This essay could very well be called the importance of love, because what loves people more than their pets.  They love unconditionally.  They do not acknowledge peoples faults or talk back.  They may not listen all of the time, but they can feel.  If you have ever had a pet that was not a fish than I am sure that you understand the impact a pet makes on ones life.  A pet is always there for you, unless the particular pet likes to escape out the front door.   However, this thirst for freedom only outweighs the choice of being with you for mere seconds.  In the end pets love us and trust us to not only feed them, but love them as well.

I myself was born into a dog loving home.  When I arrived at my home in my first moments I received a wet welcome from the tongue of my first dog/brother.  His name was Norton.  I spent countless hours lying on the poor Labrador-Golden Retriever mix.  After that, my human brother came a long to pull on Norton’s tail, but he never seemed to mind. When I was only four years old, Norton, my first brother, died. I missed him a lot.  At age five I begged and pleaded for a dog, but the loss of Norton was too much for my mother to bear.   All I wanted was a dog, and all she said was maybe next year.

Pets are more than pets, they are family members who take care of you.  Some days they lean on you and on occasion you lean on them.  You can tell them your secrets, though I do not particularly advise this.  They can understand you just as well silently than when you verbalize in confession.  They can identify pain and are empathetic. They may not understand emotional pain, yet they still know and care.  They will wait up all night just to see your car pull into the driveway.  They give you warm frantic welcomes, just to ignore you later.  Your relationship is not simple, you own them, but sometimes they own you.

Love and pets is not easy to explain, but if you have a general love for animals than we have something in common.  I knew I wanted a dog, and my father knew that I wanted a pet so he devised a plan.  My dad decided that he would get me a hamster for my sixth birthday.  My mom agreed, though she thought I would become bored with the hamster and only love it for a few days.  I was excited, but when we arrived at PETCO it seemed that the employee did not advise a hamster for a young child.  She explained that hamsters had become over bread and had a tendency to bite.  She suggested rats, and my father agreed.  I put my hand to the glass. That is when I saw her, Rosie.

A pet will do everything that they can to make you happy, yet their existence alone is enough to put a smile on your face.  They love their owners so dearly that the sparkle in their eye says, “I love you” just as much as “Feed me.”  Perhaps this strong bond generates from food, but I do not think so.  Animals seem just as happy when they get a sense of adventure in life. When They get to go to a new place they explore a new world with you.

When Rosie crept over to the glass, stood up straight, and placed her paw on my finger I knew she was the one.  I was not supposed to pick out the rat without my mother, but I already had.  She was the one and I wanted no other rat.  She was perfect.  My parents knew nothing about rats, though they had researched them online.  We were all new to this experience.  My mom and dad waited for me to get bored.  I took her everywhere in the house, which was easier sense she potty trained herself.  My parents waited a week, then a month, 3 months, a year, my emotion for Rosie had not changed.  I did not out grow her, and she never out grew me.

Pets are incredible.  They are an experience like no other for an animal lover.  Not every person can receive the pure happiness that an animal gives me. Then again, the idea of a “bookworm” is so deeply repulsive to me that I can understand the differences between people.  Differences make people unique just as much as they make animals unique.  Some animals love with a passion so great that their whining annoys the neighbors.  Some animals love so fiercely that they become a danger to posing potential threats.  Pets are unique and in life to have something unique is special and important.  There is nothing like a first pet, and the experiences one shares with that special animal.  The adventures are much better at a younger age if a person can see the adventures and take advantage of them.  One cannot always be with a pet, there are too many other things to do in life, but you must always remember to treat your pets with love and respect.

Sources:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://ettc.lrhsd.org/archives/Pictures/pets.jpg&imgrefurl=http://ettc.lrhsd.org/archives/pets.htm

http://www.elderoptionsoftexas.com/article_importance_of_pets.htm?CFID=1829179&CFTOKEN=31564854

As I gazed at this adorable picture, I felt peaceful and joyful.  Nature makes beautiful creatures.  Upon first glance I immediately identified each animal on instinct.  I knew that they were all different, yet they fit like pieces of the same puzzle.  They create a certain bond and blend into one another.  The bond is formed by their close proximity and their color.  They are all mostly white with the same hint of gray. In life there is so much diversity, and this caused me to wonder what life would be like to live without diversity.

What would life be like without diversity? Life would be far different.  For one thing, the subject of race would not be discussed, for in each area only one type of creature would live.   What a boring and horrifying image. The thoughts continued like an endless nightmare, until I realized this would never happen.  This could not be real. There would always be a variety of people within every area.  I will always have my friends and though it is obvious at a glance that we are different, but we don’t care.  We look at the picture and we see a family with variety.

My troubles were not over for I recalled something I found treacherous brewing in the midst. Many public schools in LAUSD are going charter.  Some find this incredible, but I find this disastrous.  When a public school goes charter this means that there is no longer a public school for that specific area code.  Charter schools are not supposed to ask you for money, but there are some that ask for mandatory donations.  Charter schools are privately run, and once something is privatized then rules start to change, and tables begin to turn.

The United States is supposed to be like a giant company working for the people.  What American citizens are really doing when they vote is appointing a manager.  This manager must collect the funds supplied to our state or county then disperse the money accordingly.  If our manager is selling land that is supposed to help the people by educating them than they are essentially saying, “We can’t handle this, you can make your own schools and we will just spend education money on something else.”

Charter schools will reestablish behavior that will inevitably lead to segregation.  Not mandated segregation or required segregation, but an established segregation nonetheless.  The rich have already pulled away to high status private schools, the religious to schools of their own religion.  Charter schools are separate, but they are not equal.  The schools located in poorer areas will be under funded.  The schools in areas with a more of a middle class will be much better off.  The people should learn from history and the past.  Plessy v. Ferguson ruled “separate but equal”, but this was overturned by Brown v. Board of Ed, stating that separate but equal does not exist.  Children learn history so that they do not make the mistakes of the past, but the past is repeating itself.

Schools will not be equal.  How can they be when neighborhoods themselves are not equal?  It is no secret that having your house located next to a bunch of apartment buildings is viewed in a darker light than being surrounded by other houses.  What public options will the people have if the schools that were once public become privatized.  How can a private party come in and by up public property?  This property is managed under the government, but it belongs to the people.  Civilians pay taxes to government every year for children to go to school and have schools near home.  People should not be able to privatize what was once public, especially not schools that benefit and teach the young generation how to socially get along in society.

I would not have a problem if more Charter schools just popped up, rising from the ground.  However, this is not the case.  Charter schools are not popping up.  They are replacing schools that are public.  Once the public school goes Charter there is no longer a public school in the area.  Private parties do not need more control.

I want to keep diversity and my family of friends who look nothing like me. All that matters is that being together feels right.  It would not be right that someone with less money would not have a right to the same facilities as people who have more money.  We can all see a difference in appearance, but we need to overlook that difference and see the family that diversity has created.

