Anonymity and arguing

This situation of people arguing anonymously has been around a long time and has always frustrated me, but especially more as of late.  What i’m referring to is how people completely change when there is some level of anonymity between them and the opposing party.  You see it all the time on the internet, in texts, and phone calls.

This is something I’ve encountered a lot in my life. I recently quit my job as a Tech Support rep for a great online electronics retailer.  At this job I was required to help people use our products through email, chat, and phone calls.  In all three forms of communication there is some level of anonymity.  I don’t actually know those people, just their names and what they’d purchased.  Unfortunately, they recognized this.  At any moment where, for whatever reason, things weren’t going exactly how they wanted they would erupt into some tantrum, like a small child being told to go to bed by their mother.  Now some of those people i’m sure are just as rude in person as they were then, but some of them definitely used this chance to be rude to make a point.  It’s as if hiding behind some screen gives us the right to lower our conduct.

Before working at that company I worked for a computer store as a computer technician and salesman.  Most people were very courteous in person,  even if they were upset about something.  They knew that their actions would  reflect back on them as a person so they carried themselves with dignity.

There’s no consequence for being crude on the internet.  I think if it were required that  everything you said and posted on the internet had to have your name and picture on it so that everyone knew who it was that was saying such terrible things, the amount of filth on the internet would drop dramatically.

My point is this, being nice in person doesn’t mean anything if you’re a complete jerk online.  Even if no one you know personally ever finds out what low actions you take online, you’re still a jerk at heart.  Maybe you just do a great job of hiding  behind that nice person façade you’ve created.

Step it up people. Treat others with respect, even if you can get off the hook without anyone knowing that you’re  the one doing those terrible things.

Power of Imagery

In my English class we are discussing the different tools of rhetoric and how they can be used.  One of those tools is imagery.  I recently found my head being filled with what I thought was beautiful imagery as I listened to the song This Aint a Surfin Movie by Minus The Bear.   You can listen to it with the link above from YouTube.  The song and lyrics are of course property of the band and I take no credit for them. Here are the lyrics that were filling my brain.

“When I turned the page
The corner bent into a perfect dog-ear
as if the words knew I’d need them again,
but at that time I couldn’t see it.
I would read that page everyday for the next year.

She sang a short tune.
And I came from her soft touch and slept.

We sat on a shoreline watching wind scalp the white off the waves.
Sitting on a shoreline, and if I could do it, I’d dog-ear this page.
We spoke about growing old and filling the future’s empty stage.

I hope the weather holds,
but you don’t need the sun to make you shine.
These island towns don’t care for city folk,
but I think we can starve the city from our minds.

I know we won’t want for much,
It’s just me and you and a bed and a shoreline”

The first part that really painted a beautiful image for me were the two references to the page being dog-eared.  Especially when  he’s making reference to sitting on the shoreline and wanting to dog-ear  that page, suggesting that he wants to be able to remember and come back to that moment over and over again.

With that image and the clearly painted images of the wind and waves, the empty stage, and everything else, these lyrics really persuade you to see things from his point of view and, more than anything, to feel the emotions that he is feeling at that moment.

When I listened to this song I found the imagery to be very effective and it really painted a picture of what was going on for me.

My top 5 list of things BYU students do that I find inconsiderate

5

And here they are, listed in order from least annoying to most:

5 – Riding their bikes during class breaks – All over campus there are signs stating that you shouldn’t ride your bike during class breaks. Not only is it inconsiderate because of that rule, but there’s a reason for that rule. I have, on several occasions, had to jump out of the way of some idiot biker who thinks it’s okay to go cruising through a large crowd of people that don’t know the biker is coming their way. Not cool guys, not cool.

4 – Making out on campus – This one would probably be higher on the list, but i don’t witness it frequently enough for it to be higher. There have been, however, several occasions where I’m walking through a building or down the sidewalk to my next class, when I happen to pass a happy couple, probably engaged or newly-wed, who isn’t just giving each other a quick loving kiss, but they are making out like it’s the last time they’ll ever see each other. Seriously, we have a saying for that; “Get a room!”

3 – B.O. – Please, for the sake of us all, shower. There are only 2 things worse than ending up next to the kid who hasn’t showered in days (those two things will be named shortly). Sitting through a 50 minute lecture in some boring class can be hard, but it is always a great deal worse when you have to hold your breath for those 50 minutes. I’ve tried to hold my breath to make it through class without gagging, but I’ve never succeeded….

2 – Talking through class – Want to make a quick comment or joke to the person sitting next to you, fine, no problem. Want to spend the entire lecture debating Star Trek with the person sitting next to you, not fine. Just today I was in class trying to listen, but I ended up hearing a lot more about Star Trek from the kids behind me than I did of the lecture. If I didn’t want to listen to the professor teach me, I would have stayed home. I can’t believe you don’t shut up.

