Blog 17: Summarizing and Responding to "The End of Overeating."

  Summarizing 

        In the passage by David A.Kessler, a former commissioner of the food and drug administration argues that alot of the processed food is being re engineered to create addiction. Many consultants describe how they are trying to fashion products that offer whats become know in the food industry only as "entertainment" Many of the foods today are created to "explode in your mouth". People who respond to laboratory designed concoctions according to Kessler is called 'Conditioned Hyper eating". People get addicted to foods such as cinnabons and Starbucks strawberries & creme frappuccinos according to kessler and just like research on rats, he maintains that animals brains react to sweet fatty foods the same way that addicts respond to cocaine.

Responding;

           I agree with David A. Kessler when he states that much of our processed food is being engineered to create addiction. Many of today's products such as meats, eggs and dairy have so many chemicals added to the to them so the products has a longer shelf life. Many animals are injected with chemicals so they can produce more eggs/milk. A large number of the animals are being tortured and killed and left to lie in there own filth which creates the rise of disease. Many companies are adding "special chemicals" to the food so it wont go bad so fast. Do you really think this is healthy for our body? Companies are trying to "fashion" products so they appeal to the consumers. Fat, sugar and salt turn out to be the crucial elements in this equation. different "entertaining" items mix these ingredients in different combinations.

         Kessler using the term "conditioned Hyper eating" to describe how people respond to these chemically engineered products. Many food like Cinnabons are Starbucks Strawberries & cream frappaccinos are like drugs according to Kessler. A research on rats proves that animals brains react to sweet and fatty foods the same way the addicts respond to cocaine. Companies are also adding chemicals to the processed food so consumers get addicted.
         Companies are all about themselves these days. Many processed food has added chemicals to maintain its "freshness". Food can be in the company freezer for longer without going bad, because of this companies are saving money. the food stays fresher for longer and they no longer need a new shipment as frequent, and because less food is being tossed away they are able to sell more. Many of the fast food companies target kids. companies such as McDonald's and Burger King put toys in there "happy meals" to catch the kids attention. When it really boils down to it it is not such a happy meal. Companies are always trying new ways to catch the consumers attention and want consumers to experience "new things"
          Consumers need to learn and get familiar with the foods they are eating and giving to their loved ones. Preparing your foods at home would be the safest and smartest bet. God knows what you going to get when you order your next "happy meal"

        

Blog 16: Revision of CAT #2

              In the passage by Nicholas Balaker he states that young children have a greater chance of picking up smoking if they see actors in movies doing it. According to researchers "Thirty-eight percent of children who start smoking do so in imitation of movies they have seen". The higher the rating for a certain movie the bigger chance of it having people who smoke; according to Dr. James D. Sargent, the lead author on the study and a professor of Pediatrics at Dartmouth medical school.
             Children now a days are going to see "R-rated" movies at such a young age. Young kids who go and see r rated movies have a greater chance of smoking. One study interviewed 6,522 children nationwide and gave them a list of box office hits. The researchers added up the number of times each child could have been shown someone smoking in a movie. Kids who viewed movies with people smoking were more than 2 & a half times as likely to pick up smoking as those who had very little exposure. Although according to Dr. Sargent the studies results only included young children and the report did not rule out the chances that smoking began before the children saw the certain movies. The out come of the results tell us that this topic should be taken with great concern.
            Nonetheless i believe that kids who view movies with people who are smoking there is a greater chance of them smoking. Kids these days are allowed to go see r rated movies so you should expect them to try "R-rated" things. The only people to blame for this is the parents, Kids should not be able to see adult rated movies. We are harming our kids in more ways than one.
           All my life until about 6 years ago my mom would smoke. It was a normal thing for me to see her with a cigarette in her hand. I guess i have her to blame for me smoking. Even though i was exposed to smoking by the movies and the "outside" world i personally think i was influenced by my mom. According to Nicholas Balaker kids are very much influenced by movies, from what the actors are saying, smoking or wearing. The children's mind is so naive and its a shame that children are learning this hasty habit from movies.We have to stop allowing our kids to see "adult" movies. Slowly but surely we are killing our children and we must come together and stop this or they will be no future for our children.

