Research Video

Hard Out Here for a Bitch by Lily Allen

This video is very controversial, and had VERY provocative images.
Lily stated the video was a satirical peace about the stereotype women have to face on a daily basis in the Music industry.

Anyways, Check it OUT, Comment what you thought of the Video!

Food, Inc

              Food, Inc really opened my eyes to how it's not only foods that's being processed and genetically enhanced it's also the ingredients used to make these products, like corn and soy beans. Before watching Food, Inc i was well aware of the failures of the meat packing industry and the fast food industry because I actually read Fast Food Nation, and watched the movie. After reading this I was shocked, especially by that fact that fast food companies use chemicals in their foods to produce the smell and the taste. They are altering two main components of the foods if the smell and the taste isn't real, what part of it is? Even though i did read Fast Food Nation, Food, Inc taught me a lot and made me wonder why I started eating all this junk again. The movie kind of scared me, even though people told me any of the things i saw in the film, I ignored them but I don't want to accept the fact that the foods i love to eat can potentially lead to my death. After watching food inc it's like i'm, forced to listen, I can't ignore it any longer.

              Some of the issues that stood out to me was the Monsanto Round-Up Soybean and corn grain, the lack of power the Food and Drug Administration, and the chemicals used in our meat. I knew that the meat industry is placing GMO's in our foods, but i wouldn't have ever guess they are genetically modifying the seeds farmers use to grow their crops. Just thinking about the millions of products made from the Monsanto Round-Up Soybean and the corn grains in the united states that have this processed unauthentic seeds is mind-blogging. It seems unfair that the Monsanto company can have a monopoly over the soybean being used. In 1996 only 2% of the soybeans produced in the U.S. was from the Monsanto company, but by 2008 that rose to 90%! That barely gives farmers a chance to use another brand of seeds, and if they do use a different one they wouldn't  be making as much as thousands of other farmers that are producing  hundreds of thousands of these Monsanto Round-Up Soybeans. The farmers who chose to do the right thing would end up losing their farm or their business. In other countries they have actually band the use of Monsanto seeds.There has to be some corrupt system going on here because if it's evident that these seeds aren't healthy for us, why isn't our government doing anything to stop it. Our government should be protecting its citizen from things that will harm us, and i'm sorry to say it but the processed and altered food is killing us. I was blown away when  i learned that our own Food Drug Administration no longer has the right to shut down Plants if it continually fails the Ecoli & salmonella tests. If our own government can't shut down these plants that are sending out disease-ritten  meats, then who can? The government places a large role in our food production. throughout history they have been apart of this industry. In President Bush and Clinton's administration there were people in charge of the FDA who were presidents and Vice presidents of food corporations and USDA farm and beef lobbyist. The FDA is ruled by food industry people, the same people who they are meant to be regulating. The last thing that really surprised me is that they douse our meat in Ammonia to kill bacteria. We're not even suppose to touch/smell bleach for long because it can damage our skin and internal functions, but the meat-packing industry think its alright to throw our meats in huge vats of ammonia? I mean come on this should be easily seen as a wrong doing, but i guess not to the FDA. To top it all off the ammonia vats are only killing 70% of the bacteria, so if that left over 30% contains bacteria there goes another 10 dead children, all because of the meat industry. In food, Inc they showed us farmers who raised and killed their animals themselves, and how much healthier those foods were. The sad part is that the FDA even tried to shut down some of these farmers but when their foods tested to be healthier and contain less bacteria than the top companies in the top companies in the U.S., they were forced to leave these farmers open for business. 


                My Food Formula would be stay away from unprocessed foods(GMOs)  , Eat organics, but you can occasionally indulge in one of your guilty pleasure foods. I would follow this formula because even through its making you eat a healthy on a regular basis, it does allow you to go to a restaurant and eat something fattening. It allows you to eat a delicious slice or two of pizza when you're craving cheesy deliciousness. I think making food formulas are difficult to follow no matter who you are because in everyday life you're out and about and it's sometimes difficult to eat a certain way, when everything isn't available to you. 

