Laramie Project Quote and POEM

"And we're still going to have people who hold with the old ideals, and I was probably one of them fourteen months ago. I'm not gonna put up with it, and I'm not going to listen to it. And if they don't like my views on it, fine. The door goes both way." (Kauffman 86)

Every day people wish they could stay forever.

Yet some must come and go,

for their lives are just too precious for God to allow them to flow.

Every day people remember the death of Matthew Shepard

Yet some think of this as an act evil.

They are mistaken. 

They should never forget that good comes from evil,

and this is why his story is never forsaken. 

Controversy surrounding Matthew's murder

I honestly think that this is such a horrifying picture. I think that this has a lot of controversy over it because they make many references to God. I am a Christian, and I absolutely believe in the morals of God, but there is also the side, where people who are Christian preach happiness and kindness and love. These signs show no resemblance of love or kindness, and I think that these are wrong. I think a huge controversy is that people have the right to free speech, so they CAN hold up signs like these. I just think that if these people truly believe in God, then they should try and be kinder and more loving.

Matthew Video

I really like this video because it shows the rationale for Dennis and Judy Shepard's decision to give the life sentence, rather than the death penalty. This video only shows pictures of Matthew, but it has a recording of Dennis Shepard (Terry Kinney). This is from the movie of "The Laramie Project" movie on HBO. I really like this because even though you can't see his speech, you can feel the emotion he has especially with all the pauses and the tone. 

Trial for Matthew

These are the three suspects in the beating death of Matthew Shepard waiting to be arraigned on Oct. 9, 1998. From left are Russell Henderson, 21, Aaron McKinney, 22, and Chastity Pasley, 20. The men are serving life in prison for murder. Pasley was sentenced to 15 months to two years for being an accessory after the fact to murder. I think that the message conveyed here, is that R. Henderson and A. McKinney are two heartless people who committed a brutal crime. The fact that they just committed a hate crime and both got prison sentences for life -- they don't seem to be too upset. With Chastity Pasley covering her face and showing some emotion is a powerful message. She is sentenced for being an accessory, and will only get about 15 mo. to two years. For her to be this emotional, I feel that she does have a heart and truly feels upset by the situation. 

Matthew Shepard Bio

Matthew Wayne Shepard was born on December 1, 1976 and he died on October 12, 1998. He attended the University of Wyoming who was tortured and murdered near Laramie, Wyoming. He died at Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colorado from severe head injuries. He was described by his father as "an optimistic and accepting young man who had a special gift of relating to almost everyone. He was the type of person who was very approachable and always looked to new challenges. Matthew had a great passion for equality and always stood up for the acceptance of people's differences."

Positive Stereotypes in Society..

I think that a general stereotype that people have of America is that we are all proud to be American. I think that this is positive because I do think that being an American is awesome. I think that it's really nice how people will embrace being an American. I also think it's positive because I think it's good to show pride and liberty through a whole country, and to really embrace America's morals and values.

Negative in Society...

I think a really negative stereotype that we have in America, is that all Mexicans escape Mexico by hopping over the fence and running. I think that this is really an inappropriate stereotype because the US was founded by intruders, and we are known as the Melting Pot. I don't think that we should be discriminative or telling jokes about Mexicans crossing the border because I'm pretty sure many people can cross the border without "hopping the fence." People in the US should not be generalizing that all people of this ethnicity are illegal immigrants.

Negative Stereotype of Me

I personally think that the stereotype of women drivers not knowing how to drive really sucks...especially those that are asian, which I think are really misleading and dumb. My dad works on cars for a living, and he's taught me everything I know about driving and how to drive stick. I wasn't even allowed to get a new car until I learned how to drive stick. I definitely think this is a negative because not all women are bad drivers, and not all asians are bad drivers either.

Positive Stereotype about Myself

Since I am asian, there is always the stereotype that I'm going to extremely smart. I would say that I'm an average student, but I still think that this is a positive stereotype about myself because of this popularity. When people expect me to be smarter than I really am, it makes me work harder and to study more often to get better grades; not necessarily because my parents think that I need to be a perfect student. I chose this picture because I think that it's a really funny picture, but it's also not very mean. Also, I think that with the last line saying that "he never gets good grades anyway" almost shows a little bit of acceptance with the fact that his son doesn't get good grades. I think that the "asians should always be smart" line is more of a benefit than a conflict for stereotypes.

