Thursday, March 31, 2011

Networking, yesterday and today

Social networking has changed the world. When my grandma was seventeen years old, she had to walk two farms down to talk to her best friend. She would never think of doing it in the middle of the night unless it was an emergency.  Most likely, her “chores” had to be finished before she left the house.  People socialized “in person” back then.  In our society today, we are “internet socializers”.  You can easily open Facebook on your smart phone or computer and talk to your best friend all you want and anytime you want to.  I am sure we are all guilty, at one time or another, of ignoring things that should be done (homework, chores, etc.) because we are caught up in the internet daze.  We easily spend hours a day socializing and searching websites.  Yes, the internet has improved our society a lot by making communication easier with each other, but at the same time it has also had negative effects.  A positive example of the use of social networking can be when you’re having trouble with your homework. You could ask anybody--friend, someone in your class, a teacher/professor--to help you by emailing them or writing on their wall on Facebook or Myspace. Also social networking makes it easier to stay in touch with family and friends that may not live by you. A negative is that many teens are not smart about what they share online. This leads to people becoming addicted to these sites such as Facebook and MySpace. In some cases it results in stalking, rapes and even death. I personally use a networking site of my own. I really like it because it makes it easier to talk to friends and family. Face it, in our crazy, busy lives, sometimes this is the only way we can stay in touch. Unfortunately, some of the things that my classmates have put up on their pages are just terrible. These include raunchy pictures and nasty comments. Even cyber bullying has gotten out of hand. Most of the time, kids can’t say what they want to say to each other’s faces, but they hide behind their computer or smart phone and are very comfortable saying it over the internet.  This usually makes matters worse.  In addition to all of these possible negative results, what also matters to me is the loss of a true, heart-to-heart, in-person conversation.  There is no way that a computer or smart phone can take the place of a sympathetic look, a high-five or a hug.  Words sent over the internet cannot compete.  It amazes me how communication on the internet is a must in our society now.   However, as our society has evolved into the busy, non-stop, highly-competitive world of today, the internet allows us to reach out to others whenever it fits into our schedules.  I plan to do my best and hope that our society in general also attempts to keep enough in-person contact in their lives to balance our electronic relationships.
Here’s a picture of the most commonly used social networking sites in our society.
Let’s hope our society doesn’t forget the importance of face to face commutation with others.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Human Trafficking

Trafficking of people is the fastest growing and the second largest criminal enterprise in the world. Sex trafficking is one of the most lucrative sectors of the trade including people, bride trafficking and commercial sexual abuse of children. Traffickers generate billions of dollars in profits every year while victimizing millions of people around the globe.  Simply put, human trafficking is modern-day slavery involving victims who are forced, defrauded or coerced into labor or sexual exploitation. There are an estimated 27 million people trapped in such slavery at this moment, most of them children. The average age of victims is 11-14 and 80% of them are girls. About 1000 girls in this society as young as 8 are trafficked nightly. Over 30,000 children were abducted in Northern Uganda and forced to become child soldiers or sex slaves.  Sex trafficking is very harmful to the victims. The consequences include physical and psychological trauma, disease like HIV/AIDS, pregnancy and possibly death. It’s a huge problem in Uganda’s society.  Purse of Hope helps save many women in Uganda exposed to trafficking; it’s a non-profitable charitable organization that brings awareness to the massive global industry of human trafficking. They provide aid and aftercare to its victims. I think it’s a great organization and they do a great job spreading the word. It’s awesome to see what a huge impact our society can have towards another’s society across the world.  


I like this picture because it shows how certain societies treat people like their animals (livestock) and how they label them with price tags. For example how women in Uganda sell themselves in order to make a living.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Beautiful People

What does it mean to be beautiful? Every culture has their own opinion about what it means to be beautiful. What one culture thinks is beautiful, another may feel is ugly. “Body image involves our perception, imagination, emotions, and physical sensations of and about our bodies” in relation to values that are not necessarily innate but “learned or expected culturally”. For example, the Geisha Girls of Japan have white painted faces with elegant hairdos and colorful kimonos that cover their entire bodies. This is a classic look for a beautiful woman in Japan.


On the other side of the world, you will find a totally different concept of beauty—The California Girl or Guy. She or he is a bleached blonde beauty with a golden tan and a skimpy bikini. To many in the United States, the classic meaning of beautiful is a young woman or man with a fit body who isn’t afraid of showing it off.


Each culture looks on beauty differently; Japan may think painting their faces white is a lot prettier than having a golden tan. “Standards of beauty vary so greatly from one culture to another that what one group finds attractive, another may not”.  We strive to be the beautiful people of our culture, to be what is accepted by others as beautiful in our society.