Not now, you're young

In the article, "Jaden Smith Shares Dad Will Smith's Best Advice: 'Don't Have a Girlfriend'," the author talks about Will Smith's advice to his son, Jaden.

 

The article says that Jaden and Will were in an interview for their new movie, "After Earth," and Jaden was talking about the advice.

 

"Probably the best advice he's ever given me is, 'Don't have a girlfriend. The stress is real," Jaden says. Will Smith laughs, but clarifies that his advice is just "for now."

 

"At this point, I just want him to establish his dreams, establish his desires," Will said. "Find out who he is. And blending with another person is very difficult, and a lot of times you can lose yourself in that process. So my encouragement to him is to be honest with anybody that he interacts with. Don't make commitments that a 14-year-old can't live up to."

 

Let me start out by saying Will Smith is an AWESOME dad! He's a PARENT and not a dictator, and I believe this is what a lot of kids need. I like the way he gave his advice, and then gave a legit explanation as to why he feels his advice is right. And, it is. Being in a relationship at a young age can really mess up your head at who and what you want to be. Especially when some people will come around and really want you to be what they want you to be.

 

This advice actually really helped me. I'm not one who wants to be in a serious relationship, but I still would like to know why my dad wants me to stay a "little girl." At least that's what he makes it seem like. But, when I ask him why, he always says, "Because I said so," and, "You're too young anyway." By now, dad's should know that those statements are going to make us want to do this anyway. But this explanation makes sense, and it actually makes me think.

 

Wise dad, wise dad.

Sexuality in the Sports World (found poem)

Dominant basketball player comes out as gay
Treated with such nonchalance
It was a woman
If it was a man who did the same exact thing
Everyone's head would have exploded
An N.F.L. player was going to come out (didn't)
That story got 10 times the traffic.
There are 2 stereotypes in the sports world;
No gay male athletes
Every female athlete is a lesbian

Reflection:

While reading the article, I wasn't shocked at all. I found that it was bringing to light what's really going on, not just in the sports world, but in the WORLD period. Writing this poem wasn't hard at all. I just picked out the things that stuck out to me, and wrote it in a poem form. The hard part was finding an article that stuck out to me. The New York Times paper was honestly boring, and almost EVERYTHING was about Boston. I'm not trying to be inconsiderate or anything, my heart goes out to those who lost loved ones However, I just felt like story seemed repetitive. I just wanted to do something new. Bring awareness to what's really happening in the world....




 

North Korea against the World

North and South Korean Flags

In the article, "Korean War Part 2?" Choe Sang-Hun brings to light the possibilities that there might be another World War. She talks about North Korea and their current leader, Kim Jong Un. The article talks about the differences between North and South Korea. North Korea is secretive, and they have a Communist government. On the other hand, South Korea is vibrant, and democracy is their government system. Finally, North Korea is poor while South Korea is rich.

The article states that their could be another World War due to the threats of Kim Jong Un. He threatens to shoot a missile at the U.S. or South Korea. However, the article also states that he's unpredictable. One day he's saying that he will shoot it, and another, he's saying that he would never do such a thing.

No one really knows what his intentions are. They could be just to scare us, or maybe he's just a coward.

I have no clue what to think of this. This article is saying that there might be another World War, while people everywhere else are saying that the missile would never hit the U.S. That's just the situation of the missile. My opinions of Kim? He's scared of the U.S. He just wants to try and be a threat to the U.S. because the U.S. is such a threat to him. In all reality, he's just a coward. Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm right. I don't care! They are just my OPINIONS!

Also, I think that the way the U.S. is responding is great. They are sitting down, not making a move. Usually we would shoot them before they shot us, but what they are doing, I feel is the right thing. Sure, if the missile actually does hit us, then they should do something. They should also have a little something prepared if it does happen. Maybe sitting back is them being scared, but it doesn't matter, this is how you do it. Eventually Kim will see that we don't want any problems, and the possibilities of another War will be over. Again, these are just my opinions!

Raise in Minimum Wage

In the article, "Time for a Raise," Patricia Smith talks about Obama's decision to raise minimum wage. He wants to raise it from $7.25 to $9.00. If he gets his way, this will be the first raise since 2009. Smith quotes Obama saying, "This single step would raise the incomes of millions of working families. It could mean the difference between groceries or the food bank, rent or eviction, scraping by or finally getting ahead. For businesses across the country, it would mean customers with more money in their pockets."

Of course, there are people who oppose the decision. Companies that hire low-wage workers have opposed this decision because it will increase the cost of doing business. "Small employers have to operate under very slim profit margins. An increase has to be shouldered by the employer." Randy Johnson says. Johnson is of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which represents business.

This article was basically saying that if minimum wage goes up, it can help workers, but can kind of hurt the business's profit. It can hurt the business's profit because they would have to pay expenses + an expensive worker. That would bring in less of a profit.

I think a raise is a good idea. It's a good idea because people deserve it. People work hard and don't earn as much as they deserve. And though $9/hour is still not enough, the raise would show a little bit of sympathy.