Branding

I LIKE HOLLISTER. I think that I chose this brand mostly because I like all of their clothes, but also because it has a very SoCal vibe to it. I was born in Southern California, so to wear clothes inspired by the area is always something I like. Even though I live in Colorado, Hollister makes me feel like I'm still in the California mentality. I want to go to school in California, so it helps me think that I'm going to be back home soon.

Culture I would want...

I think that someday I would want to be part of the elite culture. I wouldn't say I would want the money aspect of it, but I would really want to have a top of the line education. I want to go to a good college, and be well-grounded with a career once I'm a little bit older.

Social Culture

Family Culture

School Culture

Media Culture

I can't really find a specific definition for media culture, but what I got from the internet is that media culture is sort of a way of life or different ways to communicate with people. This is like the many different ways you can find out news or information, and I definitely agree with this.

This is a picture of Wikipedia and I chose this because this is a huge way of how people attain information. It's not really news, but it is a source of information. It's a way of using media and getting information, and it has become an international sensation to use Wikipedia. When Wikipedia blocked it's site for a day, the general population went crazy when they couldn't use Wikipedia to do their homework...or just look up cool facts.

I chose this specific picture because it's a new way of communicating with people. "Let's skype soon!" is now a typical phrase that you hear from BFF to other BFFS. It has become a new way to communicate with people through social media.

Mass Culture

In general, a mass culture is transmitted to individuals, rather than arising from people's daily interactions, and therefore lacks the distinctive content of cultures rooted in community and region. It sparks individualism within other people.

When I think of mass culture, I think of this culture as fitting with everyone else besides the elite culture. It's almost like the "hipsters" of the elite.

I chose this picture because I think that this picture gives a sense of the "general mass" of people. It shows a whole bunch of legs doing all the same things and all wearing the same thing. I guess you could say this is part of popular culture, but a little bit more general. This is popular with the general population.

So, I chose this picture because it really shows the clash between the "elite" group of people and the regular class of people. They don't necessarily need to be so different, but this shows how differently the groups are. Obviously, you don't see the 1% of elitists out on the streets protesting.

Pop Culture

Defined by the dictionary, popular culture, or so-called "pop culture" is a group or pattern of characteristics that are generally liked by most people, or maybe even trending between masses of people mostly because masses of people are looking at them. It is accepted by the general population.

Popular culture is... well, popular.  In my own words, popular culture is much like a craze or a trend. It's not something that lasts that long. It sort of starts out strong, and fades away after a while, and when not as many people are into it.

I chose the famous "Tebow Mania." This is a picture of some high school guys that were tebowing in the middle of school... not even in Colorado! I would say that this is okay if it were just in Colorado, since, he is the starting quarterback of the Denver Broncos, but to have this going nationwide...is craze. The fact is this, he's not even that good, but why is everyone drooling over him? Because everyone else is! He's popular. There are traits in Tim Tebow that the general public absolutely approves of and love.

Planking is something that I honestly don't even understand...but people that I know, and people all over the place are taking pictures of themselves "planking." It's another thing that's kind of on the edge of being dumb, but huge numbers of people are doing it. It's something that the younger population of America is getting into, and it's something that they all approve of. That's why it's popular. They all think it's fun to see who can get the best planking position.

Elite Culture

The Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology defines elite culture as sort of a "high culture." They define it as a characteristic or lifestyle that is shared by the established aristocracy. This is the taste of people who are elite, and who believe that they are at a higher standpoint because of their high education and wealth.

For my own definition, I would say that I really do agree with this definition. I think that this is a group of high standardized people. They are the people who own fancy things, who have to have the newest collection of handbags customized by the designer, or even those who have a higher education taught to them.

I chose these pictures of The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, not because of the book itself, but because of the contents that this book goes over. Yes, this book does have a love story in it, but it also has the battle between the wealthy, and those who are trying to become wealthy. Throughout this book, Gatsby is constantly trying to win the heart of his long lost love Daisy. But in order to do that, he must act as if he were part of this "old money" phenomenon. What I mean by "old money" is that these people believed that they were so awesome and so great because they were the "first ones to land in the New world;" the first ones to own the most money. They all have a certain way to live by, and a certain standard -- they don't take well to those of "new money."

This is just another example from The Great Gatsby that portrays this elite culture. Just from this picture, you can see how their parties had to be thrown, and how they all had to dress -- proper, hot, and fancy.

Culture

Generally, culture can be defined as a pattern or behaviors that groups and characterizes different populations of people.

