At a dog fair in California, a three-legged, one eyed, cancer-afflicted dog named Gus has been crowned the World's Ugliest Dog.
Gus is a Chinese Crested dog, beat other dogs to take the title at the Sonoma-Marin Fair. Gus' owner, Jeanenne Teed, from Florida, said she would spend the $1,600 prize money on treatment for Gus's skin cancer.
The competition has been going on for 20 years and is one of the fair's top attractions. Marketing director of the fair, Vicki DeArmon, said that in the past years, winners had been dogs that had been abandoned or neglected before they were adopted by dog-lovers. She added that although the dogs look hard to care for, the new owners were definitely taking good care of them.
Gus was rescued from a bad home, with one of his legs amputated as a result of his skin tumour. His loss of one eye is due to a fight with a tomcat.
Personal Views:
This shows that despite dogs being abandoned worldwide, there are people who are willing to take care of them, even if they are not as good-looking as other dogs. I feel that such contests will show the world that all dogs have the right to live and win. Also, everyone will be able to see the kind of 'ugly' dogs from these contests, and know that a lot of them are subjected to abuse and were mistreaten by their previous owners.
Being an attraction to the fair itself proves that majority of people do have a heart for abused animals. For those who go with the intention of simply mocking the dogs, they will be able to see the ugly dogs' owners willing to sacrifice their time and take care of such dogs and this will allow them to change their views.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Chin Kee Teck - Girl in Romania denied abortion despite rape allegation
In Romania, a medical ethics panel refused to grant an abortion to an 11-year-old who had allegedly been raped by her uncle.
This is because according to the penal code, after the 14th week of pregnancy, termination is only allowed if the mother's life is endangered or if the foetus suffers from malformation. Having examined the girl, the panel says that the pregnancy is proceeding naturally and that termination is not an option.
The girl's parents discovered the pregnancy during a medical check-up two weeks ago aftr she complained of stomach pains. Police are looking for the uncle, who is said to have fled.
The reason that the pregnancy stemmed from rape was not taken into account by the panel is due to two reasons, one being the rape has not been proven and the other being the penal code not allowing any exceptions.
Doctors searched a reason to abort the pregnancy, but found none.
Personal Views:
I feel that the uncle of the girl is extremely unreasonable and also, that the law in Romania has loopholes. Women should have the right to choose what they want and also, in this case, how is it possible that an 11-year-old would get pregnant, especially when she merely complained of having a stomachache?
With such a law, there might be a lot of young women getting pregnant from rape and they will be unable to raise their children. If more of such rape cases happen and the male escapes scout free and there is no evidence of rape, it would mean chaos. Although the medical panel might mean well by enforcing the rule of not allowing abortions unless the mother's life is in danger or the foetus is suffering from malformation to reduce the killing of unborn babies, they might be actually be causing more problems instead.
This is because according to the penal code, after the 14th week of pregnancy, termination is only allowed if the mother's life is endangered or if the foetus suffers from malformation. Having examined the girl, the panel says that the pregnancy is proceeding naturally and that termination is not an option.
The girl's parents discovered the pregnancy during a medical check-up two weeks ago aftr she complained of stomach pains. Police are looking for the uncle, who is said to have fled.
The reason that the pregnancy stemmed from rape was not taken into account by the panel is due to two reasons, one being the rape has not been proven and the other being the penal code not allowing any exceptions.
Doctors searched a reason to abort the pregnancy, but found none.
Personal Views:
I feel that the uncle of the girl is extremely unreasonable and also, that the law in Romania has loopholes. Women should have the right to choose what they want and also, in this case, how is it possible that an 11-year-old would get pregnant, especially when she merely complained of having a stomachache?
With such a law, there might be a lot of young women getting pregnant from rape and they will be unable to raise their children. If more of such rape cases happen and the male escapes scout free and there is no evidence of rape, it would mean chaos. Although the medical panel might mean well by enforcing the rule of not allowing abortions unless the mother's life is in danger or the foetus is suffering from malformation to reduce the killing of unborn babies, they might be actually be causing more problems instead.
Voon Shi Tian - UP prices of eggs and some vegetables
Summary of news events:
Singaporeans already battered by inflation faced another whammy this week.
Prices of eggs and some vegetables have jumped at wet market across the island. This comes barely a week after Malaysia - Singapore's biggest food supplier - trimmed domestic fuel subsidies. The move has driven up transport costs for fresh-food importers, who truck supplies like vegetables and poultry across the border. This increase has trickled down to wet markets here, which have already been forced to raise prices because of a supply crunch. Furthermore,those who drive taxis running on fuel have suffered as daily fuel cost have nearly doubled.
Personal response:
I think that the increase in Malaysia's fuel price has affected the Singaporeans alot.Singaporeans who to Malaysia regularly to top up their fuels now have to plan carefully on each trips they make.Taxi drivers on the other hand have also suffered as their daily fuel cost have inscreased and this means that their daily earnings have decreased. In addition, housewifes have to scrimp and save now as the increased in Malaysia's fuel price has increased the fuel cost of trucks going into Malaysia for importation of goods like vegetables and poultry.Therefore this cost has been brought down to the consumers of these products and most of them have been affected greatly as they have lesser money to save on for rainy days instead of the usual sum of money.Cost of Fuel, rice, vegetables, eggs and other products have been increasing and familes of low income will now be worrying of their financial situation.Hence, I think that the government should come up with some financial plans to help these families as much as possible.
