Freedoms for Safety

The idea of Big Brother is scary and the idea of “being watched” exists in our own lives today. People invade our privacy more than we think. We can be looked up or seen in a variety of different places. Luckily, it isn’t as bad as having a Big Brother to listen in on our thoughts and see every little thing we do. It is, however, disturbing to know that internet websites hold information about a person without them putting it there. I think taking a little bit of our privacy away is fine, because it’s intended to keep us safe. There are cameras in stores and on street corners as witnesses to what goes on. It doesn’t bother me to have those cameras because I have nothing to hide. Other people, however, do and that’s not okay so the cameras come into use. I’d rather have the invasion of my privacy than to be in danger. Personally, I think the cameras and videos that are in public places are important. People that aren’t doing what they’re suppose to can easily be seen and tracked down. It’d be better to feel safe than sorry. In the novel, 1984, Big Brother is excessive and unnecessary. I don’t think it would be ok to have our privacy taken completely. Winston and Julia couldn’t even go anywhere to be “alone” and away from the telescreen. I don’t agree with that. People should be able to feel free and have their right to privacy. I don’t feel like my freedom is taken away because there are security cameras. I feel safer.

A common place people think their privacy is invaded in on Facebook. People can look you up, but it’s the person’s choice to display their page. I don’t think this would count as an invasion of privacy. If people don’t want their page to be seen, they can prevent it. The thing is, people don’t make their pages private and they’ll blame people for “creeping” on their page. Businesses are also able to look at people’s Facebooks if they’re open to the public, but they can’t blame them for doing it because it’s the persons fault for not making it private. Also, in airports, our privacy may be considered invaded but it’s only for the protection of us. If our privacy wasn’t invaded, then people could carry things on the plane and endanger other passengers on board. I don’t see anything wrong with our privacy being invaded a little to protect us. I do believe our privacy still exists. We aren’t viewed on a telescreen 24/7. The cameras or videos are only up in most public places. Our homes are completely private. I think, without protection people would worry more and feel unsafe. The cameras are, in a way, assuring because if something were to happen such as a crime or a motor vehicle accident, it can be monitored and hopefully corrected. I think we need an even balance for having our privacy invaded for our safety and total privacy.

Feed Ads

Subway

Subway would be a frequently played ad on my Feed because it’s my favorite fast food restaurant. I like eating healthy so Subway is the way to go. Me and my friends or my boyfriend will also go there when we can’t decide on anywhere else. Its food we all enjoy! It’s quick and so yummy! Not only is it healthy, but it’s cheap! I don’t really like greasy foods from McDonald’s or Burger King so I’ll usually get a sandwich from Subway. The sandwich is always so fresh and it’s even better toasted! Subway, in my opinion is so much better than Quiznos. I love being able to pick all the vegetables you want on your sandwich and they make it just the way you like it! It’s nice to have a Subway so close to campus and there is also one close to where I live back home. I think more Americans need to eat Subway instead of choosing the “unhealthy” fast food route. Subway is a healthy, delicious, fast food restaurant that I greatly enjoy!

Target

Target is probably my favorite store. I could go shopping at Target any day. They have everything you could possible want for a good price! I can never go in that store and not buy anything. I’ll get anything from electronics to clothes to food at Target. Even if I didn’t have any money, id love going into the store to look at all the stuff I’d want to buy and then go back and get it when I had the money. Anyone could shop at Target. It’s for all ages and it pretty much has anything you need. My bed set, school supplies, bins, pretty much a majority of my things are from Target! My family and friends know how much I shop there so I will get gift cards to there often and they don’t last long!

AE

American Eagle is where I get most of my clothes so this ad would show up very often on my feed. This is another one of my favorite stores. It could be a bit pricey, but I love all of their clothes so it’s hard not to buy anything. It’s sad to say, but sometimes I’ll spend my whole paycheck on a trip to American Eagle. Every season, I’ll look forward to their new line of clothes they put out. It’s always neat to see what the new styles are and what’s coming “back” in style or what’s going out. Many other people our age like to shop at American Eagle as well, and usually you see people that have the same shirt or pants as you. I’ll typically buy things from American Eagle and somehow make it my own style for that reason. Back home, there is an outdoor mall with an American Eagle that I frequently visit to check out the sales and the new stuff they put out. It’s an awesome store and it’s just my style.

iTunes

iTunes is amazing! I don’t know what I’d do without it. Whether I’m doing work, getting ready, taking a shower, cleaning, driving, running, or pretty much anything, I am listening to music! I have a bunch of iTunes cards that don’t last long when I get them and I’ll download the newest and latest songs. I enjoy listening to a wide variety of music so my iTunes list is pretty long. I love to run outside with my iPod and iTunes allows you to make playlists which is also neat! I make several playlists for the “mood” I may be in. Since I like to stay active, music always pumps me up. In high school, id always listen to my iPod before a softball or field hockey game, and especially before a cross country meet. Music is awesome and it’s great to listen to!