Extra Credit!

After reading "Two Ways to Belong in America" by Bharati Mukherjee, I had many questions scrabbling in my mind. Parts of her argument seemed contradictory, and she tended to look at everything with a black or white perspective. In life its rarely ever black and white and in the case of immigrants in the United States, it definitely some shade of gray. 

I didn't like parts of Bharati Mukherjee argument where she states that she and her sister are both "freaks." Neither one of them are freaks, in america we have so many different types of immigrants. There are the ones that fully embrace american culture and others who still hold their own cultures but semi-assimilate in american society. Bharati Mukherjee is too critical of her sister, she feels her sister is in opposition of her and that she shouldn't be. What Bharati is forgetting is that America is a melting-pot, filled with many different people with many cultures and ideals. You don't have to drop your culture and everything you knew, to become an american. 

Shelia Jasonoff responded to Bharati Mukherjee's essay, she believes that it would be a betrayal to think that  there is only two ways for immigrants to live in america: "assimilating or refusing to assimilate." She directly goes against her argument. Jadonoff uses herself as a prime example because she too was an immigrant in america from South Asia. She knows how it feels to be an immigrant and it evident to her that there is a in between area where you don't have to fully assimilate or refuse to assimilate to be an american.

Fast Food Nation

Eric Schlosser's argument is that fast food industry not only changed how Americans eat but also that its methods and values have become the country's chief export. Schlosser uses several different methods to support his argument  He believes that by using several different methods and topics it creates a "balance" that most essays need.

He begins "What We Eat" by using the description method. Schlosser describes the fast food industry in american society. He describes how Fast food restaurants have grown in our society exponentially; these restaurants are evident in "stadiums, airports, zoos, high schools, universities, on cruise ships, trains, airplanes, K-marts, and Wal-marts." He then uses the example method to explain the experience of going to a fast food restaurant. the typical experience at a fast food restaurant starts with you "pull[ing] open the glass door,feel[ing] the rush of cool air, walk[ing] in, get[ting] on line,study[ing] the black lit color photographs above the counter, plac[ing] your order, and hand[ing] over a few dollars, [etc]" .Schlosser uses the cause and effect method throughout his essay. He states the causes of the fast food rapid growth in the united states. One of the causes was "the fundamental changes in american society." Many women entered the work force, which in turn "greatly increased demand for the types of services that housewives traditionally perform," cooking being on of them. 

 Schlosser essay benefits from using several different methods because it clearly identifies his argument and persuades the audience to side with him. He uses many descriptions, examples, statistics, and stories. I personally enjoyed his writing style it logically went toward in history and explained the many facets of the fast food industries. I believed he had a strong argument but at times some of his facts didn't seem reliable. For example when he stated "the golden arches are now more widely recognized than the Christian cross." I feel like proof is needed for such a strong statement  it seems like an exaggeration just to emphasize his point.

Arranged Marriages vs Marriages Made for Love

Compare and Contrast

Most people compare and contrast two things when they are trying to find out how two things are similar or different. Sometimes people compare and contrast to try to see which is better. In Gitangeli Sapra's essay, "I'm happy with an Arranged Marriage" she compares arranged marriages with "Marriages made for love." Sapra argues that arranged marriages are superior to regular marriages because there isn't any bias, you aren't able to judge someone based on their physical appearance. Sapra used statistics that 40% of marriages made on their own still end in divorce (Sapra 4). Even though Sapra does use strong evidence and personal experience to convince the reader, I still feel like she would have a bias because she grown up to this practice. Arranged marriages are normal to her whereas to many people it's a strange practice. With this in mind I feel like she would always argue that it is better even when there is concrete evidence proving otherwise. For example the statistic she used above may seem like a large number of divorces  but if a statistic was found for the amount of men an women in a arranged arranged that they didn't want to be in, or want to get out of, i think there's a strong probability that the statistic would be just as high. Even though their rate of divorce is low, doesn't mean they marriages aren't failing. In Arranged marriages there are many factors that are apart of the arrangement, and getting a divorce is never an answer in this culture. There seems to be more information on what different about them, especially the side she agrees with the most.

