Trump 2016: Dawn of a New Era

Many Americans did not want a Trump presidency, and even more did not expect one. The United States will undergo a lot of changes as a result of this abnormal election. Donald Trump has neither a background in politics or in the military. While some speculations may say that speaks for his qualifications what it certainly shows is his morals and values have not been seen by American voters before. Trump is truly the first of his kind, a fact that demands attention. Many people are looking at Trump the wrong way, if you like him or not there is still a lot to know in order to understand who he is and how he became the president elect, as well as a lot to be learned.

There has been a lot of backlash among Americans who did not vote for him. A common belief is that he is a bully and a danger to America and its people. This belief far to often misses the very reason it is even significant. Trump could only be these things if people supported him. A madman on a street corner shouting obscenities is no threat to anyone, but that changes when half the country stands behind him. If anyone has a problem with Trump they need to realize that the problem they have is actually with their fellow Americans. Trump was voted for, he won enough delegates to become elected. That is how our democracy works. The problem those people should be facing is that millions of Americans felt so abandoned or neglected or abused by their government that they turned to Trump. Trump, a man with no history in either politics or the military was chosen by the American people, his power is in the hands of the people who gave him that position.

Trump knew what he was doing. Trump's accomplishments  have to be recognized, he has made a lot of money. Corrupt or not, he knows how to play the game, take loopholes, and manipulate the world around him. The same goes for his campaign, Trump brought together a wide rang of people and unified them. Trump was able to manipulate the public in a way that attracted people to his cause. His ability to draw the support that he did cannot be ignored. Trump was never blindly parading the country hoping people would jump on the bandwagon.

One of the most important things to know about Trump is that there is still much to be learned about him. Trump has an uncanny ability to know what to say. Trump has always been able to fuel the fire and say things that pull in one audience at a time. Whenever Trump went made "outrageous and radical" comments he was actually targeting people who felt that way. Trump only proposed radical ideas when he knew that some of the people listening would feel the same way.  Trump has said many times that he can do or say whatever he wants and he will still gain supporters. Is that not reason to believe that what he has said was just to gain support? It is unwise to discuss this characteristic in a way that makes him out to be wild and erratic without also discussing the possibility of him just using the radical facade to gain popularity.

Americans against Trump should not be to worried yet, there is still the possibility that he was just saying whatever he needed to say to win. Trump would not be the first to run for president that said things he did not mean or make promises he will not deliver. Only time will tell.

The Future of America, Our Future. In Whose Hands?

     As a junior in high school I am exposed to and am aware of the problems the United States is faced with. Unfortunately I will not be of voting age by November. As a responsible citizen I still feel a need to stay informed and educated on current politics, as the people put into to power and the decisions made today will directly effect my life in the United States tomorrow. For many reasons this election has been remarkable. To an outside viewer it may seem almost comical, but to those living in America this election has been stressful and almost frightening. At this point the candidates before the American people are Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. To many, the fact that these are the two people out of the entire country we have chosen as candidates for a position as powerful as commander in chief is infuriating. If I could vote, I would feel an overwhelming obligation to vote for Hillary Clinton. I am not a fan of Hillary Clinton however, and I do not like how she presents herself as a candidate and I do not agree with some of her ideas and propositions. Despite my aversion towards Hillary Clinton. the reason I would vote for her lies in the nature of her opponent. 

    Donald Trump represents the worst of American society, he is a living collection of the corrupt ideologies and morals that endanger the integrity of the United States. I am ashamed I live in a country that has nominated him as the republican candidate for President. Off the bat this description might sound like it comes from a "brainwashed liberal millennial" but I have arrived at this conclusion through careful and logical analysis of Trump's words and actions so hear me out. Trump does not have the morals and values I would deem appropriate for a president. Trump is not trustworthy and would not be a responsible leader.

