I'm Not Dumb

The Article "The Dumbest Generation? Don't Be Dumb" is quite an interesting read. It was curious as to why we were considered the dumbest generation, and quite frankly I don't believe that we are the dumbest generation but rather have adapted to using different methods of gaining knowledge. The internet hasn't been around a long time, however, it has grown into a large source of information for the modern era. Older generations tend to look down on how much time we spend on the computer when in actuality it is comparable to how much time people used to spend reading books. Like books, the internet has a vast amount of knowledge that helps to keep people updated with the world around them, and learn about new things. The article also points out that the argument that we are the dumbest generation is based purely on the lack of knowledge, which I find to be unfair when our generation isn't even thirty yet, and they are criticizing us on how much we know. By the time we are thirty our generation will have at least tripled it knowledge and perhaps may be the key to discovering new technology. Also there is a point to be made in the fact that if we are considered the dumbest generation, isn't that partly due to the fact that our teachers, aka older generations aren't teaching us properly? How can we be blamed for our knowledge when the people who are suppose to be teaching us are incapable to do so and as a result decrease are abilities to learn about the world around us.

Why Americans Are Often So Restless Interpretive Questions

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Cameron Meehan

Mr. Wes Priest

Great Books Period 7

22 October 2009

Why Americans Are Often So Restless Interpretive Q’s

2. Why does a society devoted to equal opportunity weaken each individual?

When a society is devoted to equality it weakens each individual, because he believes that not everyone can be equal. This is true as he writes, “…men will never establish an equality which will content them.”(167) He then goes on to write at how people notice the slightest inequality over more obvious ones so they can gain the advantage in obtaining their goal, or as he writes, “When inequality is the general rule in society, the greatest inequalities attract no attention. When everything is more or less level, the slightest variation is noticed. Hence the more equal men are, the more insatiable will be their longing for equality.” (167)

5. Does Tocqueville think Americans are restless because they don’t know what they want or because what they want is not attainable?

Tocqueville believes that Americans are restless because they don’t know what they want. As Tocqueville writes, “They clutch everything but hold nothing fast, and so lose grip as they hurry after some new delight.” (165) He sums up that as soon as we see something we like at the moment we chase after it until we obtain it, then when we have it we no longer want it. So after capturing the thing we thought we wanted we see something new and move on. It is because of this Tocqueville believes that we don’t know what we want. He also argues, “Americans cleave to the things of this world as if assured that they will never die, and yet are in such a rush to snatch any that come within their reach, as if expecting to stop living before they have relished them.”(165) This is true in the fact that when we have acquired something it has been replaced by something newer and better and we want that even more that the previous item and we disregard the first item as though it never existed.

She said what!?

Why is it difficult not to care about what others think of you? Do we control the way other people see and think about us?

It is hard to no worry about what other people say about us. During our school years and through most of our life our social life is a key part in who we are. This is because we are still forming our ideals and are still developing into the people we will grow up to be. The only way we can control the way other people see and think about us is how we act around them and how we uphold our integrity when they aren't around us. However, some peoples experiences give them preformed ideas on people that they associate with a stereotype. For instance some people think all African Americans are the same when they are as diverse as everyone else. In these instances it is hard to change someones ideas about you because that is how they are raised whether it is a good thing or not. So we should try to act our best around people to help get ride of these stereotypes or at the least improve them in a way to reflect a better idea about group.

The War for Wars

War is a never a good thing however when you fight for whats right or what you believe in it is more easily rationalized. So instead of war we should try to make a peaceful solution. Like when two opposing forces believe in two completely opposite things you should try to resolve it peacefully. If a peaceful solution is out of the question then you should stand up for what you believe in. You should not however try to start a war to make people believe in what you believe in, but instead try to teach them and if they don't wish to learn then let them be. I would go to war for things that I feel strongly about and to protect those that mean a lot to me. War is not always the solution, sometimes you can compromise with people. For instance if a group of people wanted some land for the resources and you wanted it as well the you could divide up the land and share it equally and avoid conflict all together. Sometimes the world isn't so simple though so it takes critical thinking to help resolve conflicts peacefully and without war. So we should all try to avoid war if possible, but still defend our rights as human beings. Also as bystanders in war we should try to look through the eyes of BOTH parties before we choose a side instead of hearing one side of the story and making a decision based on that.

