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Lauren Kulick kulick414@cox.net
DW#16 Essay #4 Argument of Evaluation (Rough Draft)
“Katie Casey saw all the games, Knew the players by their first names; Told the umpire he was wrong, All along good and strong. When the score was just two to two, Katie Casey knew what to do, Just to cheer up the boys she knew, She mad the gang sing this song: ‘Take me out to the ball game, Take me out to the crowd . . .”
The above quotation is an excerpt from Jack Norworth’s 1927 version of the commonly known song, “Take me out to the Ball Game.”1 It is a quotation that embodies the emotions related to baseball. Baseball represents so many things: athleticism, strategy, popularity and tradition. By evaluating those qualities, it can be argued that baseball is the ultimate sport. Baseball is America’s Pastime.
One evaluation that can be used to determine baseball’s ultimate standing in sports is athleticism. Baseball requires the most continuous athleticism of any professional sport. Each sport requires a great deal of strength, flexibility, endurance and natural ability. Athleticism is defined by these qualities. However, when looking at the sports individually, it can be understood that Baseball players display the greatest amount of athleticism. A baseball player uses strength in each activity during the sport. This includes throwing, running, swinging the bat, catching, and squatting. There is constant movement in the game, constant use of muscle. This is different from football, in that football players specialize. Some run, some throw, some tackle. In baseball, however, the players could be considered “jacks of all trades.” Though baseball players have a specific position, they each run, throw, catch and are constantly moving. Secondly, the flexibility required in baseball is very high. A baseball player must be able to squat, dive, and leap to get to the baseball. Baseball requires movements that are more finesse than the straightforward “throw your weight around” movements of football, or the legs only game of soccer. Thirdly, when it comes to endurance, baseball is arguably the only sport that practically lasts all year. Preseason begins in March and post season ends in October. Baseball teams are scheduled 162 regular season games a year.2 Football plays only sixteen regular season games, hockey comes closer with 82, however, neither can even compare to baseball’s 162. The game itself is an endurance game.3 Nine innings per game push the time of play to anywhere from two to three hours. Considering the wide range of necessary skills, muscle usage and stamina required for baseball compared to other sports, it can be argued that baseball has the most athletic players of any sport.
Athleticism is not the only aspect of baseball that makes it superior to other sports. Baseball is a game of strategy. Planning, scouting, adaptability, and acute observation are necessary strategic elements for the game of baseball. There are many things for a coach to take in to consideration when planning a baseball game. The coach has to decide what pitcher to put up against the other team. This can be determined by the handedness of the other team’s batters, the other team’s ability to hit certain pitches, and even previous history between the pitcher and the other team. There is a lot of research required for only one game. A baseball team’s manager also has to decide which players will be included in the line up, which order they will be in and where in the field each will play. There is a lot of shifting in baseball. Many players are versatile. This is a lot different than other sports. You don’t often see the same player being a quarterback and being able to play wide receiver in football. Though pre-planning is a major part of the strategy of baseball, there is much strategy involved during the actual game. Baseball teams have a general style. The Angels, for example, are known for their “short game”. They are known for using small plays to gain runs, rather than relying on the “raw power” of home runs. This general team strategy, however, can change during a game. If it comes to certain situations, timing aspects, player match-ups or situations, the manager may choose to change the strategy. For example, the manager may go into an inning thinking he will let the batters swing away for each of the first three at-bats. But then, the first player hits a single. Now, the manager may change his idea and decide to steal, or have the next player bunt, depending on the speed of the runner. There is a lot to think about and constant strategizing to be done. Football has strategy too. I am not denying that. But, in football, plays are made, and then executed. There is not much adapting during an actual play. These constant adjustments to plans, in baseball, are caused by observation. The baseball players and coaches are constantly observing and thinking to make instant strategic changes.
Athleticism and strategy aside, there is no arguing with prolonged popularity. When one thinks of the popularity of sports, the first thought is often football. Professional, arena and college football all have a huge following. They have many fans. But, if one considers the definition of popular, which is that something or someone is “regarded with favor, approval or affection by the people in general.”4 Football is widely attended, profitable and discussed a lot, but mostly by men. Baseball has a wider fan base. Baseball is viewed by men, women, children, teenagers and the elderly. It is also a sport that is all inclusive when playing. There is little league for boys, softball for girls and even slow pitch for adults. Football has no woman counterpart and once one is too old, football is out of the question. Baseball and softball is a sport that can be played as young as three years old and as old as one can still walk. Football, on the other hand, usually doesn’t start until about age eleven or twelve and is over by forty. Besides playing, baseball is also a very popular sport to view and track. This is done via television, radio and the internet. In fact, “major league baseball already has the most profitable league web site.”5 Combining fan involvement, merchandise sales, widespread likeability and variety of ages involved in the sport, baseball can be argued to be the most “popular” sport by definition.
A big part of baseball’s likeability is the tradition involved. The sport is different now compared to the past, but it has the nostalgia, the tradition. Almost anyone knows of baseball as “America’s Pastime.” “It was called ‘America's Pastime’ because during the late 19th and early 20th century it was probably the most widely played sport in the country. Baseball was to that time period as video games and television are to today. It was literally how America passed the time.”6 This aspect of tradition keeps the fans fervent with desire to preserve the sport and support what it stands for. It is America’s fun, entertaining way to be patriotic. While football may be thought of as the most popular sport, “being the most popular sport does not make something the ‘national pastime’.”6
Baseball is America’s Pastime. It is the ultimate sport. Baseball requires flexibility, strength and endurance unlike any other sport. Baseball has a schedule that runs eight months out of the year and requires five to six days of work a week. It is a sport of strategy, a sport of observation, and a sport involving many quick changes. This pastime is watched by men, women, and children. It is attended by families, friends and complete strangers who bond over their love for baseball. It is the most “popular” sport considering the audience is all inclusive. Baseball is patriotic, it is tradition. Take me out to the ball game. Three strikes and you’re out. There’s no crying in baseball. Baseball is America’s Pastime.
Tammy L. Wood red122557@hotmail.com The Abolishment of Religious Observances Christmas is an observed religious holiday and should remain as one. Christmas has been one of the great traditions in American history. Activists groups in America, such as the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), are trying to change these traditions by having them removed as federal government holidays. On the Wikipedia website about the FFRF, it shows a sign that the FFRF has posted at the Wisconsin State Capitol about their philosophy of the winter holiday seasons. The sign says, “At this season of the Winter Solstice may reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but a myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds”. Do we want such groups spreading dissention and discord? Religious holidays need to be observed and the abolishment of even just one holiday is saying more about America than not wanting to celebrate Christmas. Despite the support of those who don’t want to see a change, the United States holidays and Holy days could possibly be changed in the future. If activist groups like the FFRF can prove that celebrating holidays, such as Christmas and Easter, are a separation of the church from the state, then all of the holidays that are considered religious observances would not be allowed to be on the calendar as federal government holidays. If the abolishment of religious observances is allowed to take place, the United States will undergo very drastic changes in our personal and social lives. Sam Francis states in the article Christmas and The National Question: Once Cheer for Krauthammer, “A public religion is the religion with which a country publicly identifies, and we know it identifies with it because we know it has become vital to its identity as a nation”. Christmas is one of those items that we identify as a part of our heritage. The meaning of Christmas has changed in so many ways. Originally Christmas was a day set aside to honor the birth of Jesus Christ. The Bible says, “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the King, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem saying, ‘Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him’." (Matthew 2:1-2) For many it has become more of a social event in which love and good cheer are spread to others. Kaye Grogan said in the article The True Meaning of Christmas Under Fire that, “Christmas is certainly not about the latest toy craze. Gift giving at Christmas time has become so secular, the true meaning has really taken a beating and barely resembles the Christmas seasons 25-30 years ago — much less centuries ago”. That’s not saying that this is a bad thing, it’s just not what the original purpose was. Even though others can enjoy the Christmas season for different reasons, Christmas is still considered a religious observance. Perhaps it would be politically correct if we renamed the holiday season to a “Winter Celebration” instead. By changing the name, this might appease groups like the FFRF. But, would this mean that America is willing to turn their backs on our Christian heritage? Should this really be something that we change or would these actions only deteriorate the basis of our freedom of religion? With our society becoming such a diversified group of people with so many religious backgrounds, there are grumblings that Christmas and other ones like Easter, are stepping on the toes of the people’s constitutional rights. Christmas is a religious holiday, and by us observing it, we are acknowledging that Jesus existed. Not everyone believes in Jesus but most Americans do celebrate Christmas in some form or another. In the article Christmas and the Challenge of Religious Diversity, Deborah Levine, Editor of the American Diversity Report states, “Some blame the influence of multi-culturalism in America for setting religions against each other and eroding the meaning of Christmas. They believe that the activism of those espousing diversity and multi-culturalism destroy our unity”. Our government would have to changes as well. Some of these changes might have to be for our government to acknowledge all other religion’s holidays. This might force companies to pay their employees holiday pay for any religious holiday. Should the government have to make changes to accommodate all religions? Which religious holiday is the right religious holiday? Should America have to change its base values and ideals to accommodate the diversified population? These are all of the controversial topics concerning religious observances. Our government could pass laws concerning these holidays that would abolish them from our calendars as national holidays. This would change the very foundations that America was built on. The abolishment of religious holidays would not be a positive move. Hopefully our government would not allow this to happen. It shows in the article, Theocracy Alert – House Passes “Christmas” Resolution, published by the FFRF, where the House choose to recognize Christmas. The article states, “The House said: ‘for Christians, Christmas is celebrated as a recognition of God's redemption, mercy, and Grace.’ Although falling short of calling the United States a Christian nation, the House resolved that Congress ‘acknowledges and supports the role played by Christians and Christianity in the founding of the United States and in the formation of the western civilization’.” It is good to see that Congress still supports that fact that America is a Christian based nation. Charles Krauthammer, a Jewish neoconservative, has plenty to say about this topic. In the article Christmas and the National Question: One Cheer for Krauthammer, he said that “The attempts to de-Christianize Christmas are as absurd as they are relentless”. He also said, “The United States today is the most tolerant and diverse society in history. It celebrates all faiths with an open heart and open mindedness that, compared to even the most advanced countries in Europe, are unique.” Krauthammer feels that, “Americans certainly enjoy a right to practice whatever religions they wish, Christianity remains the public religion of the nation---whether one believes in it or likes it or not.” Krauthammer goes on to say that going against Christmas it “ungenerous” and that it is “a failure to appreciate the uniqueness of the communal American religious experience. Unlike, for example, the famously tolerant Ottoman Empire or the generally tolerant Europe of today, the United States does not merely allow minority religions to exist at its sufferance. It celebrates and welcomes and honors them.” Every nation has an identity as to what religion their nation is connected to. China has Buddhism, England’s is Christianity; Iraq’s is Islam and so on. As with all religions, there are traditions that each country follows. Our country does not ask other countries to change their ways to accommodate our religious celebrations, so other countries should respect ours. Sam Francis states in article Christmas and the National Question: One Cheer For Krauthammer that, “it is precisely because Christianity is vital to our national identity that there is a war against it, and that’s the reason also there is now a nationwide resistance to that war by Americans who wish to conserve our national identity. Thus the major national holiday is and always has been the major Christian holiday, and throughout American history presidents and public leaders of all parties and persuasions has acknowledged the Christian identity of the country, without any supposition of controversy.” Even though Christmas is a Christian religious holiday everyone can join in the “Christmas spirit” of gifts and giving and spreading joy. Since Christmas has become more than a religious holiday and everyone seems to enjoy celebrating it, why are the activists groups trying so hard to get rid of Christmas? They believe it is unconstitutional and intrudes on the rights of the people. The ACLU, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the FFRF, the Freedom From Religion Foundation are two groups that want Christmas removed from the list of federal government holidays. In doing so, it would change everything that we know as the “Christmas Holiday Season”. Schools would be open, government offices and banks would be open for business, and holiday pay would be taken away. The The actual celebration wouldn’t necessarily go away; it just would not be emphasized any more. Somehow, I don’t think that life would be the same. Gary DeMar was calling out the anti-Christian groups in the article Lets Abolish Christmas. He said, “If you really believe what you claim, then go all the way. Go to court and stop the State celebration of Christmas by mandating that all government employees must work on December 25th. The majority of Americans would rebel. And that would be a good thing”. If government holidays were to change, so would school holidays. There would be no more Christmas breaks. There might still be a winter recess, but nothing could be focused around Christmas. Some teachers believe that the December holidays bring about an opportunity to teach about other countries traditions. In an article written by Perry Swanson, A Holiday From Debate, Becky Carter, director of the elementary learning services at District 49 said, “The primary purpose is education”. The Anti-Defamation League states in the same article that, “It is constitutionally permissible for public schools to teach about religion, but unconstitutional for public schools to observe religious holidays or practice religion”. In the same article, Ted Siewert goes on to say that, “You can teach the facts on anything without being biased”. Religion has been the force behind many wars and battles in every nation on this earth. This can not be taken away that easily without having to rewrite the history books as well as throwing out the Bible the Hebrew Bible and every other book that teaches religion. It has been the backbone of our very existence”. It seems that more people would be robbed of rights by abolishing Christmas than by allowing Christmas. So, what is wrong with us celebrating Christmas? Are we breaking all of the rules when it comes to constitutional rights? Are we willing to leave behind what we have celebrated for so many years? There are laws put here to protect us and our rights, but should these laws go so far as to change the very essence of our being. America was a proud country and our traditions speak of that. We should not be taking away from our traditions, just merely adding to them. Other religions should be able to observe their holidays as well, but the emphasis should remain on the holidays of what this nation is about, who we are, where we came from, what our religious beliefs are how all of this was used to build our great nation.. I don’t want to see us turn our backs on any of this. We need to stand proud and tall and keep our traditions in tact because that is who we are here in America. The celebration of Christmas goes deeper than eggnog and mistletoe. Yes, it is a religious holiday, and yes it is about the birth of Jesus. Quite frankly, our nation could use more of what Christmas has to offer not less!
Works Cited DeMar, Gary. “Let’s Abolish Christmas”. American Vision.org. 24 Dec 2007. 16 July 2008. www.americanvision.org/articlearchive2007/12-24-07.asp Francis, Sam. “Christmas And The National Question: One Cheer For Krauthammer”. Vdare.com. 20 Dec 2004. 15 July 2008. www.vdare.com/francis/041220_krauthammer.htm “Freedom from Religion Foundation”. Wikipedia. 15 July 2008. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Freedom_from_Religion_Foundation Grogan, Kay. “The True Meaning of Christmas Under Fire”. Renew America. 22 Dec 2006. 18 July 2008. renewamerica.us/columns/grogan/061222 “House Passes ‘Christmas’ Resolution”. Freedom From Religion Fountation. Free Thought Today. Vol 24. No 10. Dec 2007. 18 July 2008. ffrf.org/fttoday/2007/dec/ theocracyalert.php Levine, Debora. “Christmas and the Challenge of Religious Diversity”. American Diversity Report. 18 July 2008. www.americandiversityreport.com/index.php/News/ Religious-Diversity/Christmas-and-the-Challenge-of-Religious-Diversity.html Swanson, Perry. “A Holiday From Debate”. Gazette, The (Colorado Springs). Dec 20 2006. Findarticles.com. 19 July 2008. findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4191/ Is_20061220/ai_n171125427 The Holy Bible, King James Version. Blue Letter Bible: On Line. 19 July 2008. blueleterbible.org/kjv/mat/mat002.html
Luisa Vargas Joe Gallegos Eng 1B July 23, 2008. Paradise or Hell?