     Trump has made fun of people with disabilities. Trump has made numerous sexist remarks and does not act respectfully towards women. Trump has disrespected veterans. Trump has discriminated against minorities as a businessman and as a politician. I cannot support a candidate that I feel does not support the entirety of the American people. I believe that any person with the power to make decisions that effect a populous should be an advocate for that society and keep their needs in mind. 

     Trump has never been in office in any level of government. Without official record of his positions on certain matters, Trump can say that he said or did anything, given that it is hard to look back and see if he did say or do what he says he has. This allows Donald Trump to mold his image to whatever he feels will attract voters. Trump does not need to stand by any reputation, his supporters do not look past the story Trump says is his history. Trump can lie about anything, fact checking is not instantaneous and therefore looses its power to discredit him as he quickly moves on to the next outrageous comment or speech. Trump is dangerous, he is manipulative and lacks empathy. Throughout his career, both private and political, Trump has said and done whatever he feels will make him money or get attention. Trump's highest priority is himself. For example. Trump says he cares about the middle class and that he wants to create jobs in America. As a CEO of a massive enterprise, his exportation of jobs and abuse of lower class workers says something else about how he feels about middle class America.  He has time and time again shown his ability to push other people down to boost himself up. Be that for profit or votes. A president can not be a person who uses other people for personal gain.

    Trumps ideas do not make sense. His plans lack any logic and can never be implemented. Trump says he will do all of these great things for the United States but never explains how. To avoid carpal tunnel I will only dissect one of his preposterous propositions, as there is an abundance of moronic and absent minded ideas from Donald Trump. Trump has declared that he will build a wall across the US-Mexico border. The idea of the wall does not even make sense. In the 1200's Mongolians figured out how to climb over a wall, how will this wall be any different. The analogy is flawed, granted, but the logic remains. Sure, you can put barbed wire on the wall or do whatever you want but it is human nature to find a way. I do not think Trump is familiar with with the border itself, or he would know building a wall would be an undertaking of immeasurable  proportions. There are lakes, canyons,  and even national parks that are on the border. Besides the wall being a flaw in and of itself, Trump's plan to pay for it is a joke. Sure, saying that Mexico will pay for the wall sounds nice but the United States has no power to make Mexico pay for the wall. When confronted by this fact, Trump says his plan to make Mexico pay for the wall will be to tax Mexican imports. I am astonished that as a "successful" businessman he does not realize that is impossible. Taxing imports raises the price for Americans, if you charge a Mexican company more for bringing products into the United States they will in turn charge Americans buying them  more. That is basic economics. The idea of a tariff is to make foreign goods more expensive so American companies can compete. For a businessman who has exported jobs, I feel like Trump should know this. 

    I would vote for Hillary Clinton because I would never forgive myself for not fighting against Trump.

Welcome!

Welcome to the weblog for our American Literature class. Here's the place we will be continuing conversations from class and starting new ones. We'll be discussing and debating current events, historical controversies, and literary conundrums. We might even see a little poetry.

So, what's a blog? And how will we be using it class? For information on blogging and how to join and post to our blog, see "All About Blogging."

We're looking forward to a great year.

Make sure you check your e-mail for your invitation to join the blog. Also – and this is very important – the first step you should take after you accept the invitation is to edit your user profile so that you control how your identity and your communication preferences.  Click on the pull-down menu next to your name in the upper right corner of the browser and click on “Blogger Profile.” Then click on “Edit Profile.”

You can fill out as much of it as you want, but the only requirement is -- under “Identity” -- make sure your “Display name” is your first name and last initial only -- so we provide some anonymity while still allowing your classmates and teacher to be able to identity who you are. For example, change “Bernie Heidkamp” to “Bernie H.”

The odd ones out.

Here in America, the second amendment of the Constitution states that we as citizens have a right to bear arms. Now, as Family Guy has once joked, this does not mean that we have a right to have a pair of bear's arms on display within our homes. What it does mean is that we have a right to have a firearm within our possession, presumably for self-defense. Now a large debate within our country (and a hot topic for presidential debates) is what we are to do about our gun laws, as there are some people who decide to use this right for more than self defense. There are people who use it to take over government buildings (Bundy Militia in Oregon), and plenty of mass shootings that take place in the US, which, as you can imagine, is not the intent of the second amendment. Now, the question is what are we going to do about it?

