Should users be allowed to 'unlock' their cellphones?

One of the several advantages of SIM technology is the ability to seamlessly swap out cell phones with like-banded phones.If you've taken to the former, DIY method, some recent news might not sit well with you. Michael Gowan of TechNewsDaily reported late yesterday evening that unlocking cell phones without the carrier's permission will be illegal as of this Saturday, January 26. In October, says Gowan, the Library of Congress concluded that unlocking cell phones would not be granted an exemption to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) and would no longer be legal. Those who still wanted to unlock their cell phones before the act was deemed illegal were given a 90-day window, which closes this Friday.

This may prove troublesome for T-Mobile and other carriers who openly allow customers to "bring your own device" (BYOD) and offer incentives to those who do.

It could also create a hurdle for those looking to take the prepaid plunge. Considering the prepaid device selections are still paltry and outdated in comparison to postpaid offerings, more and more U.S. wireless customers have taken their unlocked Smartphone to a prepaid carrier to save significant chunks of change each month.

You may recall another controversial ruling around the DMCA for us mobile guys and gals. In July 2010, the Librarian of Congress ruled that rooting (Android) and jailbreaking (iOS) devices was legal under the DMCA. However, in October 2012, yet another change was made. It's legal to root and jailbreak smart phones, yet tablets are not covered in that exemption due to the lack of a solid definition (i.e.: an e-reader could be considered a tablet, as could a laptop, in a weird sort of way). But I digress …

You might be thinking, "I bought my smartphone, I should have free reign to do as I please with it! If jailbreaking/rooting is legal, why isn't unlocking?" But jailbreaking, rooting and unlocking are all vastly different in nature. There is much more at play here than just the hardware, software and networks involved.

Most U.S. wireless subscribers adhere to the subsidized lifestyle, which means they sign a contractual agreement – likely two years – and can purchase the phone at a significantly lower price ($20 to 300 versus $400 to $800). It also means a very small demographic is actually affected by this change to the DMCA.The only people this truly affects are those who swap devices often, BYOD prepaid customers seeking better devices or those who purchase used smartphones and unlock them unofficially, particularly iPhone users, as iPhones purchase with a contract are an entirely different story. But, like I said, there is no shortage of smartphones that come unlocked from the factory these days. The Nexus 4 from Google is a prime example, as is the iPhone 5 through Verizon or DROID DNA. And lest we forget about international devices.

While some may be adverse to the ruling, this change that goes into effect this Saturday is not cause for alarm for the vast majority of wireless users, even those who like or need to unlock smartphones. Still, I can't say I agree with the ruling. As long as you're out of contract, you should have the ability to unlock your smartphone as you please.

Illegal Immigrants Shouldn't be Allowed to Stay until Citizenship is Granted

Over the last few months most conservatives have quite naturally been distracted by Barack Obama's frightening incompetence, his elephantine spending, and his zealous attempts to swallow as much of the private sector as the government beast can stuff down its gaping maw. But while the cat's away, the mice will play. The little feet you may have been hearing pitter-patter back into the public square? They belong to advocates of amnesty for illegal aliens. Oh, they don't necessarily call it that. They call it comprehensive immigration reform, earned legalization, a path to citizenship -- but, it all amounts to the same thing: rewarding people for breaking our laws.

1) It will only encourage more illegal immigrants to come here. We've already had a "one time only" amnesty deal for illegals. It occurred during the Reagan Administration and the idea was supposed to be that we'd allow the illegals who were here to become citizens and we'd simultaneously beef up security to try to keep the problem from occurring again. Well, guess what? That very bipartisan sounding compromise didn't work. To the contrary, it failed miserably. So why in the world would anyone who actually wants to stop illegal immigration want to try something that has already been proven to be counterproductive? We have far more illegals in America today than we did when the "one time" amnesty went through. Do we want 20 million illegals here when the next amnesty goes through? 30 million? Are we going to be accused of racism if we say the next huge wave of illegals shouldn't be given citizenship either? Where does it end?