To think all that came from four little cute animals sitting besides one another for a photo session.

Source:

http://media.photobucket.com/image/cute%20baby%20animals/Kitsukitty/Real%20Nature%20Ref/cute1.jpg

Too many people get away while the rest of the world acts blind in the United States.  The world is a crazy place filled with all different kinds of people.  Some of these people believe in democratic socialist ideas where as others are pure capitalists.  What is a democratic socialist and what is a capitalist?  Democratic socialists ideals are that the people must be taken care of and recognized in society.  Democratic socialists are not all interested in a workers rebellion, instead they wish to reform democracy.  These measures of reform will help the hard workers of society. Capitalists believe in a world where people can evolve and move up. They believe in free enterprise and entrepreneurs.  Capitalists are in favor of laissez-faire and want less government interference in business, along with business incentives and tax breaks.  But capitalist’s have become more than this, they have turned into a get rich scheme in which “screwing the little guy” is acceptable.

Our society would have gone in a completely different direction if the beloved President Franklin D. Roosevelt did not die on April 12, 1945.  In fact on January 11, 1944, President Roosevelt gave a speech, the Fireside Chat.  In this speech he disclosed a new Bill of Rights.

An excerpt from President Roosevelt’s Fireside Chat:

“We have come to a clear realization of the fact that true individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. “Necessitous men are not free men.” People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.

In our day these economic truths have become accepted as self-evident. We have accepted, so to speak, a second Bill of Rights under which a new basis of security and prosperity can be established for all—regardless of station, race, or creed.”

-Roosevelt

This second Bill of Rights would give the people more rights than ever before.  United States Citizens would have more than the right of free speech, free press, free worship, trial by jury, and freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures.  United States Citizens would have the right to a job; the right the earn enough money for food, clothing, and children; the right to be fairly and justly paid; the right of a businessman to have freedom from unfair competition and monopolies; the right for every family to have a decent home; the right to universal healthcare; the right to a good education.

“All of these rights spell security. And after this war is won we must be prepared to move forward, in the implementation of these rights, to new goals of human happiness and well-being. America’s own rightful place in the world depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have been carried into practice for all our citizens. For unless there is security here at home, there cannot be lasting peace in the world.”

-Roosevelt

Unfortunately for this entire nation, President Roosevelt died before the end of the war and the idea of moving forward died as well.  Instead of moving forward and concentrating on the needs of the people Truman dropped two atomic bombs on Japan.  But that did not stop Japan from moving forward and adopting a version of Roosevelt’s Bill of Rights.  Japan and Germany both have Universal Healthcare.  Somehow the very nations that the United States triumphed in World War II have triumphed in time.  The people of the United States almost had it all, but instead Wall Street and large corporations took control.

These large corporations convinced the people that they wanted to be capitalists.  That capitalism can make a person rich.  It is true capitalism can make certain people rich, but generally the rich simply get richer.  Capitalism is a broken system, “screw the little guy is not acceptable.”  It is time that people wake up and realize that Wall Street doesn’t care about them.  Capitalist’s do not care about anyone, they are in the business for themselves to get rich and they are motivated by money.

The United States can not be completely changed by one man alone.  President Obama is fighting for the people of the United State’s rights, but he is fighting against years of abuse and corruption. The nation has taken a turn in the wrong direction and what it calls for is a complete change in public opinion about what is more important.  Is a get rich scheme more important than an individual’s life? Is that 0.1% chance that you will strike it rich worth your life?  If I did not have health insurance than it is very likely that I would have been dead 5 years ago.  Dead for a simple appendectomy.  Most Americans are not covered by health insurance, and this is the case for those people.  If they get sick then they fall into a pit of debt all because the citizens of the United States of America are holding on to a tiny percent chance of a possibility that they will get rich.  That America is not the way to live.  I am not in favor of socialism, socialism flat out does not work.  But this country desperately needs reform, and Roosevelt’s Bill of Rights is the way to go.  I agree with Michael Moore, “I refuse to live in a country like this, and I’m not leaving.”

Hear President Roosevelt\’s Speech

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_socialism

http://www.capitalism.org/faq/capitalism.htm

http://realignmentproject.wordpress.com/2009/07/04/fdrs-second-bill-of-rights-and-the-progressive-mission/

http://www.mediaite.com/columnists/fdrs-second-bill-of-rights/

Michael Moore’s Capitalism A Love Story

Disruptive behavior, it is everywhere.  It is on the public sidewalks, in movie theaters, in restaurants, malls, zoos, and classrooms. The world is filled with arrogant people who think that they own the world.  Teenagers have a bad reputation for being extremely noisy and uncontrollable.  This problem does not come from me, yet it follows me around everywhere.  Annoying people that want to defy all the rules.  There is an abundance of rude children in society with even worse parents.  If a persons child is an annoying rude arrogant little brat than they failed as a parent. A parent is supposed to give their children the skills that they need in life.  A parent should teach their child to respect all members of society.

Disruptive behavior is worst in the movie theaters.  During the showing of Alice and Wonderland I was constantly being kicked from behind.  I turned around to tell the child to stop and he did for a while.  His kicks became more separated and only came when my eyes were glued to the screen.  I was not going to turn around and miss the movie.  Then there are the people who have to jump up and check their phone every five to ten minutes.  People who sit in the front of the theater texting the whole time so that one can see the light from their phone.  There a screamers and compulsive talkers.  Then there are the thousands of people who leave their trash as if it were someone else’s problem.  When did this behavior become acceptable in society?

The last generation would have been beaten for such rude behavior as this.  Now the world has lawyers to protect criminals and the rude people that would have suffered consequences of their actions.  The law works in a lot of opposite and backward ways.  The wealthy get out and the poor have to stay in jail.  Lawyers represent crooks for insane quantities of money.  They look for every possible way to expand their pocket books.

Now doctors have been tricked into believing that there is something wrong with these rude arrogant minors.  Many people have heard the term ADD or Attention Deficit Disorder.  Apparently it is really easy to be diagnosed with ADD because there is an abundant number of people who claim to have it.  Seriously, Attention Deficit Disorder, it is like doctors are creating excuses for their patients suggesting that have a right to be rude and disruptive.  They cannot help themselves.  Ya right!  You cannot merely suggest that one pays attention to what they like and have trouble paying attention to things that they are not good at or do not like.  Of course people have trouble paying attention to what they find completely and totally boring.  Every individual has to figure out their own way to pay attention and if they really need drugs to function in society than they can take them and stop hiding behind excuses.