In all honesty, America's officials need to crack down on gun laws and background checks immediately. Guns are useful for a lot of things for a lot of people, hunting, self defense, etc., and they should definitely continue to be used for those things, but for those things only. America needs to put in place more in-depth background checks onto whoever is looking to buy a gun, in order to assure that whoever is buying it is mentally and criminally sound. This is exactly what Australia does, and they haven't gotten a mass shooting since 1996, because their minister completely cracked down on who could buy and sell guns.Why America hasn't taken the hint yet? I'm not entirely sure.

Round One: Colbert Vs. The GOP

As of September 8th, Stephen Colbert became the new host of the Late Show on CBS. There is no better time to be a late night talk show host than during election season. Last Tuesday Colbert talked politics and poked fun at a few GOP candidates. Colbert uses a creative combination of comedy and factual evidence to publicize current events in a convincing and funny manner.

Towards the beginning of the show he calls the presidential race the “Hungry for Power Games.” He then proceeds to wear a blue wig and eyebrows imitating the look of the news reporter Caesar Flickerman from the Hunger Games. He then goes on to say, “Last week the games lost a brave fighter in Rick Perry, I’d like to say he has gone to a better place, but he lives in Houston.” He announces political news but he does it in a funny and appealing way. Colbert then says that the “Games” lost another tribute, Scott Walker. Scott Walker justified his withdrawal by saying, “I was sitting in church yesterday and the pastor’s words reminded me that the bible is full of stories of about people who are called to be leaders in unusual ways, today, I believe that I am being called to lead by clearing the field.” Then, Colbert goes on to point out that two months ago, Walker announced his candidacy by saying “running was God’s calling… I am certain: This is God’s plan for me.” Colbert then says, “In other words god said, I have chosen you Scott Walker, to- SIKEEE!” After bashing Walker for a few more minutes Colbert finishes off by saying, “now he returns to Americas dairy land, having learned that America’s voters are Walker Intolerant.” Colbert uses evidence and quotes from candidates as well as well written puns to make political news fun.

Up next, Colbert introduces Donald Trump. Colbert discusses campaign funding with Trump and how raising money for campaigns can have negative effects. Trump stated that wealthy people who fund politician’s campaigns “own” those politicians. That is why Trump is paying for his own campaign; he doesn’t wish to be “owned.” Colbert then asks Trump if he ever “owned” any politicians. Colbert uses this casual political banter to see if he can get the inside scoop on who Trump “owned” in the past. A little over halfway into the show, Colbert asks Trump if he believes Obama was actually born in the U.S. Trump avoids the question and says he doesn’t worry about those things anymore, he says he is focuses on the real problems with jobs and the issues in the Middle East.

Colbert’s wit and creativity makes his show appealing and funny. His next challenge is to live up to David Letterman’s reputation on the Late Show.

Trump and Colbert's Intelligent Interview

Recently, on The Late Night Show, Donald Trump made an appearance to talk with Stephen Colbert. Within this wildly entertaining interview, Trump stated that he had no apologies for anyone, and he continued to elaborate on his wall plan and how it's practically flawless.

At the beginning of the interview, Colbert apologized to Trump for all the mean things that he said over the years, and then asked if Trump had anyone to apologize to, to which he said "Nope, not really. Unless you want me to apologize to the audience for no reason." He continues on to talk about the wall that will separate America from Mexico, and immediately the audience laughs. Trump is about to go off on the crowd until Colbert calms him down, saying "The crowd loves the wall, its a great idea, that's why they're happy." Trump is settled down by this, further reinforcing the idea that this politician is clueless. His ego is huge and he is obviously the center of the universe, and is too slow to understand that a good 80% of the population takes
him as a joke.