2) Illegal aliens take jobs from American citizens. The economy stinks. American citizens are out of work. People are going out every day looking for jobs to support their family and they're coming home empty handed. Meanwhile, there are illegal aliens in this country holding jobs that American citizens would otherwise have. "Oh, but those are jobs Americans won't do!" There's no such thing. There's no job in this country that couldn't be filled if every illegal disappeared tomorrow -- but, here's the catch: the crooked business owners who are knowingly hiring the illegals might have to pay what the job is worth instead of hiring people who let everyone else pay their health care, pay their car insurance, and pay their share of the taxes.

3) We're importing poverty. It's no secret that the majority of illegals are uneducated manual laborers. In fact, that's supposed to be one of their selling points, isn't it? Don't advocates of amnesty say we need illegals to do the dirty, hard, manual labor that "Americans won't do?" But even if that were true, which it’s not, people with very limited skills often turn into liabilities for a society as they age. There aren't a lot of people picking oranges and scrubbing floors at fifty years old. In other words, in order to help crooked business owners get cheap labor today, the rest of society has to be burdened with people who are going to cost society far more than they ever pay in taxes. Are American taxpayers so unburdened that we want to actually bring in even more people to carry on their backs?

Heaven Exists

A Harvard neurosurgeon has said that heaven exists after he came out of a seven-day coma where the "human" part of his brain was deactivated.

Dr Eben Alexander said that his near-death experience had convinced him that heaven was real, Newsweek reported. In his book, Proof of Heaven, he argues: "God and the soul are real and death is not the end of personal existence but only a transition."

Alexander explains that, as a neurosurgeon, he has always questioned people who claim to have had near-death experiences because there is a rational scientific explanation for such feelings.

Researchers from Edinburgh University and the Medical Research Council in Cambridge backed his earlier assertions and said that most experiences could be put down to reactions in the brain.

So-called out-of-body experiences, for example, happen when there is a breakdown of multisensory processes, they said. Well-documented visions of tunnels and bright lights could be the result of oxygen deprivation.

But Alexander has rebutted his own beliefs after he fell into a coma as a result of an attack by the E. coli bacteria in 2008. He says he now has scientific proof that heaven exists.

He writes: "There is no scientific explanation for the fact that while my body lay in coma, my mind - my conscious, inner self - was alive and well.

"While the neurons of my cortex were stunned to complete inactivity by the bacteria that had attacked them, my brain-free consciousness journeyed to another, larger dimension of the universe: a dimension I'd never dreamed existed and which the old, pre-coma me would have been more than happy to explain was a simple impossibility."

He said of his journey to the other side: "For most of my journey, someone else was with me. A woman. She was young, and I remember what she looked like in complete detail. She had high cheekbones and deep-blue eyes. Golden brown tresses framed her lovely face.

"When first I saw her, we were riding along together on an intricately patterned surface, which after a moment I recognised as the wing of a butterfly. 

"Without using any words, she spoke to me. The message went through me like a wind, and I instantly understood that it was true. I knew so in the same way that I knew that the world around us was real - was not some fantasy, passing and insubstantial."

Police in Every School

       A politician, with the support of the National Rifle Association, fairly recently suggested that we spend hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants to place more police officers in schools and help even the youngest kids cope with their problems.

And liberals did not have a conniption fit. That was in 2000, by then President Bill Clinton, who on the one year anniversary of Columbine suggested that the country consider a national program to place more armed guards in schools to protect our children.  Clinton unveiled the $60-million fifth round of funding for “COPS in School,” a Justice Department program that helps pay the costs of placing police officers in schools to help make them safer for students and teachers. The money was to be used provide 452 officers in schools in more than 220 communities.  During its duration, the program placed almost 3,000 armed officers in a thousand schools nationwide.

The public, as usual, is far ahead of the media and liberal politicians on this issue.  Several polls show the public is solidly behind this idea as well.   In a Pew poll, 64% of Americans support having armed guards in schools.  However, 57% do oppose arming teachers and other staff.  A recent Rasmussen poll showed the following results:

Fifty-four percent (54%) of American adults would feel safer if their child’s school had an armed security guard. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that just 26% would feel safer if their child attended a school where no adults were allowed to have guns. Another 20% are undecided.

