The Whole Economy Debacle

Story can be found here. 

Honestly, I don't know as much about the economic crisis in the country as I should. Numbers, money and economics has never been my strong point by any means, but as a politics and journalism major I should probably make myself more informed. 

This article caught my eye for several reasons. First, Warren Buffet is an extremely intelligent man with a lot of business savvy (obviously... he's the 2nd richest man in the country and worth over 50 billion dollars), plus, he was technically my boss at The Buffalo News because he owns it. So, when he has something to say about the economy, I will absolutely listen to it. 

As far as the article itself goes, I think that it is a great example of online journalism. It was broken up into chunks which made it way easier to read. Plus, there were pictures, links to videos about how this could affect every day Americans, and links to other articles about this subject. The thing I like most about CNN's website (I read it a lot, especially considering Ithaca's cable is ridiculously expensive so I can't watch CNN... or ESPN... or really anything for that matter) is the "story highlights" feature at the top of the page. It makes getting the facts that much easier. I think I'll be using the links from this page to update myself on the situation.  

Most Important Sports Venues in the United States

Story can be found here.

I originally found it on the Los Angeles Times USC blog. 

As a fan of USC Trojan football, and the university in general, I frequently check the USC blog on the Los Angeles Times website as well as updates on the Daily Trojan website. I missed the story about the sports venues on the ESPN website, so I am glad that I caught it on the Times website. 

I found the criteria for this listing to be interesting. It's not called America's best sports venues, America's prettiest sports venues, or anything of the nature. These are the venues that have had the most significant impact on American sports culture. 

 I was disappointed that none of Buffalo's sports venues (The Memorial Auditorium, HSBC Arena, Ralph Wilson Stadium or Dunn Tire Park) made the top 100 list despite great sports moments taking place there. Unfortunately most of these "great moments" happen for Buffalo's opposition. The pain of being a Buffalo sports fan. 

I have, however, had the opportunity to go to Notre Dame Stadium and the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Both had an awing effect on me. My family is full of Notre Dame alumni, so naturally we have made pilgrimages to worship the awesomeness that is Notre Dame football. I, however, being the black sheep of the family, am a USC football fan. USC and Notre Dame are arch rivals. They hate each other. It did not go over well with the family. 

The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is ranked higher than Notre Dame Stadium. Apparently South Bend, Indiana is not so happy about this assessment. The University prides itself on the beauty and tradition of its campus and the famously known "Touch Down Jesus" painted on the side of their library that can be seen from the Stadium. The Coliseum, however, has hosted the first Super Bowel, a World Series, and games from 2 different Olympics. Take that, Notre Dame. 

Amethyst Initiative

Story can be found here.

My second story is also from The Buffalo News. It is a discusses the Amethyst Initiative, another topic that we have discussed in class. 

This article discusses the viewpoints of various college officials from different colleges and universities from across Western New York. While it is interesting for me to see the viewpoints of representatives from the colleges where most of my friends back home go, I don't see the relevance or the immediate newsworthiness of the article. There was no speech or official movement to inspire this article. 

I definitely have a bias when it comes to this issue, so I will be watching as it progresses. I don't honestly think that it will change any laws in time to affect people in my age group. I will be 21 in a little less than 2 years. I doubt that there will be any significant change by then. 

Mystery Solved!

I have been trying to catch up on the news back home in Buffalo lately. One story that has caught my intention can be found at the bottom of this post. 

Basically the premise is that New York State Police finally found a suspect in a 37 year old murder mystery that took place in an extremely rural area south of Buffalo. The victim was a 25 year old Vietnam War veteran. He was found frozen and stabbed to death in a ditch in the Town of Arkwright in January of 1971. The police identified Donald Saden of Austin, Texas, as the suspect in this case. He was 17 years old during the time of the attack and knew the victim. He left Western New York for Texas shortly after the murder. 

This story is similar to the Elmira example that we went over in class. However, I do not feel that The Buffalo News did a thorough enough job explaining the actual crime itself. I wasn't even born when the original crime took place, so I have no previous knowledge of what happened. I feel as though the details of the crime are an important addition to this story considering it happened nearly forty years ago. People old enough to remember 1971 may also not be able to recall this particular murder. For example, neither of parents remember what the details of the case were and they were both disappointed with the story as it ran in this morning's News. 

On a personal note, this story is heartbreaking. The victim was a Vietnam veteran who served our country, only to return home and be brutally murder. My dad is also a Vietnam veteran so I relate to it on a more personal level. Also, the story mentioned that the victim's dad died in the 90's, so he did not leave to see justice for his son's murder. 

I hope more details become available soon. 

Story can be found here. 

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