Opening our eyes

Jasmin Obadencio
12/21/11
FD#5- Final paper

Since ancient years, the world was diverse. There were many different races, beliefs, and cultures, but they were not always favorable amongst each other. Today, even with laws pressed, hate crime still exist in our every day lives. It is human nature to judge and make opinions of others outside of our beliefs, but its this kind of character that reflects a major flaw in us.[THESIS]Knowing that the media has major control over us, maybe billboards, radio stations, and television should inform the public why hate crime is bad [THESIS].

Its nearly impossible to change a society that has been surrounded by hate. Our history has much of an effect on individuals today. There are many times where many of us feel uncomfortable because of past events. The story of Rosa Parks, a speech from Martin Luther King Jr., Pearl Harbor, and most recently the 9/11 attack, all are events that we hold a grudge of. Society is so stubborn to leave the past behind that they still hold the belief of what was in our past before laws were established."By far the most reports of hate crimes based on religion involved Jews, with 927 incidents in 2003, about the same as in 2002" (Curt). This traces back to Adolf Eichmann who enforced to eliminate all Jews. If this event never happened, I believe Jews would not be tortured by hate crime. The media can be responsible to enforce the past and make people realize that the world today doesn't need to be what the world was before. All of these things might impact us to leave it in the back of our minds and move forward. " What was the past belongs in the past" literally takes into account that we need to change for the better and not still practice it.

“We’re in a mode where we feel like we have to protect ourselves, where we feel that everyone who is clearly not ‘us’ needs to be scrutinized" (Staub). It is in our conscious that we want to protect ourselves from harm and discrimination. However, in order to do so, we need to accept others too. Clearly, not everyone is "us", but it is rude to think highly of our kind and beliefs and not others. We all need to keep reminding ourselves that the world is not only "one" belief and race. There is nothing wrong with trusting our instincts, but that is why we limit ourselves with others until we believe we can trust them. It is how relationships build, by personality and trust.By promoting our fears that we most have in common may lessen our fear that the world can be a safe environment for everyone. The media con focus on our flaws and push solutions to better our self esteem. Methods such as learning to accept others of a different race or status is one example the media can focus on.

In middle school, I attended a different school where I wanted to be friends with someone. I eventually made a few friends, but also a enemy. Her name was Aleisha and she was in the same grade as me. We weren't in any of the same classes, but every morning and lunch recess, she would always pass by to tease me of my race. I don't know what her ethnicity was, but her skin was white and I was more of a brown color. I didn't understand why she only picked on me knowing that I wasn't the only brown person on campus, but she did. All of it was verbal, but her rude remarks caught up to me. What made it worse was I was very shy, so speaking up for myself was hard to do. Week after week, I let her criticize me without saying a word, but quickly passing by. It lasted a few months until she changed schools. I was happy to never see her again until more then five years later she recognized me in a convenient store. She caught my attention when she said hi and asked how I was doing. Automatically, I remembered her and responded kindly. Although the conversation lasted no more then three minutes, she was the nicest person. It was awkward because I thought of her as my enemy, but I guess people change over time and sometimes they change for the better.

Enforcing the media into teaching society that hate crime is wrong can be influential into their lives. We already are suckered into our wants from the media, but now we need to concentrate on the needs of others. I believe it will make a big impact if everyone will take the time to tune into the wrong of hate crime. The more it is exposed to all of us, the more we can become aware and learn that hate crime is crucial to be rid of.

Works Cited

Anderson, Curt. “FBI Reports More Than 7,400 Hate Crimes.” Charlotte.com 22 Nov. 2004. 9 Dec. 2004 [http://www.charlotte.com/mld/charlotte/10246350.htm].

DeAngelis, Tori. “Understanding and Preventing Hate Crimes.” Monitor on Psychology 32.10 10 Nov. 2001. 9 Dec. 2004 .

The first amendment

Jasmin Obadencio
12/16/11
FD4

Freedom of speech awards us with the opportunity to express our opinions without being held back. However, one man who abused his privilege confronted the first amendment. Ward Churchill went from an ordinary professor to a man of false conduct. Becoming center of attention, Churchill said some things that upset other people, but took hold recognition from people who valued his judgment. In my opinion, to assess individuals and compare them to crude men like Adolf Eichmann is an unfavorable act I cannot stand by. [THESIS] Ward Churchill not only spoils his reputation, the man is heartless. [THESIS]

A decade ago, the faces of New York became appalled. Their beloved city fell in silence as the twin towers collapsed taking thousands of lives with it. Until today, many visitors visit the memorial site to give their respect. The respect Ward Churchill has become nonexistent to. I admire how he takes stand in using his freedom of speech because many others coward to the first amendment. However, Churchill was unfocused and just blabbered his actions through inconsiderate words. Words that are irreversible and words that Churchill doesn’t regret saying.

By his essay, I can conclude that Ward Churchill hasn’t favored the government for his own reasons I can agree with. What I cannot perceive is why he felt no sorrow for the victims of 9/11. Instead, he was glad it happened, glad that those who worked for the government had destruction coming back to them. “All they did that day was go to work. That’s all they did. You insulted them and their families. Why wouldn’t you want to defend your own statement?” (Hannity). In response, Ward Churchill seen it as “it is not the purpose here tonight.” I believe that freedom of speech involves being prepared to answer any questions, not pick and choose which one you want to answer. If he hasn’t noticed already, we all work under a government without choice, only to keep mankind in order. There are flaws of our government that we object to, but we simply cannot do anything about it. Our nation succumbs to rules and regulations. Without them, we are in chaos without direction. The only problem is not all the rules are agreeable, Churchill could have been wiser and think his thoughts through before acting them out. I believe he is marred with his personal belief, but shows no emotions except boldness in a direct manner. Too honest, that his words are tainted on the wrong subject. His focus is the government, not the victims. 9/11 has absolutely nothing to do with what his message is, he’s only targeting innocence.

“The families of 9/11 have already suffered enough, they do not need their memories to be drug through the mud by someone who is trying to make a name and get attention for himself” (Hanano). As simple as that, Churchill couldn’t leave them alone. These families are fragile at the subject and only are trying to move on with their own lives. But Churchill isn’t allowing that. He is causing discomfort and rebellion. “Does he know the individuals of the attack? Does he have any personal connection with them? I believe not, so how can he judge what kind of people they are.” (Paulino). It’s like me seeing two men hanging out together as gay because I feel like judging them. Where’s the reverence in that? Churchill failed to act in accordance with having the common decency to comfort the tragic event that struck.

Ward Churchill and politics are obviously a conflict towards our nation. I believe Churchill is taking a toll on our nation’s history, how unfair and unjustified it was and is in today’s generation. Our nation is still not perfect today, but it has improved. While most of us agree, Churchill is stubborn to let the subject go instead of moving forward. “The man is a small-potatoes guy trying to re-create himself as the poster child of the blame America crowd, using freedom of speech as a rallying cry” (Macdonald). Retired professor was outraged when the University sponsored Ward Churchill. I can agree with everything except how she states that he’s re-creating himself to become poster child of blame America crowd. I don’t think he is blaming America, instead he’s addressing points America has left behind. Issues normally don’t want to be brought up again, but the bravery of this man had courage, but in the wrong context.

Another quote “the malignancy of Eichmann is that anyone could be a Nazi, could do the same thing. That’s truly the horrifying aspect of it. If you embrace the system, you are not innocent. You may not be singularly responsible, but you are not innocent”, gives an impression that we are all not innocent because we embrace the system. Adolf Eichmann was horrible and worthy of his belief. We are lucky we don’t go through harsh conditions like the Jews did. They hid in horror in hoping they would survive another day. Its not their fault for being Jewish, as it is not our fault for being different races. With no doubt, there is racism that human beings relish, but we cannot make our nation not horrifying. It’s always been an unsafe environment with insane individuals that take up space. The world is always in danger, that’s horrifying itself. No group or individual can make a nation a better place, not even our government. Churchill is acting like the 9/11 event made the world a better place by getting rid of little Eichmann’s so to say. Faulty once again, Churchill ignores anything that’s not to his liking. No matter what, we are stuck with our paranoid conscience rather we like it or not.