Among parents of school-aged children, support for armed guards is even higher. Sixty-two percent (62%) of such parents would feel safer with an armed security guard at the school, while 22% would feel safer if their child attended a gun-free school.

Gun Control

      Our options are further complicated by the union of these scales. On one extreme no private citizen can own any guns (AA, which is functionally equivalent to AR), while at the other extreme, every private citizen can own any gun, with no restrictions (NA+NR). But once we leave those extremes, which few people hold, the options are defined by a pair of coordinates along these distinct scales. While most people embrace positions on the "same" end of both scales, others embrace more exotic mixtures: some will want few weapons available to private citizens, but virtually no restrictions on those guns that are available (MA+NR), while others may prefer making most guns available, but want to seriously restrict them (NA+MR). So our choice is not merely to support or oppose gun control, but to decide who can own which guns, under what conditions. Although I cannot pretend to provide a definitive account here, I can isolate the central issues and offer the broad outline of an appropriate solution. To simplify discussion, I adopt the following locutions: those opposed to most abolition and most restrictions advocate a "serious right to bear arms," while those supporting more widespread abolition and more substantial restrictions are "gun control advocates." This simplification, of course, masks significant disagreements among advocates of each position.

The Death of a Loved One (TEST)

The death of a loved one will change your entire life.

Every area of your life will be affected by the death of a loved one. Our world is irreparably changed by the simple fact that our love one is no longer a part of it. Learning to live in this new world can be challenging, as we slowly make our way towards our new lives without the physical presence of our loved ones. How does the death of a loved one affect you, and what can you do to ensure a happy, meaningful and rewarding life after your loved one has died? You will be challenged physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually by the death of your loved one. Every level of your existence will come into question, as you re-frame, examine and process your loss throughout your grief journey. The body-mind-soul connection is clearly recognized in the grieving individual. The enormous emotional upheaval experienced at the death of a loved one often weakens the physical body, causing many mourners to experience various aches and pains. Death is very hard to wrap your mind around. The closer the relationship (and therefore, the emotional investment) is to the deceased, the more profound the effect. Short term memory loss is common, and though frustrating, it usually disappears within a few months. Much more difficult to process is the actual relationship with the deceased, it's highlights and low points, and the eternal question of 'what if'. Regrets seem insurmountable when you have no recourse for correcting them.

Indispensable Possession

My most indispensable possession in my life is my collections of memories, memories that make me laugh, make me cry and make me inspire. Those are my most indispensable possessions because all of those memories serve as my friend every time I’m weak, my comedian every time I’m sad and my inspiration. Those possessions will always in be my mind and my heart and no one else will steal it from me. Try to imagine life without memories. We would have no identity. We would ask the same questions over and over because we would not be able to remember the answers to them. We would live forever in the present moment and have no recollection of our pasts, including people and experiences that are important to us, and no anticipation of the future.

One More Chance

If I had one more chance to do something, I would spend more time with my grand mom when she was sick.The challenges that families must face when confronted with a terminal diagnosis of a loved one are complex. They include evolving new structures and dynamics as the person they love slowly slips away. It means learning how to cope with setbacks and deterioration as well as periods of seeming remission. It means dealing with the complexities of extended grief, which can wear individuals down and lead at times to ambivalence or the unpleasant feeling we get when we find ourselves wishing that the process would end. It means talking with a dying loved one about mortality and other issues that do not arise when death strikes suddenly and unexpectedly. It means learning to make space for extended grief in lifestyles that are typically busier than those of earlier generations.

Perhaps most important, the new grief involves confronting family issues that may have been dormant but unresolved for many years. These issues typically reemerge as families move past their initial reactions to a terminal diagnosis and are forced to interact and work together through a process of extended grief. Finally, it means moving forward together as a stronger family after a loved one passes.

Without understanding and without guidance in each of these areas, family members who are forced by circumstances to cope with prolonged grief are vulnerable to serious psychological consequences, including depression, guilt, and debilitating anxiety. These circumstances can even lead to physical illness. Whole families are vulnerable to rupture as a result of a resurgence of unresolved issues that are unearthed as a result of a prolonged terminal illness in a loved one. Even loving couples may find their relationships in jeopardy as a consequence of unwanted lifestyle changes. What families need now- and will need in the future- is guidance for how to anticipate and deal with such issues. 

