Wal-Mart Can Get Ugly Too.

Less then a week ago for Black Friday on November 28th at 10:46pm a Wal-Mart worker was killed because of the outragous and out of control stampied in Long island fighting through the doors to get inside. Alot of people were lined up outside for hours to get good deals on christmas presents. If we look at the actual meaning of chirtsmas its to celebrate the day baby Jesus was born. So waiting for hours outside a store to get a sale kinda throws that out the window for celebrating the true meaning of christmas. People would argue that you have to look out for yourself or its your own fault for getting hurt or killed. But why cant we have enough respect for ourselfs not to act like assholes and become violent. Yes it may be a Compatition to see who can get everything they want without someone else getting it first,but we dont have to make a massacre of it. To know that everyone knew they were stepping on him and didnt feel like helping him because maybe they would get pulled down to is really sad. They proably Justify it in there minds like im not going to help him up but maybe the next person will so im not so bad. People really act like its the end of the world if they dont get inisde and buy something. In the Article we read in class it said "Chanting push the doors in, the crowd pressed against the glass as the clock ticked down to the 5am opening." if were all going to the same place why do we have to get stupid and act like its the end of the world.

Now for the pregnant Woman who was injured also at Wal-Mart, I think this woman isnt very smart for thinking that she wouldnt get hurt especially the situation that shes in. Why take the chance of possibly hurting your baby over 20 dollars off a TV. I think Americans are very materialistic people and its all because corprate culture constantly wants us to have the latest stuff so they can have our money. I proaby will Never go Black Friday shopping and Wont buy anything that day.

Thanksgiving and Black Friday

Thanksgiving, Holiday or International Genocide Day?

Black Friday, Good Sales or buy nothing day?

As Thanksgiving came around the corner again, people flooded into supermarkets to buy supplies for thankgiving dinner and spent tones of money to make it happen. The history behind thanksgiving doesnt make this holiday seam so joyfull. Americans were welcomes by the Native Americans and we killed them. doesnt sound so thankfull to me. But we seam to look past that and make a day where we think of something in our life that were thankfull for and celebrate. The true history behind thanksgiving is never mentioned on the news, televsion or on cheerfull cards we send each other. so maybe the message is to live a good and meaningful life we should celebrate just being with family on holidays instead of remembering why its a holiday because of the history behind it. For my own family Thanksgiving me and my family made tons of food and we had to go around the table and say something were thankfull for (even thought thats not what the holiday is actually about). When it was my turn I said I was thankfull we werent in school, because I liked having time to relax. With no suprise I got funny looks yet there answers were no different then mine because it still had nothing to do with the actaul holiday.

As the next day comes its oficially Black Friday. Everyone is running to stores like best buy at 4am waiting to get things like electronics and other things on sale for very low prices. Alot of people got hurt, One person died and a pregnant woman had a miscarrige because a group of people trampled her. The things people sacrifice to get good deals. I didnt take any part in it because i thinks its stupid, theres no point in getting no sleep and hurting myself to get something cheap. why does it have to be the day after thanksgiving, isnt everyone broke from spending money on thankgiving? i noticed that even my own family members were getting in on the black friday craze. but they were smart and did it online. i guess to live a good and meaning full life you have to be injured and broke to show people you care for them.

08 Elecetion

My thoughts about this years Presidential Election was that it was the most historical one to date. never have we had a African American come this far in becoming the President Of The United States. In my Opinion Barack Obama is one of the best candidates we have ever had. hes such a well spoken person who knows what he wants to do and is realistic about how these things are going to get done. What i noticed on the channels airing the elections was they kept mentioning that the people who didn't vote for him wasn't because he was black but because they don't agree with what he wants to do and i think that's bullshit. In states like Georgia and South Carolina there still Prejudice people who didn't vote for him because he was black and we know there are people who are still like that today.
Also he brings new light to our Country, hopefully he is going to keep his word and put us on the road to a better future and more peaceful country. The best man won in my opinion
GO BARACK OBAMA!!!

Reviewing Other Peoples Opinion of GoodLIfe

Kate & Gavin- I basically agreed with what they both said because they hade the same opinions that Kanye West is sending out the message that in order to live the good life you need cars, planes, woman, expensive things and what i noticed is no part of living this good life does it mention having a Job, friends, family, responsibility. they both came with the point that he contradicts himself when he says "thebest things i life are free" and a few lines later hes saying popping champaine on a plane and we all know thats not free. also being envyied is mentioned in the song as "haters give me them slatly looks" meaning it dont matter if people hate you because your living the good life so its worth it.

