http://youtube.com/watch?v=y_EKHK1C2IE
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3G8_jzmta90
I absolutely cannot believe this. I am stunned.
Bible School. When I hear that, the first thing that pops into my mind is my old school, which was Catholic. I think of learning about Jesus and the faith, and learning the history of the Church and so on.
I don't think of this other, ugly, evil side- this extremist garbage that taints childrens' minds and doesn't seem to allow them to lead the life of a normal child.
Is this woman INSANE? What is she smoking? How much, how many? How can she teach mere children this garbage?
Harry Potter is evil, apparently. Guess what else? Harry Potter is NOT real! It is a BOOK, written for entertainment! Get over it and move on! Why do you say trash about Harry Potter, and yet do not point out the "flaws" and "evil doings" of so many other fantasy books?
She goes on to say that she'd like our children doing the same those suicide bombers are doing- laying down their lives for "Jesus".
Not that she knows a damned thing about her own religion. If she did, she'd know God and Jesus do not want people doing this, because it is violence...and, to put it quite simply, it's a terrible thing to do!
I find this unbelievably sad. These children's minds are being brainwashed, that's what it comes down to. This isn't like Islam, it's not "misunderstood"! It's absolutely terrible that children are being taught this garbage about Jesus. Everything they do is "for Jesus"- they don't have normal childhoods like must kids here in the U.S.A. do/should. Nope. They're too busy taping their mouths shut, dancing for God, and smashing cups that say GOVERNMENT on it. It's like they're so focused on being these little perfect robotic copies of children. It makes me sick.
So much for our nation being so great and wonderful.
EDIT:
I wanted to add something.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=YeUz5ZihaqA
There's this girl. I almost pity her.
But it angered me when she talked about a little something she likes to call "dead churches". Does she know what God likes? No. How much you wanna bet she's never been to a "dead church", and if she has, didn't even keep an open mind on it?
I used to go to a church where we sang, listened to sermons, etc. Guess what Rachie? It's still praising God either way you cut it.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Thursday, November 1, 2007
BTW, Happy Halloween/All Soul's Day
Happy Halloween and All Soul's/Saint's Day!
http://www.history.com/minisites/halloween/
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/quiz/quiz.aspx?QuizID=283
Have fun y'all.
http://www.history.com/minisites/halloween/
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/quiz/quiz.aspx?QuizID=283
Have fun y'all.
Understanding Things We Americans Apparently Cannot
I've seen a ton of these types of questions.
"What is it with Islam condemning homosexuality? Why do they wear those stupid headscarves? What a bunch of losers! Get your @$$es out of the dark ages"
Wooow. That's awfully..well, pathetic and ignorant, in my eyes.
I don't think people even bother to think that a majority of people who are Muslim come from a culture different than that of America's.
Not only that, but we, as a country, condemn homosexuality! Apparently, the Bible is against it as well!
We are a bunch of hypocrites. We condemn other countries, cultures, or religions, yet we refuse to turn around and do the same for ourselves- especially when it comes to the United States of America. Now, granted, I love it here in the USA. But we are definately NOT the greatest country out there, especially if you compare ourselves to Europe.
We are completely ignorant and intolerant of anything different. "Gasp! She's wearing a headscarf? What IS this?" Hmm..maybe she's chosing to wear it. Heck, when I convert, you may just see me wearing a hijab.
If you want to know why they do this stuff, or that for some odd reason [sarcasm] there are cultures and ideas other than those of America, educate yourself. And not with biased stuff saying "Islam is bad, it advocates terrorism," etc. etc. etc. Use something completely unbiased. I'm not suggesting Wikipedia, either, considering basically anyone can go on there and edit and fool around. Get something from a RELIABLE source!
Before you condemn a people or lifestyle you don't even know, take a hard look at your own religion or even country. You'd be surprised.
"What is it with Islam condemning homosexuality? Why do they wear those stupid headscarves? What a bunch of losers! Get your @$$es out of the dark ages"
Wooow. That's awfully..well, pathetic and ignorant, in my eyes.
I don't think people even bother to think that a majority of people who are Muslim come from a culture different than that of America's.
