Lady vs. Woman

What is the difference between a lady and a woman? Is it the same as the difference between a gentleman and a man? And what is the difference between those two? Last week in class, we were trying to consider the difference between a lady and a woman. Before you read any further into this blog, check out the many connotations of the word "lady" at this website. The writer of this page suggests that the word "lady" is used to describe a "woman" of refined behavior or speech. Then why is it called the "ladies" room? Is there something dainty or delicate about using the bathroom that I am missing? But that is beside the point. My question is this: Is there a set role that a female must fit in order to be called a lady instead of a woman? And which is better? There are a lot of opinions and situations regarding this topic, so what is yours?

The F-Word

Finals. Sometimes I think the word should be censored. F*nals. There you go. I'm sorry if I offended anyone with such vulgar language, but this topic must be discussed for the good of society. To some, this word causes more pain and suffering than most other words in the English language. But WHY? Don't students realize that finals are only a small fraction of their final grade? Also, finals are usually easier than most tests you take during the regular school year because they can only cover the essentials of each section of a course. Even though most of us realize this, we can't help but stress out before finals. What's more terrifying than THE BIG TEST TO SEE IF YOU LEARNED ANYTHING??

But now that our first semester finals are finished, there is such a relief. While all students are not satisfied with their grades, we get a fresh start this semester. This emotional ride is almost like the graph of the "redemptive arc" we have talked about throughout the year, except this story has two dips of unhappiness instead of one! (2 sets of finals per year). But in the end, we will always reach the eternal happiness.....
summer

Blog to the Future: Part Two

After another quarter of the school year has passed, it is time to take another look at the progress of my blogs. First, I would like to mention that I have not been blogging regularly, and I am disappointed in myself for doing so. I understand now that I should blog even if I don't have anything controversial to talk about. Blogging is a chance for me to improve my writing skills, and that will not happen if I choose not to blog. However, this wouldn't be much of an analysis if I never dissected the few posts I did make.
Despite the lack of posts, I believe that my latest blogs have greatly improved from the ones from the first quarter. With each post, I took a lot of time to create a stance on an issue, back it up with evidence from class or from my own experiences, then leave it up to the reader to take their own stance. In addition, I believe that my posts have become more "reader friendly". I have learned to emphasize the points I want readers to see by making the text bold, underlined, and enlarged. It is a lot easier to read a post that is visually appealing than just forty straight lines of words. The best example showing improvement in these two areas is in my latest blog, Mous, Anon Y. However, my blogs have not been perfect. A lot of the time when I blog, I have a lot of different ideas that I want to explain in one post. I will mention one thing then skip to another. What I need to work on the most is organizing my posts so that I take a cleat stance and I don't confuse the reader.

Now that this quarter is drawing to an end, I am going to make a vow. My mission is to blog AT LEAST the minimum requirement, and to make sure each of those posts are made with care and accuracy. I am looking forward to my future blogs and the progress I will make. To sum up my words with more expertise and enthusiasm, TO INFINITY AND BEYOND!!
-Buzz Lightyear

Mous, Anon Y.

Anon Y. Mous depicted here at age **.

Whenever I visit YouTube, I tend to get carried away reading the comments of the videos. Despite half of them mentioning Justin Bieber, I eventually find some really intriguing responses to the videos. Before I go any further, I would like to mention that I LOVE to comment on YouTube, especially when it involves an ongoing argument. On YouTube, I am free to use any kind of language and write exactly how I feel on each subject I encounter without fear of being punished or slandered in my personal life. While my fellow "YouTubers" may disagree with my comment, (and they do so without restrictions as well) I am safe from any real danger or repercussions that my comments might have caused if I said conveyed them publicly. And with that safety, I can express myself as honestly as I can. Even when I write on this blog, I understand that I will be judged by my classmates for what I say, so I better write something that will appeal to everyone, or at least most.

