Saturday, January 26, 2013
Final Blog Post
So glad term 2 is done! I think I'll miss AP Composition the most though, because I'm sure not going to miss MoPro! Special thanks to Ms. Cardona for NOT putting the final on the last 3 days of the term like everyone else, THANKYOU!
Monday, January 21, 2013
BLA Final- Half the Sky
I just finished watching the documentary Half the Sky.
WOW
It was also breath taking like the book, but to a slightly lesser degree. The book had more hard core evidence and facts, as well as more heart wrenching stories to add to the effect. The movie was forced to be limited because of time constraints, which is understandable. However, the lack of evidence provided in the movie made it far less powerful. One thing that was better in the movie though is that the viewer was able to see some of the physical faces talked about in the book. The visual piece missing from the book made the reader imagine the horrific events which may have made the events inaccurate to a certain extent since the reader had to fill in the blanks for themselves, so the movie may have led the viewer to a more accurate picture of the situations depicted.
One powerful moment for me was during the first segment of the movie when two women were watching a film of a young girl being circumcised. The looks on their faces said it all. Although they did not show the movie itself, they filmed the women while they were watching it and the looks on their faces spoke of the horror and trauma they were witnessing. It was terrible. I can't imagine being violated like that and being put through that sort of torture. What frightened me the most was when they interviewed a local who said that she would not let her son marry a girl who had not been cut. That disgusted me. They stigmatize these young girls for not going along with ritualized torture. It was also shocking when they interviewed a 19 year old in Kenya who said that she was essentially exiled from her village because she got pregnant before she was cut. Her baby was supposed to be executed because she came out of an uncut vagina. Really people? I'm going out on a limb here and guess this practice was first thought up by a man.
The practice of female genital cutting literally has NO purpose. None. usually with any practice it's done for a good reason, unfortunately that's not the case here. Male circumcision for example is done for disease control and prevention. A male has a significantly reduced chance of being infected with an STD if he has been circumcised. Also, studies of African populations show that circumcised males have exponentially reduced AIDES rates when compared to uncircumcised males. Women married to circumcised men also benefit. Cervical cancer rates drop in the wives of circumcised men since less germs enter a women's body during intercourse from germs trapped in the foreskin, which is removed during a circumcision. To boot, the foreskin also doesn't have a very large blood flow, or very many nerve endings, and can be easily removed at birth. Female genital gutting however has none of these positives, but is still preformed on millions of girls a year according to the video. Shockingly enough, the video said that most were preformed on girls aged 5-9, this needs to stop.I never knew labor could be made any more painful than it already is. Jeez I have a hard time handling my menstrual cramps some months, I can't imagine going through an obstructed labor that was deliberately obstructed by someone through cutting earlier in my life.
I had a huge emotional reaction to this movie mostly because I'm a girl. I'm so lucky to not have been born into a country where I'm a second class citizen just because of my gender. This movie almost made me want to start hating men. All of the problems listed in the book and movie were deliberately caused by a male superiority complex in men around the world. I know it's wrong to blame ALL men for these issues, but I couldn't help feeling resentful toward men in general after reading the book and seeing the film. This movie has really motivated me to go out and fight for women's rights, since I'm a girl too and these are practically my sisters.
WOW
It was also breath taking like the book, but to a slightly lesser degree. The book had more hard core evidence and facts, as well as more heart wrenching stories to add to the effect. The movie was forced to be limited because of time constraints, which is understandable. However, the lack of evidence provided in the movie made it far less powerful. One thing that was better in the movie though is that the viewer was able to see some of the physical faces talked about in the book. The visual piece missing from the book made the reader imagine the horrific events which may have made the events inaccurate to a certain extent since the reader had to fill in the blanks for themselves, so the movie may have led the viewer to a more accurate picture of the situations depicted.
One powerful moment for me was during the first segment of the movie when two women were watching a film of a young girl being circumcised. The looks on their faces said it all. Although they did not show the movie itself, they filmed the women while they were watching it and the looks on their faces spoke of the horror and trauma they were witnessing. It was terrible. I can't imagine being violated like that and being put through that sort of torture. What frightened me the most was when they interviewed a local who said that she would not let her son marry a girl who had not been cut. That disgusted me. They stigmatize these young girls for not going along with ritualized torture. It was also shocking when they interviewed a 19 year old in Kenya who said that she was essentially exiled from her village because she got pregnant before she was cut. Her baby was supposed to be executed because she came out of an uncut vagina. Really people? I'm going out on a limb here and guess this practice was first thought up by a man.
