What Would Make Neil DeGrasse Tyson Get In Your Face?

Neil Degrasse Tyson Science Classroom

Hint: it’s not an open mind or curiosity.

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What’s The Point Of Getting Married?

Marriage

The Article: We need to have a frank discussion about marriage by Tauriq Moosa in The Guardian.

The Text: Marriage, as most know it in western countries, is regarded as the end goal of a relationship between (usually) a man and woman, and it normally has some sort of religious component. Marriage is regarded as “sacred”. Weddings are planned that few really want to attend; pointless dresses are worn never to be seen again; awkward family photos are taken.

Being married supposedly conveys respectability. We regard it as “settling down”, indicative of stability. For some reason we even congratulate people who are already in a relationship for, basically, signing papers (or just changing Facebook statuses) and calling it an engagement. We spend unnecessarily large amounts on engagement and wedding rings. But if you have a male friend who’s also celebrating his bachelor’s party and you want to surprise him, check out Escorts in Parsippany New Jersey.

Yet, with low marriage rates (the US marriage rate is the lowest it’s been in a century) and high divorce rates, more single (by choice) parents (not to mention gay marriage), increasing numbers of people abandoning religious traditions as a whole, and people living happier lives because they only even consider marriage later, we should thoroughly reassess the importance of marriage.

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Morgan Spurlock Spends A Day As A Fruitpicker

Backbreaking work, minimal wages, and likely exposure to hazardous chemicals. Yes, immigrants are stealing our well-sought after jobs.

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The Real Price Of Gas

Real Price Of Gas

Consider this: while we’re likely already at peak oil, if the United States were to suddenly reflect the hidden costs of oil production and consumption (like spending $50 billion a year on patrolling Persian Gulf waters, the Iraq war, and supplying Middle Eastern countries with military assistance), a gallon of gas would be over $5.28. Don’t be grateful. Be alert.

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It Is Immoral To Cage Humans For Smoking Weed

Marijuana

The Article: It Is Immoral to Cage Humans for Smoking Marijuana by Conor Friedersdorf in The Atlantic.

The Text: Under the law in 48 states, here’s what can happen when an adult is thought to possess marijuana: Men with guns can go to his home, kick down his door, force him to lay face down on the floor, restrain him with handcuffs, drive him to a police station, and lock him in a cage. If he is then convicted of possessing marijuana, a judge can order that he be locked in a different cage, perhaps for years.

There are times when locking human beings in cages is morally defensible. If, for example, a person commits murder, rape, or assault, transgressing against the rights of others, then forcibly removing him from society is the most just course of action. In contrast, it is immoral to lock people in cages for possessing or ingesting a plant that is smoked by millions every year with no significant harm done, especially when the vast majority of any harm actually done is borne by the smoker.

That there are racial disparities in who is sent to prison on marijuana charges is an added injustice that deserves attention. But if blacks and whites were sent to prison on marijuana charges in equal proportion, jail for marijuana would still be immoral.

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