Ward Churchill has every right to speak his thoughts whenever, thus the word freedom says it all. From personal observation, I have a friend whose bi-sexual and time to time I’d be with her while others stare or talk behind her back about her gender. There were times when we both walked in the girl’s bathroom and when we came back out, people sitting at a table literally would just stare in shock. Another time was when we went to the county fair with friends and she was playing one of the booth games while I waited off to the side. Next to me, about a foot away, two men were discussing amongst each other her gender. Some of the comments were “I’m usually really good at this at guessing if they’re a boy or girl” or “I’m going to have to say girl” while the other guy comments “well maybe a guy, you never know”, and so forth. Moments later, I couldn’t take it anymore and approached the two men and straight up told them “ my friend there is a girl, so don’t judge.” They looked at me blankly and walked away without a word. Its times like this that I don’t appreciate. If I stumbled upon a situation where a person whose gender I don’t know, I’d simply observe, but give them their space until their gender becomes obvious. Its rude to judge, me being one of them at times, so I have to always remind myself not to. Back to Ward Churchill’s obscenity, judging to quickly is inconsiderate to others. Look at the crowd that got his attention, they’re upset. If I were in his position in using the first amendment, I’d be careful of my words chosen, show respect, and be accurate towards who’s my focus.

“Churchill’s byline saying that the trade center victims in New York were ignorant of the evil they did every day because they were too busy braying, incessantly and self-importantly, into their cell phones”, a quote taken from one of the readings reflects Churchill’s behavior. Is working for the government evil? I think not. Even though the world trade center might be where the “engine profit” is, it doesn’t mean those victims deserved a tragic death. While Churchill is happy that evil was returned, there’s a whole other organization that’s still working the engine profit. There is no factual point of his when the little Eichmann’s still exist. In a way, it almost sounds like he’s defending the terrorists that sacrificed their life. It’s upsetting to know Churchill is running many public speeches here and there without being stopped. The stations and universities handing Churchill an opportunity to speak, is offensive and they’re feeding into his attention. The more feedback you give, the more Churchill is going to build on it. Obviously there are no results still, so stop letting him consume all of your attention when it can be elsewhere more important.

The allowance given to us citizens to express our opinions can be a privilege, but also a dangerous act. Ward Churchill took risks and now is honoring his words that are not admirable by all of us.


Works Cited

Hanano, Kelley. “Attack Ward Churchill.” Online posting. 23 Nov. 2011. Laulima discussion. 28 Nov. 2011 [http://laulima.hawaii.edu].

Lum, Curtis. "Controversial Professor to Speak at UH." HonoluluAdvertiser.com 18 Feb. 2005. 13 Nov. 2011 [http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2005/Feb/18/ln/ln34p.html].

Paulino, Mark. “Attack Ward Churchill.” Online posting. 23 Nov. 2011. Laulima discussion. 28 Nov. 2011 [http://laulima.hawaii.edu].

Reid, T. R. "Professor Under Fire for 9/11 Comments Free Speech Furor Roils Over Remarks." washingtonpost.com 5 Feb. 2005. 7 Feb. 2005 .].

[“Ward Churchill vs. Hannity, Colmes & Horowitz.” FoxNews.com. 7 Apr. 2006. 14 Nov. 2006. [http;//www.foxnews.com/story/html].


Log of Completed Activities
_X_ Nov. 9- Intro to Paper #4. Read the Guidelines for Paper #4.
_X_ Nov. 14- Complete readings for paper #4.
_X_ Nov. 18- Laulima Discussion: Attack Ward Churchill
_X_ Nov. 23- Laulima Discussion: Defend Ward Churchill
_X_ Nov. 28- Submit RD4. [50 pts] Review the Review the guidelines.
_X_ Dec. 5- Submit three RD4 evaluations [50 pts] Review the guidelines.
_L_ Dec. 8-12- Submit FD4 [150 pts] Review the guidelines.

Practice makes perfect

Jasmin Obadencio
12/7/11
RFD3


Practice makes perfect

Good Morning to all graduates here today. You’ve succeeded with flying colors and now off to the real world. As you all should know, you are now leaders to those who look up to you for guidance, support, and recognition. Now that you can call yourselves adults, you will be taking on another realm of responsibilities. Your job is to prosper with all skills and knowledge earned, but before you do so, I hope you all keep in mind honesty. Honesty will become more essential in the quality of your lives as it will present itself for you to take control of. Remember, honesty is an earned character. Lying will only indicate failure and you will find that your needs are at a bottomless pit which addresses my topic today. [THESIS] As children, we developed the power of language that led us to manipulate words using our imagination. That is why it is vital for all children brought into this world to succumb to honesty and its up to you to make it possible. [THESIS]

Lying can be a fast escape from any situation, but lying leads to selfish character. Relationships collapse and right from wrong become skewed. All of this starts at the root, children. In a recent study, children lie as young as 4 or 5 years of age. They begin to lie without consciously knowing they are until later when they understand the concept. Therefore, it’s seen as harmless. “ They don’t seem to need instructions on lying; they don’t need encouragement to do so” (Quek). Lying is part of human nature and easy to perfect when abused. Babies, who are once born, already embed in their minds what’s heard in their environment. They reach an age when they begin to mimic vocabulary you use, so it is vital to choose your words carefully. One habit I hope you all don’t obtain is lying to your child. I’ve seen parents lie to their child to prevent them from persisting and nagging for what they want. It is essential to already educate them with honesty daily, and then when their old enough, they too will pass honesty.

Humans are intellectual at how to act and speak when telling a lie. Some are creative and often get away with it. In a study I found, there are different types of liars. Author Gaili Saltz, shares three types; white lies, pathological liars, and antisocial personality disorder. White lies are at the very least of our concern. Pathological liars love to avoid punishment. Appearance becomes their shining armor and they tend to lie their way out of things to protect themselves. Antisocial personality disorder is a more severe type of lying where it involves tampering the law. They enjoy continuing their deception, but the risk doesn’t last to long until punished. Keep note that it’s always good to remind yourself and your children to always come clean. No matter how bad the lie is, it’s always better to be honest. You’ll gain a lot from honesty and you’ll find yourself feeling wholesome.

For those who don’t believe in karma, you’ll come across of it sooner or later. The phrase “ what you want others to do onto you, you must do onto others”, literally takes into account on everyone’s life. “ I believe the most compelling reason to be honest at all times is to have it returned” (Paulino), an awe inspiring quote I am engaged to. Not everyone might think so, but I have seen it for myself. In fact, just this past fair event, I lost my phone on one of the benches in the eating area. It was 10 minutes later that I realized that I didn’t have it on me. Panicked and with lost hope, my friends and I went back to look. When finding the table we sat on occupied by an elderly couple, they both looked up to us and kindly returned it after asking if it really was mines. I thanked them over and over appreciating their sincerity. I think if it were kids on the table, I would’ve never got it back. Doing one good deed after another does do wonders when you need it the most. As honesty is always an effective character, the way you exhibit it differs. “ There’s a difference between being honest and blunt” (Kato). When it comes to telling the truth, the choice of words need to be taken into consideration. Sometimes we wish we could take back what we said, but what’s said is irreversible. For example, your friend asks for an opinion on their outfit. You think it looks hideous, but of course you’re not going to blurt that out. Instead you use a nicer phrase, “I think I can find something else that’ll match you better.” Your friend takes your support as a nice gesture rather then hate you for telling her that outfit is hideous. Everyone is sensitive with their feelings, so it is strongly preferred to use nice phrases rather then being straight up candid.

