Ireland said: Yes. Who says: Wow?

News: Ireland Votes to Approve Gay Marriage, Putting Country in Vanguard

Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/24/world/europe/ireland-gay-marriage-referendum.html?_r=0

Date: May 23 / 2015

Last Saturday Ireland became the first country to approve gay marriage by popular vote, a slap to the historically powerful Catholic Church that opposes the motion.[1]

The Church called to vote against it in a country where over 90% of primary schools are under their tutelage. The angelus bells ring twice daily on public television and 84.2% of the population are denominated Catholic.

But the Irish turned their backs on this catholic call. When the votes counted referendum Friday in 39 of the 43 constituencies, the benefit of the votes (62.3%) were already insurmountable for votes against, as the RTE national broadcast announced. [2]

Although currently, to prevent abuse or neglect legal homosexual couples, gay marriage doesn't need to be approve, as most of the benefits of a marriage can be regulated through legal agreements (for example in relation to inheritance, transfer of property, shared properties, etc.).

So the news this week has surprised the world picking up an old ethical dilemma: the marriage is a heterosexual institution and this essentially involves distorting the concept of marriage, which means perverting the "nature" of it.[3] However the Irish with their vote have approved it.

Importantly, all persons have the right to be happy and this means being free and equal before the law. Laws should be for everyone and should not matter if someone is heterosexual or not, so it is expected that this new law, may regulate and allow the free exercise of the rights for all Irish.

Proponents of this gay marriage project have insisted that the family, like every other institution, is a social product subject to change. Human relations are crossed by culture, therefore, the rules and laws are modified in order to accompany cultural change.

In total, 1,201,607 people voted in favor with 734,300 against, giving a majority of 467,307. The total valid poll was 1,935,907.[4]

The decision was quite clear and although the results will bring controversy to the remaining countries that will discuss the motion, one has to ask oneself: is it ethically correct? ...To which I can only mention that we are all human and that gender and racial differences may only pose a burden, that will soon or later have to be hopped. We are all equal individuals; therefore, we all must have the same legal rights.   

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[1] http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/24/world/europe/ireland-gay-marriage-referendum.html?_r=0

[2] http://www.gnnliberia.com/articles/2015/05/24/irish-voters-approve-gay-marriage

[3] http://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/ireland-becomes-first-country-to-approve-same-sex-marriage-by-popular-vote-1.2223646

[4] http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32856232

An Unapologetic Criminal: the Author of Boston´s Attacks

NEW: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Given Death Penalty in Boston Marathon Bombing

LINK: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/16/us/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-death-sentence.html?_r=0

DATE: MAY 15, 2015

On Friday a federal jury sentenced a death penalty to Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, for the attacks of the Boston Marathon in 2013, which left 3 dead and 264 wounded people.[i] The sentence against the young Muslim of Chechen origin and 21 years of age, came to a conclusion after 14 hours of deliberations in which the jury found him guilty of six of the 17 counts susceptible to death penalty.

The same jury convicted Tsarnaev, on April 8th, for the 30 charges brought against him by the worst attack on US land since those of September 11, 2001.

While prosecutors described the young man as a terrorist remorseless being that deserves to die, the defense painted him as a lost child, manipulated at the time of the facts by his older brother, Tamerlan, 26, who placed the bombs that exploded almost simultaneously.

Tamerlan was killed by police two days later when trying to flee Boston.[ii] During the process, which lasted over two and a half months, assistant US Attorney Steve Mellin, said the brothers had the same level of involvement in the incident and recalled the message that Dzhokhar had painted on the boat that was found days later, explaining the attack as revenge for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"No remorse, no apology. They are the words of a terrorist convinced he did the right thing. Felt justified to kill, maul and seriously injure innocent men, women and children," said the prosecutor of the case.[iii]

US Secretary of Justice, Loretta Lynch, said that the death sentence against Tsarnaev was "an appropriate punishment for this heinous crime" and said to have the "hope that the completion of the process will allow victims and their families to turn the page".[iv]

The prosecution presented the slaughter, in the harrowing testimonies of the victims, some of whom went to court after prosthetic limb amputations. Presenting pictures of the case, they talked about the wounds that Tsarnaev caused to hundreds of people.

Defense attorney Judy Clarke, one of the best specialists in the US capital punishment insisted that the young was influenced by his older brother, "the true mastermind of the attacks," and a family without roots, a mentally ill parent and an intimidating mother”.[v] She added on "in any case, he will die in prison. I don´t ask you to forgive him. It´s unforgivable. But I will ask you try to understand him¨ in respect to Tsarnaev, who came to the States when he was 8 years old and became an US citizen in 2012.