As a child I always thought I lived in paradise. I did not know how paradise was for other people and I did not know it could be subjective but I was sure that were I lived had to be it. Growing up I realized that paradise, the name I gave my homeland, had things that were not so pleasant and I realize that the same place that was safe and beautiful to me was dangerous and ugly to others. I could not see Colombia the way the rest of the world saw it. It was shocking for me the first time I heard in the news: “Colombia is the most dangerous country in the world.” I could not help but wonder: who made that decision? According to whom? And how many people agree with this? Now, as an adult, I have the knowledge and enough reasons to tell people that Colombia is not the most dangerous country in the world. There are three main misconceptions about safety in Colombia: it is said that Colombian crime rate is the highest is the world, that everyone in Colombia produces or knows someone who produces cocaine, and that foreign tourists are not safe at all there. Colombia has shown really high rates of crime throughout the years. Everything started with a civil war called “El Bogotazo”, which was a conflict between two political parties for the power, leading to years of constant corruption and tragedy. An illegal army called FARC was created to defend people from the government, but this army had no ideals and as the years went by, the FARC started hurting and killing those people they said they wanted to defend. It has been over fifty years since this all started, and most governments have given more power to this group than what they have done against them, leaving Colombian people in the middle of a war. Now, when people actually want to change this path, they realize that it takes more than one government period and a good heart to do so. The current president of the country, Alvaro Uribe, has been a great leader; the slogan of his campaign was “soft heart but strong hands” meaning that with assertiveness and a hearth full of good intentions things can change. Crime rate in Colombia has lowered considerably, the crime per capita, which means per every thousand people, is 4.99 putting Colombia in the 44th place out of 66 countries analyzed. The assaults per capita are 0.58 putting Colombia in the 35th place out of 57 countries; rape rate is 0.04 per capita so Colombia is the 53rd out of 60 . None of those are 1st place. That alone says a lot about Colombia not being the most dangerous country in the world. Another very well known issue is that everyone in Colombia produces or knows someone who produces cocaine. I have never seen or met someone who actually worked in the drug business but if this is not enough reason for people to believe I have valuable information to prove that at least 90% of Colombian people make a leaving out of clean and honest jobs. Colombia has made it in the news as Columbia, people know little about the correct spelling of its name, let alone its real story. Hollywood and the news have done a great job selling the image of Colombia as a cocaine jungle, where parents leave their kids in a little house while they go to work growing cocaine, poppy, and marijuana. Movies like “XXX” and “Clear and Present Danger” show how in Colombia people walk around coca plants and the danger of getting shot as soon as they arrive . A British who lived in Colombia had this response when he was asked about his experience there: “If you say that Colombia is so dangerous like now it is Iraq, you mean that the Colombian cities are under heavy attacks, bombs in any public place and many other kind of terrorist attacks. Surely, it is not what the ones who like to do world classifications are meaning. They want to mean that in Colombia there is a political conflict and you have to take care if you travel to Colombia, but such conclusion is not understood like that for citizens if they see the name of Colombia near to Iraq as violent alike. What we want to say is that you can not compare the violence of Colombia with the violence of Iraq. It would be more exact to the comparison with the violence of the USA” . Developed countries give their people warnings before traveling to Colombia, some even try to persuade people to not travel to Colombia, but if we were to compare violence from one country to another then governments should advise people from Chile or Argentine not to travel to U. S. A since its crime rate is a lot higher than in those two countries. It is clear we cannot compare opinions about what is really dangerous since this changes depending on people’s experiences, the way they were raised and how they lived. I can personally say that I lived in Colombia for 21 years, and I was never robbed, I never saw a gun, I never saw, grew or worked with cocaine, and I never saw an assassination. On the other hand, I have lived in United States for three years, and I have already seen a robbery where guns where used and I saw a woman being physically abused by her husband; and I live in Laguna Beach one of the cities with the lowest crime rates in California. This just proves that circumstances can change and a place could be the safest place on Earth and still be dangerous for some.
All of this could be proved, but how do you explain to foreigners that Colombia is beautiful and that they are not going to get killed as soon as they set foot on Colombian ground? Peter Van Dijck lived in Colombia, and he answered some questions about his experience; he was realistic yet respectful to Colombia: “The dangers are both real and exaggerated. I've never experienced any hostility, but it is true: Colombia is a violent society. However, the expectations of most foreigners are completely overblown; chances are if you come to Colombia you'll never have anything worse than a sunburn. It does make for a continuing conversation topic, and often I found it hard to strike that balance between careful and careless. But once you get it you'll be fine. The only real danger is when traveling on the road, and if you are really worried, that's easily avoided by taking planes” . Hundreds of people travel to Colombia and never encounter any danger; there is risk, we cannot or should not hide that, but as long as tourists go to safe places, and there are thousands of those all over the country, and as long as they have a group of people to guide them then they would be safe. People go to Colombia to teach other languages, and are able to enjoy its reality. Tourist should be warned, yes, but not discourage to go there. Since the new safety caravans, which are special dates organized by the government and located all along Colombian roads, tourism in Colombia has increased on a 65%, even Colombian people are doing what they were afraid to do for so long, travel around their own country. Crime rate keeps lowering and tourism increasing, that is a good sign and it is about time people stop calling Colombia the most dangerous country in the world.
Colombia has great things to offer: culture, history and even art; Colombia has the biggest theater festival in the whole entire world, and people come to it from many different countries to enjoy it, nobody has been killed at it. Colombia has 14,000 species of butterflies, and it is the third country in biodiversity. There is a lot more to Colombia than a cocaine jungle. I know that its past has shown a bad side of it, but most Colombians are trying to show the good side, but as long as people keep destroying its image, Colombia will stay as the most dangerous county in the world and the three points I made here: low crime rates, honest people and a great touristic destinations would not be valid to show that Colombia is a wonderful place, and that perhaps Colombia could be really close to paradise.
"If Clark [Kent] wanted to, he could use his super-speed and squish me into the cement. But I know how he thinks. Even more than the Kryptonite, he's got one big weakness. Deep down, Clark's essentially a good person. ....And deep down...I'm not." - Batman (Hush, DC Comics #612, 2002) Batman is the most humanized and relatable character in all of superhero fiction. This singular quality has kept his stories popular in diverse forms of media for decades, since his creation by Bob Kane for National Publications (which would later become the legendary DC Comics) in 1939 (Daniels 1999). He is a flawed hero in the finest tradition of tragic literature, which makes his motives more complex, and his plights more compelling, than those that usually unfold in story arcs belonging to other superheroes. The epigraph to this essay perfectly illustrates the reasons so many comic-book readers and movie or television viewers have found Batman's persona and quests so engrossing over the years: his anger and guilt are emotions with which we can all identify, because they often lead him to danger and ruin, and his fragile mortality is constantly in evidence, which induces a palpable fear in both himself and his audience. Bruce Wayne is only a man, after all, driven though he is by his own inner demons to fight injustice and save Gotham City, and he holds strong and occasionally contradictory sentiments just like the rest of us. Many of us have unfortunately experienced the lasting tragedy of losing a loved one, which often leads to misplaced guilt, as in the case of the young Bruce Wayne. By now, we all know the story: Bruce watched his parents die, after a mugging gone wrong, as a young child on the way home from an opera. This deeply personal trauma is heart-wrenching enough in itself to secure his place as a sympathetic character; however, as we follow Bruce through adolescence, when he is a lost soul searching for direction and meaning, we also recall the emptiness and yearning that often filled our days at that age, though few of us can truly identify with the (surely frustrating) knowledge that immense wealth is no substitute at all for the loss and loneliness felt after the deaths of the ones we love most. The protagonist embarks on a journey of self-discovery, the longing (and even planning) for which is something else that many readers can personally empathize with, although it must be said that few people make their pilgrimage in the form of a submersion into the criminal underworld! Bruce desires to know the mind of the outlaw, in order that he can understand why his parents were killed, and he desperately needs to find a way to absolve himself from the extraordinary guilt he feels (the fact that he does not know how to go about doing so is merely another way in which we can feel his pain; everyone has embarked on a personal quest without knowing what the end would look like). Unfortunately, this is an ultimately misguided attempt, as reason is rarely a factor in the action of violent crime; Bruce returns to Gotham with a new resolve, and becomes the storied crimefighter known as Batman. Batman's most human aspect is, of course, that he is merely human like the rest of us. He doesn't have Superman's laser-vision, or Wolverine's adamantium skeleton, or the Flash's incredible speed, or the superhuman strength of the Hulk, or the mutant arachno-abilities of Spiderman. Batman is just some guy dressed in a ridiculous vinyl suit and cape, and who also happens to be a martial-arts master and adept detective: nothing the average reader couldn't become, given the proper motivation and sufficient practice. Commentators have even noted that Batman need not be particularly skilled at either trade (Friedman 2006); deception and surprise are his primary tools and compensate for any lack of physical or intellectual skill, and his bottomless checking account allows him to use equipment that far outclasses anything your typical villain can obtain. One imagines that Bruce Wayne would have made an excellent undercover detective, if he had chosen to eschew vigilantism in favor of more lawful methods. Another, more emotionally trenchant connection between the character of Batman and his devoted fans is the constant undercurrent of righteous anger that betrays itself in both his actions and his internal monologue (to which we are fortunate enough to have access, given the generous quantity of thought-bubbles in the typical comic). His guilt over the deaths of his parents has transmuted into a directionless anger at the world, for both the denial of his vengeance and its propensity for senseless violence towards the innocent. This is surely a feeling that is familiar to those of us with a social conscience; injustice is prevalent in our world, and we often feel discomfort or even a helpless rage when confronted with the sight of others' misfortunes. However, we, unlike Batman, lack the means (if not the resolve) to pursue justice by any means necessary, instead being forced to rely on government or social pressure to eradicate evil. This subconscious wish to be the arbiter of vigilante justice, even if it is never acted upon, is a powerfully connecting force between Batman and even the most casual reader. We have all wanted to be the guy or girl who saves the world, or at least the damsel in distress, and Bruce Wayne provides an outlet for those fantasies while simultaneously holding true to his own convictions. Batman's ideals are often quite utilitarian, that is, his motives are frequently intended towards the end that will do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. He has often made personal sacrifices in order to ensure the safety of Gotham, and this is something the reader can identify with in an abstract way (having probably never had to choose between a lover and a city), but it is not the most salient point of Batman's personal ethos. When it comes to the matter of taking the life of an enemy, Batman has steadfastly refused (at least since his earliest and roughest incarnations in the late 1930s) to commit murder, no matter how justifiable or beneficial to the public it may seem. This deontological tenet holds true in his beliefs and actions, due to his conviction that such an act would be morally irredeemable in and of itself, regardless of the future evil that could be avoided, and that by killing he would become no better than the villains he struggles to overcome (White 2008). If this is not a quality we could all necessarily share in every possible dangerous circumstance, it is certainly something many would consider worthy of emulation, and thus deepens our admiration of Batman's mental strength and devotion to justice. This contrasts strongly with the absolutist ethics portrayed by the Punisher, whose backstory and nature are otherwise similar, since that vigilante has no qualms about killing if it should prove to advance the victory of good over evil -- a willingness that has earned him the label of "anti-hero". The story of Bruce Wayne and Batman (which is the true alter-ego?) has captivated audiences for many years, and will continue in popularity for the foreseeable future, if present box office returns are any indicator. This ongoing fascination with the character is due in large part to those aspects that humanize him to a degree unequaled by any other superhero: his internal emotional conflicts and the ever-present darkness within his psyche, his unquenchable drive to fight injustice and protect the innocent, his strict adherence to an admirable moral code -- but most of all, audiences are drawn closer to him as a person by his ingenuity and ability to rise above the defects and incapacities of mortal men, despite being one himself, in order to achieve his worthy goals. Batman can be bruised and even fatally wounded, but in his own words, "I need to become more than a man. I need to become a symbol. A man can be killed, but a symbol can't be stopped, only feared."
References
Daniels, Les. (1999). Batman: The Complete History. San Francisco: Chronicle Books.
Friedman, Cary A. (2006). Wisdom From the Batcave: How to Live a Super, Heroic Life. Linden, N.J.: Compass Books.
White, Mark D., Arp, Robert, & Irwin, William. (2008). Batman and Philosophy: The Dark Knight of the Soul (The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series). Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Ruchi Lamba ENG 1B: #12215 Prof. Gallegos DW#22 Essay #4 Argument of Evaluation – Rough Draft
George W. Bush is a Terrible President
It is tough for a nation’s leader to make one mistake after another without ever admitting he was wrong, yet George W. Bush has managed to do just that in his two terms as the President of the United States. Displaying his terrible leadership, Bush managed to start a war on a false premise, curb the civil liberties of his citizens, fail to respond to a civil emergency and thwart efforts to prevent global climate change. A through examination of his failures in the last eight years leaves only one word that can accurately describe his performance – terrible. The failures of the Bush administration is not just a partisan issue, it is an issue that the mainstream media has refused to cover accurately and one that the American public has not fully acknowledged. And, it is about time the failures were recognized on a collective basis, because it is only through this acceptance of the fact that Bush is a terrible President that we can stop it from ever happening again. One of the most terrible decisions taken by George W. Bush was executing a calculating strategy to deceive its’ citizens that there was and is a connection between Iraq and the attacks of September 11, 2001, and then using this connection to attack Iraq. This was a terrible thing to do because not only was it wrong to lie to the American people, but the lie has cost lives. On September 8, 2002, President Bush declared in a CBS interview that Saddam was "six months away from developing a weapon," and cited satellite photos of construction in Iraq where weapons inspectors once visited as evidence that Saddam was trying to develop nuclear arms. The reasoning given to the American people was the claim that Iraq had sought uranium from Niger, and high strength aluminum tubes from China and there were to be used for the sole purposes of building centrifuges to enrich uranium. This was in direct contradiction with the statements by former terrorism advisor Richard Clarke, who personally informed the President that neither Saddam Hussein nor Iraq was responsible for the September 11th attacks (Clarke, 200). Furthermore, on September 8, 2002, Clarke submitted to the President's National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice a memo he had written in response to George W. Bush's specific request that stated two explicit items – that only anecdotal evidence linked Hussein to al Qaeda; and there was no confirmed reporting of Saddam Hussein cooperating with Bin Laden on unconventional weapons. However, George W. Bush chose to ignore this finding, and authorized those acting under his direction and control to pressure intelligence analysts to alter their assessments in order to secretly obtain unreliable information, to manufacture intelligence or reinterpret raw data in ways that would further the Bush administration's goal of fraudulently establishing a relationship not only between Iraq and al Qaeda, but between Iraq and the attacks of September 11th (Michealmoore.com). As a result, the public and some members of Congress came to believe, falsely, that there was a connection between Iraq and the attacks of 911. President Bush continued to make false statement in the media such as "In defiance of the United Nations, Iraq has stockpiled biological and chemical weapons, and is rebuilding the facilities used to make more of those weapons." (Speech of President Bush, October 5, 2002) and "All the world has now seen the footage of an Iraqi Mirage aircraft with a fuel tank modified to spray biological agents over wide areas. Iraq has developed spray devices that could be used on unmanned aerial vehicles with ranges far beyond what is permitted by the Security Council. A UAV launched from a vessel off the American coast could reach hundreds of miles inland.” (Statement by President Bush from the White House, February 6, 2003). All of these statements were lies. The weapons of mass destruction were never found. Bush continued to justify the attack claiming that Saddam Hussein was linked to the men who orchestrated the September 11 attacks. Yet, in an interview on January 31st 2003 when a reporter asked him "Do you believe that there is a link between Saddam Hussein, a direct link, and the men who attacked on September the 11th?" President Bush’s response was “I can't make that claim.” The basic point to realize here is that Bush deliberately lied to the American people and as a result hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians and U.S. soldiers died for no reason. After September 11, “the nation needed thoughtful leadership to deal with the underlying problems September 11 reflected: a radical deviant Islamist ideology on the rise, real security vulnerabilities in the highly integration global civilization. Instead, America got unthinking reactions, ham-handed responses, and a rejection of analysis in favor of received wisdom. It has left us less secure. We will pay the price for a long time” (Clarke, 287).