I’ve had my fair share of lying, some of which I got caught with. One lie I regret began with my parents. At that time, I was eighteen restricted under my father’s rules. One rule I didn’t like was having a curfew. Also, at that time, I had a relationship with someone on Oahu. I really wanted to go and visit, but knowing my dad, it was impossible. It was then that I lied. Altogether, I booked three round trip flights to Oahu to spend a day with my boyfriend at that time. My excuses to my parents were either I’m going to spend a day with my friends or I had to cover someone else’s shift. However, on my third trip to Oahu, I missed my flight. I was so scared, that my mind was scrambling for a way out of my lie. I knew it was impossible so I called my parents, told them and was grounded for quite a while. It took a while for me to gain their trust again, but when I did I never took advantage of it ever again.

Before I leave, I hope I’ve encouraged you that honesty gets you through a lot of factors. It’s a character we have flaws to, but trying not to spoil it is better then not trying at all. Keep what I said today pressed against you and act as young leaders and adults for the future generation.

Works Cited:
Kato, Jacclyn. “Honesty in Employment/White Lie, honesty.” 28 Oct.2011. Online posting to Laulima. Web. 31 Oct.2011.
Paulina, Mark. “Honesty in Employment/White Lie, honesty.” 28 Oct.2011. Online posting to Laulima. Web. 31 Oct.2011.
Quek, Timothy. "The Truth about a Child's Compulsive Lying." Dr. Timothy K. Quek's Webpage. 8 Apr. 2003 .
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/4072816#.Tq9DLWBRnZo.

Media Pitfalls

Jasmin Obadencio
December 6, 2011
RFD2


Media Pitfalls


Society is persuaded by a number of factors, particularly in the mass media. We are faced with the pros and cons of each, but these ads do more then just advertising. They also put pressure on our self-image and self esteem. Society was born with advertising and we rely on it for information. [THESIS] Yet, the extent of publicizing ads, has taken a grasp on the vast majority to morph into the media’s image. Therefore, ads have a negative impact on consumers. [THESIS]

“ Ads have become so integrated into our environment and culture that many people accept the messages without thinking” (Gushiken). In this quote, she brings out how easy it is for a person to be fooled. Also, how we are all not reading between the lines. Looking into an ad helps you understand a lot with what the advertisement ignored to tell you. We let ads guide our sense of direction, and hope to gain acknowledgment from others. The error occurs when we go by our first instinct without consideration. “Ads often exaggerate in order to impress their viewers” (Lee). This expresses exactly what ads are doing. Enthusiastically, they want you to believe what you see. They arouse your interest and play at what makes people feel good. Commercials get to us all the time, its willpower that we need to not let it shape us.

Even though the good side of media has its benefits, the bad will inevitably always play a bigger role. One person might outsmart the media, but there are a million others who succumb to it. It’s definitely an effective way to promote, but it doesn’t outweigh the ads that consumers feed on. Last week, I came across a commercial on YouTube. It starts with a woman in a bathing suit running through the forest. Seconds later, more women in bathing suits are racing her. In the mean time, women are swimming across the ocean and others are climbing down the rocks. In the last fifteen seconds of the commercial, there’s a guy with just shorts on standing on the beach with axe in both hands spraying all over himself. Seeing the mass of women in bathing suits running to him from all angles, his eyes widen and a big smile forms on his face, continuing to spray himself with axe. Then closing his eyes, he puts his head up, arms opened wide. The commercial cuts off when the masses of women are closing down on him in the matter of seconds. Finally ends with a quote, “spray more, get more, the Axe effect.” The type of fallacy this ad demonstrates is Non Sequitor because women, particularly attractive, have nothing to do with axe. The method they used was to exaggerate the greatness of Axe. Promoting Axe in such a way only appeals to men in an unbehavioral manner. Of course consumers are going to get it, almost every one of their commercials have women being strongly attached to the scent. I like to say Axe commercials promote what every women wants on a man, which isn’t true. Also, the commercial is judgmental only because they used what would attract consumers, which are attractive women. Its all about being fit to look good and not disappoint viewers, then getting rewarded afterwards.

Comparing the past with today, the media has tripled in their resources. Now you can be informed no matter where you are. In the past, I remember advertisements were kept simple and easily accessible. As the years progressed, the media flourished unambiguously to more entertainment, informative, and humor. Sometimes we become copycats from images in magazines, billboards, and other picture perfect models. Don’t get me wrong, we all love entertainment and humor. However, the way it’s displayed, consumers drift towards costly accessories to get expected results advertised. It then becomes, “ I want this because it will make me look better like the woman in the commercial.” Nonetheless, what you see is not always the results you get. Burger King commercials are a good example. In it, they display big juicy burgers that look mouth watering, but then when you go to buy it, the burger looks skimpy. Again, it’s not what you anticipated because you judged by the commercial that exaggerated a thick juicy burger. It’s the wants the media concentrates on, and with no self-control there’s flaws.

Wherever we are, there are advertisements from billboards, commercials, radio, newspapers and numerous other mediums. Most of it is gossip, some recalling tragic events, and a big one we all are suckered in, ads promoting image. We need to step back and realize these ads have special effects added to them, and those models that are skinny with flawless skin are paid to impose a picture perfect advertisement. Ads can also be unhealthy. Between home and my workplace, I drive past five fast food restaurants in a 5-minute time span. Just recently, my friend mentioned that her cigarettes are now ten dollars each. Those that promote “tobacco is unhealthy” are not going to solve the problem by raising the cost of tobacco. The same goes for alcohol. It’s an addiction, once hooked on it’s difficult to quit. Anti-smoking ads can help some, but not the vast majority. With undeveloped maturity, children are oblivious to the realm of technology. Not only the adults are obese, children are getting obese and sucked in video games as early as five years old. Adults perceive things on a higher level of understanding, and children have no way of knowing right from wrong. With parenting and support, it can help guide them to know the truth. However, even with extensive support, children will still step into their own thinking. We cannot prevent them from what they see and hear, but we can help them come to their senses. With consideration, we all need to be our own investigator in perceiving right from wrong. Ads will continue to flourish, but we can depict our needs, and not our wants.

Altogether, the media through advertisements and commercials will continue to put “ad-pressure” on consumers. It doesn’t make us a better person, but instead a naïve individual. Pulling yourself back from all that and doing research, prospers your awareness for certain aspects of every ad heard and seen. Advertisements are a negative influence on us all as a whole.



Gushiken, Tiffany. “ Ads Pros and Cons.” Online Posting 23 Sep. 2011. Laulima Discussion. https://laulima.hawaii.edu/portal/site/KAP.XLSENG215js.201210/page/70638c63-3d48-4275-828a-7e37acace01e.

Lee, Carmen. “Ads Pros and Cons.” Online Posting Sep. 2011. Laulima Discussion
https://laulima.hawaii.edu/portal/site/KAP.XLSENG215js.201210/page/70638c63-3d48-4275-828a-7e37acace01e.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9tWZB7OUSU. “The Axe Effect-Women-Billions.” You Tube. 3 Oct 2006. Web. 29 Sep. 2011.

Power of Speech

Jasmin Obadencio
Nov. 28 2011
RD4


Power of Speech


Our focus on any tragic event, such as 9/11, primarily focuses on honoring the innocent lives that were lost. But it takes one citizen to dig deeper and believe that those victims had it coming to them. Ward Churchill went from an ordinary professor to a man of false conduct. Becoming center of attention, Churchill said some things that upset other people, but took hold recognition from people who valued his judgment. [THESIS] In my opinion, to assess individuals and compare them to crude men like Adolf Eichmann is an unfavorable act I cannot stand by. Ward Churchill not only spoils his reputation, the man is heartless. [THESIS]

A decade ago, the faces of New York became appalled. Their beloved city fell in silence as the twin towers collapsed taking thousands of lives with it. Until today, many visitors visit the memorial site to give their respect. The respect Ward Churchill has become nonexistent to. I admire how he takes stand in using his freedom of speech because many others coward to the first amendment. However, Churchill was unfocused and just blabbered his actions through inconsiderate words. Words that are irreversible and words that Churchill doesn’t regret saying.