The defense presented 21 mitigating factors, such as age of Tsarnaev, who was just 19 at the time of the attacks. In this criminal conviction is evident that even though he was a minor and a naturalized US citizen, the universal rights of people, should be above the individual religious beliefs.

Ethical codes stand out for the well-being of society. Rosenstand (2013), presents in her ethical works, the ideals of ethical relativism, as well as the problems, which in this case, and with all justice, do not deem reason to the acts taken by Tsarnaev.[vi] Above all ideals and all religious differences, there is the belief of respect for other human beings. It would not be justifiable, if Tsarnaev was given the ethical relativism, when he in his conscious actions did not present any remorse.  

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[i] http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/16/us/explosions-reported-at-site-of-boston-marathon.html?pagewanted=all

[ii] http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/19/tamerlan-tsarnaev-dead-boston-bombing-suspect-dies_n_3116056.html

[iii] http://www.wsj.com/articles/boston-marathon-bombing-trial-verdict-jury-sentences-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-to-death-1431718283

[iv] http://www.wsj.com/articles/boston-marathon-bombing-trial-verdict-jury-sentences-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-to-death-1431718283

[v] http://www.wsj.com/articles/boston-marathon-bombing-trial-verdict-jury-sentences-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-to-death-1431718283

[vi] Rosenstand, N. (2013). The moral of the story: An introduction to ethics (7th ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill

Earthquake in Nepal, a Social Tragedy

NEWS: Don't Wait for Disaster to Strike

DATE: May 7, 2015 | 12:30 p.m. EDT

LINK: http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/world-report/2015/05/07/nepal-earthquake-response-shows-need-for-better-international-planning

The number of victims continues increasing upon the earthquake measuring 7.8 that struck Nepal on Saturday April 25^th. According to Asian police sources, the death toll already stands at over 4,300 people and other 8,000 injured.[i]

It’s been a few weeks after the earthquake, yet, the affected communities don´t have light or potable water most of the day, the internet is intermittent, the phone lines are working but apparently they can´t receive phone calls, only text messages. Since that day, people in Nepal who can communicate via social networks like Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp and Viber, say that there are frequent aftershocks almost as strong as an earthquake, which further damage the remains of buildings already affected.

Unfortunately, they can´t say the worst is over, because the worst is yet to come. There is a larger need of food and water in a city that already had shortages of water, electricity, gasoline and shortages of some foods. Overall, the outlook is not encouraging.

Not only houses and lives were destroyed and lost. Many monuments and cultural heritage of UNESCO, such as their temples, their history, and their cultural patrimony were destroyed. All this collapsed in the 40 seconds that the earthquake lasted.

The government does what they can, and international aid arrives. With the political instability of recent years, people in Nepal knows they must help each other and not depend on government. The sense of community in this Himalayan country is enormous. Nepalese are generous and respectful, so spiritual that their culture will be the focus of their strength to move forward.

People in Kathmandu, the capital city, feel lucky. Lucky to be alive, because their relatives and close friends are physically well, and because that tragedy did not happen in the monsoon, winter, on weekdays when children go to school, or at night when people are sleeping at home. In a way, everything could be worse.  

Now comes the hard part, which is to rebuild a nation's life with so little. As a Nepali said: "We did it once (referring to the earthquake of 1934) and will do it again. The most important thing is that we are alive.”[ii]

During periods of natural catastrophe comes in place the ideology of cultural relativism. Where other, healthier and economically stable, nations come forward to help. Upon the damage, the United States dispatched a disaster response team and $1 million to aid the circumstances.[iii] Even though, other nations could look the other way and declare themselves unable to cooperate, the ethical beliefs and human relations don’t allow us to be so indifferent to the mishap of others. Perhaps, one hopes that when times are rough, that in a way or another there is a remote nation, lending a helping hand, to overcome the disaster and move to greater things.

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[i] Gayle, D. (2015, May 5). Number of Nepal earthquake victims from abroad still unknown. Retrieved May 10, 2015, from http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/may/05/numbers-of-nepal-earthquake-victims-from-abroad-still-unknown

[ii] Ravilious, K. (2015, April 27). Nepal quake 'followed historic pattern' - BBC News. Retrieved May 10, 2015, from http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-32472310

[iii] U.S. Sending Aid to Help With Nepal Earthquake. (2015, April 25). Retrieved May 10, 2015, from http://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2015/04/25/us-sending-disaster-response-team-1-million-aid-to-nepal