Reply to Sarah's Blog on Binge Drinking

Link:- http://sarahwbb.blogspot.com/2010/05/binge-drinking.html?showComment=1273069831769_AIe9_BFYbc-w8D8W7Rzh7bEkD5gFi6nP-yDD0l-b7rFxwOUYuysOKkfiVBKaOI4x_veCuo3MWUhLTcrBPvmTIOfLWtL1x1JjV34zVXeIoLgdKW7tRiQUGrWqDMYySZ-MUoNcc-New8JnAGs0NfNCmpxlhS6zxFnKWWTzm9KoodwALVXJTl71mDqfeqahr-10dYdCNuIpBGScKfiujUv7hwm5_cQq9G-gTmOPBXoZrhjj7h1f2srhb-4#c2720640217479434443



I believe that this will never change. Enless the government makes alcohol totally illegal (which they won't) there will be people (aka us students) who decide to abuse alcohol as it's freely available to us. It provides us with a good night out and a laugh, but we rarely think of the consequences and just see as it as funny when our friends do something stupid when drunk.

Bullying

Image from:- http://staff.harrisonburg.k12.va.us/~jgamble/No%20Bullying%20circle.gif




Bullying is something that all children dread. The usual place for a child to be bullied is at school, by other children. However, there are other, potentially more serious places where I believe a child can be bullied, and that is at home by their parents.

According to the NSPCC, 31% of children have been bullied at school by their classmates. This number in my view is unacceptable. Although you could argue that at a young age children know no different other than to bully, this age figure would range from about the age of three all the way up to sixteen, where they are no longer children. By the age of around twelve, I believe that a child should know basic right from wrong, and that it is wrong to bully another person, for whatever reason. I have personally experienced the ultimate scenario that bullying can cause when a girl in my year at school killed herself due to being bullied. The amount of heartbreak that bullying can cause is unexplainable, especially to a child. It can not only damage them physically, but also mentally. If a child at such an age can cause so many traumas by being a bully, it makes me question where the rage and need to bully comes from. Can we really blame parents? Or is it just how the child feels they need to express themselves?

With modern day technology, bullying is a bigger problem than ever. Bullying can not only just now occur in the classroom, but also online, via text message, and phone. Research carried out by the NSPCC showed that 20% of eleven to nineteen year olds had been bullied though e-mail at least once. I believe this makes it difficult for schools to crack down on bullying, as it is not actually occurring in their premises. The question here is how can we combat this? Is there any way in which we can prevent it?

The NSPCC also shows that 60% of children who were physically bullied by their parents were also bullied at school. For many bullied children, home is a release from the everyday trauma they face at school, so I can only imagine what these children feel when they have no 'way out'. What is also alarming is that one quarter of children bullied also found it to affect their adult lives, which in my view is disgusting. It is something that definitely needs to be caught early, with the NSPCC estimating that on average, 54% of primary and secondary schools see bullying as a problem at their schools. This is something brave to admit, as it is estimated that 30% of children aged eleven to fourteen do not admit to being bullied. This causes a problem as years of abuse can often cause teenagers to lash out, or do serious harm.

Overall, obviously, as more or less everyone will agree, bullying is a terrible thing. What do you think we, teachers, and the government can do to combat this? I have included a picture of the NSPCC website below with interesting but startling figures that go into this.



Link:- http://www.nspcc.org.uk/Inform/research/statistics/bullying_statistics_wda48744.html

Response to Gemma's blog

http://gemma-beingbadblog.blogspot.com/2010/04/alcohol.html?showComment=1273013772848_AIe9_BGmtG9oa6KVfSE5eWvec6d317x2qv8Od99OI_j226gd04j3kIjAMqoAfmZ7uPIUCQhpaqbh-nSQKfVwXnUk8BSVm0nnsmi5dOZu8vItNulw9fEMIBTHNj1PJbEZOajOaoPW5HajGxspQ0DYLc5TtbghkikJl11r3RjjHVlvQiKV8I12WPJJpUUmPzmsAgTUHPrsQmlausAAZyB9lFAfkswoRWMHMA#c2581209341270741483



An interesting read. I'd like to attempt to give my brief opinion on the three questions that you have posed here.

