I haven't the foggiest...(12)

In some ways the film, “The Golden Compass” has attacked Christianity, maybe even Catholicism. In the book, it is more apparent, to some, than when put into film. The movie was intended for young children, and had no real intention of brainwashing people into atheism. Philip Pullman is simply arguing that there should be a separation of church and political power. In the past, when churches have mixed with political power, bad things have happened, and Pullman’s opinion is clearly just that they should stay separate. In an interview with MSNBC, Pullman answers many questions from eager readers across the United States. One question read, what was on everyone’s minds: “How do you respond to the claim that your books are anti-Catholic and promote atheism?”
Pullman responds with “In the world of the story — Lyra’s world — there is a church that has acquired great political power, rather in the way that some religions in our world have done at various times, and still do (think of the Taliban in Afghanistan). My point is that religion is at its best — it does most good — when it is farthest away from political power, and that when it gets hold of the power to (for example) send armies to war or to condemn people to death, or to rule every aspect of our lives, it rapidly goes bad. Sometimes people think that if something is done in the name of faith or religion, it must be good. Unfortunately, that isn’t true; some things done in the name of religion are very bad. That was what I was trying to describe in my story.
I think the qualities that the books celebrate are those such as kindness, love, courage and courtesy too. And intellectual curiosity. All these good things. And the qualities that the books attack are cold-heartedness, tyranny, close-mindedness, cruelty, the things that we all agree are bad things.”
Clearly in this statement, Pullman conveys that “His Dark Materials” was not meant to promote atheism, and all Pullman truly wants is good for the church separate from the corruption of politics.

I can guide a missile by satellite(11)

Starting in June, I plan on celebrating my birthday (June Fourth), by being with my friends. After that I’m going to see my dad who lives in Jonesboro, Arkansas for about two weeks. Then I will return to the great state of Louisiana, but only for a short time. I will then embark on a trip to Panama City, Florida, with Morgan =]. After returning to Louisiana, I will continue working at the Library with Courtney, and maybe others, over the summer. On June thirtieth, Lizzie comes home from Germany, and I will be spending most of my time with her. She wants a big Fourth of July, so we might have a big barbecue and go watch fireworks at the levee. Later in July, I will be returning to my father’s house for two weeks. After that, school starts. In doing all of these activities I plan on intertwining reading a few books and maybe go to a concert or two. I also plan on having a few movie marathons, which include the back to the future series, Indiana Jones series, fight club, and a few others. My mom and I also plan on going to the beach for a few weekends, every now and then. Sounds like a good summer to me!

for all the fans!

Outfoxed(10)

When the documentary "outfoxed" made its debut, the Fox news network had only four things they found wrong with it. Other than that Fox could be seen as accurately portrayed in this short documentary. Of the four, one was simply the name stated in a caption, referring to the West Coast Bureau, which should really be the Los Angeles Bureau. As you can see, the Fox news network found only miniscule details to refute. The bulk of the argument presented was mostly accurate. Robert Greenwald makes several points in this documentary. He states how the Fox news channel is a vital part for the Republican Party and how the media is basically campaigning for Bush. Whenever anyone that was a guest on the show, disagreed with something in a strong manner they were either cut off or told to “shut up.” This is highly inappropriate. The Fox News Network promotes one side of the story and that side only. They have no regard for presenting the truth, which in fact are both sides. One might refer to this act as yellow journalism. If a TV network is going to report the news at least let it be the whole truth, and not just what the network wants to promote. In a sense it seems like Fox has brainwashed society into believing only what they want us to believe, and that any other way is not right.


Sources:
http://www.outfoxed.org/Documents.php
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outfoxed:_Rupert_Murdoch's_War_on_Journalism
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outfoxed:_Rupert_Murdoch's_War_on_Journalism

I felt so symbolic yesterday...(9)

As most of you know, my best friend, Lizzie, is in Germany right now. Only two months and ten days until she returns! With her gone I have become very nostalgic. I keep thinking that I’m not ready to grow up. High school has passed so quickly, all I want to do is return to the days where everything was simpler. Everything seems to have changes so quickly without me even stopping to breath. I can tell that myself as a person has changed and so have some of my friends. I’m excited and not excited to begin these next few years. I want to begin my life and learn more about myself, but I want desperately to not leave my childhood behind. It seems there is a lot of responsibility that I am going to soon have to deal with, that I do not want too. The last few years I have grown up a lot. My interests in music, movies, books, and clothing have changed, and I cannot wait to see what it will turn to in the next few years. Who knows, I might even be living in London with my very own bookstore in a couple of years?

Divorce: An all too often tragedy

With the divorce rate climbing higher each year, more kids are dealing with things they never thought possible. Divorce is defined as a judicial declaration dissolving marriage in whole or in part. Most people do not realize that it also dissolves a part of the child’s life too. Now, instead of waking up to two parents and getting to see them both, a kid might have to travel across town just to see their father or mother. In some other cases the child might have to travel a few states away or even across the country. Children of divorcees should not have to deal with their parents’ mistakes and suffer from the consequences; therefore the future parents should do everything in their willpower to make completely sure that they want to stay with their partner for the rest of their life.