Not only that, but we, as a country, condemn homosexuality! Apparently, the Bible is against it as well!
We are a bunch of hypocrites. We condemn other countries, cultures, or religions, yet we refuse to turn around and do the same for ourselves- especially when it comes to the United States of America. Now, granted, I love it here in the USA. But we are definately NOT the greatest country out there, especially if you compare ourselves to Europe.
We are completely ignorant and intolerant of anything different. "Gasp! She's wearing a headscarf? What IS this?" Hmm..maybe she's chosing to wear it. Heck, when I convert, you may just see me wearing a hijab.
If you want to know why they do this stuff, or that for some odd reason [sarcasm] there are cultures and ideas other than those of America, educate yourself. And not with biased stuff saying "Islam is bad, it advocates terrorism," etc. etc. etc. Use something completely unbiased. I'm not suggesting Wikipedia, either, considering basically anyone can go on there and edit and fool around. Get something from a RELIABLE source!
Before you condemn a people or lifestyle you don't even know, take a hard look at your own religion or even country. You'd be surprised.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
The End of A Generation (Might As Well Be..)
Why do people look up to Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Lauren Conrad, Nicole Richie, and Jenna Jameson and call them their "heroes"?
I try as hard as I can to be open-minded about this. And yet I still will never understand why. "She's gorgeous, a smart business-woman, she has a great voice.." etc. etc. etc. That's not exactly sufficient stuff to me.
Usually, I could care less. But it's been bothering me lately. Granted, Nicole Richie hasn't been much of a bother (for a couple of obvious reasons), and I suppose that L.L. is getting better. But the other ones...WHAAAT?
First of all, I don't believe ANY celebrity-goes-to-country crap when they're toting around a cam crew with them unless it's for PART of a documentary that includes people who actually know what they're talking about (in other words, a non-celeb) or someone like Nelson Mandela. It's usually the "Two Facers" that I am wary of- people like Paris Hilton and Angelina Jolie (yes, I DID just say Angelina Jolie). Sometimes I feel people like them are doing it because they care, other times it really seems like they're doing it for the attention.
And this generation just seems so..well..pathetic. We seem to care more about MySpace, who's dating who, revenge, and wearing the "perfect" clothes and having the "perfect" boyfriend and being "popular".
What kind of crap is that? When will that matter in college and later in life? Just because you're popular when it comes to politics or Hollywood, it doesn't mean that people even like you! I find it sad that that's all anyone seems to care about anymore.
I try as hard as I can to be open-minded about this. And yet I still will never understand why. "She's gorgeous, a smart business-woman, she has a great voice.." etc. etc. etc. That's not exactly sufficient stuff to me.
Usually, I could care less. But it's been bothering me lately. Granted, Nicole Richie hasn't been much of a bother (for a couple of obvious reasons), and I suppose that L.L. is getting better. But the other ones...WHAAAT?
First of all, I don't believe ANY celebrity-goes-to-country crap when they're toting around a cam crew with them unless it's for PART of a documentary that includes people who actually know what they're talking about (in other words, a non-celeb) or someone like Nelson Mandela. It's usually the "Two Facers" that I am wary of- people like Paris Hilton and Angelina Jolie (yes, I DID just say Angelina Jolie). Sometimes I feel people like them are doing it because they care, other times it really seems like they're doing it for the attention.
And this generation just seems so..well..pathetic. We seem to care more about MySpace, who's dating who, revenge, and wearing the "perfect" clothes and having the "perfect" boyfriend and being "popular".
What kind of crap is that? When will that matter in college and later in life? Just because you're popular when it comes to politics or Hollywood, it doesn't mean that people even like you! I find it sad that that's all anyone seems to care about anymore.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Fashion Bullies Attack -- In Middle School
Aryana McPike, a sixth-grader from Springfield, Ill., has a closet full of designer clothes from Dolce & Gabbana, Juicy Couture, True Religion and Seven For All Mankind. But her wardrobe, carefully selected by a fashion-conscious mother, hasn't won her friends at school.
Kids in her class recently instructed her that she was wearing the wrong brands. She should wear Apple Bottoms jeans by the rapper Nelly, they told her, and designer sneakers, such as Air Force 1 by Nike. She came home complaining to her mother that "all the girls want to know if I will ever come to school without being so dressed up."
