Wise Monkey News is here to provide young people an opportunity to discuss the issues that affect their lives. We hope that, through your participation, this website serves as a forum for the development, exchange, and expression of ideas that will prepare us to assume our positions as the leaders of tomorrow's world. Have something to say?
Ice shelves fall; the heat is on
by: Sarah Dempsey - printed on 03-27-2002
Last week the world saw first-hand the disturbing effects of global warming. Part of the Larsen B ice shelf in Antarctica, made up of 720 billion tons of ice (roughly the size of Rhode Island), collapsed into the ocean after a month of rapid melting and disintegration. This was not a prediction, not some scientist's dreadful warning, this was real life. This was the result of five decades of sharp temperature increases of as much as 4.
The Death Penalty is state sponsored murder
by: Kawai Washburn - printed on 03-06-2002
What is justice?
Stop and think about it for a second, because it's a difficult question to answer. Often, what may seem fair, right and just to one person is nothing of the sort to another person. What is the appropriate response to a crime? Indentured slave labor in barren wastelands has been tried. Solitary confinement in a sensory deprivation cell is another alternative. Then, of course, there is always the option of just killing the criminal.
Chain reactions will ripple the economy
by: Mono Vergara - printed on 09-26-2001
In a few minutes, hopes and dreams collapsed; with them, many years of prosperity and confidence were buried under the rubble. It was a decade in which foreign trade almost doubled, creation and development were increasing in an unstoppable manner, and the economy was lying with great comfort. Then, right after the attack many factories and shops closed, companies were forced to cut personnel, and consumer’s confidence suddenly crashed.
Studying abroad in Spain proves to be an adventure
by: Sally Starker - printed on 02-28-2001
I couldn’t believe I was actually going to Spain. I was so excited, yet so scared. I arrived in Granada and my roommate and I met our host mother. We knew everything would be wonderful because she greeted us with a huge smile on her face.
I soon realized I had lots to learn about the Spanish culture. Once, I went into a grocery store to buy an onion. I went right over and picked it up, but when I turned around, I noticed everyone was looking at me.
Living a life of nonviolence
by: Karen Shea - printed on 02-28-2001
Before he was brutally assassinated, Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador said: “Peace is not the product of terror or fear. Peace is not the silence of cemeteries. Peace is not the silent result of violent repression. Peace is the generous, tranquil contribution of all to the good of all. Peace is dynamism. Peace is generosity. It is right and it is duty.”
It is in this spirit that I have dedicated myself to living a life of nonviolence.
Coal plant threatens lives in Thailand
by: Meghan Molenda - printed on 04-10-2002
Progression and invention are two of those highly valued American ideas that permeate our culture, right up there with wealth and power. We are always looking for better ways of doing whatever it is that we are doing, and therefore we are suckers for anything new because "new and improved" signals progression, which is valued. With this in mind, it would seem that our old methods of doing things would become outdated and not even put into question, much less practice.