Classy

So, I'm upper-middle class. This is simply a matter of fact. My parents are both doctors, they both make good money. However, while writing my final, I realized something. I don't think about any class lower than me. They're simply below my notice. Their daily actions mean nothing to me. They're workers. They cook, they clean, they deliver, they labor. This is all I know of them. I thought it was interesting, as it seems to be the sort of thing that all upper-class people do, based on what I see and The Great Gatsby. How about you guys? Anyone else do this?

Drugs?

So this post is more about what you guys think rather than what I think. At least, that's what I'm going for.

Where do you guys draw the line for drugs? That is, what should be legal, what should be controlled, what should have an age limit, and what should be just outright illegal?

I really wanna see your guys' opinion on this one!

Are we all consumer whores?

So, we were talking about advertising and American Consumerism in AIS, and it got me thinking: "Have they gotten to me?" So I looked around my room and kept a running tally of everything that I had seen an ad for that I owned. Final tally: 52 that I had seen ads for out of 71 total, more than half. I found it kind of scary, especially after reading "The 6 Weapons of Influence." I think it would be interesting if perhaps everyone else in the class was to do the same. Let's see how good advertising really is!

Kane?

So we watched "Citizen Kane" in class the other day. Good movie, very deep. Lots of interesting angles and symbols.

But what does it have to do with "The Great Gatsby?" I mean, I understand the obvious connection between the crazy, declining millionaires, but beyond that, what is their connection? The two tales are of very different subject. "Gatsby" is a tale of longing for a person, of a relationship that Gatsby could never have. "Kane" was about a millionaire who was happily married not once, but twice. Kane longs for his childhood, which was taken from him. Gatsby longs for Daisy, with whom he screwed up his relationship.

I just don't really understand why the connection. We usually avoid the obvious and dive in to the subtle, but the only connection I see is obvious... any help B'Oconnolos?

NERD RAGE!

So it's not exactly breaking news, but darn it, I'm going to blog about it.

Apparently, Dungeons and Dragons (and by extension, most/all roleplaying games) has been banned in US prisons because it might lead to "gang behavior" and "escape fantasies." Well no friggin' duh! When one is in prison, what else is there for one to do than join a gang or think about getting out? I personally think that the ban is offensive, being an avid player myself, I know that surely, there's fantastical elements, but there's a huge line between the game and reality. How many times has a beholder disintegrated your parents? How often do you hear of four-man parties solving all of the world's problems in the span of a year? When was the last time you heard a gibbering mouther? I could go on, but you get the point.

Furthermore, the alternatives to that aren't really that great. Prisoners basically have the choice of exercise (because we really need our armed robbers more muscly), work (not too bad a choice, but still boring) or learn (better than D&D, but there's only so much you can take). What's the problem with a fantasy game? Any thoughts, fellow nerds (lookin' at you, Doc O'C)?

Huck Redux

Okay, so I got a faceful of owch from Doc O'c today about how my Huck Finn post was garbage. And he's right! That was garbage. So let me explain myself a little better. I, like our teachers, believe in the integration of current events into our American History course. But I take it a step further. See, books and such are on the "English" side of the history spectrum. And yes, I know we don't separate the two, but can Huck Finn really be called even mildly accurate history? So why then, do we mire ourselves in the past in the English department of our learning? I don't think we've read one book that was less than 15 years old, I can't remember when Reservation Blues was written. So my point is, why can't we read something current, either to our country or perhaps something relevant to the adults we've become? Maybe Speak, Night, or something else more current? I mean, I just think the book's a little outdated, and to be honest, that's one of my biggest pet peeves, outdated things. There ya go, Doc O'c, better?

The evolution of cartoons?

Whilst flipping channels, desperately looking for something to watch, I happened upon an episode of Tom and Jerry. For those of you that don't know, Tom and Jerry is an old (1950's) cartoon about a cat (Tom) and a mouse (Jerry), the plot of which is Tom constantly attempting to catch Jerry and failing. It's an old, silent slapstick cartoon. I decided to watch, as the show brings back nostalgic memories for me.

However, I was absolutely shocked by the amount of racism and imitable violence in the show. I haven't watched since I was like, 5, so I guess I didn't notice it then, but goddamn, that shit would not fly nowadays. It got me thinking about how cartoons have come since then. Nowadays, you can't actually show someone being hit, you have to show a *pow* blotch or simply imply it. Not only that, but words like "Crap" and "Hate" are considered right-out (I only know from personal experience.) I just thought it was interesting.