2040Ye

Today is August 25, 2040 and it is my first year at Florida Gulf Coast University. I wake up around 8:00am and roll out of bed and head towards the kitchen. My bed can tell when no one is in it and automatically makes itself. I open my breakfast menu and select the egg whites and english muffin on the touch screen pad and then it appears on the table hot and ready to eat. When I am done with breakfast I head towards the bathroom to take a shower. The shower is already on and hot because there is a timer set on it. After my shower I step into my closet which automatically dresses me in which ever outfit suits the weather and day. My car is ready and waiting to automatically drive me to school as I watch the morning news in the back seat. At school everything is instant and electronic. There is no note taking as all of the computers are hand held and instantly record and imput all notes to word documents and dates and times to my calendar. After class I head to the restaurant that I waitress at. I take my table orders and the back at the computer I just drag the picture of the entree they would like to the correct table shown and there food automatically pops up on there table withhin one minute of hitting send. After work I go home and verbally tell my computer the answers to my homework as it types and submits it itsself. Then I head to my bed which is already ready for me.

The Internet: A clear and Present Danger?

Over the past few years technology and the internet have completely exploded becoming a large part of almost everyones lives. Now not only do we have the ability to use our laptops where ever we are, but most of us can connect to the internet threw our phones. Websites such as facebook and myspace are huge social networks and are becoming more and more popular everyday. This article starts off with a list of this that every single one of us need to be aware of every time we open our internet browser. Most of these things have been huge issues for several years and have caused alot of concern especially to parents of young internet users. I believe that the legislation does need to create laws to ban all of these things and it would only be protecting each and every one of us. Passing these laws would not be violating our civil liberties at all. I do believe that this was an effective way for Cleaver to begin her essay because it showed us the truth of what is happening today right off the bat.

Couples Retreat

This movie is about Tree couples that are in a rut in life and when one of the couples decides that they only thing that will keep them together is taking this couples retreat. This is a hilarious movie that many married couples will be able to relate to and therefore I think it would be a great movie for a middle aged audience!

Precious

The movie Precious is a recent movie that premired in theaters around Christmas this past year. This movie is a heart touching story about a young, over-weight, pregnant teen living in Harlem. Precious has been living in an abusive home for all of her life and has been raped and impregnanted twice by her father, and is constantly physically and mentally abused by her mother. Precious is also illiterate and when she is given the chance to attend an alternate school in hopes of getting some kind of education her mother forbids her to go telling her that she will never be amount to anything anyways. With the help of her teacher Precious rebells against her mother and attends the school and a few months later has her second child. The abuse now is not only toward Precious, but her baby is also in danger. Precious gets up the courage to leave and once again with the help of her teacher is able to find a play to stay and raise her children.

This movie looked very good and inspiring in the comercials, but turned out the be one of the worst movies I have ever seen. Although the ratings on this movie were a 7.5 out of ten I was extremely dissapointed. All of the goods parts of the movie were the ones that were shown in the movie trailer and I really didn't like how long it was nor the way that it was filmed in a documentaion style. Although the story had a good base I would not see this movie again nor suggest it to other viewers.

In Amitai Etzioni's article "Less Privacy Is Good for Us (and You)" he talks about how privacy is such a huge issue in the United States and yet it is not even mentioned in he constitution. He also talks about how the media is loaded with "horror stories" about all of the different ways our privacy is violated on a daily basis. With all of the technology today it is so easy to listen in on phone converstations, hack into computers, and trach people through gps systems and E-Z passes. Etzioni states "It is time to pay attention tot he other hald of the equation that defines a good society." We need to also take into account the public and health and saftey. He uses the example of testing babies for HIV when they are born. This has the bennifit about being able to "ward off this horrble disease." He states that although this can have a great outcome it is also invaiding the mothers privacy because 2/3 of all mothers do not know that they are HIV positive and by testing their babies you are proving that they are. The last thing that Etzioni talks about his biometrics. This is a great way to catch criminals and keep Americans safe but it also strips away almost all privacy. "The courst have recognized that privacy must be weighed against consideration of public interest but have tended to privelige privacy and make claims for public saftey or health clear several high hurtles."

"My Home"

This videos were very educational on the history of Immokalee and how it has changes over the years. Immokalee used to be called by the name of Gopher Ridge and populated by the Seminole Indians. This was a huge area of trading and farmlands for many years because of its high evalavation and played a huge part in helping Immokalee grow. Eventually a railroad was built which only make this new area blossom. Immokalee differs alot from where I grew up in the North East. Forty feet above sea level is not exactly what I am used to. I grew up with mountains all around. Something that New Hampshire and Immokalee do have in common is that they were both huge farming areas. The soil up North is full of nutrients and crops thrive off of this, but the harsh winters can have a negative effect. Immokalee represented the old American dream of the man working out in the crops all day to provide for his family and make a comfortable living. Agriculture has been a huge part of Immokalee's history and will continue to be in the future.

A Quilt of a Country: Out of Many, One?

A Quilt of a Country: Out of Many, One? by Anna Quindlen was very well written piece about how America is made up from so many different people from all over the world. It is a patchword piece and no two pieces are the same. This is a country where we do not strive to all be the same, but have freedom to basically do whatever we please. "The United States was built in nobody's image"-Daniel Boorstin.


This piece really made me think about what an American really is. "No matter what the English-only advocates try to suggest, the new immigrants are not so different from our own parents or grandparents." (pg.17) So many of us today complain about a certain race, lifestyle, or groups of people and say that they shouldn't be here for numerous reasons. That they need to go back where they came from and stop taking our jobs etc.. But before we judge any of the immigrants we need to think back and relieze that the same reasons why our own grandparents and great grandparents came to this country are the exact same reasons people from all over the world are doing the same thing today. America from the begining has been about a new chance a life, a better hope for the future, and freedom from religion amoungest many other things. "Patriotism is partly taking pride in the unlikely ability to throw all of us together in a country that across its length and breadth is as different as a dozen countries, and still be able to call is by one name." Immigrants is what makes the United States the United States and we need to take pride in that.