Week 4 Post: Civil War & Reconstruction

Last week, 48 states’ Attorney Generals’ opted to launch investigations into Google’s dominance on the internet. More specifically, they are investigating if Google’s current business practices are turning the company into a monopoly.Google has been growing ever since its launch in 1998. Since the early 21st century they have been acquiring more companies, and with it, more power. Because of this, Google has become a dominant player in the online advertising space.

This is where the problem occurs. Google has taken down basically all of its competitors, either  by buying them out or running them out of business. With no competition, Google can essentially charge its clients whatever it wants to advertise on their search engine. The best way to think about it is that the more money that businesses have to spend on advertising on sites such as Google, the more they will have to charge consumers for their products. This also causes problems for small businesses who can’t afford to pay as much for advertising as some other companies might be able to. According to this article from CBS News, Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge said, “When my daughter is sick and I search online for advice or doctors, I want the best ones — the best advice or the best doctors — not the ones who spent the most on advertising.” This could not be more accurate.

Options that the investigators might consider could be to have Google separate its search engine from the rest of its business. This could help to keep the company from having too much power, but more has to be done. Google has so many different assets that create enormous amounts of revenue for the company. In order to really regulate the company, I believe that those investigating the cases should be much harsher with how they choose to handle the situation.

Week 3 Post: The Founding Era

Video Links:

Part 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cWRoXYRsaeo&feature=youtu.be

Part 2 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ca8qSuWxcG8&t=622s

The supreme court is a very special thing to be a part of. Their job is much more intense than some people might think. The two videos attached to the links above delve into what exactly the nine justices do on a daily basis. But, obviously, you wouldn’t be reading this if you wanted to watch the videos instead. Maybe you just care that much about what I have to say (to which I am grateful if you do). Either way, the U.S. Supreme Court is a very important part of our government that the people of The United States of America have gained respect for over the course of the country’s wild history. The one thing that struck me the most was the just the sheer amount of work that the justices have to do. After watching the second video, I learned that the longest part of any case actually comes after the trial has happened. 

According to the narrator of the videos, the opinions that justices write can sometimes take weeks to prepare. Then, they need to potentially be looked at by peer editors and always the other justices. What makes this part of every case so long is that the justices have to constantly edit their opinions to account for (and sometimes try to persuade) other points of view. One could imagine that some cases will obviously take much longer than others. While this process may seem annoying and tedious, it is necessary to uphold the laws and proper enforcement of those laws in our country. The justices of the U.S. Supreme Court are some of the best people on the planet. They dedicate their lives to serving a country and ideals that they believe in alongside the rest of the American people.

Week 2 Post: Communication Technology

Article Link: https://www.wistv.com/2019/08/20/new-communication-technology-announced-first-responders-columbia/

A little over two weeks ago, on August 19th, the entire city of Columbia, South Carolina announced a new communications system for all of its first responders. The new system, known as FirstNet, is a great way for all first responders (police department, fire department, EMS, etc.) to communicate with each other in order to coordinate themselves accordingly to whatever situation arises. In a world now flooded with mass shootings, bombings, and other terror attacks; it's imperative that our emergency responders are able to do their jobs to the best of their ability. The system was achieved with the help of AT&T, one of the biggest names in cellular service. The service is strictly limited to emergency personnel and first responders. The author of the article above, Greg Ardine, also stated that First Net is backed by Congress. He later went on to state that the First Net Authority is its own independent agency within our federal government. 

I think a communications system like this is great. It’s exactly what the world needs right now. With so many horrible acts of violence, crimes, and domestic terrorism; a network like FirstNet is crucial to saving the lives of so many people. The fact that they implemented the first iteration of the system in Columbia makes me feel a little safer as well. In light of the recent events that have occurred on High Point’s campus, it’s nice to know that other schools (University of South Carolina) are taking good precautionary measures to keep their students out of harms way.