when watching tv and skimming through the paper i never noticed how lazy Americans are getting and how all these anti-biotics are in the end actually becoming bad for america. Like in the 30's when all these crazy anti-biotics came out and all these people never finished the full prescription and now all these crazy bugs and a small flu is killing people, that scientists can not find treatments for these genetically altered Super Bugs that can kill anymore. And you see a treatment for everything! and in the past few years people are just getting over diagnossed and so many kids have been wrongly diagnosed with ADD and ADHD and americans can't even change there diet for high blood pressure, high cholestorol, and also all these people getting diabetes and all these crazy miracleweight loss pills cannot be good for ones body and how in hospitals they are starting to give placebo pills or sugar pills like how everyone thinks theres always something wrong with them and just with obeciety getting so much more common is really making people scared for the future.

this week in AIS on friday we discussed and took a survey i guess on how "the american dream" is pursued or what america or an american life is about and the basis off it i guess. And alot of the questions really left me thinking hard and to answer them i was really confused and striken with alot of like fussyniss on how to answer and which answer to pick. And when thinking about a life and what i believe in and what my dreams and perspectives are on life and i came to the conclusion that i think that there are really no definite motoes or perspectives you can have on life b/c life is always changing and something new and unexpected may always show up so i think you can just go through life with a clear outgoing opening and just keep living and being thankful for your chance to live but just be open to whatever is next and worry when that time has come b/c you only have one life to live.

When thinking about the percent of Jewish Citizens within the US and that its like less than 5% really strikes me as weird. Because for example on Saturday when drving downtown with a couple of my friends; i was like oh lets turn on 93.9 for the christmas carols and i realized that i was the only one who was not Jewish in the car and for example a major connotation of Glencoe is just that all the jewish people live there and this just strikes me as interesting especially when on friday in class during our discussion one of the major controversal topics was where you grow up is who you become and it strikes me as funny when there are so little jewish people in the world and on the north shore there are so many jewsih people around and i could never think that that could affect my life and when i get older and maybe move away that things would be a lot different is a shocker.

Sometimes on sunday nights when im bored i like to watch 60 Minutes with my dad and tonite a women was interviewing a man on fast food these days and how many calories everything is and how these companies can keep competeing with each other and it really astonished me. I mean this woman seemed like she actually had no interest in the questions she was asking and what the interview was virtually even about but as i noticed calories intake has such a higher power on what people look at when reading a nutrion label that it really is amazing how different food is. For example they went to subway who actually showed there calories on the menu and it was really weird that after this women got this relatively plain chicken sandwich it ended up to be around 700 calories. But what bugs me is that when looking at nutritional labels on food most people look at calories and at nothing else and thats how they judge what to eat. But then they dont look at the grams of trans fat or all these mystery chemicals that are really bad for you and even though a big salad may have more calories than a small french fry when looking at the actual nutritional value they cannot compete so i think the way american looks at dieting is all wrong

In AIS this week we had the pleasure of going downtown to look at some cultural architecture and see The Crucible at the Stephan Wolf Theatre and when we went downtown i didnt really know what we were goign to do down there but when they said we were gonna like walk around and look at buildings i was like wow this is gonna be boring looking at old dirty buildings all day but when they said that we were looking at Native American architecture it just didnt strike me that there would ever be a numerous amount of hidden architecture aroudn the city. So when we went around and looked at the architecture i feel bad now bc i kinda again like many people do all day, looked over this beautiful and puzzling picture and i didnt really understand what was going on and it was cold and i wanted to get a starbucks so i kinda just looked at it and kept walking. But in class on thursday when we went back over the pictures and had to decide what they meant or symbalized it realyl striked my interest. Like for example those two statues in the park of the Native American on a horse with a head dress and how the tribes that inhabited the mid west NEVER wore head dress's seemed astronomical too me b/c u would never suspect a huge statue that took so much time and effort and plannign to end up ebing politcially and culturally incorrect and all the sterotypes we saw in the architecture really made me have a deeper understand for the native americans and how they really kinda started america in a way and there is never really much reference too them and with thanksgiving coming up i hope we can learn a little more about the true meaning of thanksgiving.