Nike

Nike is one of my favorite brands! Like I said before, I like to stay active so ill get most of my active wear from Nike. They make the most comfortable sneakers and active shorts and shirts than any other corporation (in my opinion). Because I’m a runner, I have a sneaker fetish so I have multiple Nike sneakers as well as active wear. I like to dress comfortably most days so, I’ll throw on some Nike sweats, a Nike sweatshirt, and some Nike sneakers. I’m also a big Penn State fan, and most of their apparel is sponsored by Nike which is also neat. Nike is a great brand!

Thoreau Challenge: It's Over!

It feels so good to be finally done with this challenge! I can’t believe I made it a week without using technology. Thursday and Friday were rough, probably because it was the last two days of the challenge. I was pretty much going crazy without being able to check my Facebook or my cell phone. The silence in my room was starting to get to me and all I wanted to do was listen to my iTunes or turn on the TV. I have been sick all week so the temptation wasn’t too hard because I was bumming around getting lots of sleep, but it still would have been nice to listen to something! It also would have been nice to watch TV while I was lying in bed, but instead I caught up on some more reading. Fortunately, I was getting better toward the end of the week so me and my boyfriend ended up enjoying the weather and went outside to throw some football. Thank goodness for the beautiful days we had on Thursday and Friday because if I were stuck in my room again with nothing to do, I would of cried. My boyfriend and I also went for a walk to McDonald’s to get shamrock shakes! It was a lot of fun. It was nice to get out and actually do something! Towards the middle of the week I was so sick of board games, but since there was nothing else to do we got a hold of the game Life and played. This past week has been very interesting. I didn’t think I could come up with things to do without the use of technology, but I (surprisingly) did. I honestly don’t think I would have been able to do it, if my boyfriend wasn’t doing it with me. I probably would have quit a long time ago! Since he was in this challenge with me, it was a lot easier to find things to do together, rather than just trying to do things on my own.

On Saturday, I finally was able to get my cell phone out and turn it on! It took me about two hours to reply to all the messages I’ve had and reply to all the missed calls that were on my phone! It was so nice to talk to my family and friends from home to tell them about everything that’s been going on in the past week. I also turned on the TV and watched movies all day. Luckily ABC Family and TBS had movies on back to back. I was so happy to be able to do whatever I wanted again with technology. I went online and checked my Facebook and ended up doing multiple things at once on the computer. I was getting a technology overload all at once! It feels good to be “back”. I wouldn’t say I regret doing this challenge, but I don’t think I could easily do it again for a very long time! It has showed me that I do rely on technology more than I thought and it’s possible to live without it for a week, and probably even longer. I personally don’t think I could have gone any longer. Thankfully it’s over and it I can honestly say it was quite the experience!

Thoreau Challenge: Day 6

Going a week without using technology is extremely difficult. By day 3 I already wanted to quit, but I knew quitting wasn’t what I had signed up for. As I mentioned before, two of my good friends came to Shippensburg to visit me for the weekend. Luckily, they kept my mind of technology and I managed just fine for those two days and then Monday came. It was so hard not to call home to talk to my family about my weekend and ask them about theirs, especially since we passed Valentine’s Day. I really miss talking to them! I can’t wait to finally be done with this challenge so I can catch up with everybody from back home. Not only do I miss using my cell phone, I miss watching TV and using the computer. Monday night was very difficult for me because the Bachelor, one of my favorite shows, was on and I missed out on watching it with my friends. Same happened with Glee on Tuesday night. I didn’t realize how hard it was going to be until I was actually living without it. Another thing that is different is all the silence. I feel like my room is so boring with it constantly being so quiet. It actually allowed for me to catch up on sleep.