By his essay, I can conclude that Ward Churchill hasn’t favored the government for his own reasons I can agree with. What I cannot perceive is why he felt no sorrow for the victims of 9/11. Instead, he was glad it happened, glad that those who worked for the government had destruction coming back to them. “All they did that day was go to work. That’s all they did. You insulted them and their families. Why wouldn’t you want to defend your own statement?” co-host Sean Hannity asks Ward Churchill a simple question, yet Churchill seen it as “it is not the purpose here tonight.” When will the right time be then if he’s acting in charge of which questions should or should not be answered. If he hasn’t noticed already, we all work under a government without choice, only to keep mankind in order. There are flaws of our government that we object to, but we simply cannot do anything about it. Our nation succumbs to rules and regulations. Without them, we are in chaos without direction. The only problem is not all the rules are agreeable, Churchill could have been wiser and think his thoughts through before acting them out. I believe he is marred with his personal belief, but shows no emotions except boldness in a direct manner. Too honest, that his words are tainted on the wrong subject. His focus is the government, not the victims. 9/11 has absolutely nothing to do with what his message is, he’s only targeting innocence.

“The families of 9/11 have already suffered enough, they do not need their memories to be drug through the mud by someone who is trying to make a name and get attention for himself”, stated Kelley Hanano. As simple as that, Churchill couldn’t leave them alone. These families are fragile at the subject and only are trying to move on with their own lives. But Churchill isn’t allowing that. He is causing discomfort and rebellion. “Does he know the individuals of the attack? Does he have any personal connection with them? I believe not, so how can he judge what kind of people they are.” Stated MarkBen Paulino. It’s like me seeing two men hanging out together as gay because I feel like judging them. Where’s the reverence in that? Churchill failed to act in accordance with having the common decency to comfort the tragic event that struck.

Ward Churchill and politics are obviously a conflict towards our nation. I believe Churchill is taking a toll on our nation’s history, how unfair and unjustified it was and is in today’s generation. Our nation is still not perfect today, but it has improved. While most of us agree, Churchill is stubborn to let the subject go instead of moving forward. “The man is a small-potatoes guy trying to re-create himself as the poster child of the of the blame America crowd, using freedom of speech as a rallying cry.” Kathleen Macdonald, a retired professor was outraged when the University sponsored Ward Churchill. I can agree with everything except how she states that he’s re-creating himself to become poster child of blame America crowd. I don’t think he is blaming America, instead he’s addressing points America has left behind. Issues normally don’t want to be brought up again, but the bravery of this man had courage, but in the wrong context. Another quote “the malignancy of Eichmann is that anyone could be a Nazi, could do the same thing. That’s truly the horrifying aspect of it. If you embrace the system, you are not innocent. You may not be singularly responsible, but you are not innocent”, gives an impression that we are all not innocent because we embrace the system. Adolf Eichmann was horrible and worthy of his belief. We are lucky we don’t go through harsh conditions like the Jews did. They hid in horror in hoping they would survive another day. Its not their fault for being Jewish, as it is not our fault for being different races. With no doubt, there is racism that human beings relish, but we cannot make our nation not horrifying. It’s always been an unsafe environment with insane individuals that take up space. The world is always in danger, that’s horrifying itself. No group or individual can make a nation a better place, not even our government. Churchill is acting like the 9/11 event made the world a better place by getting rid of little Eichmann’s so to say. Faulty once again, Churchill ignores anything that’s not to his liking. No matter what, we are stuck with our paranoid conscience rather we like it or not.

Ward Churchill has every right to speak his thoughts whenever, thus the word freedom says it all. From personal observation, I have a friend whose bi-sexual and time to time I’d be with her while others stare or talk behind her back about her gender. There were times when we both walked in the girl’s bathroom and when we came back out, people sitting at a table literally would just stare in shock. Another time was when we went to the county fair with friends and she was playing one of the booth games while I waited off to the side. Next to me, about a foot away, two men were discussing amongst each other her gender. Some of the comments were “I’m usually really good at this at guessing if they’re a boy or girl” or “I’m going to have to say girl” while the other guy comments “well maybe a guy, you never know”, and so forth. Moments later, I couldn’t take it anymore and approached the two men and straight up told them “ my friend there is a girl, so don’t judge.” They looked at me blankly and walked away without a word. Its times like this that I don’t appreciate. If I stumbled upon a situation where a person whose gender I don’t know, I’d simply observe, but give them their space until their gender becomes obvious. Its rude to judge, me being one of them at times, so I have to always remind myself not to. Back to Ward Churchill’s obscenity, judging to quickly is inconsiderate to others. Look at the crowd that got his attention, they’re upset. If I were in his position in using the first amendment, I’d be careful of my words chosen, show respect, and be accurate towards who’s my focus.

“Churchill’s byline saying that the trade center victims in New York were ignorant of the evil they did every day because they were too busy braying, incessantly and self-importantly, into their cell phones”, a quote taken from one of the readings reflects Churchill’s behavior. Is working for the government evil? I think not. Even though the world trade center might be where the “engine profit” is, it doesn’t mean those victims deserved a tragic death. While Churchill is happy that evil was returned, there’s a whole other organization that’s still working the engine profit. There is no factual point of his when the little Eichmann’s still exist. In a way, it almost sounds like he’s defending the terrorists that sacrificed their life. It’s upsetting to know Churchill is running many public speeches here and there without being stopped. The stations and universities handing Churchill an opportunity to speak, is offensive and they’re feeding into his attention. The more feedback you give, the more Churchill is going to build on it. Obviously there are no results still, so stop letting him consume all of your attention when it can be elsewhere more important.

Imperfections run in our genes through multiple generations and no one’s going to change that. We embrace it only because we live in it everyday. The route Ward Churchill took crumbled, and still he shows no mercy in taking back anything he has said. Therefore, Ward Churchill is a heartless man.

Works Cited
Paulino, Mark. “Attack Ward Churchill.” Online posting. 23 Nov. 2011. Laulima discussion. 28 Nov. 2011 [http://laulima.hawaii.edu].

Hanano, Kelley. “Attack Ward Churchill.” Online posting. 23 Nov. 2011. Laulima discussion. 28 Nov. 2011 [http://laulima.hawaii.edu].

[“Ward Churchill vs. Hannity, Colmes & Horowitz.” FoxNews.com. 7 Apr. 2006. 14 Nov. 2006. [http;//www.foxnews.com/story/html]

Reid, T. R. "Professor Under Fire for 9/11 Comments Free Speech Furor Roils Over Remarks." washingtonpost.com 5 Feb. 2005. 7 Feb. 2005 .]

Lum, Curtis. "Controversial Professor to Speak at UH." HonoluluAdvertiser.com 18 Feb. 2005. 13 Nov. 2011 [http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2005/Feb/18/ln/ln34p.html].

