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.



Blog Post 6 - Create a PSA



Blob Post 5 - Anti-Smoking Public Service Announcement



      Smoking has become an ever prevailing problem in this country for years, and it's beginning to take fuel in younger and younger generations. But why is something so dangerous appealing to the youth? Three of the main reasons that young people smoke according to an article on healthliteracy.worlded.org are to look mature, to be like their friends, and to experiment. Every day teens see older people all around them smoking, especially their parents and relatives, they smoke to act older.  If their friends smoke, they may also feel pressured into doing the same to be accepted, to fit in. In todays culture, fitting in is everything. The last reason is the excitement of experimenting with something that is forbidden. We all know that rush we get when we bend the rules, this gives that same rush! The worst is that if you begin smoking at a young age you are more like to become addicted and once addicted it is much harder to quit. People also often turn to smoking as a de-stresser or to curb appetite. Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S., causing over 438,000 deaths per year according to the American Lung Association.

In recent years, more and more anti-smoking ads have popped up across the nation, and world. This is not just a problem in our country, but everywhere. Below are a few that I have come across that are actually not ads circulating in the US, but other nations in the world. Take a look at them!



 

 
      Each of these ads convey their message in a different way and are powerful in their own way. The first, a picture, truly does show how a picture is worth a thousand words. The image relates to how smoking is the same as taking ones life with a bullet, one is just quicker than the other. It shows how you have control over your own destiny, much like the power one has when contemplating taking a life. It really puts the power in your hand while simplifying the fact that what you are doing is killing yourself, the same action and power that a bullet has. The second, uses innocence against us. They show us that when one messes or takes away the innocence of one of our "protected" that it makes us stop and think. Though we may be doing the same thing that causes them just as much harm, we care more about them then ourselves and will do all that we can to continue to preserve that innocence. We don't want them to grow up too fast. Each person confronted tells them the dangers that those kids are exposing themselves to when lighting up, but never take a second to actually listen to what they are saying. They pull out every statistic from the book, but don't think about that each and every day when they light up on their own. Though each of these ads main audience are for smokers (especially the video ad because so often will some practice "do as I say, not as I do"), it can also be call to those around them to remind them of the dangers they are partaking in. Some people may say these ads, especially the picture ad, go too far. But honestly, they are just brutally honest. They put it into perspective. Smoking is killing yourself. It can shorten your life by about 25 years, that's about 28 minutes per cigarette for a typical smoker according to Medical News Today.

      So with all of these powerful ads and the information behind the dangers of smoking, why are tobacco companies still in power. One, smoking is addictive and hard to quit once addicted. Once an addict, always an addict. But how can we help this not be a thing, how can we help and what can we do? In Joel Spitzer's 30 years of being involved with smoking cessation education he has found a few similar commonalities in those who have wanted to quit and those consist of wanting to be a positive role model for their kids, a sense of shame from peers due to its smelly and offensive nature, the obvious health risks, as well as the expense just to name a few. Now ads nowadays are appealing to these, especially as we can see above with them appealing to "doing it for the kids" and the relational dangers that smoking is. But to continue this we need to use the reasons for smoking as the basis for  ads. Below is just one example as to how we need to continue this ad campaign.

 

Blog Post 4 - One Red Paperclip

 

It was interesting watching the video and actually being able to see the power of persuasion, or in my case lack there of, with regards to this experiment. It's crazy that something so small though, can have such power behind it and turn into something so much greater. This little experiment showed me a lot and really put into perspective that there is a reason I am in a argumentation and debate class. First off, I had to find a paper clip for this experiment because I really don't know the last time that I actually had used one. Once I found one, which took a surprisingly long time, I was off! I started with my roommates, hoping they would at least humor me help me out a little bit with this little project. I was sadly mistaken. They all pretty much said the same thing, "what the heck do I need a paperclip for?" It was sadly unfortunate. I even tried to pull the roommate card and pull some puppy dog eyes, but they weren't buying it. So I moved along. I went to class and was sitting next to one of my buddies. We had a pop quiz and I forgot a #2 pencil for the scantron my professor was about to pass out. I thought, what the heck, let me try my luck again! I asked my friend if I could trade my little blue paper clip for a pencil. He kind of looked at me crazily and shakily said sure, probably wondering why I was trading when he would of just let me have it for free. Hey, it worked! I got my first trade and for something a little more significant, at least in my mind. The week went on and I continued to fail when tying to trade up. I then met up with another friend prior to a meeting and we were studying when his pencil broke and he began searching through his bag for another writing utensil with what seemed  to be no luck. BOOM! There it was! Another opportunity to try my luck. So I asked him, "Hey! I'll trade you my pencil for a scantron? I need it for a test tomorrow and don't want to wake up early to have to buy one." He gladly accepted cause he still had a lot of work to do and was on that study grind that we all know, and never want to interrupt when we finally get into it! However, this was my last stroke of luck, and my trading ended here. Gosh, this was hard and I give major props to Kyle MacDonald for being able to start with a little red paperclip, and work all the way up to a house. Words, if you use them right can have a very powerful effect on people that I still have yet to learn. I mainly tried to focus on peoples needs. and what they needed but also what they would be willing to trade. It was hard though, because many people are willing to take however, very few are willing to give in return. I think Jenny Mullen said it best with " I think the power of persuasion would be the greatest superpower of all time." Just think about it! Unfortunately this is a power that I don't have and really need to work on.