This week in AIS we have been working very diligently on our "Perilous Times" project with the numerous wars America has been related to what strikes me as interesting and also almost scary is how much money wars are. I mean we spend something around 50 million dollars a month on the war in Iraq and i don't understand what for. And although i dont understand why really we are still there when the middle-east has been in chaos for decades and what makes us think we can really change things, i mean maybe we can but why should we be having up to ten american casualties a month. I mean whats also frightining is where is all this money coming from. I mean there is just so many wasted money i believe the government is throwing away where we, America, have many problems of our own. I mean with these huge california forest fires and Hurrican Ivan near florida. I mean just really i was watching a movie comercial for some movie with will smith but it shows him in front of NYC or some huge bustling town but its completely empty and he says that god didnt end the world, we did. And i think that that is a very though provoking line in which the way we really do end the world and how these huge companies make all this money and eventually we'll be the consumers of basically three different huge organizations. I just think its funny on how companies disguise things like one needs them when its basic things one haves around there house. For example my mothers is the biggest consumer on the planet and put an infomercial and she will be on the phone in minutes but anyways an example is this new "Clorox anywhere hard surface tm" and its just so stupid like my mom was spraying it and i was saying mom you realize that that is basically just really watered down bleach and it is and its just so stupid. Also if the sales tax goes up to 11% in Cook county like where is this money going. And like the taxes around here are so much and yea we get a great education but then we go and spend around 5 thousand dollars on getting 2 like HD Toshib tv's in the main entrance that no one ever looks at but we can't replace a broken desk. Or paying $800 for a semesters worth of books and then the bookstore buys them back for half the price of what you paid and then sell it back in the fall for double what they paid you for it. I mean with all the wasted moeny and all the debt in the world should we be preparing for a perilous time?

This week in AIS we were talking about Mr. O'connors jury duty for a signifigant amount of time in call one day and what the bias's might be or are when lawyers pick who should be on a jury. And when Mr. O'connor brought up that alot of the time people pick a person who might not have such an extensive education as another person. And it got me thinking how corrupt that could end up for example if a case were very complicated or around those lines and no one on the jury could follow or no one could have the expierence to apply there opinions to give a fair trial. I've read numerous books by one of my favorite authors Jodi Picoult and in all of her books there is always a trial and i believe that she really captures and get down the lingo of a court room in her books and from that expierene i've started to notice when watching Law and Order and other shows or movies that have to do with a trial that just a simple finger pointed or an opinion shouted out before objection can be called can ruin someones life and it's interesting how corrupt or what a disadvantage a case can be at for a poor man.

Recently in AIS we have been discussing large corporations and the way at the grocery store when theres are a hundred different cereals in the breakfast aisle but really only three major corporations own them. I just think its sad that no small buisness's can really stay succesful anymore when all these corporations put products out in higher quanities, faster service, and lower prices. I mean how is a small family-owned business to survive. I mean when competition is so high and no one can keep up and even generics can't become needed anymore. I mean there are way too many choices for one person. For example my mom sent me to walgreens to get some toothpaste and when I got to this huge aisle of toothepaste i did not know which to pick. I mean I could opt for stronger enamal, whitening, or fresh taste but really they all work in the same way and really dont do that much. Also with shampoo and conditioner theres all these different variations and you see all these shampoo comercials that just are so cheesy and all saying like "oh if you use this shampoo and conditioner you'll become popular and beautiful." I mean in the end its all really the placebo affect where everyones brains syke them out like vitamin water, be relaxed, be focused, be energetic i mean really flavored and colored water cannot really make you more focused or relaxed. I mean the small business's also like this one street shermer in evanston used to have all these little stores that you couldnt find anywhere else and all thats left now is this one really old flower shop and a bookstore in a alley. I mean everything is big corporations or new stores that will porbably just close in a year. I mean what is the world coming to where all the stores left in 15 years are Starbucks and Walgreens.