Practice makes perfect

Jasmin Obadencio
11/08/11
FD3


Good Morning to all graduates here today. You’ve succeeded with flying colors and now off to the real world. As you all should know, you are now leaders to those who look up to you for guidance, support, and recognition. As adults, you will be taking on another realm of responsibilities. Your job is to prosper with all skills and knowledge earned, but before you do so, I hope you all keep in mind honesty. Honesty will become more essential in the quality of your lives as it will present itself for you to take control of. Remember, honesty is an earned character. Lying will only indicate failure and you will find that your needs are at a bottomless pit which addresses my topic today. [THESIS] As children, we developed the power of language that led us to manipulate words using our imagination. That is why it is vital for all children brought into this world to succumb to honesty and its up to you to make it possible. [THESIS]

Lying can be a fast escape from any situation, but lying is selfish to even think of. Relationships can collapse, selfishness starts to build, right from wrong becomes skewed. All of this starts at the root, children. In a recent study, children lie as young as 4 or 5 years of age. They begin to lie without knowing their lying until later when they understand the concept. Therefore, it’s seen as harmless. In one discovery, I found an article “The truth about children’s compulsive lying.” In it, author Dr. T. Quek states, “ They don’t seem to need instructions on lying; they don’t need encouragement to do so.” Lying is part of human nature and easy to perfect when abused. Babies, who are once born, already embed in their minds what’s heard in their environment, Mimicking is an early indication that you’ll need to be careful with when using vocabulary. One habit I hope you all don’t obtain is lying to your child. I’ve seen parents lie to their child to prevent them from persisting and nagging for other wants. It is essential to already educate them with honesty daily, and then when their old enough, they too will pass honesty.

Humans are intellectual at how to act and speak when telling a lie. Some are creative and often get away with it. In a study I found, there are different types of liars. Author Gaili Saltz, shares three types; white lies, pathological liars, and antisocial personality disorder. White lies are at the very least of our concern. Pathological liars love to avoid punishment. Appearance becomes their shining armor and they tend to lie their way out of things to protect themselves. Antisocial personality disorder is a more severe type of lying where it involves tampering the law. They enjoy continuing their deception, but the risk doesn’t last to long until punished by the law. Keep note that it’s always good to remind yourself and your children to always come clean. No matter how bad the lie is, it’s always better to be honest. You’ll gain a lot from honesty and you’ll find yourself feeling wholesome.

For those who don’t believe in karma, you’ll come across of it sooner or later. The phrase “ what you want others to do onto you, you must do onto others”, literally takes into account on everyone’s life. Mark Paulino states “ I believe the most compelling reason to be honest at all times is to have it returned,” an awe inspiring quote I am engaged to. Not everyone might think so, but I have seen it for myself. In fact, just this past fair event, I lost my phone on one of the benches in the eating area. It was 10 minutes later that I realized that I didn’t have it on me. Panicked and with lost hope, my friends and I went back to look. When finding the table we sat on occupied by an elderly couple, they both looked up to us and kindly returned it after asking if it really was mines. I thanked them over and over appreciating their sincerity. I think if it were kids on the table, I would’ve never got it back. Doing one good deed after another does do wonders when you need it the most. As honesty is always an effective character, the way you exhibit it differs. Jaclynn Kato phrases “ there’s a difference between being honest and blunt.” When it comes to telling the truth, the choice of words need to be taken into consideration. Sometimes we wish we could take back what we said, but what’s said is irreversible. For example, your friend asks for an opinion on their outfit. You think it looks hideous, but of course you’re not going to blurt that out. Instead you use a nicer phrase, “I think I can find something else that’ll match you better.” Your friend takes your support as a nice gesture rather then hate you for telling her that outfit is hideous. Everyone is sensitive with their feelings, so it is utmost vital to use nice phrases rather then being straight up candid.

I’ve had my fair share of lying, some of which I got caught with. One lie I regret began with my parents. At that time, I was eighteen restricted under my father’s rules. One rule I didn’t like was having a curfew. Also, at that time, I had a relationship with someone on Oahu. I really wanted to go and visit, but knowing my dad, it was impossible. It was then that I lied. Altogether, I booked three round trip flights to Oahu to spend a day with my boyfriend at that time. My excuses to my parents were either I’m going to spend a day with my friends or I had to cover someone else’s shift. However, on my third trip to Oahu, I missed my flight. I was so scared, that my mind was scrambling for a way out of my lie. I knew it was impossible so I called my parents, told them and was grounded for quite a while. It took a while for me to gain their trust again, but when I did I never took advantage of it ever again.

Before I leave, I hope I’ve encouraged you that honesty gets you through a lot of factors. It’s a character we have flaws to, but trying not to spoil it is better then not trying at all. Keep what I said today pressed against you and act as young leaders and adults for the future generation. By making them become leaders of their own, it will make an impact for them to deliver honesty too.

Works Cited:
Quek, Timothy. "The Truth about a Child's Compulsive Lying." Dr. Timothy K. Quek's Webpage. 8 Apr. 2003 .
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/4072816#.Tq9DLWBRnZo
Paulina, Mark. “Honesty in Employment/White Lie, honesty.” 28 Oct.2011. Online posting to Laulima. Web. 31 Oct.2011
Kato, Jacclyn. “Honesty in Employment/White Lie, honesty.” 28 Oct.2011. Online posting to Laulima. Web. 31 Oct.2011



Log of Completed Activities
_x_ Oct. 13- Intro to Paper #3. Read the Guidelines for Paper #3.
_x_ Oct. 17- Complete readings for paper #3 for paper #3.
_x_ Oct. 21- Laulima Discussion #1
_x_ Oct. 28- Laulima Discussion #2
_x_ Oct. 31- Submit RD3 [50 pts] Review the guidelines.
_x_ Nov. 4- Submit three RD3 evaluations [50 pts] Review the guidelines.
_L_ Nov. 8- Submit FD3 [125 pts] Review the guidelines.

Helping uprise honesty

Jasmin Obadencio
31 October 2011
RD3


Good Morning to all graduates here today. You’ve succeeded with flying colors and now off to the real world. As you all should know, you are now leaders to those who look up to you for guidance, support, and recognition. As adults, you will be taking on another realm of responsibilities. It won’t be easy because it never is. Your job is to prosper with all skills and knowledge earned, but before you do so, I hope you all keep in mind honesty. Honesty will become more essential in the quality of your lives as it will present itself for you to take control of. Remember, honesty is an earned character. Lying will only indicate failure and you will find that your needs are at a bottomless pit which addresses my topic today. [THESIS] As children, we developed the power of language that led us to manipulate words using our imagination. That is why it is vital for all children brought into this world to succumb to honesty and its up to you to make it possible. [THESIS]

Lying can be a fast escape from any situation, but lying is selfish to even think of. Relationships can collapse, selfishness starts to build, right from wrong becomes skewed. All of this starts at the root, children. In a recent study, children lie as young as 4 or 5 years of age. They begin to lie without knowing their lying until later when they understand the concept. Therefore, it’s seen as harmless. In one discovery, I found an article “The truth about children’s compulsive lying.” In it, author Dr. T. Quek states, “ They don’t seem to need instructions on lying; they don’t need encouragement to do so.” Lying is part of human nature and easy to perfect when abused. Babies, who are once born, already embed in their minds what’s heard in their environment, Mimicking is an early indication that you’ll need to be careful with when using vocabulary. One habit I hope you all don’t obtain is lying to your child. I’ve seen parents lie to their child to prevent them from persisting and nagging for other wants. It is essential to already educate them with honesty daily, and then when their old enough, they too will pass honesty.

Humans are intellectual at how to act and speak when telling a lie. Some are creative and often get away with it. In a study I found, there are different types of liars. Author Gaili Saltz, shares three types; white lies, pathological liars, and antisocial personality disorder. White lies are at the very least of our concern. Pathological liars love to avoid punishment. Appearance becomes their shining armor and they tend to lie their way out of things to protect themselves. Antisocial personality disorder is a more severe type of lying where it involves tampering the law. They enjoy continuing their deception, but the risk doesn’t last to long until punished by the law. Keep note that it’s always good to remind yourself and your children to always come clean. No matter how bad the lie is, it’s always better to be honest. You’ll gain a lot from honesty and you’ll find yourself feeling wholesome.

