A Truly Inspiring Film

Over my holiday break I went to go see Unbroken, a film based on WWII veteran Louis Zamperini's life. Director Angelina Jolie paid great attention "to the details of Louis's story, from his rebellious childhood and early days in Torrance, California, to Olympic glory, and of course his great suffering in World War 2." What Zamperini went through was heartbreaking, and though some parts were difficult to watch others were heart warming. Zamperini suffered a plane crash, 47 days at sea, and then was captured by the Japanese army.

One of the most heartbreaking moments was during Zamperini's time at the first Japanese prison camp he was sent to. The officer in charge, which the prisoners referred to as "the Bird", didn't like Zamperini. When the Bird found out that Zamperini was a former Olympic athlete he made him run against another Japanese officer. As Zamperini attempted to run he collapsed multiple times before finally giving up. Seeing this happen made me flashback to scene earlier in the movie. The scene where  Zamperini runs from the back of a group of Olympic runners breaking an Olympic record. As I thought about this scene and watched Zamperini on the ground in the current scene I saw how much this strong man had been broken down.

Zamperini lifting the board above his head

One of my favorite moments of the movie was during Zamperini's time at the coal mine where he was sent after the prison camp. The Bird was also the officer in charge here and he did not give up torturing Zamperini. The Bird made Louis hold a cement board over his head and if he dropped it he would be killed. As he holds the board over his head he becomes weaker and weaker. I started to get very nervous in my seat thinking he was going to drop the board. He then gained the strength I hoped he would; with a loud scream he took the board from its low position and extended his arms completely above his head.

I have one word to describe this film:

Inspiring.

A Possible Step In The Right Direction

After the results of the Michael Brown and Eric Garner grand jury decisions this past week President Obama has announced his plan to help equip police with body cameras. I believe this is a step in the right direction and that all law enforcement officers should be required to have cameras attached to them. This is a great way to keep police officers in check.

Police Body Camera

People question whether or not this will work considering the fact that there was video footage and still no indictment. My opinion is that there is a difference in a bystanders video and a cops video. If a bystander is taking a video one can say that the way they framed the video made things look as if the officer was at fault. If a camera is attached to the officers clothing then the video footage will be from the officers perspective; therefore, if this happens again the jury can see if there was an actual reason for the officer to take the steps that they did.
Another plus side to body cameras is that it might also provide a source for data analysis. It can help specialists understand how police actually do their work. It could also provide data for anti-racism activists and law and order types. Along with providing data it also will give the general public some reassurance. Police officers are public workers who work to protect the public. If we know that they are doing their job and following their training then we can feel like they are truly helping us.

The "Free Hug"

On November 25th riots continued across the country over the Ferguson grand jury decision, but in Portland, Oregon something happened that put a smile on people's faces. As Devonte Hart held a sign offering "Free Hugs" tears were streaming down his face due to his concerns about how brutal police officers were to young black kids like himself. Sgt. Bret Barnum, a police officer at the site, noticed the tears and asked the boy for a hug; along with a hug he gave the boy was seemed to be a heartfelt response to his concern: 'Yes. *sigh* I know. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.' The photograph taken of this moment has impacted so many people, including myself.

Sgt. Bret Barnum embracing Devonte Hart

I have watched many interviews of the police officer talking about what happened that day and his response was heart warming. Barnum talked about how this moment was something that cops do all the time but it just happened to be captured at this moment. When he saw Devonte crying he approached him as human wanting to make someone else feel better; he didn't just give him a hug he became his friend and asked him about his life. Devonte's mom was also touched by what happened; she posted a picture to Facebook that was shared throughout the web. 

This moment happening right after the Ferguson grand jury decision is a sign that change might be on the horizon. That people like Devonte will get to see the change they want to see in the world. It's a sign of peace an it is something that I believe many needed to see. The message relayed through this photograph is so powerful, so inspirational.

Link to CNN interview with Sgt. Bret Barnum

Thanksgiving In A...Tent?

De Armond camped outside of Best Buy

As people prepare for their Thanksgiving feasts one man is sleeping in a tent. Since November 11th,  Derek De Armond has been camping outside of Best Buy waiting to get the best Black Friday deals.De Armond and three of his teammates rotate as to who stays at the tent, because someone has to be there 24/7. I, as well as many other critics, believe that Black Friday takes away from classic Thanksgiving traditions. People spend the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving and Thanksgiving itself waiting in lines rather than with their families. However, Derek De Armond disagrees, he believes that waiting in these Black Friday lines has become a Thanksgiving tradition that’s every bit as important as — and more fun than — the turkey dinner. On Thanksgiving, De Armond, his teammates, and his sons will have their Thanksgiving feast inside the tent. In most cases I'm not much of a tent person but De Armond's tent is not an ordinary tent; his tent comes with three rooms, air-conditioning, a screened porch, a hammock, a flat screen TV, a tiki bar and a Christmas tree.

