Somewhat Damaged

I'm a condescending pescetarian.

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 19:00:38 -0500

kristybrannon:

augustine336:

kristybrannon:

augustine336:

It’s 2am. I’m writing a reflection about The Blindside, a recent movie starring Sandra Bullock. The movie frustrated me. I am at the point of just ranting and really hope my professor enjoys this paragraph.

Additionally, this movie followed the trend of media towards the Jolie-Pitts by idolizing those who overtly help the less fortunate. Ihunt19 wrote, “This is realy made me have a 2^nd look at how there a good people out there helping the poor and homeless.” The Tuohy’s adopted one child; they did not help the population as a whole. I do not want to condemn the Tuohy’s for adopting Michael Oher, but I do not feel as if they deserve to be idolized for doing so. They are a part of a system that creates opportunities for the wealthy and creates paths for the poor to fail. They helped one human, but may have been screwing over numbers of others with their materialism. Sean owned fast food restaurants. Therefore, he is a part of the meat industry. The meat industry is notorious for unsafe and unfair working conditions. He is feeding his community with meat that is pumped with steroids, antibiotics, and growth hormones. He is feeding others with harmful chemicals, yet his whiteness and wealth forgive this. The drug dealers in the projects are not forgiven for also giving harmful chemicals to clients because they are poor and black. Instead of being rewarded, they are imprisoned. Society accepts one form of these chemical intoxications but not another.

Well, Hamburgers are different than drugs, both in the severity of their effects on the user (and I guess when I say drugs I mean hard drugs that really can do you a lot of damage even with one use) and also in the social and economic practices that surround them. The violence and association with crime that surround drug trade just aren’t there, at least at the level of the meat industry that is publicly known (but I don’t know that much about the actual meat industry). I would say, rather than being unforgiven for being poor and black, the drug dealers are usually poor and black because of the events in the history of our society that began by favoring whites and grew to favoring economic privilege that most black people do not have and are not in the position to gain because of that. I dunno about helping the poor and homeless but it seems like that lady is helping that one kid in her community, which might not be helping the entire community, but it’s still a lot nicer than driving by him really fast in a sports car to splash mud on him because he’s poor and they can afford that sports car right?

… I’m starting to realize that over analyzing movies is basically all my major is in school, and that now I really like to do that. Also, you made me almost want to watch it, but then I remembered Sandra Bullock and her awful southern accent and sentimental one-liners.

The drug trade has overt bad things surrounding it, such as crime and violence. Meat-packing companies are just better at deceiving. They have literally broadcasted advertisements for work opportunities on Mexican radio stations. The messages told that the company would provide transportation to Michigan (or Minnesota, I forget) and temporary shelter once getting there. Illegal immigrants were transported north and then dropped across the street from a homeless shelter. Since they were technically homeless, they were able to stay there. The company considered the shelter to be the temporary boarding of their workers. There are so many wrong things about that. A lot of companies will only allow their workers to see company doctors when injured on the job, yet they will pay their doctors to misdiagnose injuries so that the company is not responsible for health problems of workers. The injured workers cannot get work anywhere else, yet they are unable to do the jobs assigned to them and must quit. There is no compensation for their injuries since the injury was misdiagnosed. Injuries happen a lot, too, because the meat-packing industry is arguably America’s most dangerous industry today.

I don’t mean to rant, but it’s just that these things are not known and because of that, people are not held responsible. In my paper I was trying to make the point that both groups of people are harming others, yet one is perceived as much worse and I am not sure I agree with that.

Hmm well, I wasn’t really arguing against that but I get what you’re trying to say. I was more talking about the difference in the way people view those two things, and that the stigmas associated with certain things (like drug dealing) are often attached to a race because of the way race is organized in America in regards to socioeconomic status. Cus, I know nothing about the meat industry, I just like talking about this type of stuff.

Quite honestly, I don’t really know what I’m saying right now. I am on too little sleep with too many things to do. I hope you don’t feel like I was attacking you. I did not mean to be mean. I like talking about this stuff too. Glad you do!

Sam, you’re not at war with the meat industry, you’re at war with cut-throat capitalism. Every industry has practices like these and everyone turns a blind eye to it. While I certainly don’t condone meat packing companies that behave this way, I think it’s misguided to single them out as one of the uglier industries in America today. I understand it’s for the sake of your paper, and that’s fine, but what is really wrong here are a lack of oversight and regulations on the part of the federal government.

Shit like this goes on every day in every industry in every corner of this country. Singling out one industry only serves to hide what’s going on behind every other one.

popquizkid2006: Metric- IOU Great song.

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 01:07:50 -0500

popquizkid2006:

Metric- IOU

Great song.

whatsername: courtesy of my friend, andrew stern. Baby Fey?...

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 22:49:06 -0500

whatsername:

courtesy of my friend, andrew stern.

Baby Fey? Check. But Baby Palin? No way.

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Thu, 10 Dec 2009 16:16:48 -0500

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If you’re cool you’ll listen to this album.