1. I believe that binge drinking becomes serious when you find yourself craving alcohol on a regular basis, and becoming very drug regularly. Although going out on a weekend is binge drinking, I see no real problem with this, as most people do it.

2. I have split views on this. When I was under 18, I used to go clubbing and thought it was great. So in one respect I think that it is okay, as long as the person is over 16 and is responsible and mature. But now I am 19, there is nothing worse than going into a club that is full of 'children' as me and my friends call them when there’s a flux of obviously underage people.

3. This is a question that is not answerable in most cases. Although sometimes parents can be blamed, as can their friends, overall most people have a mind of their own, and should control themselves.


Thanks for the interesting read, and those are my answers, although brief.

Teenage Pregnancy

Image from:- http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/47364000/gif/_47364706_conception466x321.gif





The moment where a parent hears their teenage daughter is pregnant is something that every person dreads. There is a huge stigma attached to teenage pregnancy, but although almost always unplanned, does society have the right to judge those teenagers?

According to figures by the BBC, as of February 2008, teenage pregnancy has dropped by a massive 4%. 42,988 women under the age of eighteen fell pregnant in 2007, with 2008 figures showing a drop to 41,325. This shows that government's intervention by showing proper use of contraception is working. While this is promising, the rate of teenage abortion is also dropping. 49% of those who became pregnant under the age of 18 had abortions in 2008, whilst 50% of those in 2007 turned to this. This could be argued either way. Is it best to 'save' the child and the baby involved by turning to abortion, or is abortion itself a bad thing? Something that I find with teenage pregnancy is that those judging are very contradictory. They look down on teenage mothers, but also judge them if they have an abortion. What are they supposed to do? Obviously other than abstain from sex. Who is to say that a teenager can't look after a baby as well as an older woman? Obviously they aren't as mature, but there is no reason why they can't adequately raise a child in the right way.

I think it is good that the government is doing all it can to cut the rate of teenage pregnancy. Their tactics are showing a great promise, as apart from a slight rise in 2007, their figures have been steadily dropping since 2002. Though I can see why other people may judge teenage mothers, I do not think it is right. I believe that they should be given the right to prove themselves before the public judge them in such a way. I believe it is hard enough for a teenager to come to terms with being pregnant, and others judging only makes it more difficult for them. People should support them, no matter their situation, instead of taking a derogatory view. I have included a link from the BBC with interesting information on the topic below, and a graph of the statistics above. What do you all think?


Link:- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/8531227.stm

Infidelity

Image from:- http://homeinfidelitytest.com/images/infidelity-top-1.jpg


Infidelity is a matter which causes great amount of pain. Most people will, at some point in their lives, experience this, whether they are on the receiving end or not.

Cheating on your partner can ruin not only your relationship, but also your family. There are obviously different levels of infidelity, from a mere drunken kiss to having a sexual affair for years. According to a survey conducted by the BBC, one in five men had been unfaithful, where as only one in ten women admitted to it. Men are seen as being more sexually charged than women, which is probably why more men are unfaithful. Cheating, even though sometimes forgiven, ruins trust in a relationship. It takes a very long time to regain that trust, sometimes it never returns.

There has been recent news of this in the media. Examples would be of actress Sandra Bullock's husband cheating on her, and Cheryl Cole's husband cheating also. It is a highly publicised act, being followed closely by the press. I feel that the press has huge influence on whether celebrities in the media take back their cheating husbands or not, as they fear their status' as role models.

Although I feel there is no need for infidelity (if you can't be faithful, stay single) I can see why some may feel trapped in a loveless relationship, or one that causes them misery. However, I feel that in these sorts of situations, the said person should leave their partners before starting a relationship with someone else. I feel that there is no other excuse for infidelity. What does everyone else think? I have provided a link below from the BBC with facts about infidelity which is an interesting read.