The practice of female genital cutting literally has NO purpose. None. usually with any practice it's done for a good reason, unfortunately that's not the case here. Male circumcision for example is done for disease control and prevention. A male has a significantly reduced chance of being infected with an STD if he has been circumcised. Also, studies of African populations show that circumcised males have exponentially reduced AIDES rates when compared to uncircumcised males. Women married to circumcised men also benefit. Cervical cancer rates drop in the wives of circumcised men since less germs enter a women's body during intercourse from germs trapped in the foreskin, which is removed during a circumcision. To boot, the foreskin also doesn't have a very large blood flow, or very many nerve endings, and can be easily removed at birth. Female genital gutting however has none of these positives, but is still preformed on millions of girls a year according to the video. Shockingly enough, the video said that most were preformed on girls aged 5-9, this needs to stop.I never knew labor could be made any more painful than it already is. Jeez I have a hard time handling my menstrual cramps some months, I can't imagine going through an obstructed labor that was deliberately obstructed by someone through cutting earlier in my life.
I had a huge emotional reaction to this movie mostly because I'm a girl. I'm so lucky to not have been born into a country where I'm a second class citizen just because of my gender. This movie almost made me want to start hating men. All of the problems listed in the book and movie were deliberately caused by a male superiority complex in men around the world. I know it's wrong to blame ALL men for these issues, but I couldn't help feeling resentful toward men in general after reading the book and seeing the film. This movie has really motivated me to go out and fight for women's rights, since I'm a girl too and these are practically my sisters.
The power of words
Someone called me a name today, and it hurt. I then started thinking about how one little word can literally obliterate one's entire day. And then it brought me to the thought that one little word can make someone's day worth living and encourage them to go out and do something amazing. So everyone, THIS IS PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT.
It's super duper ridiculously X 10,000 easy to bark out something hurtful when you are mad, but hold it in. When that little word sits in someones mind and begins to rankle it will end up doing infinitely more damage than you were intending. I think we all know from fighting someone before that even if that person comes back with 5,000 compliments the only thing remembered the next day is that one insult they threw at you while they were in a rage. So be careful with your words. Maybe think about dropping a compliment randomly everyday for someone, who knows what greatness it will inspire.
Also I have to make a gender comment. As a girl I know that we are stereotypically more hurt by words than guys. Because I'm not a guy I can't prove or disprove that, all I want to say it: Does it matter? They still will hurt the victim in the long run, so hold it in, or you'll regret it later. Hatred can only feed on itself.
It's super duper ridiculously X 10,000 easy to bark out something hurtful when you are mad, but hold it in. When that little word sits in someones mind and begins to rankle it will end up doing infinitely more damage than you were intending. I think we all know from fighting someone before that even if that person comes back with 5,000 compliments the only thing remembered the next day is that one insult they threw at you while they were in a rage. So be careful with your words. Maybe think about dropping a compliment randomly everyday for someone, who knows what greatness it will inspire.
Also I have to make a gender comment. As a girl I know that we are stereotypically more hurt by words than guys. Because I'm not a guy I can't prove or disprove that, all I want to say it: Does it matter? They still will hurt the victim in the long run, so hold it in, or you'll regret it later. Hatred can only feed on itself.
Friday, January 18, 2013
Snow Flake Day
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Mission Statement
For my revised revision essay, I'd say the main focal point is to make people think differently about abortion and its impacts. I want to make the argument less direct and more personal in order to bolster the argument, while watering down its harshness. My mission statement is: Give respect to the unborn. My first copy of the revision essay was lacking the personal piece so my goal is to put that personal aspect back into the writing while still making my main argument clear.
Dark Humor
Wednesday, January 16, 2013
Pet Peeves
OK I have a lot of pet peeves but it's not because I'm super judgmental or anything. Honest. It's not you it's me. Anyway, one of my biggest are the people who say the word "like" way too many times in each thought or sentence. One time I was put into a school group with a girl named Kelly and in one sentence she managed to incorrectly use the word "like" a total of 15 times, I succeeded in not smacking her with a dictionary.
It also gets me extraordinarily annoyed when people sit around and complain loudly about their problems and never do anything about it or even worse, dig themselves in deeper. My mom once sat on the couch drinking tea and watching TV and started loudly complaining about how she had no time for anything. I stifled a sarcastic remark.
Also it gets on my nerves when people show up to track or cross country meets and smoke. I mean, WTF! If you had just done a very physically exhausting task and were dying for air I wouldn't walk up and blow smoke in YOUR face so don't do it to me. Jeez.
My biggest pet peeve of all is definitely when people act misogynistic and say anything along the lines of "men are better than women" or when I hear someone say to a pregnant women "I hope it's a boy." Really? That's disgusting. I take that personally, parents should love their children regardless of their gender, and it's despicable to say otherwise. Some people act like it's a bad thing to have a daughter. Excuse me? Are they saying I should have been aborted because my dad didn't give me a Y chromosome?
It also gets me extraordinarily annoyed when people sit around and complain loudly about their problems and never do anything about it or even worse, dig themselves in deeper. My mom once sat on the couch drinking tea and watching TV and started loudly complaining about how she had no time for anything. I stifled a sarcastic remark.
