FORUM WEEK 9

Topic 1

Music is our escape from reality. A new world of exploration and discovery. A place where we can come face to face with ourselves. Music makes us cry, laugh, wonder,and dance.

In the words of Kevin Bacon, “There is a time to mourn, and there is a time to DANCE.”

Everyone knows the movie “Footloose”, and if you don’t, then we just can’t be friends.
This movie is all about the small town of Bomont banning dancing due to its promotion to underage drinking and sex.

 Ironically, “Footloose” is my favorite movie because when I was in high school, they banned pop and rap music from being played at dances because it was encouraging the students to dance inappropriately as well as promotion drinking. Or so they said.

Every year, Prom was held at a local church. They played good ‘ol country music and the chaperons were walking around watching us like hawks. Keep in mind that this is a PUBLIC school.

Now, I understand not wanting students practically making babies on the dance floor, but to ban a specific genre of music seems a little extreme. Stereotyping a genre of music by saying that just because people listen to it, they will dance inappropriately is like me saying that everyone who listen to country music rides horses and chews tobacco.

It is seems strange that a public school would be allowed to limit the type of music that students listen to, or how they dance. Also, the fact that Prom was help in a church. Not everyone who attending our school was of the Christian faith, so it is almost like they were forcing that upon us.

The amount of criticism and stereotyping that that shaped our school dances was overwhelming.
Students felt as if they couldn’t dance freely due to the fact that they might get in trouble.

In my personal opinion, a little booty shaking should be allowed. I mean, everyone wants to be able to dance like Beyoncé, am I right?

My favorite music changes on a regular basis. I enjoy listening to singer/ songwriter, folk, R&B, pop, rock, rap, and basically anything that isn't country.

If I had to name off my top five favorite artists they would be:

1. Hozier
2. The 1975
3. Ingrid Michaelson
4. George Ezra
5. Bon Iver




Topic 2


I have been pondering the idea of campus radio since I enrolled at LB. I have always thought having a student run radio station would so exciting!

We could choose a variety of music, have talk shows, and share campus news. It would be like a live Commuter, but with music.

Considering that the Commuter is not directly funded by the school, maybe there is a way to get part of the student fees to pay for it as well. Also, the Commuter has a lot of paid ads in the paper every week, so that could be an option as well.

This is not something that most colleges have, so putting the idea out to the community might spark an interest and inspire people to lend a hand in order to get the ball rolling.

I think our niche audience would obviously be college students. Like I said above, we could play music as well as have talk shows and share news.

I don't know of very many radio stations that all three, so that could be our selling factor.

All in all, I think that is should be happening!

FORUM WEEK 8

Topic #1

It seems to be a common occurrence to just cover the eyes of children from seeing the real world. Parents don’t want their children to be seeing or reading about the school subjects that are “inappropriate”, but what they consider to be inappropriate, is reality.

We cannot continue to sugar coat our nation’s history of brutality and greed. We need to share that ugly truth with our youth to emphasize that history should not repeat itself.

We also cannot ban all books that obtain explicit matter. Sex, drugs, death, nudity, profanity, and all that other fun stuff is EVERYWHERE. We cannot shelter the younger generations from reality.

A few of the books that stood out to me on the ALA list were:

·         Perks of Being a Wall Flower (read in high school)
·         Gossip Girl (read in middle school)
·         To Kill a Mockingbird (read in English class in high school)
·         Fifty Shade of Grey (read in college)
·         Captain Underpants (read in elementary

Yes, a few of these are not historical or educational in any way, but To Kill a Mocking Bird? Come one, people. Classic!

There was talk about banning this a few years ago due to the use of the “N word.” But if people looked beyond the simple text, they could see that this story has a true depiction of what our nation’s history was truly like. It is relevant, and we can relate on a modern level as well. 

It has become more and more limited and authorized as to what public school libraries are allowed to put on their shelves.

My book shelf at home has a variation of genres. From, horror, fantasy, mystery, romance, religious and so on…

A variation in exposure is what expands our horizons.

