In Conclusion....

When I first walked into this class, I thought that it was going to just be one of those classes where you read a bunch of books and talk about them and move on.  I was very wrong.  This class has actually revamped my desire to read.  It taught me to look for the "deeper meaning"  inside of works of literatue.  Previously I would read just for the story, which always left me with the thought "what is the point of reading, its just a story right?  I've come to the conclusion that this is wrong.  Inside of literature there is an amazing amount of information that can be incorporated in everyday life. 
     Just like in "Feed," the story was about this technological network that a majority of people were connected to constantly through the installation of a chip on a person's brain at a young age.  The story itself was pretty good but when we talked about it in class, I realized that the book is trying to teach us that an overindulgence in technology, can be extremely detremental to ourselves as part of society.  The people couldn't think for themselves, the corporations ruled the country, and the ideas of consumerism flourished.  The people accepted everything at face value and throughout thr book you could see how minipulative the government was to its people.  This book was a good transition from "Culture Jam"  where we learned about how our generation is becoming "dumb" because of the over use of technology (even though I didn't agree with much of it). 
     Another theme we spent a good portion of the class talking about is "reality" TV, even though there is nothing real about it.  The book "Hunger Games" did a very good job of further explaining this topic.  The book was very well written and I found myself engaged in page after page of text, I couldn't stop reading.  It shows how reality TV is influenced by the audience.  The more money they donated to certain competetors, the more supplies those competitors got.  So the competition wasn't fair, it was based on popularity in which the most popular competitor was given the biggest advantage. 
    All in all I really enjoyed this class, even though I had far less than a positive mind set coming into it.  The enjoyment of reading that I used to get when I was younger has been re-instated and I find myself with a book in my hands far more often than I have in the previous 5 years in my life.  The class gave me a look at the way the world is, and what could potentially happen if we let things get out of control or if we become too lazy.  Plus group 6 is awesome it has been fun working with all of you and goodluck on all your finals and your remaining time in Ship! 

censor-"SHIP"

A world without books?  It seems like a very grim world to live in.  A life without books is like a life without music, a life lacking creativity and unique thought.  "A life without knowledge is death in disguise"- Talib Kweli & Mos Def, Blackstar. Works of literature are not just written for the sake of the consumer, but has a much deeper form of self expression for the writer.  Books are a good way to understand the ideas and concepts that are unique to another individual.  A world without this form of self expression would be very uniform and there would be a serious lack of individuality.  Another big problem without books is that everything is done from memory and this would cause confusion because stories would be different and over time would get mistranslated, or misinterpreted and the meaning would change as the years went on.  Books are like a time capsule for someones thoughts, creativity, or self expression, once words are put inside it they will remain there until it is open (just like a time capsule)  As TV is being more integrated into everyones lives, it is almost as if we were sitting there just burning pages.  Page after page is being lost as show after show is being watched, and why might this be a problem?  A lot of television shows today provide zero knowledge and are made just to appeal to the masses for higher ratings and more money (look at Jersey Shore, I feel like my IQ is cut in half after every episode).  As the days go on you can see more and more people getting lost in the realm of television.  I have tons of friends who will lay around and watch TV on a beautiful day and not think twice about it, it's sad.  All in all I hope that we are never forced to live in a world without books.

What the audience wants the audience gets

The hunger games does a good job supporting the themes that we have been learning about in class. It shows how reality shows are not "real" because they get manipulated to improve ratings.  This also ties into the themes of consumerism because the more of these shows that we "consume" the more money they make. What the audience wants the audience gets.  This causes the reality aspect of these shows to disappear and makes them just as much a work of fiction as spider man.   Hunger Games shows us what could potentially happen if a capitalistic driven government has complete and unquestionable power over its people.  All they were concerned about was making money even if it involved innocent children being forced to kill each other.  One thing is for sure. I never want to live in a society like that, and I feel like if we start to neglect our own freedoms, we could very easily end up in a similar situation.