Also it gets on my nerves when people show up to track or cross country meets and smoke. I mean, WTF! If you had just done a very physically exhausting task and were dying for air I wouldn't walk up and blow smoke in YOUR face so don't do it to me. Jeez.
My biggest pet peeve of all is definitely when people act misogynistic and say anything along the lines of "men are better than women" or when I hear someone say to a pregnant women "I hope it's a boy." Really? That's disgusting. I take that personally, parents should love their children regardless of their gender, and it's despicable to say otherwise. Some people act like it's a bad thing to have a daughter. Excuse me? Are they saying I should have been aborted because my dad didn't give me a Y chromosome?
Hilarious!
Here are some spoofs on common movies. They are just abbreviated for comedic affect, or have a twisted ending that makes way more sense. Take a look, enjoy!
How The Wizard of Oz Should Have Ended
The Matrix in Five Seconds
The Titanic in Five Seconds
How The Wizard of Oz Should Have Ended
The Matrix in Five Seconds
The Titanic in Five Seconds
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Lazy Teenagers?
I read a news article today that hit a nerve. This general theme was that teens today are too stupid, too lazy, too sexual, or too fat. It generalized every teen in the US as a 600 pound, middle school dropout prostitute with a drug problem. WOW, REALLY?
OK, just for the record, two summers ago I went for a 143 mile bike ride with my brother, I did my first century when I was 13, I've done the MS150 bike tour 5 years in a row, I go running every day, and I've lettered in both track and cross country. I get over all good grades, I read the unabridged 1600 page version of Les Miserables, I memorized pi out to the 80th digit for fun, and I've gotten over 100% in a class before. Also, I'm currently still with my FIRST boyfriend and we've been together 2 1/2 years, and I've never done drugs.
Asides from me, none of my friends have done drugs, only two of them have ever flunked a class, and none of them have gotten pregnant. Just saying. Take that CNN.
OK, just for the record, two summers ago I went for a 143 mile bike ride with my brother, I did my first century when I was 13, I've done the MS150 bike tour 5 years in a row, I go running every day, and I've lettered in both track and cross country. I get over all good grades, I read the unabridged 1600 page version of Les Miserables, I memorized pi out to the 80th digit for fun, and I've gotten over 100% in a class before. Also, I'm currently still with my FIRST boyfriend and we've been together 2 1/2 years, and I've never done drugs.
Asides from me, none of my friends have done drugs, only two of them have ever flunked a class, and none of them have gotten pregnant. Just saying. Take that CNN.
Rhetorical Modes
Topic: Longing
Narration: I felt emotional longing the first time in kindergarten when I had to wait after school everyday for my parents to come pick me up for two hours or so. All I wanted was to go home to eat and sleep. I had felt physical longing many times before for food and sleep and such, but that was the first time when I had felt emotional longing. I have felt even more intense emotional longing since then, I've moved six times so each of those moves induced more longing for my friends and for company.
Description: A love sick girl sits in her window seat and stares out on a rainy street and dreams of a young man. She remembers the day before while they had been out on a romantic date together, and wishing it was still the previous night. She misses him tons and dearly wishes they were together right then. She hasn't been able to think of much else for almost the entire day, stuck in her thoughts of them together and her longing for him.
Example: My parents keep trying to persuade me that the only way to break the longing cycle with my boyfriend is to get super busy with chores and homework so that my mind is completely absorbed with them. This will push all other thoughts out apparently because then I'll have no room to think about my boyfriend. This isn't a very permanent solution though, it just holds it at bay for a few hours while I'm preoccupied with chores.
Comparison/Contrast: Longing and just plain wanting something are different but subtly so. Wanting something is more shallow and flesh deep. Longing includes more emotion and depth. I can want food, but I do not think and dream and cherish food every time I come into contact with it. When I long for something, it's hard to make it leave my mind for an extended period of time. The opposite of longing would best be put as dreading, you are anticipating something, but instead of positive of anticipation it's a negative anticipation.
Process Analysis: Longing has one main section to it, although this one section a beginning middle and end. In the beginning, it starts with occasionally thinking about a person or thing, and gradually begins the middle stage of consistently thinking about it/them, which develops into the third stage of craving and feeling lost without the object of the longing.
Division of Analysis: Longing can envelope your entire life ans suck you down if one does not control it properly. It can leave you hopeless and stuck until you are reunited with the object of your longing. Your attention must be slowly torn from the point of interest and redirected toward other things. Longing is made of focus, distraction, re-thinking of old thoughts, visualizing the item of your longing, and cold hard craving. These can lead the longing victim in a loop of unending and insane uneasiness and dissatisfaction.