 My parents were never those parents that monitored everything that I watched on TV. Of course, there were times they would cover my ears, kick me out of the room, or make me change the channel, but they were also aware that if I didn’t see it at home, kids at school would talk about it.

Just because a cookie is front of you doesn’t mean you have to eat it. Sex, racism, and profanity are all around us. Just because it is there doesn’t mean we have to participate.

But… one’s education should not be compromised in the process. 





Topic #2

Just going to start out by saying... Jeff Jarvis is sassy and intelligent, and I feel like we could be best friends.

He states in his chapter “Google U” that education should not be forced. The youth should be able to explore the world, backpack through Asia, or join the Peace Corps if they have the resources to do so.

“But how will we know students’ capabilities unless we put them in the position to try?” he said.
School should be a creative outlet. A combination of ideologies and theories. A place to be pushed and challenged creatively and academically.

Jarvis suggests that students, like Google engineers, take one day a week, a course a term or, even a whole year in college to create something. Anything. A book, a song, a sculpture… Anything.

Jarvis also talks about a man named Will Richardson who wrote a public letter to his children. A letter that I believe should be read across the globe to people of all ages.

Richardson’s letter stated that a piece of paper on a wall cannot reflect the adventures you will seek if you choose a path other college. A degree can get you a job and make money, but there are other ways, more meaningful avenues to venture down to reach the destination of success.

A degree is just a piece of paper.

Someone very close to me told me over this last summer, “You don’t have to know what you want to be your forever when you’re 20, Marina. It’s okay to change your mind.”

Education should be an exploration of our own minds. A discovery of our very own secret ambitions and talents. The education systems should encourage these mental and emotional explorations. Promoting study abroad programs, creative internships, and providing students with classes that allow them to challenge their mind and create something beautiful. 

It is okay to take a break. It is okay to travel the world, to backpack Asia. It is okay to go to college, to get a degree.

Jeff Jarvis displays so simply that we all develop and create differently. Forcing higher education upon the youth is not going to just produce successful generations. The power of choice, and the freedom to enjoy education is what is going to motivate and advance each generation.

Live Wild and True

As she watched her boot tumble off the cliff, she felt a loss of hope. She ripped off her other odorous, mangled boot and chucked it over the ledge to join its companion.

 She let out a scream, a scream that shook the mountains. It was her way of saying f-you to the obstacles that have stood in her way. A big, fat f-you to all the belittling aspects of life.

To live wild and true is a task that not many succeed.

Cheryl Strayed was a troubled and lost soul. She had lost her mother to cancer, struggled with a drug addiction, went through divorce, and completely lost herself.

Then, in the check-out isle of a store, a book grabber her attention. A book about the Pacific Crest Trail, a trail that lays all the way from Mexico to Canada. This book spiked her interest enough to invest in the hiking essentials, sell her belongings, and hitchhike her way to the edge of the PCT to take on the adventure of a lifetime. 

We all come across something, or more than one thing, in life that sets a fire in our hearts. That tells us to get out of bed and GO!

The book “Wild” by Cheryl Strayed was one of these life altering factors for me. This woman is an inspiration to human beings worldwide.

Cheryl wrote the book in tiny abandoned cabin in Lake County’s Paisley, Oregon; just a few miles from my home town of Lakeview. Last spring, Cheryl made a trip back to Lakeview to do a reading of her book at the Lake County Library, which is literally two blocks from my house.

I did not attend the reading and book signing, but after hearing the uproar of positivity and inspiration she imprinted on my community, it pushed me to read her book. And it was the opposite of a mistake. 

This woman set out on a journey all on her own. A journey in which she had zero experience in, but she packed up and went anyway, having faith in herself and her strength.

Her trek did not come without a few bumps and bruises. She questioned her ability and her sanity at many different points, but her determination is what kept her pushing on. 