It is to be assumed that divorce affects the kids directly sometimes even harshly. At a young age for a child it would be hard to understand what is going on. They may not fully comprehend the situation for a couple more years, but as time progresses they feel the devastation of a divorce. Only being able to see their own father or mother on weekends, every other week, or even as sporadic as three or four times a year, a child might develop emotional problems. Children who have divorced parents are seven more times likely to suffer from depression later on in their adult life, than children with parents who did not divorce. Also, three-fourths of the children or teenagers in chemical-dependency hospitals are from a family in which there is only one parent. Sixty-three percent of people who commit suicide are from a divorced family. With all of the previous statistics, it is not hard to see how much children are affected by their parents divorce. Although there are some exceptions in which the divorce is what is best for the children and the spouse, it is not the parents, but the children who really suffer. (“A Generation”)

When one thinks about the institution of marriage, much thought and preparation should go into choosing a spouse. A wife or husband is not a short-lived fling but a life long partner. Infatuation with one another is not the same as eternity lasting love. If more couples put extra thought into whom they were marrying, the future offspring would not have to go through the devastation of having their parents divorce. Even if the couple decided not to have children and get married, there is always the possibility of getting pregnant, they should still be sure they want to be with each other for life. Some excuses for divorce say that the spouse has changed, humans were made to adapt to changes. If one really loved the other, they would somehow try to work things out and communicate to the other person, if not for themselves, then for the sake of their children. Love is not something that lasts for a few months and then dissolves, it lasts a lifetime. The future children of couples speeding into marriage should not have to suffer for the parents’ mistakes made before they were conceived. Kids should not have to choose one parent over the other, when all they really want and need is both.

When thinking of marrying someone, the question one would ask oneself is “Am I willing to spend the rest of my life with this person?” If the answer is no, then they should be able to determine that if they are not willing to spend their life with them, marriage is simple not an option. As a result of more and more couples finding the perfect person to spend their life with, more children will have happy homes. Instead of broken and abandoned feelings, the child will feel warmth and strength in having both parents as a stronghold. If more couples stayed together instead of divorcing, fewer children would suffer from anxiety and depression and even less would commit suicide each year. When parents make the final decision to divorce, most do not realize the things their own children will have to deal with, and most would never want their children to deal with it.



Works Cited

"A Generation At Risk." Rainbows. 5 Apr. 2008 .

but we unleashed a lion(6)

A lot of times when kids listen to the radio or their own ipod, they have no idea what the song really means. The song Jeremy has been played nation-wide and was Pearl Jams third single on their debut album. The lead singer, Eddie Vedder, felt it necessary to make a point about how people can be tormented inside, and you may never know it. Jeremy, the song, presents a young boy who’s picked on by peers and has absent parents.
When writing this song, Vedder relates to one of his old classmates, as well as a young boy that felt the best revenge was to shoot himself in front of his peers. His tone throughout the song is very reminiscent and remorseful. Because of his tone, Vedder conveys to the audience that Jeremy was not just a crazy boy, but had real motive. He uses Aristotles mode of persuasion, Pathos, by appealing to the audiences emotions. The song states that “Daddy didn’t give affection, no…And the boy was something that mommy wouldn’t wear.” This lyric appeals to listeners emotions. The audience feels sympathy for the young boy who is troubled. Some listeners even feel empathy, being able to relate to Jeremy.
In an interview, Vedder explains that harming yourself is not at all a good way to gain revenge. The song Jeremy was meant to appeal to both sides of the conflict. To Jeremy, that he can come back better, and prove himself, rather than having a small paragraph in a newspaper about his death. To the teasing peers, that you never know what someone is dealing with. “There is power of life and death in the tongue,” and you must be careful of what you say and do.

I know I'm not your favorite record(5)

Well I guess one thing I can not say is that my writing is absolutely perfect in every way, because it is not. I think the best way to improve anyones writing is with practice. I also think that reading a lot helps with such things as vocabulary and grammar.
As far as my writing goes I think it is has its own pros and cons. Some pros would be that I can spell pretty well. I always made A’s in spelling. I can also organize information pretty well too. Some cons in my writing would be that I sometimes can not find the words I want to describe something. I just try to ease my way through the subject easily as possible. Also, I apparently have trouble with run-on sentences.
Writing has been something that has always been easy for me to do. I usually do not have trouble with it, but I have a feeling I might start.

Put your ear to the speaker(4)

Intelligence is not measured by the persons personality or merely by what they wear. Being knowledgeable is considered different things to different people. A person can be intelligent on many different levels. A human being that can sit, talk, and walk can be knowing, but not necessarily as much as others. To me there are two types of intelligence, one would be common sense, and the other book smart. A person who can survive in their surroundings and make things work for them is someone who has intelligence. One who might survive in the business world, but when placed in completely different surroundings may still be able to make things work would also be considered intelligent.