Stephen goes into the role of the Mexican senator as Trump attempted to explain how he would get Mexico to pay for the wall he plans on building. He speaks a bit of gibberish before Colbert breaks character and satirically suggests building two walls (Trump interrupts "And they're connected!"), with a moat (yet another interruption, "With a nice resort!") that's full of fire and fire-proof alligators. Trump takes a while to understand that he's being made fun of, but he eventually gets it then laughs it off because he can't truly get mad at a comedian on live TV.

This man is not fit to run our country, because all he knows how to do is follow his racist ambitions of a "pure" country, and only seeks his own personal profit. Saving money by attempting to force Mexico to build the wall for him, and presenting a "nice resort" for the jokingly presented suggestion of a moat between two walls on the border.

Yemen's True Forgotten War Story

BBC News recently published an article "Inside Yemen's forgotten war" which discusses the most current events in Yemen regarding the airstrikes. In the article, they also posted a video where a BBC writer interviews Yemen's frightened citizens who give insight on the bombings.

One particular story was the bombing that killed a 13 year old boy, his brother, and 11 others. The 13 year-old, Ahmed Al Beyna, and his brother, Mohammed, set off to work at a close-by water bottling plant on the evening of August 29th. Just as they finished their night shift, a missile struck the factory. The men who discovered them tell BBC News they "found men burned to the machines" and that many "bodies were in pieces." Saudis try justify the bombing by claiming it was a weaponry factory and a training camp for African mercenaries, yet there is no evidence of any kind to support their "justifications."

Yemen's citizens are absolutely terrified of the constant air bombings, saying that they hit any and everything. In the video, one Yemeni man points to some rubble and says that it was a building where families inhabited, "families...NOT an empty building."

The BBC writer, Gabriel Gatehouse, pursued this story to shine light of the recent events that are being forgotten or noted as not as important. These airstrikes have been occurring for over 6 months, there are thousands of stories just as the one of Ahmed's. Each of them just as disturbing and unsettling as this one. These stories seem too surreal to be true, how can someone just bomb factories or homes without thinking twice? Every day, the airstrikes become more damaging and it's said that an impending advance of pro-Saudi forces. This story is an example of the extent to which war reaches. It reaches to the point where water bottling plants are bombed to demonstrate a point to further their own agenda. 

A True Global War Story

I recently read several articles ("U.S. Willing to Accept 10,000 Syrian Refugees Next Year" and "Europe's Refugee Crisis") regarding the refugee crisis in Syria. Each article describes refugees' journey from Syria's civil war-stricken state to safer environments, such as Germany, Lebanon, Hungary, Australia, and the U.S.

The story of the Kurdi family, in particular, provides a profound example of a truthful story. Exploding with popularity, a picture posted on social media shows 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi lying lifeless, washed ashore after drowning in the Mediterranean Sea. Aylan, his brother, and mother all tragically died during the treacherous migration journey; Aylan's father, Abdullah, was the only one in the family to survive the trip. The Kurdi family planned to travel to relatives in Vancouver, Canada. The boy's aunt, Tima Kurdi, posts on Facebook her condolences, "Where is the humanity in the world. They did not deserve this."

This recent event made headlines, and brought a lot of awareness to the growing issue of excessive amounts of refugees pouring into overwhelmed European countries. The story of this poor family can be labeled "haunting" and "a turning point in the debate over how to handle the surge of people heading toward Europe."

Besides the fact that this event did actually happen, knowing that such tragedy occurs can make one angry and uncomfortable with the way these situations are handled. Additionally, countries' aide proves help is near, as the U.S. plans to take 10,000 refugees and Germany plans to shelter 800,000 refugees within the next year. Factual evidence makes it difficult to believe that such falseness would come from this story. Hardship similar to this type of grief goes far beyond Syria's internal conflict but towards an inner depth of how war affects vast amounts of people worldwide.

