Aarav Kumar's Blog

Trump Off The Ballot

So far, Colorado and Maine have taken Donald Trump off the ballot as a candidate for the primary election.

The main motive behind removing Trump off the ballot was to getting rid of “anti-democratic insurrectionists.” Due to the January 6, 2021 attack on US Capitol, Trump’s connections to it, and the many federal charges he is currently facing, lots of controversy has formed, with states like Colorado and Maine thinking that Trump is not fit to be a presidential candidate– additionally due to the many charges that he is currently facing. This argument is strengthened through the 14th amendment, which holds a clause saying American officials who “engage in” insurrection can’t hold future office.

The opposing argument of those who disprove of Colorado and Maine’s actions is also built on democracy beliefs, believing it is anti-democratic to remove someone off the ballot. This stems from concerns about limiting voter choice and infringing on the democratic rights of both the candidate and their supporters. Critics worry that such actions could impact political competition and erode public trust in the fairness of the electoral process, particularly if perceived as politically motivated. The principle of a robust and inclusive electoral system, offering a variety of choices, is seen as crucial for a healthy democracy.

In response to these actions and both sides of beliefs, the US Supreme Court will likely decide the question of Trump’s qualifications. Before the Supreme Court can weigh in, other states may follow the lead of Colorado and Maine in seeking to keep Trump’s name off of ballots, including efforts by Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, New Mexico, New York, and Texas, among other states. There are also states that have made it clear they want to keep Trump’s name on the ballot, including Michigan.

Overall, this is a complex issue that is multi-faceted. This is a lengthy process to see if Trump will be held eligible on the ballot, and requires time. Only time will tell Trump’s fate with the ballot.

The Case of Elijah McClain

The arrest and subsequent death of 23-year-old Elijah McClain in August of 2019 have sparked significant controversy, with many asserting that the incident was racially motivated. Elijah was approached by police officers while walking home, reportedly due to a call about a suspicious person. The encounter escalated, leading to the use of force and the administration of ketamine (a powerful sedative used in medical settings, causing controversy as it was used here) by paramedics. Critics argue that the incident is part of a larger pattern of racial profiling and the disproportionate use of force against people of color, particularly young Black men.

Elijah McClain was described as a gentle and non-threatening individual who was known for his kindness. The fact that the encounter resulted in a violent confrontation has raised questions about whether race played a role in the police response. The case gained renewed attention in the broader context of the Black Lives Matter movement, highlighting the need for systemic changes to address racial bias and excessive use of force within law enforcement.

Elijah McClain’s death has become a symbol of the broader issues of racial injustice and police brutality, leading to widespread calls for justice, accountability, and reforms in policing practices. The use of ketamine also contributes to these broader issues, as not only was this use seen as unorthodox, but also the paramedics overdosed the amount of ketamine for McClain.

This discussion of how the situation had been handled has been going on since McClain’s death. Currently, on December 23, 2023, the paramedics were convicted of their actions and are facing years in prison. This demonstrates a big step in the movement to stop racially motivated actions towards people. After four years, supporters of this movement, friends and family to McClain are able to say that justice was earned.

UPenn, Harvard, MIT Controversies

With rising tensions between Jewish-Americans and Muslim-Americans due to the Israel-Palestine conflicts, many organizations have become tied into these tensions. Some of these organizations include the renowned and prestigious colleges such as University of Pennsylvania, Harvard University, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. When presidents of these schools were asked if calls for the genocide of Jews were permissible, these presidents said that “it depends on the context.” The presidents’ attempts to focus on “context” were intended to differentiate between hate speech that is spewed broadly and hate speech that is targeted at specific individuals. However, these responses caused lots of controversy against the schools, resulting in many implications.

First, many donors to these schools stopped/threatened to stop donating to them anymore. This poses many implications, as colleges benefit from alumni donors through financial support that funds scholarships, infrastructure development, and research initiatives. Donations contribute to endowment growth, enhance the institution’s reputation, and improve rankings. Alumni engagement builds a sense of community, loyalty, and pride, while also fostering networking opportunities. The flexibility provided by alumni donations allows colleges to innovate and adapt to emerging educational trends, ensuring their continued success and impact. Schools rely on these donations, and without them, the schools may face many challenges.

