Is This REALLY a Law?

Laws, they protect us and the people around us and help our society run smoothly.

So obviously they are important to respect and they make sense if we are still using them...
...right?

Not Really.  If you look up some of the laws we have within Canada... you'd wonder if perhaps the Government was a tad...drunk when they wrote them.

A couple interesting ones where I can tell aren't even followed are:

" Comic books which depict any illegal acts are banned"

In a city in Quebec it is "Illegal for a teen to walk down mainstreet with their shoe untied"

These aren't really follows. Of course there a some banned comic books but...I have seen MANY comic books showing illegal acts that are availible in stores.   Shoes untied? REALLY?   I can highly doubt that's really followed.  That's a little outrageous.

A few that I think are a tad outdated are:

In Alberta " If you are released from prison, it is required that you are givena handgun with bullets and a horse so you can ride out of town."     and " Businesses must provide rails to tie up horses" .

In Toronto "you may not drag a dead horse down Younge St. on Sunday".

I'm pretty sure horses aren't used often as a mode of transportation and I pretty sure they arent going to give a just-released convict a GUN and WHO is going to be dragging a horse down Younge Street? It is to busy now with cars to even walk across Younge Street.  

Some other just interesting ones were:

"Citizens may not publicly remove bandages"
"The colour of house and garage door is regulated by city bylaws ( a purple door gets you a fine)"
In B.C its " illegal to kill a Sasquatch".


Some of these laws are extremly outdated and some are just outrageous because some of them are as "illegal as J-walking" since I've never seen or heard of them being regualted or anyone being arrested or fined for breaking one. Perhaps the governments makes these laws just for kicks to have some fun or maybe they were being serious but it makes me wonder what type of people run our country and whether oe not they pay attention to the laws that were passed years ago.  

MAVS!

The Dallas Mavericks are the 2010-11 Season NBA Champions.

In 6 games, the Mavs decisively won the title with a 4 games to 2 run. Finals MVP honours went to none other than Dirk Nowitzki. But in all seriousness, this feat was a team effort, from the starters to the core bench players, the Mavericks won this championship as a team.

Something that the Miami Heat failed to do.

In game 6, where the Miami heat were facing elimination, they didn't step up as a team. And really, nobody on the whole team did well the entire game. Lebron James had a 4/4 start to the game, and went pretty much cold for the rest. Dwyane Wade did some positives, but he tried to take the team on his back, and failed. He made too many mistakes down the stretch, and the Heat as a whole looked rattled. The title was the Mavericks about halfway through the 4th quarter, and they ended the game winning in double digits. The only person that was contributing positively with his minutes was Chris Bosh, who had been struggling most of the series, but was probably the most efficient player for the Heat.

Too bad he didn't get many touches of the ball.

I would be lying if i said I felt sorry for Bosh after the game, where he actually fell down in emotion, and seemed to be crying. I can understand why he would react that way, being one of the most emotional players in the game today, but I'm not sorry, and I am overjoyed that the Mavericks defeated the Heat in a clear, concise way.

Last years off season, James and Bosh were free agents that decided to take their talents to South Beach, and anybody who watched the NBA was buzzing about how the Heat would win the championship. There were lovers and haters, myself being one of the haters. Anyone for the Heat tried to convince others that the Heat would win the title because they have 3 all-stars on the team. I personally believe in a team dynamic, where everyone is comfortable with each other, knows how others play, and can win games because of their chemistry. There's no doubt that the Heat will win a few championships in their time, just the first season seemed like a bit of a stretch to me, even if the team did acquire possibly the best player in basketball today, Lebron James.

Following the moves, a large variety of people were asked about how they think the Miami Heat will fair this season, including United States President Barrack Obama. He followed the same view that many "haters" have, which is that a team who works well together and has played for a long time will do better than a team that hasn't. It's cool when the President has the same views on basketball as you do.

And it looks like many people are satisfied with the loss to Dallas. People like Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Kidd, Shawn Marion and Jason Terry have been in the NBA for 10+ years and are veteran players that have never won a championship. The fact that the Mavs only have 1 all-star as opposed to the Heat, who have 3, are the team that overcame the odds and won it all is a great success that really should be admired.

I'm not really a hater anymore, because I know now that the Heat players can't be cocky anymore because they have 3 stars. Humbled is a word I hope players like Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Lebron James can learn about, because a big part to their failure in this playoff run was the lack of maturity that all 3 players have.

