Let It Burn

            This final paper will discuss the benefits following the legalization of marijuana. Just touching on a few of the many positive outcomes of this, its relativity to the former alcohol prohibition, the major decrease in crime rate and the decline in taxes to support those in jail, as well as its profound medicinal contributions will be the major supportive points made.

            When the alcohol prohibition came in to effect in 1920, it was one of most infamous, times in recent American history. Considered by many as a failed social and political experiment, the era changed the way many Americans view alcoholic beverages, enhancing the realization that federal government control cannot always take the place of personal responsibility. The era is associated with gangsters, bootleggers, speakeasies, rum-runners and an overall chaotic situation. The period began with general acceptance by the public and ended in 1933 with the public's annoyance of the law and the ever-increasing enforcement nightmare.

            Upon the legalization of marijuana, both crime rates and the money the public is forced to spend in taxes to hold those with marijuana-related cases to nose dive. Thousands and thousands of people are locked up every year as a result of marijuana, whether it is possession, under the influence, or dealing. Cells across the United States are filled with citizens with a clean record and a marijuana charge and the people’s tax dollars must keep them in there. People are unable to get a job merely because of traces of marijuana in the system. In addition, legalization would bring weed shops so that drug dealers would be forced to stop selling and buyers would no longer be in risk buying it off the street.

            Most important are all the benefits of marijuana and its medicinal benefits and purposes. Over the years, marijuana cannabis has become a popular approach to relieving everything from back pain to depression. There are five major reasons for its healing use. One common use of medical cannabis is to ease the symptoms of nausea. In trials conducted by National Cancer Institute, two FDA-approved cannabis-based drugs helped to reduce chemotherapy-related nausea and vomiting in cancer patients. Another common use for medicinal cannabis is stimulating appetite, important to those with HIV/AIDS and those going through chemotherapy who have a major loss of appetite. Another effect of medical cannabis is the ability to relax muscle tension. In studies performed on severely disabled MS patients, an intake of THC produced a decrease in tremors and muscle stiffness. There has also long been a belief that cannabis provides an analgesic quality to those suffering from chronic pain. Those suffering from neuropathic pain - commonly caused by alcoholism, amputation, spine surgery, HIV or MS - often turn to medicinal cannabis as a source of relief. Finally, many users of medicinal cannabis also use the substance as a means to relieve anxiety and certain sleep disorders such as insomnia. 

The Master

                "The Master" tells the complex story of Freddie Quell, a World War II veteran, who is adjusting to his new post-war freedom. Soon after his release, he is introduced to Lancaster Dodd, the "master" of a philosophical movement known as "The Cause" and invites Freddie to be a part of his movement. Freddie quickly takes a liking to "The Cause" and begins traveling with Dodd to spread their teachings. Along the way, Dodd attempts to diminish Freddie's violent and erratic behavior as well as put a stop to his excessive alcoholism. With slow improvement, other members of "The Cause" begin to worry about Freddie's behavior, but Dodd insists that Freddie is an important part of the movement. Eventually he passes the tests, but later decides to leave "The Cause". While sleeping in a movie theater, Freddie has a vision of Dodd mysteriously calling him on the movie theater telephone to inform him that he is now living in and teaching his work in England and that Freddie must travel and join a part of the movement once again. He therefore decides to make the long travel to reunite with Dodd. Upon arriving at Dodd's school, Dodd realizes that Freddie must venture out to the world and take his own path. He gives Freddie the ultimatum to either stay with "The Cause" and devote himself to it for the rest of his life or leave and never come back, and Freddie decides to leave. After leaving, the film seems to come full circle when Freddie meets a woman and begins to recite the same questioning technique Dodd had used on him during their first movement session. As far as the meaning of it all, for me it is hard to pinpoint. However, I do believe the film is an excellent representation of the intense struggles of a World War II veteran. Jauquin Phonenix was excellent in the portrayal of such a character, tapping into a dark and very psychologically damaged character that was extremely moving. If I were to interpret the overall meaning at my best assumption, I would say that this film is about the need to believe in and follow something, anything. After leaving the military where his whole life was structured, the new freedom caused an anger and a detachment from what Freddie was supposed to do with his life. Upon finding a new structure in "The Cause" he was able to find hope and happiness in something again, whether it actually was real or not.