Another major reason why Bush should be considered a terrible President is that he curbed civil liberties through the Patriot Act, which allows people to be arrested for suspicious activities, and it allows the government to spy on its citizens. It is against the American Constitution to spy on its citizens without a warrant, yet Bush ordered the National Security Agency to secretly collect the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth. The agency was told “to create a database of every call ever made' within the nation's borders.” (Cauley, USA Today, May 11, 2006). Such wiretapping is a terrible thing for a President to endorse, since it curbs the citizens’s most basic right – the right to free speech. Also, to be called a terrible President, he must fail to respond to natural disasters adequately and Bush satisfied this requirement with his reaction to Hurricane Katrina. He failed to take sufficient action to protect life and property prior to and in the face of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, given decades of foreknowledge of the dangers of storms to New Orleans and specific forewarning in the days prior to the storm. In 2004, the Army Corps of Engineers asked for $105 million for hurricane and flood programs in New Orleans. The White House hacked that down to about $40 million, even as it passed the $12.3 billion energy bill. (The Associated Press). Hurricane Katrina killed at least 1,282 people, with 2 million more displaced. 302,000 housing units were destroyed or damaged by the hurricane, 71% of these were low-income units. More than 500 sewage plants were destroyed, more than 170 point-source leakages of gasoline, oil, or natural gas, more than 2000 gas stations submerged, several chemical plants, 8 oil refineries, and a superfund site was submerged. 8 million gallons of oil were spilled. Toxic materials seeped into floodwaters and spread through much of the city and surrounding areas. “The President's response to Katrina via FEMA and DHS was criminally delayed, indifferent, and inept” (michealmoore.com). I need to add more info here that pins the blame on Bush and not on FEMA. Finally, Bush suppressed the release of scientific information related to global climate change, which has thwarted efforts to prevent global climate change despite the serious threat that it poses. In March 2001, President Bush announced the U.S. would not be pursuing ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, an international effort to reduce greenhouse gasses. The New York Times on January 29, 2006, reported that James Hansen, NASA's senior climate scientist was warned of "dire consequences" if he continued to speak out about global climate change and the need for reducing emissions of associated gasses. The Times also reported that: "At climate laboratories of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, for example, many scientists who routinely took calls from reporters five years ago can now do so only if the interview is approved by administration officials in Washington, and then only if a public affairs officer is present or on the phone." In December of 2007, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform issued a report based on 16 months of investigation and 27,000 pages of documentation. According to the summary: "The evidence before the Committee leads to one inescapable conclusion: the Bush Administration has engaged in a systematic effort to manipulate climate change science and mislead policy makers and the public about the dangers of global warming." The report described how the White House appointed former petroleum industry lobbyist Phil Cooney as head of the Council on Environmental Quality. The report states "There was a systematic White House effort to minimize the significance of climate change by editing climate change reports. CEQ Chief of Staff Phil Cooney and other CEQ officials made at least 294 edits to the Administration's Strategic Plan of the Climate Change Science Program to exaggerate or emphasize scientific uncertainties or to de-emphasize or diminish the importance of the human role in global warming." In all of these actions and decisions, President George W. Bush has acted in a manner that fulfils all the criteria of being a terrible President. Some may argue that the President’s actions in Iraq were necessary for national security. However, the President’s invasion of Iraq has led to stronger anti-American sentiments among the Islamic fundamentalists. “The president used over $2 billion in the summer of 2002 to prepare for the invasion of Iraq. First reported in Bob Woodward's book, Plan of Attack, and later confirmed by the Congressional Research Service, Bush took money appropriated by Congress for Afghanistan and other programs and—with no Congressional notification -- used it to build airfields in Qatar and to make other preparations for the invasion of Iraq “ (michealmoore.com “Rather than seek to cultivate a unified global consensus to destroy the ideological roots of terrorism, we did in fact lash out in a largely unilateral and entirely irrelevant military adventure against a Muslim nation. It has left us less secure” (Clarke, 286).
Works Cited: Bartlett, Bruce, Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy Doubleday (February 21, 2006) Clarke, Richard, A. Against All Enemies: Inside America’s War On Terror Free Press, New York, 2007. Michealmoore.com http://michealmoore.com Goldberg, Danny. It's a Free Country: Personal Freedom in America After September 11 Conason, Joe. Big Lies: The Right-Wing Propaganda Machine and How It Distorts the Truth Rampton, Sheldon and Stauber, John. Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush's War on Iraq
The Hidden Dangers of Video Games “The video game (gaming) industry has existed for decades, beginning with William Higinbotham’s ‘tennis for two’ oscilloscope, which debuted in 1958 (“Featured Report”).” Gaming is now a worldwide phenomenon and a multi-billion dollar industry after 50 years. Despite the joy brought to many people, young and old, there is a dark side to video games. Video games are one of the most harmful types of interactive games that children can play. Playing video games can be physically, psychologically, and socially harmful because their use can cause injury, affect a child’s level of aggression and self-control, and perpetuates isolative and dependant behavior. The risks of playing video games for children far outweigh the benefits. There is strong evidence linking playing video games with actual physical injury. Playing video games for extended periods can provoke seizure activity in children. According to the American Medical Association, “Prior to its release in the United States, Nintendo’s Pokemon had to be reformatted due to its association with epileptic seizures in more than 700 Japanese viewers. In the United States, the Super Mario game has been found to disproportionately induce seizures in players as compared to the general population (“Featured Report”). Seizures can result in serious injury and even death. In addition to seizures, prolonged playing of video games can also cause repetitive strain injury, which is a musculoskeletal disorder of the upper extremities (“Featured Report”). The main symptom reported is chronic pain in the neck and back. Aside from the few newer “Wii fit” video games available that promote increased physical activity, gaming overall is a sedentary form of entertainment. This lack of physical activity in our nation’s children, due to the popularization of gaming, has undoubtedly contributed to the problem with obesity in children that we are seeing today. Obesity is a serious issue because often obesity found in childhood leads to obesity in adulthood. This can have detrimental effects on the heart as well as other major body organs. Fans of video games will argue that playing video games improves a person’s hand-eye coordination. According to results from an experiment done by Green and Bavelier, “video game playing enhances the capacity of visual attention and its spatial distribution...however, it was unclear whether video-game playing also facilitates processing outside the training range (534-535).” Although there does appear to be some truth to this argument, the physical harm that playing video games can potentially cause is not a risk that responsible parents should take with their children. The psychological effects that the increasingly popular violent video games can have on children are as equally alarming. An American Academy of Pediatrics policy states, “Extensive research indicates that media violence can contribute to aggressive behavior, desensitization to violence, nightmares, and fear of being harmed (O’Keefe). Because video games are interactive, whereas television and movies are not, they have a greater influence and effect on the players. Tests have shown that when people are playing violent video games, there is less activity found in the prefrontal parts of the brain that are involved in self-control, inhibition, and concentration and increased activity in the amygdala region that controls emotional arousal (“Video”). Playing violent video games reinforces aggressive thoughts and behaviors in children. Each time they play, they are participating in storylines that teach and reinforce vigilantism and positive attitudes toward the use of violence. According to studies done by Anderson and Dill, the effects of this onslaught of graphic violence in video games can change an individual’s personality. “Long-term video game players can become more aggressive in outlook, perceptual biases, attitudes, beliefs, and before than they were before the repeated exposure or would have become without such exposure (Anderson & Dill,774). The combination of increased aggression as well as decreased control and concentration that occurs in a child who is allowed to play violent video games can cause a tendency toward violent or aggressive behavior and poor self-control later in life. This is tempered by the fact that some people believe that video games are good learning machines. In fact, it is common knowledge that the military uses video games or simulators to train its soldiers. In my opinion, games like Ghost Recon and Gears of War may be acceptable forms of entertainment for adults who are able to separate reality from fantasy but for young and impressionable children, the lines may become blurred. Violent video games dominate the market with greater than half of all popular games being violent in nature therefore parents must take an active role in monitoring what video games their children are exposed to (Anderson & Dill, 772). Socially, gaming can have detrimental effects on an individual child as well as the family. Playing video games is mostly a solitary activity and prevents children from developing important social skills with peers. According to Anderson & Dill, the effects are demonstrated by “decreased prosocial behaviors in social interactions (“Featured Report”).” Prosocial behaviors are that which include cooperation, sharing, comforting, and helping. These behaviors need to be learned through practice at an early age to prevent social ineptness. A handful of video games can be played as a team, such as on XBOX Live, but the interaction is limited to voice for players that actually have microphones. Often, the language used during these “matches” is filled with yelling and profanity and would hardly be considered a positive social experience for a child. In addition, video games often are used as a “babysitter for children”, with kids playing alone for hours every day. This decreases the amount of quality time that parents have to interact with their children and can weaken the parent-child bond. It is a well-known fact that children model what they see and the saying, “actions speak louder than words” still holds true today. If children are spending more time with video games than with their parents, they are more likely to emulate the language and behaviors seen on the game despite what their parents tell them about what is acceptable. Parents will have less influence on their children’s moral and social development if gaming becomes too big a priority in a child’s life. Dependence-like behaviors may also be seen with the overuse of video games in the home. This type of video game “addiction” is more likely to occur in children who begin playing video games at a young age (“Featured Report”). There are many examples of how playing video games are harmful to children. Physically, playing video games can cause seizures, repetitive strain injury, and contributes to obesity. Psychologically, playing violent video games have been shown to cause changes in brain activity, which effect a child’s focus, concentration, and control. The interactive and visual violence is harmful because it can cause desensitization and tendency toward aggression in children. Socially, peer and family relationships can be damaged and children may be at risk for dependence-like behaviors if video games become their primary source of entertainment. Video games are definitely one of the most harmful types of games that children play. Parents should evaluate the seriousness of the risks associated with this popular form of entertainment before allowing video games into their home.
Works Cited
Anderson, Craig A. and Karen E. Dill. “Video Games and Aggressive Thoughts, Feelings, and Behavior in the Laboratory and in Life.” 2 Feb. 1999. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 2000: 772-790. Amer. Psychological Assn. 16 July 2008. http://www.apa.org. Pathway: Journals, Video Games.
“Featured Report: Emotional and Behavioral Effects of Video Games and Internet Overuse.” 14 Jan. 2007. Amer. Medical Assn. 16 July 2008. http://www.ama-assn.org Keyword: Video Games.
Green, Shawn C. and Daphne Bavalier. “Action video game modifies visual selective attention.” 29 May 2003: 534-537. Nature- letters to nature. Nature Publishing Group. 16 July 2008. http://www.nature.com/nature. Keyword: Video Games.
O’Keefe, Lori. “Media exposure feeding children’s violent acts, AAP policy states.” Jan. 2002. AAP News. Amer. Academy of Pediatrics. 16 July 2008. http://www.aap.org/advocacy/OKeefemediaviolence.htm.
Debbie Maxwell Argument of Evaluation Eng 1B class 12215 Rough Draft [dw#22] Essay #4 7/23/08
In the words of philosopher Aristotle, “it is possible to fail in many ways…while to succeed is possible only in one way.” Many individuals aspire to reach the path to success in life but often lack certain key principles to achieve this feat. Others, however, are willing to maintain the level of determination necessary to discover this narrow road to success. Coffee giant Starbucks, known world wide, has proved itself to be a highly efficient corporation reaping much success in the process. Through the evaluation of Starbucks’ strong focus, attention to customer needs, and ability to generate publicity, taking care of their employees, it will become clear that Starbucks embodies the ideals of efficiency and success. One of the basic laws of marketing is that in order to maintain success, a company must keep a strong focus. While it may seem a simple concept, the death of many companies is a result of failure to abide by this law. At present time, Starbucks operates 12,440 locations worldwide; however, their goal is set at a lofty 40,000, which would trump even McDonald's. Despite its massive size, Starbucks executives tenaciously hold on to the idea that every store is like an independent coffeehouse guided by one central and success-driven goal. "The battle within the company is making sure growth doesn't dilute our culture," says founder and C.E.O. Howard Schultz (Time Magazine). Asked the secret of his success, Schultz recounts four principles: "Don't be threatened by people smarter than you. Compromise anything but your core values. Seek to renew yourself even when you are hitting home runs. And everything matters." (Skeen). As the company began to expand rapidly in the '90s, Schultz always said that the main goal was "to serve a great cup of coffee." (Skeen). Attached to this goal was a core principle: Schultz said he wanted "to build a company with soul." (Skeen). By making the target goal this concise, Schultz has elevated the Starbucks monopoly to a level few companies can dream of. By keeping the goal, Schultz has effectively proved that one can be both efficient and immense in size at the same time. This idea of a strong focus is only one of the principles that contribute to the company’s overall efficient and successful image. As it is imperative to the success of a company to retain a satisfied stream of customers, awareness of customer needs is a key factor in the process. Senior Vice President John Culver sums up this factor by emphasizing how each store location provides “a relaxed environment with comfortable chairs, friendly baristas and music playing in the background. Starbucks menu of pastries and food items caters to local customer preferences and enhances the coffee experience” (Ching Li, B4). It is important to note that while not every Starbucks location is identical, the central focus of the company unchanged. Culver further highlights this concept by stating that “the quality of coffee and the Starbucks experience remains the same throughout the world” (Ching Li). Schultz has given the world of business a prime example of what it means to maintain a high standard. It has also become common knowledge that employees play an important role in customer needs as well. One way to achieve the goal of satisfying customers is to ensure that the employees are equally satisfied. Through the offering of full health benefits as well as stock-option grants, (Company Fact Sheet). Starbucks keeps a competitive advantage over the competition with its low turnover rate, therefore keeping employee morale high, which adds to customer satisfaction. Keeping this as a priority has not gone unnoticed. As of 2008, Starbucks was ranked by Fortune magazine as the 7th best company to work for in the United States. Starbucks was also voted as one of the top ten UK workplaces by the Financial Times in 2007. While many investors look primarily at the financial status of a company, viewing its promotional abilities can be equally as important to predicting a potential pattern of success. How a company markets itself and makes use of the publicity it attains can be very important indicators of success or failure. Howard Schultz has mastered this technique and made the most of free publicity to enhance what is already a household name. Many people may recall in late February of this year when every Starbucks closed its doors to the latte lovers of world, explaining that the purpose was “to teach, educate, and share our love for coffee” (ABC News). A brilliant move on Schultz’s part, it got the world realizing they could barely last three and a half hours without their favorite Starbucks beverage in hand, thus generating mass publicity. On an equally publicized note, the well-known green and black logo has once again been replaced with the original brown and white emblem not seen for several years. This temporary change was a masterful attempt on the part of Schultz “to restore some of the goodwill and warm feelings for the brand that have gone by the wayside because of increasing coffee prices, machine-made lattes, and bad press” (Kiley). Schultz has proved again and again that generating publicity is a key component to the overall success of a highly efficient company. Despite the level of success Starbucks has achieved, no company is able to please everyone. A primary argument against Starbucks being labeled as efficient is the fact that the number of locations is expanding at an increasingly rapid pace and spans several continents. As previously discussed by Senior Vice President John Culver, Starbucks is well aware that this could prove difficult and makes it a point to keep every location focused on the same path of efficiency and success. Another argument made against this company is that they are becoming the “Wal-Mart” of the coffee industry, taking over every city and putting small family owned companies out of business. While Starbucks does make it a priority to expand their size, they also put large amounts of effort into making it a worthwhile endeavor, both for investors and customers. It is impossible to achieve success without sometimes having to defeat those beneath us. Although Starbucks may be guilty of this accusation, they nevertheless strive to provide a service they feel is invaluable to society. The facts are clear, Starbucks’ claims to be the finest distributor of coffee in the world and their target of being the largest company to dominate the coffee industry is within their grasp. Their concentration of a strong focus, attention to customer needs, ability to generate publicity, and taking care of their employees, is clear that Starbucks embodies the ideals of efficiency and success. Starbucks has no intentions of letting up on this fast-paced growth plan and they intend to make sure no one should have to hunt for a great cup of coffee anywhere in the world.