Lil Mama's LipGloss

#1-What is the song basically saying about how to live a good life?
What Lil Mama's Lip Gloss is Saying about how to how live a good life is directed mostly to teenage girls in school. Shes mentions many times in her song that for you to become popular and recive attention from boys and girls, your Lip Gloss has to be "poppin", without it your not cool. she also mentions that even if you do have Lip Gloss and its not expensive like hers and cheap then it aint "poppin" either. In her opinion Living the good Life if being popular, having expensive things, and having people hate you because your supposedly better then them.

#2-What lyrics particularly speak to that perspective?
She says that when she got her Lip Gloss on all the boys stop to notice her. " My lip gloss be poppin' Im standin' at my locker And all the boys keep stoppin" Also how the girls hate on her because her lip gloss it better " the boys really like it, the girls dont speak" she makes a point that the other girls lip gloss is cheap so its definitly not better then hers. "they rollin' they eyes they lip gloss cheap, it aint my fault but i can upgrade you, show you how to use nice things with nice flavors" she throwing it in the girls faces that they cant afford the expensive lip gloss like her and that she has the money just to give away to "uprade them"

#3-How do the video images support, re-orient, or challenge the dominant theme of the lyrics?
The Video Contradict's what her lyrics are saying. in her video it dont show any boys stoppin to look at her or any girls rollin there eyes at her. its just her showing off the lipgloss. throughout the video she blowing the lipgloss around to people and its magically maing them more popular. as an example the part where this nerd is watching everyone dance and she blows the sent of her lipgloss toward him, he throws his glasses off and starts danncing and hes all of a sudden cool. at the end of the song she gets back in her moms car and tells her how much she liked the lip gloss and her mother tells her "it wasent the lipgloss, it was you all along" that contradicts her lyrics because without the lip gloss she wouldnt be popular so it wasent her all along. the music video sends the messsage that you dont need the lipgloss be be popular but her lyrics say something different.

#4-What else do you notice that's interesting?
I find it intresting that at first before she goes into school shes like everyone else, shes not popular and without her mother giving her the lip gloss the boys wouldnt be staring and the girls wouldnt be hating. she seams very innocent in the car with her mom but in school she isnt so innocent.

Outside perspective of "meaningful"

If we think about it, we already know what things are meaningful to us already.
We went home to interview our family and friends and hear what they thought was important to them. I interviewed my mother first. She said” family is important, because you’re my child you’re my #1 priority and making what you can out of what you have in life so that you can be as happy as possible.”
Not being satisfied with what our friends and family though it was our job to go outside and ask the people of New York city what they thought about meaning and what was meaningful in there lives. My partner and I started our interviewing at the Hotel across the street. We interviewed the doorman for the hotel. We asked him what he thought was meaningful in his life. Immediately saying “My dog, he makes me really happy”
we continued on asking about if he thought this year’s presidential elections were meaningful and who would he vote for. He said “yeah the elections are important and would probably vote for Obama. We expected him to say his friends and family were meaningful but didn’t mention it once.
The next place we ran off to was a construction site around the corner. We interviewed 2 guys and we asked them what do you think is meaningful in your life. He responded by saying “family is really important to me,(me) ‘do you think love is meaningful?’, yes I do, a lot, love is very meaningful”
I also asked “do you think money is meaningful?” he answered quickly by saying “yes I do, money makes the world go round” he also mentioned that he thought that we make meaningful things for ourselves and if they disappeared then he would feel very hollow.
Next stop was the Duane Read 3 blocks away. We asked an employee what she thought was meaningful in her life and answer “my children” she also mentioned that she thinks she doesn’t need love for life to be meaningful.
Next stop was The pizza place on the corner. My partner and I choose this random lady because she looked like she was going to give us better answers. We asked her what is meaningful in your life. It took her a minute to answer us because we could tell it could have been the first time someone had asked her. She said” everything, school, love and family. We also asked her what she thought the meaning of wisdom is and also hesitated with her answer but eventually said “learning from life experiences”
On day 2 of our interviews my partner and I went to the baby store down the block. We asked an employee what he thought was meaningful in life and said “family and technology” she seamed kind of offended by the question as if we should already know the answer to that question.
Next door to the baby store was a Chock Full of nuts place and asked the lady working at the counter what she thought was meaningful in her life. Immediately she said “my children, I have 3 kids. She said life wouldn’t be the same if her children and family disappeared.
Next door to chock full of nuts was an American Apparel store. We interviewed two employees, a man and a woman. We asked what they thought was meaningful in there lives. The Guy immediately answered first and said “Love, Music, Business, money”
He explained to us that we have two different kids of family. The family that we make which are our friends and the family that we get which are our relatives. The woman said” money makes the world go round, that’s why its important.