The New World...of cartographers.

The map of Amérique Septentrionale shows North America at the extent of French exploration in the Americas. It includes many rivers and names of geographic locations including the Appalachian mountain range and the Mississippi river. I suppose this map narrates the story of how North America was populated by the French in their conquests, which led to the eventual colonization of North America, mainly by the British. This was the “first” time white Europeans set foot on, let alone populated the New World. This colonization led to interaction between whites and natives, and possibly led to feelings that were a precursor to “whiteness”.  "Early maps and travel narratives were the first accounts to chronicle English impressions of the New World. As they did so, they charted a psychic space within which American whiteness developed."

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/map_item.pl 

Inagural words

I found it very strange that the word Change was not used more in his speech. In fact it isn't mentioned one the entire page. Obama's entire campaign was centered around this idea that he was going to bring change to the US. Everywhere I went i saw huge posters with "Change, Obama 2008" on them. I find it strange that such a huge campaign promise and focus was not mentioned in his speech.

Reagan used the word "government" 16 times in his first address, and 20 times in his second.

Black Parade

The theme of this song is to carry on in the face of whatever is happening in your life. In the past few years, the United States have faced some of the worst times it has ever seen, Katrina, 9/11, "Debt Crisis", the war. This song tells us to carry on even in the face of our own destruction.

The Deafness

In the video Sound and Fury two cultures collide. On one side the deaf: people w ho cannot hear at all and have their very own culture and language both of which are sacred to them. The other side the hearing: people who have super hearing abilities and a culture of sound. The deaf and hearing are locked in an epic battle for the cause of one girl, who perhaps will have an impact on the entire deaf community upon obtaining a cochlear implant, enabling her to hear.

The two families are led by two brothers both from hearing parents, one brother being able to hear and the other not. Both brothers have deaf children, but the hearing brother decides to get a cochlear implant for his son, enabling him to hear. This is a shock to the deaf family, because they feel like they are losing one of thier own. When the deaf family talks about getting a cochlear for their daughter, they decide against it and it causes drama on the hearing side of the family. They argue that it is negligent to keep a child from getting the best possible life, both the hearing culture and the deaf culture. But the deaf parents argue that she might decide to forget about the deaf culture and just hear instead.

I feel what the deaf side is trying to say. They have developed a culture of their own, and it is a way to get togther and communicate with people who are just like you and understand what a deaf person goes through in daily life.

My Style of Writing

I don't really think of my writing as having a style per say, but I suppose if I had to say something it would be that I don't hesitate to say exactly what I mean. I enjoy to make people think or use a different perspective, especially if that means upsetting people. I understand that this may be distasteful but I really think that it helps me see what other people actually feel about a particular topic. Sometimes a person may need prodding to show their true feelings...eh, now I just sound mean.

Talk of the Town

What a wonderful piece this was. Terrifying and yet makes me wonder what the world has come to… I have a feeling that people who read this essay would come to the thought process of “What has our country come to?” This is a natural thought, specifically when reading “Can we afford the openness that lets future kamikaze pilots, say, enroll in Florida flying schools?” A very valid point. Some would loathe the thought of some terrorist with the gall to train for his/her activities in our very own country! I naturally came to this myself, but thinking more I came to “What has our world come to?”

I believe that every process in life is a cycle (hence “life cycle”) and that everything must have it’s polar opposite. These are not just my thoughts but truths in life. More specifically, for all the love in the world there must be an equal amount of hate, and as of late I have had the feeling that there is more hate than love. I see this article as a representative of how the hate of the world has grown and left it's victims festering in it's reek. This was only an act of hate, and unfortunately it was met with one of the same

"People are people, always have been and always will be." My favorite Bruce Fischer quote says it all. The world has always had opposites. Without them we would not exist, but there must remain a balance. To say never hate would be a mistake. There must always be hate, but it is our unique ability to decide what to do with it.

About Me.

About me... well, I turned 17 in April. I am usually plagued by jibes on my birthday because I was born on the first of April, or commonly referred to as April Fools day. In my free time I am possibly doing many things. I have recently joined a LARP group and I occasionally role play on the weekends. My friends and I (including Ryan O'donnell) play the pokemon card game. I love to fish and hike near lakes. I have a girlfriend who lives in Belleville Wisconsin, and because I do not own a car I am forced to bike the 30 miles to her house. I swim on the McFarland High School swim team, and I am going to beat Jake Mandli in the 100 Breast this year. I suppose that is all I can stomach writing about myself.