Works Cited List
Kiviat, Barbara. “The Big Gulp.” 2006. Time Magazine. 10 Dec. 2006 http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1568488,00.html.
Skeen, Dan. “Howard Shultz Secrets for Success.” 1999-2001 My PrimeTime. Entrepreneurs http://www.myprimetime.com/work/ge/schultzbio/
Li, Tor Ching.- Interview “Culver of Starbucks Asia on Getting Started: ‘Be Passionate’ The Wall Street Journal. 21, July 2008: B4.
Teenage years are perceived and something far away in your past. Older adults think of teens as rebellious slobs, who care nothing for themselves and what they think is fun. No jobs or off messing around through their college years, not a care in the world. Young adults from the ages sixteen to almost twenty are supposed to be ruthless, vain, and have no good input for a working society right? Not all teenagers are created equal and for some, each day is a constant struggle to keep high hopes and roofs over their heads. With high school diplomas in hand most teens go off to college, actually (PERCENT). Not having an educational plan is looked down upon by most teachers and high school counselors. Not all of these teens have a choice. Some are thrown in this big world with nothing to start off with. A great example for this situation would be myself, a chance at independence and my own came at the cost of family moving over three thousand miles away to another state. I was stuck between dead end jobs and constantly ridiculed for being so young and having no support. Finding a place to live is a whole different story and with that came loneliness of not having a real place to call home. Supporting myself is a big wakeup call of what is to come for a lot of my spoiled friends. Spoiled meaning living at home and having their parents pay for anything and any trouble they may come across. What does it take to endure the open world, a full time job. The goal to make enough money to eat, sleep and make somewhat of a life is hard without any financial backing. The average cost in Orange County is (GET NUMBERS). From experience, companies are not looking to hire younger adults to work in their business. From interviewing previous bosses, they have stated it is because of trust, responsibility, and work ethics. Teenagers just do not hold up to these ethics now a day, making it harder to be hired even with a strong resume’. Being discriminated by this makes myself and many other teenaged workers bitter towards rebellious teens, for putting out such a bad name. It is a constant struggle to gain trust and respect from older colleagues and management. Without this, it is hard to grow and prosper for a better living standard for younger adults. Most young adults are blessed with the opportunity and finances to be able to afford full time higher education. For a full time California State college it costs over (GET NUMBERS). This is more than an average family income can pay. From previous conversations with other young adults not in full time schooling, they are forced to either choose full time jobs or college. Balancing both together is harder than ever with raising major requirements and class workloads. Financial aid is a very competitive thing to come by and without it; some younger teens can just not pay for even lower level colleges making it a barrier to receive the higher education so valued in our society. Encountering other younger adults that slack in school and are a least bit immature brings a lot of sympathy for them. Having no idea of what the world will have for them once they get a taste of reality. I feel as though they will not gain the knowledge of saving money or basic etiquette of how to survive. I am very fortunate to have learned to balance finances especially when credit card debt is almost normal now. The average younger adult has (GET NUMBERS) With the help of immature troublesome teenagers, the discrimination from elders will never be dissolved. By taking responsibility for your lives and not depending upon parents or guardians, will hopefully help them plan for their futures.
-Discrimination: Rebels vs. Full time workers - Crime rate in teens
Who is the man that is considered to be an legend in both martial arts and movie industry? Who was the man that gave many Asians the chance to prove themselves in the outside world? Who is the man that gave the people of China, something to be proud of? That man that changed the world was none other than Bruce Lee. Many who lived during the late 60’s and early 70’s know that Bruce Lee is the man who defined martial arts and set the standards for action movies. Bruce Lee was a well accomplished martial artist and was considered to be an icon and an inspiration. Lee’s accomplishments have earned him icon status. His achievements in the entertainment and martial arts industries have paved the way for many Asian artists and inspired many to learn the art. He is an artist capable of inspiring the future generations and encouraging them to work hard and dream big.
Bruce Lee was born in San Francisco’s China town in 1940 to a Chinese opera singer father, and a Chinese-German mother. When he was an infant, his family moved to Hong Kong. It was in Hong Kong that Bruce Lee learned the martial art style “Wing Chun” a style of kung fu under the teaching of Yip Man, at age 13. Before he became famous in Hollywood, he was a famous child star in Asia. After graduating from high school he moved back to the US and enrolled at the University of Washington to study philosophy. He also created his own school of martial arts called the Lee Jun Fan Kung Fu Institute. His martial arts style, called the “Tao of Chinese Kung Fu” was a combination of “Wing Chun” and northern and southern Kung Fu styles. Bruce Lee continued studying classic martial arts and developed his own style, which was a merging of “Wing Chun” and western boxing and fencing which he then called “Jun Fan Kung Fu.” “Bruce Lee then later incorporated certain features from “Muay Thai,” “Aikido,” “Jujitsu,” “Judo,” “Catch Wrestling,” “Bando,” “Sikaran,” “Panantukan,” “Indo-Malay Silat” and several other martial arts styles and named it “Jeet Kune Do” (by Char4u, “Bruce Lee and Martial Arts”), which can be translated to, “Way of the Intercepting Fist.”
For his love of martial arts and the philosophy behind the arts, Bruce Lee is widely regarded as one of the most influential and famous martial artists of all time. Bruce Lee has changed the way the world views martial arts. “He is an iconic figure for his presentation of Chinese martial arts to the non-Chinese world” (by Zamhaziq, “Bruce Lee The Most Influential Martial Artist”). Bruce Lee became an iconic figure particularly to Chinese, as he portrayed the Chinese nationalism in his movies. His films elevated the traditional Hong Kong martial arts film to a new level and made it better. “Bruce Lee wanted to use the film as a vehicle for expressing what he saw as the beauty of Chinese culture, rather than it being just another regular action movie” (by Zamhaziq, “Bruce Lee The Most Influential Martial Artist”).
Bruce Lee has starred in many films and most were unfinished because of his unexpected death. His film “Big Boss,” filmed in 1971, is the first movie that Bruce Lee played the lead character. “Big Boss” become an enormous box office hit across Asia and launched him to fame. Bruce Lee was the first Asian martial arts superstar, undoubtedly paving the way for Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, Jet Lee, and Jackie Chan. Bruce Lee is famous for his devotion to martial arts and his talent in this field. “Bruce Lee's two smash hits for Golden Harvest elevated him to celebrity status in Asia and like-wise launched Chow's Golden Harvest into the top tier of the Hong Kong film industry” (by Zamhaziq, “Bruce Lee The Most Influential Martial Artist”). Bruce Lee wrote, directed and starred in his own movie production called the “Way of the Dragon,” which featured perhaps one of the greatest martial arts fight scenes ever filmed in a movie. The scenes’ took place in the Roman Coliseum and the co-star of the film was Chuck Norris. One of Bruce Lee’s most famous films, “Enter the Dragon,” was produced by both “Golden Harvest” and “Warner Bros,” and became a world phenomenon., Unfortunately, Lee died of apparent brain swelling in Hong Kong a month before its American debut. “Enter the Dragon” became a huge box office hit and established Bruce Lee as a martial arts legend. “At the time of Lee’s death, he had completed the fight scenes for another movie called “Game of Death” which featured one of his martial arts students; basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabar. “Game of Death” was completed with look-alike actors later on” (Motley Harvest, “Bruce Lee, The Greatest Martial Arts Action Hero”).
Bruce Lee was an accomplished actor and martial artist before his death. One of his most significant contributions was that he opened the door for other Asians in the entertainment industry to become famous worldwide, actors like Jackie Chan and Jet Lee. Bruce Lee “was the first Asian to achieve any significant success in the North American entertainment scene. He became a star in North America and the rest of the world by playing heroes rather than past stereotypical roles for Asians such as servants, gangsters, laundry workers or other ‘pigtail coolie’ characters” (Motley Harvest, “Bruce Lee, The Greatest Martial Arts Action Hero”). Another of Bruce Lee’s contributions is that he inspired people of all races to achieve their goals, no matter what. He gave many Asian people; particularly the Chinese people worldwide, a reason to be proud. He influenced and encouraged them to be confident, work hard and achieve their goals no matter what their socio-economic status was. Ultimately,he has inspired many to pursue their dreams.
Bruce Lee is truly a well recognized legend . I consider Bruce Lee to be an inspiration because he stood for what he believed in and never sacrificed his beliefs. His death was very unfortunate, he left many films unfinished and he had not perfected his martial arts. Although he is no longer alive, his legend will continue to live in the lives of those who study in the way of martial arts and to those who are in the action movie industry. Even though his physical body is dead, his spirit, films and kung fu that he has left behind will live forever through martial arts and action movies.
Work Cited
•“Bruce Lee, The Greatest Martial Arts Action Hero,” January 25th 2007, http://www.motleyhealth.com/articles/2007/01/bruce-lee-greatest-martial-arts-action.html
•Zamhaziq, “Brucee Lee The Most Influential Martial Artist,” March 25th 2007, http://hubpages.com/hub/Brucee-Lee
•Char4U, “Bruce Lee and Martial Arts,” http://www.char4u.com/article_info.php?articles_id=31
Argument of Evaluation Rough Draft Star Trek is one of the most popular series “Who put the tribbles in the quadrotriticale?” This is one of the many interesting problems one can find the answer for watching Star Trek The Original Series. The series and movies have a large fan base from all over the world and The Original Series achieved an iconic status in the television history. Star Trek has become one of the most popular series in the history of science fiction entertainment. The adventures of Star Trek were new and fresh in the 1960’s. By that time television dramas were becoming less popular and people were hungry for new adventurous movies, for something they were not expecting, something that was not predictable. What genre could better fulfill this expectation than science fiction? “To boldly go where no man has gone before” said the opening tagline and the magic happened indeed. The technical background was less sophisticated than nowadays, but the costumes of various alien species and spaceship scale models were something new in that time. The Original Series was remastered a couple years ago, but if someone is caught by the adventures and the storyline than the scale models are not even that unbearably striking. Every episode is a different adventure, acquaintance with new life forms, new machines, new technologies people wish to own one day. A brand new world is introduced for the audience where earthmen live in relative peace, in a world where a large community of species can live together in the United Federation of Planets. The monetary system is just an outdated memory from the past. Man is ready to step out from his boundaries and see the vast world with his own eyes. The crew was cast from a diversity of ethnic groups, which was significant because integration was an unusual occurrence in 1960s television. In this diverse crew everyone could and still can find at least one character of his liking. However, it is also true that the concept of the series was rejected first by MGM, but that was such a long time ago, so many spin-offs were created since then, and the fan base become so large, that maybe even the producers at MGM would like to forget how they gave the chance away for another company to make the series a huge success. What can be better evidence of Star Trek’s popularity than the huge fan base? After the first season of Star Trek the NBC wanted to cancel the show because of the poor Nielsen rating, however, the devoted fan base started a letter-writing campaign which has been never done before and managed keep the show on the air. Thousands of people around the world admire the series. Some of them are financing, writing and creating their own version of the series. Everyone can get a role in the adventures and they upload the episodes to the internet. Others are creating fan sites where they post information about the series, characters, actors, stories, writers, director, and forums where fans can talk and share their Star Trek experiences. Those who are more fanatics build their house to look like a starship or their living room is the main deck of a Galaxy class. They get together in December on the Star Trek Day, they put on costumes and pointing ears and they just enjoy their out of character experience. But Star Trek is just one of sci-fi series. Babylon 5 created by J. Michael Straczynski, debuted in 1993 and ran for a five seasons and fans could enjoy six movies and a spin-off, Crusade which had a good story but not original enough to live through the first season. Jeremiah, the post-apocalyptic series was also a Straczynski production, and although the plot and the characters were well created, it ran only for two seasons. When Jericho, the post-nuclear apocalypse series was canceled, the fans sent about 50,000 pounds of nuts to CBS network’s executive vice president of programming, thus persuading the network to air the second season of the show. The fans’ imagination knows no limits. The Star Trek series’ popularity is so unlimited that a whole industry is based upon it. The Star Trek spin-offs, the Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager and Enterprise were all seeking for new adventures, new alien life forms and new opportunities which were awfully popular among sci-fi fans. The Star Trek Animated Series is not widely known, it has only twenty-two episodes but it has won an Emmy Award during its two seasons. Ten movies were created so far, each telling a two-hour long separate story with the Star Trek series crew, and the eleventh is coming in 2009. Four spin-offs, animated series, movies, dozens of computer and video games, hundreds of novels, comic strips, hundreds of different merchandises, ship scale models, dolls, pins, clothes, posters you name it. In the Star Trek Experience theme park in Las Vegas one can enjoy a Borg invasion in 4D, evade a Klingon worship, walk through the museum that looks like a starship or even get married on the bridge of the USS Enterprise where alien species witness the couples’ vows. In Quark’s Bar and Restaurant one can enjoy a pleasant meal or a glass of Klingon blood wine and return home with some souvenirs from the Star Trek shop. The world of Star Trek was fresh, original and different from what people get used to. One can still find a character who mostly represents his or her own ideas, who makes them laugh, teach them some new technical terms or realize how extraordinary and small and lost and ingenious man is. The character of the adventurous explorers, the humor, and the message behind the sci-fi talk looks like it will never be out of date. The societal impact of the series cannot be dismissed. The fans say they share same ideals in their everyday lives as the Federation. The fans accept each other and they are open for new ideas and ways of thinking and as long as there will be people with such kind of an attitude, the popularity of Star Trek cannot fade away.
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Lauren Kulick
kulick414@cox.net
DW#16 Essay #4 Argument of Evaluation (Rough Draft)
“Katie Casey saw all the games,
Knew the players by their first names;
Told the umpire he was wrong,
All along good and strong.
When the score was just two to two,
Katie Casey knew what to do,
Just to cheer up the boys she knew,
She mad the gang sing this song:
‘Take me out to the ball game,
Take me out to the crowd . . .”
The above quotation is an excerpt from Jack Norworth’s 1927 version of the commonly known song, “Take me out to the Ball Game.”1 It is a quotation that embodies the emotions related to baseball. Baseball represents so many things: athleticism, strategy, popularity and tradition. By evaluating those qualities, it can be argued that baseball is the ultimate sport. Baseball is America’s Pastime.
