Movies

Movies. One of today's most popular forms of entertainment. Someone can see a movie at the nearest Cinema or drive in. If they want to watch it at home, they can buy it from the store or rent it from Blockbuster. If they are bored in math class, they can watch it on their iPhone. If they are traveling, they can watch one on a plane or in the car (hopefully they are not driving). And if they are really desperate, they can go to youtube and look up all the parts. Movies are such a normal part of my life, that I rarely bother to think about the impact they have on our culture. Honestly, I think that a lot of movies, however entertaining they may be, are sending out negative messages and ideas that are being accepted into society. Teenagers are especially hard hit with stereotypes about how they should look, act, and think.
Almost every single movie out there practically screams, “Young women need to be thin, gorgeous, and all-around perfect!” In almost all of the movies who have a heroine, the heroine wears a size zero and has flawless skin. How many romance movies have you seen where the girl doesn't look like a supermodel? Probably not very many. And if it's an action or adventure movie she will also be either very smart, a master of an exotic form of martial art, or both. While it isn't a crime to look good, I think that this picture of beauty has set a standard for girls that is impossible to meet (with the exception of computer editing). It's no surprise that many teenage girls end up with low-self esteem and eating disorders. The media is constantly telling them that unless they look perfect, they're not good enough.
Another aspect of movies that has become a complete cliché and is practically expected is that the hero always has to fall in love with the heroine and vise versa. Then they kiss and the dramatic music plays and everybody has a warm, fuzzy feeling inside...the end! In all but a few chick flicks, the girl gets together with the guy she likes, and even in other genres, there will often be a romantic sub-plot that ends with the main character falling in love with the girl or guy that helped them out throughout the movie. I have to admit, I love happy endings. I love to walk out of the movie theater or turn off the TV with a smile on my face because the protagonist won the heart of their true love. Although this cliché doesn't seem to have affected as many people as the thin, pretty girls one, I've definitely seen people who are trying to live their life like a romance movie, and being very disappointed. Most teens know what I'm talking about. The people who always have to be in a relationship even if it's for no other reason than just being able to say, “I have a boyfriend” or “I have a girlfriend”. It can be very emotionally hurtful for this person as they hop from relationship to relationship, starting a new one almost immediately after the old one has ended. While happy, romantic endings aren't bad, the message they start to give out is that having a boyfriend or girlfriend should be a priority for young people.
Even though it's a lot of fun to go to the movie theater or rent a DVD, I think it's really sad how movies are brainwashing teens with these unrealistic ideas and stereotypes. Though they probably aren't the only cause, movies have definitely contributed to sending out ideas that can cause emotional and sometimes physical problems for teenagers who allow themselves to be influenced too much. I wish that more movies were being made that had positive, encouraging messages instead of the hurtful ones we see so often.