This week in AIS we watched a very meaningful documentary titttled "Be Good, Smile Pretty" The movie was about a daughter going across America find information about her unknown father. By the end of the movie the daughter said that in a way she felt luckey because she got to know her father in a completely different way than how she would've if he was actually around to be her father. In a way she was luckey because in life one rarely ever gets to see so many pictures, or talk to their parents friends, co-workers, and family so deeply on their life. I think it's very interesting because one never really gets to hear what other people think of them because in life we all usually live in the moment so to hear what the close people around you think of you or the stories they tell from their point of view could be very interesting. And even though I would like to think that if I died people would have stories to tell about me and there would be alot to commemorate me on. But when you think about life is such a prescious thing and if you dont live in the moment or enjoy it while you can no one will ever be able to remeber who "that" kid was.

This week in AIS one day we started talking about Latinos and how they are much more present in culture today than ever before. And it got me thinking that why do we spend so much time worrying about how the next way we can make big money is and people worry so much about who they're appealing to and how much money and advertisers that will bring in. For example September is Latin American Culture month and i forget which show and it really bogled my mind for a long time but after that discussion i started noticing alot more things in the press and advertisements where there do have a substantially more amount of Latin Americans than there used to be. I forget which show but there was this announcer and he said in support of Latin American Heritage month we support you! And they played the theme song to the show in Spanish. Another thing is, that in Latin America they made an exact replica of the show Desperate Housewives for Mexico. They compared it on E! And it was exactly the same first episode, just with all Mexican people in it and spanish. And here in Americo it goes Vis-Versa from the telenovela Feo de Betty or something like that and here its Ugly Betty. And on the show they do appeal to a highly Latin American audience. For example a primary controversy in the first season was Ignasio, Betty's Father, was an illegal immigrant in America and how they went through this huge thing about how he ascaped with his bride to America and America deported him back to Mexico and they denied his VISA and just when I an average american teen think of Mexico I think of resorts and beaches and fun night life, where in the episode they showed Mexico as a totaly different place with all this culture and distinctive differences. And also how people form Latin America like actors are very powerful now where Selma Hyak a beutiful actress is the executive producer of Ugly Betty! And jsut how much we take for advantage and have all these judgements that there is nothin but north shore life to back it up on. I mean when it comes to Latin America do we really know or see anything besides resorts and $$$ sighns

This week a big topic in class was Qualitative vs. Quantitative observations and that bracketed off textbooks and how much they put in. With our upcoming essay about one very substantial moment that we remeber happening and also writing the 10 chapter titles of "Our Lives" and "An American History" its hard to be able to fit a whole country's history and condense that into a 250 page textbook. It's weird that we care so much about our lives and whats happening right now that how Jamie said that he would give each chapter eg 1800-1850, 1850-1900 e.t.c. but then wehn he got to 1950-present he said he would give that 100 pages and really whats happened since the 50's to now isn't alot of substantiating learning material for kids all over the world. I mean living in the present now we can think of important things to happen but 1900-1950 was such a meaningful decade or living in 1750-1800 and to have some stuffy know-it-all collegiate professor with a phD in history condense our lives to fifty pages is scary. Also it's very hard for teachers how Mr. Bolos was saying that junior high teachers say things like i was luckey to get to World War II and with me I have really no idea what went on during the Vietnam War. I mean i know it was the first war to be put on television and broadcasted but really i have no idea what our involvment with Vietnam we had. And to think how many peoples lives that changed and how many people died in that war and that was where alot of PTWS really started and i have no idea whats going on. It really makes you think about the bias's and secret messages and just the decisions that people have to make that goes into our education.