One evaluation that can be used to determine baseball’s ultimate standing in sports is athleticism. Baseball requires the most continuous athleticism of any professional sport. Each sport requires a great deal of strength, flexibility, endurance and natural ability. Athleticism is defined by these qualities. However, when looking at the sports individually, it can be understood that Baseball players display the greatest amount of athleticism. A baseball player uses strength in each activity during the sport. This includes throwing, running, swinging the bat, catching, and squatting. There is constant movement in the game, constant use of muscle. This is different from football, in that football players specialize. Some run, some throw, some tackle. In baseball, however, the players could be considered “jacks of all trades.” Though baseball players have a specific position, they each run, throw, catch and are constantly moving. Secondly, the flexibility required in baseball is very high. A baseball player must be able to squat, dive, and leap to get to the baseball. Baseball requires movements that are more finesse than the straightforward “throw your weight around” movements of football, or the legs only game of soccer. Thirdly, when it comes to endurance, baseball is arguably the only sport that practically lasts all year. Preseason begins in March and post season ends in October. Baseball teams are scheduled 162 regular season games a year.2 Football plays only sixteen regular season games, hockey comes closer with 82, however, neither can even compare to baseball’s 162. The game itself is an endurance game.3 Nine innings per game push the time of play to anywhere from two to three hours. Considering the wide range of necessary skills, muscle usage and stamina required for baseball compared to other sports, it can be argued that baseball has the most athletic players of any sport.
Athleticism is not the only aspect of baseball that makes it superior to other sports. Baseball is a game of strategy. Planning, scouting, adaptability, and acute observation are necessary strategic elements for the game of baseball. There are many things for a coach to take in to consideration when planning a baseball game. The coach has to decide what pitcher to put up against the other team. This can be determined by the handedness of the other team’s batters, the other team’s ability to hit certain pitches, and even previous history between the pitcher and the other team. There is a lot of research required for only one game. A baseball team’s manager also has to decide which players will be included in the line up, which order they will be in and where in the field each will play. There is a lot of shifting in baseball. Many players are versatile. This is a lot different than other sports. You don’t often see the same player being a quarterback and being able to play wide receiver in football. Though pre-planning is a major part of the strategy of baseball, there is much strategy involved during the actual game. Baseball teams have a general style. The Angels, for example, are known for their “short game”. They are known for using small plays to gain runs, rather than relying on the “raw power” of home runs. This general team strategy, however, can change during a game. If it comes to certain situations, timing aspects, player match-ups or situations, the manager may choose to change the strategy. For example, the manager may go into an inning thinking he will let the batters swing away for each of the first three at-bats. But then, the first player hits a single. Now, the manager may change his idea and decide to steal, or have the next player bunt, depending on the speed of the runner. There is a lot to think about and constant strategizing to be done. Football has strategy too. I am not denying that. But, in football, plays are made, and then executed. There is not much adapting during an actual play. These constant adjustments to plans, in baseball, are caused by observation. The baseball players and coaches are constantly observing and thinking to make instant strategic changes.
Athleticism and strategy aside, there is no arguing with prolonged popularity. When one thinks of the popularity of sports, the first thought is often football. Professional, arena and college football all have a huge following. They have many fans. But, if one considers the definition of popular, which is that something or someone is “regarded with favor, approval or affection by the people in general.”4 Football is widely attended, profitable and discussed a lot, but mostly by men. Baseball has a wider fan base. Baseball is viewed by men, women, children, teenagers and the elderly. It is also a sport that is all inclusive when playing. There is little league for boys, softball for girls and even slow pitch for adults. Football has no woman counterpart and once one is too old, football is out of the question. Baseball and softball is a sport that can be played as young as three years old and as old as one can still walk. Football, on the other hand, usually doesn’t start until about age eleven or twelve and is over by forty. Besides playing, baseball is also a very popular sport to view and track. This is done via television, radio and the internet. In fact, “major league baseball already has the most profitable league web site.”5 Combining fan involvement, merchandise sales, widespread likeability and variety of ages involved in the sport, baseball can be argued to be the most “popular” sport by definition.
A big part of baseball’s
likeability is the tradition involved. The sport is different now compared to the past, but it has the nostalgia, the tradition. Almost anyone knows of baseball as “America’s Pastime.” “It was called ‘America's Pastime’ because during the late 19th and early 20th century it was probably the most widely played sport in the country. Baseball was to that time period as video games and television are to today. It was literally how America passed the time.”6 This aspect of tradition keeps the fans fervent with desire to preserve the sport and support what it stands for. It is America’s fun, entertaining way to be patriotic. While football may be thought of as the most popular sport, “being the most popular sport does not make something the ‘national pastime’.”6
Baseball is America’s Pastime. It is the ultimate sport. Baseball requires flexibility, strength and endurance unlike any other sport. Baseball has a schedule that runs eight months out of the year and requires five to six days of work a week. It is a sport of strategy, a sport of observation, and a sport involving many quick changes. This pastime is watched by men, women, and children. It is attended by families, friends and complete strangers who bond over their love for baseball. It is the most “popular” sport considering the audience is all inclusive. Baseball is patriotic, it is tradition. Take me out to the ball game. Three strikes and you’re out. There’s no crying in baseball. Baseball is America’s Pastime.
Work Cited
1 http://www.baseball-almanac.com/poetry/po_stmo.shtml
2 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_League_Baseball
3 www.wiki.answers.com
4 www.dictionary.com
5 http://www.cnbc.com/id/25693044
6 (http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Why_is_baseball_called_America's_pastime
Tammy L. Wood
red122557@hotmail.com
The Abolishment of Religious Observances
Christmas is an observed religious holiday and should remain as one. Christmas has been one of the great traditions in American history. Activists groups in America, such as the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF), are trying to change these traditions by having them removed as federal government holidays. On the Wikipedia website about the FFRF, it shows a sign that the FFRF has posted at the Wisconsin State Capitol about their philosophy of the winter holiday seasons. The sign says, “At this season of the Winter Solstice may reason prevail. There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell. There is only our natural world. Religion is but a myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds”. Do we want such groups spreading dissention and discord? Religious holidays need to be observed and the abolishment of even just one holiday is saying more about America than not wanting to celebrate Christmas.
Despite the support of those who don’t want to see a change, the United States holidays and Holy days could possibly be changed in the future. If activist groups like the FFRF can prove that celebrating holidays, such as Christmas and Easter, are a separation of the church from the state, then all of the holidays that are considered religious observances would not be allowed to be on the calendar as federal government holidays. If the abolishment of religious observances is allowed to take place, the United States will undergo very drastic changes in our personal and social lives. Sam Francis states in the article Christmas and The National Question: Once Cheer for Krauthammer, “A public religion is the religion with which a country publicly identifies, and we know it identifies with it because we know it has become vital to its identity as a nation”. Christmas is one of those items that we identify as a part of our heritage.
The meaning of Christmas has changed in so many ways. Originally Christmas was a day set aside to honor the birth of Jesus Christ. The Bible says, “Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the King, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem saying, ‘Where is he that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him’." (Matthew 2:1-2) For many it has become more of a social event in which love and good cheer are spread to others. Kaye Grogan said in the article The True Meaning of Christmas Under Fire that, “Christmas is certainly not about the latest toy craze. Gift giving at Christmas time has become so secular, the true meaning has really taken a beating and barely resembles the Christmas seasons 25-30 years ago — much less centuries ago”. That’s not saying that this is a bad thing, it’s just not what the original purpose was. Even though others can enjoy the Christmas season for different reasons, Christmas is still considered a religious observance. Perhaps it would be politically correct if we renamed the holiday season to a “Winter Celebration” instead. By changing the name, this might appease groups like the FFRF. But, would this mean that America is willing to turn their backs on our Christian heritage? Should this really be something that we change or would these actions only deteriorate the basis of our freedom of religion?
With our society becoming such a diversified group of people with so many religious backgrounds, there are grumblings that Christmas and other ones like Easter, are stepping on the toes of the people’s constitutional rights. Christmas is a religious holiday, and by us observing it, we are acknowledging that Jesus existed. Not everyone believes in Jesus but most Americans do celebrate Christmas in some form or another. In the article Christmas and the Challenge of Religious Diversity, Deborah Levine, Editor of the American Diversity Report states, “Some blame the influence of multi-culturalism in America for setting religions against each other and eroding the meaning of Christmas. They believe that the activism of those espousing diversity and multi-culturalism destroy our unity”.
Our government would have to changes as well. Some of these changes might have to be for our government to acknowledge all other religion’s holidays. This might force companies to pay their employees holiday pay for any religious holiday. Should the government have to make changes to accommodate all religions? Which religious holiday is the right religious holiday? Should America have to change its base values and ideals to accommodate the diversified population? These are all of the controversial topics concerning religious observances. Our government could pass laws concerning these holidays that would abolish them from our calendars as national holidays. This would change the very foundations that America was built on. The abolishment of religious holidays would not be a positive move. Hopefully our government would not allow this to happen. It shows in the article, Theocracy Alert – House Passes “Christmas” Resolution, published by the FFRF, where the House choose to recognize Christmas. The article states, “The House said: ‘for Christians, Christmas is celebrated as a recognition of God's redemption, mercy, and Grace.’ Although falling short of calling the United States a Christian nation, the House resolved that Congress ‘acknowledges and supports the role played by Christians and Christianity in the founding of the United States and in the formation of the western civilization’.” It is good to see that Congress still supports that fact that America is a Christian based nation.
Charles Krauthammer, a Jewish neoconservative, has plenty to say about this topic. In the article Christmas and the National Question: One Cheer for Krauthammer, he said that “The attempts to de-Christianize Christmas are as absurd as they are relentless”. He also said, “The United States today is the most tolerant and diverse society in history. It celebrates all faiths with an open heart and open mindedness that, compared to even the most advanced countries in Europe, are unique.” Krauthammer feels that, “Americans certainly enjoy a right to practice whatever religions they wish, Christianity remains the public religion of the nation---whether one believes in it or likes it or not.” Krauthammer goes on to say that going against Christmas it “ungenerous” and that it is “a failure to appreciate the uniqueness of the communal American religious experience. Unlike, for example, the famously tolerant Ottoman Empire or the generally tolerant Europe of today, the United States does not merely allow minority religions to exist at its sufferance. It celebrates and welcomes and honors them.”
Every nation has an identity as to what religion their nation is connected to. China has Buddhism, England’s is Christianity; Iraq’s is Islam and so on. As with all religions, there are traditions that each country follows. Our country does not ask other countries to change their ways to accommodate our religious celebrations, so other countries should respect ours. Sam Francis states in article Christmas and the National Question: One Cheer For Krauthammer that, “it is precisely because Christianity is vital to our national identity that there is a war against it, and that’s the reason also there is now a nationwide resistance to that war by Americans who wish to conserve our national identity. Thus the major national holiday is and always has been the major Christian holiday, and throughout American history presidents and public leaders of all parties and persuasions has acknowledged the Christian identity of the country, without any supposition of controversy.” Even though Christmas is a Christian religious holiday everyone can join in the “Christmas spirit” of gifts and giving and spreading joy.
Since Christmas has become more than a religious holiday and everyone seems to enjoy celebrating it, why are the activists groups trying so hard to get rid of Christmas? They believe it is unconstitutional and intrudes on the rights of the people. The ACLU, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the FFRF, the Freedom From Religion Foundation are two groups that want Christmas removed from the list of federal government holidays. In doing so, it would change everything that we know as the “Christmas Holiday Season”. Schools would be open, government offices and banks would be open for business, and holiday pay would be taken away. The The actual celebration wouldn’t necessarily go away; it just would not be emphasized any more. Somehow, I don’t think that life would be the same. Gary DeMar was calling out the anti-Christian groups in the article Lets Abolish Christmas. He said, “If you really believe what you claim, then go all the way. Go to court and stop the State celebration of Christmas by mandating that all government employees must work on December 25th. The majority of Americans would rebel. And that would be a good thing”.
If government holidays were to change, so would school holidays. There would be no more Christmas breaks. There might still be a winter recess, but nothing could be focused around Christmas. Some teachers believe that the December holidays bring about an opportunity to teach about other countries traditions. In an article written by Perry Swanson, A Holiday From Debate, Becky Carter, director of the elementary learning services at District 49 said, “The primary purpose is education”. The Anti-Defamation League states in the same article that, “It is constitutionally permissible for public schools to teach about religion, but unconstitutional for public schools to observe religious holidays or practice religion”. In the same article, Ted Siewert goes on to say that, “You can teach the facts on anything without being biased”. Religion has been the force behind many wars and battles in every nation on this earth. This can not be taken away that easily without having to rewrite the history books as well as throwing out the Bible the Hebrew Bible and every other book that teaches religion. It has been the backbone of our very existence”.
It seems that more people would be robbed of rights by abolishing Christmas than by allowing Christmas. So, what is wrong with us celebrating Christmas? Are we breaking all of the rules when it comes to constitutional rights? Are we willing to leave behind what we have celebrated for so many years? There are laws put here to protect us and our rights, but should these laws go so far as to change the very essence of our being. America was a proud country and our traditions speak of that. We should not be taking away from our traditions, just merely adding to them. Other religions should be able to observe their holidays as well, but the emphasis should remain on the holidays of what this nation is about, who we are, where we came from, what our religious beliefs are how all of this was used to build our great nation.. I don’t want to see us turn our backs on any of this. We need to stand proud and tall and keep our traditions in tact because that is who we are here in America. The celebration of Christmas goes deeper than eggnog and mistletoe. Yes, it is a religious holiday, and yes it is about the birth of Jesus. Quite frankly, our nation could use more of what Christmas has to offer not less!
Works Cited
DeMar, Gary. “Let’s Abolish Christmas”. American Vision.org. 24 Dec 2007. 16 July 2008.
www.americanvision.org/articlearchive2007/12-24-07.asp
Francis, Sam. “Christmas And The National Question: One Cheer For Krauthammer”. Vdare.com.
20 Dec 2004. 15 July 2008. www.vdare.com/francis/041220_krauthammer.htm
“Freedom from Religion Foundation”. Wikipedia. 15 July 2008. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Freedom_from_Religion_Foundation
Grogan, Kay. “The True Meaning of Christmas Under Fire”. Renew America. 22 Dec 2006.
18 July 2008. renewamerica.us/columns/grogan/061222
“House Passes ‘Christmas’ Resolution”. Freedom From Religion Fountation. Free Thought Today.
Vol 24. No 10. Dec 2007. 18 July 2008. ffrf.org/fttoday/2007/dec/
theocracyalert.php
Levine, Debora. “Christmas and the Challenge of Religious Diversity”. American Diversity
Report. 18 July 2008. www.americandiversityreport.com/index.php/News/ Religious-Diversity/Christmas-and-the-Challenge-of-Religious-Diversity.html
Swanson, Perry. “A Holiday From Debate”. Gazette, The (Colorado Springs). Dec 20 2006.
Findarticles.com. 19 July 2008. findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4191/
Is_20061220/ai_n171125427
The Holy Bible, King James Version. Blue Letter Bible: On Line. 19 July 2008.
blueleterbible.org/kjv/mat/mat002.html
Luisa Vargas
Joe Gallegos
Eng 1B
July 23, 2008.
Paradise or Hell?