People should not separate themselves or think that they are less capable than others.  If a person cannot pay attention than they are not trying hard enough.  There were less disruptive children in the last generation, because the teachers and parents dealt with them accordingly.  I am not suggesting to use violence against these people, but just stop giving them excuses.  If they can function in society than they do not need any special privileges.  Every person must learn to deal with their flaws.  It does not help any one to pretend as if there is some kind of condition that gives a person permission to act like a complete jerk.

There should not be these pyramids.  These actions should be stopped immediately.  Children should be told not to act out and why?  Children do not always like to hear why they are being punished, but it helps and it is better than not telling them at all.   It is time to teach children why they cannot do certain things.  Why can they not punch their friend in the back?  They cannot because that is violent behavior that could hurt their friends and send them to the hospital.  Why can they not cheat on a test?  Because cheating does not help anyone.  If a person’s ability is limited then they are not showing those limitations they are simply setting themselves up for failure.  Tests get harder and more advanced as a person does well.  Why should they not talk compulsively during class? It is disruptive and disrespectful to the teacher of the class.  It impairs the                                                                           students’ chances of learning.  Why?

So why be disruptive?  Perhaps it is do to a lack of respect.  Maybe these people are socially challenged.  Or quite possibly they were allowed to skate by on excuses for their rowdy behavior.  Common phrases such as, “Boys will be boys. They are just having fun. They are just being teenagers.  This is just how he is.”  These are all excuses for bad habits that people have developed over the years.  Freedom does not mean act like a juvenile delinquent.  It is time that people start recognizing the disruptive behaviors of society and come up with some method of dealing with a problem when it arises.

Sources:

http://www.help4adhd.org/treatment/coexisting/WWK5B

Sexist Insurance, otherwise known as teenage car insurance, varies with sex and GPA.  Whoever told mankind that boys and girls are equal obviously did not talk to car insurance companies.  For many years now, boys have been paying more for car insurance based on the stereotypes between boys and girls.  The mere quote, “Boys will be boys,” suggests that there is something psychologically wrong with boys.  They are otherwise not capable of change, which cannot possibly be true.  There always exceptions to what is common or the perceived “normal.”

What stereotypes do teenage boys have when it comes to driving?  Statistically it has been shown that boys are in more accidents and that they tend to drive more dangerously.  They have been known for not wearing their seatbelts, driving fast and recklessly, breaking traffic laws, driving while intoxicated, and driving longer distances.  Their reputation for driving is much worse than the reputation for young girls.  Although these reputations are old they are long lasting.  Over the last 25 years, the rate of female driver fatalities has gone up 14%, where male driver fatalities have decreased by 11%. Despite this change, teenage boys still hold first place for fatalities.  In this case there is no prize for first place.  Fatality rates are quickly becoming more even between the sexes.

It is no coincidence that teenage girls rates have always been lower and there have always been less girl drivers.  Now that more girls are getting their licenses, more girls are getting into fatal accidents.  Yet, the reputation for teenage girls stays intact.  It has been noted that girls have been picking up bad habits, much like the boys.  Girls are demonstrating the same reckless behavior that has probably given the teenager category its horrible reputation.  But like I noted earlier, the car insurance companies are behind the times.  Luckily for all the girls out there your car insurance will be lower than boys your same age.  Unfortunately boys the time has not come where boys and girls are equal in the eyes of car insurance companies.

Believe it or not a persons high school grade point average does more than just get them into a good college.  If a person can prove a decent GPA they will receive a discount price for car insurance.  If not already self-evident people who care about their GPA and getting into a good college are less likely to break driver’s safety rules.  They are at less of a risk of drinking and driving.  Teenagers with higher GPA’s are expected to be more mature and better able to handle the conditions of the road.

Unfortunately, there are stereotypes for everything.  Some stereotypes work in a person’s favor where others defame a person entirely. Girls with a decent GPA benefit from a old sexist stereotype, where boys don’t have a chance to prove themselves.  How can a person be judged based on factors that he or she cannot change?  Should sex impact insurance rates?  Sex is a category and as long as companies categorize than they can also be categorizing based on race.  Once that happens, as it most likely already has, companies are not only sexist, but also racist. Are there any factors that should impact insurance rates for a new driver?

Sources:

http://www.car-insurance-guide.us/rates_female_male_drivers.php

http://www.streetdirectory.com/travel_guide/48895/auto_insurance/why_young_people_are_assumed_to_be_bad_drivers.html

It is official! The Nissan Leaf will come to the United States December of 2010.  The Nissan Leaf is a full electric car that seats five.  Finally, an electric car is coming out that does not look like a complete joke.  Unlike the Smart Car, the Leaf is a full electric vehicle.  Despite common belief, the Smart Car is not full electric.  In fact, it is not electric at all.  The Smart Car is entirely gas powered.  What is smart about that?  The fact is that the United States has had the ability to make an electric car for many years, but has neglected the responsibility for creating such a masterpiece.  In fact, in many cases America’s oil corporations have halted the growth of our economy.  Prices on gas are going up again in an attempt to get all the money left in our wallets before the Electric Car swoops in to save the day. However, the electric car is not for everyone due to its limited mileage, 100 miles per charge.  This would only fill 95% of Americans needs.  Electric car companies are working on the other 5%.

It is time that we use clean energy, clean fuel. At the end of 2009 there were approximately 246 million working cars in the United States.  But is a car really working when it is destroying the environment.  Cars exhaust pollutes the air.  In some cities it has left permanent gray hazy fog.  Car companies for years have been pushing their fuel-efficient cars, but use of cars is so excessive that fuel-efficient cars are still damaging the environment.  I am not saying that fuel-efficient cars are not good.  They are far superior to cars that are not fuel-efficient.  However, at this current moment fuel-efficient cars are not as beneficial as electric cars.  It is time that people just stop using gasoline in their cars.  The Leaf will finally make the United States people independent from the unavoidable prices of gasoline.

The oil companies cannot hold us captive any longer.  California Electric Standards state that the price of a full battery charge for the Leaf, which is equivalent to 100 miles per gallon, will cost 3 dollars.  One gallon of gas costs 3 dollars, and at one time it cost 4 dollars. Quick charge stations will be set up to charge an electric car for 30 minutes.  In 30 minutes 80% of the battery capacity will be filled.

I cannot wait until I purchase my very own electric car.  My brother and I have signed a petition stating that we will not buy a car until car companies have released an electric car.  Finally, an auto company has become so desperate that they will give the people what they want.  No other car company has created a full electric car.  They are holding out because at the moment they can afford to.  American car companies have neglected to make an electric car.  Japan stepped in and did the job for the world.  Sure they have alternative motives, but all businesses look for opportunities to make money.  Fortunately, for them they will control the electric car business.  Hopefully this will tempt other car companies to come out with a full electric car giving the people more options.