Blog 15, Part I: Summarizing the Stories + Part II: Responding to a Factory Farming Issue

Part one.

The Meatrix

       This short film describes the process that animals endure will at a slaughter house. Many farm lands are being destroyed because of these large slaughters houses/factories. Most of your meat eggs and milk come from places like this. Long ago agriculture corporations began changing family farming to maximize their profits. animals are packed as closely together as possible. the cruel conditions forced animals to fight and kill each other. Also the rise of disease also has an effect on the animals.

The Meatrix: Revoltingg

     In this short film "The Meatrix; Revolting" it tells us how slaughter houses work. Most people are not aware of the abuse and torture that take place in these factories/slaughter houses. The animals also have to deal with filthy conditions and inhuman settings. 


           

The Meatrix II 1/2

      The Meatrix 11 1/2 goes more in dept on how slaughter houses work and process there meats eggs and milk.  Factories or slaughter like to work at a fast pace in order to get more meat processed by doing this workers are being injured.

Part Two

Animal Welfare

       All around this country, animals used for meat, eggs, and dairy often suffer on farms where they are treated as "things" of production rather than animals. The factories where the animals are being raised are often large, over populated, filthy and inhuman. Many times animals will be kept in one cage that the amount of toxic levels rise and often make the animals ill or even kill them.
      Cows that are unfortunately born into the dairy production are only allowed to stay with the mother for about twelve hours before it is whisked away to live a "wonderful" life being tortured and abused. One the cow has grown to the "proper" size and they are no longer producing milk it is taken to the slaughter house. While being transported from the truck to the slaughter house many of the cows are injured and unable to walk.They are "pushed prodded and shoved into the slaughter house.
    Just before a new pig is to arrive the mother pig is placed into a small crate maid lay on her side. When the piglet is born the nails and teeth and quickly clipped so they don't harm the other pigs. When the pigs are old enough they are taken away from their mothers and placed inside a pin. The pigs is usually inactive always showing signs of stress and aggression. When the pigs are transported they often experience mistreatment in part with any illness they picked up while at the factory many die will being transported.
        Most chickens are given hormone shots which make their muscles grow at an alarming rate. a majority of the times the chickens will lose the ability to walk. Many chickens are locked up on a very small cage. Most of the time it is so crowed in the cage the chickens will start attacking the other chickens with their beaks. Due to this half of the chickens beak is usually cut off. 
          Although a lot of people know what is going on in these places refuse to change anything about their life habitats which will in return help protect our animals. better laws should be enforced to protect the animals and the people.
    

Blog 14; Reflection on the Media Unit

      The media Unit for me was the worst. We watched The Matrix, The Truman Show and We read "Allegory of the Cave". The matrix and the Allegory of the Cave were the hardest to understand, till' this day i still wouldn't be able to give you a symbolic meaning of them. The Truman Show was a bit easier to grasp.
When it got the the point where we had to compare The Matrix and The allegory Of The Cave I found it really difficult.
      The exercises that we have to do in class such as writing responses using claims, reasons and evidence in good docs in groups and also in the forums were helpful sort of. I definitely got extra practice by doing the exercises. The easiest part was summarizing. what i found to be difficult was giving actual examples.To me it seems like most of the time i cannot relate to the story in anyway. Most of the time i just find myself making up a "personal experience". and when i do come up with something that can relate to the passage i start to re-think it and think it doesn't relate at all. Practice makes perfect. (and I'm on my way there) 
      We were also givin' two practice CAT tests. The first one i did ok i think although i didn't pass. The second one we did i was more confident about handing it in. Perhaps because the passage was about smoking. I felt it was easier for me to start writing. I also think that i organized my essay alot better the second time around.
       I also find myself annotating more. I read the passage and realize that i am underlining important words & information, looking up words that i'm not one hundred percent sure of. and i also realize that my essays look alot better they are more organized and make alot more sense. 
     Honestly i am very happy this unit is over. I look forward to the next unit and hopefully it wont be as difficult but knowing the teacher ;] it might be worse. I also enjoyed the fact that we didn't work in groups as much. (Thank god) & i feel like i have learned more working by myself. All around this unit was hard. On top of getting more practice writing and putting together essays we had to find the symbolic meaning of different movies. I am still not good at this.