Storm

Everyone meet Storm,

Storm is an adorable four month old baby being raise without a gender. Why you may ask. The parents of baby Storm are hoping to raise their children without the consequences of gender stereotypes.

66 % of 18 to 34 year olds said they'd like to know the sex of their child before it is born, according to a 2007 Gallup poll. Although, What does knowing the sex actually accomplish?
The colour you paint their nursery, the colour of their baby blankets, whether they get toy cars or a doll.

As many parents do establish the child's gender for them, Kathy Witterwick and David Stocker allow their children to form their own identity. Although, this unique situation could have more than it's share of challenges ahead, it allows for the parents to create a safer environment for their children.

Without advertising the gender of their children, the children are able to explore the stereotypical characteristics of both genders to establish their own preferances. For example, Jazz, Storm's 5 year old brother is able to wear his hair long and styled in braids. As they mature the older boys and Storm will be able to establish their own views of the world.

The media sends out constant messages of gender stereotypes although, now we are seeing more and more advertisment for individuality. Individuality includes your morals, beliefs and identity. Children deserve the opportunity to grow up without judgement and labels and this is the Stocker family's way of doing so.

Although, they will have to pay close attention to the forms of media their children have access to because of the different biases. Television is used the most to represent gender stereotypes however, the radio may also be a huge aid in how people form stereotypes. Listening to the radio, hearing the voices that use detailed descriptions to help the audience form images in their minds can be a large contributor to stereotypes. The Stalker family will have to establish ways to discuss stereotypes with their children and be open to any questions they may have in the future to ensure healthy development.

Finally! A finale for Celebrity Apprentice!

Donald Trump FINALLY put his own ego aside and crowned Country Singer-John Rich-the new Celebrity Apprentice last Sunday night. Some would call a painstaking process-Donald dragged out several of his seasons shows to an outrageous two hours!! We watched many Board Room scenes go on for sometimes 45 minutes of arguing, defending and accusing. The craziest competition to date, it came down to two very committed, hard working and successful fundraising contenders-Oscar Winning Actress Marley Matlin and country singer John Rich.

This was one of the wackiest of times for long time Apprentice watchers. These celebrities were pitted against each other very week in a variety of tasks to raise money for charity (all good!). Aside from the confrontational personalities, there was always enough go to go around the room twice. Tempers flared ad there was never a dull moment!

The “fun” started right at the beginning with Star Jones who can come off as elitist, controlling and a manipulator of other participants, particularly Lisa Reena who possesses such a threat that Star was out to get her right away. And she did! Star seemed to have Donald’s’ support right from the start, until it came to Ne Ne Leakes…the “housewife from Atlanta.”

Fun for us watchers as sparks flew between Ne Ne and Star, as well as the others who were around including LaToya (I’m famous because I’m a Jackson) Jackson who Ne Ne called “Casper the Ghost” !!

The other wacky one who created lots of drama and chaos was Gary Busey. We’re talking…WAY out there! He seems to have lots of issues when interacting with others due to a brain injury, his communication problems kept the men’s team on edge. Singer Mark McGrath, Survivor show winner, Richard Hatch and rapper Lil Jon as well as asing singer Meat Loaf provided lots o conflicts and hard work for their charities.

Overall this edition of Celebrity Apprentice should have been called “Celebrities Behaving Badly and Raising Money for Charity!”

Donald Trump and his over privileged offspring overshadowed the temperamental, overindulged wacky contestants this time. It was like a train wreck every week…one we knew was going to happen that we just couldn’t take our eyes off of!

I’m happy for John Rich, sad for the second runner up Marley Matlin, thrilled for the charities that will benefit from all the money raised and waiting on the edge of my seat to see what Donald trump and Mark Burnett (producer) will b able to come up with for next season! It will be hard to top this one…Sunday nights will be awfully quiet without the Celebrity Apprentice this summer!

Yours in Reality, Sam.

Teen Targets

Teens have been used as targets for many different produces from make-up to clothes, face wash to school supplies... Trying to bribe us with promises of love, happiness, confidence, beauty and popularity. Using these techniques to lure in teen buyers is bad enough, but when manufacturers deliberately use them on a product that has proven to cause harm or death, potentially shorten or take away the live of innocent teenagers, that’s criminal! Introducing the cigarette manufacturers.