Link:- http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2006/02_february/13/map.shtml

Reply

Reply to Saeedah's Blog:-


kdavies said...
I think it's good you have done a blog on bullying. It is a very serious topic, and agree with most of what you say. However, I do not believe that all bullies are merely insecure. Though many probably are, I also believe that some people can be bullies because they are totally the opposite. They may have everything, good looks, plenty of money and a good family, and like to brag because they believe that they are just better than another person.



Link:- http://healthsaeedah.blogspot.com/2010/04/bullying.html?showComment=1272754284293_AIe9_BFW5zj0yVPdAWxSNtXm4K4fywIKH2KOonxSZNHas4L69JvimXgE3IwbGBL_xOQTpC6I2nDXkS6EOYsilHFdIm2PQ588NbyJOaxGKLAzTvLxs-QBq7_3WFkaa95-vrs2Tn0MBnwNtmz1w_1M9DoUkohjzf8pYeztfyEfX1USHCtC9zx8-VGewW-aCf5DcVTgl3R4DHgNE4YBa9mvzVYM_UXnfATMUA#c4489346194816352331

Lying

Image from:- http://www.kimrichter.com/Blog/uploaded_images/graphonic_lies_2-750627.gif




Lying with intent is something that is obviously, in my eyes, wrong. However, you could ask yourself is it always wrong to lie? The first thing in which you could ask yourself is what situations could it be okay to lie? Where should the line be drawn, in your opinion?

Obviously, although bad, there is a time in everyone's life (some more than others) where we all need to lie. If a friend is annoying and keeps changing outfits before a night out, (this is from personal experience) after the third costume change you'll tell them they look good even if they do not. Is this bad? Yes. However sometimes a lie is needed to move things along. Another example would be small, white lies that a husband may tell his wife, such as her hair looks fine, even though he hasn't really taken notice. I believe that though these lies aren't really a positive thing, they aren't harmful either.

Then there is more serious lies such as rumours. Malicious lies such as spreading rumours can ruin a person's demeanour and character. Examples of this can be caught on Jeremy Kyle everyday of the week! 'You slept with my mother, my cousin’s sisters auntie told me, I want a lie detector test'. Although we do not all go on television to sort our problems out as a 'last resort', lies such as this can tear families apart. Another example of this would be in the playground at school. Children spread rumours and lies about their peers as 'revenge' or just because 'they feel like it' and this can upset many people, some even turning to suicide. It is no secret that children are very sensitive to this sort of thing, and rumours of huge magnitude can cause psychological problems.

The worst sort of lie, in my view, is lies with criminal intent. Fraud is a criminal offense that required malicious lies in order to steal hundreds, sometimes even millions of pounds from a company or another person. Another example is contempt of court, where someone lies in court in order to prevent a criminal from being sent to prison. Such lies can not only jeopardise those involved, but the whole of society, as those criminals, if set free, could reoffend.

Overall I think that lying is always something which should be discouraged, but a little while lie here and there can do no harm. We need to look at what intent the liar has, and whether it is to harm someone, or something else. What do you all think? I have added one malicious lie as a link below, which is information on Holocaust denial.



Link:- http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/denial.html

Masturbation

Image from:- http://www.furlongphoto.com/pictures/New_may07/thumbnails/miscellaneous/Web%20Ready/CONDOM-WRAPPER.jpg



When discussing this topic in class, I honestly could not possibly see anything that was 'bad' about it. Masturbation is something that around 90% of males and 65% of females participate in. However, I'd estimate the female percentage is slightly higher, as many females are too embraced to discuss the topic. I believe that masturbation is a healthy and natural practice. Without it, I believe that more people would engage in sex, which could result in a higher number of STDs or unwanted pregnancies. Although I do not have a link, I can remember reading in a men's health magazine that masturbation, in a male’s case, is actually good, as it helps prevent testicular cancer.

