson, Stieg. The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo. Canada: Penguin, 2008. Print. (590 pages)

            The last books I read, The Help and Water For Elephants were stories that dealt with life in America from the 1930's to the 1960's. The Girl with a Dragon Tattoo is a change of both the time period and location. Because it takes place in Sweden, and uses Swedish terminology, it was an entirely new and refreshing experience. This book was based around present day which made the words and dialect easy to follow and understand. However, even though the terminology is from modern day language, it is still written by a Swedish author who used a lot of foreign jargon that I was not used to which did actually make the book a bit more challenging to read. One of the interesting things I noticed while reading the book was that some of the words in English were actually spelled differently or used differently than I would normally be accustomed to. Another difficulty I faced while reading the book was my lack of knowledge on Sweden's geography. I often found myself looking up the locations of places mentioned in the book for a better understanding of what was going on. Although some of the language and locations were unfamiliar, I still found the book to be a very interesting and quick read.

           I think that the book started out a little slow but it could have been due to the foreign difficulties I illustrated above. The author does a good job of describing the characters and their experiences in such a way that it didn't take long before I felt a connection with the two main characters. I think that because the author also chose to write the book from the first perspective of both characters, it really added depth and sincerity to the novel.

            I really enjoyed this book. It was a mystery, suspense, and action novel all in one. It takes the normal mystery story and adds new depth to it that I would have never considered doing. The diversity that this book had really sparked my interest and the balance of description and action was phenomenal. I have to admit that there were a few slow sections, but that can be expected of any novel especially with a length comparable to this one's. My overall rating is that this book was fantastic. It had drama, romance, suspense, mystery, and action all tied into 590 pages. I would recommend this to just about everyone because as soon as they get a good amount of the way through the book, I can almost be positive they will have a hard time setting it down.