Blog 13: Revision of CAT #1

      

           In the passage below "The Dangers Of Reality T.V by Timothy Sexton, he explains that all of these reality TV shows are sending out a defective message. Rather than looking at someone for their "ability" they are looking for people with great "image". The old belief or way of thinking is that competition is the way to achieve success.
          Reality TV show producers like to send out the message that in order to achieve success you must have a great portrait rather than a great ability. they also want the viewers to think that education is not at all necessary. I've watched this show on MTV called Teen moms. It is a reality show with young teen moms struggling to raise their child & achieve there life goals at the same time. Instead of teaching kids or teen girls not to have sex i think its saying its "OK". The show is meant to show viewers that teen pregnancy is not ok. I think it has a bad influence on the younger generation. It promotes sex, teen relationships and teen fighting.
         Just the other night i was watching "Nancy Grace" and she was talking about one of the girls on Teen Mom. The girl was videotaped fighting another young girl over a guy. They (MTV) made it seem like it was acceptable. I think these reality TV shows have gotten out of control. Instead of molding and shaping our younger viewers we are corrupting them.
         There is another show "The Bad Girls Club", it's a group of 8 self proclaimed "bad girls". Every season the show has aired you have to notice the girls. Here is a perfect example of "Image rather than ability". The only thing it takes to be on that show is looks. You don't have to be smart, been in college or posses any degree.
         I think reality TV shows as a whole are pessimistic. They are causing great harm to the younger audience. Their minds are being tricked with what they see on these reality T.V shows. They promote bad traits and allow us to think that what they are airing is right. We all know that the real key to success is "ability & education" not image or stupidity.

Blog 12: Summary and Response to "Red Pill or Blue Pill?"

           In the article "Red pill or Blue pill; Is Ignorance Bliss? adapted from " The Matrix, Liberal education, and other splinters in the mind" by Christine Cornell and Patrick Malcolmson the authors begin with a comparison with The Matrix and Alice's adventures In Wonderland and Through The Looking Glass. Just like "Alice" Neo goes to a new world. They both (Neo & Alice) undergo a dramatic change Forcing them to think who they really are? Are they dreaming? "which life is a dream- the life they had always led or the weirdness they are now experiencing"?
        The authors then continue to compare Neo and Alice going "through a mirror", Neo having to pick between the blue pill which will make him stay in the matrix or the red pill which allows him to leave the matrix and return to "normal", and Alice having the magic drink and cake.
The main thing they share is there confusion of what is real. When the "caterpiller' asked Alice "Who are you"? She replied with a "I-I hardly Know"
        "The Allegory of the Cave" by Plato is about being "set free". The prisoners are fooled into thinking that the lights on the cave is the real world but really is a "shadowy world". Coming out of  the cave is a agonizing existence because they are not used of that. "as Morpheus explains to Neo, His eyes hurt because he has never used them". "Freedom is not something that most people are going to be inclined towards or be receptive to".
       Both the Matrix and The Allegory of the cave show the undertaking of Neo and the "prisoner" that left the cave. Cornell stated that "turning around from the world of becoming to the world of being" which to me is a symbol of life on the inside and outside of the "cave" for the prisoner. Everyday people are experiencing new things in there everyday life whether its with school, friends or relationships.
        To get back to the answer of the title "Is ignorance Bliss"? I personally think it is. By us being ignorant we try to avoid endeavors stopping us from learning new things.