Sixth-grader Aryana McPike with her mother, Ava, whose idea of fashion differs from that of Aryana's classmates. Teen and adolescent girls have long used fashion as a social weapon. In 1944, Eleanor Estes wrote "The Hundred Dresses," a book about a Polish girl who is made fun of for wearing the same shabby dress to school each day. The film "Mean Girls" in 2004 focused on fashion-conscious cliques among high-school teens. But today, guidance counselors and psychologists say, fashion bullying is reaching a new level of intensity as more designers launch collections targeted at kids.
As a result, an increasing number of school and community programs focused on girl-on-girl bullying are addressing peer pressure and the sizable role clothing plays in girls' identity. In Pennsylvania, California, Maryland and several other states, for instance, community groups and some schools have started Club or Camp Ophelia, a pair of programs developed by Penn State professor and author Cheryl Dellasega that teach girls relationship skills. A "Bully Quiz" the girls take asks, "Have you stopped being friends with someone because she wore clothes you didn't like?"
Designer offerings for kids include Missoni. Dorothy Espelage, a professor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, who has studied teenage behavior for 14 years, says she has seen an increase in "bullying related to clothes." She attributes that to the proliferation of designer brands and the display of labels in ads. In the more than 20 states where she has studied teens, she has been surprised by how kids revere those they perceive to have the best clothes. Having access to designer clothing affords some kids "the opportunity to become popular -- and that protects you and gives you social power and leverage over others," she says.
Over the past three years, numerous designers have targeted the lucrative children's and teens' markets. Little Marc, the kids' clothing label by New York designer Marc Jacobs, expanded its line this winter and dropped its price, making it more accessible to a greater number of shoppers. The French luxury label Chloé, Milan-based Missoni and Italian designer Alberta Ferretti are launching new kids' labels for spring or summer next year. Other designer kids' lines include Dolce & Gabbana, Armani and Burberry, while Michael Kors, Coach, Dooney & Bourke and Dior have been targeting teens or kids with accessories.
Retailers, too, have rushed to cash in, opening offshoots of their boutiques specifically for children. Cantaloup and Scoop, which sell designer clothing for women in New York, now have Cantaloup Kids and Scoop Kids boutiques that carry a similar selection of designers for their customers' daughters and sons.
The greater focus on fashion in teen magazines and on TV has increased girls' awareness of designer labels. "The market has become more sophisticated," says Fiona Coleman, children's trends editor for WGSN, a fashion-consulting service. Kids today follow not only what celebrities wear, but also what their children wear, she says. Brooklyn Beckham, the son of soccer star David Beckham, was photographed wearing Junior Dolce & Gabbana in magazines as a toddler, propelling the brand into the limelight. Madonna's daughter Lourdes Leon, who has her own stylist, has appeared in magazines wearing Juicy Couture tracksuits.
French luxury label Chloé School guidance counselor Angie Dooley sees the love of labels at Lawrence Junior High School in Fairfield, Maine, where some girls wear the same few brand-name items they own again and again. "They don't want anyone to know that's all they have," Ms. Dooley says.
In one study, more than one-third of middle-school students responded "yes" when asked whether they are bullied because of the clothes they wear. Susan M. Swearer, associate professor of school psychology at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, surveyed a total of more than 1,000 students at five Midwestern middle schools from 1999 to 2004, with about 56% of the sample female. While the prevalence of fashion bullies was greater in wealthy cities and towns, where more designer clothing is available, she found the problem is significant in poorer communities, too.
Teens and adolescents are expected to wear not just any designer brands but the "right" ones. "The better brands you wear, the more popular you are," says Becky Gilker, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Sherwood Park in the Canadian province of Alberta. "If you don't wear those things you get criticized." In many schools, the most expensive designer goods, such as those by Chanel or Louis Vuitton, have the highest social ranking among girls. But popular teen brands such as American Eagle, Abercrombie & Fitch and Aeropostale are also important. Miss Gilker says Hollister and Roxy are big logos at her school.