The price of the Nissan Leaf will not be determined until April.  The price is supposed to be like that of a normal new car, but who knows what a car company will do.  The Leaf will be a success.  The abundance of Priuses have increased dramatically in my own neighborhood and with news of an electric car there is hope for a brighter and superior future.  The Leaf will be the first electric car of many if the United States citizens fight for what is right.

Want to see the commercial for the Nissan Leaf?

Nissan Leaf Commercial

Sources:

http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/12/nissan-leaf-electric-car-comes-to-new-york/

http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/03/nissan-unveils-leaf-electric-car/

http://green.autoblog.com/2010/01/04/report-number-of-cars-in-the-u-s-dropped-by-four-million-in-20/

http://www.nutramed.com/environment/cars.htm

As I looked up USB on Google images I came across an interesting discovery and was introduced to the new world of USB.  Apparently the food world of USB is pretty big. USB is short for Universal Serial Bus and is also known as a flash drive or jump drive.  USB’s have become very popular in every day use, whether it is used for transporting work files or personal files.  Some USBs are simply used as software backups.  However, not only memory space can be varied. Throughout the last several years the world of flash drive has gotten extremely creative.

While I laughed and scrolled down, I could not help thinking why someone would have so many USBs if they were not simply collecting them.  The cheapest USBs sell for around five dollars and the price goes up based on storage space.  The creative 2GB post-it USB costs a total of $49.99, while an ordinary 2GB USB costs about $15.00.  There is of course a price for creativity, but that is over a 300% price difference. For the price of creativity a person could get three USBs and still have some cash left over.  Overall, it sounds too pricey to be a collection item.  I know that if I had one of these crazy USBs I would use it, rather than display it as decoration.

Some of the USB drives seemed a bit unpractical, like the over sized bagel. However, others were hysterical.  It is amazing how many different USBs there are.  There was a collection of diamond jewelry USBs, toy USBs, and an endless collection of foodstuff USBs.  The increasing number of food revolved USBs reminded me of America and China’s increasing obesity problems.  Is food in reality an obsession?  Is it a hobby?  Could and obsession for food ever be as great as an obsession with a TV show? The other USBs reflected an aspect of a persons life and what they like.  For example, the Lego piece USB might belong to someone who likes Legos. The grenade/army USB might belong to a soldier or someone very found of action war movies and guns.  I personally hope that food is not a hobby, but let me know how you feel on the issue.

Here are some further examples of what I found:

Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB_flash_drive

http://abduzeedo.com/25-really-cool-usb-drivers

http://www.gizmine.com/#ProductPage=CategoryCode=gzus&productURLCode=notepadusb

http://www.pricescan.com/ACP-EP-2GB-USB-2.0-Mini-Flash-Drive/co/191209.html

FernGully to Avatar

Have you recently seen a movie with such enchanting creatures that the ground beneath there feet leaves a glowing footprint?  Did they enter a world unknown to themselves and change so that they would blend in to their background?  A tree binds the creatures together and they feel the pain of their home.   Seeds glow and float like magic.  A woman interprets the signs.  Then mankind rears an ugly head and threatens the very nature of their civilization.  They must fight for their home.  In the end the human will know that there is more to the forest than trees.  If you have, then what were you doing watching FernGully when you could have been watching Avatar.

If there is not a lawsuit coming up then I will be very surprised considering the fact that the script for Avatar was stolen from FernGully.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with FernGully, FernGully: The Last Rainforest was released in 1992.  It is an Australian animated feature produced by Kroyer Films, about a fairy’s world and humankind.  I watched Ferngully a lot as a kid and recognized these facts immediately.  As I attempted to locate a plot line for Avatar, I discovered that James Cameron is being accused of plagiarizing from multiple different movies, and could not locate a real plot line.  It is hard to begin to name the similarities between FernGully and Avatar because there is such an excessive amount.  So I will start at the beginning and work my way down the end in a list formation.

• Used to have a relationship with humans, but that relationship was destroyed.

Well in FernGully the fairies used to live amongst the humans in harmony until a hideous creature made out of vile black smoke drove the humans out of the forest.

In Avatar the humans used to have a relationship with the Na’vi, blue creatures, until the army got involved.  The army did not care about the Na’vi. The US Army shot first and asked questions later, driving a stake between human and creature.

• Human originally doesn’t understand the other civilization and was originally employed to help destroy their world.

Ferngully: Zak, the human, worked marking trees of the fairies forest with red Xs.  Every tree with a red X, was a tree that would be destroyed. When Zak was welcomed into the fairies big tree, he neglected to tell the fairies what he was really doing in the forest.

Avatar: Jake Sully, the main human, worked in the army and his mission was to figure out how to get the Na’vi to leave their home tree so that the Army could destroy it and mine for the element Unobtainium (very subtle).  When he started caring for the Na’vi people, he too neglected to tell them the role that he played in destroying them.

• Shrinking as opposed to growing.

FernGully: Zak shrinks down to the size of a fairy.

Avatar: Jake goes into a chamber and becomes a huge blue Na’vi.

• Both worlds were very big.

Enough said.

• Glowing ground

In FernGully, everything lights up and glows when it is touched.  As they walk and run the floor lights up to reveal a footprint.  What a surprise that the same exact thing, the same exact way happened in Avatar.

• Weird glowing seeds

The only difference between FernGully’s seeds and Avatar’s seeds was shape.  The seed in Ferngully looked like your average small seed from a fruit.  The seed in Avatar looked more like a dandelion seed.

• Creatures are connected to the forest and the trees.

Avatar: The relationship is as simple as that.

FernGully: The fairies can feel the pain of the forest and the trees.  Both communicate with the trees.

• The creatures all gather together and their powers are greater, but that is true in most movies.
• The guy, who was already the heroine’s boyfriend equivalent, automatically hates the human intruder.  This guy later has to accept that the human is trying to help and that the human knows what he is doing. But again this is a recurring theme in many movies.
• Flying on the bugs/dragons.

FernGully: In FernGully the little creatures that were not able to fly, rode on flying bugs.  They were the weirdest part of the movie.

Avatar: The Na’vi can connect and control dragons and a creature that is the equivalent of a horse.

• Big magic tree, and they all live in a tree.

• Mother figure/Woman who interprets everything.
• Falling unconscious, the heroine has to drag the human out of harm.
• Machine knocking down trees, human in disguise waving fiercely to stop the machine.
• Trying to destroy the machine.
• Blowing up of the tree.
• Human redeems himself.

Despite this rip-off, Avatar could not have been better.  It was amazingly scripted, even though the plot line came from another movie.  I advise those that have not seen it to go out immediately and see it, and those who have already seen it, go again.  The world was enchanting, mysterious, and dangerous.  If you are into high-quality movies, this is the movie for you.  Avatar had a 400 million dollar budget and you can bet that a lot of that money went into the pocket of James Cameron.  However, the money also went into this great movie that people say will revolutionize the way that we make movies.