Belonging

Where do or don't you "belong"? What's the difference?

When I was a kid I lived in Vincennes. It wasn't until after 5th grade did I move. When I lived in Vincennes I felt like I belonged there. I made friends quickly. My best friend, who I am still best friends with, would always have a great time in the summer hanging out and riding our bikes to the Fire Station where there was a pop machine and we got one at least everyday because that was our thing. Sadly when I moved I felt like it would be hard for me to make friends, but it wasn't I quickly made new friends at my new school (Creekside). In fact that is were I met my good friends Burke and Scott. We are all currently going to Unversity High School and we have all made new friends and I still have the since that I belong. The only place I felt like I don't really belong is Noblesvill. Even though I live there when I went to the middle school for my 2nd Semester I wasn't quite welcome. They believe that since I came from Carmel then I was a preppy, rich, and jerky kid. They imidiatley made a stereo type of me and that made a difficult barrier to overcome. So I can understand the differance to a place you feel you belong compared to the alternative. When you are somewhere you feel you belong you can easily make friends and relate to the people there. Compared to having a hard time relating and making friends at in a particular area.

Euthanasia

Euthanasia (noun)-The painless killing of a patient suffering from an incurable and painful disease or in an irreversible coma. The practice is illegal in most countries.

I believe that euthanasia is a reasonable way to put someone or thing out of suffering. Rather than letting someone suffer when they don't want to and their future is looking bleak, I think that they should have the choice to be euthanized if they wish. This also goes for animals. Lets say a dog is hit by a car and has multiple fractures and brain hemorrhaging. The dog is in a tremendous amount of pain and it is unlikely it will be able to run without further injuring itself. Then that dog's caretakers (veterinarian) or its owners should have the right to euthanize it. However if the person or animal is in pain but has a reasonable chance to get better I believe the family and doctor should try and be supportive of the patient so they don't want to be euthanized. It could also be a new method for the death penalty instead of some of the more painful methods.

Dream Big

Why do dreams sometimes fail?
When we dream we normal dream of things that are considered unreachable by us. It is human nature to want something that it cannot have. Because of this we dream of someday flying or having $1 million. Sometimes we do dream of things that are in reach or something that we feel so strongly about we pursue it relentlessly. Dreaming is kind of a way to tell us how we really feel by showing us emotions normally kept within our sub conscious. For instance, if you have a dream about falling it normally represents a feeling of insecurity in your life. This is why dreams fail. They show us things that (in our present state) are unreachable. That is why they are dreams. Even though Of Mice and Men is a tragedy through foreshadowing you can kind of predict that George, Lennie, and Candy's dream of having a farm one day is gonna fail. This is because they dream of something that is hard to achieve in their time. Not to mention they are only human.

A Place of Belonging

How important is it for human beings to have a place where they belong, where there are people who know them and love them?
The importance of a place of belonging is different for every person. Some people believe that it isn't important at all and prefer to be alone and isolated. Others believe that the most important thing is life is family, whether it be blood relation or emotional. I believe that it is important as well. I think that for someone to have a healthy life that they should have some sort of a strong family base. If you have a family it is much easier to interact with other people and form new and long lasting relationships. Your family from an early age will also help to set your values and how you view the world in general. For example if you are Jewish and live in Israel chances are that you believe that all the land in Israel belongs to you. However, if you are Arab Palestinian then chances are that you believe that all the land in Israel belongs to you and that the Israeli's took it from you. So, even though these two different families live literally only a few miles or less apart, they have completely different views. That is why I believe humans should have a place were they are accepted, so they can develop into a person that is respectable and lovable.

