Should the federal government provide health care for all citizens who cannot afford their own?

I absolutely think we are far behind when it comes to health care in this country. I think health care is a basic right and should be available to everyone. I think Obama is wonderfully courageous for tackling this problem and if he achieves his goals will go down as one of the most influential United States presidents. Health care is so outrageously expensive that many people cannot afford it and end up in debt with medical bills. That is not fair to them who out of anyone cannot afford coverage much less medical bills. I  do however feel like there should be restrictions based on smoking and eating habits. I do not like the idea of paying for peoples bad decisions. There should be a program that requires people to take classes based on their poor diet or smoking habits in order to receive full coverage.

Do certain children's toys create social or emotional or other problems?

There are definitely negative effects experienced from kids playing with certain toys. I think that Barbies give little girls superficial standards of success. Violent boys toys nurture their violent tendencies. I do not however feel like this should be restricted by law because it's the parents job to not buy toys like these for their children. I think there is a severe lack of diversity in our toys and magazines also. Growing up as anything other than a white girl with blond hair there is no relating to the way our dolls look. Diversity is something that is starting to emerge more, but we still have a ways to go. There are also some very educational and inspiring toys on the market available for kids that parents should steer towards.

What techniques should the public schools use to strengthen literacy at all grade levels?

I think that the biggest issue with getting kids to read is all the easier more distracting things there are available in our world today. To combat this I think schools need to assign FUN reading for students. I grew up in a family that reads A LOT. When I was a kid I use to read Ramona Quimby, Nancy Drew, Betsy, Tacy and Tibb and many others; I loved every second of it. When I got into school we were assigned books to read that I found rather drab and tended to read my own books when I should have read those. I understand the relevancy of these reading choices now, but at the time hated it. What would be bad about making Harry Potter an assigned read for kids, just to get them into the fun and fantasy of books. Then once their interest is piqued switch off between fun and educational. In the end, parents are and always will be the key to a child loving books though, bottom line.

Should juvenile offenders be tried and punished as adults?

I do not believe that juveniles should be tried as adults because of the simple fact that they are NOT adults. People do not have the same reasoning skills when they are young, nor do they have a concrete idea of consequences. I definitely believe that juveniles should be punished, coached and restricted based on misbehavior, but not held as legally accountable as an adult would for the same scenario. There are a lot of rebellious kids and especially teenagers that turn out just fine once they get older. Once you get in to system it's hard to get out, so if there's an alternative, be it mentoring or counseling, that's the best direction to go.