9/11 and Affects

When an American thinks of September 11, 2001 they think of this huge tragedy in the US, around 3,000 innocent people dying, and the gateway to this huge war going on in Iraq right now. But for a 16 year-old in Seychelles 9/11 may mean nothing to him. It's just funny how the biggest things for us can be nothing to someone half-way across the world, but if your the same age as someone how ones lives can be so different. Just for me realizing how narrow minded I am and that life for me reallyl almost does revolve around the northshore where if you go 20 miles to the south side of Chicago a 16 year-olds life and yours could be totally different. For example a sterotype for girls on the North Shore, the big worry for them in a day is whichc desighner jeans to wear in the mornign or if they will get a car for there 16th birthday. Where a girl 20 miles away or biggest worry for the day is to not get shot or hope to not be pregnant. I just think it's weird how all around the world or even something so close to home all of our lives are so different or something so big to us could be something so minute or never even heard of in some place across the world.

Connotation/Denotation

Connotation and Denotation are very common in life and are very similar to "secret messages" yet however innocent a simple term may be; there could be a whole different meaning into a simple word that could alter a scentence completely. Even though some may be asking what is connotation and denotation by know, connotation and denotation are an essential to the modern language of everyones. The dictionary definition of connotation and denotation are


con·no·ta·tion
–noun
1.the associated or secondary meaning of a word or expression in addition to its explicit or primary meaning: Compare denotation (def. 1).
de·no·ta·tion
–noun
1.the explicit or direct meaning or set of meanings of a word or expression, as distinguished from the ideas or meanings associated with it or suggested by it; the association or set of associations that a word usually elicits for most speakers of a language, as distinguished from those elicited for any individual speaker because of personal experience. Compare connotation.

Now some may think that connotation is only used when gosiping or judging someone or something but it can also be used in a harmless or kind way. Some may not even know when they are using connotation. For Example "There's no place like home" the denotation or "normal meaning" for home is just where one lives is there home. Yet the way home is used in The Wizard of Oz when Dorothy says it the connotation for home is saying where your heart is or where you feel the most comfortable and where your family is. So by just saying there is no place like home where home would be the denotation the line would make no sense, there's no place like where you live. Where if it was used in that way the original famous line of The Wizard of Oz would not be such a prominite kids movie in America.

Now connotation can also be used in a raunchy way too. For Example a simple line that is used quite often is comparing something to being gay. "Nice backpack, thats so gay." See the actual denotation of gay is
gay
–adjective
1.having or showing a merry, lively mood: gay spirits; gay music.
2.bright or showy: gay colors; gay ornaments.
3.given to or abounding in social or other pleasures: a gay social season.
4.licentious; dissipated; wanton: The baron is a gay old rogue with an eye for the ladies.
homosexual.
-noun
7.a homosexual person, esp. a male.

Now that we're clear about the actual definition of gay, the connotation of "gay" in the very commonly used term (that's gay) is saying that's weird, ugly, or gross e.t.c. But you never hear gay used in a good way like "I love your t-shirt, that's so gay." See now the perplexing thing to me is that if gay was used in it's actual definition it would make utterly no sense. For example in the original scentence "nice backpack, that's so gay" if gay was used in it's actual definition it would hypothetically say " nice backpack, that's so merry or a more used term happy.

So as seen connotation and denotation are used in alot of emelements of our life like movies and commonly used terms but what we never really knew is that alot of times our connotations are very wrong, weird in the way there used, and not concidered in what the actual denotation is.

Secret Messages

In everyday life people might say or flaunt something that could seem all so innocent, but really for the average critical thinker it means something totally different.


Obvious: I don't shop at Macy's

Secret Message: Since Macy's doesn't have as many desighners as other higher-end department stores, I go to others stores because i can afford their over-priced things.

By being able to afford more expensive things than the average middle class I think I'm better than them and I enjoy flaunting labels and desighner jeans.