Blog #7

So I just finished watching cops, the episode consisted of a high-speed chase, a man being caught with crack, a fight in a trailer park, and a domestic violence dispute .  A pretty satisfying episode if I do say so myself.  Cops is one of the very few reality television shows that I can bear to watch, and I only watch because I’m a criminal justice major so I can learn a lot just from watching the way police officers handle different situations.  So my reasoning for watching this reality TV show isn’t because I’m trying view the other side of the glass, it is for me to gain knowledge about my major.  In this example of reality TV the situations aren’t scripted or pre-planned; they are 100% real which seems to set itself apart from other shows in this same category.  Shows like Jersey Shore and Survivor, contain small aspects of reality but are also thoroughly planned.  I have noticed that they tend to pick what I would consider to be “good-looking” officers, I have encountered cops who are far less than what you would call “good-looking.”  This leads me to believe that the producers of cops strategically pick which officers have camera crews placed with them.  Other than that small thing, Cops is a pretty realistic show.  As viewers we basically control what happens in reality TV in most cases.  The people in charge of a reality television show knows what’s “in” or cool to the majority of people and their goal is to appeal to as many people as possible.  They do this so they can get the maximum number of viewers which equals the maximum amount of profit available.  So the interests of people can sway the events that take place in a reality TV shows. 

It is very difficult to find examples of Big Brother in our modern day society.  I mean there are many people who consider it common knowledge that the government decieves us, even though most the time these people don't know for sure, and have never seen actual e idence that these things take place.  That is the biggest connection I can see between "Big brother" and modern American society.  The government does not want you to know that there are any injustices taking place, because if you don't know you wont complain. 

If you asked a majority of people if they would give up freedoms for security they would be more than willing without realizing what that really means.  Without our freedoms our society would eventually hit a point where we would be in a society similar to the one in 1984, where the government controls everything and manipulates the people to serve their own interests. 

Privacy still exists today just not absolutely everywhere.  People seem to feel like their privacy is being infringed on more and more, however, I feel like it is due to the increase in areas where these privacies can be infringed on.  If you want complete privacy, I suggest that you don't use the internet because there is zero privacy there and everything gets recorded. 

Blog #5

For this blog I chose to make up my own character who didn’t have the feed and this characters name is Ralph.

Once Ralph was born, his parents couldn’t afford to have a child so he was put into an orphanage.  Orphans were only able to get the feed if they were adopted before they were too old to have the feed installed.  Unfortunately with the increases in modern technology most people were creating their own children in labs, and there was virtually no couples that were willing to adopt.  So like statistics proved he was never adopted.  This may seem sad, but Ralph was an Optimistic kid with a twinkle in his eye and a pep in his step. 

One of his favorite things to do is go to public places like the mall and people watch.  He sits down at a bench and watches all of the people wawlk past each other without even noticing anyone walking around them.  Even the people they are with they don’t physically talk to each other they all just m-chat.  So many people run into each other because they are so bombarded with advertisements they don’t even watch where they are walking.  Ralphs favorite thing was sitting and thinking about how different of a place the mall was to people who had the feed.  He wondered about this a lot.  Would he enjoy his life more if he had the feed, if he was more like everybody else?  As he was thinking about these questions, he noticed that he had begun walking out of the mall. 

He thought about this while he was walking.  He wondered if his life would be better if he could have any piece of information he wanted when he wanted it.  Would he be happier if he was attached to everyone 24 hours a day?  He wondered if life would be easier if he had the feed.  Is he better off being farther away from the consumerist ideals of everyone else with the feed, or is his lack of the feed keeping him from being an average member of society?

He continued to walk until he ended up at his favorite spot.  It was a beautiful spot up on top of a giant rock.  It overlooked the last bit of land on the east coast that appeared to be untouched by man.  As he sat down at the very top of the rock, he closed his eyes for a split second.  Everything was silent, he felt the wind blow through hair, the cool breeze felt good.  He opened his eyes every tree in the entire valley waved back and forth as if the forest was breathing.  A bird flew in circles dipping and diving as if it was just enjoying the beautiful day.  The world, for brief second appeared to be at peace.  Then all of a sudden an up-car flew right over top of him and scared the birds away.  At that moment, he knew the answers to his questions. 

Blog #4

This man took Thoreau's idea and ran with it

The thought of breaking away from society and living in the woods goes through my mind everydy.  Imagine a life free of responsibility, deadlines, pressure, just you and good old mother nature.  I love being in the woods,  away from the concrete jungles and the constant buzz of technology in my ear.  Some of the best days of my life have been spent gorge jumping, snowboarding, walking through the creek, or just spending the day in the woods.  I can guarentee if any of you spent a whole day outside in nature, you would go to bed 10x's happier than if you sat behind a computer on facebook or finally finished the tenth prestige in Call of Duty.  With as much as I love being outside in nature, could I give up all of the comforts and conveniences of modern day life? 