Twenty One Pilots: The Violence of Silence

Twenty One Pilots is a relatively new hit band and they are becoming more and more of a household name with hits like "House of Gold" and "Stressed Out". One of their most loved songs is "Car Radio".

"Car Radio" at first glance is about a man whose car radio was stolen, but that simply isn’t the case when the lyrics are truly broken down. “I ponder of something great… I know it’s dire my time today, I have these thoughts, so often I ought to replace that slot with what I once bought cause somebody stole my car radio and now I just sit in silence”. The band is truly trying to shed light on a very serious problem in American society, suicide.

When Tyler Joseph, the band’s lead singer and songwriter, is talking about his car radio he really means it as a metaphor for the things in life you use to distract yourself from life’s big questions. “I hate this car that I'm driving there's no hiding for me…I ponder of something terrifying cause this time there's no sound to hide behind”, Joseph expresses the fear of dealing with life’s problems and how that now without his distractions there is nowhere to hide from these questions in life. A feeling that can be matched by almost any young person in America. “I could pull the steering wheel” this line reveals a sad truth how some might see suicide as a way out for these situations, a way out of the harsh reality.

Suicide has become more and more of a phenomenon in America. In 2000 the suicide rate in America was 10.4 people per 100,000 Suicide is now the 3rd leading cause of death among people ages 17- 12, and Joseph is showing how the hard questions in life can lead to those kind of thoughts.

Later in the song it is stated that “There are things we can do, but from the things that work there are only two, and from the two that we choose to do, peace will win and fear will lose, it is faith and there's sleep, we need to pick one please, because faith is to be awake, and to be awake is for us to think, and for us to think is to be alive, and I will try with every rhyme, to come across like I am dying, to let you know you need to try to think”.

Joseph is stating that faith represents life and sleep represents suicide or death. The point is made that life is important, but it isn’t easy. Life makes you ponder these decisions, makes you think, and when all your distractions are gone you need the faith that things will work out in the end.

Joseph uses this song to capture a snapshot in life that everyone goes through and tries to help guide them though this silent moment.

Misleading the Herd

A New York Times Article published today announces the new rules that the Food and Drug Administration are making mandatory in the United States. The new rules require chain restaurants, movie theaters and pizza parlors to post the calories in each item on their menus. Health "experts" say this new rule will help combat America's increasing obesity epidemic by making people more aware of the amount of calories they are consuming.

I believe this article and these so-called experts use post hoc, a logical fallacy in which the cause for something is false. The cause of the obesity epidemic in our country is not the amount of calories people are consuming per say, but the literal "food" that the majority of our country consumes. People eat so many calories at these fast food restaurants because the food is unwholesome and doesn't fill them up unless they eat a ton of it, and wholesome food is rather expensive. 

Instead of avoiding the real issue, "experts" should not be trying to control the obesity rates in America by making people aware of the amount of calories they are eating, but more so what people are eating, the actual "nutrition" in it, and what it is doing to their bodies. 

I Pledge Allegiance? Two Questions.

Recently it has come to my attention that even though we still say the pledge at the beginning of the school day, no one stands. I would like to know why that is. Sure it's easy to ask myself well why don't you do it? Why don't you stand up and recite the pledge? I don't know if it's laziness that I don't stand to recite the words that I was taught to memorize since the first grade. Or maybe it's as simple as I don't want to be the only one standing.

I'd like to hear the opinions of others because I don't know how we as a class went from thinking saying the pledge daily was mandatory to sitting and talking over it as high schoolers. I understand that there are lines that people may not agree with in the pledge that makes them believe they do not have to recite it, which is perfectly fine. But why do the others who have no problem not stand?

"One nation under God" 
Since the Pledge of Allegiance was written by Francis Bellamy in 1892 it has been modified a total of 4 times. I think about this line a little differently. Since I don't know who believes in a God or several Gods or maybe no God at all, how could we possibly have an alternative in these days of change? Instead of changing the whole pledge why not just change one word? No matter what religion you believe in, or don't believe in, everyone in the world benefits from a good. Why can't the word God in the pledge be changed to good?