Favorite Part of Nature

Since the beginning, trees have furnished us with two of life's essentials, food and oxygen. As we evolved, they provided additional necessities such as shelter, medicine, and tools. Today, their value continues to increase and more benefits of trees are being discovered as their role expands to satisfy the needs created by our modern lifestyles. Trees are an important part of every community. Our streets, parks, playgrounds and backyards are lined with trees that create a peaceful, aesthetically pleasing environment. Trees increase our quality of life by bringing natural elements and wildlife habitats into urban settings. We gather under the cool shade they provide during outdoor activities with family and friends. Many neighborhoods are also the home of very old trees that serve as historic landmarks and a great source of town pride. In addition, architectural and engineering functions are served by your community's trees. They frame landscapes, create beautiful backgrounds and enhance building designs. Trees can provide privacy, emphasize beautiful views, and screen unsightly areas. Noise from roadways and other urban activities is muffled by well-placed trees that serve as sound barriers. As a matter of fact, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency states that trees can reduce bothersome noise by up to 50% and mask unwanted noises with pleasant, natural sounds. Using trees in cities to deflect the sunlight reduces the heat island effect caused by pavement and commercial buildings. Trees contribute to their environment by providing oxygen, improving air quality, climate amelioration, conserving water, preserving soil, and supporting wildlife. During the process of photosynthesis, trees take in carbon dioxide and produce the oxygen we breathe. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, "One acre of forest absorbs six tons of carbon dioxide and puts out four tons of oxygen. This is enough to meet the annual needs of 18 people." Trees, shrubs and turf also filter air by removing dust and absorbing other pollutants like carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide. After trees intercept unhealthy particles, rain washes them to the ground.

Why is it bad to squander your money?

Is not wise to squander your money, because when you spend all your money struggles comes right away. I think people should be very carefully at spending their money because is not reasonable to waste all money in a little amount of time, when it took a lot of time to get that money. People should be carefully at buying stuff, in order to save some money for an emergency. I think it is not wise to squander your money because if you do then people would always come to you to get more money. If you always give out money to the people then you would not even have money for yourself, and you'll have to borrow money for what you need. When you borrow money you have to pay it back to the person you borrowed it from. It is not wise to squander your money because you should save it for something important, like a house or car or something useful instead of little things that are useless. Squandering your money can make you not be able to do things with your friends or not having enough money to but something that you really need. Too much squandering and you don't have any money can lead you to the temptations of a credit card. Every one has fallen in to buy something they know that they probably do not need. Like a new pair of shoes or a new video game. It's nearly impossible to not fall in to those temptations. 

Future

I would like a future in the medical field. I want to become a Neonatologist. In order to become a Neonatologist I must go to Medical School. Medical school applicants must submit the transcripts from their undergraduate work and their scores from the Medical College Admission Test. Schools require letters of recommendation from undergraduate professors and may specify that the recommendations come from science and math professors. Medical school admission committees also interview potential students. The first two years of medical school focus on work in the classroom and laboratory and include coursework in anatomy, physiology, psychology, biochemistry, pharmacology and legal issues in medicine. In the final two years of the medical degree program students complete rotations in various medical specialties including surgery, pediatrics, family practice, psychiatry, and obstetrics and gynecology. While students do not have a chance to specialize in pediatrics during medical school, rotations do offer the student doctor the chance to spend some time working with children. Rotations provide practical clinical training in diagnosing and treating illnesses in different areas of medicine.In addition to a residency program in pediatrics, physicians planning a career in Neonatology must complete a specialized fellowship program. A fellowship in Neonatology may require the student to complete a pediatrics residency program that is at least three years in duration before entering the program. The additional training in a fellowship program exposes the physician to preterm babies with a variety of clinical issues, such as respiratory failure, growth restriction and infections. Fellowships usually include a combination of direct patient contact and lectures in Neonatology.