But even the wrong color can bring put-downs, Miss Gilker notes. When she wears pink, she says, "I get the snarky 'Nice clothes!' when people walk by in the halls." Her mom, Karin Gilker, who is 44, says she has tried to explain to her daughter that she should ignore such comments and wear what she likes. She also has tried explaining that "pink looks wonderful on her -- she's a blonde -- and she looks really good in it."
Several new programs are trying to help parents, teachers and girls cope with bullying. In Maine, a nonprofit called Hardy Girls Healthy Women has developed a curriculum that has caught on at a number of junior high schools and is being adopted in after-school programs in Florida, Ohio, New York and other states. The program encourages young girls to build coalitions and gets them to look more closely at the messages they get from the media, including those about fashion and clothing.
In June, a national conference on "Relational Aggression, Mean Girls and Other Forms of Bullying" in Las Vegas drew more than 800 teachers, educators and counselors. Many of the sessions focused on the role the media plays in putting social pressure on girls regarding fashion and appearance.
Seven For All Mankind is expanding its kids' line. Susan Bowman, vice president of Developmental Resources, a Chapin, S.C., educational consulting firm that put on the conference, told the audience that for many girls, the answer to the question "What do I wear?" seems to define who they are. In 2005, Developmental Resources began holding a series of "Mean Girls" workshops for educators around the country. The workshops, she says, explore why fashion is such an important part of a girl's identity, and how that, in turn, "creates even more social pressure on the 'have nots.' "
Some psychologists believe that fashion bullying is happening at younger and younger ages. Megan Flynn, director of children's services at Westchester Jewish Community Services, says she has recently begun using an anti-bullying program with girls in the fifth and sixth grades, as well as with older students. The program, she says, provides "a process where they can take a closer look at the messages they get" in the media.
Aryana's mom, Ava McPike, feels it is important that Aryana not be pressured to conform to the dressed-down standard at her school. She believes that generally other people favor those who "look good -- the cute kids," says Ms. McPike, who drives to Neiman Marcus in St. Louis, Mo., with her daughter to help pick out clothes. But Ms. McPike does give in every now and then. She recently bought two Ralph Lauren dresses, in pink and green, and her daughter rejected them, because, her mom suspects, they wouldn't pass muster with her classmates.
-from THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE
Kids in her class recently instructed her that she was wearing the wrong brands. She should wear Apple Bottoms jeans by the rapper Nelly, they told her, and designer sneakers, such as Air Force 1 by Nike. She came home complaining to her mother that "all the girls want to know if I will ever come to school without being so dressed up."
Sixth-grader Aryana McPike with her mother, Ava, whose idea of fashion differs from that of Aryana's classmates. Teen and adolescent girls have long used fashion as a social weapon. In 1944, Eleanor Estes wrote "The Hundred Dresses," a book about a Polish girl who is made fun of for wearing the same shabby dress to school each day. The film "Mean Girls" in 2004 focused on fashion-conscious cliques among high-school teens. But today, guidance counselors and psychologists say, fashion bullying is reaching a new level of intensity as more designers launch collections targeted at kids.
As a result, an increasing number of school and community programs focused on girl-on-girl bullying are addressing peer pressure and the sizable role clothing plays in girls' identity. In Pennsylvania, California, Maryland and several other states, for instance, community groups and some schools have started Club or Camp Ophelia, a pair of programs developed by Penn State professor and author Cheryl Dellasega that teach girls relationship skills. A "Bully Quiz" the girls take asks, "Have you stopped being friends with someone because she wore clothes you didn't like?"
Designer offerings for kids include Missoni. Dorothy Espelage, a professor of educational psychology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, who has studied teenage behavior for 14 years, says she has seen an increase in "bullying related to clothes." She attributes that to the proliferation of designer brands and the display of labels in ads. In the more than 20 states where she has studied teens, she has been surprised by how kids revere those they perceive to have the best clothes. Having access to designer clothing affords some kids "the opportunity to become popular -- and that protects you and gives you social power and leverage over others," she says.