Issues with the Weather

This is not a formal essay as much as a rant. And even though it is somewhat persuasive, it won't do any good, because I highly doubt that the Colorado weather cares about my March blog for English class. Oh, well. I'm going to rant anyway.
It's officially spring, now! What's with the snow! I mean, I really liked having a day off school (at least some good came out of the weather), and it's always nice to get some moisture for the grass, but I definitely would have preferred rain. Now that it's spring, I want rain showers followed by sun, flowers, green grass, and warmer weather. Easter is coming up. We should not have days where we look out the window and feel like we should be singing Christmas music.
The other thing that's really bugging me is what a friend of mine accurately described as “bi-polar weather”. “Bi-polar” meaning that it can't make up its mind, so it's just going to switch back and forth from different extremes. I probably ought to be used to this by now. After all, I have lived in Colorado for my entire life. I have no problem if the weather during one week is completely different from the weather during the next week. I do, however, have a problem when the weather changes drastically on a daily basis. I am a very organized person who likes to be prepared for whatever happens. I don't do random and sporadic. Unfortunately for me, Colorado weather seems to love random and sporadic.
On Tuesday morning I watched as teenagers went to school in T-shirts, shorts, and flip-flops, with no jackets. When I left school at about six o'clock (I had rehearsal for the spring musical), I had to run to my car through a blizzard! That night, it might as well have been in the middle of December, with the way it was blowing and snowing. Soon after, school got canceled and we got to stay home and sleep in on Wednesday morning.
I would like to point out that that was by far the most pathetic snow day I have ever experienced. I mean, sure it was fun, but it was also like, seventy degrees out or something! (Maybe not quite that warm, but it felt like it.) I could practically hear the sun laughing at the people who decided to cancel school. Ha! Ha! Fooled you! And a lot of my poor neighbors went out and shoveled their driveway early in the morning, and by lunch their driveways looked exactly the same as those of the people who didn't shovel: completely bare. Or at least that's how it was in the area I live in. Now, there are some benefits to rapidly melting snow. One being that the snow is very easy to pack and make stuff with. I saw some people building the coolest snow fort ever down in English Ranch Park. On the down side, Cody (my golden retriever that my mom and I were taking for a walk) got sopping wet running through areas of the park that had turned into miniature ponds.
And now I hear people saying that it's suppose to snow again this Saturday. I really, really hope that it doesn't. I want the weather to be warm, and I want it to stay warm. I don't care if there's nothing I can do about it except for rant on this blog page.

Killer Whale Attack

Just yesterday, at SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida, a killer whale named Tilikum attacked and killed his trainer after a show. The trainer was standing on the platform, stroking Tilikum, when the giant whale grabbed her by her ponytail, dragged her under the water, and drowned her with the horrified audience watching. And what is SeaWorld doing about it...? Just about nothing. In fact, they say that they are going to continue to let trainers work with him, they will just “reevaluate” how they do it. I think that that idea is absolutely ridiculous. It seems obvious to me that Tilikum is dangerous and needs to be destroyed.

The attack was not simply a fluke accident. The killer whale, whom they believe had become agitated for some reason, intentionally grabbed and killed his trainer. It isn't the first time either. Tilikum has been involved in two other incidents in which he killed a human. Killer whales are very intelligent, so if Tilikum has killed three people, he probably knows that he has the capability of doing it again. Thus, there is a very good chance that it will happen again if trainers continue to use him for shows. Even though he is a beautiful, rare creature, he cannot be allowed to attack people like this. When a dog attacks or kills someone, it is immediately put down. This incident is really no different.

SeaWorld is claiming that they can change the way that they work with Tilikum so that the trainers will be safe. I, however, don't see how that is possible. Because of the previous two deaths, trainers were already forbidden to get into the water with Tilikum. The trainer was following these regulations and standing on the platform. Still, the irritated killer whale was able to attack her. I don't see how SeaWorld could possibly create an environment where Tilikum could be used in shows and the safety of the trainers could be guaranteed.

Now it is true that there are other options aside from destroying Tilikum. He could be released into the wild or simply cut off from all shows and contact with trainers. While both of these options would keep trainers safe, they wouldn't necessarily benefit Tilikum. Even though people may feel better by releasing him or keeping him than killing him, I am fairly certain that neither choice would be much better than death. Tilikum was raised in captivity, so it would be next to impossible for him to survive in the wild. SeaWorld has made it clear that this is not an option that they are considering. If they were to keep Tilikum in a way that was safe, he would basically have to be kept in a tank, never doing any shows and never having any contact with trainers or other people. Would it be worth the money it takes to keep him, for him to live a life he probably wouldn't enjoy? Unless SeaWorld can afford it and provide an environment that would be enjoyable for Tilikum, I do not think that keeping him would be the most reasonable or humane option.

In light of Tilikum's violent pattern of behavior, it seems clear to me that he is too dangerous to participate in shows. Despite SeaWorld's claim, there is not any obvious solution as to how the program could be revised to guarantee the trainers' safety. Since freeing him and keeping him present problems, I think that destroying Tilikum, unfortunately, is the best solution. SeaWorld, however, is not choosing this option. It is sad that they might not consider it until someone else gets hurt.