Singaporeans already battered by inflation faced another whammy this week.
Prices of eggs and some vegetables have jumped at wet market across the island. This comes barely a week after Malaysia - Singapore's biggest food supplier - trimmed domestic fuel subsidies. The move has driven up transport costs for fresh-food importers, who truck supplies like vegetables and poultry across the border. This increase has trickled down to wet markets here, which have already been forced to raise prices because of a supply crunch. Furthermore,those who drive taxis running on fuel have suffered as daily fuel cost have nearly doubled.
Personal response:
I think that the increase in Malaysia's fuel price has affected the Singaporeans alot.Singaporeans who to Malaysia regularly to top up their fuels now have to plan carefully on each trips they make.Taxi drivers on the other hand have also suffered as their daily fuel cost have inscreased and this means that their daily earnings have decreased. In addition, housewifes have to scrimp and save now as the increased in Malaysia's fuel price has increased the fuel cost of trucks going into Malaysia for importation of goods like vegetables and poultry.Therefore this cost has been brought down to the consumers of these products and most of them have been affected greatly as they have lesser money to save on for rainy days instead of the usual sum of money.Cost of Fuel, rice, vegetables, eggs and other products have been increasing and familes of low income will now be worrying of their financial situation.Hence, I think that the government should come up with some financial plans to help these families as much as possible.
Voon Shi Ying - Girls at US school get pregnant for fun
A city in Massachusetts is investigating an apparent teenage "pregnancy pact" that has at least 17 girls at its public high school expecting babies, four times more than last year.Many of the girls are 16 years old or younger.The high school health clinic in the city of Gloucester became suspicious after seeing a surge in the number of girls seeking pregnancy tests. Local officers said that nearly half of those who became pregnant appeared to have entered into a pact to have babies together over the year.The first report was received after students were reporting that the girls were getting pregnant on purpose.It is noticed that they were not upset than before after being pregnant.This trend was hihlighted when singer Britney Spears' 17 years old sister gave birth to a baby girl.
Personal response: I feel that the girls are very foolish to go into the pact to have babies together. They are still young and do not have the financial ability to support a child . Having a baby would means extra financial burdens to their parents. The girls are too rash and do not seem to consider about the consequences that will result. Being pregnant for fun also means that the babies would likely be abandoned . I feel that the girls should think twice about being pregnant . They are matured enough to think . As a student , her first priority is to study .Even if they wanted to have fun , they should look for other alternatives. The girls should not treat a life lightly and cause harm an innocent baby.
Personal response: I feel that the girls are very foolish to go into the pact to have babies together. They are still young and do not have the financial ability to support a child . Having a baby would means extra financial burdens to their parents. The girls are too rash and do not seem to consider about the consequences that will result. Being pregnant for fun also means that the babies would likely be abandoned . I feel that the girls should think twice about being pregnant . They are matured enough to think . As a student , her first priority is to study .Even if they wanted to have fun , they should look for other alternatives. The girls should not treat a life lightly and cause harm an innocent baby.
Voon Shi Ying - Three people spending 24 hours in a small stuffy boxes to spread green message
Three Singaporeans are living in a hot, stuffy see-through box for 24 hours to spread the green message. They are participants of MediaCorp's 'Gaia Life Challenge', a competition to find Singapore's most eco-friendly individual. The contestants have drawn curious stares from shoppers at Bugis Junction, and MediaCorp hopes the efforts of the contestants will inspire the public to go green. The box is a small Perspex house measuring 2.4 metres on all sides, and it can get really hot in there. There is an air-condition unit and an electric fan inside for the contestants to use if they want to. Contestants get 15-minute breaks every two hours, and some use them to cool off a bit. Contestants will also compete in games - from sorting out recyclables from their trash to collecting water from the nearby fountain. At the end of it all, one of them will leave with the grand prize of 10,000 Singapore dollars
personal response: I am very glad about the increasing awareness of global warming .The effects of global warming is unquestionable. With the recent reports about the rising of atmospheric temperature and sea level , the movement of saving Gaia is certainly significant.It is definitely not about one's own effort , but everyone's responsibility to protect and save the Earth.Destructions on the Earth have made a huge impact in our lives hence i support MediaCorp action to organise this activity as this will make us realise the importance of conservations in order for our next generation to survive and also win great prizes. Besides , i also hope that there will be more activities to save Gaia ,with the support of people of the world and help play their part.
personal response: I am very glad about the increasing awareness of global warming .The effects of global warming is unquestionable. With the recent reports about the rising of atmospheric temperature and sea level , the movement of saving Gaia is certainly significant.It is definitely not about one's own effort , but everyone's responsibility to protect and save the Earth.Destructions on the Earth have made a huge impact in our lives hence i support MediaCorp action to organise this activity as this will make us realise the importance of conservations in order for our next generation to survive and also win great prizes. Besides , i also hope that there will be more activities to save Gaia ,with the support of people of the world and help play their part.
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