Favorite Celeb

My favorite celebrity is Raven-Symoné. In 2001, Symoné auditioned for a role on an up-coming series for the Disney Channel titled Absolutely Psychic, about a teenager with psychic abilities. She actually auditioned for the recurring role of Chelsea Daniels, but her role was changed to the lead character Raven Baxter and the series name changed to That's So Raven. The series debuted on January 17, 2003 and ended on November 10, 2007, becoming the Disney Channel's highest-rated and longest-running series. The title character draws on her talent, ingenuity, psychic powers and a variety of disguises to get in and out of amusing adolescent and pre-adolescent situations. It spawned a franchise including soundtracks, dolls, episode DVDs, and video games. That's So Raven was nominated for Outstanding Children's Program during the 2005 and 2007 Emmy Awards. That's So Raven, was the first Disney Channel series to have four seasons and 100 episodes. Merchandise has earned to date $400 million. The show also launched the channel's first spin-off series, Cory in the House. In 2003, she starred as lead singer Galleria Garibaldi in The Cheetah Girls, a Disney Channel Original Movie about four city girls who dream of becoming superstars. The movie was the channel's first musical and was the basis for another franchise, including dolls, video games, platinum-selling soundtracks and more. The film also starred Adrienne Bailon as Chanel Simmons, Sabrina Bryan as Dorinda Thomas, and Kiely Williams as Aquanette Walker. The film was directed by Oz Scott, and produced by Grammy-winner Whitney Houston. It attracted more than 6.5 million viewers opening night, making it (at the time) Disney Channel's most-watched movie and most highest-rated Disney Channel of 2003. In 2004, during her time on the show (That's So Raven), Raven-Symoné provided the voice of Danielle in Fat Albert. It had a moderate performance at the box office, earning $48,551,322 million worldwide during its theatrical run. She made an appearance in The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement as Princess Asana, during which she sang a duet with Julie Andrews. It was her first film with Walt Disney Pictures. It was also a hit performance at the box office, earning $134,734,481 million worldwide during its theatrical run. The sequel television film, Zenon: Z3 a Disney Channel Original Movie, included Raven-Symoné as Nebula Wade, reprising her role. On opening night, the sequel brought in more than 1.3 million viewers. The same year, after the unexpected success of the film and the film soundtrack, a pilot episode of The Cheetah Girls was recorded for the channel ABC. It was never picked up as a series due to her not being able to be in two series at the same time.

Favorite Book

My favorite book is the first book in the Pretty Little Liars series. The story introduces an exclusive group of friends: Alison DiLaurentis, the perfect yet manipulative queen bee, Aria Montgomery, an independent girl who is considered to be the oddball in Rosewood. Emily Fields, a swimmer who holds secret feelings for Alison. Hanna Marin, a shy, overweight girl who strives to be thin and popular like Alison. And Spencer Hastings, an overachiever who is brave enough to stand up against Alison's manipulative ways. Alison mysteriously disappears during a sleepover with the girls in the summer before 8th grade. The story then jumps three years later, when the girls are living their own lives and don't speak to each other. Aria returns to Rosewood from a three year sabbatical in Iceland with her family and comes back much more sophisticated than before she left. She meets and kisses a guy in a local bar who is revealed to be her English teacher, Ezra Fitz. Emily befriends the new girl in town, Maya St. Germain and soon develops romantic feelings for her. Hanna is the new popular girl in town alongside the former nerd, Mona Vanderwahl. However, she and Mona sometimes shoplift as a way to feel dangerous. Hanna battles the urge to turn back to bulimia, and struggles to manage the stress of keeping her queen bee status. Spencer continues to struggle in her long-standing rivalry with Melissa, her perfect older sister. Problems occur when she begins to feel attracted to Melissa's new boyfriend, Wren Kim, when he is introduced to the family. Throughout the story, the liars get messages threatening to reveal their secrets of the present and past, including a terrifying incident the girls refer to as "The Jenna Thing". They automatically believe it is their missing friend, Alison, because she is the only one each of them confided in regarding their darkest secrets. However, they are shocked when the police find her corpse buried in the backyard of her former house. The book ends with the liars receiving a text at Alison's funeral saying, "I’m still here and I know everything. - "A"