The only way in which I can see an argument against it may be from a religious perspective. To some religions, every time a male masturbates, the possibility of a child is wasted. Religions such as Catholicism forbid masturbation as they see it to be unclean and against God's wish of procreation. However, I do not really see this as an argument as if every sperm created a child, it would cause huge over population. What do you guys think? I have included a link below with some interesting information on masturbation.


http://marriage.about.com/cs/masturbation/f/masturbatfaq3.htm

Binge Drinking

(Image from http://billeestanton.files.wordpress.com/2009/04/binge_drinking1.jpg)




Binge drinking is a process in which you drink a large amount of alcohol within a small period of time. Binge drinking is something that, according to the NHS, one third of adults participate in often. Some do it to feel more relaxed, others do it because they do not know their limits, and some drink due to depression. The Institute of Alcohol Studies showed that youngsters in Britain are the biggest binge drinkers in Europe. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation also found that over 50% of fifteen to sixteen year olds have admitted to binge drinking. So what is it about drinking appeals to so many people? Is it the fact that to young people, as with smoking, it makes them look 'cool'?

There are many dangers of binge drinking, some being more obvious than others. You are more prone to danger would be the first that comes to mind. Although falling a grazing your knee may be hilarious when you're drunk (most things are hilarious when drunk), the danger could be much more serious. For example alcohol slows down your reaction time and awareness of what is around you. If you were crossing the road and didn't look you may be hit by a car, which would take the sense of danger to a whole new level. It is thought that as many as 30% of accidents occur when someone is drunk, which at almost one third, is massive.

For those who are vain it can also damage your hair and skin. Alcohol dehydrates you, which in return means your skin is also dehydrated, causing you to be more prone to wrinkles. The other danger it can do to your health is obvious; it can damage your liver. Alcohol can ultimately cause cirrhosis, which is an incurable disease that overlooks your liver turning into scar tissue. As your liver is a vital organ in your body, living without it is simply not possible. Blood pressure can also be affected, as well as your kidneys. Alcohol, according to the BBC, is the cause of 22,000 premature deaths a year, which is a huge figure.

Binge drinking affects the way you think. Some turn happy, some turn hyper and worst of all some turn nasty. From watching every student's favourite programme, Jeremy Kyle, it is easy to say that drinking causes violence, as drinking clouds your mind. You have all been out on a Saturday night and seen a fight. Alcohol causes this, with 50% of street crime being due to a drunken person, and around 1.2 million alcohol related violence occurs each year. It does not only cause violence, but on a personal level, many embarass themselves. How many times have you woken up and thought 'what was I doing?' or even woken up next to someone you don't even know? This can also result in other health aspects such as sexually transmitted infections or unwanted pregnancy.

The Home Office have done much to try to combat this problem. I, as many of you, probably moaned when all inclusive alcohol nights were banned as of April 2010. However is this really a solution? Not only does it cause some clubs to close in an already bad economic crisis, it doesn't stop clubs from offering an 'alternative' cheap way to purchase drinks in their premises. For example, a club near me back in Wales used to run £10 all inclusive on a Saturday night. Now, instead, with the new law, they offer 10 drinks for £10. Is it really a solution? What can the government do to crack down on binge drinking? According to the BBC, binge drinking costs Britain twenty billion a year in. Is it really worth risking our health and well being for one 'good' night?


Read more on binge drinking from the BBC and an interesting website I found below:-

BBC:- http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3121440.stm
Binge drinking:- http://www.thesite.org/drinkanddrugs/drinking/problems/bingedrinking

Drug misuse

Drug use is something that has always been majorly controversial. Many people question the reason why people feel the need to use drugs, is it out of depression? Just for fun? This blog is meant to look into the reasons why people may turn to illegal drugs for a 'way out'. Drugs are also a huge part of the media, with many celebrities such as Amy Winehouse being accused of being addicted to them.

A survey conducted by the NHS showed that during 2005/2006, 10.5% of adults had used one or more illegal drug within the last year, which was a 1.6% decrease from 1998. However, the use of Class A drugs has increased from 1998, rising from 2.7% to 3.4%. The NHS use the excuse of cocaine powder use in order to explain this. It is widely known many models use drugs such as cocaine, and the media coverage of this has made this drug widely popular.


