Social Issues

National identity is a fascinating concept, but where do its origins lie? Is national identity merely a social construct or perhaps something more? Who stands to gain from creating national identity?

The hippie movement was a catalyst for a great deal of change. What came of these changes and is there a lasting effect today? What came of the hippies themselves?

Welcome the world of the "lifelong customer" where babies are taught from infancy to memorize brand logos and jingles. Do any of us stand a chance? How did this happen?

50 years after Stonewall, the struggle for LGBTQ rights and acceptance continues. Love is love, no matter the color of the rainbow.

Who doesn’t like cute widdle wabbits hoping about the landscape? Twenty-three million Australians for a start.

A two-day experiment conducted by Jane Elliot, a third-grade teach in Iowa, teaches her third-graders a lifelong lesson on discrimination.

This article looks at the pros and cons of a US amnesty for illegal immigrants and lists the arguments used by both sides in the debate.

While numerous people have felt deep conflicts between their physiological and psychological structures, gender reassignment has been slow to emerge as a pathway to freedom

We use a huge amount of plastic today. Most of it takes a very long time to degrade and can harm marine life. Some bacteria are able to break down plastic.

Modern farming methods rely heavily on the European Honey Bee for pollination, but the honey bee population is in peril and the cause of the problem is not well understood. Modern farming methods do not currently support adequate pollination by native species of bees.

The Keystone XL Pipeline is a hot button issue these days. Sorting fact from fiction shows that it's not the panacea that many believe it to be.

Support homosexuality or leave! Those were the choices Christian counseling student Julea Ward faced when her faculty demanded she approve same-sex relationships when counseling homosexuals.

Some of my opinions as to why so many people in America seem to have no empathy for homeless people despite being mere paychecks away from the circumstance themselves.

Colorism is a social justice issue that needs to be addressed. I am not praising one skin tone over the other; I am just giving people with darker skin tones words of encouragement.

Arguments for Gun Control – International murder rates and crime rates show why arguments against gun control are difficult to support. A novel use of statistics is employed to extract the key gun control argument.

This article summarizes the various reported incidents of human trafficking in the contemporary world. The story also provides contacts for organizations involved in the fight against human trafficking.

Climate change is increasingly recognized as being observable today. But if we want to do something about it, how much time do we have to do so? Personal and scientific reflections on this question.

Religion in developed countries is declining, but why is it dying out so fast? Read on to find out why 9 countries will soon be comprised entirely of non-believers, and why the rest of the world will soon follow their lead.

For every second in David Rockefeller's long life, he's been one of the wealthiest human beings on the planet. But this isn't the only fact that makes it easy to dislike him....

Without change, our dependence on petroleum and coal for power could someday lead to society's demise. But why wait for the inevitable when we can enact change now? With a multitude of viable energy sources at our finger tips, we are on the brink of a paradigm shift. Here are nine sources of renewable energy that could potentially change how we power our future.

Read this hub to find out about the history of the second amendment and how it affects gun rights and gun control. Learn what measures the NRA is using to quiet politicans about the gun control after the Auora Colorado shootings. Watch a video of ultra-high capacity rounds being fired.

This article looks at the main arguments for and against in the debate over the question of should corporal in schools be allowed.

Of the 45 presidents who have held the highest office in the land, two stand out in the creation of park space and the protection of the environment. One, Theodore Roosevelt, may come as no surprise, but the other, Richard Nixon, is a most unlikely candidate.

Plastic pollution can be dangerous for marine life. Microplastic particles are tiny pieces of debris that may be harmful for animals and for humans as well.

We all know cigarettes are bad for our health, but what are the environmental impacts of smoking tobacco on our planet?

This hub briefly summarizes and analyzes a few aspects of the healthcare system and its achievements in Vietnam.

This article gives the essential arguments for and against gun control laws, listing the main pros and cons that people use in the debate.

The characteristics of healthcare management focuses on managing illness rather than preventing health issues. I explain how this causes rising health insurance costs.

Have you wondered why people living on the street don't just get jobs and stop being homeless? Learn about homeless employment statistics, the barriers to employment they must overcome, and share your solutions in the comments.

Simply put, when the Europeans came to America - the Native Americans discovered that Europeans were savages.

While it is known that air pollution causes many serious physical health concerns, now research shows that toxic air negatively impacts intelligence and cognitive abilities as well.

How can you tell if someone is homeless? There's no sure way but there are a lot of clues that may add up to homelessness when taken together. Knowing them can keep people living on the street safer.

We all want murder rates to come down, but is gun control effective? Statistics and facts on gun crime and gun controls vs crime. You decide.