For those who don’t believe in karma, you’ll come across of it sooner or later. The phrase “ what you want others to do onto you, you must do onto others”, literally takes into account on everyone’s life. Mark Paulina states “ I believe the most compelling reason to be honest at all times is to have it returned,” an awe inspiring quote I am engaged to. Not everyone might think so, but I have seen it for myself. In fact, just this past fair event, I lost my phone on one of the benches in the eating area. It was 10 minutes later that I realized that I didn’t have it on me. Panicked and with lost hope, my friends and I went back to look. When finding the table we sat on occupied by an elderly couple, they both looked up to us and kindly returned it after asking if it really was mines. I thanked them over and over appreciating their sincerity. I think if it were kids on the table, I would’ve never got it back. Doing one good deed after another does do wonders when you need it the most. As honesty is always an effective character, the way you exhibit it differs. Jaclynn Kato phrases “ there’s a difference between being honest and blunt.” When it comes to telling the truth, the choice of words need to be taken into consideration. Sometimes we wish we could take back what we said, but what’s said is irreversible. For example, your friend asks for an opinion on their outfit. You think it looks hideous, but of course you’re not going to blurt that out. Instead you use a nicer phrase, “I think I can find something else that’ll match you better.” Your friend takes your support as a nice gesture rather then hate you for telling her that outfit is hideous. Everyone is sensitive with their feelings, so it is utmost vital to use nice phrases rather then being straight up candid.

I’ve had my fair share of lying, some of which I got caught with. One lie I regret began with my parents. At that time, I was eighteen restricted under my father’s rules. One rule I didn’t like was having a curfew. Also, at that time, I had a relationship with someone on Oahu. I really wanted to go and visit, but knowing my dad, it was impossible. It was then that I lied. Altogether, I booked three round trip flights to Oahu to spend a day with my boyfriend at that time. My excuses to my parents were either I’m going to spend a day with my friends or I had to cover someone else’s shift. However, on my third trip to Oahu, I missed my flight. I was so scared, that my mind was scrambling for a way out of my lie. I knew it was impossible so I called my parents, told them and was grounded for quite a while. It took a while for me to gain their trust again, but when I did I never took advantage of it ever again.

Before I leave, I hope I’ve encouraged you that honesty gets you through a lot of factors. It’s a character we have flaws to, but trying not to spoil it is better then not trying at all. Keep what I said today pressed against you and act as young leaders and adults for the future generation. By making them become leaders of their own, it will make an impact for them to deliver honesty too.

Works Cited:
Quek, Timothy. "The Truth about a Child's Compulsive Lying." Dr. Timothy K. Quek's Webpage. 8 Apr. 2003 .
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/4072816#.Tq9DLWBRnZo
Paulina, Mark. “Honesty in Employment/White Lie, honesty.” 28 Oct.2011. Online posting to Laulima. Web. 31 Oct.2011
Kato, Jacclyn. “Honesty in Employment/White Lie, honesty.” 28 Oct.2011. Online posting to Laulima. Web. 31 Oct.2011

Media Pitfalls

Jasmin Obadencio
October 12, 2011
FD2


Society is persuaded by a number of factors, particularly in the mass media. We are faced with the pros and cons of each, but these ads do more then just advertising. They also put pressure on our self-image and self esteem. Society was born with advertising and we rely on it for information. [THESIS] Yet, the extent of publicizing ads, has taken a grasp on the vast majority to change to fit media. Therefore, ads have a negative impact on consumers. [THESIS]


Tiffany Gushiken states “ Ads have become so integrated into our environment and culture that many people accept the messages without thinking.” In this quote, she brings out how easy it is for a person to be fooled. Also, how we are all not reading between the lines. Being a self-investigator however, helps you understand a lot what the advertisement ignored to tell you. We all judge a book by its cover that gets taken advantaged of, and we are often left disappointed. The error occurs when we go by our first instinct without consideration. Another quote stated by Carmen Lee, “ “ads often exaggerate in order to impress their viewers.” This expresses exactly what ads are doing. Enthusiastically, they want you to believe what you see. They arouse your interest and play at what makes people feel good. Commercials get to us all the time, its willpower that we need to not let it shape us.


Even though the good side of media has its benefits, the bad will inevitably always play a bigger role. One person might outsmart the media, but there are a million others who succumb to it. It’s definitely an effective way to promote, but it doesn’t outweigh the ads that consumers feed on. Last week, I came across a commercial on YouTube. It starts with a woman in a bathing suit running through the forest. Seconds later, more women in bathing suits are racing her. In the mean time, women are swimming across the ocean and others are climbing down the rocks. In the last fifteen seconds of the commercial, there’s a guy with just shorts on standing on the beach with axe in both hands spraying all over himself. Seeing the mass of women in bathing suits running to him from all angles, his eyes widen and a big smile forms on his face, continuing to spray himself with axe. Then closing his eyes, he puts his head up, arms opened wide. The commercial cuts off when the masses of women are closing down on him in the matter of seconds. Finally ends with a quote, “spray more, get more, the Axe effect.” The type of fallacy this ad demonstrates is Non Sequitor because women, particularly attractive, have nothing to do with axe. The method they used was to exaggerate the greatness of Axe. Promoting Axe in such a way only appeals to men in an unbehavioral manner. Of course consumers are going to get it, almost every one of their commercials have women being strongly attached to the scent. I like to say Axe commercials promote what every women wants on a man, which isn’t true. Also, the commercial is judgmental only because they used what would attract consumers, which are attractive women. Its all about being fit to look good and not disappoint viewers, as long as they get their share after investing so much to make the commercial itself.


Comparing the past with today, the media has tripled in their resources. Now you can be informed no matter where you are. Before, I remember advertisements were kept simple and they still got their message out without even adding the unnecessary details. As the years progressed, the media flourished unambiguously to more entertainment, informative, and humor, sometimes images consumers want to copycat. Don’t get me wrong, we all love entertainment and humor. However, the way it’s displayed, consumers feed on. It then becomes, “ I want this because it will make me look better like the woman in the commercial.” Nonetheless, what you see is not always the results you are expecting. Burger King commercials are a good example. In it, they display big juicy burgers that look mouth watering, but then when you go to buy it, the burger looks skimpy. Again, it’s not what you expected because you judged by the commercial that exaggerated a thick juicy burger. It’s the wants and needs the media concentrates on, and with no self-control there’s flaws.


Wherever we are, there are advertisements from billboards, commercials, radio, newspapers and numerous other mediums. Most of it is gossip, some recalling tragic events, and a big one we all are suckered in, ads promoting the unthinkable. But, we need to step back and realize these ads have special effects added to them, and those models that are skinny with flawless skin are paid to impose a picture perfect advertisement. Ads can also be unhealthy. Between home and my workplace, I drive past five fast food restaurants in a 5-minute time span. Just recently, my friend mentioned that her cigarettes are now ten dollars each. Those that promote “tobacco is unhealthy” are not going to solve the problem by raising the cost of tobacco even higher. Same with alcohol. It’s an addiction, once hooked on it’s difficult to quit. Anti-smoking ads can help some, but not the vast majority. With undeveloped maturity, children are oblivious to the realm of technology. Not only the adults are obese, children are getting obese and sucked in video games as early as five years old. Adults perceive things on a higher level of understanding, and children have no way of knowing right from wrong. With parenting and support, it can help guide them, but they still will approach numbers of advertisements no matter where they go. If parents can keep up the advising with their children, then they can be smart for themselves too. However, the media is so huge, that children would need to live in a box in order to not come across the bad influences of the media. With consideration, we all need to be our own investigator in perceiving right from wrong. The nation won’t stop, but we can be smarter then that.


Altogether, the media through advertisements and commercials will continue to put “ad-pressure” on consumers. It doesn’t make us a better person, but instead a naïve individual. Pulling yourself back from all that and doing research, prospers your awareness for certain aspects of every ad heard and seen. Advertisements and commercials are a bad influence on society, no doubt whatsoever.



Gushiken, Tiffany. “ Ads Pros and Cons.” Online Posting 23 Sept 2011. Laulima Discussion. https://laulima.hawaii.edu/portal/site/KAP.XLSENG215js.201210/page/70638c63-3d48-4275-828a-7e37acace01e.

