Article Response

"The Case Against Summer Vacation" offers some good information, but I do not agree with all of it. The three months of summer that our school system offers has its pros and cons. Many suffer from "summer learning loss" after not focusing on school for a quarter of the year. The academic slide varies between students but all fail to retain at least a month of what they learned. In my opinion however, these three months of summer is completely needed. Students need a break! The system is not as flawed as  the article is making it out to be. Students can seek extra academic help over the summer months if they feel it is needed. Waking up very early in  the morning and having five days in a row of school per week is not ideal for high school students, but it is working. Until a realistic alternative to our school system schedule is offered, I think nothing should change.

Album Review

Album title: Nothing Was the Same                                                                                                         

Artist: Drake

Release Date: 24 September 2013

Genre: Hip-Hop, Rap

                Nothing Was the Same was Drake’s third studio album. The album did more sales in the first week (658,179), than his previous and also extremely successful Take Care. Drake returns to his “old self” on this album and raps in almost every song unlike his unique choice to sing a majority of the time on his previous album. Fans were pleased to have his old sound back and so was I. Drake also blends in his R&B style on the album. The song order and flow of the album is well chosen and creative. In the opening six-minute “Tuscan Leather” intro, Drake is all verse and no hooks as his bragging lyrics start immediately ("This is nothing for the radio/ But they'll still play it though/ Cuz it's the new Drizzy Drake, that's just the way it go") but his rhymes have a lot more bite to them. Drake knows this is the best rap album of the year (and his career) and is not afraid to express it. NWTS is a perfect blend between the rap of his first album and the singing/R&B of his second album.

 “Hold On, We’re Going Home” featuring Majid Jordan, which serves as the second official single from NWTS, finds Drake doing his best to please is singing radio fans. “Started from the Bottom was also released several months before as a catchy radio rap song to create hype for the album. In “Worst Behavior” and “Wu-Tang Forever” Drake is in top solo form as his intense lyrics and tailored beat have Drake in his best form yet. Drakes has few features on the album and chooses wisely who goes on his tracks. Jay-Z is featured on “Pound Cake” as Drake matches one of the all-time greats of rap bar for bar while still throwing in his own style. He also provides another track with fan favorites 2 Chainz and Big Sean on the song “All Me” as all three toss in credible verses as Drake seals up the song with the hook.

Drake’s audience ranges anywhere from young teens to people in the mid 20’s, but many of his songs off of NWTS are timeless. As an unbiased opinion, anyone can appreciate the talent and passion Drake has for music, shown through his creative lyrics and storytelling.

Rating- 9/10

Overall balance- well balanced between singing and rapping

Criticism- Have some more featured artists

Holiday Spending

Holiday spending has grown to be a huge expenditure in the U.S. and the crazy thing is that numbers are still increasing each year. In recent years, we have spent as a whole 200+ billion dollars from all the major holidays combined. The amount of money spent on holidays, especially Christmas, is very disturbing to me for a few reasons. Many people, almost all of America, have lost the real meaning of Christmas and why it is celebrated. If you look at it from that perspective, the amount of money spent on presents should not even exist. Also, imagine if instead of spending money on things that we want and do not necessarily need, the money (125+ billion) was used to eliminate hunger in the U.S. or provide education for those who cannot afford it. Christmas in the U.S. has exploded into a hectic time of gift buying instead of spending time with family and celebrating what it is all about, the birth of Jesus. I am not complaining about all the presents I will receive on the 25th, but rather that this is all people care about and it is clearly shown through the enormous amount of money spent each year. Holiday spending provides us with happiness and satisfaction but ironically only for a season, the joy is only temporary. Each year, we will spend the same amount of money to again never be fully satisfied. The money could be used for a better purpose or simply not spent at all. The money saved would be put into the economy slowly instead of in a small period. Do not get me wrong, I love the holidays, its just the insane amount of money spent on them seems unnecessary to me.

Journal Presentations

•   In Australia, a man decided to run around on the freeway and head-butt oncoming cars. Now police and others aren’t positive if he was on some sort of drug, but he was taken in for a mentally distressed evaluation. The man who filmed this event happening, Gawker, say that this is the start to a zombie apocalypse. But in reality the man is either insane or drugged up beyond belief. Although the man’s name has yet to been released, we do know that he is fairly young at age 34. From watching the footage it clearly shows that he deliberately trying to injure himself. The man congested traffic for hours and was head-butting cars for 10 minutes straight without stopping.    

• Two twins who grew up separately have an unbelievable amount of similarities and coincidences when comparing their lives. Ohio resident James Edward Lewis, who married a woman named Linda, but divorced her and married a woman named Betty, with whom he had a son named James Alan. Lewis had been adopted as a baby, he tracked down and met for the very first time his twin brother, James Arthur Springer, who also married a woman named Linda, but divorced her and married a woman named Betty, with whom he had a son named James Allan. When the men met in 1979, they were both in their 30’s and had no specific knowledge of their twin brother. Twins are capable of having very similar traits even if they grow up separately. It turns out the twins had even more similarities: They both liked math and carpentry in school but hated spelling. They both had jobs in law enforcement and suffer from headaches at the same time of day. 
• In the Czech Republic, a man was just eating his pudding at a restaurant near closing time and when closing time came around, it was time to go. The manager made him leave with his pudding on the table and unfinished. The man wasn’t pleased so he then decided to take it a step further than just eating his pudding or taking it home with him. During cleanup, the man came back… this time, with a chainsaw.  He sliced a hole in the door and climbed inside where he then continued to grab his unfinished pudding to eat peacefully. After he was finished he went on to attack some restaurant workers and threatened them with his chain saw. He was eventually stopped when he was tackled and overpowered by the waiter who then brought him to the station. The man will serve some jail time.
  
  
  
  

High Interest Question

Should all students be required to use laptops to take notes and the whole education system go digital (more use of blogs, similar style to our journalism class).

Halloween Spending

Many Americans are unaware of just how much money we all spend as a whole each year on Halloween: 7 billion. Considering our countries financial state, Businesstime.com is wondering what the logic is behind spending extra money on costumes, candy, and decorations when many Americans are watching their spending so closely. Seven billion dollars for one night is a lot for a minor holiday, if you even consider Halloween a holiday. MSN reports that simply because of the major amount of money spent on Halloween it is turning into a major holiday. This is good for businesses and novelty shops because their revenue is seeing an increase as Halloween spending rises. The National Retail Federation says that the average person celebrating the holiday will spend about $75 on decor, treats, and costumes. In my opinion, that seems like a lot of money to spend on a rather pointless holiday. Maybe most Americans have a more emotional connection to Halloween than myself, but 7 billion dollars is a scary number!

Ken Ross Electronics Response

I disagree with the pediatricians group who recommend parents hold their kids to a two hour limit every day, except for homework, because setting a limit on something makes it even more appealing. If a limit is set, teenagers and kids will feel more inclined to use up their max time and have them thinking about it even more. Technology is a huge part of this young generation, something that pediatricians cannot relate to. Our generation was raised up around technology and is something that we all have a huge interest towards. If we were encouraged to use electronics a little less rather than have specific limitations I think it could go a long way.