Something that surprised me was the statistics from the NHS of drug use from children aged eleven to fifteen. The survey reported that out of all the fifteen year olds that were asked, 29% of those had taken an illegal drug within the last year. This is alarming in the fact that drug culture is reaching those even too young to understand the consequences of taking such addictive, dangerous substances. A massive 17% of all eleven to fifteen year old pupils asked in 2006 had also admitted to taking a drug within the last year. It is hard to fathom why such young children would turn to taking drugs at such a young age. 4% of those asked also admitted to taking a Class A drug, which is a percentage which has remained unchanged since 2001. This is alarming in the fact that Class A includes substances such as heroin, cocaine and exstacy. Why would children need to take these, and how do they even obtain them? 18% of those asked admitted to have being offered exstacy. This could also raise the issue of where these children are spending their free time. Also, 33% of all students asked thought that it would be easy to find these drugs, which is disgusting.


Drug use would also most definatly relate to crime rate. Gangs and drugs cause massive problems for the police, and also the NHS. Drug related deaths in the UK stood at 1608 during 2005, which was an increase on 2004. This stands to make me pose the question is the celebrity culture and clubbing scene causing people to turn to drugs? Do children feel the need to proove themselves and take potentially lethal substances to act 'cool'? Also, what do you think the government is doing to prevent this?



Here is the webpage I got my information from, I hope you find it an interesting read:-
http://www.ic.nhs.uk/statistics-and-data-collections/health-and-lifestyles/drug-misuse/statistics-on-drug-misuse-england-2007-full-report

Prostitution, the punters.

Image from:- https://secure.acclipseweb.com/familyfirst/files/images/prostitutes.jpg

Prostitution is unbelievably, one of the oldest 'careers' in the world. There are many different types of prostitution, ranging from high earning 'escorts' to illegally trafficked women.

Whether or not you believe prostitution is wrong, this blog entry looks more into how the law punish punters of these 'call girls'. Most punters are, by the home office, known as 'kerb crawlers'. The home office launched a campaign in 2005 in order to try and deter these so called 'kerb crawlers'. This campaign, unsurprisingly, tried to reduce the number of 'street prostitutes' in order to slice the number of punters. They tried to achieve this by offering ways out for prostitutes, and ensured justice was brought upon those who exploited them. They also acknowledged the fact that they will never be able to abolish street prostitution completely, but wanted to try and lessen the problem. Obviously, where the government is concerned, where they aren't benefiting tax wise, it's considered illegal.


If caught kerb crawling, the punishments include £1000 in fines, losing your driving licence and exposure to what you have done. Obviously, with prisons being over capacitated, they do not need any more people in prison than are already there. However, are such punishments needed? Isn't loosing the respect of your family enough? A change in law, implemented on April 1st 2010, means that if you are caught paying for sex with someone under the age of eighteen, which is two years above the age of consent, then you will face a lengthy prison sentence. Even though paying for sex with someone under eighteen would defiantly be considered as a much more serious crime, shouldn't the same punishment be available to all ages? Shouldn’t they consider rising the age of consent to eighteen? I have included the link to posters made by the home office for the campaign in 2005, and the page where they state the punishments.

Home office's laws: http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/crime-victims/reducing-crime/prostitution/
Posters: 1. http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/documents/kerb-crawling-marketing-material/kerb-crawling-posterA4-p1.pdf?view=Binary

2. http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/documents/kerb-crawling-marketing-material/kerb-crawling-posterA4_p2.pdf?view=Binary

Bad Brits! Holiday Edition

(Image from: http://farm1.static.flickr.com/84/222877332_ed421a152a.jpg)

As the sun starts to shine here in the U.K, the youths of Britain start to book their summer holidays abroad. Masses of students, like me, book cheap, all inclusive deals before jetting off to a clubbing destination for sun, clubs and sex. The subject of hooligan holiday makers abroad has been a long discussed topic, which provides a derogatory vision of those scrutinized by the press.



It has been prooven through research that us Brits cause more fights, drink more, and take more drugs than any other European country whilst holidaying abroad. It has also been found out that half of people asked aged 18-35 admitted to being intoxicated for five or more nights of their holiday. This fact is shocking, seeing as many of the people asked would most have likely been students (sarcasm over).