Wed, 09 Dec 2009 11:22:41 -0500

If you’re cool you’ll listen to this album.

The Public Option is Dead

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 21:39:18 -0500

The Public Option is Dead:

I hope you’re happy, America. You never cease to stupefy me.

melindstaedt: (via beingbrutalisnteverything) I love this.

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:15:13 -0500

melindstaedt:

(via beingbrutalisnteverything)

I love this.

Photo

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 09:06:17 -0500

One of the most beautiful albums I’ve ever heard.

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 02:24:57 -0500

One of the most beautiful albums I’ve ever heard.

imperfecthumanconnection: Cocteau Twins - Seekers Who Are...

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 15:29:09 -0500

imperfecthumanconnection:

Cocteau Twins - Seekers Who Are Lovers

God damn, you’re cool.

(via sashagrey) Sasha Grey loves the Vancouver Canucks, too?...

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 19:08:09 -0500

(via sashagrey)

Sasha Grey loves the Vancouver Canucks, too? Ugh. Too awesome.

yellowisfantastic: carousels: summerclothes: 10thand59th: lov...

Fri, 04 Dec 2009 13:59:33 -0500

yellowisfantastic:

carousels:

summerclothes:

10thand59th:

loveisabigfunnyword:

treebones:

hazelweatherfield:

themoonandthewolf:moonandmoon:

i can’t wait to go home

I really would love to visit in winter sometime.

marionlc: NY Senator, awesome AWESOME speech on gay/lesbian...

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 21:40:24 -0500

marionlc:

NY Senator, awesome AWESOME speech on gay/lesbian marriage rights.

How Twilight Works

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 18:06:21 -0500

How Twilight Works:

Amazing.

Photo

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 12:25:54 -0500

"Jonestown and The Dandys have a window of opportunity because they can relate to suburban people,..."

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 00:59:00 -0500

“Jonestown and The Dandys have a window of opportunity because they can relate to suburban people, drug people, and they can also relate to literary people, and also to people who have some real knowledge of how music developed.”

- Genesis P’orridge on The Brian Jonestown Massacre and The Dandy Warhols’ potential circa 1996.

whatsername: “I’m sick of just liking people. I wish to God I could meet somebody I could...

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:41:38 -0500

whatsername:

“I’m sick of just liking people. I wish to God I could meet somebody I could respect.”- J.D. Salinger

really, though.

Transitions and Endings / New Beginnings

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 03:22:00 -0500

So I’ve got the go-ahead from the parents to transfer to ISU next fall. It’s something I’ve been contemplating since the end of the summer, and I feel it will be the right decision. Each semester here at Ball State has been more disappointing than the last, and no matter how much I told myself next semester would be better, it simply wasn’t. I’ve got a lot of shit going on internally and right now being home is the only place where I feel centered and happy. I’ve still got two years left because of a couple missed credits and I feel that finishing up strongly at home will be much easier on me both emotionally and academically.

As much as it’s going to hurt me to leave my BSU friends behind, I can no longer continue to put all of my energy into making the best of a place I hate at the expense of sacrificing my own happiness and academic success. This semester will be the first time in my entire life that I don’t get any A’s, and I realized that it’s because I’ve been so miserable that the only thing I cared about was trying to make each day not be terrible by focusing solely on social things. I wish I could tell you what it is about Muncie and Ball State that doesn’t work for me, but I feel it’s so much more complicated than I can accurately convey.

I’ve developed a reputation here in Muncie as being a tremendously negative and hateful person, and I don’t want to be that anymore. I just can’t afford to be; it’s too emotionally draining. I need to get home and get back to who I used to be. I need to get back on track.

Though I’m not transferring for six more months and I’m still quite some time from saying goodbye to the people here I’ve come to care about, I still feel a need to recognize them as being the only reason I’ve survived here this long. They’ve put up with my sober and drunken rants, my poor attitude, my constant need for attention, and yet still somehow managed to want me around.

I love them all and thank them with all that I am.

—-

While I failed miserably at achieving my goal of attending Brooklyn College my senior year to finish up, I also came to realize how unrealistic that goal really was. My family simply can’t afford to subsidize my life in the city even if I got a job to help, and my grades would never net me any scholarships, let alone in a college in a city as competitive as New York.

While I’m on the subject, I’ve reached a point where I no longer have any real goals or dreams, nor do I have any idea of whether or not I still intend to become a social studies teacher. I’m in a sort of ‘blank slate’ state that is equal parts unnerving and empowering. I’m trying to use this as an opportunity to rebuild rather than drop out of the game altogether. I’m hoping going home to my family and friends and starting fresh at ISU with 70-some credit hours will enable me to find some clarity in my life.

There is a lot going on behind the scenes in my life and there is still so much work to be done. Here’s to new beginnings.

Here’s to the future. I hope I can get it right.

Modern day Princess Jasmine.

Mon, 30 Nov 2009 01:04:47 -0500

Modern day Princess Jasmine.

5 Star Wars Status Updates

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 23:51:35 -0500

5 Star Wars Status Updates