26. April 2009 by student.

Who said that we had to learn about our faith through the bible or at church or anymore.  Paul Grayhek is using Ebay as his vehicle to easily spread the story of God.  Grayhek is a 52 year old northerner residing in Idaho.  he recently stated that he has a massive hand of God in his life that he would like to share with the highest bidder.  Listed as the “Hand of God Rock wall” on Ebay, it is up for $250 dollars right now. 

He sees this rock as a sign from God to help him through his hard times.  After losing his job his life got a little rough and he believes this is God’s way of guiding him into the right direction.  Rarely getting rockfalls near his house he thought it was only a symbol that the rock fall was only twenty feet form his house.  Although the highest bidder on Ebay will own the God rock hand, Grayhek is keeping it in his backyard.  The bidder will own the rights to rock.  He plans to use the profits from the rock to pursue an internship in counseling when he graduates with a social work degree in two years.

Grayhek states that he is not a “holier-than-thou person trying to get rich.”  Rather he is just trying to spread the word of God and Ebay is the way he can do it.  Times have definitely changed from when our faith and beliefs were free.  Is this what our economy and times have come to? Paying for items that we believe are a part of God so we can say we believe a little more.  Yes I understand that the money will help Grayhek in the long run and it is a blessing due to the fact that he needs the money; but maybe the hand was just a symbol of good luck.  Maybe he was not supposed to use the hand as a way to make a profit but to cherish this gift and help broaden his faith.

I believe we are given signs to help us through hard times and we can believe what we want from those signs.  I do not think that if it is something so special as a hand from God that we should be using it to make money online. At the same time I understand where people are coming form trying to make an extra buck here and there these days with how valuable money is in our economy.  It would just be a shame if we sold our faith short in order to make some extra money.

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26. April 2009 by student.

For those of us who attend Edison State College, we all know how hard it is to find a parking spot. I have had two $15 parking tickets within this semester, due to parking in areas beside a parking spot and on the grass but since it was “not technically” a parking spot, I was ticketed. Even though, I parked out of the way of any distractions, mishaps and such. (Which was not indicated on the citation, instead merely the opposite was, how rude of them to say that I was blocking an entrance, when I clearly wasn’t). When I was taking classes in building A, I had to arrive 30-45 minutes early for class because if I didn’t I wouldn’t have had a parking spot. Even then, (at times) I would have to go into competition with fellow classmates and students to race into an empty spot or harass (creeping my vehicle behind a student who is walking to their vehicle so I can get their parking spot). If you ask me, it’s very ridiculous, because I have been on both sides, numerous times, and I dread it when I have to run back out to my car to grab a jacket or something because, of course, there will be someone following close behind trying to scout out where I parked and if I’m leaving, then I go ahead and break their hearts and waste time because I am staying. The parking spots in the A building is taken up by the healthcare program students, which includes, Nursing, Dental Hygienist, Physical Therapy Assistant, Cardiovascular technician, Respiratory therapist, Opticianary, EMT, and courses such as Microbiology, Anatomy and Physiology I and II. Oh, and not to mention the dental hygienist program has a clinic downstairs where they see patients, which significantly adds up to the population. So with that many people in one building, there’s limited amount of parking spaces. In a way I feel that Edison is making money off of the students by making us pay for the parking tickets. Because when I go out to my car after class, there are more than 20 vehicles that have parking tickets on their windshields. Where is all of the money going? It should be going towards constructing more parking spaces. They should get rid of the golf course and tennis court, which I doubt no body uses anymore (which I heard rumors that they did close down the golf course) and construct parking spots for the needed amount. And with the economy as bad as it is right now, poor college students like us to reach in our pockets and give them $15 of our hard earned money because they do not have enough parking spaces? We paid enough for tuition and I believe that they should have enough parking spaces for us so we can continue learning. It shouldn’t be the students fault that they do not have enough parking spots, I believe if they do not have enough then they should not charge us for parking in areas which are not harmful in any way. We are simply trying to make it to class in time and in one piece. They should be grateful that they actually have people coming to their school. Also, the other parking ticket I received was by the H and K building, knowing that we have a theater (Barbara B. Man) at our school, whenever there is a play it is impossible to find parking, even if you come an hour early! Students have to park all the way in overflow, and sometimes, and even with that, that becomes filled. Edison really needs to do something with their parking situation. Not to mention, that after Intro to Sociology class, which lets out around 8:05 (because Professor Andoscia likes to use his teaching time sparingly) the parking ticket was on my windshield, being that it was dark and late I did not take notice, as I was driving, I saw the pink ticket flapping in the wind at me, that was a huge distraction which could have otherwise lead to serious mishaps. But I pulled over and grabbed the irritating thing before it flew off. Either Edison needs to get more parking spaces, or they need to STOP giving out tickets. I know Professor Andoscia likes petitions, and will probably, or more than likely suggest that all Edison Students and myself start one. But if I do receive another parking ticket, I just might!

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26. April 2009 by student.

It just makes your bones cringe thinking about what if this is like the black plague back in 1347 - 1351. Could this be another history landmark in the making? For our sake, we can only pray and be hopeful that it is not. “History indicates that flu pandemics tend to occur once every 20 years or so, so we’re due for one,” Steinberg said. “I can say with 100 percent confidence that a pandemic of a new flu strain will spread in humans,” he said. “What I can’t say is when it will occur.”  

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26. April 2009 by student.