In 2014, Cheryl's book was made into a film. Her role was played by Reese Witherspoon. New York Times said, "Wild may be full of natural beauty but it is also a celebration of the power of art."

This movie was a work of art. Cheryl worked along side Jean Mark Vallee to help sculpt the film.

There were several changes to the timeline of her journey, but never once did they shine away from her story. In the book, she told her upbringing before we followed her onto the trail, with bits and pieces of her memory showing up as we hiked. In the movie, we started on the trail, and we were shown her past through her memories.

To some, this might come as annoying due to the fact that it's not "by the book", but producers do this type of alterations to keep us drawn into the story.

In no way did I think this movie was a poor reflection of Cheryl's miraculous tale. Of course there were portions from the book that I wish they would have put in, but producers can't please everyone.

Reese Witherspoon played my depiction of Cheryl to a T. She was scared, heart broken, and hopeful. She was nominated for an Academy Award this year for best actress in "Wild." She deserved this recognition.

With the movie twisting the story line up a bit, I think this affected the audience as well. The book was slow, and raw. We anticipated her every marching step and heaving breath. The film didn't necessarily take that away, but we saw it in another way.

The movie was directed to grasp a younger audience. To inspire the viewers that are around my own age. To inspire us to be like Cheryl. If they would have made this movie as slow paced as the book, then it wouldn't have gotten the same reaction.

Movie Cheryl walked and reflected on all of her life choices that guided her to that moment, and I feel as of us, as college students, can relate to that very closely. We, like Cheryl, are just trying to figure our shit out. We are walking along our own trail, burying our mistakes in the dust we leave behind.

"It was my life- like all lives, mysterious and irrevocable and sacred. so very close, so very present, so very belonging to me. How wild it was, to let it be."


AT A GLANCE:

"Wild"- Book: 2012, Movie:2014
Actress: Reese Witherspoon
Writer: Cheryl Strayed
Rating: Book 5 Stars, Movie 5 Stars

Forum #6

Topic #1

I recall having sleepovers at my grandparents house when I was little. I would wake up, walk up the stairs to the kitchen where I would see Grandpa at the kitchen table with his coffee in hand, Raisin Bran being shoveled into his mouth as he read through the morning newspaper.

I would crawl up beside him, awaiting my Raisin Bran and orange juice, and we would read it together. I would look at the pictures and as he skimmed the car ads. It was a bonding experience I will cherish forever.

We receive news in so many different ways now. Quick, accessible, and with no hassle is how we want the world to be ran.

They say that the art of the newspaper is dying, but I know in my heart that someone out there will still be reading it.

Working for the Commuter here at LBCC, and seeing the leftover copies that get thrown into recycling each week breaks my heart a little. While I enjoy being able to turn on the TV and here the latest news, or scroll through Facebook or Twitter, there is not quite like the smell of solid news inked to a piece of paper.

This is same reason I do not own a Kindle or an eBook. I would much rather feel the paper on my fingertips as I turn the pages.

Something that we have been doing at the Commuter lately is playing with graphics, textiles, and color. The Internet is loaded with an abundance of graphics that we simply cannot put on paper. The trick is catching the eye of the reader. With fun pictures, backgrounds, or layouts viewers will want to grab a copy as they are walking by.

Many newspapers have resulted in posting their edition online as well as in print, or just strictly online. The Commuter does this as well. We can see that more and more people are clicking to read instead of picking up the paper copy.

Each week varies in numbers of left over copies. If we tease the right articles, display the right cover, then people will be intrigued.

A number students that I have spoken to, were unaware that LBCC even had a newspaper until it was brought to their attention. I think spreading the word about the news we want to share with our peers could help as well.

When I went to the University of Oregon for a few terms last year, the members of the Emerald (their paper), would stand on the street handing out their paper. Most people would walk right by, but several would stop pick up a paper and be engaged.

The challenge that newspapers are facing is competing against all the social media platforms out there. Grasping a hold of societies attention to read a spread of papers is a true challenge. One that is inevitable right in front of us.