Online learning

I do not think online classes will totally replace traditional classroom learning. There are some things you have to learn hands on in a classroom. Online classes are definitely more convenient especially for nontraditional students who work and have families. I think most online classes require more work than a traditional class. You have to do a lot more required discussions online and in a traditional classroom you might not be called on to discuss subjects every class meeting.

I do not think all students should be required to participate in online learning. It is not for everybody. You have to be very disciplined to keep with your work and due dates. I think a lot of colleges and universities will be offering more and more online classes. A lot of the general requirement courses are easily done online but a lot of upper level major classes would be better offered in a classroom setting.

Government Regulations on Fast Food

I do not think the government should pass laws regulating the types of food served at fast food restaurants. Most fast food restaurants offer healthier choices now. Also, it is the individual person's responsibility to make the right choices and utilize moderation when eating fast food. Restaurants like Wendy's offer choices like baked potatoes, salad, or chili with their combo meals instead of fries at no additional charge. The kids meals at Wendy's also come with the option of mandarin oranges instead of fries and low fat milk instead of soda. I also like that on Wendy's website you can build your meal and see the nutrition content of that meal. Healthy eating is all about planning ahead! Most fast food restaurants offer healthier options for kids meals. Burger King offers apple fries with a low-fat caramel dipping sauce instead of french fries. They also offer kids meal options like macaroni and cheese. People today need to take more responsibility for themselves instead of leaving it up to the government to regulate everything we do.

Thanksgiving

My family and I always celebrate Thanksgiving. My husband, son, and I go to visit my family for lunch. My family always cooks turkey, dressing, dumplings, and all the fixings! We then go to my husband's aunt's house for dinner that night and eat again! There are always lots of good desserts at her house. We see a lot of his cousins and second cousins at her house that we only see on Thanksgiving each year. Then we go home and my husband goes to work. He works third shift and only gets Wednesday night before Thanksgiving off. It's probably rough on him but he does it every year and I'm sure it is worth it to him to spend time with his family on Thanksgiving.

Families in 2109

The family unit in 2109 will hopefully be even stronger than in 2009. I hope that people continue to realize that they need to make time for family as a lot of people are today. With all of the awareness and education today about topics such as teen sex, obesity, etc, etc, hopefully families in 2109 will be healthier and well educated on such issues and be able to discuss issues with their family members. There might even be advances in technology that make household chores like cooking and cleaning easier so families have more time together.

Community

To me the word community means a group of people that live together, work together, go to church together, etc, etc. Neighbors know each other and check on each other. There are small communities like the one I live in which is in an rural farm area. Some communities are subdivisions or apartment complexes in the city. I think no matter where you live knowing and caring for your neighbors is what community really means.

Honor Codes

I think honor codes on campuses sound like a great idea. Having students sign pledges to complete their work honestly and publicizing them by ceremonies or hanging them up around campus, would help to remind students of their pledge and guilt the conscience of those considering cheating. Of course, there will probably still be some students who cheat and do not care but I think the majority of people want to do the right thing. Also, having a judicial process where students serve on committees to review cases of those students who have broken the code would be effective in keeping students in check. Instead of just being confronted by a teacher or just failing a class, being confronted by your peers would be much more embarrassing but it would also be a more fair way to bring them to "justice", by a group of their own peers.

Reality t.v.

Reality shows have definitely grown in popularity in the last few years. There are so many different kinds of reality shows. Some are just shows that follow the real lives of celebrities or certain people, like 18 Kids and Counting. I watch this show and I enjoy it. I think they probably act somewhat differently when the cameras are not on but it pretty much shows what it is like to live in a family of 20 & shows how their faith and beliefs guide them. Some reality shows are of a contest nature, like America’s Next Top Model or Top Chef. The Biggest Loser would have to be my absolute favorite reality show. It is very inspiring to watch people totally change their lives & overcome obstacles in their lives. Reality television has changed the way people think about television. It has given a lot of “regular people” the chance to be on television. My husband likes to watch reality shows like Ice Road Truckers and Extreme Loggers which are very interesting because you get to see how these people make their living and how things like logging are done. They can be very educational.

Wind farms

I think the future of these farms will greatly help the U.S. and world economy. They are a good alternative for producing electricity. With rising energy prices, there are now thousands of wind farms in many countries around the world. There is still a lot of controversy surrounding the pros and cons of wind power and its local impact. There are impacts on the ecosystem by changing the wind patterns. There are also problems with the wind turbines killing birds. I think these are minor problems that can be worked out and the pros outweigh the cons.