Drink down that Gin and Kerosene(3)

Every person has certain beliefs, which to them may contain truth. Not as generally, but to one person everything they know, or their knowledge, contains their own beliefs and their own truth. Different people have different knowledge, which has different truth, and thus different beliefs. But as the general public goes, the knowledge of the public could be true until proven wrong. For example Newton's Laws of Motion, is what we know to be true because no one has proven it wrong or altered the verifications for motion. Our own belief lies in our knowledge, and what we perceive of the knowledge we have been given to be truth. What we consider truth in our knowledge is most likely what we will believe in.
the end.

p.s: dear Mr. Hughes,
you should most deff go easy on me since I missed the class where we had this discussion =] yay, achievement points.

Let’s play this game called “when you catch fire” (2)

Most people see V for Vendetta as a fun and action packed film with defying motives, what people don’t realize is the underlying anarchist symbolism. Relating to a historical anarchist, Guy Fawkes, V, the main character intends to ingrain the fifth of November into the audiences minds.
In order to persuade followers and make London realize what the governments true intentions are, V has decided to broadcast a city-wide speech. Throughout this speech he argues his point quite well, presenting each type of argument and the three modes of persuasion.
V’s speech starts off as an introduction, relating to the people, and then continuing on how the fifth of November is an important date to remember. To begin persuasion, V, shows how he is just like them and not some crazy terrorist. V says he appreciates the comfort, security, and tranquility of the everyday life, “just like many of you do.” This relation exhibits the mode of persuasion, ethos, which establishes his credibility in that he is a normal everyday “bloke.”
He continues on with his speech to inform London that their own words cannot be silenced, that the citizens will always have the power of speech, to tell truth. V then questions the country and whether or not there is something wrong with the way it is being governed. This presents a forensic argument in that whether the country is being fair, or unjust to its people. It reminds the people of London that they still have the power, and can just obtain it by speaking up. V presents evidence by saying “men with guns will soon be on their way” which reveals the mode of persuasion, logos.
The brilliant anarchist then presents a forensic argument by saying “cruelty and injustice, intolerance and oppression.” An evaluation argument is also raised by the fact that he is saying that the people are guilty, which brings forth praise or blame upon themselves. This shows London how much their own freedom of speech has been taken away and how it is their own fault for falling silent and evolving into conformity. The form of persuasion, pathos, is introduced by instilling fear of being silent and perhaps the government.
Next, V goes on to say that the people of London had good reason for throwing away their own freedoms without realizing it. This brings about the argument, evaluation, internally within the audience dealing with whether or not their “silent, obedient consent” was the right thing to do. The purpose of showing London this argument is to exhibit how persuasive propaganda can be and without knowing it you can be caught up in something you didn’t realize was happening. The people of London were then under the mode of persuasion, pathos, because fear of “war, terror, disease” presented itself. Naturally the only logical thing to do at the time was to submit to the government to “rescue” them, which is the form of persuasion, logos.
Lastly, V presents all three types of arguments. He creates an evaluation argument for the people of London, on whether or not they should agree or disagree with him. Also V talks about justice and freedom being a perspective, which presents a forensic argument. Lastly he mentions to the audience that he wants the fifth of November to be a date everyone will remember. V asks the London people to join him in one year to create a memorable night, which is using the type of argument, means to an end. He uses the mode of persuasion, ethos by establishing his credibility as being the one who destroyed the Old Bailey. V also plays on the audiences emotions by using the form of persuasion, pathos.
In his short segment broadcast all over London, V seems to present a well-thought out argument. He uses persuasion and presents logic that the London people seemed to forget. V shows that he, along with them has forgotten what it was like enjoy the freedom of speech, and is desperate to obtain it back. He ingrains in the audiences minds the fifth of November, resembling Guy Fawkes, and brings about a much needed revolution.

This is side one(1)

My name is Allyn Mallory. I live with just my mom here in Gonzales. I like music and reading. I don't think I go anywhere without a book or two, I guess it's either habit or precaution, the Twilight Series is the best, nothing can beat it. Right now I'm reading the Uglies series. I guess I would consider myself quiet and I tend to keep myself, on occasion I can be loud and opinionated. I'm going to marry Michael Cera on day. I enjoy oldies music along with some new alternative stuff. Favorite bands include Rise Against, Queen, Black Sabbath, The Beatles, and Green Day.
I have a few close friends, like Sean, Erin, Aly, Ninja, Morgan, Lizzie, she's in Germany right now, and Joshua. I like going to see musicals on stage, my favorite is Chicago. For my fifteenth birthday, my mom and I were in London and she surprised me with tickets to the show, I was ecstatic(No, I'm not spoiled, it was a one-time thing). I also like impressionism in art, Degas, Monet, Renoir..etc. I am going to LSU for college and I think I want to be an aeronautical engineer, but I'm still undecided. I love to travel, and experience new things, places, and people. I enjoy going to the park and swinging with Seanay.