Blog Post #3 – What’s So Bad About Hate?

Question #1: Where is the line between a hate crime and a non-hate crime?

Question #2: Why do some “races” feel more superior over others?

Question #3: What kind of extra penalties should be imposed for hate crimes?

            I thought this article was interesting.  Expressing negative thoughts or anger towards a group of people doesn't make a whole lot of sense.  A lot of the “hate” simply comes from a person of a particular race usually doing something to leave a negative impression on you.  An example of this would be a trip to a store such as the Home Depot.  You need help lifting a heavy pot into your car and Jose significantly scratches your bumper with the pot on accident.  You shouldn't get mad at Hispanics in general, just Jose (the individual, not every Hispanic named Jose).  Thanks to the help of stereotypes and cultural stigmas, that isn't usually the case.  Having one bad experience with a member of a particular “race” isn't a good reason to judge a group of people in my opinion.  I honestly think that “hate” is more of a cultural construct than anything else.  If you tell someone it is ok to make fun of another individual or group for being different, that is wrong and it also happens more commonly than you might think.  Intolerance has been a driving factor to do some really stupid things in the history of the United States.  The biggest one in my opinion not mentioned in the article is prior to the Civil Rights movement.  There was a period where people thought it was ok to literally buy, sell and trade other humans as slaves simply because of their dark skin tone.  One good example from this article I think is worth mentioning is the two neighbors in California.  After reading it, I noticed it was two neighbors in a scuffle and one person involved just happened to be homosexual.  I thought it was completely wrong to charge heterosexual neighbors son for a hate crime.  The homosexual neighbor provoked the actions which ultimately led to the police being called and he wasn't faulted which I think is a good example of how messed up the legal system can be.   As much as I don’t like to admit it, I partially agree with Sullivan’s conclusion in which he said: “For all our rhetoric, hate will never be destroyed.  Hate, as our predecessors knew better, can merely be overcome”. (Sullivan 11)  Hopefully he is right and it can be overcome.  A good real world example of this change occurring is the more liberal views taken towards controversial topics such as gay marriage.  Not only that, hopefully people in general can get along, try to think more positively towards others, try to avoid anger and other negative hateful thoughts towards an individual or a group.

Blog Post #2 - Lady Gaga and the Death of Sex

Question #1: Why is her odd sense of fashion so heavily criticized?

Question #2: How do you compare celebrity sex icons to an unattractive singer?

Question #3: How could the absence of facial expressions and body language make a difference in someone’s ability to sing?

            It isn't too hard to tell that the author of this article isn't the biggest fan of Stefani Germanotta (commonly referred to as her stage name “Lady Gaga”).  I can’t blame her though because I really don’t care for her either.  I have seen some of her costumes on the news, the last one being a dress composed entirely of raw meat.  Her sense of fashion is undoubtedly odd and at the same time it is one of the things she does that differentiates her from other music artists.  The songs she comes up with aren't very good in my opinion and her fashion sense is what I think sets her apart.  Another thing I noticed about this article was how the author compares Hollywood sex icons to “Lady Gaga”.  The author seems to forget that “Lady Gaga” is a singer because she compares her to Clara Bow who is an actor.  I think what she was trying to get at is that the fashion sense of “Lady Gaga” is much different than the Hollywood sex icons.  Facial expressions and body language are a great way to communicate especially to those who can’t speak in the same language as you.  Sure “Lady Gaga” might not use any facial expressions in many of her videos and even during live performances, however that shouldn't have too much of an impact on her ability as a singer.  I have noticed through observations that many of her fans are the type that text excessively.  Just because they are obsessed with texting shouldn't be a reason for the lack of expressions to go unnoticed.  I remember seeing one of her music videos and it literally had images with lyrics in the foreground and singing in the background.  The music videos I saw from her were so plain, unoriginal and boring.  That shouldn't be a reason to criticize the fans for texting though.  “Lady Gaga” is different in terms of her fashion sense; however that doesn't affect her singing ability which she should probably focus more on to avoid harsh criticism from authors such as Paglia.

Blog Post #1 – Is Google Making Us Stupid?

Question #1: Is the internet the only thing responsible for altering reading habits?

Question #2: Are numerous advertisements to blame for less interest in modern media?

Question #3: How is “systematizing everything” more effective?

There’s no doubt about it, the internet has become a part of daily life and can even be considered a modern necessity in order to stay connected to the rest of the world.  Personally, I don’t think that the internet is solely responsible for altering the way people read.  One of Carrs’ claims that I disagree with is: “I feel as if I’m always dragging my wayward brain back to the text. The deep reading that used to come naturally has become a struggle.” (Carr 1)  Later in the article he mentions that his lack of patience towards reading is caused by the internet.  The way consumers read written materials such as: books, magazines and/or newspapers have drastically changed.  Many publishers of printed media had to alter their business models just to keep their doors open.  With that being said, there has also been a change in how consumers have been reading.  There are numerous advantages involved with printed media such as: no batteries to charge, no loading times and most importantly, it doesn’t cause eyestrain as fast as a modern LCD screen.  There are also disadvantages to printed media such as: environmentally unfriendly, not as portable and usually heavier than their electronic counterparts.  Mobile computing devices such as laptops, tablets and smartphones have revolutionized the way consumers read by providing nearly instant access to huge databases of content.  They can also be blamed for making reading faster paced and less immersive than their printed counterparts.  Personally, I have trouble staring at an LCD screen no matter what device it is on for any longer than a couple hours at a time before my eyes feel like they are burning or before I start developing back pain and stiffness.  I know many other people who experience similar problems and many good examples of this could also be found on the internet.  Basically, I think that modern electronic devices with LCD screens have compromised the ability of many to read for longer periods of time, not the internet.  It only makes sense to read faster in order to avoid the occasional eyestrain and back pain.