Class Blog - English 3, Section 19

Announcements, Reblogs and Food for Thought.

Bo Burnham

I saw a Bo Burnham video for the first time over the summer, but didn’t think too much of it. I caught a couple of the lines and giggled, but didn’t think it was spectacular. Most of it I just didn’t understand. But since then, I’ve ended up watching his videos on multiple occasions and I have come to realize that this guy is pretty darned funny. He has normal songs about fairy tales or girlfriends. Or he has rap-like songs, where if you actually listen to his lyrics, almost every line has a clever pun instead of an overt joke. However regardless of the song, Bo is almost always on the edge of inappropriate and often makes fun of handicaps and homosexuals. This made me wonder how far it is acceptable for people to go. How mean can Bo be to people in our society before it isn’t funny. Obviously this dilemma is up for debate. Although I think that his material is edgy (which makes it funny to me) many people think it is inappropriate and crude. I was on Bo’s Wikipedia page the other day, and apparently one of his concerts on a college campus was protested by the Gay-Straight Alliance, Black Students Association, International Club, and Cultural Diversity Organization! I thought that this was a little excessive since he is just a boy making some harmless jokes. I feel that comedy is one of the uniting factors of all different people and while insult comedy can be perceived as mean and demeaning, it can also be seen as a bright outlook on problems. No one is listening to the comedy songs to get tips on how to treat other people, so why do these songs cause a problem. So, to me, comedy starts to get inappropriate when it can convince people of its jokes instead of simply making fun of the stereotypes of different races or cultures.

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Upon surfing YouTube, I came across a user by the name of Hot for words. Her channel portrays her as a teacher and those who are subscribed to her channel can ask her to look up a word and she will look up the meaning and the origin of the word. In this specific video, she is looking up the word “booby.” She uses humor to question why everyone wants to know the origin of booby. On top of that, she has the camera aimed straight at her breasts. It reminded me of when in class we talked about different types of humor and she tries to play off that she has no idea why people would ask her such a thing.

She goes on to say that the word booby has been around since the 1500s and probably came from the Spanish word “bobo,” meaning a dumb person or a dunce and the booby bird, which tends to be “slow and stupid.” As she analyzes the word its pretty interesting because its cool to know where certain words come from, but it is also interesting how she gets many subscriptions to her channel.

It makes sense why she would put her boobs out like that because the slang definition of booby is a women’s breast. I think although she plays like she is dumb with big boobs, she uses it to her advantage. She is quite clever to use sex to sell her “lessons” and upon watching more of her made videos, I found some of the words interesting.

My favorite part is towards the end when she reveals that it makes sense to call TV “boob- tube” because it makes you stupid. Anyways at first I was like “oh my gosh she’s so using her looks to get subscriptions,” but founding out where certain words are derived from gives her a lot of credit, given that she didn’t get the definition from a website or something.

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The Snuggie

This is a parody of the Snuggie commercial from CollegeHumor. If you don’t know what the Snuggie is, it’s basically a backwards robe intended to keep you warm. The purpose of the product is to keep you warm while still allowing you to move around. The commercial makes it look like that using a blanket will prohibit you from using your arms because your arms will get cold when trying to reach for something. When I first saw the commercial I couldn’t believe it. I thought it was a joke, much like how the people of CollegeHumor thought of it. It’s basically a robe, which makes you look like you’re part of a cult. I just couldn’t grasp the concept. It’s a product that is just completely unnecessary, in my opinion. If you’re that cold you could easily put on a sweater instead. The Snuggie just seems like a product that will make the American population even lazier. When I see commercials or infomercials like these, I tend to wonder who in the world could have come up with such an idea. The whole thing does make me think that maybe we as consumers are becoming too materialistic. When someone comes up with a ridiculous concept and it actually gets the go ahead to be marketed, what does that say about us? Obviously someone thought that it would do well. I think they might have thought that because many of us want to buy things just for the sake of buying them. It’s kind of like the ipod. How many times has Apple brought out a new generation of ipods? I recently went into an Apple store and looked at the new shuffle which is basically the size of my finger! I always thought the original ipod was perfectly fine, but everyone continues to go out and buy the newest one. I don’t know whether the Snuggie is doing well in sales, but it makes me evaluate how we as consumer tend to buy into everything.

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VH1 getting sued by an old lady?

