Oxidado

When I got home from school today my older brother immediately showed me this news clip.  Following the epidemic of the drug Oxidado (originally in Brazil), the video highlights the dangers of the drug and why it has been brought into focus.

In both videos not only the horrible side effects of this drug are shown, but also its mass availability and why it is receiving attention now.  In the first video (link) at 0:28 the drug is described as so deadly because of how easy it is to get a hold of.  Costing only $1.00, this drug is so threatening because it allows all classes to get hooked and have the financial ability to stay hooked.  But almost more shockingly is the 1st video's clip at 1:20.  The drug Oxi has "been around for almost 2 decades" but is just gaining serious news attention now.  The very deadly drug, most users die within the first year of starting (1:16), is only gaining news attention as it transfers into the upper class.
This reminded me on a much smaller scale of the "big ditch" in Winnetka that we discussed in class.  Even after 30 citizen's deaths, the train tracks were not changed until a very powerful, wealthy man's wife was killed.  After this accident the problem was taken into focus and fixed.
How does society respond differently to the same problem in different classes? Why do problems gain more media attention when they affect upper classes? How does the rate of change and correction differ between the upper and lower class issues?

Modern Role Models

A while ago I was having a conversation at dinner with my family and my parents asked us who our role models were.  My brother and sisters and I had a difficult time coming up with any one specific example.  My parents were shocked.  They brought up that when they were younger they could name specific people who they wanted to be.  My dad mentioned that his role models had included Bruce Springsteen and the president while my mom mentioned singers and movie stars.  After hearing that it was my turn to be surprised.  It was hard for me to imagine wanting to be like a celebrity and I tried to figure out why.

I came to the conclusion that because of our intimate view into the lives of all different types of celebrities we are less likely to want to emulate the individual.  Where as my mom was able to look up to movie stars because she mainly saw them only in the best light- mainly through the films- we are constantly exposed to the most dramatic and worst aspects of the star's lives.  

Also my dad says that when he was younger it was very taboo to directly question the current president.  While there was a focus on debating the issues, it was rare to contradict the president and to not see him as something more than the average citizen.  

How has the use and perception of role models changed? Is this a positive change? Who, if there are any, are examples of model role models?

OSAMA BIN LADEN IS DEAD

According to CNN world news, Osama bin Laden has died.  I will update this blog post soon, but I wanted to let people who haven't heard know.

Great Gatsby, Tennis and the Use of the Color White

This week we started reading The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.  We have been focusing on class indicators in relation to this book including: income, wealth, location, occupation and exclusivity.  Another focus of our discussion has been the importance of the color white in the book.  The use of this color in the book so far is to emphasize the upper class, exclusivity and social status.  This discussion reminded me of country club tennis.

Country clubs are commonly associated with upper class.  They are very exclusive, some requiring months of work in order to get accepted.  Tennis is also a sport associated with high social status.  Country club tennis makes an interesting link to our discussions.  At many country clubs "tennis whites" are required in order to play.  It is a dress code of all white necessary in order to be able to be on the tennis court.  White is strictly associated with the upper class and exclusivity represented in club tennis.
In what ways is white a tangible representation of exclusivity?  Is white always associated with the upper class?  What are the problems with associating white to the upper class?

Junior Theme Expanded

The week after Junior Theme was turned in!  Congratulations everyone- we did it!  But even though my Junior Theme is turned in I still am thinking about my topic outside of class.
This past week I was on my favorite website, PostSecret.  It is a blog to which people anonymously send in their secrets on postcards and they are shared.  The secrets are all different, some are very serious and others are quirky or funny, but the secrets told are all important to the person in a different way.  The secrets posted on the blog are rotated out weekly, but last week I found this very interesting secret that got me thinking about my Junior Theme:

Because I focused my Junior Theme on: Why are eating disorder on the rise, this secret showed me a different focus on my topic.  This secret illustrates a link between eating disorders and feminism.  While my paper did not highlight this link, except slightly in the conclusion, it is an interesting expansion of my topic.  

This secret reminded me of the interview I did with eating disorder therapist, Suzanne Gazzolo.  When I asked about the future of eating disorders she said, "I believe that we still live in a patriarchy that often when things begin to affect men and boys in negative ways than it begins to be taken seriously... I think when it was only a girl problem it just could be ignored in a lot of ways, but it is going to be hard to ignore now".  This is a quote that also looks at eating disorders in terms of feminism and patriarchies.  

These two expanded links to my Junior Theme are really fascinating to me because they are representations that the Junior Theme wasn't just some random paper I wrote, but it allows me to look at a bigger picture idea and link it to my everyday life.  

Junior Theme #3

As we continue to work on our junior themes I am feeling confident and stressed at the same time.  Friday in class I finally put to paper what my research had culminated in.  I got to four major points as an answer to my WHY question and I realized I had a lot more than I originally thought.  This not only got me organized for the upcoming writing of my paper but also boosted my confidence level.  Before I did this I was stressing that no matter how much research I did, I wouldn't be able to fit it into a coherent paper that could successfully answer my WHY question.  Now I have gotten it down and feel I am ready and prep-ed to move forward. 
At the same time, like many others in the class, I am struggling to manage the stress of the end of junior year.  While it hasn't been as bad as some of my friends, the culmination of sports, schoolwork and college prep work I understand while seniors call junior year hell.  For all of those who are feeling like I am right now, here is a link to a sleepcalculator website (just so we can try to be well rested for the 9 weeks left of school).  So, while I am confident in my paper so far, I cannot wait for junior theme to be turned in and done with!

"The Greatest Movie Ever Sold"

Today I saw the movie trailer for a new film coming out called The Greatest Movie Ever Sold.  It is a documentary film by the director of Super Size me that focuses completely on product placement.  A concept we have been talking a lot about in class, product placement is the advertisement of products in a media source usually devoid of advertisements.  It is most commonly used in television shows, movies and music videos.  The film The Greatest Movie Ever Sold takes a head on approach to product placement.  It is a movie that documents the logistics of product placement, but is 100% funded by the products themselves.

The part that stood out to me the most was at 1:42 in the trailer when the man he was interviewing says that people deserved to be warned about the products that were being advertised.  And immediately in the film pop-ups start forming about which brands were being displayed.   And I was shocked to see that I was completely unaware of what I was being shown as advertisement.  Although the things listed were not directly being drawn notice to in the original shot, we were still being exposed to the products.
Do you agree with the man who said that we deserve to be notified when we are exposed to product placement?  Or, does product placement lose its affect when people are told of its presence?