No-lympics? by Daron Vaught

Even though a reporter does not have the privilege of taking a direct part in the debating and sharing of ideas that goes on at CONA, it helps to know as much as possible about what he or she reporting. I took an extensive “peek” through all of the conference’s proposals, making note of my favorites. Now, I didn’t necessarily agree with some of them, but I may have enjoyed the innovative thought that was apparently put into a particular submission. I managed to narrow it all down to one, however, and I would like to share with you what I saw as the most intriguing and interesting proposal submitted. I will follow this proposal and its author throughout the legislative process and will keep you updated on its progress.

In 2001, the International Olympic Committee granted the city of Beijing, China the privilege of hosting the Summer Olympic Games. This, of course, was under the impression that the Republic of China would enhance the freedoms and right of its people. With the 2008 games approaching, Beijing is set to host and no apparent changes have been made in the city’s human rights policies, leaving one Eric Kunkel to be very distraught. Kunkel, a three year CONA veteran from Minnesota, proposes that the United States make sure that the people of China have justice. He proposes that the United States boycott the 2008 Summer Olympics.

I don’t believe that there are many flaws to this motion, as history tends to repeat itself. Allow me to explain. The Olympic Games have been somewhat notorious for playing host to groundbreaking political statements and have induced the rise of many of the world’s most outspoken heroes. From Jesse Owens single-handedly defeating the Third Reich to President Ronald Reagan catalyzing peace in South Korea (which was also done by way of boycott), the Olympics have been proven to be the stage to some of the United States’ most gratifying moments.

However, fellow delegates pointed out that the stipulations of this proposal would be terribly detrimental to the athletes who plan to compete in the Games. “These athletes spend their whole lives trying to get here, and this may be there only chance to compete in the Olympics,” Alex Oliva of Kentucky stated in his con statement. “It is a great idea, but I think that maybe there is another way we could do it.” Kunkel responded to these comments, concluding that “we may be ripping away dreams of thousands of athletes, but if we do not move this proposal forward (through General Assembly) we’ll be allowing others to rip away lives of millions.”

CONA Mixer Part 1

CONA Mixer Part 2

A Few Too Many

Top Ten Weirdest Proposals by Jessica Ayers

10. Be Safe, Castrate- Castration for level three sex offenders (Mojica, 303)

9. Quail Hunter- Impeaching George W. Bush and Dick Cheney (Bowers, 22)

8. Dumpster Diving- Disposal of Spent Batteries and Accumulators (Boutin, 313)

7. Make Sure Big Brothers Not Watching- Banning all use of microchip implantation in humans, voluntary or involuntary (Couch, 319)

6. Baby Daddies- To grant men the ability to sign their legal and financial responsibilities to an unborn child if the mother refuses to get an abortion.

5. Shrinkin’ Lincoln- Changing the size of paper money (Walker, 183)

4. Cigarettes for Kidneys- Offer incentives for inmates to donate organs in order to meet the demands of transplantation (Garcia, 431)

3. Less Junk Out of a Different Trunk- Post Office Privatization Act (Pruitt, 203)

2. Dismantling the Deer Dump- Banning the disposal of deer carcasses in landfills and promoting the composting of deer carcasses as an environmentally responsible alternative (Burns, 41)

1. Dear Jon, I Hope you have E-mail- The elimination of “snail-mail” (Davis, 75)

It all starts with the T off by Nicole Geier

Every year most delegations brainstorm ideas for their states’ shirt. This year’s state shirts were extremely creative, and a few shirts stood out from the others. Some delegations wore their state’s conference shirt and most states designed shirts with either a person or theme in mind.

The Family of Alabama’s shirt was designed with conference director Bob McGauhey in mind. Every year the Family designs their shirt in honor of Bob’s love and hard work. This year Alabama chose a Bob the Builder theme featuring McGauhey building the family of Alabama and making it strong.

CONA may need some fixing up after Oklahoma passes through! Oklahoma’s shirt claim “Taking CONA By Storm”, paying tribute to their home the epicenter of “Tornado Alley”.

Florida’s superheroes are here to save the day! Their state advisers love themes, and this year they surprised their delegation with superheroes. Lindsay Smith, Florida, says.

“We have many different talents. We are like superheroes because we have fun, but we get the work done.”

If you see people in capes and headbands do not run away, they are here from Florida to save the day.

Everyone loves a fiesta, and New Mexico is no different, as is reflected on their state shirt. The front of the shirt is a dancing taco, and the quote “Respect The Taco, Fear The Taco” on the back.

What other shenanigans could Minnesota get into? Maybe design a shirt influenced by the movie Juno. Minnesota chose Juno because it was written and staged in their state. With a green rocking chair on the front and tiny running boys on the back, this shirt is as quirky as the movie.

As we all know Delaware is a small state, which is implied by their state’s shirt. They are so tight they only need one area code (302).

California’s advisers love to surprise their delegates. So the state shirt was no different. Recently California allowed same sex marriage, so in honor of the law their shirt is pink with “love” written at the bottom in rainbow colors.

Since this year’s shirts were very creative, next year’s shirts should be even better.

The Descendent by Jermaine Richardson

Ari Shroyer, Ohio is currently doing a proposal on illegal aliens that are convicted of a crime (in which they are sent back to their nation of origin after their sentence is served). "I am supporting aliens being sent back to their original country so people please don't think otherwise". Shroyer said why he chose this topic is because he knows a lot of aliens at home and is also a descendant of some Jewish aliens fleeing Nazi prosecution. From an experience, he understands how important the legal process is. He also believes the naturalization process should be easy and accessible to all people wanting to bring not only their knowledge but their culture and dreams as well into the United States of America.

Reporting From Blue Ridge

I knew when I woke up to the sound of trumpets blaring this would be unlike any other day. After the little sleep I got on the bus it was almost impossible for me to roll out of bed, but I found myself at the worship service. The morning was spent singing and reflecting on what each of us could get out of this experience, it was a nice way to start the week. I spent the remainder of my morning on the porch talking to fellow delegates from other states. It was amazing that even with such different "accents" we all seemed to find some common ground. I found my way to the Blue Ridge Center (BRC) for lunch were I was surprised to find a Mexican spread in the middle of North Carolina. Shortly after lunch the whole CONA assembly headed for the Amphitheater for our Opening Ceremony. The ceremony started with a the procession of the flags and was emceed by Presiding Officer (PO) Laura Bolen. Each of our PO's gave compelling speeches of what CONA meant to them and briefly went over everyday rules and regulations.The other five PO's consist of Danielle Desaulniers, Emily Pramik, Victoria Romano, Derek Summerville, and Brian Tinsman. Once dismissed from Opening Ceremony we were sent to Proposal Sharing Groups to gather constructive criticism and then went to First Committee. We took a short break for our Italian supper. First Committee Hearings reconvened until the mixer. The mixer was hosted by the Florida Delegation and consisted of dancing and unique card matching activities. The mixer ended with a thoughtful devotional by the Massachusetts and the night ended with delegation meetings.

~The Ridge Writer

CONA 2008 Opening Ceremony

The CONA Blog

Welcome fellow CONA goers,

This is the 2008 edition of the CONA blog. This blog is run and managed by the Press Corps. This blog will feature photos, videos, comments, articles, and almost everything in between. We are open to any suggestions or ideas for posts. Please email us at CONApress@gmail.com with your own personal experiences, photos, or videos of your time on the mountain. This is a work in progress and we appreciate any new ideas.

Hope you enjoy!