Bellevue, PTSD, and Fireworks

      Every body loves the Fourth of July weekend. There are barbeques, concerts, flags, family, friends, and above all fireworks. Every body loves fireworks!  Actually, not every body.  Bellevue, Nebraska is pushing for a 10 P.M. curfew for fireworks on the Fourth of July weekend and a 12 P.M. curfew on the fourth to help veterans with PTSD. Veteran Matt Clark says he loves fireworks accept for when they are at night and are unexpected. When trying to sleep, the loud booms send him back to the fields of Iraq and sometimes send him into flashbacks that can sometimes last up to thirty seconds.  Clark and other veterans believe that a set curfew would help them cope with their PTSD because there would be less unexpected explosions.  Cities like Omaha and La Vista have a set curfew of 11 P.M. but no one really follows it and the cities are pretty lenient. Bellevue veterans are getting lots of support for this set curfew but it's going to be a long road because Nebraskans love their fireworks.

      Setting a curfew for 10 P.M. in Bellevue during the Fourth of July weekend is not going to help.  If this curfew was in fact passed, not many people are going to follow it.  There are always going to be kids running around lighting fireworks late at night.  This would be worse for the veterans because then the fireworks would be more unexpected.  Unexpected fireworks are the main reason for the 10 P.M. curfew but this will only make it worse. Some people with PTSD put on headphones or go into the basement where it is quiet and this might be the best solution.  Lighting off fireworks is something the cops can't stop and the heroes with PTSD have to endure. 

http://www.omaha.com/news/metro/to-help-veterans-with-ptsd-bellevue-considers-p-m-fireworks/article_36f0a816-43fc-5ea4-b819-aae4820a1ba2.html?mode=jqm

     Fireworks over the city of Omaha, Nebraska

It's Clinton NOT Hillary

      Hillary has been all over the news recently ever since she announced that she is going to be running for president in 2016. With all the attention on her, one question has arrose. No not why she wears so many different colors of pant suits but why do we call her by her first name? According to a University of Utah study, Hillary has been called by her first name four times more than Barack Obama during their 2008 election competition. Is it sexist? Since she might be the next president, some think that calling Mrs. Clinton "Hillary" is disrespectful and sexist. There are no male candidates that go by their first name.  There is no "Bob" or no "Steve" running for president.  Calling Clinton by her first name is a stereotype of woman that they have to be "approachable".  All candidates  should receive the same respect by being called by their last names.  After all, we are not buddies with the president. 

      Whether she likes it or not, Hillary will always be Hillary.  The name has stuck.  In my opinion, this first name basis is an advantage to her.  If the citizens are on a more personal level with her, she will capture more votes.  She has distinquished herself from her husband ,President Clinton, in many ways but when it comes down to voting day, people will be voting for Hillary not Clinton. 

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/14/opinions/drexler-dont-call-her-hillary/index.html

Hillary's multiple colors of pant suits

Free Shamu

      In 2013, a man named John Hargrove came out with a book stating that the lives of killer whales held in captivity at Sea World are being destroyed. He talks about how as a kid he used to marvel at them and that one day he himself would be a killer whale trainer. When he achieved this dream of his, he came to soon realize how powerful and deadly these creatures are and how poorly mistreated they were.  He says killer whales aren't meant to be held in captivity and that they shouldn't be treated as circus acts. They are predators that can turn on you at any moment. For example, a whale named Tilikum drowned and tore apart a woman trainor named Dawn. Hargrove said that they had a good relationship but it comes to prove that killer whales are still wild animals. The whales at Sea World have little room to swim and they often get in fights with other whales.  John says the whales should be released back into the ocean in special ocean sanctuaries.
      I agree with Hargrove. Killer whales should not be held in captivity to perform shows. However, it is sad that it took John to realize that these animals are being mistreated by becoming a trainer himself. Whales are meant to be in the ocean, not in a swimming pool. The reason for Tilikum acting out against Dawn was because he is frustrated. The whales know this isn't their natural environment. They want to be free. Sea World should close down and stop breading killer whales just to make a cheap buck.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/03/150329-orca-blackfish-seaworld-dolphins-killer-whales-ngbooktalk/