#8 "You Can't Be Neutral On A Moving Train"

                This documentary on Howard Zinn looks closely on his views on the impoverished, the working class, those in power, society worldwide, and the affect that the opinions of these people  has on helping the world move forward. He is a major spokesperson for literature and history. For without these two components, people would be naïve to the past, present, and future. “If you don’t know history, it’s as if you were born yesterday. And if you were born yesterday, then anybody up there in a position of power can tell you anything.” There will always be conflicts, issues, concerns, problems, and differences in views and opinions. It is vital, therefore, to have a standpoint in it all. People must believe and fight for those beliefs, otherwise change would never be possible. Being neutral is not an option and, in actuality, does not exist. “To be neutral is simply to collaborate with whatever is going on.” Whether it is war, education, environment, employment, scientific, racial, gender, or whatever the social issue may be, it is up to all people of all kinds and class to have an opinion in order to push through the struggle and achieve justice. These views need to be pressed worldwide. Most people, especially today’s youth, believe that if they are uninvolved, unopinionated, and unconcerned with everything that is going on around them that they are not affecting the world one way other the other. Though they know they are not helping matters, what they don’t know is that they are actually hurting and making matters worse. More than this, if everyone decided to pay no attention to their surroundings, go with the flow, and just listen and agree to whatever they are told by authority figures, not only would society as a whole suffer, but people as individuals would cease to flourish and grow as human beings.  When it comes to us as people and the world we live in, ignorance is not bliss. 

#7 Bibliography

Fairburn, Christopher G. and Kelly D. Brownell. Eating Disorders and Obesity. NY: The Guilford Press, 2002.

Matthews, John R. Eating Disorders. NY: Facts on File, 1991.

Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All-American Meal. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2001.

Wilson, Andrea. “Fast Food F.A.C.T.S.” Targeted Marketing. (2012): http://fastfoodmarketing.org/media/FastFoodFACTS_TargetedMarketing.pdf

Wykes, Maggie and Barrie Gunter. The Media and Body Image: If Looks Could Kill. London; Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE, 2005.

#6 The Monsanto Monopoly

            The Monsanto Company is an American multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation that holds its place as the leading producer of the herbicide glyphosate, as well as the leading producer of genetically engineered seed, both marketing under the name of Roundup products. This company was one of the first to actually genetically modify a plant cell, the first to conduct field trials of genetically modified crops, and was even awarded the Nobel Prize in 2001 for Chemistry for the research done on catalytic asymmetric hydrogenation. The Monsanto Company also brought into agriculture the standard biotechnology industry business model, in which “patent” rights are vital and mean everything. These patents allow the company to continuously reap the benefits of its biotech research and therefore, allow it to maintain the financial success that it is today. As a company, Monsanto claims to be compassionate and supportive of the under-appreciated hard-working American farmer, but who is the man behind the company?

            While claiming to be a protector with selfless intentions, Monsanto has long been suing and bankrupting these “under-appreciated” and “hard-working” farmers around the world. The same small wholesome farmers and families he advertises pictures of to represent his company. He uses the framing of the honest all-American man in overalls to distract from the fact that the Monsanto Company is really just a profit hungry chemical cooperation. He wants his consumers to envision that by buying his products they are helping these people. However, in reality buying his products is actually helping to destroy these people and their farms. Looking into further research, I found that this disgusting reputation was repeatedly verified. Countless documentaries, court cases, and families who were victimized are spreading the word about being attacked and robbed of everything they had by Monsanto. He has truly taken the concept of a monopoly and has taken it to its full effect, and it needs to be stopped.

#5 Real Men Wear Pink

            In this group blog about women and the media, “Make-up and Hot Pink Toenails – Not Just a Girl Thing”, Melanie Klein addresses the issue of stereotypical femininity and, more specifically, masculinity. In mainstream pop culture, an intense amount of pressure is placed on girls; however it sometimes goes unnoticed that boys have many pressures of their own. There is an expectation to look, dress, act a certain way, as well as have a specific category of interests. Sadly, any further curiosity into what might be considered to be “feminine” interests is resulted in extreme judgment – and, sometimes, further more degrading punishment. Klein gives the examples that “a 17-month-old boy is beaten to death for being too “girly,” a 5-year-old is accused of being gay for choosing to dress up like Daphne from Scooby-Doo for Halloween, a boy who likes pink dresses causes headline news, and a high-school football player is kicked off the field for wearing pink cleats during Breast Cancer Awareness Month”.