Over the past three years, numerous designers have targeted the lucrative children's and teens' markets. Little Marc, the kids' clothing label by New York designer Marc Jacobs, expanded its line this winter and dropped its price, making it more accessible to a greater number of shoppers. The French luxury label Chloé, Milan-based Missoni and Italian designer Alberta Ferretti are launching new kids' labels for spring or summer next year. Other designer kids' lines include Dolce & Gabbana, Armani and Burberry, while Michael Kors, Coach, Dooney & Bourke and Dior have been targeting teens or kids with accessories.
Retailers, too, have rushed to cash in, opening offshoots of their boutiques specifically for children. Cantaloup and Scoop, which sell designer clothing for women in New York, now have Cantaloup Kids and Scoop Kids boutiques that carry a similar selection of designers for their customers' daughters and sons.
The greater focus on fashion in teen magazines and on TV has increased girls' awareness of designer labels. "The market has become more sophisticated," says Fiona Coleman, children's trends editor for WGSN, a fashion-consulting service. Kids today follow not only what celebrities wear, but also what their children wear, she says. Brooklyn Beckham, the son of soccer star David Beckham, was photographed wearing Junior Dolce & Gabbana in magazines as a toddler, propelling the brand into the limelight. Madonna's daughter Lourdes Leon, who has her own stylist, has appeared in magazines wearing Juicy Couture tracksuits.
French luxury label Chloé School guidance counselor Angie Dooley sees the love of labels at Lawrence Junior High School in Fairfield, Maine, where some girls wear the same few brand-name items they own again and again. "They don't want anyone to know that's all they have," Ms. Dooley says.
In one study, more than one-third of middle-school students responded "yes" when asked whether they are bullied because of the clothes they wear. Susan M. Swearer, associate professor of school psychology at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, surveyed a total of more than 1,000 students at five Midwestern middle schools from 1999 to 2004, with about 56% of the sample female. While the prevalence of fashion bullies was greater in wealthy cities and towns, where more designer clothing is available, she found the problem is significant in poorer communities, too.
Teens and adolescents are expected to wear not just any designer brands but the "right" ones. "The better brands you wear, the more popular you are," says Becky Gilker, a 13-year-old eighth-grader from Sherwood Park in the Canadian province of Alberta. "If you don't wear those things you get criticized." In many schools, the most expensive designer goods, such as those by Chanel or Louis Vuitton, have the highest social ranking among girls. But popular teen brands such as American Eagle, Abercrombie & Fitch and Aeropostale are also important. Miss Gilker says Hollister and Roxy are big logos at her school.
But even the wrong color can bring put-downs, Miss Gilker notes. When she wears pink, she says, "I get the snarky 'Nice clothes!' when people walk by in the halls." Her mom, Karin Gilker, who is 44, says she has tried to explain to her daughter that she should ignore such comments and wear what she likes. She also has tried explaining that "pink looks wonderful on her -- she's a blonde -- and she looks really good in it."
Several new programs are trying to help parents, teachers and girls cope with bullying. In Maine, a nonprofit called Hardy Girls Healthy Women has developed a curriculum that has caught on at a number of junior high schools and is being adopted in after-school programs in Florida, Ohio, New York and other states. The program encourages young girls to build coalitions and gets them to look more closely at the messages they get from the media, including those about fashion and clothing.
In June, a national conference on "Relational Aggression, Mean Girls and Other Forms of Bullying" in Las Vegas drew more than 800 teachers, educators and counselors. Many of the sessions focused on the role the media plays in putting social pressure on girls regarding fashion and appearance.
Seven For All Mankind is expanding its kids' line. Susan Bowman, vice president of Developmental Resources, a Chapin, S.C., educational consulting firm that put on the conference, told the audience that for many girls, the answer to the question "What do I wear?" seems to define who they are. In 2005, Developmental Resources began holding a series of "Mean Girls" workshops for educators around the country. The workshops, she says, explore why fashion is such an important part of a girl's identity, and how that, in turn, "creates even more social pressure on the 'have nots.' "
Some psychologists believe that fashion bullying is happening at younger and younger ages. Megan Flynn, director of children's services at Westchester Jewish Community Services, says she has recently begun using an anti-bullying program with girls in the fifth and sixth grades, as well as with older students. The program, she says, provides "a process where they can take a closer look at the messages they get" in the media.
