Author Archives: Kelly

Prescription Medications in the United States

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Medications are a part of a lot of peoples daily lives. Something we are discussing in one of my classes is antibiotic resistance. One of my major questions is are medications doing more harm than good. I keep thinking about medication commercials where they advertise a medication and the proceed to talk about all the potential side effects. Are we causing more problems than we are solving? Obviously there are some conditions that need to be medicated but are we focusing more on giving people pills to mask symptoms rather than working on fixing them? Antibiotics are sometimes a necessary evil where antibiotics are needed to clear up certain bacterial infections but people think that they are a cure all.  People with infections that are antibiotic resistant are incredibly difficult to treat and they can often be lethal.

This is just some food for thought as I have to get back to writing my antibiotic resistance essay.

Animal Husbandry in Films

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This weeks film was God’s Own Country. This film focused on the life of Johnny. A young gay man who lived on a farm. I found the portrail of Johnny in the beginning of the film fascinating. This young man essential gets drunk every night, wakes up every morning vomiting and hung over then proceeds to poorly tend to the animals on the farm. There was obviously a lot of problems with that scenario but from an animal husbandry standpoint it is rather disturbing. I know a few dairy science kids as an animal science major and while they are enjoying their time at college I wouldn’t describe any of them as wreckless which is what Johnny’s behavior was. Yes as an adult you can occasionally enjoy a few drinks but working with animals is no joke. He is the sole person responsible for the farm before Gheorgie comes to help, and he doesn’t seem to care. Other things trump the well being of the animals. Not properly caring for a cow giving birth or her calf can be and clearly was detrimental to cow health. You should never help a cow with their birth unless things clearly aren’t progressing on their own because you could end up doing more harm than good. However, in this situation it was clearly neglect that led to a calf dying. I was already out of the birth canal but someone needed to help it breathe and clear fluid out of its lungs. Farming is not a hobby it is a big time commitment and you can’t binge drink every night and wake up at noon to run a farm. That is irresponsible and dangerous for the health and well-being of your animals.

Networking at Cornell

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Tonight’s table talk with Christa Downey made me reflect on my experience at Cornell. I’m an animal science major and I tend to associate with other animal science majors. I would like to think that it’s because I see people that have common interests. I see a lot of the same people in my classes, in clubs I’m in,  and in the library. I would like to expand my network. There are definitely a lot of people who have common interests who aren’t my major. My roommate freshman year, who I’m still friends with, is an astronomy major and we have common interests. I would like to meet more people and expand my horizons. Hopefully Rose Scholars will allow me to do that.

Good vs Evil

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At this weeks Rose Cafe Judge Scott Miller brought up many fascinating topics. One topic he brought up was the fact that people aren’t 100% good or 100% bad. I think by putting people into binaries is not only limiting but absurd. A lot of times its easier to label someone you don’t like or don’t agree with as bad. One instance in society right now is the burning of Nike shoes by people who think Colin Kaepernick, more accurately what he stands for, is bad. There is a lot of miscommunication in our society. Looking at the people who are engaging in this Nike Boycott they think anyone who supports Kaepernick is anti-American. This is not the case in my opinion.

In order to fully understand the situation we need to understand why Kaepernick decided to kneel during the national anthem. In a statement to NFL media in 2016 he said “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” he then went on to say “To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.” (Source: http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000691077/article/colin-kaepernick-explains-protest-of-national-anthem)

That statement to me says I need things to change and I need to be respected by the country I live in before I show pride for that country. He’s not saying he hates America he’s saying he hates the way America treats people of color. This aligns with the Black Lives Matter movement. A lot of people who support the all lives matter movement simply do not understand the meaning of the black lives matter movement or are most likely racist. The black lives matter movement is not saying that only black people matter its saying people of color deserve to be treated equally. Dear straight, cis, white, man: the black lives matter movement is not trying to say you don’t matter. However people of color have been oppressed and therefore have a reason to have a movement.  Straight, cis, rich , white men have been disregarding the rights of people of color in America since 1492 when Christopher Columbus “discovered” America. You cannot ignore the trail of tear, slavery, the treatment of African Americans pre-civil right movement.  By the way, just because the civil rights movement happened and slavery is illegal doesn’t mean African Americans (and people of color in general) aren’t discriminated against. Respect is a two-way street. Why would I respect someone  or something that has absolutely no respect for my rights. What kind of country do we live in where unarmed people of color are shot for no reason by the people who’s job it is to protect and serve? I’m not saying I’m not proud to be an American, I’m saying it is absolutely atrocious how people in this country treat minorities. Don’t even get me started on the discrimination against LGBTQ+ people.  Queer people could not get married until 2016 which is absurd but just because we can get married doesn’t mean there aren’t bigger problems affecting the LGBT community.

I will end my rant here but if you would like to engage in a conversation please comment down below.