Classification: Longing is very frequently linked to love and passion and the "ewy-gewy" dreamy Disney version of love when two lovers are separated. However, a person can long for a variety of things. Sometimes a wake up at 3:00 a.m. longing for pizza, or a child may long for his/her mother, or a person may long for a pet that just passed away. Longing fits many different situations.
Cause and Effect: Longing starts out with a deep attachment to something that grows, and then the object of attachment is removed, leaving an empty feeling and a craving for the missing item or person. The person has set up a life style around the item so when it is removed, the person feels deeply effected and lost without its presence. Their emotional happiness is disturbed and cannot be immediately reestablished without the missing object or person.
Definition: Longing is the deep emotional craving one feels toward another or an object. There are deep ties rooted in the person's brain that now link them together with the item or person. Longing can bond two people together and make them not want to be apart. Longing is a negative feeling, but it is closely linked with positive ones when the longing is answered with a reuniting of the object or person.
Argumentative/Persuasive: Longing is essential to every day life. Without it, people would not bond, no incentive systems would work anymore, and society would cease to function. A longing to be with a loved one holds the world together. If a child wonders off from his mother, a longing to be safe and with her again ensures a better chance that he will look for her in order to be safe again. Without this gut reaction the young one might wonder off and die without the nurturing of the parent, if this happened enough, the population would decline. A longing for food ensures people want to eat, so that we don't starve to death and are incentivesed to look for food.
Narration: I felt emotional longing the first time in kindergarten when I had to wait after school everyday for my parents to come pick me up for two hours or so. All I wanted was to go home to eat and sleep. I had felt physical longing many times before for food and sleep and such, but that was the first time when I had felt emotional longing. I have felt even more intense emotional longing since then, I've moved six times so each of those moves induced more longing for my friends and for company.
Description: A love sick girl sits in her window seat and stares out on a rainy street and dreams of a young man. She remembers the day before while they had been out on a romantic date together, and wishing it was still the previous night. She misses him tons and dearly wishes they were together right then. She hasn't been able to think of much else for almost the entire day, stuck in her thoughts of them together and her longing for him.
Example: My parents keep trying to persuade me that the only way to break the longing cycle with my boyfriend is to get super busy with chores and homework so that my mind is completely absorbed with them. This will push all other thoughts out apparently because then I'll have no room to think about my boyfriend. This isn't a very permanent solution though, it just holds it at bay for a few hours while I'm preoccupied with chores.
Comparison/Contrast: Longing and just plain wanting something are different but subtly so. Wanting something is more shallow and flesh deep. Longing includes more emotion and depth. I can want food, but I do not think and dream and cherish food every time I come into contact with it. When I long for something, it's hard to make it leave my mind for an extended period of time. The opposite of longing would best be put as dreading, you are anticipating something, but instead of positive of anticipation it's a negative anticipation.
Process Analysis: Longing has one main section to it, although this one section a beginning middle and end. In the beginning, it starts with occasionally thinking about a person or thing, and gradually begins the middle stage of consistently thinking about it/them, which develops into the third stage of craving and feeling lost without the object of the longing.
Division of Analysis: Longing can envelope your entire life ans suck you down if one does not control it properly. It can leave you hopeless and stuck until you are reunited with the object of your longing. Your attention must be slowly torn from the point of interest and redirected toward other things. Longing is made of focus, distraction, re-thinking of old thoughts, visualizing the item of your longing, and cold hard craving. These can lead the longing victim in a loop of unending and insane uneasiness and dissatisfaction.
Classification: Longing is very frequently linked to love and passion and the "ewy-gewy" dreamy Disney version of love when two lovers are separated. However, a person can long for a variety of things. Sometimes a wake up at 3:00 a.m. longing for pizza, or a child may long for his/her mother, or a person may long for a pet that just passed away. Longing fits many different situations.
Cause and Effect: Longing starts out with a deep attachment to something that grows, and then the object of attachment is removed, leaving an empty feeling and a craving for the missing item or person. The person has set up a life style around the item so when it is removed, the person feels deeply effected and lost without its presence. Their emotional happiness is disturbed and cannot be immediately reestablished without the missing object or person.
Definition: Longing is the deep emotional craving one feels toward another or an object. There are deep ties rooted in the person's brain that now link them together with the item or person. Longing can bond two people together and make them not want to be apart. Longing is a negative feeling, but it is closely linked with positive ones when the longing is answered with a reuniting of the object or person.
Argumentative/Persuasive: Longing is essential to every day life. Without it, people would not bond, no incentive systems would work anymore, and society would cease to function. A longing to be with a loved one holds the world together. If a child wonders off from his mother, a longing to be safe and with her again ensures a better chance that he will look for her in order to be safe again. Without this gut reaction the young one might wonder off and die without the nurturing of the parent, if this happened enough, the population would decline. A longing for food ensures people want to eat, so that we don't starve to death and are incentivesed to look for food.
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