Inner workings of Friendship

What makes a friend?
A friend is someone who, most of the time, you get along with well. They are always at your side and encourage you to do new and different things. Friends push you to become a better person all around. They support you when you lose and celebrate with you when you win. Most of all they accept you for you, they don't expect you to change or be a different person when they are around you and they are not ashamed to be with you.
Why do we have friends?
We surround ourselves with friends as a type of secondary family. When we are at school or other events in our lives we normally have friends there to share the experience. We keep them there for communication, affection, and support. Sometimes we even have them there to act as a sort of defensive wall to help protect us from various dangers. They also help to develop social and emotional skills that we will probably use later in our lives. Skills like cooperation and the ability to work to a single goal that will benefit everyone involved. Last but not least, they keep us from being isolated from the world around us and provide us with companionship.

Eye for an Eye

When people are a victim of a crime, they should be able to take the law into their own hands.
I believe that when someone has done an injustice to someone else they have the right to pursue justice to a certain extent. For example, If someone where to rape and kill a family member but the government fails to recognize the crime, then the family member should be able to seek a more appropriate punishment for the criminal. I'm not saying that they should go out on a killing spree but maybe they could file try to catch they criminal in the act and document their crime with hard evidence then present it to the legal system. This should help by providing that person with a sense of accomplishment in bringing justice to their family while still remaining within reasonable means. I don't believe however that they should just leave the final decision to the court of law if they feel that the criminal wasn't prosecuted reasonable to the crime they committed. If they did that it could affect them later in life in they way that bottling up your feelings until they explode in a violent rage would. So in the end they should have the right to take the law into their own hands if the law fails them, but only to a certain extent.

Romeo & Juliet Questions

1.) Was it right for Romeo and Juliet to run off and get married? Or was it foolish? Or both? Explain your response.

I believe that it was a foolish idea. They are too young to be making major life decisions like that. Plus they barely knew each other so they don't really know much about each other. Which could lead to problems in their relationship in the future.

2.)Was it right for Romeo and Juliet to kill themselves because of their love for each other? Why or why not?

No!, Again they were to you and foolish to know better. Dying for each other isn't the right way to show their love. They should have lived out their days to the fullest in order to honor their loved one, not die, that is selfish.

3.)Was it wise of Friar Lawrence to give the potion to Juliet? Why or why not?

It wasn't really a bad idea just the execution of the idea wasn't really planned out. They should have contacted Romeo of the plan before going through with it. And made sure that the message got through.

4.)What do you think of Capulet’s orders that Juliet marry Paris? Was he correct to do so? Why or why not?

There are couple perspectives on this situation. In one way Capulet was just looking out for his daughter so she would have a nice and luxurious life. In the other way he was just trying to increase his families reputation and Juliet getting married was just a bonus.

5.)Why does Juliet kill herself when she could be free?

She believes that she caused Romeo's death and that she wouldn't be able to live without him. So she wants to live with him in the afterlife.

First Impressions on Romeo And Juliet

I feel that the whole Romeo and Juliet love is just puppy love. Normally at their age they wouldn't even know what love was and so it was probably just physical attraction rather than a more deep emotionally connection. Also all the characters are just overly dramatic. I don't believe someone would go on a rant about dreams or fighting for that long. Not to mention Romeo is always like "OH! I'll never fall in love again!", and he does. So that sort of undermines his personality to me. The way they talk about all this stuff is just annoying as well. They try to use each and every word in every single meaning it has and that to me is just confusing. Basically they kind of beat around the bush in throughout Act 1. I honestly don't find this play entertaining at all. Maybe if it was more like Romeo and Juliet Abridged it would be more entertaining. It may just be the fact that we are reading the play aswell maybe if we saw the real play in action it would be more entertaining but reading it is a bore and most of the time confusing.