Cigarette manufactures have been researching the fads and trends of today’s teens and using this information against us. Selling a product that could potentially shorten innocent lives; now thats just outrageous! They are using many different techniques to lure teenagers into buying their products that have a slim, glamourous and intriguing packing. They do whatever they can to appeal to the teenaged market.

Some cigarette companies add menthol to their cigarettes which decreases the smell on their clothing and breath, making it easier for teens to smoke without their parents getting suspicious. Unfortunately, adding menthol to tobacco causes the nicotine to get to the brain faster increasing the addictive potential of a cigarette. (The faster nicotine binds to the nicotine receptors in the brain, and releases dopamine, a hormone that makes you feel pleasure and satisfaction, the higher the potential for addiction.) Their manufacturing techniques make it easier for teens to cover their acts of smoking cigarettes.

Not only have they hidden the smell of cigarettes, they have also camouflaged the packaging.

Is it just coincidence that this package looks like and i-pod? Giving teens confidence that they can successfully hide their smoking will increase teen buyers. They have also made cigarette cases in the shape of mascara containers, chocolate bars, a deck of cards and designer Louis Vuitton clutches to help teens conceal their cigarettes from their parents and guardians. Pretty ingenious on their part!

Where as a regular pack of cigarettes contains 20 cigarettes for around $10, cigarette companies have created mini pack of 4 or 5 cigarettes. I suspect the reason for this is two - fold, again to target teens. Firstly, the small packaging is easy for teens to conceal and contains the perfect amount of cigarettes if they are only planning to smoke at a party or on the weekend with their friends. Secondly, the small packages are a low, affordable price of $3.00, which just happens to be the same price of a bag of chips and a can of pop. These people have thought of everything! Luckily, the government has rallied to stop advertising on the radio, television and magazines in Canada. It is also suing the British Tobacco Company for the health care costs due to the harmful effects of smoking.

Not only have they made cigarettes affordable, accessible and easy to hide from their parents, they have also made them more interesting, tasty and enjoyable by adding crazy flavours. Making the cigarettes have yummy and fun flavours like strawberry, bubblegum, chocolate, peanut butter and jelly, tropical passion and mint would make the smoke more pleasing to us teens instead of just the nauseating taste of cigarettes. They say they are not targeting teens, but when we look at how they have added the above elements into their products it makes that statement laughable. Of course they are targeting teenagers, they have thought of absolutely everything to reel us in!

Unfortunately, nicotine is the most addictive substance on the market. More addictive than marijuana, cocaine, and alcohol. Starting to smoke cigarettes before the age of 18 predicts a higher rate of addiction in the future. Since these ads are targeting teens, they will get them started young causing them a lifetime of negative health effects in the future, including cancers, lung disease (COPD), and heart disease.Trying to seduce you into buying a product that will harm you in the end is murder! Doing this to children is infanticide!

World Disasters- Celebrity donations and fundraising

Our world has experienced many disasters that have devastated people's lives and damaged anything from houses to major infrastructures.

Some of the major and more current disasters include:

On January 12, 2010, Haiti experienced something that changed their country forever; a 7.0 magnitude earthquake ruined their country.

On March 11, 2011, Japan experienced a major 8.9 magnitude earthquake. The earthquake then caused a tsunami and also caused a serious accident at a nuclear power plant.

To help rebuild these nations a very large amount of funds are needed. To raise awareness and fund raise this money, we need as many people as possible to donate time and money to these causes. Much of the fundraising done uses celebrities and other famous stars to bring knowledge and show the importance of aiding the disaster struck countries.

Just like many of us, celebrities feel it is important to help places like Haiti and Japan. The media also uses them because much of the public is greatly influenced by celebrities. Telethons, videos, concerts and fundraising events have been held to raise the money needed to aid these nations. Last year, Help Haiti Live was held to support Haiti victims.

Songs like We Are the World and Do They Know its Christmas have been produced and reproduced to raise more money to help the hungry. Tens of millions of dollars were raised by the celebrities efforts(and it helped greatly). Madonna donated $250,000 to Haiti relief last year along with many other celebrities including Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Wyclef Jean, and George Clooney. For Haiti relief, George Clooney and MTV Networks organized a telethon last year in order to bring further awareness of the devastation in Haiti.

Even now, some of these places still have not recovered from the devastating events. There are still people living in tents and people without clean water or food.

