I'm a Big Kid Now!

On my snapchat, I constantly see a flood of videos and pictures of my friends having sleep overs. I see them, and have had many in the past, but recently things have changed. My parents have allowed for much less opportunities for sleep overs and at others houses. I don't know exactly why, but I do have some theories.

All over media you see dumb teenagers making dumb decisions, as the name would entail. Many participate in illegal actions, and some just dumb. But, for the most part, this is a small percentage of teenagers that do so. The only reason people see a small percentage of people doing this, is because of the ease of media. With the tap of a finger, bam! I sent it to all my friends. It spreads like wildfire. But still, people associate this behavior with the behavior of all teenagers. I feel that my parents may be doing exactly what people do and thinking I will follow in the footsteps of someone online. They feel that if they can't see me after a party, or if I go somewhere, I will be the next kid they see online doing dumb things. This assumption is completely irrational! I am my own person, I make my own decisions. I am always honest with them when it comes to what I did somewhere or what others did. Just like I don't lie to them, they should not lie to me. They need to tell me how they feel so I can speak to them and explain to them why I won't be participating in these types of things. I don't see a need. But, even so, I need more freedom. I wore diapers, I am finished with Pull Ups, I think... Just like Pull Ups says, "I'm a big kid now!" Just like every teen out there and on t.v. I should be allowed to hang out with my friends and stay over night. I won't dissapoint you!

I am not what you see on social media, I am a real person. I have terrible FOMO, and I think you should understand that. My name is Dylan, not Dumb Instagram Teen #1,117.

The Worst Thing About Prison Was The Dementors: A Prison Mike Story

Just this past summer, one of my best friends turned me to an NBC show that I had never taken the time to watch before, The Office. This show is my absolute favorite ever. The comedy is to die for, the characters are to live for.

There are an endless amounts of quotes and gifs from the show that I could recite and watch forever. The majority of the gifs are filled with the characters looking straight into the camera and making their "signature" camera face. Its predecessor is usually Creed, Dwight or Michael doing or saying something conpletely irrational but hilarious.

One of my favorite things about the show are the cold openings. They are before the credits but not a a part of the show. My absolute favorites are the day that Kevin brought in his famous chili, or when Dwight stars a fire in the office. I laugh myself to crying every time. The writers of the show are some of the funniest I have ever heard of.

When I watch this show it makes me happy. It allows for an escape from the hectic world around me. I know that if I sit down in my back house and press play, Pam and Jim will get married, Dwight will eat his raw eggs, and Michael will scare people with how much they love him and I will be okay.

Television may be a pass time, but it is also a rock. Not just for me, but for many. 

Persuasion's Pyrotechnics

After recently watching the Frontline episode, Persuaders, many new ideas and themes of advertisements have become apparent to me.

One of these ideas is that there is a "circle of clutter" when it comes to media and how it advertises. Companies make advertisements to reach out and show us, the consumers, their products. But because every company does this, there becomes a bombardment of ads coming our way. Now each ad is competing furiously for our attention. But, if some ads are working together for the same cause, their cause may get more attention. So this leads companies to make even more ads to reach us. Because other companies are doing that, even more ads are made again reaching a bombardment. Each company being the proponent of another company into making more ads.

But we just eat these ads up, like "roaches." We are "sprayed" and "sprayed" until we build up immunities and the exterminator, companies, have to create new ads for us to see. They have to create the "hippest, most useful, and inventive" product in their products "genre." A love mark. But not all of the "love mark" ads will strike a cord with us. That is why many companies must go through a psychographic study to find out what means the most to us.

Psychographics is "the study and classification of people according to their attitudes, aspirations, and other psychological criteria, especially in market research." Many companies do this via focus groups whom they pay and interview. But, did you know they can just pay for your information? They can buy it straight from a demographic information holder. They get your searches, website visits, purchases everything all to find out what you want and how they should sell it to you. To them, you are psychographics, a part of a demographic, in a part of a town, in a city, in a country, on the Earth. The more precise they get, the more "psycho" you will feel.
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Ghosts Being Hunted?

Ghost hunting shows seem to be a big hit among television consumers. There have been 60+ shows I can think of right now. But many question whether or not the shows are staged or real. The media wants us to believe ghosts are real, as shown from the many ghost hunting shows they produce.

I originally believed ghosts were 100% real, there was no doubt, that was exactly what happened when you died, you became a ghost. That was because of me seeing these shows and getting scared or watching movies that told me ghosts were real. I did not have a large scientific knowledge then, because of my young age, but now things are different. I no longer believe that ghosts exist.