In all honesty I think that I could.  I find mself turning my cell phone off somedays just because I don't want to deal with it.  I only really watch tv after midnight and if your in the woods why would you need internet?  I don't have many possessions that I am extremely attached to so I wouldn't really have a problem leaving anyting behind except family and friends.

The fact that Thoreau lived in seclusion would be what I would have a serious issue with.  I am a people person, I need to be able to around someone.  If I was going to live in the woods I would try to get someone to come with me, just to avoid going absolutely nuts.  Being alone with your thoughts for a long period of time could be an almost scary thing, I think I would go crazy.   If I was to venture into the woods alone for a year, I feel like after the time was up I would have a very difficult time re-integrating into society. 

During a year of seclusion, submerged in nature, there is a lot that can be learned about yourself and the world.  Maybe you decide that living without the every day convienences of modern day life is far more fulfilling than waking up to an alarm clock and going to work everyday (sounds better to me).  Maybe you decide that it is stupid to be living in the woods it alldepends on what kind of person you are. 

For me personally, it would be challenging to give up everything i've become accustomed to, however I could see myself enjoying an experience like this.  I definatly think that Thoreau became "more intelligent" during his time in the woods, especially in his writings, art, and thoughts.  I think that I would gain similar knowledge toThoreau if I lived in the woods for an extended period of time.  Nature can be a great form of inspiration and has been in the past for many people throughout history.              

A little something by George Carlin

I was watching George Carlin do stand up and this stuck out to me because it is along the lines of what we have been talking about in class

The Dumbest? I must respectably disagree

“Is our generation the dumbest generation?”  This question seems to be a major point of discussion during recent times, both in class and in the real world.  Bauerlein’s book “The Dumbest Generation,”  claims that our generation is filled with ignorant thoughts and general cluelessness.  While reading the article it mentions multiple slightly random facts.  The one that really sticks out is “47 percent of the grads in 1950 could name the largest lake in North America, compared with 38 percent in 2002.”  Is this a serious problem that actually threatens the future well being of our nation?  I think not!

Even with everything we have been reading and discussing in class. I still have seen no legitimate evidence that proves to me beyond a reasonable doubt that our generation is “dumber” than previous generations.  I think that we are vastly different from previous generations, but what I feel that many of the authors of these pieces of literature fail to notice or mention that the world is a very different place than it was when they were our age.  It’s in my eyes nothing but the “old man” theory, “you have it so much easier than I did, and I’m not happy about it.”  I have even heard my grandparents make that type of statement to my parents and I feel that it is something that happens between all generations. 

Another major theme of these pieces of literature seems to deal with social network sites.  It is made to appear that these sites have no true benefit other than to communicate back and forth through a screen.  I agree with this to some extent, (I do not have a facebook) however it has become such a major thing inside our society that it can be hard, at times, to get along without it. Facebook is not just for social networking and wasting time anymore.  Many businesses, events, gatherings, and places looking for volunteers use Facebook in order to help them reach their goals, collect feedback, or gain support. So while many people use it for just talking back and forth and wasting time it can be used for beneficial reasons and not just something to do out of boredom.  

LEROYYYYYYYY JENKINSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!

Blog Numero Dos

The Second Skin documentary to me was interesting, mainly because I played WOW for a short period of time during my freshman and sophomore year of high school; so, I can relate on some level to the individuals in the documentary.  Although I was never what I would call an “addict” there were plenty of days where I would just want to sit around and play the game instead of going out into social situations.  I am an extremely social person so when I reached a point where I felt pressured to choose between the real world and a virtual world the decision was easy, I just stopped playing.  I can defiantly understand how someone with a less active social life can easily choose to get “lost” in a virtual world and block out reality.  I always had multiple friends wanting to do something just about every night of the week, so it was easy to not get  lost in a virtual realm when such a large influence was pulling me towards the plane of reality.  I can see how people who have fewer friends, are less likely to have that “pull” towards reality and thus get sucked into a virtual world. 