 John Hargrove performing a stunt

France Allows 14 Year Olds To Drive

Turning sixteen in the U.S. is a big time in your life mainly for one reason; you are now able to drive! Many think in the U.S that sixteen is too young for kids to be starting driving. They don't have enough experience and are always texting and getting into trouble.  Well France has taken things to the next level.  As if France wasn't crazy enough, they are now allowing fourteen year olds to drive.  However they can only drive one "car".  This car is called the Twizy and is considered a quadricylce. It has all the perks of a car including headlights, turn signals, seat belts, air bags, etc.  France believes driving Twizys would be safer than the teens riding bikes and mopeds through the busy streets of France. The quadricycles cost up to 7,000 dollars and can only exceed speeds up to 28mph. In my opinion, this was stupid of France.  Simply stating, fourteen year olds are way to young to be driving. Twizys are cars even though they only go 28mph. In the cities, you're never going to go more than 28mph but you have to deal with the terrible traffic. I don't even think at age 16 I could drive through the streets of France. To be fourteen and driving is too much. They don't have enough experience and could put lives in danger.  I wouldn't feel safe in France knowing hormone crazed fourteen year olds were driving around. Looks like their parents are going to have to drive them to places for a couple more years. :(

http://www.wired.com/2015/03/france-letting-14-year-olds-drive-tiny-electric-car

The Twizy

Me... Myself... and I

   
Peter Doran

       Oh, hey there.  My name is Peter Doran.  I am 16 years old straight out of the state of Nebraska.  I have a family consisting only of the male gender, besides my mother of course.  I have four brothers and we basically all look identical.  I have a Portuguese Water dog named Odin who is beloved by many.  Sadly, Odin has a dandruff problem and it is quite repulsive.  Every once in a while I'll give him a shower using shampoo that is made of oatmeal to nourish his skin.  However, he usually just ends up eating the shampoo.  These are just some of the things and people who make me who I am today.  But in this blog, I am going to talk about the many beautiful places and adventures I have been on that has given me better character and even better stories.

      I live in a family that loves our summer vacations.  The first time I remember going out of the country was when we went to Mexico.  At that time I was very young and don't remember much.  I remember on thing though very well.  One day on the beach me and my brother, John, were playing in the waves crashing against the sand.  John was sitting down with both his hands in the ocean and all of a sudden I heard a huge scream!  I took him out from the water and his whole hand was bleeding and he was searing with pain.  John had been stung be a sting ray the size of a plate just hiding in the sand.  I called for help from others and he was rushed to the hospital because the poison was starting to run up his arm.  He made it out okay and soon enough he was back out playing in the ocean.  Not for me though.  Ever since that day, I have been afraid to swim in the shallows of the ocean.  I still like the deep waters though, those don't scare me.

     I still have many more stories about the vacations we've been on like when my brother almost lost all his fingers while cliff climbing or when I witnessed a horrific suicide in London when a man jumped in front of the train.  I can't get to all those stories now so I would just like to share one more.  The last one I would like to share happened in the city of Jerusalem.

      When my parents first told me we were going to the country of Israel and visiting Jerusalem, I was very scared.  Israel has been and still is a religious battleground and probably always will be.  The major split between Muslims, Jews, and Catholics is very real.  With this tension, the police/government is always on the look out for any trouble arising.  So now you get a taste of what the country of Israel is like.  With that in mind, hear this story.

      So one evening, my parents aloud me and my brothers Thomas and John to go out at night into the old city of Jerusalem along with some other teens that were on the pilgrimage.  We went out into the city and explored all the markets and stores and buildings the city had to offer.  Also at this time of the year, there was an event going on called the "Light Show".  The whole city was decorated with different colors of bright lights and there was huge projectors that would put on the "light shows" on the old walls of the city.  After we got tired of walking around we decided to go back to the hotel and chill out on the roof of the hotel. Great idea right?  Anything but.  We were hanging out on the roof for a while when then all of a sudden, we saw a bright flash light coming towards us.  After a temporary blinding from a LED flashlight, four guards were standing in front of us with pistols, assault rifles and a lot of other military equipment and gadgets.  They asked us what we were doing but we couldn't understand them because they were speaking their native language.  In rough English they said they had the whole hotel surrounded with other military personal.  We were scared out of our minds!  They told us to go back into our room and we did as they said.  About 10 minutes later two guards knocked on our door along with my dad.  Luckily we weren't in trouble with the government.  We could've easily been shot or arrested and held in an Israeli prison.  We didn't escape my father though.  He was as angry as I have ever seen him in my whole life.  More than angry, however, he was scared.  He was scared we could've died or gone to prison.  He couldn't sleep for many nights to come and neither could we.

      That's probably a good place to leave off.  I still have many great stories to tell about my adventures so make sure you come back and read again!

Pistol Pete signing off ;)
   

The old city of Jerusalem with the Dome of the Rock seen in the middle