Alcohol abuse isn't the only topic that has hit the tabloids, in a study conducted by the European Institute of Studies on Prevention with Liverpool John Moore University; it showed that 44.2% of Brits staying in Ibiza had succumbed to the alluring power of ecstasy. This, amongst other details, may be due to the rising price in alcohol and club entry fees. You'd think that with such alarming numbers the government would do more in order to deter people from taking a potentially lethal drug.



The survey also revealed that 7.6% of Brits abroad were involved in violence, which compared to a mere 1.8% of Germans, seems huge. However, you may argue that although the percentages put Brits in a bad light, ratio should also be taken into consideration. If there is a lot more Brits than Germans in one particular place, more fight would occur between them. Or is it simply the fact that roudy Brits get in more trouble?

Surprisingly, Brits were seen in a much more plausible light when it came to percentages of casual sex. Only 29.6% had a casual encounter abroad, whilst 42.7% of Spanish citizens did. I think this is due to the U.K being very liberal when it comes to sex, whilst other European countries, such as Spain, may not be.



The arrest of Brits abroad is also on the increase. In 2008, 4,605 British people were arrested abroad, which was a massive 15% increase on 2007. The question here is what makes us Brits so rowdy when visiting another country? I think that due to high tax here, we book a cheap holiday and make the most of the free/cheap alcohol. Also, the government try to crack down on alcohol here whilst in other European countries such as France, alcohol is widely more acceptable. Personally, this would make me assume that due to the stigma on alcohol in this country, us Brits go abroad and go wild because we feel emancipated.

Read more at the link below and comment :).

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1044176/Binge-drinking-Britons-league-drunken-holidaying-hooligans.html

Smoking and Gender

Pictured above, smoking, is Cheryl Cole. Tentatively reknown on the X Factor as 'the nation's sweetheart' the picture above displays that despite recent controversies towards smoking, the culture of it is still very much alive.





Many people do not know that Cheryl, 26 does indeed smoke. How would parents feel seeing this picture of one of the U.K's biggest role model's condoning smoking? Cheryl, however, is not the only female smoker amongst superstars. Iconic figures of their time such a Marilyn Monroe and Madonna have both been pictured smoking, as during the time of their photographs a woman smoking was considered a strong, emancipated image. It could also be argued that due to women not always being equal to men, it gave women a sense of rebellion against their stereotype. Confidence is also an issue. A recent survey was taken where 43% of women, even today, feel more confident when they have a cigarette in their hand. Why is this so? Maybe even after years of striving for equality in events such as the Suffragette Movement, is it true some women still lack confidence more than men?











The survey, conducted in 2002, also shows that 1/4 of women in the UK smoke, where as 1/3 of men do. Interestingly, this number is reversed when looking at younger smokers in the UK. The survey showed that 25% of 15 year old girls smoke, whereas only 19% of 15 year old boys do. There could be many reasons for this result. Smoking is known as a substitute for food. Young girls look up to idols such as models and actresses, who are on the most part quite thin, and want to look like them. During the time period of this survey, many young girls seeked a role model in Britney Spears, another regular smoker. Many girls may also start but be scared to stop smoking due to the estimated weight gain of 2-3 kilos whilst giving up.

Another reason girls may smoke more than younger boys is due to emotional stresses of a young teenage girl. 61% of female smokers said that they could not go a day without a cigarette, compared to 56% of men. Women are known to be more emotional than men, so many women may feel more emotionally attatched to cigarettes. When asking a female friend why she smoked, her reply was that 'it calms me down and helps with my emotional problems.'











Overall, the survey has shown that women feel more confident, and more emotionally attatched to cigarettes than men. Younger girls also sometimes feel like that need to smoke in order to be thin like their idols, and follow their lead. Something that could be drawn from the fact that girls are more emotionally attatched is that they may feel the need to copy idols such as Cheryl Cole and Britney Spears in order to be more like them.

http://www.smokefreederbyshire.co.uk/Content-WomenandsmokingPage