As a child I always thought I lived in paradise. I did not know how paradise was for other people and I did not know it could be subjective but I was sure that were I lived had to be it. Growing up I realized that paradise, the name I gave my homeland, had things that were not so pleasant and I realize that the same place that was safe and beautiful to me was dangerous and ugly to others. I could not see Colombia the way the rest of the world saw it. It was shocking for me the first time I heard in the news: “Colombia is the most dangerous country in the world.” I could not help but wonder: who made that decision? According to whom? And how many people agree with this? Now, as an adult, I have the knowledge and enough reasons to tell people that Colombia is not the most dangerous country in the world. There are three main misconceptions about safety in Colombia: it is said that Colombian crime rate is the highest is the world, that everyone in Colombia produces or knows someone who produces cocaine, and that foreign tourists are not safe at all there.
Colombia has shown really high rates of crime throughout the years. Everything started with a civil war called “El Bogotazo”, which was a conflict between two political parties for the power, leading to years of constant corruption and tragedy. An illegal army called FARC was created to defend people from the government, but this army had no ideals and as the years went by, the FARC started hurting and killing those people they said they wanted to defend. It has been over fifty years since this all started, and most governments have given more power to this group than what they have done against them, leaving Colombian people in the middle of a war. Now, when people actually want to change this path, they realize that it takes more than one government period and a good heart to do so. The current president of the country, Alvaro Uribe, has been a great leader; the slogan of his campaign was “soft heart but strong hands” meaning that with assertiveness and a hearth full of good intentions things can change. Crime rate in Colombia has lowered considerably, the crime per capita, which means per every thousand people, is 4.99 putting Colombia in the 44th place out of 66 countries analyzed. The assaults per capita are 0.58 putting Colombia in the 35th place out of 57 countries; rape rate is 0.04 per capita so Colombia is the 53rd out of 60 . None of those are 1st place. That alone says a lot about Colombia not being the most dangerous country in the world.
Another very well known issue is that everyone in Colombia produces or knows someone who produces cocaine. I have never seen or met someone who actually worked in the drug business but if this is not enough reason for people to believe I have valuable information to prove that at least 90% of Colombian people make a leaving out of clean and honest jobs. Colombia has made it in the news as Columbia, people know little about the correct spelling of its name, let alone its real story. Hollywood and the news have done a great job selling the image of Colombia as a cocaine jungle, where parents leave their kids in a little house while they go to work growing cocaine, poppy, and marijuana. Movies like “XXX” and “Clear and Present Danger” show how in Colombia people walk around coca plants and the danger of getting shot as soon as they arrive . A British who lived in Colombia had this response when he was asked about his experience there: “If you say that Colombia is so dangerous like now it is Iraq, you mean that the Colombian cities are under heavy attacks, bombs in any public place and many other kind of terrorist attacks. Surely, it is not what the ones who like to do world classifications are meaning. They want to mean that in Colombia there is a political conflict and you have to take care if you travel to Colombia, but such conclusion is not understood like that for citizens if they see the name of Colombia near to Iraq as violent alike. What we want to say is that you can not compare the violence of Colombia with the violence of Iraq. It would be more exact to the comparison with the violence of the USA” . Developed countries give their people warnings before traveling to Colombia, some even try to persuade people to not travel to Colombia, but if we were to compare violence from one country to another then governments should advise people from Chile or Argentine not to travel to U. S. A since its crime rate is a lot higher than in those two countries. It is clear we cannot compare opinions about what is really dangerous since this changes depending on people’s experiences, the way they were raised and how they lived. I can personally say that I lived in Colombia for 21 years, and I was never robbed, I never saw a gun, I never saw, grew or worked with cocaine, and I never saw an assassination. On the other hand, I have lived in United States for three years, and I have already seen a robbery where guns where used and I saw a woman being physically abused by her husband; and I live in Laguna Beach one of the cities with the lowest crime rates in California. This just proves that circumstances can change and a place could be the safest place on Earth and still be dangerous for some.
All of this could be proved, but how do you explain to foreigners that Colombia is beautiful and that they are not going to get killed as soon as they set foot on Colombian ground? Peter Van Dijck lived in Colombia, and he answered some questions about his experience; he was realistic yet respectful to Colombia: “The dangers are both real and exaggerated. I've never experienced any hostility, but it is true: Colombia is a violent society. However, the expectations of most foreigners are completely overblown; chances are if you come to Colombia you'll never have anything worse than a sunburn. It does make for a continuing conversation topic, and often I found it hard to strike that balance between careful and careless. But once you get it you'll be fine. The only real danger is when traveling on the road, and if you are really worried, that's easily avoided by taking planes” . Hundreds of people travel to Colombia and never encounter any danger; there is risk, we cannot or should not hide that, but as long as tourists go to safe places, and there are thousands of those all over the country, and as long as they have a group of people to guide them then they would be safe. People go to Colombia to teach other languages, and are able to enjoy its reality. Tourist should be warned, yes, but not discourage to go there. Since the new safety caravans, which are special dates organized by the government and located all along Colombian roads, tourism in Colombia has increased on a 65%, even Colombian people are doing what they were afraid to do for so long, travel around their own country. Crime rate keeps lowering and tourism increasing, that is a good sign and it is about time people stop calling Colombia the most dangerous country in the world.
Colombia has great things to offer: culture, history and even art; Colombia has the biggest theater festival in the whole entire world, and people come to it from many different countries to enjoy it, nobody has been killed at it. Colombia has 14,000 species of butterflies, and it is the third country in biodiversity. There is a lot more to Colombia than a cocaine jungle. I know that its past has shown a bad side of it, but most Colombians are trying to show the good side, but as long as people keep destroying its image, Colombia will stay as the most dangerous county in the world and the three points I made here: low crime rates, honest people and a great touristic destinations would not be valid to show that Colombia is a wonderful place, and that perhaps Colombia could be really close to paradise.
Kris Spellman - Essay #4 rough draft
"If Clark [Kent] wanted to, he could use his super-speed and squish me into the cement. But I know how he thinks. Even more than the Kryptonite, he's got one big weakness. Deep down, Clark's essentially a good person. ....And deep down...I'm not." - Batman (Hush, DC Comics #612, 2002)
Batman is the most humanized and relatable character in all of superhero fiction. This singular quality has kept his stories popular in diverse forms of media for decades, since his creation by Bob Kane for National Publications (which would later become the legendary DC Comics) in 1939 (Daniels 1999). He is a flawed hero in the finest tradition of tragic literature, which makes his motives more complex, and his plights more compelling, than those that usually unfold in story arcs belonging to other superheroes. The epigraph to this essay perfectly illustrates the reasons so many comic-book readers and movie or television viewers have found Batman's persona and quests so engrossing over the years: his anger and guilt are emotions with which we can all identify, because they often lead him to danger and ruin, and his fragile mortality is constantly in evidence, which induces a palpable fear in both himself and his audience. Bruce Wayne is only a man, after all, driven though he is by his own inner demons to fight injustice and save Gotham City, and he holds strong and occasionally contradictory sentiments just like the rest of us.
Many of us have unfortunately experienced the lasting tragedy of losing a loved one, which often leads to misplaced guilt, as in the case of the young Bruce Wayne. By now, we all know the story: Bruce watched his parents die, after a mugging gone wrong, as a young child on the way home from an opera. This deeply personal trauma is heart-wrenching enough in itself to secure his place as a sympathetic character; however, as we follow Bruce through adolescence, when he is a lost soul searching for direction and meaning, we also recall the emptiness and yearning that often filled our days at that age, though few of us can truly identify with the (surely frustrating) knowledge that immense wealth is no substitute at all for the loss and loneliness felt after the deaths of the ones we love most. The protagonist embarks on a journey of self-discovery, the longing (and even planning) for which is something else that many readers can personally empathize with, although it must be said that few people make their pilgrimage in the form of a submersion into the criminal underworld! Bruce desires to know the mind of the outlaw, in order that he can understand why his parents were killed, and he desperately needs to find a way to absolve himself from the extraordinary guilt he feels (the fact that he does not know how to go about doing so is merely another way in which we can feel his pain; everyone has embarked on a personal quest without knowing what the end would look like). Unfortunately, this is an ultimately misguided attempt, as reason is rarely a factor in the action of violent crime; Bruce returns to Gotham with a new resolve, and becomes the storied crimefighter known as Batman.
Batman's most human aspect is, of course, that he is merely human like the rest of us. He doesn't have Superman's laser-vision, or Wolverine's adamantium skeleton, or the Flash's incredible speed, or the superhuman strength of the Hulk, or the mutant arachno-abilities of Spiderman. Batman is just some guy dressed in a ridiculous vinyl suit and cape, and who also happens to be a martial-arts master and adept detective: nothing the average reader couldn't become, given the proper motivation and sufficient practice. Commentators have even noted that Batman need not be particularly skilled at either trade (Friedman 2006); deception and surprise are his primary tools and compensate for any lack of physical or intellectual skill, and his bottomless checking account allows him to use equipment that far outclasses anything your typical villain can obtain. One imagines that Bruce Wayne would have made an excellent undercover detective, if he had chosen to eschew vigilantism in favor of more lawful methods.
Another, more emotionally trenchant connection between the character of Batman and his devoted fans is the constant undercurrent of righteous anger that betrays itself in both his actions and his internal monologue (to which we are fortunate enough to have access, given the generous quantity of thought-bubbles in the typical comic). His guilt over the deaths of his parents has transmuted into a directionless anger at the world, for both the denial of his vengeance and its propensity for senseless violence towards the innocent. This is surely a feeling that is familiar to those of us with a social conscience; injustice is prevalent in our world, and we often feel discomfort or even a helpless rage when confronted with the sight of others' misfortunes. However, we, unlike Batman, lack the means (if not the resolve) to pursue justice by any means necessary, instead being forced to rely on government or social pressure to eradicate evil. This subconscious wish to be the arbiter of vigilante justice, even if it is never acted upon, is a powerfully connecting force between Batman and even the most casual reader. We have all wanted to be the guy or girl who saves the world, or at least the damsel in distress, and Bruce Wayne provides an outlet for those fantasies while simultaneously holding true to his own convictions.
Batman's ideals are often quite utilitarian, that is, his motives are frequently intended towards the end that will do the greatest good for the greatest number of people. He has often made personal sacrifices in order to ensure the safety of Gotham, and this is something the reader can identify with in an abstract way (having probably never had to choose between a lover and a city), but it is not the most salient point of Batman's personal ethos. When it comes to the matter of taking the life of an enemy, Batman has steadfastly refused (at least since his earliest and roughest incarnations in the late 1930s) to commit murder, no matter how justifiable or beneficial to the public it may seem. This deontological tenet holds true in his beliefs and actions, due to his conviction that such an act would be morally irredeemable in and of itself, regardless of the future evil that could be avoided, and that by killing he would become no better than the villains he struggles to overcome (White 2008). If this is not a quality we could all necessarily share in every possible dangerous circumstance, it is certainly something many would consider worthy of emulation, and thus deepens our admiration of Batman's mental strength and devotion to justice. This contrasts strongly with the absolutist ethics portrayed by the Punisher, whose backstory and nature are otherwise similar, since that vigilante has no qualms about killing if it should prove to advance the victory of good over evil -- a willingness that has earned him the label of "anti-hero".
The story of Bruce Wayne and Batman (which is the true alter-ego?) has captivated audiences for many years, and will continue in popularity for the foreseeable future, if present box office returns are any indicator. This ongoing fascination with the character is due in large part to those aspects that humanize him to a degree unequaled by any other superhero: his internal emotional conflicts and the ever-present darkness within his psyche, his unquenchable drive to fight injustice and protect the innocent, his strict adherence to an admirable moral code -- but most of all, audiences are drawn closer to him as a person by his ingenuity and ability to rise above the defects and incapacities of mortal men, despite being one himself, in order to achieve his worthy goals. Batman can be bruised and even fatally wounded, but in his own words, "I need to become more than a man. I need to become a symbol. A man can be killed, but a symbol can't be stopped, only feared."
References
Daniels, Les. (1999). Batman: The Complete History. San Francisco: Chronicle Books.
Friedman, Cary A. (2006). Wisdom From the Batcave: How to Live a Super, Heroic Life. Linden, N.J.: Compass Books.
White, Mark D., Arp, Robert, & Irwin, William. (2008). Batman and Philosophy: The Dark Knight of the Soul (The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series). Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Ruchi Lamba
ENG 1B: #12215
Prof. Gallegos
DW#22
Essay #4 Argument of Evaluation – Rough Draft
George W. Bush is a Terrible President
It is tough for a nation’s leader to make one mistake after another without ever admitting he was wrong, yet George W. Bush has managed to do just that in his two terms as the President of the United States. Displaying his terrible leadership, Bush managed to start a war on a false premise, curb the civil liberties of his citizens, fail to respond to a civil emergency and thwart efforts to prevent global climate change. A through examination of his failures in the last eight years leaves only one word that can accurately describe his performance – terrible.
The failures of the Bush administration is not just a partisan issue, it is an issue that the mainstream media has refused to cover accurately and one that the American public has not fully acknowledged. And, it is about time the failures were recognized on a collective basis, because it is only through this acceptance of the fact that Bush is a terrible President that we can stop it from ever happening again.
One of the most terrible decisions taken by George W. Bush was executing a calculating strategy to deceive its’ citizens that there was and is a connection between Iraq and the attacks of September 11, 2001, and then using this connection to attack Iraq. This was a terrible thing to do because not only was it wrong to lie to the American people, but the lie has cost lives.
On September 8, 2002, President Bush declared in a CBS interview that Saddam was "six months away from developing a weapon," and cited satellite photos of construction in Iraq where weapons inspectors once visited as evidence that Saddam was trying to develop nuclear arms. The reasoning given to the American people was the claim that Iraq had sought uranium from Niger, and high strength aluminum tubes from China and there were to be used for the sole purposes of building centrifuges to enrich uranium. This was in direct contradiction with the statements by former terrorism advisor Richard Clarke, who personally informed the President that neither Saddam Hussein nor Iraq was responsible for the September 11th attacks (Clarke, 200). Furthermore, on September 8, 2002, Clarke submitted to the President's National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice a memo he had written in response to George W. Bush's specific request that stated two explicit items – that only anecdotal evidence linked Hussein to al Qaeda; and there was no confirmed reporting of Saddam Hussein cooperating with Bin Laden on unconventional weapons.
However, George W. Bush chose to ignore this finding, and authorized those acting under his direction and control to pressure intelligence analysts to alter their assessments in order to secretly obtain unreliable information, to manufacture intelligence or reinterpret raw data in ways that would further the Bush administration's goal of fraudulently establishing a relationship not only between Iraq and al Qaeda, but between Iraq and the attacks of September 11th (Michealmoore.com).
As a result, the public and some members of Congress came to believe, falsely, that there was a connection between Iraq and the attacks of 911. President Bush continued to make false statement in the media such as "In defiance of the United Nations, Iraq has stockpiled biological and chemical weapons, and is rebuilding the facilities used to make more of those weapons." (Speech of President Bush, October 5, 2002) and "All the world has now seen the footage of an Iraqi Mirage aircraft with a fuel tank modified to spray biological agents over wide areas. Iraq has developed spray devices that could be used on unmanned aerial vehicles with ranges far beyond what is permitted by the Security Council. A UAV launched from a vessel off the American coast could reach hundreds of miles inland.” (Statement by President Bush from the White House, February 6, 2003).
All of these statements were lies. The weapons of mass destruction were never found. Bush continued to justify the attack claiming that Saddam Hussein was linked to the men who orchestrated the September 11 attacks. Yet, in an interview on January 31st 2003 when a reporter asked him "Do you believe that there is a link between Saddam Hussein, a direct link, and the men who attacked on September the 11th?"
