communication

It's interesting to see how people of different cultures interact and communicate. It seems like everyone understands body language, even if they are from completely different parts of the world and speak completely different languages. I'm writing from Guilin, China. When I logged on to blogger.com, it was the same site that I would see in America, except everything was in Chinese! Not too interesting, but it's still cool how the website translates across the globe. I was watching CNN this afternoon and they talked about this new feature they have called "CNN iReport." This is an online feature that they have where you can submit media (footage, pictures, sound) of things that you think should be publicized (mostly natural disasters). It's sort of a citizen reporter type thing. I think it's really cool. Just like how our class was talking about the wonders internet has done for communication because for the first time, we can share information, we can communicate, we can give back. ...the example CNN used was on a flooding in the midwest! I hope you guys are okay!


check it out: http://www.cnn.com/ireport/

The Beauty of the Wild.

It takes a lot to leave your life behind and rebirth yourself into a fresh human being. Timothy Treadwell and Chris McCandless are heroes in my eyes because they each had enough self-respect and honor to become a new person.

Treadwell, being a recovering alcoholic, he had to throw away his addiction to a life centered on alcohol and replace it with an addiction to a life focused on the well being of grizzly bears. “I feel good about myself when I do this,” explained Treadwell. He did this because he thought that he belonged with nature to be a spirit amongst the bears. He even said, “I must be a spirit in the wilderness.” Timothy Treadwell isn’t his given name; it’s an alias for his new life. He died alongside the alcoholism. Treadwell was utterly devoted to the bears, I think, because he had an identity crisis and chose to identify himself as a guardian of the bears because he could not protect himself from letting his life spiral downwards. He isolated himself from physical human contact in order to get in touch with himself. The isolation would help him to escape from the world and get to know himself. Once he knew who he actually was, he could depend on and trust himself. Eventually he would be a stable being. Stability, in this case, is the key element to finding happiness.

It was impossible to determine exactly when McCandless had died (Krakauer, 13).

It was concluded that Chris McCandless had died of starvation, but I would have to disagree. I think the starvation was simply a side-effect of his loneliness. He felt alienated from society because he knew that he wasn't like them. He didn't feel they shared the same viewpoint on what it means or how it feels to be human. I don't think Chris really knew how he wanted to be, but he knew that he wanted to make a change in his life. He died because on his journey to find himself, he found that only having himself is the loneliest feeling. It seems to me that he really didn't like who he was or his life, considering the fact that he let it all waste away, rather than taking his fresh start and making a new life that he could enjoy. He let himself die long before he passed away. I guess, McCandless forefeited his life to the higher power of misery. He's a hero to me because he separated himself from his social class to escape society and just be. He didn't simply die a lonely, hungry, cold traveler, he died exactly the way he wanted to: in the wild.

There are no social classes in the wild. Sometimes it seems to be the only place where a body can escape and just be. Without any restrictions or pressure of society. The wilderness is where a person can go to release their true inner being. Ironically, McCandless and Treadwell both died in the wild, doing whatever they could do to either find or follow his purpose. The thing is, they both died in nature, far away from civilization, but ironically it was at the tip of their fingers. McC died against a bus. The purpose of a bus is to transport a group of people from one place to another, yet McC is still alone with nature. Treadwell died with a camera and maybe? a hellicopter near by. I just think it's so interesting that civilization was so close, but couldn't do anything to save either of the heroes.

spaceships don't come equipt with rearview mirrors.

I find the power fast food chains have over the world to be astonishing.

In relation to one of my past blog posts, I said that fast food nations around America were hurting American health standards. I stated that, "these fast food restaurants don't make it easier to eat right. They cloak their "effort" to improve the nation's health with product design and inviting advertisements that make the public really think they're making the healthy choice... when someone orders something "healthy" at McD's they package the food in a nice green and crisp plastic bag rather than the crunchy red and white classic bag, making the consumer think that they made a healthy change in his or her diet." I think the advertising, product placement, and packaging of the fast food products are insulting to Americans.

Now I realize that consumers keep feeding into the palms of these big corporations that are doing nothing but damaging the health of not only Americans, but all over the world. My dad goes to China a lot and he told me that it's not uncommon to see a line out the door and down the street to get into a Pizza Hut or McDonalds. The big fast food corporations feed powerful men and women who do nothing but create more schemes to make another buck not only from Americans, but from the world.

I wonder: Has America polluted the world, or has the American culture just simply been integrated into the cultures around the world? After that, what's next? The Moon?

Shoo fly, don't bother me: WASP Nation

I think America is too focused on WASPs (WhiteAngloSaxonProtestants). Some consider this social class to be the creme de la creme of society. Really, I couldn't care less. First off, why would someone want to associate themselves with a wasp. It sounds like something that a fly swatter could take care of.... or are they wasps because catching a fly is a hard thing to do? When I think of a fly, I think of a pesky bug in search for a little nibble of food. A fly in a fruit stand: Unfortunately, that fruit stand operator wouldn't want to share his/her sweets with that fly, so he/she'd do his/her best to shoo that pestering fly away... but they keep coming back because they know there's something to feed off of. This seems to be the social class that Chris McCandless made a dire effort to escape from. Just like I wouldn't want a fly away from my sandwich, the fruit vendor wouldn't want a fly on their produce, Chris wanted to repel those WASPs away from himself. He did everything he could to separate himself from that society. He went so far as to completely separate himself from society.I think his statements about society will continue to influence the world.