As much as it hard to use my cell phone, the computer, etc. I am fortunately getting ahead in all of my classes. I ended up doing a lot of “catch up” reading that I had wanted to get done for upcoming exams.  I didn’t realize how distracting technology could be when you use it. When I just sit down and do work without the TV on or music playing, I get a lot more done. As far as “down time”, I whipped out Monopoly and Backgammon and me and my boyfriend (who is also doing the challenge) played many games of it so far. It’s a shame; those are the only two games we have. Let’s just say, I won’t want to play board games in a long time.  Being stuck in the room without being able to use technology is hard. Me and my boyfriend couldn’t take much more of it so we decided to go shopping. We ended getting goldfish which have been entertaining me the past couple of days. How sad is this? I am extremely bored without using technology! I can’t wait until its Friday and can get back to checking Facebook and getting a hold of everybody. I made it this far, I can’t quit now!

Thoreau Challenge: Day 1

Today I started my “Thoreau Challenge” and it’s going well so far. I do admit, it is hard not to get on the Facebook page while I’m on the computer right now, but I won’t. I didn’t realize how much I used technology until today. I am usually constantly listening to music or watching TV, and without being about to do it is very difficult. I think this challenge will be good for me. It will help me understand that technology isn’t everything and I can surely live just fine without it. I wanted to start on a Friday so it makes it a little easier on me because on weekends I surprisingly use less technology than I do during the weekdays anyhow. It’s also going to help that a couple of my best friends are coming to Shippensburg this weekend so that’ll take my mind of the temptation of texting them or getting on the computer. So far what I’ve done all day is, get ready without listening to music which was very peaceful. Usually I can’t stand the silence and need the TV on or my iTunes playing, but it was nice to actually just get ready in silence. I had already called my family to inform that that they wouldn’t be hearing from me all week because of this assignment. I also told my other friends to try not to text me this week unless it was an emergency so I don’t feel the need to text back. And as for TV, I realized I will be missing some of my favorite shows this week which will be extremely difficult. Every week I get so excited to watch them and this week it will be sad to being playing a board game or something else instead of watching. I will get over it.

This challenge is very eye opening. It’s sad to realize how much technology affects my life. Maybe more people need to take this challenge so they realize the same. I don’t exactly know what I’m going to do with myself all week as far as technology goes, but sometimes it’s exciting trying to figure out how to entertain myself without it. I can definitely catch up on some reading for my classes and start studying for upcoming tests which will help me. This challenge will benefit me in a lot of ways. I can live “normally” without all of the noise that goes on in my life everyday typically. As long as I’m with my friends and visit my family, I’ll be fine. They’re what matters most anyway. It also helps that my boyfriend is on campus and is also doing this challenge. We will help each other and find other things to do that could be just as fun as using technology. This week will be rough, but I don’t have any doubts that I won’t be able to get through it. I think the hardest part will be the temptations of wanting to use electronics or technology or trying to find something other to do that could be fun. With my friends visiting this weekend, I know I will be occupied at least during that time. After the weekend, I don’t know what I’ll be doing. I guess I’ll let you know where I’m at!

Life Without Technology

“Why should we live with such hurry and waste of life? We are determined to be starved before we are hungry” (Thoreau).  I strongly agree with this quote. I think Thoreau makes an excellent point. I think we become starving for many things such as technology, bad foods, and bad life styles. Americans become starved before they become hungry. We don’t just think we want something, but we think things like Facebook and cell phones are a necessity. We couldn’t live without it. We get to the point where if we haven’t checked our cell phones or the internet in twenty minutes, we go through withdrawal. It’s sad. I don’t believe technology is more important than my friends or family. I don’t think technology should be such a “craving” for people as much as it is. I think people should be more focused on the important things in life. I think people need to be isolated from what they think makes them “starving” such as the cell phones, TV, computer, etc. During this process I think people will begin to understand life in a different way. Being away from those types of things could allow a person to find who they really are and get connected to the important things in life rather than being connected so much with technology.

If I had to live in a cabin in the woods like Thoreau did, I think I would enjoy it. I think it would be fun to try and come up with ways to have a good time without music or other technology. I would have to admit, it would be difficult because I do have a habit of always texting somebody, listening to my iPod, or going online, but it would be different and exciting. For one year, I could get use to living “normally” and away from all the noise. I could really get to know who I am and figure out what I would do with myself if I really didn’t have the things I use such as electronics and other technologies.  I would really enjoy it if I could be with my family and friends while I was in the cabin, because I can openly admit that I couldn’t live without them. The other things, I could give up in a heartbeat, but not the most important people in my life. With them, I think spending a year in a cabin would be easy. When I say easy, I mean that the “craving” for the things Americas think are important wouldn’t exist.