            To realize what a major issue this still is in today’s society is beyond baffling. The acceptance to be able to explore one’s interests regardless of gender is a right that we all have and therefore should be able to practice freely. It is how we find out who we are truly meant to be as people, and that range should not be limited in any way. The media and the advertisers of today need to expand this range so that both girls and boys know that they can do and be anything they want - without ridicule. Ridding the framing of today’s norms used by current advertising that shows boys wearing blue and girls wearing pink, and instead make a point to show that it is normal for boys wear pink too, will be a major step towards ridding these gender stereotypes for good.

#4 Politics: The Inevitable Argument

            A conversation about one’s politics is almost always never a conversation at all. Rather, it unfortunately turns quickly into an argument or a heated debate. Rarely are people’s opinions on politics ever the same and, for most people, it is a topic that they feel very strongly about. Therefore, when other people do not share the same views as you do then automatically “they’re in the wrong” or “they don’t know what they are talking about” or “they’re just ignorant”. If it is not how you feel – your morals, your beliefs, your views – then the other person is immediately judged, lectured, and looked down upon from that point forward.

            Personally, for as long as I can remember I have always thought the government was completely corrupt. The combination of that reason and the reasons I shared above are why I have never cared for politics whatsoever. I have my beliefs, but taking the time to apply them to my political standpoint was never something that even crossed my mind. After my English 102 class recently, I have discovered that my personal opinions fall under the Left Libertarian side. Looking further into this political standpoint, I do agree that it best suits me. I believe that gays should have the right to marry and have children. I believe in pro-choice. I believe that corporations who all claim that “the customer comes first” are all full of it. I believe that they, along with the government, are stealing the money that we work so hard for, blowing it to build more corporations to take even more money from us, and that it is just an endless vicious cycle. I do wish all of this could change. However, the Left Libertarian ideas are never able to survive in the government due to being out-numbered by Republicans and Democrats and the people in power who, of course, are the only ones actually benefiting. Because of that reason above all, politics is something that I will continue to not become involved in. Ultimately, if one does not agree with the two popular parties then your voice is not heard or cared about. Regardless, I will always stand by and live out my beliefs - whether they are ever “legal” or not.

#3 Enlightenment

The 21^st Century Enlightenment is a video created by the RSA Animate organization. This video looks inside the ideals, norms, values, and lifestyles of the 18^th Century Enlightenment and how they are used, as well as how they should not be used, in the world today. In the video, questions are raised such as, “What do those values mean? Do they still apply? Do they meet the challenges we now face in the 21^st century?” According to Matthew Taylor, because we live differently in the 21^st century, we need to think differently as well. We need to see ourselves and our world in a new perspective. I agree with this idea entirely. There are very few similarities between the world in the 18^th century and the world as we know it today, so why would we treat it as if it were the same? With all of the modern-day obstacles that are placed in our way, our morals, politics, and education all need to adjust and become modern as well.

The Changing Education Paradigm is another video created by the RSA Animate. This video, also accompanied by brilliant cartoon sketching, is based on today’s education system. It presents great ideas about the importance and the pressure that is placed on having an education, the many failures in the system, and ways to change and improve those failures so the education system may work more efficiently. This video, in my opinion, was extremely eye-opening. The fact that we are grouped merely by age, that we are trained to sit in straight rows in uncomfortable desks, and that we are all conditioned to herd from one area to the next like farm animals at the sound of a bell, are all norms that I was well aware of but never really paid attention to. I simply viewed it as normal – as most people do. But is this really the most effective system? According to the video, not even close. And after watching I was completely captivated and strongly shared this belief as well. These are major flaws in today’s education that need to be addressed and changed. The outcome could give people a real chance to reach their full potential, which given the system today they easily may not be able to do.