Bruce Wayne

When internet safety is such a prominent issue in today's news and culture, the idea of having to list your name with a comment seems irrational. The whole point of having "usernames" instead of using our real names is so that our identities remain safe, just like Batman. Batman cannot defend Gotham City if every villain knew who he was during the day! How would he be able to live both roles/lives independently and safely? How can our words be truthful and meaningful if we must reveal our identities to all who read our comments? Also, what difference does it make to the world if Alfonso Goldenrod posts a comment than if Jedidiah O'Clarkson made that comment? What I am really trying to understand from this issue: Why does my name matter?

Believe it or not people often times take advantage of being anonymous. Shocker, right? One claim against anonymous posting is that people will abuse that privilege in order to attack another person online. This bullying and teasing online is why many believe one MUST show their name with each post. Does this issue matter enough to be a reason to eliminate our ability to stay anonymous?

I am not the only one debating this issue. To find out more, check out this link and listen to the podcast.

My additional questions to the reader:

Does this issue fall under free speech rights?
Why or why not should we have to give our real names on comments we leave on the internet?

Another Huck Finn Opinion

This week in class, and in the news, there has been a lot of talk about Huckleberry Finn and whether the word "nigger" should be removed/replaced. There have been a lot of opinions floating around, and even Family Guy poked fun at the censorship of the N-word. Publishing companies wish to remove this word in order to cover up a "shameful" part of our history. They also believe that the removal of this word will encourage younger readers to pick up this book.
Many people believe this censorship is a negative change; with the removal of such words, we lose a part of the United States history, be it shameful or not. I believe that the excessive use of the N-word is necessary for the reader to fully understand those times. If and when racial slurs and stereotypes are censored, we miss a part of the original story's intentions.

But censorship has not been limited to Huckleberry Finn. I have witnessed numerous incidents of censorship of the "racially offensive."  Just a few days ago, I was watching "O Brother Where Art Thou," and was enjoying my favorite scene: The brothers singing A Man of Constant Sorrow. After the scene, one of the brothers walks up to a presumably rich, white man and tells him how he made money singing a song. I remember from when I first saw the film that the man calls him a "dumb cracker," but when I saw it on TLC, they replaced that phrase with "dumb cow." I see how the term "cracker" is offensive, but with the censored version, I was left with a different interpretation of the character's personality.

While the latter example is not nearly as extreme, there is still a case to be made to keep it uncensored. Have you noticed any censorships lately?

Inception: city layouts

If anyone remembers a discussion we had in class near the beginning of the year about the layout of the streets of Chicago, over break I discovered a fascinating connection! While visiting Orlando, Florida, I noticed many things relating to the town/city itself. First off, I noticed that there were many crashes on the side of the road and I noticed a firetruck/police car every 15 minutes of driving, if not more. Next, I noticed the curving and winding nature of the roads themselves. Finally, I considered the types of drivers in Orlando and I came to a conclusion:

The reason that there are so many crashes in Orlando is that the layout of the streets are very confusing and difficult to navigate, and that the types of drivers in Orlando are either old people or confused tourists. 

Think about it? Who lives in Florida? Old retirees! When are you most likely to crash a car? When you are not confident or when you are confused! How can you worsen your chances? Terrible street layout designs!

I haven't done any research on the topic other than my own observations, so if anyone would like to disagree with my thesis please do. Like we discussed in class a few months ago, Chicago has such a good street layout. The grid design is genius and I encourage cities of the future to use them! It wasn't until I started typing up this blog that I realized that there is yet another connection to this issue!

Does anyone remember the hit blockbuster: Inception? While the main focus of the movie has relatively nothing to do with this, I would like to recollect a specific moment from the movie: The main character, Cobb (Leo), tested Juno's architectural skills by having her draw up a maze very quickly that is difficult to navigate through. When she started, her mazes were too easy because of their rectangular design. As soon as she drew a circle maze, Cobb could not complete the maze fast enough. Do you see my point?