I very curious to see what people have to say about this because I've been thinking about this for quite a while. Let me know what you think.

Thanks.

Isis and the Middle East

The other day, the U.S. began air strikes on ISIS. Isis is one of many issues that have occurred in the middle east this past century. It is curious why this region of the world always seems to have issues. I read an op-ed in the New York Times titled as "Isis Crisis". In this op-ed the author, named Thomas Friedman, tries to explain why this region has so much conflict. He believes it is only because of the Islamic religion, however I disagree. Every religion has extremists and although these certain extremists have taken their violence much to far, the original reason for conflict in this area is oil.

Oil is a major energy source in our world. Every country needs oil and will do anything to get it. The middle east is a region known to have a lot of oil, because of this many countries wish to control the oil wealth in this region. This greed for oil causes conflict between countries trying to control the region and people in the region. Since these conflicts occurred the region began to become broken by war and civil dispute. Arising from this crippled society are extremists. Since Islam is the primary religion in this area the extremists are Islamic. Also the United States' attempt to control the oil in the area has made many of the citizens in the area hateful towards us. When they believe they can hold no hope on their individual governments they turn to someone else to lead them. These leaders are the extremists and so the hatred grows and violence erupts.

The author of the op-ed argues that the extremists arose out of a broken religious society. He says, that Islam is the only reason for the violence in the area, and that the Arab society is too far gone. He says that any of our victories will be temporary. I agree that there is a very large amount of extremists, but he does not offer the idea that our involvement in the area sparked violence. His statements also do not go into the fact that their are many muslims trying to fight ISIS. Religion has sparked violence but the same  religion is also attempting to stop it with our help. The extremists of Islam are a terrible group of people and must be destroyed, however Islam is not the only reason for violence.

OPRF's New Pool Plan

In case any of you didn't know, OPRF has recently been considering spending between 35 and 60 MILLION dollars on a new pool. The plans were to build a third one either on the current baseball diamond, where the parking garage currently is (and tearing down the parking garage,) or across Lake Street on the road between Ridgeland Commons and the OPRF track.

Now, what the school SHOULD be doing is reconfiguring the entire south end of the school (south hall onward, including track.) According to the Wednesday Journal, OPRF enrollment could grow from our already staggering 3,500 students to an even greater figure of 4,000. OPRF is crowded as it is. In my opinion, all of the gym facilities need to be moved to where the the track is right now. (Plus, the track team doesn't use the track, they take buses to Concordia. The track is just poorly designed and not optimal for track practice.) This way we can take down the fieldhouse and reconfigure that part of the building to accomadate for the growing student body. And no, we shouldn't tear down the parking garage, because just several years ago, it was built for $7,000,000. That's not a low amount of money, all unto the burden of the taxpayers.

Secondly, WHY WOULD WE SPEND $60,000,000 OR EVEN $1,000,000 ON A NEW POOL!? Imagine everything that the world could do with that money!! We could feed hungry! Donate to non-profits in the community! Fund academic clubs! Fund academics! We could be the school who makes teachers high-paid workers! But, instead, the school board wants to spend 60 MILLION DOLLARS ON A POOL!? Does anyone even think we need this thing besides the school board? Seriously, ask yourself! We have two pools, do we really need a new one? And for that price?

Just take some time to think about that. Seriously. One million dollars. Thirty-five million dollars. Sixty million. Imagine what the community could do with that.

And the board wants to make a freaking pool.

Save the Orca Slaves: an op-ed against SeaWorld

My mother’s first job at 16 was as cashier at SeaWorld for a fish and chips stand. As a young child, I often went to SeaWorld when I visited my extended family in San Diego, California. When you are young and you absent-mindedly watch the circus shows put on before you it is easy to ignore that an intelligent animal with a complex social structure is being enslaved in a pool, deprived of the vast and expansive space it should have to explore.