President Bush’s response was “I can't make that claim.”
The basic point to realize here is that Bush deliberately lied to the American people and as a result hundreds of thousands of Iraqi civilians and U.S. soldiers died for no reason. After September 11, “the nation needed thoughtful leadership to deal with the underlying problems September 11 reflected: a radical deviant Islamist ideology on the rise, real security vulnerabilities in the highly integration global civilization. Instead, America got unthinking reactions, ham-handed responses, and a rejection of analysis in favor of received wisdom. It has left us less secure. We will pay the price for a long time” (Clarke, 287).
Another major reason why Bush should be considered a terrible President is that he curbed civil liberties through the Patriot Act, which allows people to be arrested for suspicious activities, and it allows the government to spy on its citizens.
It is against the American Constitution to spy on its citizens without a warrant, yet Bush ordered the National Security Agency to secretly collect the phone call records of tens of millions of Americans, using data provided by AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth. The agency was told “to create a database of every call ever made' within the nation's borders.” (Cauley, USA Today, May 11, 2006). Such wiretapping is a terrible thing for a President to endorse, since it curbs the citizens’s most basic right – the right to free speech.
Also, to be called a terrible President, he must fail to respond to natural disasters adequately and Bush satisfied this requirement with his reaction to Hurricane Katrina. He failed to take sufficient action to protect life and property prior to and in the face of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, given decades of foreknowledge of the dangers of storms to New Orleans and specific forewarning in the days prior to the storm.
In 2004, the Army Corps of Engineers asked for $105 million for hurricane and flood programs in New Orleans. The White House hacked that down to about $40 million, even as it passed the $12.3 billion energy bill. (The Associated Press).
Hurricane Katrina killed at least 1,282 people, with 2 million more displaced. 302,000 housing units were destroyed or damaged by the hurricane, 71% of these were low-income units. More than 500 sewage plants were destroyed, more than 170 point-source leakages of gasoline, oil, or natural gas, more than 2000 gas stations submerged, several chemical plants, 8 oil refineries, and a superfund site was submerged. 8 million gallons of oil were spilled. Toxic materials seeped into floodwaters and spread through much of the city and surrounding areas.
“The President's response to Katrina via FEMA and DHS was criminally delayed, indifferent, and inept” (michealmoore.com). I need to add more info here that pins the blame on Bush and not on FEMA.
Finally, Bush suppressed the release of scientific information related to global climate change, which has thwarted efforts to prevent global climate change despite the serious threat that it poses. In March 2001, President Bush announced the U.S. would not be pursuing ratification of the Kyoto Protocol, an international effort to reduce greenhouse gasses.
The New York Times on January 29, 2006, reported that James Hansen, NASA's senior climate scientist was warned of "dire consequences" if he continued to speak out about global climate change and the need for reducing emissions of associated gasses. The Times also reported that: "At climate laboratories of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, for example, many scientists who routinely took calls from reporters five years ago can now do so only if the interview is approved by administration officials in Washington, and then only if a public affairs officer is present or on the phone."
In December of 2007, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform issued a report based on 16 months of investigation and 27,000 pages of documentation. According to the summary: "The evidence before the Committee leads to one inescapable conclusion: the Bush Administration has engaged in a systematic effort to manipulate climate change science and mislead policy makers and the public about the dangers of global warming." The report described how the White House appointed former petroleum industry lobbyist Phil Cooney as head of the Council on Environmental Quality. The report states "There was a systematic White House effort to minimize the significance of climate change by editing climate change reports. CEQ Chief of Staff Phil Cooney and other CEQ officials made at least 294 edits to the Administration's Strategic Plan of the Climate Change Science Program to exaggerate or emphasize scientific uncertainties or to de-emphasize or diminish the importance of the human role in global warming."
In all of these actions and decisions, President George W. Bush has acted in a manner that fulfils all the criteria of being a terrible President.
Some may argue that the President’s actions in Iraq were necessary for national security. However, the President’s invasion of Iraq has led to stronger anti-American sentiments among the Islamic fundamentalists. “The president used over $2 billion in the summer of 2002 to prepare for the invasion of Iraq. First reported in Bob Woodward's book, Plan of Attack, and later confirmed by the Congressional Research Service, Bush took money appropriated by Congress for Afghanistan and other programs and—with no Congressional notification -- used it to build airfields in Qatar and to make other preparations for the invasion of Iraq “ (michealmoore.com
“Rather than seek to cultivate a unified global consensus to destroy the ideological roots of terrorism, we did in fact lash out in a largely unilateral and entirely irrelevant military adventure against a Muslim nation. It has left us less secure” (Clarke, 286).
Works Cited:
Bartlett, Bruce, Impostor: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy Doubleday (February 21, 2006)
Clarke, Richard, A. Against All Enemies: Inside America’s War On Terror Free Press, New York, 2007.
Michealmoore.com http://michealmoore.com
Goldberg, Danny. It's a Free Country: Personal Freedom in America After September 11
Conason, Joe. Big Lies: The Right-Wing Propaganda Machine and How It Distorts the Truth
Rampton, Sheldon and Stauber, John. Weapons of Mass Deception: The Uses of Propaganda in Bush's War on Iraq
Lisa O’Steen
lclisby0@saddleback.edu
The Hidden Dangers of Video Games
“The video game (gaming) industry has existed for decades, beginning with William Higinbotham’s ‘tennis for two’ oscilloscope, which debuted in 1958 (“Featured Report”).” Gaming is now a worldwide phenomenon and a multi-billion dollar industry after 50 years. Despite the joy brought to many people, young and old, there is a dark side to video games. Video games are one of the most harmful types of interactive games that children can play. Playing video games can be physically, psychologically, and socially harmful because their use can cause injury, affect a child’s level of aggression and self-control, and perpetuates isolative and dependant behavior. The risks of playing video games for children far outweigh the benefits.
There is strong evidence linking playing video games with actual physical injury. Playing video games for extended periods can provoke seizure activity in children. According to the American Medical Association, “Prior to its release in the United States, Nintendo’s Pokemon had to be reformatted due to its association with epileptic seizures in more than 700 Japanese viewers. In the United States, the Super Mario game has been found to disproportionately induce seizures in players as compared to the general population (“Featured Report”). Seizures can result in serious injury and even death. In addition to seizures, prolonged playing of video games can also cause repetitive strain injury, which is a musculoskeletal disorder of the upper extremities (“Featured Report”). The main symptom reported is chronic pain in the neck and back. Aside from the few newer “Wii fit” video games available that promote increased physical activity, gaming overall is a sedentary form of entertainment. This lack of physical activity in our nation’s children, due to the popularization of gaming, has undoubtedly contributed to the problem with obesity in children that we are seeing today. Obesity is a serious issue because often obesity found in childhood leads to obesity in adulthood. This can have detrimental effects on the heart as well as other major body organs. Fans of video games will argue that playing video games improves a person’s hand-eye coordination. According to results from an experiment done by Green and Bavelier, “video game playing enhances the capacity of visual attention and its spatial distribution...however, it was unclear whether video-game playing also facilitates processing outside the training range (534-535).” Although there does appear to be some truth to this argument, the physical harm that playing video games can potentially cause is not a risk that responsible parents should take with their children.
The psychological effects that the increasingly popular violent video games can have on children are as equally alarming. An American Academy of Pediatrics policy states, “Extensive research indicates that media violence can contribute to aggressive behavior, desensitization to violence, nightmares, and fear of being harmed (O’Keefe). Because video games are interactive, whereas television and movies are not, they have a greater influence and effect on the players. Tests have shown that when people are playing violent video games, there is less activity found in the prefrontal parts of the brain that are involved in self-control, inhibition, and concentration and increased activity in the amygdala region that controls emotional arousal (“Video”). Playing violent video games reinforces aggressive thoughts and behaviors in children. Each time they play, they are participating in storylines that teach and reinforce vigilantism and positive attitudes toward the use of violence. According to studies done by Anderson and Dill, the effects of this onslaught of graphic violence in video games can change an individual’s personality. “Long-term video game players can become more aggressive in outlook, perceptual biases, attitudes, beliefs, and before than they were before the repeated exposure or would have become without such exposure (Anderson & Dill,774). The combination of increased aggression as well as decreased control and concentration that occurs in a child who is allowed to play violent video games can cause a tendency toward violent or aggressive behavior and poor self-control later in life. This is tempered by the fact that some people believe that video games are good learning machines. In fact, it is common knowledge that the military uses video games or simulators to train its soldiers. In my opinion, games like Ghost Recon and Gears of War may be acceptable forms of entertainment for adults who are able to separate reality from fantasy but for young and impressionable children, the lines may become blurred. Violent video games dominate the market with greater than half of all popular games being violent in nature therefore parents must take an active role in monitoring what video games their children are exposed to (Anderson & Dill, 772).
Socially, gaming can have detrimental effects on an individual child as well as the family. Playing video games is mostly a solitary activity and prevents children from developing important social skills with peers. According to Anderson & Dill, the effects are demonstrated by “decreased prosocial behaviors in social interactions (“Featured Report”).” Prosocial behaviors are that which include cooperation, sharing, comforting, and helping. These behaviors need to be learned through practice at an early age to prevent social ineptness. A handful of video games can be played as a team, such as on XBOX Live, but the interaction is limited to voice for players that actually have microphones. Often, the language used during these “matches” is filled with yelling and profanity and would hardly be considered a positive social experience for a child. In addition, video games often are used as a “babysitter for children”, with kids playing alone for hours every day. This decreases the amount of quality time that parents have to interact with their children and can weaken the parent-child bond. It is a well-known fact that children model what they see and the saying, “actions speak louder than words” still holds true today. If children are spending more time with video games than with their parents, they are more likely to emulate the language and behaviors seen on the game despite what their parents tell them about what is acceptable. Parents will have less influence on their children’s moral and social development if gaming becomes too big a priority in a child’s life. Dependence-like behaviors may also be seen with the overuse of video games in the home. This type of video game “addiction” is more likely to occur in children who begin playing video games at a young age (“Featured Report”).
There are many examples of how playing video games are harmful to children. Physically, playing video games can cause seizures, repetitive strain injury, and contributes to obesity. Psychologically, playing violent video games have been shown to cause changes in brain activity, which effect a child’s focus, concentration, and control. The interactive and visual violence is harmful because it can cause desensitization and tendency toward aggression in children. Socially, peer and family relationships can be damaged and children may be at risk for dependence-like behaviors if video games become their primary source of entertainment. Video games are definitely one of the most harmful types of games that children play. Parents should evaluate the seriousness of the risks associated with this popular form of entertainment before allowing video games into their home.
Works Cited
Anderson, Craig A. and Karen E. Dill. “Video Games and Aggressive Thoughts, Feelings, and Behavior in the Laboratory and in Life.” 2 Feb. 1999. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. 2000: 772-790. Amer. Psychological Assn. 16 July 2008. http://www.apa.org. Pathway: Journals, Video Games.
“Featured Report: Emotional and Behavioral Effects of Video Games and Internet Overuse.” 14 Jan. 2007. Amer. Medical Assn. 16 July 2008. http://www.ama-assn.org
Keyword: Video Games.
Green, Shawn C. and Daphne Bavalier. “Action video game modifies visual selective attention.” 29 May 2003: 534-537. Nature- letters to nature. Nature Publishing Group.
16 July 2008. http://www.nature.com/nature. Keyword: Video Games.
O’Keefe, Lori. “Media exposure feeding children’s violent acts, AAP policy states.”
Jan. 2002. AAP News. Amer. Academy of Pediatrics. 16 July 2008. http://www.aap.org/advocacy/OKeefemediaviolence.htm.
Debbie Maxwell Argument of Evaluation
Eng 1B class 12215 Rough Draft
[dw#22] Essay #4
7/23/08
In the words of philosopher Aristotle, “it is possible to fail in many ways…while to succeed is possible only in one way.” Many individuals aspire to reach the path to success in life but often lack certain key principles to achieve this feat. Others, however, are willing to maintain the level of determination necessary to discover this narrow road to success. Coffee giant Starbucks, known world wide, has proved itself to be a highly efficient corporation reaping much success in the process. Through the evaluation of Starbucks’ strong focus, attention to customer needs, and ability to generate publicity, taking care of their employees, it will become clear that Starbucks embodies the ideals of efficiency and success.
One of the basic laws of marketing is that in order to maintain success, a company must keep a strong focus. While it may seem a simple concept, the death of many companies is a result of failure to abide by this law. At present time, Starbucks operates 12,440 locations worldwide; however, their goal is set at a lofty 40,000, which would trump even McDonald's. Despite its massive size, Starbucks executives tenaciously hold on to the idea that every store is like an independent coffeehouse guided by one central and success-driven goal. "The battle within the company is making sure growth doesn't dilute our culture," says founder and C.E.O. Howard Schultz (Time Magazine). Asked the secret of his success, Schultz recounts four principles: "Don't be threatened by people smarter than you. Compromise anything but your core values. Seek to renew yourself even when you are hitting home runs. And everything matters." (Skeen). As the company began to expand rapidly in the '90s, Schultz always said that the main goal was "to serve a great cup of coffee." (Skeen). Attached to this goal was a core principle: Schultz said he wanted "to build a company with soul." (Skeen). By making the target goal this concise, Schultz has elevated the Starbucks monopoly to a level few companies can dream of. By keeping the goal, Schultz has effectively proved that one can be both efficient and immense in size at the same time. This idea of a strong focus is only one of the principles that contribute to the company’s overall efficient and successful image.
As it is imperative to the success of a company to retain a satisfied stream of customers, awareness of customer needs is a key factor in the process. Senior Vice President John Culver sums up this factor by emphasizing how each store location provides “a relaxed environment with comfortable chairs, friendly baristas and music playing in the background. Starbucks menu of pastries and food items caters to local customer preferences and enhances the coffee experience” (Ching Li, B4). It is important to note that while not every Starbucks location is identical, the central focus of the company unchanged. Culver further highlights this concept by stating that “the quality of coffee and the Starbucks experience remains the same throughout the world” (Ching Li). Schultz has given the world of business a prime example of what it means to maintain a high standard. It has also become common knowledge that employees play an important role in customer needs as well. One way to achieve the goal of satisfying customers is to ensure that the employees are equally satisfied. Through the offering of full health benefits as well as stock-option grants, (Company Fact Sheet). Starbucks keeps a competitive advantage over the competition with its low turnover rate, therefore keeping employee morale high, which adds to customer satisfaction. Keeping this as a priority has not gone unnoticed. As of 2008, Starbucks was ranked by Fortune magazine as the 7th best company to work for in the United States. Starbucks was also voted as one of the top ten UK workplaces by the Financial Times in 2007.
While many investors look primarily at the financial status of a company, viewing its promotional abilities can be equally as important to predicting a potential pattern of success. How a company markets itself and makes use of the publicity it attains can be very important indicators of success or failure. Howard Schultz has mastered this technique and made the most of free publicity to enhance what is already a household name. Many people may recall in late February of this year when every Starbucks closed its doors to the latte lovers of world, explaining that the purpose was “to teach, educate, and share our love for coffee” (ABC News). A brilliant move on Schultz’s part, it got the world realizing they could barely last three and a half hours without their favorite Starbucks beverage in hand, thus generating mass publicity. On an equally publicized note, the well-known green and black logo has once again been replaced with the original brown and white emblem not seen for several years. This temporary change was a masterful attempt on the part of Schultz “to restore some of the goodwill and warm feelings for the brand that have gone by the wayside because of increasing coffee prices, machine-made lattes, and bad press” (Kiley). Schultz has proved again and again that generating publicity is a key component to the overall success of a highly efficient company.