Here's a guy zemanta found who's taking a McC adventure:

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life in a box of chocolates

Tom Hanks famously said:
"My mama always said that life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gunna get."
-Forrest Gump

If life's really like a box of chocolates, and each chocolate you pick out of that box is some life changing event or element that you can't live without, then the selectivity of that would drive me crazy. Some people just take a bite out of a piece of chocolate before they eat the whole thing (to see what's inside) - symbol of curiosity of peeking into or having a taste of the future and seeing what it has in store for you - It seems like everyone is far too concentrated about which things they get in life. In class we've been talking about social class, and I came to this conclusion on my comparison to chocolate and life/societal gain: some people want the rich, dark chocolate (UC, $$$$), some want the milk chocolate (UMC, $$$), some want the white chocolate (MC, $$), and other just don't want any chocolate (LC---)! I think it honestly think it doesn't matter which piece of chocolate you pick out of that box (if you do choose one), because in the end, it's all just chocolate. If it's all just chocolate just like life is life, you choose certain aspects or events that make you appreciate the things you get out of life. You can either set the chocolate to the side, take just a little bite, or just swallow that little piece of chocolate whole. After all, life isn't about the tangible prizes, it's the feeling you get in your gut that lets you know you did something worthy in your life. So are you the kind of person that nibbles at that piece of chocolate until you decide whether that piece of chocolate is worthy of your consumption, always hesitant in life to take a step forward or too scared to try something new... or do you just swallow it whole, engulfing life and taking each plunge that goes along with it? Should you choose to behold a piece of chocolate/life? Should you neglect the opportunity? It's almost as if life can symbolically be handed right to you in that little box of chocolates. Simple. Right?

"The Great American Slowdown"

So, it's a pretty well-known fact that the American economy is not great right now... according to an article I read today in The Economist, "financial markets have... suffered arguably their biggest shock in 80 years". I constantly hear people talking about how weak the dollar is, as if a weak dollar makes a weak America. Yeah, oil prices are raising... car companies keep putting out gas guzzling machines. The people that buy these cars, for example, soccer moms, who replace their mini vans for hummers or range rovers, etc. complain about gas prices and most of the time can't even afford the gas that they need to pick up their kid from soccer practice. is the status symbol of driving a sweet ride really worth the wasted gas? is it the price they pay to fill up their gas tank what makes them american or worth someone's time? yet people still toss global warming off to the side as if it's a non-issue.

Without a doubt, the American economy is changing.. hey, when is it not? with the price of gas/oil, the credit issues, and the lessening labour market, America's got some issues on its hands. In that same article I read today, the author stated, "America does not matter as much as it once did." I'll admit, it's unfortunate that that the economy is in the state that it's in... but we can overcome it. Before most elections the US economy is down... after the elections, trends show that the economy goes right back up.

I came across this video on YouTube:

if this doesn't work, here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IiRAeMLqP08



I agree with just about everything the guy said in this video except for what he said about america being in a depression. i don't think america's in a depression, which would be with the GDP down (spending more $ than $ earned) for over 12 months... as of now, it seems to me that we're in a recession, which is when GDP is down for about 6 mo.

Bottom line, as bad as this all may seem... i am confident that it will all work out and be okay. there's always a chance for failure... but that is very unlikely. a slow recovery is predicted, which may be painful for the econ.... but a slow recovery's better than no recovery.

Jr. Theme Topics

I'm not sure whether to base my Jr. Theme on how American trade has helped globalize the world's economy or how it is so easy for Americans to have people in other countries do all their work for them. They are both related because they both have to do with trade and manufacturing.

The one about globalization would have something to do with outsourcing and how manufacturers go to the country that will give them the cheapest labor to make their products and how that helped the world become more connected.

The one about labor would have to do with living conditions and how Americans find it so easy to oppress those of other countries because it's so separated from the way Americans live their lives. Workers don't get proper pay, proper living conditions, or working conditions. This topic would cover the sacrifice workers go though in order for the Americans to make their products at a lower cost.

I'm not sure which one of these I wanna do. Right now I'm reading The World Is Flat. Hopefully that'll help me out. The book is really interesting and the author uses really effective statistics.