Ann McCourt, an eighty-one year old resident of Los Angeles, is suing the television network known as VH1. Apparently her footage appeared in one of the network’s shows called “Celebrity Eye Candy” in 2007. She had been walking her dog when she came by some cameramen on the street who were waiting for Paris Hilton. She had approached the cameramen to see what they were filming. After they had told her who they were waiting for, they asked her what she thought about Paris Hilton which led McCourt to voice her negative opinions about the socialite, saying things like “I think she’s a disgusting human being…” Her tirade was caught on film and was aired on the “Celebrity Eye Candy” show on VH1. However, she had been unaware that she was being filmed and she claims that she was edited to look bad. I think that if I was in her position, her action to sue would make sense. While it can be argued that she should have realized that she would end up on television because she had been talking to cameramen, wouldn’t she have had to sign some type of waiver or something to give them permission to use her in the show? I don’t know much about these legal issues, but I remember that whenever there was an event, which students usually took part in, that was being filmed at my high school we would have to sign a document giving the camera crew permission to use our footage. I would assume the same would go for a television show. While I am not a fan of Paris Hilton, I do think that maybe Anne McCourt shouldn’t have said those things. Those types of comments are what I would say amongst my friends. Not to camera crews. However VH1 shouldn’t have used that footage either. I thought they were waiting for Paris Hilton? I guess they thought Anne McCourt would boost their ratings.

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rusdeep:

As some of you may know, South Park started off its new season with an episode on Wednesday. And if you know South Park, they always take popular topics in American contemporary society- this episode happened to be about the Jonas Brothers. Two words— F@#$ing Hilarious!
I first came in with the idea they would just be ripping on the Jonas brothers. However the story had a really really good twist. Instead of merely making fun of how gay the Jonas brothers look, they actually took a stance on how the Jonas Brothers are essentially selling “sex”. I remember someone wrote an article how it seemed that the Jonas Brothers are just leading girls on, as girls are going crazy for them- in the process, they hot all “hot n’ bothered” as Mickey calls it— you’ll see what I mean if you watch it.
But the main point which is hilarious is that South Park is essentially saying Disney is basically selling sex, but because the Jonas Brothers are chaste and wear purity rings, it’s OK. By doing so, South Park is pointing out hyprocrisy in pop culture- Disney wants to have this safe, innocent, and “moral” image, while still selling sex through the Jonas Brothers—- why? Because sex sells.
In addition, this episode also features the two extrema which where discussed in class, well in fact there are quite a few. One of them which I found interesting was look on sexual relationships- while south park lampooned on the Jonas Brothers for being abstinent and abstaining for sex (making fun of their innocence) they also showed a funny negative view on why having sexual freedom is bad. Overall, this episode of South Park is a must see. Yes it is a bit vulgar and sexual, but the twist at the end is hilarious and it definitely hits on some points we talked about in class— as well as some we discussed on these blogs (when is too young-the blog about alfie and young relationships)…..and you learn more about the jonas brothers… haha check it out :D

As some of you may know, South Park started off its new season with an episode on Wednesday. And if you know South Park, they always take popular topics in American contemporary society- this episode happened to be about the Jonas Brothers. Two words— F@#$ing Hilarious!

I first came in with the idea they would just be ripping on the Jonas brothers. However the story had a really really good twist. Instead of merely making fun of how gay the Jonas brothers look, they actually took a stance on how the Jonas Brothers are essentially selling “sex”. I remember someone wrote an article how it seemed that the Jonas Brothers are just leading girls on, as girls are going crazy for them- in the process, they hot all “hot n’ bothered” as Mickey calls it— you’ll see what I mean if you watch it.

But the main point which is hilarious is that South Park is essentially saying Disney is basically selling sex, but because the Jonas Brothers are chaste and wear purity rings, it’s OK. By doing so, South Park is pointing out hyprocrisy in pop culture- Disney wants to have this safe, innocent, and “moral” image, while still selling sex through the Jonas Brothers—- why? Because sex sells.

In addition, this episode also features the two extrema which where discussed in class, well in fact there are quite a few. One of them which I found interesting was look on sexual relationships- while south park lampooned on the Jonas Brothers for being abstinent and abstaining for sex (making fun of their innocence) they also showed a funny negative view on why having sexual freedom is bad. Overall, this episode of South Park is a must see. Yes it is a bit vulgar and sexual, but the twist at the end is hilarious and it definitely hits on some points we talked about in class— as well as some we discussed on these blogs (when is too young-the blog about alfie and young relationships)…..and you learn more about the jonas brothers… haha check it out :D

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tcyvonnebythedozen:

