[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2465]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

HONORING STUDENTS AT LAKE SHORE MIDDLE SCHOOL

______

HON. BRIAN HIGGINS

of new york

in the house of representatives

Wednesday, December 7, 2005

Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday, November 30, I was invited to
address a gathering of students and faculty at the Lake Shore Middle
School, located in the town of Evans in the 27th Congressional
District. In addition to having the honor of speaking to a group of
very attentive and inquisitive middle school students, I was honored
with a presentation of writings in a ``memory folder'' that I want to
talk about here today.
Students in the eighth grade government class of Mr. Keith Dash, a
Lake Shore teacher--and former Buffalo State College graduate school
classmate of mine--asked his students to write about freedom, and about
what they think about when they think of freedom and life in America. A
collection of these writings was bound and presented to me at this
gathering, and I wanted to take this opportunity, Mr. Speaker, to enter
these writings into the Congressional Record.
The students contributing to this project are: Joshua Allen, Kelly
Carlson, Cody Catalano, Katherine Dinkuhn, Rebecca Swatsworth, Kim
Vona, Kalie Weinheimer, and Jessica Westley. I am honored to have
received the writings that these students have labored on for so long,
and am delighted to enter each student's contribution into the Record,
as follows:

The most important element in social studies is the U.S.
government. I mean we have all these freedoms; write
anything, say anything, do anything. We get a fair trial no
mater what the odds are. I am trying to say there isn't any
place in the world as good as the USA. In the world it is
chaos. I mean wars, fights, and riots. I mean we basically
are the translators of many languages like English. We are
strong and I don't want it to crash.--Joshua Allen
____

Government

(By Kelly Carlson)

The United States' Constitution is the foundation of our
country, what we've built our lives around. To me the most
important part of it is the first Amendment in the Bill of
Rights. To have freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the
very concept that we, the people of America can voice our
opinions, is comforting. I value this amendment because, in
most countries you're not allowed opinions, let alone to
share those opinions with people around you. To me, what I
believe in is more important to me than a lot of things.
____

The most important right that the Constitution gave me is
the right to bear arms. My father and I are both hunters. It
is important that the animal population is controlled so deer
don't get hit by cars and animals don't have to fight each
other for food. It is also a good source of food because we
eat all the meat of our kill. The right to bear arms is
definitely the most important right to me.--Cody Catalano
____

The American Life

We see the obvious differences between,
Us and the citizens of other countries.
Some are industrialized,
While others are third world.

We say what we want to in Maine,
We publish in California.
And worship in Pennsylvania,
In Texas we gather

We buy a gun in Nevada
We drive through Ohio
And vote in New York

Marriage and voting
It's all the same
In the U.S. we can do it all

The constitution states our rights
It says what we can do
It protects us all
And lets us have a view
____

(By Katherine Dinkuhn)

Voting is the most important to me in Democracy because it
lets me have a say in the government. It also allows me to
say my opinion and how I feel about my future. For example
the person I feel appropriate to run for government, I would
vote for. Voting may be an option but I feel that its
everyones job but even better its everyones duty.--Rebecca
Swatsworth
____

I think the most important thing in our government is our
laws. This is the most important because they keep order
within our community and make it a safer place to live.--Kim
Vona
____

When I think of government, I think of the three branches,
the constitution and lots of laws. To me, the most important
part of the government is laws. The laws I lead my life by,
the laws I follow and the laws I can look up to when I need
to be pointed in the right direction. They show me right and
wrong, good and bad. They let me understand our society
today. They explain things like how we became a free country
or how slaves became free. But most important, they hold up
our society. So, when I think of our government, I think of
laws.--Kalie Weinheimer
____

There are many important ideas in the Constitution of the
United States of America. But there is a very important one
that means a lot to me. I think the most important thing in
the Constitution is the 15th Amendment. This amendment states
that all citizens are given equal rights. This is very
important to me because I think regardless of race and color
all people should be equal--as the Constitution states. Just
because people have a different race they should not be
treated different. The Constitution protects this right. The
Constitution is the guideline to the government of the United
States of America. All people should put others' race and
color aside. All people are created equal and should be
treated equal as well. Living in America would not be as
wonderful without that right. Because of this great
Constitution many people came to America and this should
always be a part of the United States way of life.--Jessica
Westley

____

____________________