Sources: http://www.chacha.com/question/how-much-money-was-spent-on-the-movie-avatar

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferngully

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avatar_%282009_film%29

“Man’s best friend.”  I am not sure who created the quote, “Man’s best friend,” but it has become a common phrase.  Of course when I talk about mans best friend I am talking about the dog.  Anyone who would like to argue that cats are man’s best friend should know that, “Your either a animal lover, or a cat person.” Cats are not your friends, they are simple acquaintances that only arrive when they need something and vanish when you need them.  Dogs truly are paragons that no other animal can truly match.  The bond between humans and dogs has been around since the cavemen.  Dogs deserve tribute and love for the centuries that they have stuck by us.

Led Zeppelin 1971

Paul McCartney from The Beetles with his sheepdog.

There are hundreds of interesting facts about humans and dogs intertwining history. One interesting fact is that the bible mentions dogs 14 times. People show their love and affection for dogs in a unique ways.”  Led Zeppelin named one of their popular songs “Black Dog”, after a black Labrador retriever walked into the Headley Grange studios while they were recording an unnamed song.  The dog sat around for the song and then left. “At the end of the Beatles’ song “A Day in the Life”(1967), a high-pitched dog whistle was recorded by Paul McCartney for his sheepdog.” In 1957, the first life form went into space.  This life form was a dog named Laika.  Laika was sent up in space in an earth satellite.  In 1912, three dogs survived the sinking of the Titanic.  Two of the dogs were small.  One was a Pomeranian, the other a Pekinese.  The other dog was a Newfoundland, a rather large dog.  George Washington, Americas first President, had thirty-six foxhounds.  Before the eighth century in China, Pekingese were very popular. They were used as Lap or Sleeve Dogs. Most commonly it was the puppies that were kept in the sleeves and the older dogs were Lap dogs.  Long sleeves became very popular and so did the Pekingese. In the imperial palace eight different types of Pekingese were being bred.  In the nineteenth century the Empress had over 100 Pekingese as pets. Her dogs were guarded fiercely.  After China’s war with England in 1860, Pekingese were brought to Queen Victoria of England. The oldest dog breed is believed to be the Saluki.  The Saluki was trained by the Egyptians to help track down game.

The earliest fossil of a dog can be dated to 10,000 B.C.E. Ironically this was over 12,000 years ago and humans have kept dogs as pets during those 12,000 years. Cavemen were the first to domesticate dogs.  Pets are important to many people. “An estimated 1,000,000 dogs in the U.S. have been named as the primary beneficiaries in their owner’s will.”  That is a lot of dogs receiving a lot of money.  More than one in every three families in America own a dog.  Many dog owners have multiple dogs. The limit before a person has to obtain a kenneling license in California is three dogs.  For each dog there is a ten-dollar license fee plus all immunizations.  If the dog is not fixed the price for a license can be over 125 dollars. There are more than 5,000,000 puppies born in the United States every year.  Not every puppy receives a loving home.

Dogs have been very loyal to humans for 12,000 years.  Some people have abused the trust of “man’s best friend.”  There has been dog fighting, debarking, torturing, and beating of dogs.  There has been neglect for our companions.  Many dog owners get a dog without being fully prepared for a dog.  People think that having a dog is nothing, but dogs call for attention and love.  If you do not really want a dog then you should not have a dog.  Christmas is a time when many people become dog owners.  Kids still receive dogs for Christmas along with their toys. Be prepared for the mischief that a little puppy can bring when not a creature is stirring through the house.  A special time of the year is coming and I hope that you do not put your dog outside or in a kennel for Christmas. They are a part of the family and they have been there since 10,000 B.C.E. alongside man, woman, and child.

Sources: http://www.thefoundbin.com/lost-and-found-articles/102-weird-facts-you-never-knew-about-dogs

http://www.dogcardart.com/pekingese/

What must it be like when your best explanation of your childhood is “Little Girl Lost?” Most people in my generation may not know that when Drew Barrymore was growing up her life was far from easy. We may all know the movies that she has been in now and that when she was a child she played the little sister in the E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.  However, there is a huge chunk of her life that is missing.  Drew Barrymore may be bright and cheerful today, but there was a time when life could not have been more difficult.

When Drew Barrymore was nine years old she had begun smoking.  She began drinking alcohol at age eleven. Each time she moved on to a drug more dangerous than the last.  She began smoking marijuana at age twelve.  She was not even a teenager when she was drinking and smoking cigarettes and pot. When she turned thirteen and became a teenager she started snorting crack cocaine, which landed her in rehab.  No one likes to admit that they have a problem and neither did Drew.  Drew denied her problems, but was eventually let out of rehab.  When she was only fourteen years old Drew had attempted suicide.  After her suicide attempt she was immediately rushed back into rehab.  Drew finished rehab, but did not go back to her family.  Instead, David Crosby and Mrs. Crosby had Drew Barrymore live with them for a period of three months to make sure that she did not experience any relapses.  David Crosby stepped up to help Drew get her life back because he knew how hard it was to battle against drugs once you are hooked.  He served eleven months jail time in 1982 and had his two children taken away from him and put up for adoption.

Drew Barrymore on the cover of Teen People March 1998

In 1990, Drew Barrymore released her autobiography entitled Little Girl Lost. She was only fifteen years old when she published her story.  She was striving to change her life and age sixteen Drew was emancipated and moved into her own apartment. She has never relapsed with drugs.  Her life began turning around.  She emerged back into the movie industries in 1992, starring in Poison Ivy at age seventeen.  Her movie was a failure, but she moved on.  At age seventeen not only was Drew Barrymore engaged, but she also posed nude with her fiancé, Jamie Walters, for the cover of a magazine. The same year she underwent breast reduction surgery. There were still many doubts about Drew Barrymore. However, at eighteen years old, she earned a second Golden Globe nomination for her role in Guncrazy.  In 1995, she posed for Playboy and on her twentieth birthday she received a gift from Steven Spielberg, the director of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Enclosed there was a quilt, a note, and a photo-shopped version of her Playboy pictures. The note read, “Cover yourself up,” and her pictures had been altered to look as though she was fully clothed.  She did not take his advice and latter appeared nude in five of her films, and flashed David Letterman on the Late Show.

Eventually Drew Barrymore’s life seemed to calm down and people began to accept Drew and see her talent as an actress.  She has appeared in countless movies.  Her carefree, smiley, and funny personality has gotten her far. She has lived more life than any typical person will ever live.  In many ways she has lived different lives.  She really cannot be blamed for her actions as a young girl, I mean who was watching her and looking out for her. Drew Barrymore was born on February 22, 1975 to John Drew Barrymore and Ildikó Jaid Barrymore. Her mother, Ildikó Jaid Barrymore, got her daughter into more trouble than anything else.  She would ask Drew to get her into clubs and such.  Drew Barrymore is still not speaking to her mother.  Drew’s father, John Drew Barrymore, was rarely around at one time he was not even living with his wife and child.  However, Drew had a chance to mend her relationship with her father before he died in 2004.

