Meta-Post

After reviewing my previous blogs, I have come across many areas that I could improve, and areas that I feel I have improved on. I noticed that I tend to stick with writing about what we discuss in class, but in entries like "GLBT Supporters" and "What Do People Remember You By?" I stray from the curriculum and just write my thoughts on an idea I had that week. However, I do not think this is a bad thing. I think it's good to be able to just write my own individual thoughts on anything I want every once in awhile. I also noticed that my blogs tend to mention or make political figures and standpoints the subject of my post. For example, in "Lies," I focus the majority of my entry on dishonest politicians like Rod Blagojevich. This is interesting, because I do not think of myself as someone who thinks about political actions very often, or someone who even cares that much.
I could also be clearer and more specific in some of my posts. In "Do We Care About Justin Bieber?," I cite an article about celebrity Justin Bieber throwing a water balloon at a state trooper. I then proceed to say, "Kids where I live do stuff like this all the time. Now, if Justin Bieber does it, it makes headlines?" These sentences are very vague as to what Justin Bieber did specifically. The words "it" and "stuff" definitely set bells off in my head as being hazy.
I have also, in my late entries, failed to add other web addresses or research to my ideas. I'm prone to just stating my opinion on a subject and giving examples without adding professional analysis to back up my views. In my post "GLBT Supporters," I merely state my opinion and did no back-up research to support it. There are no hyperlinks to other websites with  evidence supporting my claim.
I believe my best post so far has been "Racial Resentment." It includes a rare personal experience, other studies that validate my claim, and, in my opinion, causes the reader to think about the issue at hand. It ends with a question that encourages the reader to keep thinking after they are done reading.


My Best Post: Racial Resentment

GLBT Supporters

Last week at school, we had a day contributing to the support for gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgenders where many agreed to wear purple to school to draw attention to the issue. This has been a constant conflict that a lot of students see everyday at school. However, I feel many students want to show support for the GLBT cause, but some will not associate with it for fear of being mistaken for a gay, lesbian, or bisexual person. They know how quick to judge others are, so they become nervous to identify with a belief that they actually support. This was the reason my friend at school gave for not wearing purple when she, in fact, does stand for gay rights. Admittedly, I have seen a person wearing a shirt supporting GLBT rights, and quickly assumed they were gay without actually knowing if they are. This should not stop someone from defending gays. If this stops a person from encouraging gay rights and standing up against anti-gay violence, they should think about how a GLBT feels. They need support from not just gays, but from straight people also. For example, the majority of political figures in America is straight, and if these leaders don't sympathize with gays, then they will never gain the right to marriage.

Having said this, I think it is selfish to not stand behind this issue if you are a supporter of GLBT just because you think others will mistakingly judge you for being gay.

Do What You Love, Love What You Do

In American Studies this week, we watched a trailer for a film called Race to Nowhere. It is a documentary about the pressures that children and young adults feel from their parents, peers, and teachers do to exceptional in school. Kids are taught that school is the most important thing, that your grades will get you into a good college, and you will therefore live happily with a job that pays well and be able to support yourself and a family.
However, I do not agree with this method of teaching, or even living. I think it is satisfying to be smart in school by your own standard, but by no means do I think grades are the most important aspect of a person growing up. It may seem so, considering the environment we live in, but I think someone who is really good at playing guitar, someone who is a great athlete, or someone that has an outstanding personality is just as important as someone who gets very good grades, and it can get you just as far in life. Parents and peers like to brag about their/their kid's grades, but the most important thing to me is being happy with what you do in your life, which does not always involve grades.

What Do People Remember You By?

What do people remember you by? Some might say that people only remember the mistakes made by a person, and the amount of good deeds done by them is negligible. For example, who is going to look back on George Bush and remember that it was he who kept America safe after 9/11, and caused the U.S. not to get attacked again by terrorists? I think most people will see it as a failed presidency. Even as I search for a picture of George Bush to add to this article, I am having a hard time finding a picture that doesn't mock him. I'm not arguing that it was a successful presidency, but what he did was very positive for our nation with airport security.
In another scenario, while I was talking to my grandmother about her job as a teacher, she told me that when she sees students that she has previously taught, she always remembers the ones who misbehaved, and not the good kids. Seeing myself as one of the "good kids," this came as quite a shock to me. Being a good kid was something that I thought should be memorable enough, but apparently not.

Having said this, what do you think makes someone memorable?