Aryana's mom, Ava McPike, feels it is important that Aryana not be pressured to conform to the dressed-down standard at her school. She believes that generally other people favor those who "look good -- the cute kids," says Ms. McPike, who drives to Neiman Marcus in St. Louis, Mo., with her daughter to help pick out clothes. But Ms. McPike does give in every now and then. She recently bought two Ralph Lauren dresses, in pink and green, and her daughter rejected them, because, her mom suspects, they wouldn't pass muster with her classmates.
-from THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ONLINE
Sunday, October 21, 2007
The difference between President Bush and a Murderer.
murderer
noun
a criminal who commits homicide (who performs the unlawful premeditated killing of another human being)
President Bush (he's the president, therefore he deserves respect!) can very easily be labelled as a murderer for sending us to war.
Newsflash! Did you know that during wars people die? I don't mean to sound cold-hearted, but it's true! Not everyone comes back from a war ALIVE.
Guess what? If Pres. Bush is a murderer, then so is Franklin D. Roosevelt, Kennedy and Johnson, as well as quite a few more. Because guess what?
THEY ALL WENT TO WAR. We didn't really leave 'Nam until 1973! JFK increased troop numbers, as well as Lyndon B. Johnson! FDR headed us into WWII!
Not only that, but do you honestly think President Bush goes to bed at night, fully content, and says, "Screw all those soldiers dying. I think it's hilarious! I love seeing people die!" You may not like him, but he is NOT that ignorant or stupid, as much as you like to make him out to be. I honestly do not think, as well as quite a few other people, that President Bush LIKES seeing the soldiers dying. But guess what?
THAT'S WHAT WAR IS. He's doing what HE thinks is right- NOT YOU.
Would any of you do better as president? I highly, highly doubt it.
noun
a criminal who commits homicide (who performs the unlawful premeditated killing of another human being)
President Bush (he's the president, therefore he deserves respect!) can very easily be labelled as a murderer for sending us to war.
Newsflash! Did you know that during wars people die? I don't mean to sound cold-hearted, but it's true! Not everyone comes back from a war ALIVE.
Guess what? If Pres. Bush is a murderer, then so is Franklin D. Roosevelt, Kennedy and Johnson, as well as quite a few more. Because guess what?
THEY ALL WENT TO WAR. We didn't really leave 'Nam until 1973! JFK increased troop numbers, as well as Lyndon B. Johnson! FDR headed us into WWII!
Not only that, but do you honestly think President Bush goes to bed at night, fully content, and says, "Screw all those soldiers dying. I think it's hilarious! I love seeing people die!" You may not like him, but he is NOT that ignorant or stupid, as much as you like to make him out to be. I honestly do not think, as well as quite a few other people, that President Bush LIKES seeing the soldiers dying. But guess what?
THAT'S WHAT WAR IS. He's doing what HE thinks is right- NOT YOU.
Would any of you do better as president? I highly, highly doubt it.
Here's the problem...
...That I have with celebrities jetting off to places like Rwanda (*hemhem*Paris Hilton!), Darfur, Afghanistan, etc. etc. etc. and acting like they care, blah blah blah, then coming home to L.A. or Bev Hills or wherever and continuing to party and not give a damn.
Why do you need cameras and film crews with you? I mean, I can understand if it's for part of a documentary and stuff, but really! To me, it's just like advertising, "Hey, look at me, look at what a good heart I have! I really AM a good person, right?"
Honestly. You don't need people with cameras following you every place! Hello, it's almost like the paps, just no one screaming, "OVER HERE! OVER HERE!!!!"
Jeez! I'm not saying, "If you care, ditch the cameras." I'd just like to know why some of them act like they NEED them following them [celebs] like servants.
Why do you need cameras and film crews with you? I mean, I can understand if it's for part of a documentary and stuff, but really! To me, it's just like advertising, "Hey, look at me, look at what a good heart I have! I really AM a good person, right?"
Honestly. You don't need people with cameras following you every place! Hello, it's almost like the paps, just no one screaming, "OVER HERE! OVER HERE!!!!"
Jeez! I'm not saying, "If you care, ditch the cameras." I'd just like to know why some of them act like they NEED them following them [celebs] like servants.
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