Putting Citizens First

Subsequent to reading the article “Chavez Opens His Place to Flood Victims”, by Simon Romero of the New York Times I was inspired of how generous Chavez is. The article explains how devastating the flood was to Venezuela and how willingly Chavez (President of Venezuela) opened his home to families in need. The article then gives specific information on the flood such as “The rainfall has caused flooding and landslides that have killed 25 people and forced more than 30,000 Venezuelans to flee,” The article also states that Chavez welcomed 26 families and gave them a tour of the palace. The article then later goes on to say that Chavez is not only offering a helping hand but also taking hold of public discussion during a troublesome time.

            I personally find it very inspiring and moving that the President would willingly open his house to Flood Victims in need of a place to stay. Some government officials might open shelters but Chavez took it a step further and opened his home to the people in need. I think that Chavez is demonstrating that he actually cares about his people. There are some politicians that will provide help to the citizens suffering just to gain popularity and increase their chance of reelection.  This is a good example of how government can be sympathetic to its citizens and actually develop closer relationships with its citizens. Government officials should have the citizen’s prosperity as their first priority. We elect our leaders so that they can lead us in a good direction so that ultimately things improve mainly for the citizen. Unfortunately, some of our current politicians have ulterior motives, they put their own needs before the citizens which is corrupting the power they are given. Conclusively, through this article I was inspired by how generous Chavez was and how, in this situation Chavez put the people first.      

Are We Learning What is Really Important?

In the informative article “Rigor Redefined” by Tony Wagner, I learned the problems in the education system and how things can be made more effective so that students are more successful. The article focuses on the seven survival tips, critical thinking/problem solving, collaboration/ leadership, agility/adaptability, initiative/entrepreneurialism, effective oral and written communication, accessing and analyzing information, and finally curiosity/imagination. These are seven things that employers look for when hiring their employees. It demonstrates how things are constantly changing and these seven skills are important to have in order to keep up with the continuous change occurring.  The article then goes on to explain that these skills are only sometimes being practiced in schools today. That it is vital for teachers to incorporate these abilities into schools because they are in a sense more essential than the material being learned. 

                This article relates to me because I am indeed a student and the knowledge that I obtain through school effects my ability to obtain a job in the future.  If I am not taught the skills that are important to acquire a good job then I have less of a chance at being successful in life. This article mainly caused me to look at my own teachers and how they are teaching me. Am I learning these skills in school? How are my teachers including these skills into my class sessions? Should teachers make it more obvious of the skill we are learning in each lesson and inform us of which specific skills we will be using that day? this effects not only my school but schools around the world, everyone is affected. Children are the future and if we are not taught how to live and work in the future then our society as we know it will fail. Conclusively, this article, I think brings up a lot of important points on the flaws of the educational system and caused me to evaluate my own schools.

The Web, Linking Our Sociaty

After actively watching the YouTube video “Web 2.0… The Machine is US/ing Us” by Michael Wesch I felt inclined to think further about the topic he addressed in the video. The video expresses that we are the web. It also expresses that the web links people and ideas together. In addition he talked about the differences of digital text verses text written on paper. He explained how digital test is more movable, flexible, and above all more hyper then text written on paper. Digital text can link and move anywhere in just a couple short seconds. Towards the end of the video he says “The Web is no longer just linking information…The Web is linking people…” this quote, I feel poses a significant point in the message the video is ultimately trying to get across.  The message that I interpreted from the video was that the Web is a tool that we use in order to connect and share with each other. The Web is a new and more efficient way of communicating.

Personally, I find using the web as a tool of communication surpasses any other form of communication. It is faster and the message you are trying to communicate can be altered so that it is worded to the best is possibly can be. The individual sending the message has the power to proof read what they are going to say and avoid social turmoil by portraying the message in a better way. Although the new and well adopted way of communication has many benefits there is always negatives, some insignificant others quite the opposite. Is it important to continue the traditional way of communication and preserve our society or embrace new ideas and concepts that have an undetermined outcome? Is the progress of society more important than the reassurance that relatively no new negative changes will occur? Conclusively, this video caused me to participate in thinking further about what the web really is and what purpose it serves.

There is No Positive in Bullying

After reading Carl Fisches blog “It Gets Better” and watching the YouTube video on the blog I was reminded of how real and present bullying is. The actual blog was brief but still left a lasting impression on me. Mr. Fisch got straight to the point in this blog; he was very clear about his beliefs on the matter of bullying. In the blog he says “Bullying is not ok. Hate is not ok. Neither is standing by and letting it happen.” I strongly agree with him on this subject. Putting a person down because they are different from you is just plain wrong. The phrase “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me” is inaccurate, quite frankly words do hurt. Suggesting otherwise would be to assume the victim of the bullying has a strong self esteem. If a person is subject to bullying odds are they do not have a strong self esteem so therefore there is no reasoning behind the phrase.