The belief in ghosts, to me, is just a rationalization for people. It is a way to rationalize where their loved ones go after death, if they don't believe in a heaven or hell of some sort. But what I believe is that when you die, you are dead. There was no creator that put you here for a reason or that you will be able to live after death. While these trains of thought are completely ok, I do not follow them.

The belief in ghosts is also a rationalization for those who hear or see things that aren't there. They don't want to seem crazy. But from what I have learned about the brain is that it doesn't like being alone. So, to make it self happy it can create figures or noises to fill in empty space, even if it scares you in the process. Most people associate ghosts with night, and I believe this is true because at night most are tired from a long day. When the mind is weakened, like when we are tired, tricks are easier to be played on us. We create the ghosts.

The idea of ghosts has intentions, but it may just be an excuse we use for why we aren't crazy.

Cronies Going Cro-Nuts!

I recently read both an article from CNN as well as from Fox News covering Sarah Palin and her thoughts on Trump's new Carrier deal. Both go over the facts that Sarah has been an early Trump supporter, is being considered to serve in his cabinet, and that she believes that the deal he is making with Carrier is, "Crony Capitalism." Crony Capitalism is "an economy in which success in business depends on close relationships between business people and government officials. It may be exhibited by favoritism in the distribution of legal permits, government grants, special tax breaks, or other forms of state interventionism." She also goes onto say, "Republicans oppose this, remember? Instead, we support competition on a level playing field, remember?" While both articles get the same point across, that Sarah does not approve of the Carrier deal, they are written differently. Why would that be? To appeal to different demographics.

With CNN, the article is mostly made up of quotes from Palin giving full insight into the situation. But with Fox News, there are less quotes and more writing by the author. While Trump is doing this and is being back by his supporters, Obama once did this and was repeatedly criticized for doing this sort of stuff for green energy and putting regulations on coal energy. They follow this explanation of Obama with a quote of Sarah's that talks about how Republicans are against what Trump is doing, but puts no context so it seems it is talking about Obama's actions. This is to reinforce the thoughts that Obama is "bad." And at the end, they mention the Army which has no connection to the article. 

Also, Fox has a huge comments section allowing for people to band together against Obama and for Trump. Which just pits people against each other. 

cnn - http://www.cnn.com/2016/12/03/politics/sarah-palin-carrier-trump/
fox - http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/03/early-trump-supporter-palin-suggests-carrier-deal-is-crony-capitalism.html

High School Musical... 4?

Life does not imitate art when it comes to high school. The movies and shows we are shown as we grow up tell us that high school is easy street and it is just somewhere adults put us while our bodies are changing. But that is not true. High school is where life long friendships are made, it is where you are taught the basics of how life works. You have to put in effort, you get out what you put in. While high school should be taken seriously, some take it way too seriously.

 

High school may not be a musical, but it is not a military academy. (But the occasional breaking into song wouldn't hurt.) Many parents want and need their children to get As across the board. If they don't, they are a disgrace to the family. That comes easy to some but there are also the few who lose their social lives, don't sit with anyone at lunch because they are studying. Their lives become study, sleep, repeat. That is no way to live your one life on Earth. Life should be celebrated and make you feel happy, not stressed out and sad. The people who are raised like this will probably be our bosses someday, but at what cost of their sanity? We see these types of people in movies as outcasts, just like real life. But, in the movies the "cool" guys reaches out makes them "cool" too. They gain popularity, friends, and a new acceptance from their parents. But this is not true for most, cliques are strong because no one leaves them. Someone's clique isn't as easily broken as it is in the movies. 

 

On the other end of the spectrum, some parents do not care at all. Disregarding your children and their lives messes them up for life. If the children have no force making them try, then they probably won't because it's easier. We also see these people in movies as outcasts, and then another "cool" guy tutors them and helps in them in school and their lives change. Again this almost never happens in the real world. They stick with their clique of people whose parents don't care about the grades. So no one even tries to start trying. But even so, in our world we still cherish these individuals because they seem "cool."

 

We cherish the ignorant and we neglect the knowledgeable. In movies they are equally "helped", but in the real world no one really takes action. The knowledgeable live lives of stress going somewhere, while the ignorant live lives of laxity going no where. Media should portray life as it is to give children a better view on how the world is and is going to be. But if we do that, who would watch? We watch movies and television as a distraction from the stress of the world, not to display our own lives unto ourselves.