Okay, so I thought I would post this video because I was wondering what others would think about it. I guess you could say that this is one of my guiltiest pleasures because I know that I should not like it, but I can’t help it. And maybe that is one of the reasons why I cannot stop myself from liking it. It’s just that the song is just so catchy, I can’t get it out of my head once I’ve heard it even for a bit, and I just find the whole premise for the video so ridiculously hilarious. So, I initially saw this video on a show called the Whitest Kids U’ Know, which is kind of a crude, gross-out comedy series, some time ago and it just sort of stuck in my head, because it’s funny and so different from anything that I had previously viewed. So the video and the song and lyrics that go with it all have to do with a pretty difficult subject but are dealt with in a very comical way, almost making fun of a completely humorless subject. The video seems to hint at kids to use a false accusation of child molestation as a tool against their guardians. Throughout the video the singer seems to tell kids that if they are tired of their parents, lying about that is a way to acquire better [replacement] parents. Now, the first time that I saw this video I was at once both totally amused and disgusted and mad at myself for actually liking such a thing. I still don’t know if it’s “immoral” or totally wrong to like such a song or video, I mean, I think it’s very clear that the message of the song does not intend to be serious. I just think (or would like to think) that it is such a way of lightening a difficult subject. Nonetheless, I do believe that very young kids watching this might get a very wrong idea about something that should be considered anything but funny and perpetuates society’s light view on issues that should be dealt with more aggresively.

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Lowering the Drinking Age

I went to my cousin’s house this weekend and we were having fun until we randomly began debating about lowering the drinking age. He believed that the drinking age should stay at 21(he is 22) and I obviously was the one that thought that it should be lowered. I believe that the drinking age should be lowered to 18 because people are legally adults at this age. We are able to do to things on our own like go to college, be able to vote, be allowed to buy cigarettes legally, joining the military to fight for our country and do other important things as well like get drivers licenses, so why can’t eighteen year olds be allowed to legally buy alcohol. An individual is able to make a conscious decision to drink or not drink and that should be up to the individual. Having the drinking age at 21 just pushes those 18 year old individuals that cannot legally buy alcohol to binge drink and buy it illegally. Binge drinking occurs when many individuals take advantage of the alcohol provided to them because that is the only time they are able to get their hands on alcohol. Not only would it stop binge drinking but would also stop illegal alcohol drinking among young adults. My cousin said that lowering the drinking age would just cause many more deaths to occur on the road because of drunk drivers. People already drive when they are drunk but it is because they are not really educated in the problems they could cause because of their drinking. To help this idea, young individuals should be should be warned about the effects of drinking and driving. Every two years, my high school put on an educational experience involving students from our high school. One day they would do a live simulation the dangers of drinking and driving. They would have actual students be drivers and victims in the simulation. Between the two days, those students that were supposedly killed because of drunk drivers were not allowed to talk to friends and were kept away from family. The next day, students and parents would share their stories on how it felt to be apart from their family and how their families felt thinking that their children were dead. Having the drinking age at 21 only make alcohol something that 18 year old want to have and because they want to have it they will do anything to get it . If 18, 19 and 20 year olds would be treated as the rest of the adults then many of the behaviors that occur because of the age difference like binge drinking would decrease.

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Too Skinny on T.V.

The issue of actors and actresses on television being too skinny is barely a new issue. However, you would think that producers would start to change things after seeing the effect it has on its audience, but this is not the case at all. Being thin is extremely overblown out of proportion.

A few days ago, I was in Hill Top browsing through magazines to avoid studying, and I came across a spread showing celebrities and how much better they look now that they’ve lost weight. One particular caption that caught my eye was about Eva Longoria. It said how much better she looks now that she weighs 110 pounds instead of the 120 that she weighed a month ago or something like that.

In addition, the popular show 90210 has all of its actresses weighing no more than 110 pounds, says a report mentioned in the article. This show is aimed at very young audiences. Presenting the idea of the necessity to be thin to young audiences is brainwashing girls at a very young age.

The article mentions that young girls in grades 1-3 want to be thinner. I have two takes on this problem. I think that many young children boys AND girls should be thinner. The reason for this is because more and more Americans are becoming obese at a young age. They develop unhealthy eating and living habits and continue to live unhealthily throughout their lives. However, even though I think they should be thinner, I do not think that they should feel they need to be thinner. Life as a kid should be about mud pies, playing tag, and making sure to steer clear of cooties. Kids are starting to be infected with a horrible disease that they used to be immune to years ago. This disease makes them adjust what they think is acceptable to what society views as acceptable. Because of this, modern children’s minds are rotting away as they become more self conscious at a younger age.

