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Misuse of "post yourself" web sites causes concern
u J ackie S teeh ________
Staff Reporter
"Post yourself" web
sites allow people to post
photos of themselves and
others, write about their
personal lives, and write
about how they are feeling.
Unfortunately, they can
also put users at risk, cause
embarrassment, be misused,
and can have long term
effects.
When creating a
Facebook or MySpace, the
user is given the choice to
stay private or go public
with information such as
birth date and hometown.
Even though there are many
opportunities to make an
individual page private,
there are still many ways for
the public to find out what
people are posting or what
messages have been sent.
Although there many
other "post yourself"
web sites, Facebook
and MySpace are the
most popular. Both of
these web sites provide
wonderful ways to connect
with distant relatives or
communicate with friends.
But here is the problem:
Facebook and MySpace
open up the opportunity
for people to rant about
people, post inappropriate
pictures of themselves and
o th ers, and publish other
wisely. Putting every bit of
personal information online
is not very smart. Sexual
post pictures on the page.
Most of the time users
share photos of vacations,
illegal substances. Not only
is this inappropriate, but
it can cause problems if
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in form ation th at can cau se
future problems.
"Post yourself" web sites
are a good way to connect
with people. I think that
anyone should be able
to use them. But these
web sites must be used
predators and identity
thieves are always online
looking for easy targets.
All "post yourself'
web sites allow people to
friends or activities. This is
commonly abused by teens
and adults. People will post
risque images, or photos of
themselves and others using
adults or authorities see it.
Inappropriate pictures can
have a negative impact now
and in the future.
When signing up for
McCain supporters, it's not the end of the world
a M ax H ays _________ _ _ _ _ _
Staff Reporter
For all you die-hard John
McCain supporters who
are planning to move to
Canada now that Barack
Obama is our president
elect, this is not the first sign
of the apocalypse. Some
people seem to be under the
impression that Obama is
now dictator of the United
States. Well, he is not. If you
don't know already, America
is a democratic nation with a
checks and balances system
so no one person or group
has too much power.
One misconception is
that the president can veto
any law that comes across
his desk. Yes, he can veto
any law, but just because
he invokes this power
does not mean that the law
won’t be put into effect. If
Congress believes that the
veto is unconstitutional, it
can override the president's
veto with a two thirds
majority in both the House
of Representatives and in
the Senate.
Many people argue that
since the House is 54 percent
Democrat and the Senate
is even in the amount of
Republicans and Democrats,
that everything will be in
favor of the Democrats. But
since there needs to be a two
thirds vote, some will have
to vote the opposite for a
veto to be overridden.
Another common belief
is that the president can
appoint anyone to any
position throughout the
federal government. But,
once again, Congress has to
approve his appointments
for the Cabinet, the Sub
cabinet, members of
regulatory commissions,
ambassadors, judges and
other advisory boards.
This makes it so that the
president cannot just
appoint all the positions
surrounding him to be
people who will just agree
with everything he says.
The president also cannot
create treaties with any
country that he wants to.
Congress has the ability to
approve or deny treaties
that the president proposes.
The president is not the one
who declares war either.
Congress must declare war,
so when everyone blamed
President-elect Barack Obama
President George W. Bush
for declaring war, it was in
fact Congress that did so.
To all of you would-be
Canadians, please do not
do anything that you might
regret and realize that
Obama is not our dictator,
but the president of a
democracy where the people
control the government. It
is up to us to turn things
Facebook and MySpace,
the website asks for
information such as first
and last name, city and
state, birth date, home and
cell phone number, address,
activities, favorite movies,
relationship status, religion,
political views, present high
school attended, etc. Not
all of these questions are
required to be answered,
but if some of these are
answered, like home and
cell phone number, address,
city and state, birth date,
there is risk of identity theft.
Some ways to avoid
misuse of these web sites
are to withhold information
that is not required. If it
is required, make sure the
information being posted
is safe. Don't post anger
towards others, especially
authority figures. Parents
or peers may see this and
report it to that person.
Also, make sure pictures are
appropriate for everyone
to see and are nothing that
might cause shame later.
Colleges and employers
sometimes consult the
website to check out
applicants.
Facebook, MySpace, and
other "post yourself" web
sites are fun to use and are
great ways to connect with
friends and family. But one
must be cautious when
using them.
To legalize
or not to
legalize?
iariliiii________________ a
continued from page 4
The benefits of industrial
Hemp are vast, according
to the North American
Industrial Hemp Council.
Hemp seed oil can be made
into diesel fuel and various
forms of cloth and paper.
There is no concrete
evidence on either side
whether marijuana is all
good or all bad. Those who
are in support of it will
always argue that it is very
harmless, more resembling
an herbal supplement that
a drug and believe it would
be beneficial to the failing
economy. On the other side
are those who fervently
believe it should be illegal
in every form. Regardless,
everyone needs to open
their minds to the other
side.
Whether you smoke it,
ostracize it, receive relief
from it or don't care about
it one way or another
marijuana DOES affect
you and IS affecting those
around you. So educate
yourself, be aware of what
is going on around you and
form an opinion, because in
two short years an act could
be passed with the potential
to alter life in Oregon.
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