Blog Post 8 - Film Viewing

In 2004 a documentarian by the name of Morgan Spurlock conducted an experiment with himself as the guinea testing as to whether or not eating only McDonalds for 30 days and for every meal is actually dangerous. Over the years, several suits have been made against McDonad's that they are knowingly selling food that is unhealthy. However, the courts stated that the plaintiffs would have a claim if, they cold prove the above point, that eating Mickey D's and only Mickey D's for every meal for 390 days straight is truly dangerous. This is where Morgan steps in. This man is of above average fitness and is used to a vegan lifestyle, however with this experiment he is about to drastically change his lifestyle to fir that f most Americans. Not only will he eat fast food for every meal, but also, if at anytime they ask him if he wants to super size his meal he must. Not only must his diet match that of fast food eaters, by the exercise habits of many as well. He must subjugate himself to less exercise than he is used to, a mere 5000 steps a day. The argument made is that McDonald's is knowlingly selling unhealthy foods to their customers and potentially putting their lives at risk below you can see the aftermath on Morgan's body due to this experiment.

Not only did he gain a massive amount of weight, almost a pound a day, but his cognitive thinking was altered due to this diet. He proved the dangerous things that can occur from only eating fast food. There are things wrong with this argument however. There made a harsh generalization of the fast food population that they do not exercise or if thy do, very little as well as assumed that they will eat it for every meal. There are other variables not considered such as alternate lifestyles, a variable of different levels of exercise as well as maybe gender, race or socioeconomic status can affect this experiment. Though he gave results hat they were looking for, it because it was almost impossible for him to fail with how the results were set up. More needs to be taken into account to make it more credible, even though he did do what the courts asked of him, to see how fast food negatively affects the body if eaten everyday for every meal.

This picture almost seems to sum it up. We are trying to find a scapegoat for our own problems. The restaurants aren't shoving food down our mouths, its our choice. They aren't advertising it to be healthy but we are assuming or doing it because its convenient. Sure, they are adding to the obesity epidemic we are facing here in America, but we aren't doing anything to help besides trying to pass blame.

Equal Education for All?

Education is a hot topic debate everywhere. We are always trying to improve, or so we say. Consistently schools are underfunded and filled with teachers that truly do not care and give their students busy work. Feel free to argue with me, but we are seriously lacking when it comes to education, especially since we cannot keep up with other countries around the world and are consistently falling up short. This slam poetry session by a couple of teenagers really exposes this when them, though so young, can see the trouble we are in with our educational system.

I'll Be Happy When...

 

"Lifestyles, of the rich and the famous..." this is something that everyone wants to achieve; to be rich and famous. But why? Is it because it is engrained in our head from birth that being rich is the "American Dream" that we have all been promised or told of? Ever since I was a kid we see the glamor of these celebrities and want to have everything that they have. We dream to be like them and be on the red carpet. But is it really worth it? So many times we see the lives of these individuals go down the drain and quickly fall apart as they are consumed by the culture and mystery that is Hollywood. Jim Carrey puts those wishes on blast with the quote above arguing that it isn't the answer for all. All is not what it seems. However, the song "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous" by Good Charlotte in a way opposes this by talking of the perks in a satirical way while also exposing all the corruption within the industry of fame. Two very interesting ways to share how being famous ain't all it's cracked up to be and exposing some of the "perks" of it as well, if you could call them perks!

 

Wait, They Said What? I Support That!

 

Election season is always an interesting time. It's a time of change, a time for endless arguments between people, and potentially the loss of friends due to a differing in ideals. It is also interesting to see who jumps on the bandwagon, both  voters and candidates. It is often seen that people will only want to talk about hot topics that will get the infamous banwagoners on board and often how easily some can seem to change their original ideals or opinions from hearing a few buzzwords or to get the voters on board with their campaign. Above are a few examples of jumping on the bandwagon and the use of buzz words to persuade voters.

Blog Post 7 - Built Environment as Arguement

 

Ever walk into a building and feel instantly stressed or very relaxed? Ever wonder what that reasoning is? Was it tied to some sort of personal experience, or does just the tone and set up of the building make you feel that way? I know this is true for me. There are buildings on campus that make me feel welcomed, whereas there are areas that I avoid due to terrible memories or the way its built and just makes me uncomfortable.

 

What do you think whenever you see this building? I see a bland structure that smells of mold. I would love to see the day when this building is imploded. I'm glad that I have enjoyed all the classes that I have taken in this building, or I would dread it even more. Whenever people hear of Blocker, they normally groan in agony. I wonder what their hate of this building is sparked from? What was the architect trying to accomplish when creating this building.

 

Now, what do you think of when you see this area? I think of days of hammocking with friends, playing fetch with my puppy when I first got her, the days of soaking up the sun while working on my homework, as well as the ideal of the Aggie Family and a bond that only this university has. I am so relaxed here and whenever I pass through here I feel at ease and just happy. Its hard to say, but it is just so picturesque.

When analyzing campus, to be honest, we really don't have a very pretty or inspiring campus. We do have various areas that are lovely and inspiring, but other than that we live in a concrete jungle per say. We have very few luscious green areas or marbled buildings of lovely sculpture and brick. But, though far and in between, there are areas on campus that allow our imagination to run and inspire us to be more creative or invoke great thinking. For me, this is academic plaza. It beautiful. I love the tradition involved with that area of campus but also, every which way you look there is an amazing sight. To the north, the century tree, the south is Rudder Plaza, the east is the Academic Building and to the west is the clock tower. It is gorgeous and should be the poster of A&M. It truly is the most beautiful area on campus and in ten years I hope future Aggies get the chance to enjoy this area and the tradition involved. Its such a relaxing area that so many Aggies utilize in their own way. When thinking about this campus, though there isn't much beauty to it, it is very efficient and everything has its place. It is a place of learning, it is made for academics rather than the arts. This is very reflective of the majors we have at A&M, we are a STEM focused school rather than the arts. It would argue that academics are at the forefront and that efficiency is more important than looks. It also has a focus on bringing in donors and branding itself as we can see with its focus on Kyle Field and the seal change, its quite ironic how we spend so much time branding our image when our campus is far from that typical image. Our campus is unique and has its own voice and this is how I interpret its structure.