Favorite Song

My favorite song is Trust and Believe by Keyshia Cole. "Trust and Believe is the second single from Cole's album Woman to Woman. It was written by Guordan Banks and Jessyca Wilson of R&B duo The Righterz. It was produced by Grammy-nominated producer and songwriter DJ Camper. It premiered on Tuesday, October 2, 2012. The heartfelt ballad reflects upon Cole's position, with being cheated on by her ex-lover with her best friend. With it being one of Cole's favorites on the album, it shows the true premise of the album to help ladies with men who have done them wrong. I also like this song because of the amazing music video. The music video is actually like a mini movie and I enjoyed it and watched it many times. 

Favorite Movie

The Cheetah Girls 2 (also known as The Cheetah Girls: When in Spain) is the 2006 sequel to the Disney Channel Original Movie, The Cheetah Girls. Its premiere received the highest ratings of all Disney Channel Movies at its time, a total of over 8.1 million viewers, beating the premiere ratings of High School Musical (7.7 million), and beating previous highest rated DCOM record holder, Cadet Kelly (7.8 million) as well as becoming the highest rated Cheetah Girls movie in the trilogy. The sequel is about a talented teen quartet who take a whirlwind tour of Spain to pursue their dreams of pop superstardom. Unlike its predecessor which incorporated karaoke-like musical numbers, The Cheetah Girls 2 turned into more of a musical.This is also the last film in the series to star Raven-Symoné. The film is currently the 6th highest-rated Disney Channel and most highest-rated Disney Channel of the year 2006.

I really love this movie because it stars my favorite childhood actress, Raven-Symoné. I enjoyed this movie a lot because of all the singing and dancing that a child my age would love at the time. 

What if Christmas never came?

 

Many people in our society today may have never even thought of such a notion. But it is surely one that provokes some deep feelings. You see, if you take the Christ out of Christmas, there is no Christmas!Many people in our culture might object at this point and say that Christmas is more about the giving spirit, "peace and good will toward men." While we as Christians applaud these holiday expressions of love and kindness one to another, that is not the intent of the Bible verse. When the angels sang "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:14 KJV) they praised God for the gift of His Son. The peace and good will was from God to man (not man to man). But what if there were no Christ to believe in? No Jesus to live for or even die for? Let's consider together what would happen if that were true.

What if Christmas were cancelled?
Apart from all the crass commercialism of Christmastime there is an inescapable deep meaning to this holiday (or holy day). This meaning permeates many of the traditional symbols of the season. For example, the song The Twelve Days of Christmas was created as a musical allegory. It was a teaching tool used in England to instruct young people in the truths of the Christian faith. The meanings were hidden in the lyrics to avoid severe persecution and almost certain death.Faith and new life in Christ have inspired countless songs, books and expressions of love and gratitude - but what if there was not Christmas at all? Isaiah the prophet wrote over 700 years before Jesus was born: "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which translated means, "God with us" (Isa. 7:14; Matt. 1:23). It is incredible to think about the fact that the very One who causes all this controversy is none other than God in human flesh! (John 1:1,14). The Bible makes it crystal clear that in the person of Jesus Christ "all the fulness of Deity dwells in bodily form" (Col. 2:9). Jesus, who is God, became a man. He "emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant and being made in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross" (Phil. 2:7-8). Miraculously, His true identity reveals that He is God with us, who died for us! But in our "make-believe" story Jesus wasn't here. He never came, never touched the sick, comforted the brokenhearted, never healed the blind, deaf and lame, never calmed the sea or called to the other side of the grave. Never preached, cried or died for our sins and never conquered the grave and rose again from the dead (see 1 Cor. 15:12-22). There is no adoption into God's family, no heaven, no chance of a joyful reunion. No hope of being in the wonderful presence of God forever, no life! (see John 10:10; Rev. 21:1-6; Psalm 23:6). "And she will bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people from their sins" (Matt. 1:21). In this sad scenario - He never did save us. That wonderful baby was never born, Mary never sang her song of rejoicing, that baby never became that man (all the while being God) and never died a horribly excruciating death on the cross for our sins.

Aren't You Glad That Christmas Has Come!?