Ichigo66 talks about religious discrimination and its consequences.

Author's Note: This article contains some discussion on suicide and might not be suitable for young readers. Please, have a parent go over the article and decide if it's ok to read. Thank you!

Greetings. Ichigo66 speaking, here to talk about a rather important and personal issue. It's something everybody deals with in one way or another, but it seems that some people have to put up with it more than others. What is it I'm talking about? It's simple, really. I'm talking about discrimination. Not just any kind of discrimination. Religious discrimination. It's very real and very hurtful. People have gone to court, been kicked out of towns and even killed themselves over this particular brand of discrimination.

I know there have been a lot of religious articles in the Times the past few weeks. Trust me, I know. And I know that most of you are probably sick of reading religious articles. But I feel this issue must be addressed. Many people have been the victims of religious discrimination, in real life and on Whyville. It hurts when somebody taunts your beliefs, whether it be to your face, behind your back, or over the internet.

read more...

Msof57 reports on a teacher's dream to fly in outer space.

Author's Note: Please excuse some of the blurry photographs. Since this was 1986 the photographs weren't the best in the world.

You may be wondering why I'm writing an article on a teacher. Everyone knows we come to Whyville to escape school. But, this isn't about some teacher who died from cancer and founded an organization. No. This is about a teacher who wanted to go up into space. But she never made it there.

Christa McAuliffe wrote to NASA for the "Teacher In Space" program. It was a program meant for an educator, a regular person, a teacher to go up in space, teach a lesson, and spark the minds of students everywhere further into space. Christa McAuliffe taught Social Studies, History, (whatever you prefer to call it . . . ) at Concord High School in Concord, New Hampshire. She wrote in her entry to the Teacher in Space program in 1984 and received the announcement that she would be traveling to space on July 19, 1985. Along with runner-up, Barbara Morgan, she jumped into immediate astronaut training for the tough road ahead.

read more...