In “Culture Jam,” the woman became addicted to chatting online.  This woman lost ten pounds because she forgot to eat and was reluctant to sleep because she was scared she might miss something interesting.  She started to lose her verbal skills because she had grown so accustomed to typing her thoughts instead.  When she was seen on the street, she hadn’t showered for days.  Her teeth were an eerie color and she acted erratically.  I would never have guessed that by choosing to be social in a virtual world instead of reality, there could potentially be such drastic changes in behavior and appearance (especially in the short time-frame that the book leads you to believe).

  Many people who are addicted to an online world create characters that they view as an extension of themselves.  Some use them to hide “flaws” that make them feel the most insecure, while others use these alter-egos as a way to improve on specific aspects of reality.  In 1998 Carnegie Melon released a study on the social and psychological effects of the internet.  This study showed that “netheads were lonelier and more depressed than the average population.”  Lasn accurately states, in “Culture Feed,” that  “Connect, disconnect” may be our generations answer to “Tune in, turn on, drop out.”  This well known phrase coined by Dr. Timothy Leary, the highly influential American psychologist/writer of the 1960’s and 70’s.  He became known during the later years of his life for his research in the therapeutic benefits of psychedelic drugs.  Leary was attacked by the conservatives and was dubbed “the most dangerous man in America” by President Richard Nixon.  During this time Leary was extremely popular among the subculture known as the “hippies.”  The phrase Dr. Leary coined basically meant to use your mind (tune in), be peaceful (turn on), and detach yourself from whatever makes you unhappy (drop out).  The conservatives and the media were under the impression that he was encouraging his “followers” to just get fucked up and not do anything productive with their lives.  This was not the case.  

Leary viewed the use of psychedelics as a way to become more in touch with your mind, your body, and the world around you.  The message got twisted due to the storm of negative publicity that (incorrectly) interpreted Dr. Leary’s words for the general public and the public listened. This shows how much the media can influence the way we think and supports multiple ideas in Culture Jam that suggest we are losing the ability to think independently and not take everything we hear (especially in forms of media) at face value.  If used in this context, I can see the point he is trying to make, that “connect, disconnect” is our generations outlet.  Dr. Leary stated that the “PC is the LSD of the 1990’s.”  Technology is our drug.

Throughout the book I have noticed that there are a few places with pretty shocking/powerful statements that Lasn makes.  I have a problem with some of them.   He seems to base some of his statements on personal beliefs with very little, if any, factual evidence behind it.  For example he was talking about how the Asian tour bus was constantly taking photos during the tour. Lasn then came up with a conclusion based on that simple observation.  He says “This I think, is the hazardous fallout from an over mediated world, where nothing that happens becomes real until you can make it fit into the spectacle, or make the spectacle fit into it.”  I feel that he is really stretching logic to make connections when there is no true factual information to base his statement upon.    If his point is to persuade me to act a certain way, he should not start statements with “I think,” and there should be factual information provided that supports the specific point he is trying to make.  In Culture Jam, Lasn makes multiple opinion based statements that fall short of persuading me to accept some of his important thoughts and ideas, thus far.  For the couple, of his ideas that he feels are so important the lack of factual information hangs over head with the lingering question of his authenticity. 

About Me

My name is Brandon Pane, I am a Criminal Justice major and it is my second year at Shippensburg.  I chose to take this class mostly because It is required for my major.  That is not the only reason though I do enjoy reading, (in small doses and select literature) it is far from an everyday occurrence.  Usually when I read it is most likely fiction and has been highly recommended by someone with similar taste.  Other than fiction and occasionally the funnies in the paper, I like to read books that involve unique views on religious subjects.  I come from a pretty small area, so Shippensburg is actually basically a city in my eyes which I’m sure many of you will find ridiculous especially because seeing a horse and buggy is an everyday occurrence here.  The town I am originally from is Athens, and don’t say “Athens Greece!?!” I have gotten that reaction far too many times.  It’s a small town in upstate PA where everyone knows everyone.  I am an optimistic person, and try to see the best in even the worst situations.  You will almost never catch me in a bad mood, even some of my closest friends have never seen me truly angry about something.  The music I primarily listen to is hip-hop, not Lil’ Wayne or Drake, I’m into the more underground style such as Blu, Jay-Electronica, Talib Kweli, Ghostface Killah.  I have recently started rock climbing and I am planning on getting involved in hang-gliding next summer.  I love doing things outside and being active.

Jay Electronica - So What You Saying (produced by J Dilla)