Suicide Spotlight...

Thompson, Carolyn. "With NY teen's suicide come spotlight, caution." Charter. The Associated Press, 28 Sept. 2011. Web. 29 Sept. 2011.

This article summarizes the unsettling account of a young man in New Y ork who was being cyber-bullied. After years of name-calling and torment, 14-year-old Jamey took his own life by hanging himself infront of his home in New York. Grabbing the attention of celebrity Lady Gaga, she dedicated a song in her tours to the boy. The article itself isn't about the suicide of the boy, but instead the negative effects of the potential glamorization of suicide in today's society. As suicide is becoming more and more frequent in our world, the author is afraid that celebrities are glamorizing the concept with the dedications, and extra attention. The negative part of the this story is the fact that the author points out that many young adults look at suicide as an easy way to grow into a fit for the attention. Thompson says that If we portray it as something that is admirable and very sympathetic, vulnerable youth may hear that as, `Look at the attention this case is getting and everyone is feeling sorry and praising this individual,' and it can form a narrative that can be compelling," said AnnHaas, senior specialist at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. Sadly, that is too often the case and kids make the wrong decsion without being properly informed.
The author made a point to reaching out to the prople that don't tend to be reached out to. I feel like it was obviouly biased towards Jamey, and the children who have commit acts of self-violence. It tends to stay near the opinions of them rather than an outsider.
I believe that the article was informative but a little difficult to follow. The article felt to me like it didn't exactly fight for the kids in need of help, instead, fighting a bat. It felt to me that the entirity of the article was all about the fight for the kids. It was just difficult to follow.
I think that the article would be alright for other guests because it is easy to relate to little thinks that would happen.
 

The Butterfly Circus

Part One

Part Two

Vujicic, Nick, and Eduardo Verástegui, perf. The Butterfly Circus. Prod. Joshua Weigel and Rebekah Weigel. 2010. DVD-ROM.

Before I begin, I would definately reccommend watching this when you have twenty minutes to kill... majorly worth it.

*Also, I do not mean to offend anyone by the following comments. It is a beautiful clip that was designed to be beautiful. The message may be applicable to religion, but doesn't directly say it outloud. Feel free to make your own assumptions. :)*

Finally, I am not completely sure how "Controversial" this is, all I know is that the producers were trying to make a point, and I believed them. That's a good enough argument for me.

Produced by Joshua and Rebekah Weigel, the butterfly circus is a short film about a man with no arms and no legs who was put on display at a circus as a freak. Put on display, the main character Will, played by Nick Vujicic is disgraced daily in order to make money. When the ring master of the proclaimed traveling band, "The Butterfly Circus," sees Will, he calls him magnificent. Taken aback, Will responds by spitting on the ring master. The story continues as Will stows away with The Butterfly Circus and is taken in as family with the rest of the performers. As Will comes to find out, the performers are all united through a common bond; They came together because they were once broken, and were fixed by the circus.

The story itself has an underlying message of God's love. Will’s life was changed when he began to see that God could use him as he was. He was emptied of his hatred and filled with hope. He learned to overcome his challenges and seek to serve others. The lesson that Will learned through his new friends was that God can redeem anyone, fill them with purpose, and use them to help lead others. Beautifully constructed, the message can be changed to allow you to apply it to yourself. simply stated, when you think the world is hopeless, somewhere a window of opportunity is opened, and the light shines in. the purpose of the movie is to prove to others, that hopelessness isn't the only answer, and that with a little bit of struggle, one can overcome even the most dire of situations.

The topic is beautiful for myself, and for anyone. As stated before, I believe that it is something that you can take and apply to yourself and use it as you will. It is something that can connect to even the least religious of people simply by the fact that it gives hope, which everyone can use a little bit of.

Toddlers, Tiaras... and Trainwrecks.

Szymanski, Mallory. "East Pennsboro beauty pageant crowns 5-year-old winner on controversial 'Toddlers and Tiaras'." PennLive.com. N.p., 22 Sept. 2011. Web. 22 Sept. 2011.

