Joshua+Stolfo


 * Holiday Snapshot: **


 * New Years Eve! **

Excitement consumed me, my family and I were heading off to Thierry’s house to celebrate New Year’s Eve with his family and friends, I just couldn’t wait to get there. Since the beginning of the holidays I had been impatiently counting down the days until this very moment, as we pulled up out the front of Thierry’s house. The mass of cars surrounding his house completely shocked me considering I didn’t realise it was going to be such an enormous party. As we wondered through the never-ending narrow path leading to his backyard all you could hear was a ridiculously large amount of noise. At the end of the narrow path we found ourselves welcomed by Thierry’s dad Vince, his mum Letizia and a bunch of unfamiliar faces. Although the backyard was swarming with people I still couldn’t spot Thierry anywhere, it was then I decided to go and track him down. Knowing Thierry, my best guess was that he was in his room torturing his brain with some sort of video game. Sure enough he was, that was until his mum Letizia came screaming into the room yelling at us for being inside. Thierry and I messed around doing stupid things like getting completely high on soft drink, carelessly splashing and soaking everyone with pool water and ganging up on my brother trying to nudge him into the pool whilst he was fully dressed. Seeing the freezing cold pool on such an exhausting hot night tempted me to change into my board shorts and jump in, in fact it was so tempting that I actually did it. After five boring minutes of being in the pool alone, Thierry and three others finally stopped being a bunch of “party-poopers” and decided to join me. Since all five of us had the entire pool to ourselves, we all agreed on having a piggyback war. We viciously fought and fought and fought until we were too exhausted to fight anymore. By the time we gave up fighting midnight was less than five minutes away. This gave the older guys just enough time to prepare the fireworks. As the New Year approached everyone was getting nervous and excited, especially me. The countdown had started “10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, HAPPY NEW YEAR!” we all shouted. The fireworks were set off buzzing straight up and exploding into millions of colours, shapes and sizes. The night sky backgrounding the fireworks just completed the scene. I thought it was truly amazing. I had never seen fireworks so close before. I couldn’t think of any better way to celebrate New Years Eve then to celebrate it with my best friend, his family and my family.


 * Josh - well done! A good 'rewrite' - this is sharper, snappier and more sophisticated. Keep thinking about the detail you choose to use and how you use it. What will make it interesting? Focus on description and playing with different sentnece structures - start with an action (verbs), a description (adjectives)**



Veterinarians say banning breeds of dangerous dogs would not stop attacks, despite a Victorian government vow to crack down vicious pets. Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu said on Friday the government wanted to "be rid of these dogs as soon as possible" following the death of a four-year-old girl who was mauled by an unregistered American pit bull mastiff cross in Melbourne on Wednesday. The owner of the dog could face charges under the Domestic Animals Act and fines in excess of $19,000. The government has also foreshadowed measures that could include the owners of dangerous dogs facing 20 years' jail in a similar law that applies to culpable drivers. The amnesty for registering dangerous dogs will end, meaning councils can seize and destroy the animals, while a "dob in a dangerous dog" anonymous hotline will also be set up. But Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) spokeswoman Kersti Seksel says socialisation of dangerous dogs rather than banning them would be more effective. Over-regulation for dog owners has not improved the situation so far, Dr Seksel said. "It's understandable that people are now calling for the banning of some breeds, however all the good evidence available shows that this doesn't work," she said in a statement on Friday. "Unfortunately, we believe the banning and over-regulation of dogs in our communities could be part of the problem as this leads to poor socialisation and increased risk of attacks." The AVA is instead calling for the government to increase funding for education and socialisation programs for dogs, their owners and young children. Its statistics show that the most likely victims of dog attacks are children aged under 10, usually by their own dogs at their homes. "We're never going to be able to prevent every incident, but a really good way to help prevent bites and attack is through socialisation of puppies with people and other dogs at a young age, and teaching our children how to be safe around animals," Dr Seksel said. Ayen Chol was killed when the dog escaped a neighbour's home and chased the four-year-old's cousin into her house in St Albans on Wednesday night. Ayen was watching television in the house when the dog attacked, lunging at her as she clung to her mother's legs.
 * Dangerous Dogs **


 * Main Points on the ‘Dangerous Dog’ argument:**

- Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu wants to have stricter dog rules.

- The Domestic Animal Act can now fine dangerous dogs owners up to $19000.

- The government could in force new laws and charge dangerous dog owners with a 20 year jail sentence.

- Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) are arguing that socialising with dangerous dogs will be a better way to stop attacks then to ban and kill them.

- The majority of dangerous dog attacks happen to children under the age of 10.


 * Summary** **‘Dangerous Dog’ argument:**

After the death of a four-year-old girl who was attacked and killed by an unregistered pitbull, Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu is strongly supporting stricter dog rules and wants to enforce $19,000 fine to the owners of dangerous dogs. The Victorian Government have also considered putting a new law in place stating that all dangerous dogs will be executed and that the owner could receive a 20 year prison sentence. Although the Victorian Government would like to set in place new laws, the Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) are strongly disagreeing with them. The AVA believe that socialising with these dangerous dogs from puppyhood would be a more effective way to deal with the problem then to ban them. The AVA are hoping that the Victorian Government would provide enough money to support programs to help with socialisation and education of dangerous dogs and their owners. Children under the age of ten are the most common victims, most of them are attacked by their own dog. The AVA believe teaching young children about their own safety around animals is probably one of the most important ways to prevent dog attacks.


 * Well done Josh - effectively summarised**