As many are problem wondering: what makes De Armond and his teammates start their camp-out 2 weeks in advance? De Armond has previously been a Black Friday shopper but he's never done anything like this. What made him change his technique? In the past 4 years he has he has arrived at 6 p.m., the day before, and last year he put up a pup tent but that still didn't get him the deals he wanted. Stores only offer their best deals to a limited amount of people, which means that the people in the front are the ones that get the best deals; so, now being at the front of the line De Armond has secured his chance at receiving these deals.

I still don't know if this hold up the classic Thanksgiving tradition in my eyes, but I can see how De Armond and his friends/family have made this into their own tradition; however, I don't think I am going to start camping-out in front of stores anytime soon. Do you think that you will ever camp-out in front of stores for Black Friday sales? 

Starbucks At Your Doorstep

How nice would it be to not have to wait in those long Starbucks lines in the morning? Well this may become possible soon. Starbucks is working towards having delivery in select markets in the second half of next year. I for one would be an advocate for Starbucks delivery and I believe that plenty of costumers would support this program as well.
However some good questions have arisen about why this may not work. Tony Orlando wonders how they will be able to make a profit off of delivering? This makes me wonder if they will have to charge a delivery fee or if they will have to make their products more expensive? Which leads to wether or not costumers will still want to have drinks delivered? In my opinion this is something that could make or break the delivery process. Even though I would love to have my coffee at my doorstep I wouldn't want to pay a $10 delivery fee for a $3 drink.

Starbuck's Coffee

Starbuck's Frappuccino

Another question that has arisen is wether or not they will be able to keep the coffee hot and the frappuccinos cold? I have some ideas on how they could solve this. Perhaps they could have a cooler in the car to put the frappuccinos in on the way to the delivery. I don't think hot drinks are as big of a problem as cold drinks because those will melt. For hot drinks I think that anything that keeps the heat in will keep the drinks hot. Even those spill stoppers that they started using can keep some of the heat in.
Others make points about how this can really work. David Beirnbaum makes a good point about how for most people Starbucks is an addiction and people will love that they can have their addiction at their doorstep. My own mother is proof of that. When I told her about the possibility that Starbucks could deliver to our house she could not have been happier. Even with some of these problems I believe Starbucks will make delivery possible, because it is a step forward that could really benefit the company.

Ebola Gets Worse and Obama Does Nothing

How does it make you feel that an Ebola-infected doctor who just returned from New Guinea was allowed to carry on with his normal activities? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention seems to be fine with this happening; in fact they "instruct health workers returning from West Africa to monitor their health for 21 days and that "during the time you are monitoring your health, you can continue your normal activities." This is why Ebola, which may not be considered a health crisis in the US just yet, will become a national health crisis.

Governors of New York and New Jersey  Implementing New Protocol

It has been about a month since the first case of Ebola in the US, and even though the Obama administration claimed to have it under control there have still been other cases of Ebola since then. Due to the poor policies being put into place, the governors of New Jersey and New York have had to put their own policies into place. They imposed a mandatory 21-day quarantine on health professionals returning to either state from West Africa.
I believe this policy should be imposed throughout the country. I don't think any Americans would be upset if the president took precautionary measures instead of allowing more people to contract the disease. It's time for Obama to implement a policy that will truly protect Americans.

'Native Son' Review

This past Thursday our American Studies class went to see a play of the Richard Wright novel 'Native Son.' I thought this interpretation of the book really captivated the audiences attention, at least it captivated mine. I especially liked how Bigger had his conscience constantly following him around; I thought that made Bigger's presence on stage stronger than if he were alone. Though I didn't read the book the play did a nice job of telling the story in a clear way. 

Bigger Thomas

    One parallel I noticed in this play was how Mary and Bessie both were alcoholics. When they were on stage a flask was typically being passed around. My interpretation of this was that Wright wanted to show how the whites and the blacks weren't that different. A white woman wasn't "classier" than a black woman, if they were both alcoholics. Not to mention that these two women were both murdered by Bigger. These two women have so much in common yet they are completely different. I can't help but wonder if Richard Wright wanted these women to be seen this way on purpose? 

    At the end of this play Bigger was supposed to be seen as a victim; I, however, didn't see him that way. Had Bigger only accidentally killed Mary I would have seen him as more of a victim because he didn't have control over that situation, but he intentionally murdered Bessie which is why I don't see him as the victim in the situation. There were times when I felt that he truly wasn't in control of his situation and it didn't help that he constantly had his conscience talking in the background. Nevertheless, killing Bessie was unnecessary in my opinion. Even so, I still enjoyed the play and I understand the message it was trying to convey to the audience about the circumstances that African Americans had to live under during that time period.