Another major controversy put towards these schools is the calling for the presidents to resign from their position. College presidents, as the public faces of their institutions, play a crucial role in representing the school’s values. Their words and actions shape the perception of the college, influencing stakeholders’ trust and confidence. Negative remarks or actions by a president can lead to public outcry and calls for resignation, as they are seen as reflections of the institution’s integrity and commitment to its values. A president’s conduct is closely scrutinized, underscoring the importance of aligning personal behavior with the principles upheld by the college. Currently, the UPenn president has resigned, and calls continue for Harvard and MIT presidents.

Overall, this issue is very complex with both sides of the argument having their own beliefs. Critics believe that the universities are being straight islamophobic, while the presidents were trying to differentiate between hate speech that is spewed broadly and hate speech that is targeted at specific individuals. It is important to consider both views and perspectives, when trying to choose your own side of belief.

To try and gain their image back, these schools should try to enact some public policies to help their image. This could include providing diversity and cultural competency training, in hope that leaders at these schools act in a way that aims to ensure transparency, inclusivity, and accountability within the university community.

George Santos Controversy

George Santos, an American politician who served as the U.S. representative for New York’s 3rd congressional district for 11 months, is a controversial figure when it comes to United States current events, with him being expelled from the House on December 1, 2023 in a 311 to 114 vote to remove him, above the two-thirds House supermajority required by the Constitution.

Ever since the beginning of his term, he has gone through many scandals. Some accusations include scamming 3000 dollars from a GoFundMe campaign for a disabled veteran’s dying service dog and immigration documents showing his mother was not in New York on 9/11 as he had claimed. Santos has also admitted that he lied all over his resume, including his education and religious background. Additionally, there are charges in Brazil for fraud, with allegations of an incident in 2008 relating to a stolen checkbook. Furthermore, Santos has been accused of using campaign funds to pay personal expenses and concealing the origins of a $705,000 loan Santos made to his campaign. With this money “stolen,” he has been accused of spending that money on Hermes, OnlyFans, personal travel, and Botox. Furthermore, Santos has allegedly lied to collect unemployment benefits, committed identity theft, lied to Congress, reimbursed self for loans he didn’t make, and more.

Although these are all allegations, they are important to consider to the credibility of him as a character and the possible reasons as to why he was expelled from the house. To help ensure that future representatives of the United States population and its values are credible individuals that won’t exploit their position, some public policy approaches are appropriate. Legal investigations and potential prosecutions should be pursued to address criminal behavior, while the House Ethics Committee should conduct an inquiry into ethical violations. Reforms in campaign finance laws may be considered to enhance transparency and prevent fraudulent activities, and there could be a call for intensified ethics training for representatives. Strengthening identity theft prevention measures, constituent engagement, and transparency initiatives are essential to rebuilding trust. Political parties may take internal actions, and legislative and anti-corruption reforms should be explored to address systemic weaknesses. Overall, a robust and multifaceted public policy response is crucial to uphold the integrity of the political system and prevent future ethical lapses.

COP 28

The annual Conference of the Parties (COP) is a pivotal international event where country leaders convene to address global climate change challenges. During COP, participating nations negotiate and collaborate on strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, adapt to the impacts of climate change, and advance sustainable practices. The meetings aim to strengthen international cooperation, foster commitments to environmental protection, and develop agreements that contribute to a more sustainable and resilient future for the planet.

This is an important event that sets the standard for the year in attempt to best battle climate change. Last year, at COP 27, the country’s delegates decided the primary goal to create a “loss and damage” fund that would assist developing countries and middle-income countries that are vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change.

This year, COP 28 is taking a big swing at cutting methane, which as we know is a potent greenhouse gas produced by oil and gas drilling, livestock and rotting vegetation. Although most greenhouse gases have similar effects, there are some specific impacts of methane emissions that severely impact Climate Change. Methane emissions, with their short atmospheric lifetime and high Global Warming Potential (GWP), significantly contribute to global warming. Beyond its immediate warming impact, methane plays a role in the formation of ground-level ozone, contributing to air pollution and exacerbating respiratory issues. Additionally, its involvement in positive feedback loops, such as the release of methane hydrates in permafrost regions, amplifies its warming effects.

Efforts to prevent methane emissions are critical in making steps towards saving the Earth. Each country that attended COP 28 has specific rules that need to be followed to make these steps. For the United States,
the Biden administration announced a conclusive methane rule for U.S. oil and gas producers, mandating measures to address methane leaks, discontinue the burning of excess gas with flares, and enforce regular facility inspections to prevent the escape of this planet-warming compound into the atmosphere.

With these progressive steps towards climate change, it is possible that climate change can be minimized as much as possible.