Some people might criticize the celebrities for helping with the relief efforts because they think that the celebrities just want more attention in the media or that not all the money is going directly to the cause. However, it is clear that celebrities have helped to raise awareness and a great amount of funds for these disasters.

*There is also a link for a video about Haiti.

Listen Closely

Everyday we're hit with messages to buy things that if they are put simply, they mean "buy this and you will be pretty" or "buy this and you'll be the most masculine man around". One way teens are influenced by media is through music music can have many different effects on a person. It can cause a simple reaction of bobbing your head, it can lead to a major dance party or it can be as simple as listening to the words. For some artists, listening to the words is what they want most for their listeners. Sometimes their message in the song is more than "Romeo take me somewhere we can be alone" or "It's friday friday gotta get down on friday" sometimes it's a message about American politics, cancer reasearch and how the world needs to change.

Even some of the songs that are at the top of the charts right now have positive messages in them, two prime examples are Pink's Prefect and Katy Perry's Firework. Both of these songs are about being who you are and always remembering that you are important to the world. It's also about remember that people care about you and that to them, you are perfect just the way you are.

There is non of this

Or feeling like this

These artist have made an effort to put positive messages out in the media, other artist have chosen different issues to tackle with their music. The Dixie Chicks and Pink have both created music about the way America is being run, challenging at the time George W. Bush about how people are treated. There are so many songs out there about different world issues it is simply amazing to say the least.

If you want to take a look here is a few to start:

Pink-Dear Mr. President

Dixie Chicks- I'm not ready to make nice

Mugshot ft. Rob Dyer- Skate 4 Cancer Song

U2- Sunday Blood Sunday

basically anything by Bob Dylan

Brett Dennen- Ain't no Reason

John Lennon- Working Class Hero

Rascal Flatts- Stand

Ludacris ft. Mary J. Blidge- Rynaway Love

Just to name a few

Enjoy

The Businessman Says "Meeeeeth"

I've been noticing a lot of pointless activism lately. I don't mean to say that activism is a bad thing, but a lot if it's being done by people who don't seem too intelligent. Mainly I'm looking at people fighting the advertisement of drugs. Aside from subliminal messaging, I can safely say that I've never seen a commercial for The Friendly Stranger Cannabis Culture shop. They say drugs are advertised in movies, but I've never seen a movie that centers around drugs without the drugs destroying the protagonist. Chiko

A Scanner Darkly Cherry Bomb and Trainspotting, for example

Anyone who says they find positive messages about the use of drugs is finding them because they're looking for them. Like politicians that watch cartoons to prove that Goofy is gay. They say it's the media that gets kids hooked on drugs, but the case is that it's drugs that get kids hooked on drugs. People use drugs in order to escape from a world that they despise, not because their wiped consumer minds tell them to. They then consume not because they're told to, but because they need to. Have you ever gone to the 32nd floor of a corporate building to buy coke out of a briefcase via a man in a suit, smoking a cigar? Doubtful. Teenagers buy and use drugs recreationally with other teens. Corporatocracy doesn't tell kids to do drugs. Other kids tell kids to do drugs.

Body Image in todays Society

In todays society body image is very different than what is was 100 years ago. back in the 1800s being skinny was seen as being unhealthy. men chased after women with large voluptuous figures, pale skin was seen as a thing of beauty. but in todays society it is the complete opposite. to have a large figure and pale skin is something that will easily draw people away from you. the media teaches us that it is okay to starve yourself as long as you look hot doing it, and that being unhealthy is the price you have to pay to fit in. we are given this image of a perfect body that we are all supposed to uphold. a size zero, tanned as can be, double D boobs and a large butt is something that is supposed to be socially acceptable. but truthfully it is impossible for all girls to uphold this image. with everybody having a different type of body is is actually impossible for some girls to get below a size 4. girls as young as the age of 6 have resulted to starving themselves in order to look more beautiful. the media in todays society is literally taking away the youth of little girls, but who can blame those girls??? they see it everywhere they go. with adds in the malls of women who seem to be perfect covered with men adoring them. more and more shows involving sexual images and stereotypical signs. little girls shouldnt have to be exposed to such thing but that fact is, its almost impossible to avoid these things now a days. i dont understand how we can let all of this continue. people are literally harming themselves just because some magazine says they have to. but the truth is we dont have to listen. everybody should be seen as beautiful in their own way.... and then and only then our world will that much of a happier place.