I feel like those who are against it are stingy. They don't want to share a little bit of money with their workers, who are most likely diligent. Granted, not all workers deserve this raise, but that's not what the business owners are looking at. Business owners' complaints are about the profit. Yes, this is important, but that's honestly not a good reason to try to get yourself out of a raise. It seems like every time Obama wants something good for the middle class, the rich people always are against it. Not all of them, but enough to make sure this decision doesn't get passed. I just don't think it's fair. The rich have A LOT OF MONEY! Giving a few extra dollars will not hurt them!

I looked at this article differently. I looked at the excuses people had. "Excuses are tools of the incompetent." Think about it....

Kevin Ware's Sickening Injury (choice blog)

The article, "Kevin Ware breaks bone in leg," the author talks about the gruesome injury suffered by Louisville Cardinals' Kevin Ware. It says that his right leg was bent in a really weird way. Cardinals' coach, Rick Pitino and some teammates were weeping, Pitino wiping away tears.

A lot of people wonder how this happened. The article says that Ware was trying to block a 3 point shot by the opposite team, Duke, and fell at about a right angle. His leg buckled, and broke. His bone was sticking 6 inches out of his leg, but, according to Pitino, all he was saying was, "Win the game, win the game." Pitino says that he has never seen anything like that in his life.

The article also states that all of his teammates were in shock, too. Even people from the other team. Ware's teammate and closest friend, Chane Behanan said that Ware was saying, "Don't worry about me, I'm good, I'll have my surgery tonight. Go win it for me." The article says that the team had a hard time regaining strength at first, but that they found it, and won for Ware.

I watched the game with my family on Easter. We were all screaming and yelling when we saw his bone. My cousin and I cried like little babies. It was painful to watch, so I can't imagine what it felt like to him, and those who were actually there. After reading the article, I found what Ware was shouting about. Now, knowing that he wanted the game to go on and wasn't even worried about his leg, I think that he is a strong young man, and a great teammate.

I can't begin to imagine if I were put in this situation. If my bone was sticking 6 inches out of my leg, I'd be yelling and screaing out in agony. Yes, I'm a girl, but does gender really matter when your bone is sticking out of your leg? I get the itchies just thinking about it. The video is at the bottom.
*WARNING: WATCH IT AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION! VERY, VERY GRAPHIC!

Woman In Combat

In the article "Sister in Arms," James Dao talks about the Pentagon's decision to remove the ban from women fighting in combat. This means that now, women are allowed to actually fight in wars.

Dao opens the article up with the story of Staff Sergeant Stacy Pearsall's unit. Her unit came under attack while they were cleaning up roadside bombs. Out of nowhere, they were in the middle of a firefight. The male soldiers rushed out to join the fight, so, Sgt. Pearsall jumped into a machine gun and began to fire. In the midst of all of this, she realized that one of her soldiers had fallen. She crawled to the 6-foot-2, over 200 pounded man, and even though he was twice her size, she dragged him to safety. This proves that women are way more incredible than we think.

The article says that there are many reasons why people thought that women in combat would have been a bad idea. According to the article, one reason is that people would have looked at women dying differently than the men dying. For example, if a woman died, poeple would have cried saying "Oh my gosh, she was a mother, and sister," and stuff of that manner. However, the article says, people have been looking at women deaths the same way they look at men deaths.

The article gives a little history of women in war, and how some of them persevered so much. From 1861-1865, it says that women would dress as men to fight. That's how much they wanted to serve their country.

I feel as though women are strong enough to do anything they put their mind to. I'm not trying to sound like those sexists in the world, but whatever men can do, women can do a little better. I don't mean it like "women are better then men." What I'm saying is, when most women are doing a task, they get it done, with a greater outcome, but only because they usually put their minds to it. This leads me to the point that, if women really want to fight in wars, they will get the outcome they want, and it will be greater because of the perserverence to do it.

Do I think that this was a smart idea? Yes and no. Yes because, now women can show how strong they are and won't get negatively judged. However, I'm one of those people who will cry and say that she was mother and stuff like that. It's a win-lose situation in my eyes. At least the women are happy.




 

She's NEW!! (choice blog)

In the article "Paris Jackson Flaunts New Rocker Haircut, Dagger-Like Earring on Twitter," Josh Grossberg brings to light the daughter of Michael Jackson's new look.

According to the article, Paris Jackson, 14, gave herself a new makeover that seems nothing like the Paris we all grew to know.

Jackson showed off a more "out-there" look on Twitter that included a close-cropped punk hairstyle, a new, dagger-style earring and body art on the upper part of her back and right upper arm. To finish it all, she wore a  ripped Pink Floyd T-shirt. The article then states that, while her brother, Prince, will begin acting, she might stay in her father's footsteps; developing a music career.

In my opinion, I think she is really pretty. Do I agree with her choice of style, not exactly. It is pretty, but I think she misses her father. I feel as though she's doing all of this for the attention her father used to give her. I'm not one to judge, especially because my opinion might not be right. Maybe she's just expressing her emotions by changing her appearance. Maybe she really likes her new look, and just wants to show her fun and spunky side. I I don't know. Like the article said, this Paris is nothing like the Paris we have grown to know....