Follow George!

As we've been discussing the Con-Con in class, the idea of following George Washington's actions came up a lot. Many people looked up to him as the most powerful man in America and approved whatever he approved. People worshiped him! And apparently, we should all still follow his example! I was walking through the New Trier library the other day and posted on a bulletin board was this poster. We've all seen the "cover your cough, stop the spread of germs" poster, but I've never seen the George Washington inspired one. It's a remake of his famous portrait by Gilbert Stuart. I thought it was interesting to see our founding father on a national CDC campaign. I wondered why the CDC decided to make this poster with George Washington instead, maybe, Barack Obama. But on the other hand I said to myself, 'hey, if George covers his cough, I'll cover mine', which is the main goal of the CDC. What do you think about the poster? (Sorry for the picture quality. I took it on my phone.)

"Sorting People"

I just took the "Racial Sorter" that was posted on the side of anamericanstudies.com.  I have to admit, I thought I was going to get them all correct. But actually I got maybe half of them wrong. I also found it quite interesting that there was a game like this, I would think some people may find it offensive because some people don't like to be categorized. I then searched that website for more information about race and 'sorting'. I found the US Government's correct definitions for different types of race. It listed all the different types of race and gave an in depth definition. For example, the definition for American Indian was, "a person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America), and who maintains tribal affiliation or community recognition". I couldn't help but ask if people actually use any of these definitions when using self-identification. Why does the government even have these definitions if laws passed in 1970 said that citizens could choose their own classification? Do these definitions come in handy when people are 'sorting' themselves or are they there to actually categorize people?

Help or Hurt?

Last Friday, President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize. Usually this award is given to individuals who have accomplished something extraordinary. Though I understand that he was given this award based on  "his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples" (Nobelprize.org), I can't help but wonder what he actually has accomplished. Searching the web, I found many articles saying the same thing. They all pretty much ask if this is a good or bad thing. What do you think about Obama winning the prize? Is it too soon in his presidency or will he be even more respected as a president now? President Obama said he was very surprised and humbled by his Nobel Peace Prize. I think Americans can all agree that we now expect Obama to achieve something great!
(Image via Win McNamee/Getty)

Friendly Service

My mom sent me a video link this morning from the Today show. It was a short segment featuring our local grocery store, the Grand! Every time I go to pick up grocery's there, I always get a, "Hello there! How are ya today?". Somehow, the Today show got a hold of it! This clip really put me in a good mood and it got me wondering, how does a simple hello put a smile on my face? If people would take just a second to give a smile and a wave, just think how brighter your day could be. Flashing a smile or saying have a nice day only takes a second, but the effects last so much longer. I think that this would create a better reputation for Americans as well. We, as Americans, should look up to the Grand Foods Center and learn from their friendly example! Take a look at the video below.

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Hey, Matt Lauer even says he wants to travel here just to shop at the friendly Grand!

Super Memory

             As I was browsing my web homepage (it's Yahoo!) I spotted a featured article titled "People with Super Memory". Since we have been discussing memory in class quite a lot, I thought I would benefit from it. In fact, the article was fascinating. It was about four individuals who are confirmed with a condition called ‘super memory’. All of these people can tell you what happened on a random date and most can remember everything in their life starting at a young age. Most of the people have written books about their condition and one man is in talks of a production. But I have to wonder, would this positively or negatively affect their life? I can see it being helpful at some points in their life but most times it must be problematic. Would you like to have a ‘super memory’? It’s interesting to think about what it would be like if you did! (Image via Yahoo)

Digital IS Better!

       It seems like the whole country has gone digital in the past few years. Personally, I always thought the idea of receiving paper snail mail rather than e-mail has a nice sincere touch to it. Not only have personal letters gone digital but now it seems that bills and invoices will be coming in your e-mail inbox! For example, T-Mobile has decided to “go green”. This “paperless billing” started a while back but they are now charging an extra $1.50 to your bill if you receive it in the mail. If you decide not to receive your invoice in the mail, you will get your bill online. The results are what shocked me most (in a positive way). T-Mobile said that if all 16.5 million costumers went digital they would save an annual savings of 10.8 million pounds of paper, which is saving about 13,500 trees!
       This only furthered my questioning, what if all mail went digital? Do you think this could ever work? I know, this is a big statement, but think about how many trees we could save with having only online magazines, catalogs, and greeting cards!

President Obama Expects Great Things

       When we discussed President Obama's speech about staying in school on Friday it was hard to imagine what exactly he was going to say. As I was looking for something to blog about, the New York Times posted an article that said the White House posted the President's prepared remarks. Curious, I clicked the link and read his planned speech. There was one line that struck me most. He said,  "We need every single one of you to develop your talents, skills and intellect so you can help solve our most difficult problems. If you don’t do that – if you quit on school – you’re not just quitting on yourself, you’re quitting on your country”.
       Okay, so you are telling me that if one person drops out of school there will be a major concern in our country? Is this even realistic? If the number of drop-outs were particularly large, I get his point. But I don't think that if there is one less accountant, flight attendant, or security guard in our country it would make such a difference. Not all of us are going to solve “the most difficult problems” and go into politics. Don’t get me wrong, I do like the whole idea behind President Obama’s speech, but I just wish he could be a little more realistic.
    The rest of Obama's planned speech can be read here.