After ignoring this enslavement for many years, I watched the documentary film Blackfish and it forced me to acknowledge many horrifying issues associated with orcas held in captivity. I have come to the conclusion, based on copious amounts of evidence highlighting orca health and the danger placed on trainers, that these animals should by no means be enslaved and exploited any longer. 

Besides the multiple deaths of humans caused by orcas that are held in captivity, scientists support the idea that captivity is harmful for orcas. The most obvious example of this is the life span of orcas in captivity versus the lifespan of orcas in the wild. The mortality rates of orcas in captivity is 2.5 times higher in captivity than in the wild. The average life expectancy in the wild for males is 60-70 years and for females it is 80-90 years. In captivity the average life expectancy of a male is 31 years and for females it is 46. 

 In addition to this, living in captivity causes orcas to develop psychological issues and chronic stress that in turn cause them to have an inadequate immune system, which often leads to lethal infections and other health problems, not to mention the whale on whale aggression that occurs as a result of living in close quarters.

The undeniable danger that exists for all SeaWorld trainers who are in the water is yet another reason why orcas should not be in captivity. Over the years, there have been over 100 incidents where orcas have acted aggressively towards their trainers. This includes the largest incident SeaWorld has ever faced, the death of trainer Dawn Brancheau. Before Dawn was attacked it is clear that Tilikum, the 13,000 pound orca, was under stress. Tilikum’s stress and psychological damage was a result of living for years in a concrete box.  Every time a trainer gets in the water with one of these psychologically damaged apex predators, SeaWorld is blatantly disregarding the risk to human life performing with the orcas entail all for the sake of greed.

The rampant exploitation that exists at SeaWorld towards marine life is mind boggling. The most powerful predators in the sea are being enslaved and forced to perform circus acts for an ignorant audience who think what they are watching is somehow animal friendly. What’s the endgame? Money. This slavery exists to exponentially fatten the pockets of the people who run this corporation. They are exploiting these amazing creatures and putting the lives of their trainers at risk while making it seem like a fun and family oriented place to bring your children. 

 The guilt I feel for ever being a part of this exploitation will haunt me for the rest of my life, so I will continue to advocate for the freedom of the these giant fish who possess their own cultural identities, much like you and me.

Obama on War

Last night, or September 10, President Barack Obama outlined his plan to deal with the terrorist organization known as ISIS, or ISIL, as Obama referred to the group. Looking directly into the lens of the camera, he calmly stated the four aspects of his strategy while making small motions with his hands to emphasize his point. The setting was typical of a presidential speech, from the American flag on one side to the presidential seal in front to the flag pin on Obama's suit. The constant eye contact with the lens of the camera and, by extension, the viewers, helped to promote the idea that Obama was speaking directly to the people of America, providing a semblance of closeness despite the formal setting. This idea, in my opinion, helps with the persuasion part of his presentation.

Another smart move in Obama's speech was the relative simplicity. By presenting the strategy in four clearly laid-out points, it was easier to follow the direction he was going with it and understand what exactly he was proposing. Few, if any, digressions are made from the specifics of each point, which helped focus the viewers' attention (and keep the whole thing fairly brief - about 14 minutes - which helps with limited attention spans as well).

Obama drew on the sympathies of his audience, describing the brutalities of ISIL, while also invoking a sense of patriotism and American pride, mentioning many things Americans are helping with around the world.

Despite the consistently matter-of-fact tone of voice throughout Obama's speech, I consider it to be fairly effective in presenting his plan to the American people and inspiring them (kind of) to take action and believe in the leadership of this country. 

A Distracted Society

The priorities and concerns of our society are not ranked very thoughtfully, and that shows when you go to the "Most Popular Right Now" page on Youtube. Some of the videos that are more popular than Obama's ISIS Speech right now include "Mike Tyson Goes Crazy on Live Canadian News", "Ellen's Anaconda Video", and "Pros and Cons: Dating Britney Spears". 