Americans have the wrong idea if they think getting wrapped up in video games, internet, and other things is the way of life. Sometimes we need to just step back and look at what we think are our most worldly possessions. Is it going to be the things that shouldn’t matter or the things that do? I think for a lot of people, reality would choose the things that shouldn’t matter and it’s wrong. Going hiking, playing board games, enjoying nature might sound boring, but if more people tried it maybe they’d like it. The thing is, I think people are so use to their electronics and other technologies, they don’t even know what other fun they could have. The family in the beginning of the Lasn text went on a camping trip and they all hated it. I don’t think they even gave it a shot. They just thought about the things they didn’t have with them or thought about doing the things they wanted to be doing such as talking on the phone or getting online. They had each other and I think that’s enough to have a good time. The characters in the Anderson text were so wrapped up in the feed that they didn’t know how to live without it. We depend so much on technology today. So much that we forget how to live without it. Sometimes we need to just give life without technology a try.

Dumb or Dumber

“Fair enough, but we suspect that if young people don’t know the Bill of Rights of the importance of old COLORED ENTRANCE signs—and they absolutely should—it reflects not stupidity, but a failure of the school system and of society (which is run by grown-ups) to require them to know it.” (Bauerlein)  Our generation doesn’t know near as much as people in earlier generations do in particular subjects. Our generation doesn’t know all parts of history, but we can recall most of the pop culture that we see and hear about today. This isn’t shocking. I think most of the people in this generation will be taught something, memorize it, be tested on it, and forget it because it doesn’t pertain to us. The information that we learn only matters when it comes to test time when dealing with a particular subject. I’m not saying I agree with this, but that’s reality. This generation is more focused on different things such as going on the internet or watching TV. Earlier generations didn’t have these types of tools so they read more books for their studies or as a pastime. Because our generation has access to the internet and television, we become more interested in that because it’s faster than going to a library, looking for a book, and taking the time to read it for the information we need. Also, the internet and other sorts of technology could benefit us such as helping us find cures for cancer or other diseases that are so common in our world. Since we are so equipped in using technology more so than earlier generations, we can help people out. Technology is more of interest to us than history, so therefore we are going to know more about it. Because we like to use the internet to find fast facts or not having a particular interest in something doesn’t necessarily makes us “dumb”.

I think our generation is smarter in different ways than other generations. We are going to know more about electronics and technology more so than the earlier generations. We are creating and inventing things to make life “easier” in a sense. Even in schools, they will have the TV on before class to show recent updates or they will have the iPads for students to do their research on, instead of enforcing reading and going to the library. We are more equipped in finding out information on our own through the internet than having it tucked away in our brains. We will learn about something and forget it very easily because we are involved in so many other things that earlier generations didn’t have the option to. Teachers don’t reinforce facts so the students can retain it, but rather make sure their students know what they need to for a standardized test so it doesn’t look bad on them for not teaching it. We aren’t necessarily at fault here. And if people think that we are the dumbest generations, what are they going to say about generations to come?

Bauerlein states that anyone under thirty is the dumbest generation. I don’t think that’s fair in any sense. Comparing us to a beauty queen isn’t right. She probably cares more about her looks and her desires more than who fought in World War I.  Not everyone in this generation is like that. I would give credit to many people in our generation for how intelligent they really are. Everyone has different interests, so that could mean they aren’t going to know everything about history, but they may know a lot about science. Usually if you’re interested in something you’re going to retain the information and you’re going to want to learn more about it. It’s sad that more people don’t know what happened in history, but that could mean they are more interested in other subjects. In high school, history was probably the most boring subject for everyone. Everyone dreaded the history classes. I was one of them. I’m not saying the class wasn’t important because it very much is, but other things interested me more. I have more the love for science, but I still care about what happened before my time. The past affects our future and it’s very important to know the facts of history. We are where we are now because of what happened in history. I agree and disagree with Bauerlein when he says that we are the dumbest generation because we don’t know everything there is to know about history, but we should know the major things. I do think there are many people in this generation that are very smart. I can admit that there are people that don’t even know facts that you commit to brain at an early age that everyone should know, but they might be smarter in a different interest and we shouldn’t make them feel “dumb” if they don’t’ know who the speaker of the house is. Everyone’s different. It’s not fair to generalize our whole generation as “dumb”.