Obviously, the media has a very big role in socialization. Between television, magazines, radio, newspapers, and tabloids, the media use their techniques to manipulate the public, and use skills that appeal to certain age groups, such as teenagers. Commercials can display the newest iPod, or the most high-tech cell phone. As people buy these products, then others jump on the bandwagon and think “everyone else has one, I’ve gotta get one too”, just until something better comes out. And then they go crazy for that product too.

I think that the media can sometimes be a very powerful agent, but I think that some people give the media more credit than it’s due. By this, I mean that I think the media has a power on the general public, to a certain extent. I don’t believe that the media and their influence could really sway someone away from their personal and moral beliefs. For example, if someone sees a violent scene in a movie with shooting guns, I don’t think that someone would say, “That was cool! Now I need to go out and shoot something!” Seeing a scene from a movie is not going to influence me in that kind of way…I still know what is right and what is wrong. Companies use commercials on television in order to get word of their product out into the public. And I’m sure that everyone’s gone out to the store, at one time or another, and picked up something that they saw a funny commerical for. Even if the product is as small as a bag of chips.

The media use very smart marketing techniques and skills in order to appeal to consumers. But sometimes, I think people believe that the media brings more damage to society than it actually does.

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26. April 2009 by student.

Everytime I watch the news or read the newspaper, something really ticks me off. A headline in the Tampa Tribune read, “Shaken baby dies in Bradenton; boyfriend of mom charged”. Stories like this are very sad, and disturbing. According to this article, the 8-month old was shaken to death because she would not stop crying. He shook her seven times, and then she began to vomit, and stopped breathing. 

This is not the first story that I have seen in the news regarding babies being shaken to death. In this particular story, the boyfriend of the mom was charged. But I’ve seen stories before where either a mother or father does the same crime. If someone is not ready to be a parent and be responsible for their child’s well-being, then they should not have a child at all. Yes, I know that some children are not necessarily “planned”, but other options like adoption would ultimately be better for a child in the long run, rather than to be neglected or abused.

In our society, it has never been and will never be acceptable to shake a baby. At such a young age their brain is not even fully developed, and this is why shaking a baby a few times could kill them. I think that people that don’t know how to properly care for a young child shouldn’t be anywhere near them. There are things you can do to stop a baby from crying, and these things do NOT involve placing physical harm upon the child. You can pick up the baby, rock it, change its diaper, give it a toy or pacifier, and so on. The baby will stop crying eventually, once you calm it down. People that shake babies must be extremely impatient if they can’t devote just a few minutes to soothing their child. Shaking a baby is just stupid, and I hope that this guy who killed the baby stays in jail for a very long time to think about how dumb he is. And while he’s in jail, it is clear that this guy has some serious issues and is in dire need of psychological help as well.

 http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/apr/24/241615/shaken-baby-dies-bradenton-boyfriend-mom-charged/news-breaking/

Posted in Introduction to Sociology | 1 Comment »

26. April 2009 by student.

We, as a nation, like to think of ourselves as the “greatest country” on the face or the world. “Love it or leave it” comes up in a lot of political debates. But when we are the cause of destruction across the world, I think we, as a nation, need to wake up.

Black Water, Julioscan, Cigarette companies, sugar companies, and a lot of other scandals and murderous activies can be linked to America. Cigarettes are now being sold to children in Africa, probably no older than 8, and for what, larger profits. Today, cigarrette prices rise, and we still have chain smokers and addicts. These companies play on these addictions, and sell to kids who are even more able to become addicted. Knowing this, they will give kids a free package of cigarrettes, and voula we have addicts. American corporations can NOT be stopped, because even the government is in the pockets of these fiends.

Countless trials have been cast on these companies, only to be dismissed from court because it’s “not the companies fault kids get addicted to their cigarrettes” (Daily Tribunal Washington). When these companies jump ship to Europe, the American people LOSE. Companies will move themselves to India, such as Dell, Microsoft, and Avis simply because it costs less. This robs America of countless jobs, and will bring nothing but hardships to people who they let go.

Something needs to be done, and it needs to be done now. American’s blame many things for their economic problem right now. The war, illegal immigrants, the stocks (not realising this is because of the inflation), and of course the presidency change. The truth is, these are all factors, maybe not large factors but still important. The real reason is becaus companies are jumping ship to Europe because America is struggling. So when America struggles, these companies fire everyone in America, and move.

Something needs to be done.

Dillon

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26. April 2009 by student.

Today, many families are formed simply because of love. But is “love” only reserved for different sexes?

In school, we are taught to believ that there is a separation between church and state, but it is evident that there is NO separation between the two. In fact, many states are against same sex marriage because it is “controversial.” Only some see this as an act against their rights, and fight for it; however many do not and seem to believe marriage is a “sacred thing that should be shared between a man and a woman” (www.churhofgod.com). This is repulsive, who is anyone to tell another person what they can and can not do? That’s like a man telling a woman how to go through child birth.

The whole “sacred” part of marriage is tarnished as it is when, “52% of married couples stay together, while 48% of them divorce” (www.unitedstatesstatistics.com). How can something that is nearly halved, be sacred? Are only straight people allowed to find happiness through marriage in todays society?

What I don’t understand is the lack of reasoning. I have seen no scientific evidence stating why men can not marry other men, or why women can’t marry other women. The only thing these people throw at us, are biblical quotes. Today’s society is so screwed up, it’s just downright disgusting.

One would think that at this day in age, people would be more rational and more INTELLIGENT than to go with what a book says. Only now are some people starting to get it, and state legislatures are passing bills to allow gay marriage. Thankfully someone still has a brain.

~Dillon

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