Drew Barrymore on the cover of Teen People January 1999

Despite her crazy childhood and teenage years, Drew Barrymore has really changed her life for the better.  She has once again been welcomed into most of our homes.  Her fans love her.  She went from being completely wild and a danger to herself into a loveable actress.  She has a bubbly feel good attitude about everything that she does.  She was able to change her life as fifteen-year-old girl and now she is a successful thirty-four year old actress showing off her natural talent.  She has been in over 50 TV shows and movies.  Including E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Charlie’s Angels, Riding in Cars with Boys, 50 First Dates, Curious George, Beverley Hills Chihuahua, and much more.  She directed her latest movie, Whip It. Drew Barrymore changed her life, and she can be an inspiration to all of the people struggling with drugs and extreme childhood neglect.  Her life may not have started off well, but she has taken the opportunity to learn and grow as a person.  She remains optimistic and her career and talent is growing exponentially.  She continues to challenge herself with different roles and now she is even experimenting with directing.

Sources:

http://www.casenet.com/people/drewbarrymore.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drew_Barrymore

http://www.orchidrecoverycenter.com/blog/childhood-drug-addiction-drew-barrymore/

This Cartoon immediately caught my attention.  Not only did the vibrant red color of the truck attract my eye, but also its overall message.  Society has gotten so crazy with overstocking and carrying Christmas supplies.  Have you ever noticed how before Halloween has even begun the Christmas decorations have already been brought out?  Thanks Giving just is not as important of a holiday as Christmas.  Thanks Giving certainly does not bring in the same amount of money as Christmas. Why should Christmas, a religious holiday, be celebrated at such a higher intensity? Thanks Giving is not receiving proper thanks and recognition in the United States today.

Typically the busiest day for shoppers is on the November 27, the day after Thanks Giving.  Despite what you may believe, these people are not late to Thanks Giving.  They are just really early for Christmas.  People do not waste time trying to get the best deals.  Which is a good thing considering loss of jobs and that families have to maintain a lower budget to stay in their homes.  But what does this lack of spending do to the little turkey’s self esteem?  Thanks Giving does not bring in the same amount of money as Christmas does.  Thanks Giving cannot compete with Christmas sales.  There just is not enough to buy, and no one wants to over pay.  Many people would like to be overpaid, but when it comes to shopping they would like to underpay and get a deal.

The importance of Thanks Giving is to bring families together, and Christmas is seen as the same thing.  Thanks Giving is like Christmas without presents.  As a teenager who understands that I am still in childhood, a holiday with presents is much more appealing than a holiday without presents.  However, the Turkey does not have to be thrown under the bus.  Thanks Giving and Christmas should both be celebrated.  Perhaps these holidays value should differentiate economically, but they both should be treated with equal compassion.  After all, two holidays are better than one. Do not skip a holiday just because the next holiday coming up is more fun.  Fun things can be saved for last.

Talking to my friends over the last several years I have noticed how Thanks Giving is not as widely celebrated.  I wondered why, but I knew the answer.  People just do not find Thanks Giving to be important.  In fact, in 1939 President Roosevelt moved Thanks Giving to the third Thursday in the month of November to lengthen the time for Christmas shopping.  In 1941, Roosevelt was forced to repeal his act and change Thanks Giving back to the fourth Thursday of November.  How could people be so outraged in 1939 and not even celebrate in 2009?  The world has changed.  I know that Thanks Giving is just now starting to become important in my life, because I did not use to celebrate it.  I was convinced that chicken was the perfect alternative dish, which was good for the turkeys.

So enjoy Thanks Giving during its time.  Spend countless hours with friends, family members, and people who you love.  Christmas will come soon enough.  We must be prepared for the future, but this does not mean that we have to live in the future.  I don’t like to go into stores on the very first days of October and see Christmas decorations all around the store.  I do not want to live with Christmas before I have gotten my candy from Halloween.   Live life and take it slow.  Do not let your troubles or worries over pass you.  Right now we all have huge trucks chasing after us. These trucks are loaded with all of the things we have to do.  But what is most important is that we just breathe.

Sources: http://www.cagle.com/news/Turkeys09/3.asp

http://www.allbusiness.com/trends-events/holidays-observances-thanksgiving/11836337-1.html

http://www.archives.gov/press/press-releases/2009/nr09-25.html

http://pacific.bizjournals.com/pacific/stories/2005/11/21/daily1.html

What would people do without music?  Everywhere we go music is there to brighten our day.  Occasionally it gets stuck on a song we despise and cannot stop thinking about how much we want to switch the song.  But when we hear a song that we really like sometimes our actions are uncontrollable.  We feel delighted and free.  We might even bob our heads or tap our feet. Music has been defining people for generations, allowing emotional release that can be mental, physical or spiritual.

There have been countless cases throughout history where music has been used to calm a persons mind.  “Egyptians used music to calm their insane,” and in the Bible story of David and King Saul, David controlled the Kings emotions by playing the different notes on a harp.  In the present day, 2009, we use music for just about everything.  We use music when we are exercising, driving or going on a trip, relaxing, and partying.   However, is this all we use music for?  Absolutely not, we use music for plenty of other things.  Music is everywhere we go.  Music is in all different types of stores, from clothing stores to car lots.  It is in hospitals, dentist offices, workplaces, restaurants, movie theaters and movies themselves, and religious buildings.  There is no mandate that companies must play music at all times and yet they do.  Music makes people more comfortable.

Music can always calm me down after an extremely stressful day full of homework, and apparently music is known to have calming affects on the majority of all people.  Now people have jobs dedicated to music therapy, because science has proven that music can change our blood volume, blood pressure, circulation, pulse, and even our metabolism.  It is hard to believe that music could have anything to do with our metabolism, but truth of the matter is that a human beings metabolism can be related to music.  Researchers have theorized that music affects us in such ways because our bodies and organs work in a rhythmic way.  Rhythm can be found in a persons respiration, heartbeats, brain waves, and speech patterns.  If you think about it, the way that we talk and form sentences is very rhythmic, with our long or brief pauses and the stress that we put on individual words.   Each individual can be found to have a unique speech pattern, but our speech is in fact a pattern.