Suspended for Having Locs

When we as a society think about social justice issues, we tend to focus on the extreme situations. These may include racial shootings or lack of rights to certain groups. But social justice issues isn’t just that, it can be much smaller too. For example, a social justice issue could be a student being suspended for a certain hairstyle. And this is exactly happening in Texas right now.

Darryl George, an 18 year old Black student, briefly attended class at Barbers Hill High School before a school administrator referred him to in-school suspension. George will remain suspended for 13 days, the notice states, and his latest suspension follows three months of disciplinary action. Although this example of social injustice is not as extreme as ones we have seen recently and through earlier posts of my blog, this is still an example. The school is not allowing this student to style his hair in a certain way and preventing him from attending that school. This is a form of discrimination, as the school is separating him purely based on his hairstyle.

This can create a bigger discussion as locs, or dreadlocks, in Black culture symbolize a profound connection to African heritage and identity, embracing natural hair texture, spirituality influenced by the Rastafarian movement, and a commitment to resilience and strength. Wearing locs is often a deliberate rejection of Eurocentric beauty standards and serves as a political and social statement of resistance against oppression. The versatility of locs allows for creative expression, while the hairstyle fosters a sense of community and solidarity within the broader Black experience, connecting individuals to their ancestry and cultural traditions. With this, it may seem that the school is trying to silence the message that locs provide.

Overall, this is an interesting case with many different facets within it, making it hard to understand its severity of impact.

Collapsed Tunnel in India

Recently, in New Delhi, India, a group of 41 construction workers were working on a project near the Himalayan Mountains and suddenly a tunnel collapsed on them all. These 41 workers were then trapped under this tunnel for over a week in rough conditions with an enormous amount of debris required to be broken through to save the people.

With saving the individuals stuck under the tunnel, there has been many complications. First, the drilling machine broke down as it couldn’t “beat” the Himalayan mountains, causing a delay. This forced the rescuers to work by hand to remove debris in hopes of reaching the stranded workers. Another complication was finding a method to keep these individuals healthily living with food and oxygen. Fortunately, the rescuers found a way to resolve this issue by attaching paths of pipes that can deliver food and provide a clean path of oxygen.

Currently, rescuers are working on inserting and welding together pipes that would be the trapped workers’ route to freedom. A lot of progress has been made towards this issue, starting from a broken machine to working paths of food and oxygen. However, there is still a long way to go to ensure the individuals’ safety.

Some other effective public policy measures may include establishing a coordinated emergency response center, mobilizing specialized rescue teams and resources, collaborating with neighboring countries for support, ensuring transparent communication with the public, providing temporary shelter and support for affected families, reviewing and strengthening safety regulations, implementing insurance and compensation mechanisms, prioritizing training and preparedness, and considering international best practices to prevent future incidents. These measures aim to manage the crisis, support victims, and prevent similar accidents through improved safety standards in the meantime of getting the 41 individuals out of the tunnel.

West Antarctica Rapid Melting

A new study shows that there are potentially disastrous consequences for sea level rise due to the rapid melting in West Antarctica. Even if the world meets ambitious targets to limit global heating, West Antarctica will continue to experience substantial ocean warming and ice shelf melting

Ice shelves are tongues of ice that jut out into the ocean at the end of glaciers. They act like buttresses, helping hold ice back on the land, slowing its flow into the sea and providing an important defense against sea level rise. As ice shelves melt, they thin and lose their buttressing ability.

Rising sea levels is a serious issue as it poses severe consequences such as coastal erosion, loss of habitats, threats to biodiversity, increased flooding, saltwater intrusion impacting agriculture, displacement of populations, infrastructure damage, and economic losses. This phenomenon also jeopardizes cultural heritage, influences global climate systems, and contributes to a feedback loop with climate change. Addressing these challenges requires a comprehensive approach involving mitigation measures to reduce emissions, adaptation strategies for vulnerable communities, and international cooperation.

With the many attempts to battle rising sea levels and climate change as a whole, there are not as many possible public policy approaches that could be implemented. Some include enforcing stringent building codes for coastal structures, investing in resilient infrastructure like elevated foundations and flood defenses, promoting sustainable land-use planning to prevent construction in vulnerable zones, engaging local communities in adaptive planning, and fostering international collaboration to collectively address the cross-border impacts of sea level rise. Additionally, incentivizing the adoption of innovative technologies, supporting green finance initiatives, and continually investing in scientific research and monitoring systems are crucial for an adaptive and forward-looking response to this pressing global challenge.