America is passionately divided on the issue of gun control and the 2nd Amendment, and some, it seems, will go to extreme lengths to counter any changes in the law. This is the reason for this article

Sadly, echoes of the bitter segregationists are still heard today even among those who seek high office.

This article summarizes the history and misdeeds of the Mexican drug cartels. The scope of this international problem is discussed as well, emphasizing its impact on the United States, perhaps the only country powerful enough to stop them.

Skinheads are one of the most misunderstood and wrongly-labeled groups of people. Learn about what a skinhead really is, where they come from, and what they're all about.

Will you know what to do when society collapses and civil disorder reigns? Find out what supplies you will need and where you need to go if and when the apocalypse happens.

Public education might be the last resort for children of color to constructively assimilate into American society, but there is an enormous disjoint looming over America’s educational itinerary.

There have been five mass extinctions; we are now in the beginning of the sixth mass extinction. How is global warming threatening all life on earth and what can we do about it?

The world has seen countless religions in recorded history. Plenty of these are practiced to this day. Why do atheist books and speeches target only one of these religions?

Children who were not perfect and considered "feeble-minded" were shut away from society, their families, and everything they knew.

Did you know the United States holds many of the world's records for school shootings? Or that our first school shooting took place in 1764? Learn this and much more with this in depth article.

Learn who the homeless people in this country are and how much our public assistance programs cost. The truth may surprise you.

Highlighting differences between UK and USA housing, to show some of the social and cultural differences between Britain and American homes; based on my personal knowledge and perceptions of America.

Social networking is so widespread nowadays few people question its value. This article lists the downsides of using social media.

Understand what the scientific community is reporting about the side effects of eating genetically modified foods. Studies show links to obesity, diabetes, food allergies, cancer, and fertility problems.

A social issue report which aims to add to the body of knowledge on homelessness in America, and to provide innovative advocacy interventions for future community or social ventures within the homeless arena.

This article discusses potential negative effects of social networking. Porter's Five Forces Model is explored as it relates to these effects and recommendations regarding accountability are made.

I am not a celebrity. I am simply a writer with my own ideas, opinions and creative pursuits. Behind my words, you cannot see me, except for a small profile picture in the corner of the screen. If you saw me in the street, you would not recognise...

There has been a lot of controversy lately about whether abortion is right or wrong. The truth is far more complicated. Below is the story of a mom who turned to abortion. I hope her story will open the eyes, hearts, and minds of the world.

There are several deep rooted causes of Indian poverty, some have historical roots and others derive strength from socio-political structure. Lack of effective governance and corruption has only sustained Indian poverty.

Think tanks have an enormous effect on public opinion and policy. Most think tanks promote themselves as being unbiased - but are they?

Have you ever wondered why people become homeless? This article explains just a few of the most common causes of home loss for people living in the United States. Some of them may surprise you.

In the Netherlands, some daycares want to reject children who haven't been vaccinated, as they might be a danger to other children's health. However, most of them haven't taken vaccinations because of personal reasons, like religion. Rejecting these children is, in my opinion, discrimination.

A formula for bad results.

Chocolate bars have a dark, often untold story of human trafficking and child slavery. Cocoa plantations on the Ivory Coast use unpaid child labor to harvest the cocoa beans, often employing tactics such as physical abuse by overseers on plantations in West Africa.

Imagine growing up in a town so poisonous - so radioactive - that the Environmental Protection Agency had to destroy it. That is exactly what the EPA did to my friend's childhood home in New Mexico.

Why do homeless people seem to avoid using emergency housing shelters? Here are some of the reasons.

A listing of ways just one person can help protect endangered species. Learn ways you can help by starting right in your own backyard or make a difference for animals around the world!

We can create happy neighborhoods, beginning with personal effort to become good neighbors. The following habits form the foundation for good next door neighbors.

This article explores the issues regarding the question of whether or not cigarettes should be banned, with themain arguments that are used for and against making cigarettes illegal listed.

One of the most significant controversies which has emerged in education has to do with cell phones. More specifically…should cell phones be allowed in school? There are pros and cons to both sides.

Gay-Straight Alliances exist to give kids a safe space. Outing them to parents, even for the simple reason of joining the club as an ally, is unsafe.

Bullied children across America suffer needlessly. The number and severity of attacks by bullies continue to increase exponentially with the availability of social media sites and texting capabilities. States, desperate to get a handle on it, impose fines or jail parents of bullies. Is this fair?

This is basically my breakup letter to feminism. For many years, I was a feminist, but not a radical one. But radicals took over, sanity has left the building, and I am not a feminist anymore.