Lee, Carmen. “Ads Pros and Cons.” Online Posting Sept 2011. Laulima Discussion
https://laulima.hawaii.edu/portal/site/KAP.XLSENG215js.201210/page/70638c63-3d48-4275-828a-7e37acace01e.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9tWZB7OUSU. “The Axe Effect-Women-Billions.” You Tube. 3 Oct 2006. Web. 29 Sept. 2011

Log of Completed Activities
_x__ Sep. 19- Intro to Paper #2. Read the Guidelines for Paper #2.
_x__ Sep. 23- Laulima Discussion: Ad Pros and Cons
_L__ Sep. 26- Complete readings for paper #2.
_x__ Sep. 30- Laulima Discussion: Logical Fallacies Exercise
_x__ Oct. 3- Submit RD2 [50 pts]. Review the guidelines.
_x__ Oct. 7- Submit three RD2 evaluations [50 pts]. Review the guidelines.
_x__ Oct. 12- Submit FD2 [125 pts]. Review the guidelines.

Media Pitfalls

Jasmin Obadencio
October 3, 2011
RD2



Consumers are persuaded by a number of factors, especially in the mass media alone. We are faced with the pros and cons of each, but these ads put pressure on us in an unnecessary way. Confidence and acceptance are what these ads display, but do we want to say it inspires us to better ourselves or change who we are? [THESIS] Persuasion is a debate we fuss with, but I firmly disagree that commercials have a positive impact on consumers. Commercial broadcasting is appealing, but I consider it an absurdity. [THESIS]



Tiffany Gushiken states “ Ads have become so integrated into our environment and culture that many people accept the messages without thinking.” In this quote, she brings out how easy it is for a person to be fooled. Also, not all of us are reading between the lines. Being a self-investigator helps you understand a lot what the advertisement ignored to tell you. We all judge a book by its cover that gets taken advantaged of. The same error occurs with opening a new electronic toy, we fail to read the instructions and use our instincts instead. Another quote stated by Carmen Lee, “ “ads often exaggerate in order to impress their viewers.” This expresses exactly what ads are doing. Enthusiastically, they want you to believe what you see. They arouse your interest and play at what makes people feel good. Commercials get to us all the time, its willpower that we need to not let it shape us.



No matter the good side of media the bad will inevitably always play a bigger role. One person might outsmart the media, but there are a million others who succumb to the media. It’s definitely an effective way to promote, but it doesn’t outweigh the ads that change our behavior to fit the mass media. Last week, I came across a commercial on YouTube. It starts with a woman in a bathing suit running through the forest. Seconds later, more women in bathing suits are racing her. In the mean time, women are swimming across the ocean and others are climbing down the rocks. In the last fifteen seconds of the commercial, there’s a guy with just shorts on standing on the beach with axe in both hands spraying all over himself. Seeing the mass of women in bathing suits running to him from all angles, his eyes widen and a big smile forms on his face, continuing to spray himself with axe. Then closing his eyes, he puts his head up, arms opened wide. The commercial cuts off when the masses of women are closing down on him in the matter of seconds. Finally ends with a quote, “spray more, get more, the Axe effect.” The type of fallacy this ad demonstrates is Non Sequitor because women, particularly attractive, have nothing to do with axe. The method they used was to exaggerate the greatness of Axe. Promoting Axe in such a way only appeals to men in an unbehavioral manner. Of course consumers are going to get it, almost every one of their commercials have women being strongly attached to the scent. I like to say Axe commercials promote what every women wants on a man, which isn’t true. Also, the commercial is judgmental only because they used what would attract consumers, which are attractive women. Its all about being fit to look good and not disappoint viewers, as long as they get their share after investing so much to make the commercial itself.




Without fail, most of media has some negative influence. Recording history, I remember media wasn’t vulgar or people weren’t home behind computers and television. Back then, everything was about going out to socialize and finding your way here and there. Now, media flourishes so unambiguously that we are practically drowning in it. We are spoiled with minimum wages trying to buy the latest software and grabbing food from McDonalds off the dollar menu. I can order pizza from home, do online shopping, and watch the latest movies straight from the Internet. We are lazy, even though majority of us work. Still, the media is producing more and more to get us where? Nowhere. It’s the wants and needs the media messes us with, and with no self-control there’s flaws.



Wherever we are, there are advertisements from billboards, commercials, radio, newspapers and numerous other mediums. Most of it is gossip, some recalling tragic events, and a big one we all are suckered in, ads promoting the unthinkable. It drags out our reality to force ourselves by changing our behavior to fit the media’s. And if we are not careful, these ads are strong enough to get us to give in. Between home and my workplace, I drive past five fast food restaurants in a 5-minute time span. All of this makes America an obese nation. Children too are guided the wrong way. With undeveloped maturity, children are exposed to a realm of technology. Not only the adults are obese, children are getting obese and sucked in video games as early as five years old. Adults perceive things on a higher level of understanding, and children have no way of seizing right from wrong. Nowadays your able to put child proof lock on your car and Rated R movies at home, but considering safety comes first, Child proof works only 10% of the time. Also to note, you can’t child proof everything, its impossible. The other 90% is wide open from every approach. With parenting and support, not even are parents able to restrict their children. They may try, but it all comes down to the person. The media is so huge, that children would need to live in a box in order to not come across the bad influences of the media. With consideration, we all need to be our own investigator in perceiving right from wrong. The nation won’t stop, but we can be smarter then that.



Altogether, the media through advertisements and commercials will continue to put “ad-pressure” on consumers. It doesn’t make us a better people, maybe for the media, but if you pull yourself back from all that, being yourself is always best. I diverge to the aspect of influences of all media and its irrational concepts. Media is not reality, media is a sham unless proven.





Gushiken, Tiffany. “ Ads Pros and Cons.” Online Posting 23 Sept 2011. Laulima Discussion. https://laulima.hawaii.edu/portal/site/KAP.XLSENG215js.201210/page/70638c63-3d48-4275-828a-7e37acace01e.

Lee, Carmen. “Ads Pros and Cons.” Online Posting Sept 2011. Laulima Discussion
https://laulima.hawaii.edu/portal/site/KAP.XLSENG215js.201210/page/70638c63-3d48-4275-828a-7e37acace01e.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9tWZB7OUSU. “The Axe Effect-Women-Billions.” You Tube. 3 Oct 2006. Web. 29 Sept. 2011

Decide for yourself, not for others

Jasmin Obadencio
16 Sep. 2011
FD1

Women adjusting to their gender roles are taken melodramatically. In the public eye, they implanted this idea upon women and it has been a daily routine. The difference now is gender roles are more communal. The years are progressing with women breaking barriers. Women don’t need to be brushed into their roles; instead they should be given the liberty of expanding their intellect that will balance between both sexes. This gives "independence of women externalizing their skills.” Some men are already adjusting to it, so can the rest. Therefore, [THESIS] I stand against close minded thinking, "males are the stronger sex and women the weaker sex.” [THESIS]


We can all agree that the military can be a tough task to endure, yes? And if a woman wanted to serve for our nation, her chances would automatically be slim. Blindfolded, society is ignoring the fact that not all women are fully feminine; they too have some masculinity. After a brief discussion about my fiancé's side of the family, women have joined or are continuing to serve our country. This includes his Aunt, mother, and cousin that I know of. His mom served four years, his Aunt ten, and cousin two. In our past conversations, all three of them were successful in the military. They did get judged, but they also proved to men that strength did not only lie in a man’s world. Holding bravery and reassurance, these are women participating “manly” duties. They went to the same training with men and served alongside them. This is a definite eye opener for mankind to see that women are capable of anything.