If a person is musically active than their life and body will be most likely to be affected in a positive way.  For example, researchers have noticed that those who play the piano are benefited not only mentally, but physically as well.  People who play the piano are less likely to develop arthritis in their hands.   I wonder if typing helps to stop arthritis in a person’s hand, because in a certain sense it is the same thing.  Of course piano is more pleasant to the ears, but nonetheless it is the same motions.  Active participation in music can also eliminate stress.  Eliminating stress is very import to both a person’s physical health and mental health.  Stress affects a person’s body in horrible ways.  Sometimes it causes little things like gaining weight, and other times it causes depression.  I am sure we have all heard the commercials, “Depression can hurt.” And depression does hurt.  It lowers self-esteem and makes a person feel alone. Stress is not beneficial to our bodies, and the sooner we get rid of it the better we feel.  Musical experts say that singers rarely develop any sort of chest pains, but this is not unheard of.  As much as music can help a person physically, a person still has to have genetics in which they would never develop any sort of problems to have a completely accurate survey.

Music’s impact has been known for generations and I am so glad that many of my peers openly embrace the musical side of themselves.  Unfortunately for some there is no musical side.  I like to say that I am not musically inclined, which is sad when my father can pick up just about any stringed instrument and make it sound good.  He likes to say that I can play lots of things, like the radio and the I-pod.  However, I can listen to music and appreciate it.  I can also use music to melt away my stress and so can you.

Let me know how music does or does not affect your lives.

Original Site: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0826/is_n4_v8/ai_12426666/pg_3/?tag=content;col1

Everywhere we look there is segregation.  There is segregation between sexes, cultures, and religions.  Do we intend to have these segregations?  Do we want to categorize ourselves?  Absolutely we do.  We have engraved in our minds this idea of unity, yet we keep ourselves from being truly united.  We have come a long way, but there are so many simple things that should have been changed long ago.

I have just read an article on racial segregation in the United States.  According to this article “ the Alabama Constitution still mandates that separate schools shall be provided for white and colored children, and no child of either race shall be permitted to attend a school of the other race”(2).  An unsuccessful attempt was made in 2004 to revoke this act.  I personally feel that there is no greater failure in a nation than separating its citizens.  You have no control over what race you are.

When people ask me, “What are you?” I respond by saying I am American.  Now this tends to either make the person laugh, or it just confuses or aggravates them.  But why?  The constant question annoys me.  “What are you?” I am American, that is were I was born.  That is where I am loyal.  A more appropriate question would be what ethnicity are you?  I myself am a mix of many ethnicities.  I am a combination of 1/4 Sicilian (Italian), about 1/4 Austrian mixed in with the people who used to live in Germany, before Germany, and Czechoslovakians, a little over 1/4 Hungarian, 1/16 Cherokee Indian, and 3/16 American.  I say 3/16 American because some sides of my family had been in American for many generations.  It boils down to I am white or Caucasian.  That is what I have to write on District Tests and applications.  None of those ethnicities define me; they just explain how I came to exist.  It is not about what you are.  It is about who you are.

How are we segregated?  As children, boys are friends with boys and girls are friends with girls.  It is what we as children are taught.  It might be that boys and girls have nothing in common, but that seems highly unlikely.  So why is it always battle of the sexes?  It is because we made it that way.  They are different and we want to be part of something.  We want to be with our own group.  Eventually, it ends up that interests differ from one another, but originally it is because we are physically different from one another.

I am fascinated and outraged at the clubs that my school has to offer.  There are good clubs like Speech and Debate, CSF, and Red Cross.  However, there are segregated clubs like Armenian club, Asian club, BSU (Black Student Union), Christian club, Indian club, Muslim club, Latinos Unidos, Jewish club, and Gay Club.  Since when are any of these clubs interests?  They are not interests, they are things that separate us from one another.   They are not Running club, Science club, or Art club.  Things that people take interest in or do as a hobby.  The most they could do is learn about their religion and their heritage, but it’s not about that.   Not to offend any Armenians, some of my closest friends are Armenian, but there were people standing in front of the Armenian club sign ups shouting, “If you are not Armenian, you can’t sign up.”  That sounds like segregation.  With all these clubs our multicultural school becomes empty. Armenian, Asian, Black, Christian, Indian, Muslim, Latinos, Jewish people, and Gays are all American.  They are in America and most of them were born in America.  Why do they choose to separate themselves from one another, and how can a school let them separate themselves from one another?

If you are a United States citizen, you are American!  I did not say if you are in America than you are American, because people visit from other countries and if they are not American maybe they do want to be American.  But whether you are Armenian, Asian, Black, Christian, Indian, Muslim, Latino, Jewish, or Gay you should want to be American.  Let hobbies describe who you are.  Do not let your skin color, eye color, hair color, or religion control how and what you decide to do.  It is time we become one, because background of people who are not you, does not count for who you are.  We should all be ourselves, but still live together as one.  We are one nation of many different backgrounds.  But that is all that they are, backgrounds.  It is time to create something new.  Under one nation, we are the same.

Original Site:    http://www.experiencefestival.com/a/Racial_segregation_-_USA/id/1990959

I have just read an article titled “The Importance of Self-Defense” by Bryan J Buckner.  As a martial artist and a teenage girl, I could not agree more with the importance of self-defense.  There is nothing more important in the world than your own safety.  I am not suggesting that one become paranoid.  I just want us as people to be aware of their surroundings.   Look out for suspicious characters, and avoid dark alleyways.  For many years, people have been using self-defense items such as mace, pepper spray, stun guns, tasers, and personal alarms.   These are good when used properly, but what if you are without one of these many devices, or if it malfunctions?  Machines come in handy, but learning basic self-defense goes a long way.  Wouldn’t you like to have knowledge about actually defending yourself?

Most people who learn self-defense never need to use martial arts do to their general awareness. Most of the teachings of martial arts are preventative and not just fighting whoever comes around a dark corner.  Although, it does teach you how to fight, it does not want you to have to rely on your ability to fight. There are many basic things that we as people can do to make us much safer.  Like Buckner states in his article, he knows that jogging in public colleges or parks alone is dangerous.  Martial arts strongly suggest the buddy system.   Having someone with you makes you less of a target.  As an aware person you should scan your environment for potential hazards.  If you are alone and there is a suspicious character up ahead think about taking an alternative route.  Some of the things that we can do to keep ourselves safer just require what most people feel is common knowledge.  Avoid confrontation with strangers, and do not antagonize people for fun.

I am a student of Tang Soo Do, Korean martial arts.  When I was in Preschool, I was taught never to talk to strangers, or to get into their cars.  Teachers and parents teach children to kick, yell, and scream if someone tries to kidnap them.  Knowledge of what to do in a situation such as a kidnapping already provides a child with some type of self-defense.  Screaming and kicking does not only help toddlers and young children, but it also helps adults.  Kidnappers are thrown off guard when a person screams even if they know that a person could scream.  If you scream and run far enough away they are liable to be scared off by the possibility of being caught and the knowledge of the commotion.  In Tang Soo Do, when we practice kicking and punching we often let out a yell.  This is called a Kiai, and it is used as a very affective distraction.    When fighting an attacker the attacker does not expect a person to be hitting them and screaming at the same time.  Whenever a person lets out a scream the attackers subconscious knows that they have to control the situation and make sure no one has noticed.  If they feel people will have noticed they will usually run.  Both children and adults can benefit by using screaming or yelling as a type of basic self-defense.