Despite the level of success Starbucks has achieved, no company is able to please everyone. A primary argument against Starbucks being labeled as efficient is the fact that the number of locations is expanding at an increasingly rapid pace and spans several continents. As previously discussed by Senior Vice President John Culver, Starbucks is well aware that this could prove difficult and makes it a point to keep every location focused on the same path of efficiency and success. Another argument made against this company is that they are becoming the “Wal-Mart” of the coffee industry, taking over every city and putting small family owned companies out of business. While Starbucks does make it a priority to expand their size, they also put large amounts of effort into making it a worthwhile endeavor, both for investors and customers. It is impossible to achieve success without sometimes having to defeat those beneath us. Although Starbucks may be guilty of this accusation, they nevertheless strive to provide a service they feel is invaluable to society.
The facts are clear, Starbucks’ claims to be the finest distributor of coffee in the world and their target of being the largest company to dominate the coffee industry is within their grasp. Their concentration of a strong focus, attention to customer needs, ability to generate publicity, and taking care of their employees, is clear that Starbucks embodies the ideals of efficiency and success. Starbucks has no intentions of letting up on this fast-paced growth plan and they intend to make sure no one should have to hunt for a great cup of coffee anywhere in the world.
Works Cited List
Kiviat, Barbara. “The Big Gulp.”
2006. Time Magazine. 10 Dec. 2006
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1568488,00.html.
Skeen, Dan. “Howard Shultz Secrets for Success.”
1999-2001 My PrimeTime. Entrepreneurs
http://www.myprimetime.com/work/ge/schultzbio/
Li, Tor Ching.- Interview “Culver of Starbucks Asia on Getting Started: ‘Be Passionate’ The Wall Street Journal. 21, July 2008: B4.
Kiley, David. “Starbucks’ Retro Logo.”
2008. BusinessWeek. 11 Apr. 2008. http//www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/apr2008/id20080411_065581.ht m?
“Starbucks Company Factsheet”
2008. Starbucks Coffee Company. Feb. 2008.
http://www.starbucks.com/aboutus/Company_Factsheet.pdf
ABC News. Song, Jung Hwa. “Starbucks shutdown for 3.5 hours for training.”
2008. ABC News Internet Ventures. 25 Feb. 2008.
http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=4350603
Teenage years are perceived and something far away in your past. Older adults think of teens as rebellious slobs, who care nothing for themselves and what they think is fun. No jobs or off messing around through their college years, not a care in the world. Young adults from the ages sixteen to almost twenty are supposed to be ruthless, vain, and have no good input for a working society right? Not all teenagers are created equal and for some, each day is a constant struggle to keep high hopes and roofs over their heads.
With high school diplomas in hand most teens go off to college, actually (PERCENT). Not having an educational plan is looked down upon by most teachers and high school counselors. Not all of these teens have a choice. Some are thrown in this big world with nothing to start off with. A great example for this situation would be myself, a chance at independence and my own came at the cost of family moving over three thousand miles away to another state. I was stuck between dead end jobs and constantly ridiculed for being so young and having no support. Finding a place to live is a whole different story and with that came loneliness of not having a real place to call home. Supporting myself is a big wakeup call of what is to come for a lot of my spoiled friends. Spoiled meaning living at home and having their parents pay for anything and any trouble they may come across.
What does it take to endure the open world, a full time job. The goal to make enough money to eat, sleep and make somewhat of a life is hard without any financial backing. The average cost in Orange County is (GET NUMBERS). From experience, companies are not looking to hire younger adults to work in their business. From interviewing previous bosses, they have stated it is because of trust, responsibility, and work ethics. Teenagers just do not hold up to these ethics now a day, making it harder to be hired even with a strong resume’. Being discriminated by this makes myself and many other teenaged workers bitter towards rebellious teens, for putting out such a bad name. It is a constant struggle to gain trust and respect from older colleagues and management. Without this, it is hard to grow and prosper for a better living standard for younger adults.
Most young adults are blessed with the opportunity and finances to be able to afford full time higher education. For a full time California State college it costs over (GET NUMBERS). This is more than an average family income can pay. From previous conversations with other young adults not in full time schooling, they are forced to either choose full time jobs or college. Balancing both together is harder than ever with raising major requirements and class workloads. Financial aid is a very competitive thing to come by and without it; some younger teens can just not pay for even lower level colleges making it a barrier to receive the higher education so valued in our society.
Encountering other younger adults that slack in school and are a least bit immature brings a lot of sympathy for them. Having no idea of what the world will have for them once they get a taste of reality. I feel as though they will not gain the knowledge of saving money or basic etiquette of how to survive. I am very fortunate to have learned to balance finances especially when credit card debt is almost normal now. The average younger adult has (GET NUMBERS)
With the help of immature troublesome teenagers, the discrimination from elders will never be dissolved. By taking responsibility for your lives and not depending upon parents or guardians, will hopefully help them plan for their futures.
-Discrimination: Rebels vs. Full time workers
- Crime rate in teens
Masashi Suda
masashi_suikoden@myway.com
Argument of Evaluation Rough Draft
Who is the man that is considered to be an legend in both martial arts and movie industry? Who was the man that gave many Asians the chance to prove themselves in the outside world? Who is the man that gave the people of China, something to be proud of? That man that changed the world was none other than Bruce Lee. Many who lived during the late 60’s and early 70’s know that Bruce Lee is the man who defined martial arts and set the standards for action movies. Bruce Lee was a well accomplished martial artist and was considered to be an icon and an inspiration. Lee’s accomplishments have earned him icon status. His achievements in the entertainment and martial arts industries have paved the way for many Asian artists and inspired many to learn the art. He is an artist capable of inspiring the future generations and encouraging them to work hard and dream big.
Bruce Lee was born in San Francisco’s China town in 1940 to a Chinese opera singer father, and a Chinese-German mother. When he was an infant, his family moved to Hong Kong. It was in Hong Kong that Bruce Lee learned the martial art style “Wing Chun” a style of kung fu under the teaching of Yip Man, at age 13. Before he became famous in Hollywood, he was a famous child star in Asia. After graduating from high school he moved back to the US and enrolled at the University of Washington to study philosophy. He also created his own school of martial arts called the Lee Jun Fan Kung Fu Institute. His martial arts style, called the “Tao of Chinese Kung Fu” was a combination of “Wing Chun” and northern and southern Kung Fu styles. Bruce Lee continued studying classic martial arts and developed his own style, which was a merging of “Wing Chun” and western boxing and fencing which he then called “Jun Fan Kung Fu.” “Bruce Lee then later incorporated certain features from “Muay Thai,” “Aikido,” “Jujitsu,” “Judo,” “Catch Wrestling,” “Bando,” “Sikaran,” “Panantukan,” “Indo-Malay Silat” and several other martial arts styles and named it “Jeet Kune Do” (by Char4u, “Bruce Lee and Martial Arts”), which can be translated to, “Way of the Intercepting Fist.”
For his love of martial arts and the philosophy behind the arts, Bruce Lee is widely regarded as one of the most influential and famous martial artists of all time. Bruce Lee has changed the way the world views martial arts. “He is an iconic figure for his presentation of Chinese martial arts to the non-Chinese world” (by Zamhaziq, “Bruce Lee The Most Influential Martial Artist”). Bruce Lee became an iconic figure particularly to Chinese, as he portrayed the Chinese nationalism in his movies. His films elevated the traditional Hong Kong martial arts film to a new level and made it better. “Bruce Lee wanted to use the film as a vehicle for expressing what he saw as the beauty of Chinese culture, rather than it being just another regular action movie” (by Zamhaziq, “Bruce Lee The Most Influential Martial Artist”).
Bruce Lee has starred in many films and most were unfinished because of his unexpected death. His film “Big Boss,” filmed in 1971, is the first movie that Bruce Lee played the lead character. “Big Boss” become an enormous box office hit across Asia and launched him to fame. Bruce Lee was the first Asian martial arts superstar, undoubtedly paving the way for Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, Jet Lee, and Jackie Chan. Bruce Lee is famous for his devotion to martial arts and his talent in this field. “Bruce Lee's two smash hits for Golden Harvest elevated him to celebrity status in Asia and like-wise launched Chow's Golden Harvest into the top tier of the Hong Kong film industry” (by Zamhaziq, “Bruce Lee The Most Influential Martial Artist”). Bruce Lee wrote, directed and starred in his own movie production called the “Way of the Dragon,” which featured perhaps one of the greatest martial arts fight scenes ever filmed in a movie. The scenes’ took place in the Roman Coliseum and the co-star of the film was Chuck Norris. One of Bruce Lee’s most famous films, “Enter the Dragon,” was produced by both “Golden Harvest” and “Warner Bros,” and became a world phenomenon., Unfortunately, Lee died of apparent brain swelling in Hong Kong a month before its American debut. “Enter the Dragon” became a huge box office hit and established Bruce Lee as a martial arts legend. “At the time of Lee’s death, he had completed the fight scenes for another movie called “Game of Death” which featured one of his martial arts students; basketball star Kareem Abdul-Jabar. “Game of Death” was completed with look-alike actors later on” (Motley Harvest, “Bruce Lee, The Greatest Martial Arts Action Hero”).
Bruce Lee was an accomplished actor and martial artist before his death. One of his most significant contributions was that he opened the door for other Asians in the entertainment industry to become famous worldwide, actors like Jackie Chan and Jet Lee. Bruce Lee “was the first Asian to achieve any significant success in the North American entertainment scene. He became a star in North America and the rest of the world by playing heroes rather than past stereotypical roles for Asians such as servants, gangsters, laundry workers or other ‘pigtail coolie’ characters” (Motley Harvest, “Bruce Lee, The Greatest Martial Arts Action Hero”). Another of Bruce Lee’s contributions is that he inspired people of all races to achieve their goals, no matter what. He gave many Asian people; particularly the Chinese people worldwide, a reason to be proud. He influenced and encouraged them to be confident, work hard and achieve their goals no matter what their socio-economic status was. Ultimately,he has inspired many to pursue their dreams.
Bruce Lee is truly a well recognized legend . I consider Bruce Lee to be an inspiration because he stood for what he believed in and never sacrificed his beliefs. His death was very unfortunate, he left many films unfinished and he had not perfected his martial arts. Although he is no longer alive, his legend will continue to live in the lives of those who study in the way of martial arts and to those who are in the action movie industry. Even though his physical body is dead, his spirit, films and kung fu that he has left behind will live forever through martial arts and action movies.
Work Cited
•“Bruce Lee, The Greatest Martial Arts Action Hero,” January 25th 2007, http://www.motleyhealth.com/articles/2007/01/bruce-lee-greatest-martial-arts-action.html
•Zamhaziq, “Brucee Lee The Most Influential Martial Artist,” March 25th 2007, http://hubpages.com/hub/Brucee-Lee
•Char4U, “Bruce Lee and Martial Arts,” http://www.char4u.com/article_info.php?articles_id=31
Argument of Evaluation Rough Draft
Star Trek is one of the most popular series
“Who put the tribbles in the quadrotriticale?” This is one of the many interesting problems one can find the answer for watching Star Trek The Original Series. The series and movies have a large fan base from all over the world and The Original Series achieved an iconic status in the television history. Star Trek has become one of the most popular series in the history of science fiction entertainment.
The adventures of Star Trek were new and fresh in the 1960’s. By that time television dramas were becoming less popular and people were hungry for new adventurous movies, for something they were not expecting, something that was not predictable. What genre could better fulfill this expectation than science fiction? “To boldly go where no man has gone before” said the opening tagline and the magic happened indeed. The technical background was less sophisticated than nowadays, but the costumes of various alien species and spaceship scale models were something new in that time. The Original Series was remastered a couple years ago, but if someone is caught by the adventures and the storyline than the scale models are not even that unbearably striking. Every episode is a different adventure, acquaintance with new life forms, new machines, new technologies people wish to own one day. A brand new world is introduced for the audience where earthmen live in relative peace, in a world where a large community of species can live together in the United Federation of Planets. The monetary system is just an outdated memory from the past. Man is ready to step out from his boundaries and see the vast world with his own eyes. The crew was cast from a diversity of ethnic groups, which was significant because integration was an unusual occurrence in 1960s television. In this diverse crew everyone could and still can find at least one character of his liking. However, it is also true that the concept of the series was rejected first by MGM, but that was such a long time ago, so many spin-offs were created since then, and the fan base become so large, that maybe even the producers at MGM would like to forget how they gave the chance away for another company to make the series a huge success.
What can be better evidence of Star Trek’s popularity than the huge fan base? After the first season of Star Trek the NBC wanted to cancel the show because of the poor Nielsen rating, however, the devoted fan base started a letter-writing campaign which has been never done before and managed keep the show on the air. Thousands of people around the world admire the series. Some of them are financing, writing and creating their own version of the series. Everyone can get a role in the adventures and they upload the episodes to the internet. Others are creating fan sites where they post information about the series, characters, actors, stories, writers, director, and forums where fans can talk and share their Star Trek experiences. Those who are more fanatics build their house to look like a starship or their living room is the main deck of a Galaxy class. They get together in December on the Star Trek Day, they put on costumes and pointing ears and they just enjoy their out of character experience. But Star Trek is just one of sci-fi series. Babylon 5 created by J. Michael Straczynski, debuted in 1993 and ran for a five seasons and fans could enjoy six movies and a spin-off, Crusade which had a good story but not original enough to live through the first season. Jeremiah, the post-apocalyptic series was also a Straczynski production, and although the plot and the characters were well created, it ran only for two seasons. When Jericho, the post-nuclear apocalypse series was canceled, the fans sent about 50,000 pounds of nuts to CBS network’s executive vice president of programming, thus persuading the network to air the second season of the show. The fans’ imagination knows no limits.
The Star Trek series’ popularity is so unlimited that a whole industry is based upon it. The Star Trek spin-offs, the Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager and Enterprise were all seeking for new adventures, new alien life forms and new opportunities which were awfully popular among sci-fi fans. The Star Trek Animated Series is not widely known, it has only twenty-two episodes but it has won an Emmy Award during its two seasons. Ten movies were created so far, each telling a two-hour long separate story with the Star Trek series crew, and the eleventh is coming in 2009. Four spin-offs, animated series, movies, dozens of computer and video games, hundreds of novels, comic strips, hundreds of different merchandises, ship scale models, dolls, pins, clothes, posters you name it. In the Star Trek Experience theme park in Las Vegas one can enjoy a Borg invasion in 4D, evade a Klingon worship, walk through the museum that looks like a starship or even get married on the bridge of the USS Enterprise where alien species witness the couples’ vows. In Quark’s Bar and Restaurant one can enjoy a pleasant meal or a glass of Klingon blood wine and return home with some souvenirs from the Star Trek shop.
The world of Star Trek was fresh, original and different from what people get used to. One can still find a character who mostly represents his or her own ideas, who makes them laugh, teach them some new technical terms or realize how extraordinary and small and lost and ingenious man is. The character of the adventurous explorers, the humor, and the message behind the sci-fi talk looks like it will never be out of date. The societal impact of the series cannot be dismissed. The fans say they share same ideals in their everyday lives as the Federation. The fans accept each other and they are open for new ideas and ways of thinking and as long as there will be people with such kind of an attitude, the popularity of Star Trek cannot fade away.
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