"slim" is shady

Watching those virginia slims commercials, the whole time i was just thinking that the man narrating the story was just saying "here ladies, have another way to be different from men," by pointing out that the feminine cigarettes were far more superior than those silly bulky male cigarettes...while at the same time saying, "it's ok, we'll let you be just like us now," inviting women into the male society...irony? It seemed to me that the image being projected to women seeing these comercials were supposed to be these dainty, gorgeous ladies. The male narrator (emphasis on male) even pointed out that the cigarettes were long and slim, suggesting that those women should be tall and slender, just like the women modeling the product... though all of the rights activists may have made a huge impact in society, I can't help but notice that it seemed that their lives were still being dictated to them subliminally by men. So the question I'm asking is, did the rights activists really make as big of a difference as they thought they did?

n***@ please.

All the time, I hear the n-word casually thrown around, even in the hallways at school. Every time I hear it, it throws me off a little because the people that I see using the word are generally people that I know to be what most would consider "privileged" white kids. It goes further than that word, people used demeaning terms all the time. I personally think they do so to make themselves feel better about their lives.
I think the connotation that oppressing words suggest, gives kids the idea to think that it's okay to use them. Not everyone has it easy, and these kids know that.. but they use those kinds of words anyways because they don't get enough "suffrage", but don't want to seem so spoiled. We are so separated from desperation in our tiny "north shore bubble", that we don't always understand the meaning behind the things that we say. We were asked a couple months ago whether or not where we live effects who we are. I definitely think that it makes a big impact on who we are and how we project ourselves in society, because to some, where they live is all they know in terms of culture. I guess using derogatory words makes people feel satisfied in getting the most they can out of this whole human experience that everyone's always trying to figure out what they're supposed to do with. Until then, let us be slaves to society and to our peers and continue on with the ignorance...?

Hotel Arizona

I think the southwest, though dry and desolate, is one of the most outstanding examples of nature in America. I recently visited a friend in Arizona and went for a hike up a mountain basically in my friend's back yard. I was overwhelmed by the beauty I saw in the desert, because I never expected to find so much raw beauty in it. Usually, when I thought of a southwest desert, I would picture a few cacti and a little snake squiggling around, but the closer I looked at the desert, the more I appreciated it. A desert hardly gets any rain and when it does the cacti and other plants soak up the little nourishment they are lucky to get, then hold onto it as long as they can, cherishing their latest drink of water. This, to me, is paralleled by human nature... as in nature vs. nurture. Those whom do not get enough nurturing, naturally take the little nurturing that they do gain and soak it up and cherish it... it really depends on the person. If this person is like an ordinary house plant that you have to water daily, and you stick them in a place with less nurturing (desert), in constant deprivation of the ammt. of nurturing they require, then they do not thrive and survive as well as say, a cactus. I also love the rockiness of the mountains by her house. These massive mountains are surrounded by so much flat land, that I love how high they do reach because it could figuratively inspire those who don't get enough nurturing to reach for something more... just like Chris McCandless, who journeyed into the west in hope of reaching the fulfillment in his life that he was missing, in order to complete himself. Since America wasn't considered "America" until the west was added to the "property", Chris McC or "Alexander Supertramp" (alex=colonies) wasn't Chris until he reached his own enlightenment which he had to find in himself by escaping to the west(west+colonies=Chris McC). I think that's one of the reasons people reach out to the west, because they know deep down that there's always more that they could do to fulfill their lives... and for some, it's right in their back yard.

Hell is Chrome

I was listening to the song "Hell is Chrome" by Wilco and one verse reminded me of what we were talking about earlier in the semester about seasons:

The air was crisp
Like sunny late winter days
A springtime yawning high in the haze
And I felt like I belonged
Come with me

Winter was generally the "dark" season... but if it's a sunny late winter day, then that to me could be an optimistic turning point, heading for a brighter future. This "brighter future" could be part of a journey lead by the angelic woman from Manifest Destiny. We've been talking about "moving west" in our class lately, and I think that since McC spent most of his travels in the west, it could be where he belonged. "Come with me" figuratively billowed out of his decomposed remnants, saying, "'come with me'. Leave this life behind, because the 'springtime is yawning in the haze'." Not saying, you have to die in order to leave your life behind... but giving yourself a fresh start is more like it, because everyone is always in a constant search to find where they belong.

The Legend of Timothy Treadwell

It takes a lot to leave your life behind and rebirth yourself into a fresh human being. Timothy Treadwell is a hero in my eyes because he had enough self-respect and honor to become a new person. Being a recovering alcoholic, he had to throw away his addiction to a life centered on alcohol and replace it with an addiction to a life focused on the well being of grizzly bears. “I feel good about myself when I do this,” explained Treadwell. He did this because he thought that he belonged with nature to be a spirit amongst the bears. He even said, “I must be a spirit in the wilderness.” Timothy Treadwell isn’t his given name; it’s an alias for his new life. He died alongside the alcoholism. Treadwell was utterly devoted to the bears, I think, because he had an identity crisis and chose to identify himself as a guardian of the bears because he could not protect himself from letting his life spiral downwards. He isolated himself from physical human contact in order to get in touch with himself. The isolation would help him to escape from the world and get to know himself. Once he knew who he actually was, he could depend on and trust himself. Eventually he would be a stable being. Stability, in this case, is the key element to finding happiness.