In addition to these two videos, reading the Age of Enlightenment, an article part of Wikipedia, helped to summarize this idea of “enlightenment” as a whole. It is explained as a “cultural movement … to reform society using reason (rather than tradition, faith and revelation) and advance knowledge through science.” The ideals of the 18^th Century Enlightenment influenced major documents including the American Declaration of Independence and the United States Bill of Rights in which we still base our country around today. However, the point of the original enlightenment was to reinvent according to the times in order to improve everyday life and maintain progress. Three centuries later, a lot has changed again – and that is a major understatement – therefore it is time to improve our systems once more so that we may continue this progression.

#2 Introduction: They Say

Upon finishing "Coercion: Why We Listen To What 'They' Say", I was left extremely impressed with the author's thoughts, opinions, and especially his writing techniques. He not only went into great depth as to what he was expressing, he personalized his evidence, explained every opinion thoroughly, and then expressed the manipulative  manner of his writing, only to further prove his point. In his book introduction, Douglas Rushkoff leads his readers through a brief evolution of media and its effects on the public. Due to the growing advancement of technology, most people have been blind-sided into being compliant to advertisers, to naively listen and base decisions on what “they” say. Even when we think we are outsmarting their lure, it turns out that in most cases we are still exactly where they want us to be – buying out of the palm of their hand.

Though I was well aware of the whatever-it-takes-to-profit motives by advertisers, bosses, and other “theys” of authority, until reading this introduction I had no idea the complexity of how businesses went about taking the most money from consumers possible. Something that I thought before was just a choice of my free will and inability to say no when shopping. I believed I was aware of all the coercive techniques used to manipulate potential buyers like myself. However, in his book Rushkoff states “Media-savvy young people have learned to reject advertising that tries too hard to make its product look "cool." In response, companies now produce decidedly "uncool" advertisements, which appeal to the cynical viewer who thinks he can remain unswayed.” … “Our attempts to stay one step ahead of coercers merely provokes them to develop even more advanced, less visible, and, arguably, more pernicious methods of persuasion.” Reading these words in black and white, I instantly realized that I fell right into this category. I was immediately appalled and, at the same time, embarrassed that I was still able to be fooled so easily.

After reading it over several times, there was nothing in this book introduction that I strongly disliked or disagreed with.  And the way it was presented only made it better. His disassociation technique in order to prove how easy it is to get sucked in and immediately give someone ethos, even if we have no idea if “they” are deserving, for me was the most impactful. I thought this piece overall was very capturing, had an intriguing topic, and seemed to be written by a brilliant writer.

#1 An Introduction to Criticism

            After reading the “Theory for Beginners”, I can conclude the author’s main point to be that criticism is the ability to change how the world works by changing how people think, perceive, believe, and act. Stories and words provide us with our “norms”, but criticism helps us to evolve new norms and outgrow old ones. And in order to critique and eventually change these norms, people must broaden their perspective of everyday life, past one’s own culture, knowledge, and comfort zone.

            For the most part, I agree with the author’s opinions on criticism and looking beyond one’s own lifestyle to further expand their thoughts, views, and beliefs to a perspective that is not naïve to how the world actually works and has a better understanding of others from all over the world. This perspective including Capitalism, the reality of our so-called “freedom”, and how non-individualistic our culture is due to what is “acceptable” and what is not. As US citizens, we are raised and bred to take on roles as workers in order to inherit power and wealth. These two ideas, a human fabrication of success, are what our society strives toward our entire lives. I share the opinion that this system is not right in any way, and if we opened our minds to other views of the world and distanced ourselves from our idea that “the majority works; a minority benefits” then we could find a much more equal, fair, and peaceful form of success.

            In counterpart, I do think that without any sort rules, laws, structure, etc., it would be just as damaging to the operation of the world if not worse. Without any of this, civility would crumble and chaos would break out. If we were all truly able to do whatever we pleased to its entirety, humans would regress rather than evolve. However, Michael Ryan and his ideas are ones that, within reason, if taken into consideration by more people, especially those in power, would be extremely beneficial to improving our thoughts, behaviors, beliefs, morals, and the workings of the world as a whole.