"It still seems to make more sense that the man works and make the money, while the female stays at home and cooks and cleans around the house"- Max Babylon, a quote from my classmate that I differ to. A scenario in today's economy, both parents would need to be working, except for those who inherit richness. Cost for food, mortgage/rent, and everything else takes a toll for us that live on our own. We never get it easy once we reach adulthood, so we need be ahead of ourselves and do the best we can to survive the obstacles that occur. Partnership, such as husband and wife, is vital for their own sake to strive ahead of economy costs. If gender roles were still kept strict today, families would need to rely double on WIC and food stamps at the rate everything’s going. Like the saying we all heard at some point in our lives "not everyone gets to live life on the easy lane."


Taking this into perspective, we can take encouragement from these women that hold strong for the rest. In the beginning of Mary Pipher's excerpt, she mentions Polly who was a girl that passed for a tomboy. Since males and females have different sexual organs, females have what we call our menstrual period, menopause, and pregnancy. Polly was out casted from her boy friends and judged because of her puberty. Then once her appearance changed, boys started looking her way again. Her stage of trauma in transitioning from preadolescence to being a teenager changed dramatically. In relation with my childhood, I played with Tonka trucks instead of Barbie’s, played sports for fun, and even though it wasn't ladylike, it didn’t matter. I loved video games, and I would always play with my brother daily while my sisters would play with makeup. Then as I got older, I noticed a different image. I went from plain T’s and shorts to skirts and blouses. I wanted to fit in Intermediate school, and just by appearance, I was back to being girly again. Lost interest in sports except volleyball, and I made more friends. So the story of Polly does bring me back to my point on women having choices that boys/men have choices in. Society falls short on meditating only on appearance and not their skills. Women will have their periods of trauma because of their bodily and emotional changes throughout her teenager years to after menopause, but it doesn’t help for people to bring them down on a lower level.


Giving acceptance to women lets their opportunities flourish on a greater scale. People will never stop judging, but it shouldn't be a calamity on all of us. Do away with the barrier and let women perform the same work as men or join in any activity men participate in. We ‘ere all created different, but are all equals, society can cooperate with women just as they do with men.

Works Cited

Pipher, Mary. “Saplings in the Storm”. Dialogues: An Argument Rhetoric and Reader. 6Th Edition. Eds. Gary Goshgarian and Kathleen Krueger. New York: Pearson-Longman, 2011. 347

Babylon, Max. “Causes and Solutions”. Online Posting. 29 August.11. Laulima Discussion. 14 Sept. 2011 [http://laulima.hawaii.edu].

Arambula, Tracy. Personal Interview. 31 Aug. 2011




Log of Completed Activities
_x__ Aug. 22- First Day of Instruction. Read the welcome message, which includes instructions on how to navigate our class blog. Next, log in to our Laulima discussion forum and your hawaii.edu mailbox. Become familiar with these instructional media. Carefully review the information in our class blog, especially the schedule and syllabus (click on the tab at the top of the page). In the syllabus, pay special attention to the grading policy and the document “Am I Ready for an Online Class?” These will give you an understanding of online classes in general and this class in particular.
_x__ Aug. 23- Laulima Discussion: Who Am I? Post your response by midnight. Possible topics: your academic and career goals; your favorite pastime; favorite book, movie, song; favorite physical activity or sport; favorite quote; personal philosophy on the purpose of life; your personal thoughts on why it’s important to become an excellent writer; favorite food or restaurant; favorite vacation destination; etc.
_x__ Aug. 23- Intro to Paper #1. Read the “Guidelines for Paper #1” by midnight.
_x__ Aug. 23-31- Set up your personal blog for all class papers. Click here for instructions. Alternately, see the “Blogger” links in the right sidebar in our class blog. To begin, complete the initial setup. You’ll be able to add finishing touches as the RD1 due date approaches. If you need help, post a request in the “Q&A About My Blog” forum in Laulima.
_x__ Aug. 26- Laulima Discussion: What Is “Trauma”? One definition or many different definitions? Post your response by midnight.
_L__ Aug. 29- Complete readings for Paper #1 by midnight.
_x__ Sep. 2- Laulima Discussion: Causes & Solutions: What causes gender role trauma? What’s the solution? Assume that there is more than one cause or solution. Post your response by midnight. [10 pts]
_L__ Sep. 6- Submit RD1 (Review Draft #1) [50 pts] Review the guidelines.
_x__ Sep. 12- Submit three RD1 evaluations in Laulima. [50 pts] Review the guidelines.
_x__ Sep. 16- Submit FD1 (Final Draft #1) [100 pts] Review the guidelines.

Jasmin Obadencio
September 6, 2011
RD1



Decide for yourself, Not for others


Women adjusting to their gender roles are taken melodramatically. I defy the fact "males are the stronger sex and women the weaker sex". In the public eye, they implanted this idea upon women and it has worked for some time. Now the years progress with women breaking the glass ceiling. In other words [THESIS] women should not be brushed into their roles. Expanding their intellect will balance between both sexes and men will adjust to participate in a woman's shoes. This gives "freedom of externalizing their skills". Women will have their periods of trauma because of their bodily and emotional changes throughout her teenager years to after menopause, but it doesn't stop them if they're dedicated to something. Not all women are fully feminine, they too have some sort of masculinity that runs deep. [THESIS]

We can all agree that the military can be a tough task to endure, yes? And if a woman wanted to serve our nation, her chances would automatically be slim. Men or young teenager boys would be recruited instead. After learning about my fiancé's side of the family, I can say he's a military brat. Almost his whole family has joined or are continuing to serve. This is including his Aunt, mother, and cousin that I know of. His mom served four years, his Aunt ten, and cousin two. When asking themhow it was like, they said it was tough but worth it. Relating this with my topic, these are women that said this. They went to the same training with men and served alongside them. We can learn from these women that hold strong for the rest.

"It still seems to make more sense that the man works and make the money, while the female stays at home and cooks and cleans around the house"- Max Babylon. A quote from my classmate that I differ to. A scenario in today's times with this economy, both parents would need to be working, important to keep a roof over their head and provide for their family if any. Costs for food, mortgage/rent, and everything else is not free. We never got it easy once we reached adulthood (maybe for those who inherit richness), so we need be ahead of ourselves and do the best that we can to survive. Partnership, such as husband and wife, is vital for their own sake to strive ahead of economy costs. Like the saying we all heard at some point in our lives "not everyone gets to live life on the easy lane."

In the beginning of Mary Pipher's excerpt, she mentions Polly who was a girl that passed for a tomboy. Since males and females have different sexual organs, females have what we call their menstrual period, menopause, and pregnancy. This changed Polly for her friends out-casted her. The transition from before and after her first menstrual cycle was hard. The acceptance from her boy friends was unfair because she was judged. Once her appearance changed, boys started looking her way again. Polly's trauma in transitioning from preadolescence of being a teenager changed dramatically and we other girls I'm sure can relate to this. Growing up, I played with Tonka trucks instead of barbies, played sports for fun, and even though it wasn't ladylike, I wasn't judged. I did notice myself change when I got my period, but I didn't crash and burn as Pipher shared when observing Junior high girls that attended her campus. No doubt in other cases like this can occur, but I can't fully relate. The story of Polly does bring me back to my point on women having choices that boys/men have choices in. the descripency with society in general, is them judging whats not important to judge. If it weren't for women, the male population would decrease. Who would they have to depend on then? Women. In any sense, different sexes are capable of anything.

Deciding for yourself and not for others gives opportunities on a greater horizon. People will never stop judging, but it shouldn't get in the way of your dreams. With some positive self esteem and healthy
influence from those close to you, you're able to stand out in an all male crowd and perform the same work or join in any activity. Just because we're all created different, society needs to work around it
instead of stomping on differences.


Works Cited

Pipher, Mary. “Saplings in the Storm”. Dialogues: An Argument Rhetoric and Reader. 6Th Edition. Eds. Gary Goshgarian and Kathleen Krueger. New York: Pearson-Longman, 2011. 347