Tang Soo Do gives a person the knowledge they need to be safe.  The point of martial arts is to be prepared for whatever may happen, and to know that there are specific things a person can do that will decrease their chances of ever getting into a fight or being robbed.  Being confident in yourselves and your abilities is very important in martial arts.  Some people feel uncomfortable when their eyes meet with a strangers.  Eye contact is very good and it shows confidence.  However, a few pugnacious people take eye contact the wrong way and might try to start something, you must decide for yourself if you know a person is just looking for a reason to fight.  But still, show confidence in your walk and that you are taking in your surroundings.  Do not act like a victim or an easy target.

At my martial arts studio, it is not a place to learn how to get into fights.  The masters and instructors tell you to only fight if absolutely necessary.  Martial arts are for pure self-defense, and stunt people.  A martial artist returns force with the same amount of force.  There is soft-defense and hard-defense.  Hard-defense is life threatening by someone who you may or may not know.  Soft-defense corresponds to things in front of you, such as someone holding onto your wrist or grabbing you by your shirt collar.  For soft-defense a student is generally taught to get out of the situation without causing pain to the attacker if it is a fellow student.  However, strangers still have no right to be touching you.  As a student moves up in Tang Soo Do they are continually asked if they have any trouble in school, or if they have been in fights.  If they cause trouble in school this generally means that they will not be able to advance until they change their behavior.  Martial arts is dangerous when used improperly and the studio understands and takes responsibility for their students.

Bryan J Buckner suggests learning to defend yourself by taking police and law enforcement sponsored classes. He feels that pepper spray, stun batons, and tasers should be additional to self-defense courses rather than an alternative to self-defense courses.  I could not a agree more.  A few lessons in self-defense could be a life changing experience.  Martial arts can give you confidence, respect for yourself and others, incredible discipline, and independence from weapons like tasers and pepper spray.  You never have to worry about leaving your training at home or forgetting to put in new batteries to your training.  Once you have learned martial arts it will not leave you and you can be a much safer and much more confident as a person.

Original Site: http://www.articlesbase.com/home-security-articles/the-importance-of-learning-basic-self-defense-1225857.html

It has been a while since smoking was discovered to be dangerous to smokers and the people around them.  So why are people still smoking?  Why are teenagers still buying cigarettes even when they know that smoking is bad for themselves?  All of my friends who I have talked to about the habit of smoking will agree that it is disgusting smells bad, and is absolutely horrible for you.  We do not get why people smoke.  The truth is that there is no reason to smoke.  There is no reason at all to start smoking.  Many people claim peer pressure or that their parents and friends smoke.  No one I have ever met has claimed that they did not know that smoking was bad for them when they started.

Most of the generation who grew up smoking without knowing the dangers of smoking have passed on.  When I was in Elementary school a presenter came and showed us just exactly what was going into our bodies when we smoked.  Most of us were scared or disgusted, but there was always that one student who said, “When I grow up I am going to smoke.”  Their reason was always that their parents smoke; so one day they will smoke too. It was inevitable.

Break the cycle.  Every person has the right to be different.  One of my friends got into a great deal of trouble with her parents when she hid their cigarettes.  She loved her parents and she only wanted to do what was best for them.  Her parents refused to change.  Not everyone can change, and a lot of the people who start smoking never quit.

According to research reviewed by Neil Izenberg about 1 in 4 teenagers smoke.  One of the common reasons teenagers start smoking, is trying to prove that they are tough and trying to be more like a grown up.   But are people who smoke really grown up?  Yes, they may be adults and they may make their own money, but they are far from independent.  Supposedly, that is what all teenagers are about, becoming independent.  They do not want their parents to control their lives.  They want to prove that they can do whatever they want to do.  But once the nicotine kicks in, a smoker is just a slave to a drug.  Cigarettes do not give a person independence.  They make a person dependant on another.  Not another person, but nicotine in the form of a cigarette.  A cigarette that fills their lungs with tar, causing cancer and heart problems.

Smoking also can isolate a person.  It makes them smell and have yellow teeth. The stench of cigarette smoke seems to follow them around like a haze and is left behind even when they have left.  The smell of cigarette smoke is all too familiar to me.  When I breathe in someone’s smoke I begin to feel a choking feeling.  A lot of times I gag or cough if it catches me by surprise.

Smoking is a plain disgusting habit.  Not one thing about killing oneself is cool.  It is vile and disgusting.  Have you ever been walking on a sidewalk when a person is smoking?  Have you ever passed by a smoker and they just blow smoke in your face?  This behavior is not only rude, but it is also dangerous.  Pollution is never a good thing.  Cars are required by law to go through multiple smog checks.  There are laws restricting what you can and cannot throw away.  The fine for littering can amount to over 1,000 dollars.  Throwing a cigarette out of a moving car or smashing a cigarette into the ground with one’s shoe and then leaving the butt lay on the floor is littering.  So now smokers are polluting both the air and the soil.  Most smokers are responsible for their own deaths. People cannot make the world a better place if they go on promoting unhealthy habits.

As non-smokers there is one thing that we should all say more often.  Most smokers will ask, “Do you mind if I smoke?”  Most of us say, “no” out of guilt or because we think that they can just go outside and it will not come in the house.  But what we all should say is, “Yes, I do mind” or “No, you may not.”  Why should we say this?  Because the longer that someone that we love smokes the harder it will be for them to quit and they should no that they do not have the right to come to your home and spend your time with them out in the backyard or front yard smoking.  It is also sending a message to your neighbors if you let people smoke.  If you let people smoke then your neighbors may feel that it is fine for their friends to smoke and think that you, as neighbors, will not mind.  If you mind then do not let your friends smoke at your house.   A smoker may never stop or truly understand how you feel if you do not tell him or her.  It is hard for a smoker to quit if the people they care about allow them to smoke.

Every cool summer night when my family watches T.V. we let the clean summer air come into our house.  Almost every night we will smell a horrible smell and know that our neighbors are smoking.  Cigarette smoke travels, and it hurts more than just the person who is smoking.  Every day the smoke comes in we are forced to give up our clean air and shut the doors.  But the smell stays for about fifteen minutes.  It always feels like longer than fifteen minutes and it continues to seep in through the crack between two sliding doors and pollute our private home. Smoking does not affect just one person.  It affects a community. There is an average of 1,200 smokers dieing each day.  It is time to lower those numbers until not one person dies of smoking, because no one has the right to kill themselves or another for selfish reasons.

Site http://kidshealth.org/kid/watch/house/smoking.html