Political Blogs

The political blogs The Huffington Post and The Daily Dish each offer a lot of information and different current articles from political happenings. They both use types of propaganda such as appealing to fear and appealing to prejudices. The Huffington Post appeals to fear in their post about how the recession is creating a "lost generation" among recent graduates who cannot find jobs. The headline says that only 46% of 16-24 years had a job last month, the lowest since 1948. This grabs your attention. The Daily Dish has an article about gay rights and how they have the right to pursue happiness which is a propaganda technique called flag-waving which uses a feeling of patriotism to inspire and may not necessarily diminish or entirely omit one's capability for rational examination of the matter in question.

Film Industry

I definitely think the film industry is still a viable art form. I think movie theaters will survive even with the competition from internet and television. People still enjoy going out to the movies and people are still willing to pay the higher prices for it. They just may not go as often. A movie I have recently seen that I would recommend is Twilight. I have only recently watched it because when it first came out I thought it was just another vampire movie. My aunt finally talked me into watching it and it was so much more than a vampire movie. It was an interesting story of how vampires and humans can coexist and even fall in love. I have also enjoyed the movie Fireproof. It had a message behind it and a great storyline. After watching it, it kind of makes you appreciate your spouse more.

Images

The image of the Confederate flag usually brings up controversy. For a lot of southerners, the Confederate flag symbolizes pride in their southern culture and country music without any political meaning behind it. African-Americans see the Confederate flag as a symbol of racism as to them it represents the South wanting to keep slavery in existence and because it is used by racist groups like the Ku Klux Klan.

McDonald's logo, the golden arches, is another image that is widely recognized around the globe. For a lot of kids, it represents happiness. I can remember being treated to McDonald's as a kid and being so excited about getting a Happy Meal and playing on the playground.

Embedded Reporters

The media had been disappointed with the access allowed for reporters during the 1991 Gulf War and 2001 invasion of Afghanistan so embedded reporters were allowed by the U.S. military to travel with troops during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The military decided to allow this to aid in “information warfare” and to get their own story told in hopes of garnering more support. I think this was very appropriate. Reporters wanted to go and report what was happening and they were willing to be trained and take the risks. They probably saw it as part of their job just as the soldiers did. (http://tvnz.co.nz/view/news_world_story_skin/148827 War reporters get battle training)

In March of 2003 with the invasion of Iraq there were around 570 to 750 embedded reporters. However, by April 2003 the number of embedded reporters began to fall to around 100 and in 2005 there were 48 embedded reports in Iraq. The financial strains have caused media outlets to pull their staff from Iraq. Sig Christenson. a senior military writer for the San Antonio-Express News and president of Military Reporters & Editors says that “those few journalists who remain embedded in Iraq bring a perspective and context to the conflict that is important to convey to the audience back home. “Everything you live as a military writer, you bring back to your work,” he says. (http://www.journalism.org/node/2596 The Vanishing Embedded Reporter in Iraq)

Propaganda

Propaganda is a means of persuasion used to mislead and deceive people into believing and agreeing with the propagandist's point of view. Propaganda can be used to persuade people of causes that are good as well as bad. Good propaganda can persuade someone to donate money to a charity or to become a volunteer at a local hospital. They can use the bandwagon propaganda by saying things such as "Join the global effort to fight breast cancer" insinuating that everyone else is doing it but it would be a good thing to join the fight against breast cancer that would benefit a lot of people.

Companies can also use propaganda to persuade consumers to purchase their products. They use types of propaganda such as testimonials by having celebrities endorse their products in order to persuade consumers to buy what they are trying to sell. They are banking on the fact that people will like that celebrity and respect them enough to agree without stopping to think if it is something they themselves really need or would use.

Politicians also use propaganda in their campaigns. They use many types of propaganda. One example would be card stacking. They use this type of propaganda in that only certain facts that are desirable to the candidate are presented and they ignore the facts that would make them look bad to the voters. They might list all of the good things that were achieved while they were mayor of a city in a campaign for a senate seat. They would not say anything about the negative aspects. They might mention that property taxes were lowered during their term but may not mention that taxes on other things were raised like building permits, food, gas, etc. Another type of propaganda often used by politicians is name calling. They label their opponents with words of bad connotations in hopes of persuading voters to believe them without really thinking about the issues at hand and in turn the voters will not vote for the opponent but for the politician doing the name calling. They will also use name calling against the ideas and policies of their opponents. They are wanting the voters to react to their claims unquestioningly. A lot of people labeled President Obama as a terrorist during the presidential campaign because of his father having been a Muslim. They were using name calling as well as faulty cause and effect. They were trying to say that because his father was Muslim then he must be too and because some terrorists are Muslim then anybody who is Muslim is a terrorist, which is not a correct assumption.

Getting Started

Just getting started with my blog and trying to figure it out.