The article is a third person documentary of the TLC television series, Toddlers & Tiaras. It talks about the life as a "pageant baby" and the lifestyle that comes with it. It talks about a 5-year-old girl named Carley who won "Grand Supreme" for the 0-5 category, but on the way was scolded by her mother for not putting on a big enough show, then declared that she "...had enough of pageants." Concluding with Carley's mother proclaiming that she may have been to harsh, but has no intentions of stopping.
Szymanski is trying to show people how the lifestyle of pageant children is very different from the norm. Carley's mother said that she spends nearly $30,000 a year on pageants, as the author continues on with the article she makes a point to tell the audience that what Melissa, Carley's mother, does, seems to be disrespectful to her daughter, and tends to showcase her daughter against Carley's desires. Szymanski mentions how Carley doesn't want to continue with pageants, but Melissa plans on putting her in the next show to win bigger and better prizes. the author's opinion isn't especially apparent, as there are few direct statements regarding her thoughts on the matter, but considering that the article is about the negative effects of these pageants, it is apparent that Szymanski doesn't agree with the concept, but went about disagreement in a very civil matter.
The article is well constructed and gives a very well thought examination of the topic. It allows one to see into the life of five-year-old Carley and see the pageants through her eyes, as well as see it through the eyes of her mother.
I think that this is a decent topic for me. I compare pageantry a ton to dance shows, and "Toddlers and Tiara's" and the show "Dance Mom's" I can relate to because I was in a very similar performing situation for many years. However, I think that the author's negative opinion about it isn't the best fit for something that I would argue. I would argue that Melissa went about coaching her daughter in the wrong way, but not that pageantry itself is a bad/negative thing.
For others, I believe that it could be a difficult topic to pursue. Without knowledge on the topic I think that many of the opinions that would be made, would be based on assumptions, instead of fact. I enjoyed relating to the topic, but I don't believe I will do anything more with it.

http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2011/09/post_248.html

Obesity and America

Via: MedicalBillingAndCoding.org

"Obesity in America." Medical Billing and Coding. Medical Billing and Coding, June 2009. Web. 14 Sept. 2011.

This article is actually a picturial depiction of facts and statistics regarding America's problem with obesity. Filled to the brim with knowledge, advising people of the looming problem of being overweight, the creator of the picture is intent on advising America about the changes that have occurred in the lifestyle of the obese and overweight. The graphic has information ranging from how portion sizes have grown, to how even being friends with someone who is overweight may lead to your own heightened risks of weight gain. Each of the different segments on the picture give more information on the risks that come with being unhealthy, such as the percentage of overweight people by state, and the greater risk of depression and stress. It depicts graphically, the change in portion sizes, nearly doubling in weight and content. Using images of overweight people helps to put the image into perspective and captivate the audience. The author uses the pictures to their advantage by pulling people in with the stimulating colors and graphics. Simply using percentages and facts, it makes it easy to understand and allows the reader/observer to be easily captivated within the subject. Fallacies or biases weren't especially apparent, given that the subject is about educating the world to be healthier and does not really have any negative intent. Well created and captivating, the article does a good job of presenting the facts in a showy manner without being to forthcoming.

I really enjoy this topic. I have always been conscious with weight in general, coming from a family with a history of weight issues, it's always been an important topic to me. I was easily able to find legitimate connections between the degradation of society, and the uprising of America's level of obesity. As frightening as the topic may seem, I think that it is good for everyone because we are all affected by the tendency to lean towards fast and unhealthy food, and an inactive lifestyle. I think it is a good topic for everyone, simply because we are all affected by America, and the strong hold that weight has on our people.

Evolution, or Creation? Should they be taught in schools?

http://www.directionjournal.org/article/?449

Thiessen, Kerwin. "Forum: Should Creationism Be Taught in Public Schools?." Direction. N.p., Oct. 1982. Web. 12 Sept. 2011.

This article is about one man's views on the concept of teaching religion based theory in public schools. He believes that either both sides of the creation/evolution argument should be taught, or neither side and completely skip it. Thiessen believes that both concepts are faith based, one relying on religion, the other relying on science, and that when the concept itself is solely relying on educated guesses, both sides should be taught, allowing the students to learn and make their own assumptions as to the beginnings of the universe.Immediately the author asks the question, "Is evolution just as religious as creationism?" and boldly proclaimed, "yes". Thiessen is attempting to persuade his audience to allow the teaching of creationism in schools on the basis that educators should allow students to make their own judgements while guiding them in a scholarly manner. Although the article is unbiased as to the author's opinion regarding the creation/evolution debate, his argument is fraught with many emotional triggers making it more of a rant, than an argument supporting free judgement. His feelings tend to be supported by opinions and not fact. As stated in his writing, Thiessen believes that "... both evolution and creationism are belief systems. Both are embraced through 'believing what is unobservable' rather than on the basis of what is scientifically provable." Indeed both theories have some issues in detail, but his argument is filled with fallacies. Evolution is ideed provable as shown by Darwin's study of the Galapagos finches, as has organic growth been shown by today's modern technology. Students should be allowed to make their own assumptions regarding creation and evolution, but trying to prove it by trying to disprove evolution, is not the way to persuade school boards to allow Christian curriculum in the public school system.
I myself am completely a supporter of the idea of allowing creationism to be taught in schools, and this topic is one that I could potentially debate, but this article, isn't what I am looking for. This article has well placed values, but, I believe the Kerwin Thiessen's argument is perhaps too emotional. It is difficult for me to follow because I am consistently persuing not the topic of debate, but instead, his emotions associated with adding creationism to highschool curriculum. Just as I think this topic isn't right for me, I don't believe that this is the right topic for others for the same reason. There are better founded arguments that are available, instead of an emotionally driven man pursuing a cause with a fervor, despite his admirable intentions.