Liar Liar Pants on Fire

In Stephanie Ericsson's essay she classifies the various ways that we lie. She places the way we lie into several different groups. There is the white lies, facades, ignoring the plain facts, deflecting, omission, stereotypes and cliches, groupthink, out-and-out lies, dismissals, and delusions. Ericsson argues that lying has become a cultural activity. Living without lying is a difficult task but Ericsson believes we must try because if we don't we are all living a lie. We are losing ourselves and eventually hurting everyone around us.

I do  agree with Ericsson , I have also tried to stop myself from lying everyday and i also found it very difficult, but time after time i will try and quit again. I hate lying especially when it isn't necessary. I feel like lies take over you and traps you, it can get so bad that you are enslaved by your lies.

I loved how  Ericsson  wrote her essay. she used facts and personal information to explain exactly what each lie is and how they are frequently used. She increases her credibility by using important events in U.S history and by showing well known people who have used these lies. I also enjoyed how she used lies that everyone knows and uses on a daily basis. For example, the white lie, everyone has used a white lie before, either by telling a friend they look fabulous in that dreadful outfit, lying to their parents about where they are or even they casual white lie to your friends. Theses lie don't mean anything they just save you time, energy and most of the time spare others feelings. Lets be serious, who wouldn't  want to spare their friends feeling.

Ericsson seems to have covered all the basis of lying the only lie i would add is the Fake Lie. The lie where you lie but then you change the situation so when the person  ready to see if you told the truth you actually did. Like if your mom asks you did you wash the dishes, you reply yes mom of course i did! Then after you hang up, you race to the kitchen and wash the dishes so that your lie can be immediately canceled and when she gets home she'll see the dishes cleaned. Other than that  did a great job writing this essay, it was clever, creative, and entertaining.

Oh No There's Skunk in a Bottle?

               How in the World Do You Get a Skunk Out of a Bottle? This is the title of Robert Connors' essay, in which he explains how he gallantly saved a skunk that had its head trapped inside a glass jar. Connors uses this title to show, how absurd this experience was for him. He didn't know how to even approach the situation, so he assumed many other people wouldn't know how to as well. This catchy and interesting title reels people in, it gets the audience curious about what happened to the narrator and the skunk.       

           Connors writes a process analysis on how to remove the skunks head from the glass jar to analyze the relationships that animals and humans have, and to analyze how humans have created dangerous circumstances for animals. This analysis is seen through the detailed instructions on how to help the skunk. Connor states, "stand up, one step closer, squat down," he gives to a step by step instruction on what to do if you are ever in this situation. He also states that "If you spray me, you will seriously undercut my efficiency," this statement analyzes the relationship humans have with skunks. We are so afraid of this creature and its abilities to spray us that we'd rather run away and save ourselves rather than help it out. It shows the selfishness of people in our society, because we believe we are better than this helpless animal. Even though Connor "has a sudden desire to turn, go, keep running, get home," he stays because he realizes this is his"responsibility." Connors shows his audience that even though this is something you'd rather not  to do , you have to because it's your responsibility. He's persuading his audience that you have to help out animals because somethings in this world are out of their control and they need help to get through.

          Another thing that Connors tries to make his audience aware of, is the destruction and pollution thats increasing and affecting the animals that surround us. This skunk was suffocating when its head was stuck in the jar. Connors stated that, "the jar [has been] empty for years." How can a community let their environment become filthy and polluted to have empty jars lay on the ground for years at a time. We need to be able to take care of our environment so that all its inhabitants can also live happily and peacefully within it.