Why are these comparatively irrelevant videos more popular than a video involving the future of our world, humanity and the lives of so many? More people should be interested in what is going on in the world, and not laughing at a video of Mike Tyson "going crazy", when he was really just angry at the talk show host for putting him on the spot. 

For something that has such an effect on our home lives, I believe Americans should be more concerned with Obama's decisions and what the country is about to do. Lots of money goes into our military and takes away from potential improvements in our country. The media is doing a good job distracting people and has them hooked! 

Response to Obama's Address

My initial thoughts on Obama's recent Address to the American public was that he laid out the facts quite simply and left a good impression. Upon later reflection, I realized how much I was actually on the fence about hi speech. I felt that aside from laying down his actually plan of action, he was rather vague on his motives. He kept returning to the same reason. If we do not make a move on them first then they could get to strong to deal with later. Though I do think its a valid reason, I felt, as a person who would much rather not send more troops, that I wanted more. this vagueness also leaves a gap for younger and less informed audience members. I think that this should have been a speech that all Americans could listen to and truly hear what he had to say, he should have been more specific to convey his message to everyone.

On the other hand there were some things I liked about his speech. He was short and to the point with his plan of action. He does not want to have another ground war and said that the troops he was sending were going to be for training other soldiers and helping with intelligence and equipment.

Hunger Games in The World

The Hunger Games book and movie series by Suzanne Collins has been a highlight of popular culture for the last several years because the theme echoes the crisis we have seen in the Middle East for the last decade. the story is set in futuristic post revolutionary America, known as Panem. It describes the conflict between the poor majority of the citizens and the rich minority ruling class referred to as “The Capital.” The Capital uses fear tactics and terrorism to keep the majority from uprising. Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks the freedom of Americans has also been threatened by terrorism. The Hunger Games relates with our culture because it shows us that we can fight back against these fear tactics.

Each year the Capital reminds everyone of its power by taking two children from each district and forcing them to fight to the death in a virtual reality arena. This creates fear in the public and demonstrates that their lives are not valued. In our world, random terrorist bombings have the same effect on society.

There is a scene in the Hunger games when the president of the Capital states that although fear is powerful hope will always outweigh it. “Hope, It is the only thing stronger than fear. A little hope is effective. A lot of hope is dangerous. Spark is fine, as long as it’s contained.” This tells us that even in the face of terrorism, resilience is possible.

Project X and Teenagers

The movie Project X is based on a party that actually happened in Australia. In beginning of the movie, Thomas is a normal guy whose birthday is coming up and his friends plan to throw him a party, and record it, while his parents are gone. The party gets out of control and hundreds of people start showing up and causing chaos and destruction. The film ends when Thomas gets lightly reprimanded by his dad and makes up with Kirby, his friend who he has feelings for. Project X is part of a partying culture among teenagers and young adults in high school and college. It is important to discuss this movie because it is recent, popular, and has influenced the minds of many adolescents.


Project X makes it appear that parties are a part of life and that they justify doing anything without putting emphasis on the consequences. The party in the movie got so out of control but besides property damage, there were very few other incidents mentioned. In reality, the damage occurring at many parties can also include physical and sexual harm in many cases. Even after the party is over, Thomas' dad only seemed somewhat disappointed in him, and later his dad's dialogue changed to an almost admiring tone. Even with all of destruction of his own and other's property, family problems, and police involvement, Thomas is still applauded by his classmates in the school and quickly works things out with Kirby.


While the movie does try to come off as realistic by having it set from a characters perspective, it is actually very manipulative. The movie is trying to appeal to teenagers by showing them "The party you've only dreamed about", which it does very well. However, this might not be the best image of a party to show teenagers, who may very well try to emulate it. Project X is very entertaining but gives the wrong idea about parties, especially those that get out of hand, which don't always end well and can certainly destroy people's lives. That being said, I did like the movie.
More information on the movie here