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Terrorist attacks… will it ever end?

samanthahofmann:

So this show I watched just watched this past weekend called “The Unit,” on cbs, which is about a unit in the military that does not technically exist unless to those who are in the government or in the unit itself. The show was about a terrorist attack from an extremist prison group, known as the arian warlords, on the water system in the Sierra Ridge, California area. These cities in this area are being taken over by an extremely toxic gas. A person in these conditions cannot withstand being outside for any longer then 30 second without being effected, causing them to sophisticate and die. People are lining the streets dead from the gas pouring through the sprinkler systems.
I found this show to be interesting because even though the attack on 9/11 was almost eight years ago the majority of media has in some way or another alluded to terrorist attacks. Whether it is re-enacting the attack of 9/11, or suicide bombings, or even other attacks that people are not aware of, like one in the case above. Keeping these situations in the media is just causing people to become more paranoid about our nation being under attack yet again. I’m not saying it is bad to be aware of the things around you, because I do think it is important to be cautious of what is happening in our world. But to be continuously reminded about it over and over again, is that really necessary? We have thousands of our military men and women still over in the mideast fighting and taking care of the situation that was thrust upon us eight years ago. It is not healthy to live in a state of fear all of the time. People need to walk tall and show these countries that we are not afraid of them and that this situation will come under control. It is just taking time, lots of time. We must be patient and put faith in those who have the power; not live in this state of fear.

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ag26:
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So lately I’ve been hearing about how parents have wanted Chris Brown out of Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice awards. I understand that Chris Brown’s popularity has been affected by the whole beating up Rihanna situation- but can’t people give him a break. Sure Chris Brown is not the best role model for kids but hey- no one is. Every human on this planet seems to make mistakes one way or another. That is why I was really shocked when I heard parents were petitioning to get Chris Brown out of the awards ceremony. I just can’t understand how people can condemn him so easily. Parents should instead tell their kids that although what Chris Brown did was wrong, no one should judge him. I think it is essential to teach kids the importance of not passing judgment on other people. Even better would be to teach kids to stick to their own business; that what happened between Chris and Rihanna is their business and since we were not there we shouldn’t point our fingers at anyone.
Seriously, I just can’t believe how people like to judge others. In the news I’ve also heard how they call Rihanna “stupid” because she supposedly took Chris Brown back. Although Rihanna’s move makes it seem that physical abuse is acceptable, we should not question her choice, because at the end we were not there when it happened.
I am not defending Rihanna or Chris Brown, but I just think we should let things the way they are. I am pretty sure that in the future this issue would be forgotten and both singers would once again be at the top. They both are going trough a tough situation and we as fans/people should just let them settle their own problems and not meddle in their business. As for the Kids’ Choice awards, I am just happy that Chris Brown prevented a big controversy from happening by withdrawing his nominations. As for the parents, I just hope that they understand the importance of not imposing judgments on someone else without looking at their own faults.

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So lately I’ve been hearing about how parents have wanted Chris Brown out of Nickelodeon’s Kids’ Choice awards. I understand that Chris Brown’s popularity has been affected by the whole beating up Rihanna situation- but can’t people give him a break. Sure Chris Brown is not the best role model for kids but hey- no one is. Every human on this planet seems to make mistakes one way or another. That is why I was really shocked when I heard parents were petitioning to get Chris Brown out of the awards ceremony. I just can’t understand how people can condemn him so easily. Parents should instead tell their kids that although what Chris Brown did was wrong, no one should judge him. I think it is essential to teach kids the importance of not passing judgment on other people. Even better would be to teach kids to stick to their own business; that what happened between Chris and Rihanna is their business and since we were not there we shouldn’t point our fingers at anyone.

Seriously, I just can’t believe how people like to judge others. In the news I’ve also heard how they call Rihanna “stupid” because she supposedly took Chris Brown back. Although Rihanna’s move makes it seem that physical abuse is acceptable, we should not question her choice, because at the end we were not there when it happened.

I am not defending Rihanna or Chris Brown, but I just think we should let things the way they are. I am pretty sure that in the future this issue would be forgotten and both singers would once again be at the top. They both are going trough a tough situation and we as fans/people should just let them settle their own problems and not meddle in their business. As for the Kids’ Choice awards, I am just happy that Chris Brown prevented a big controversy from happening by withdrawing his nominations. As for the parents, I just hope that they understand the importance of not imposing judgments on someone else without looking at their own faults.

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