Learn some of the most common stereotypes, myths, and misconceptions about homeless people in America. Weigh in with your opinions in the comments.

Some semesters back, the Honors Program at the George Washington University in Washington, DC held a symposium on religion and conflict in the 21st century.  In this symposium, we heard from several speakers, then broke into case study groups in...

Poverty kills more people every year than any other cause and contributes to even more deaths. Why doesn't anybody care?

Journalists can focus better on their reader's interests with online news services. However, many small-town newspapers still fill a niche that Internet websites can't touch due to lack of broadband to rural homes.

Many claim homelessness is caused by (and only caused by) making stupid, destructive , and completely avoidable choices. This page examines some of those poor choices. Have you ever made any of them?

The new Nat Geo Wild program features an exotic pet vet in Deerfield Beach who regularly derides exotic pet owners while collecting checks from them. Florida exotic pet owners, find a new vet.

Imagine if all the oil yet to be extracted from the ground suddenly disappeared, never to reappear again. How would we cope without the raw material that made the modern world possible. Would be able to find a suitable alternative fuel. Part one looks at what an oil-less world would like during the first year.

The truth of the matter is tobacco kills, but quitting the nasty habit also carries a series of long term side effects. If you don’t like being lied to, this is a must read.

Are pets and zoo animals slaves or prisoners? Projecting the human emotional state upon animals is not necessarily in line with optimal animal welfare.

Often lumped together, this article attempts to discern how chewing tobacco and cigarette addictions are different.

When it comes sustainability in our world, we need to be concerned about three key areas. The important concepts of environmental, economic, and social sustainability form a basis from which good decisions and actions can be made. Here, I will discuss the three spheres of sustainability and how these interrelated concepts ultimately effect you and society as a whole.

The health risks of meat production today can no longer be brushed under the carpet. Find out exactly what you put into your mouth.

This is an exploration of the many reasons why people choose not to have children.

This article suggests a list of the 13 most polluted rivers in the world. Included in the story are what countries are doing to cleanse these filthy waterways.

If those searching for the truth don't trust mainline media outlets, where should they go? This article explains media consolidation in the United States and gives alternative sources to the MSM.

Have you wondered about the earth's floating patches of garbage? This article explains how these garbage patches got into our oceans and what's being done to reduce or eliminate them.

This article looks at the relative advantages and disadvantages of religion, with a pros and pros and cons list.

Why do people put down wild animals in captivity while being perfectly fine with domesticated animals in human control? Are domesticated animals really that different from exotic animals?

Industrial livestock farming is unsustainable and unethical. Eating meat and dairy causes ill-health and climate change. What can we do?

Opinions matter, especially since this agenda is being promoted by the United Nations which clearly expects the idea to have international appeal. Learn about the CEDAW treaty and share your opinion.

I am often asked why I don't believe in God. It seems shocking to some, and an immediate condemnation of being evil usually follows. The simple answer is no God has ever answered my prayers...

Dr. Ivar Giaever has become a media darling for climate change denialists. But having a renowned scientist supporting their cause may not be the definitive component they need to win this argument.

Many people already realize the importance that recycling has on our society and way of life. However, if you still need more convincing, here are five big reasons why you need to start recycling today.

Sociological research demonstrates that when whites are exposed to the Confederate flag, it causes them to react more negatively toward blacks.

Hostility and contempt towards women, or belief in their inborn inferiority, has pervaded religious and political ideology. Many women believe the fight continues to obtain equality and respect

Six ideas to help end homelessness and an invitation to share your solutions to the problem of so many Americans being homeless. So many are veterans, children, elders, and disabled people.

The technological revolution of recent years has brought with it many positives, but also quite a few negatives. I look at the advantages and disadvantages of technology.

Mass incarceration has been so socially concentrated that America is incarcerating entire social groups. African American parents must break the cycle.

The symbolism of the Confederate flag is defined by its repellent history, not the belief of its supporters that it has nothing to do with racism, but symbolizes the best in Southern heritage.

Radioactive Waste in the Ocean. Radioactive waste storage in the oceans. The pros and cons of long term radioactive storage of waste.

Referring to “people first” and then their disability is supposed to focus attention on the person and not their condition. If that is true, why aren’t more people and the media using it?

Dirt is absolutely essential to our survival, and we are losing it at a phenomenal rate. Modern farming methods, deforestation and urbanization all contribute to soil erosion and degradation.

Lots of people have believed for decades that men are the better drivers over women, but do the facts support that belief? Or is it a myth of machismo?

All information regarding water pollution - what it is, who it effects, its sources and how it's resolved.