In my own words, and pertaining to my life, I would define culture as sort of a variation of groups and people that all share certain characteristics that group them and almost control the way that they live. With that being said, there are several varieties that can group people together. For example, culture can be considered with things like, where you're from, what you do everyday, who you hang out with, or maybe where you're born. I think that there is no set definition for culture because it is so broad, and anyone can make their own culture.

Like I said, culture can be considered with things such as where you're from. I chose this picture because it shows many different people, which I'm sure come from different countries, and live in different ways -- I bet they even speak all sorts of different languages as well. All of these people have their own unique culture to live by, and they can be grouped in so many ways.

 

So, I chose this picture because it shows the same type of scene, but from different types of "styles." I like this so much, because this picture shows something that each column can relate to; they're all table sets. But then, there is this whole other half of the picture that can separate the columns into different cultures. This doesn't have to be specifically from different parts of the world, but this can depend on a person's personality or taste that they choose for themselves.

Moving and Powerful Image

Slain Navy SEAL Jon Tumilson's dog "Hawkeye" lies next to his casket during funeral services in Rockford, Iowa. Tumilson was one of 30 American soldiers killed in Afghanistan on August 6 when their helicopter was shot down during a mission to help fellow troops who had come under fire.

I will just admit right now -- I am an animal lover. More specifically, a dog lover. When I see this picture, it really moves me to see how much love this dog has for his owner. The person dead is former US Navy Seal Jon Tumilson. I actually watched a video on Yahoo, when this first hit the internet. For the whole ceremony, the dog laid by his owner's casket the whole time. I like this because, it's almost unexpected. At funerals, people always forget about who that person lived with, who stood by his side, and who would always be there for a little smile. For me, this is a very unusual picture at first, mostly because I've never even seen a dog at a ceremony like this, but also because of the way the dog is laying. His position is very close to the casket, and he's laying there, almost like he's mourning. I love this because also because it shows so much about this dog's loyalty and love for his owner. Although it is a very sad picture, my eye is drawn straight towards "Hawkeye" and then to the American flag. I think this is powerful because it is American, and many people can relate to this image; a proud citizen, losing his life to serve our country. We see this every week and maybe every day on the news, it's something that happens to us daily, but for why this is such an important image, does not have me questioning. I also like how the light is shining on the casket, but barely reaching the tip of Hawkeye's nose. When I see this, I think of light as hope and spirit. I believe that this could represent the spirit and hope that will stay with Hawkeye even while his owner is gone.

10 images that describe me

Wordle

Growing Heart Cells -- Technology

This is obviously a huge deal -- growing heart cells to better the lives of others. Not only is this a very cool and cutting edge technology find, but it also has many other health benefits for people in the future.
The article I read can be found here: Growing Heart Cells Just for You - Technology Review.

Although it is still in the testing process, I find this as a PRO for technology. I would say, that personally, my standpoint on technology is mostly negative, but I think that this idea of growing our own heart cells is a big deal (and it's really cool!) The article that I have found really explains how innovative technology from Cellular Dynamics Innovations (CDI). The information from this has not only proven that there is some type of hope out there for growing our own cells, but has also become something to improve our own knowledge of our health. For people who are just finding that they have cardiology problems, this is a huge breakthrough. The scientists at CDI have stated that they can use this new technology to "...see if the four-year-old process that creates induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can yield insight into the functioning and fate of a healthy individual's heart cells (Duncan)." I'm not a doctor or scientist (yet), but even I can tell when there's something new and fascinating with the medical field. This is so innovative, and potentially the newest and best technology for life improvement or savior; that it's too good to call a con.

What I like about this article is also the fact that it brings up the negative aspects as well, which I think is something to help persuade readers. From the article, we can say that yes, this idea IS expensive, and it IS still in the testing process; but it is something worth spending the money on and going through the testing process.

The Blind Side

The Blind Side is one of my favorite movies. I love this picture mostly because I think I love the contrasts between the two people. I like how S.J. (the little boy) acts as Michael's (clearly the big guy) coach. I love how Michael is so huge, and people may view him as scary -- when in reality he is completely opposite. He is homeless and so appreciative when the Tuohy family brings him into their house. I also really like the ideas that are brought up here. I think this picture is so cute because S.J. is so tiny, but is trying to help make a HUGE difference. S.J. has a big heart from someone who is small and young. Michael is giant and almost found intimidating by those who judge him by his skin tone. I think that's why I love this picture and movie overall.