Proposal

Eight months ago my dad was hospitalized having suffered a severe heart attack mainly from the effects of smoking. Most of us know the consequences of smoking, just as he did, but realistically, smoking only gets attention in schools. Once and awhile you'll see a "Stand" commercial urging people not to smoke, but they really they never mention side effects outside of lung cancer. Smoking does more to your body than just your lungs. You will never hear this on CNN or NBC. Five and a half trillion cigarettes are produced every year for six billion people. At the same time, the government seems to open their arms to tobacco companies, because they can tax their products. The government has done little to control tobacco companies and can really only be thanked for requiring a surgeon generals warning on every pack of cigarettes.

Proposal

Why is anorexia not talked about more? Why do so many people try to keep this disorder in the dark? We know so much about anorexia and its consequences, and this information needs to be shared. Young children should not be kept from this information. Anorexia should be talked about more so that these facts can be shared, and by doing this hopefully younger children will be able to learn at an earlier age how serious of a situation this disorder really is. Talking about such a serious topic openly may make many people uncomfortable, but this is not something that should be hidden anymore. There are so many ways to get help for this disorder and the only way for people to become aware of this, and to find out that they are not alone, is for everyone to become less shy about this situation and learn that talking about this disorder might be able to save someone’s life.

An Inconvenient Truth-- "Cancer in a Box"

Almost everybody knows somebody who either passed from or survived cancer, and how many are from skin cancer? From my experience, I have learned that the amount is most likely very high, yet people continue to lay out everyday in the summer or ‘fake-bake’ in the winter. This is due to a few things, one of which being the worldwide obsession over body images and “being beautiful.” Turn on the television and numerous tanning commercials will come on with young, tan, and beautiful spokes models sending out the wrong message. Another reason is the ethics of the industry, or lack thereof. Tanning salons are a particularly negative influence, bringing in tanners, getting them addicted to being tan, and profiting from damaging skin. Proper warnings and limits are not being set and followed by the public, causing them to hurt themselves due to lack of knowledge in the subject. Such is unethical and must be addressed and terminated.

If anybody has any good ideas, please let me know! Thanks :)

Proposal

Humanpapillomavirus (HPV) is in many ways “inconvenient.” Teens are engaging more and more in sexual activity irresponsibly these days. Many guys can say “ Oh yeah, sure I’ve been checked for STD’s. I’m Fine!” Unfortunately there is no test available to check for HPV in men so that line really doesn’t cut it. HPV can occur in both male and female genital areas that are covered or protected by a latex condom, as well as areas uncovered. The use of condoms associated with this disease is still unknown, but they have been linked with showing a lower rate of cervical cancer. Many people don’t have symptoms, so how would they even know if they are spreading the infection? Genital HPV is very common; estimating that up to 75% of women will carry one or more types during adulthood. There is no “cure” for the HPV infection, although in many women the infection can go away on its own.

Proposal

The inconvenient truth of college binge-drinking lies in the fact that parents and officials have convinced themselves that the tightening of laws about underage and the increase of punishment will deter kids from drinking. As the laws change hardly a single person will stop drinking, the fact that it is more illegal will not change the habits ingrained into college society for the past several decades. This will only cause kids to lie their parents and make bad decisions, they worry more about the consequences of being caught drinking than the consequences that could occur from hopping behind the wheel of a car.

Proposal

Obviously the situation in Sudan is a huge problem in our world today. The UN is now aware of the crisis ongoing in this country, and steps are slowly being taken to try to help solve this problem. Nonetheless, thousands of people are being killed through this method of genocide every month by the rebels with little to no resistance against them. Even when the refugees are able to escape the horrendous conditions in Sudan, they are faced with conditions in refugee camps that aren’t much better. Hepatitis, cholera and many other diseases that spread throughout the camps are refugees’ new fear and enemy, with thousands more dying from the deadly diseases.

Proposal

When college students are at a party, and have to choose between a wild and crazy night of sex or sleeping alone, they usually choose sex; for three reasons. First, they are uneducated about the effects of sexually transmitted diseases. Two, they believe they’re invincible. And finally, and possible the most important factor, sex is fun. The reason STDs are such a problem among college students is simply because they love to have sex. Students tend to ignore facts about the dangers of STDs because they’re a nuisance. They don’t want facts about the horrible symptoms of gonorrhea or HIV running through their mind, interrupting their flow while they’re going at it with a person they just met--a person that might be freely giving away their own disease. “It’s not going to happen to me” some may say. These apathetic, or “I’m invincible” attitudes are exactly why STDs on college campuses have become such an epidemic. While using a condom in certainly more safe than unprotected sex, they’re not a one hundred percent safeguard. The only one hundred percent way to be certain to not catch one of these nasty little bugs is abstinence, but that’s no fun.