                Bullying is a serious topic; children have lost their lives because of it. Even though adults make it clear that bullying is wrong it still painfully present in schools. What I am curious about is what would drive a bully to bully a kid so much to the point where the victim is suicidal? Wouldn’t the guilt be unbearable? I mean knowing that you have ruined a kid’s entire day, or even just knowing that what you said or did would affect that person the rest of their life. I haven’t been severely affected by bullying but I have seen the effect that it has had on my peers. Personally I think hurting someone with words is the worst way to cause damage to a person. Bruises will heal relatively quickly but a person self esteem takes years to heal. Some of my friends have unfortunately been subject to bullying and I have seen what a low confidence level can do a person. A low confidences end result on a said individual is always negative. Conclusively, Mr. Fisches blog reminded me of the reality of bullying and the fact that it is everywhere, not just my school.  

A Risk We Take

The article “Denver woman shot after argument in convenience store” by Kieran Nicholson caused me to revaluate my life and come to the realization of the dangers that are out there.  The article is brief and gives the basics of the situation at hand. It explains that the incident occurred at around 11:15 pm and that the victim was shot in the leg. The victim was shot after leaving the store while she was in her car with her child; thankfully the child was not injured. In the reading the piece of information that surprised me most was the fact that this atrocity occurred near a convince store. This poses the question how does this affect me? I visit convince stores often, and I am sure that everyone has visited one over the course of their lives as well.

The truth of the matter is that entering one is a risk, a risk of your safety. Convince stores are dangerous not because the purpose they serve in society but because it is open to anyone and everyone, knowing this one could then say that any public place is dangerous. If armed gunmen can shoot an innocent citizen at a convince store then I am certain a person just as dangerous could enter a park and shoot another innocent citizen, who is to say that innocent citizen couldn’t be you?  Knowing the risk present is it worth it to enter public facilities? I believe it is, innocent citizens should not alter their lives just due to the irresponsible decisions made by others. If people were to simply hide in their houses and not enter public places our society as we know it would not progress, it would come to a halt. The people would not be able to get the things they needed to thrive and be successful. It is my opinion that it is better to take a risk and thrive then live in hiding and be miserable, what is the point of being alive if you are not living your life? Conclusively, this article helped me in realizing the risks I take every day, I no longer am blind to the threats that exist in our world.

The Web: a Tool to Progress

After having the great pleasure of reading “Footprints in a Digital Age” by Will Richardson I obtained a better understanding of the main positive effects the web can have on a said person. This article addressed many points, one of which is the issue of technology taking over the lives of young children. The article also expressed that sharing ideas through the web helps the progress of society. In the article Richardson says “What we say is copyable; others can take it, use it, or change it with ease, making our ability to edit content and comprehend the ethical use of the content we read even more crucial.” I think that what Richardson is saying in this quote is that by sharing our ideas other people can take our ideas and change them a little to make new ideas. The ideas created can have the capability to change the world. The web is a fast efficient way to share ideas; therefore it is an essential tool to helping society progress and embrace the future.

By listening to others ideas I myself have been able to critique them and come up with my own, there is no question that this skill has had a positive contribution on my life. I believe that thoughts are linked, one thought leads to another. If there was no communication of ideas and thoughts we would not have nearly as many scientific break throughs or obtain some of the technology that we have today.  The ideas created lead to inventions and scientific discoveries molded from other thoughts, those thoughts had molded from previous thoughts ect. If the thoughts had not been shared there would be no idea molded to create the invention in the first place. This made me think if everyone’s in the world ideas were shared would it have a positive or negative effect on the future? I think that it would have both a negative and positive effect. The positive would be that more ideas would be created; the negative is that bad ideas would also be created penalizing the progress of the world. Conclusively, this article gave me a much better understanding of the main positive effects the web can have on the world and how essential it is to share ideas.

Why Suicide?

 After reading the article “Broncos WR Kenny McKinley found dead in apparent suicide” by Joey Bunch and Lindsey H. Jones, published by the Denver Post I was compelled to think of what would drive a professional football player, or any person to commit suicide? The article gives a brief summary of his football career and the major events leading up to his death. McKinley is described by one of his teammates as having “a big heart, a love for life.” In the article it was evident that McKinley had a large physical contribution to the team as well as an emotional contribution. Knowing this I cannot come up with a rational answer to my previous question. It seems to me that the idea of suicide is a selfish and extreme one. Everyone’s life has value and purpose. Why throw that away? The position that a person is in can always change, this is both an advantage and a disadvantage. For a person in a position where suicide has crossed their mind this is an advantage, once you have hit rock bottom the only way you can go is up.

 I don’t understand why a person would choose death over life, many people die every day who do not wish to die. These people would do just about anything to have the physical heath that some suicidal individuals possess. I have experienced a death in my own life, one of my mother’s close friends past away around 5 years ago. When this tragic event occurred I witnessed the effect it had on everyone around my mother’s friend. This event caused grief and sadness to the people that my mother’s friend cared about. This poses the question why would a suicidal person choose to hurt everyone that cares about them by taking their own life? It is once again a selfish act.  The suicidal person is choosing to take themselves out of their own misery and cause many other people misery as a result. Do not misinterpret the previous sentence, I only wish to provide you with another point of view on the situation. Suicide is a concept that affects the entire world, there are people considering it across the globe as you read this. Conclusively, after reading this article and reflecting on McKinley’s death I am still not able to rationally answer my initial question, although now I understand that really anyone could be suicidal even professional football players that are described as having “a love for life.”