1 – Eating in class – I consider this by far the most inconsiderate thing that my fellow BYU students do. Hasn’t anyone heard that it’s rude to eat in front of people? Again, just today (today was a bad day) I was sitting in class — In a room that had lots of signs saying “No Food or Drink in this Room” — when the kid next to me pulled out some food. It wasn’t a small snack or piece of candy; it was a freaking burrito. Who brings a burrito to class?!  Upon finishing the burrito, he pulled out an apple.  Have you ever noticed how loud apples are when you bite them?  Class time is not lunch time.  If I were a violent person, I would have punched him in the face by the time he pulled out that apple.

Hateful Rhetoric will result in drastic action, nah not really

Hulu – President Obama Address – SNL

In this clip President Obama is being portrayed giving an address to the nation about what he’s accomplished in his administration.  The clip uses a lot of exaggeration to make a point that President Obama has made a lot of promises to the nation, but hasn’t actually accomplished those things that he’s promised to do.

In reference to the promises he’s made and people’s worries that what he’s promised to do will lead to socialism, the person portraying Obama says, ”When you look at my record it’s very clear what I’ve done so far and that is…. nothing, nada, almost one year and nothing to show for it.”

Statements like that are continued through the whole clip, using exaggeration to paint this picture that the president just sits around and doesn’t do anything at all useful. Now, this isn’t completely true, but the exaggeration is very persuasive at making you recognize that President Obama, while doing some things, hasn’t accomplished much of what he’s promised to the country: especially those who elected him.

Say Hello

Passing on my way
My eyes happen to meet yours
And in the glisten of your eye
I notice something there

And mid-step time stops still
Like a movie playing in your eyes
I see it all so clear
A first nervous kiss
Joyful tears falling on your white gown
Children born and playing
The two of us growing old
Always together, always smiling

I blink and time resumes
We continue on our separate paths
And a beautiful future is lost forever
Since I didn’t stop to say hello

Personified

In my English class this  semester I’m required to find examples in media of people using rhetoric.  The above picture shows the Serta sheep used in many different Serta commercials.  This is a great example of personification as the sheep talk and show very human emotions.

The premise of the commercials is that the sheep are no longer needed because the Serta matresses are so good that people can fall asleep without counting sheep.  Since the sheep are no longer needed they are always shown being very sad or showing other human emotions.

This can be fairly persuasive in these commercials.  People seeing these emotions portrayed will feel a connection to those sheep.  Regardless of type of emotion felt, this emotion will make the commercials memorable.

Having a commercial be memorable can be one of the most important and effective parts of an ad.  If people remember that commercial, it will come to mind when people are actually out shopping for a mattress and it will help them to actually look into purchasing one; which is obviously the purpose of a commercial.

So much unappreciated music

I feel that a lot of music goes entirely unappreciated. People have asked me what kinds of music i mean when i say that, so i decided to make a list. These songs vary a lot in styles so if you’re someone who really only listens to a small genre of music you may not like all of it. I love music and have pretty broad tastes in it. Some people tell me that what i listen to is weird, but i think it’s just that they aren’t familiar with the style. These are some songs by bands that you may not have heard of. Some of them are more popular and well known than others, but i think for the most part they still go unknown and unappreciated.

I’ll start out by saying Minus The Bear is by far my favorite band. Anything by them is worth listening to, but here are a few great songs by them:

Absinthe Party at the Fly Honey Warehouse
Pachuca Sunrise
Michio’s Death Drive
Knights
Throwin’ Shapes

And here’s some others:
band - song
…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead – Will You Smile Again For Me
Animal Collective – Summertime Clothes
Band of Horses – The Great Salt Lake
Battles – Atlas
The Big Sleep – You Can’t Touch the Untouchable
Black Keys – Strange Desire
Bloc Party – This Modern Love
Blonde Redhead – Misery Is A Butterfly
The Blood Brothers – Love Rhymes with Hideous Car Wreck
The Cancer Conspiracy – V
Chris Walla – Everyone Needs a Home
Cursive – Art is Hard
The Dear Hunter – The Bitter Suite 3: Embrace
Death From Above 1979 – Black History Month
Eagles of Death Metal – I Got A Feeling (Just Nineteen)
Explosions in the Sky – Day Five
Facing New York – All A This
The Faint – Desperate Guys
Fischerspooner – We Need A War
The Flaming Lips – Do You Realize??
The Good Life – Notes In His Pockets
The Honorary Title – Untouched and Intact
Interpol – Rest My Chemistry
Jaguar Love – Jaguar Pirates
The Kooks – Ooh La
Mew – Special
MeWithoutYou – Nice And Blue (Part 2)
Nightmare of You – My Name is Trouble
Of Montreal – Beware Our Nubile Miscreants
The Outline – Why We’re Better Now
Portugal. The Man – AKA M80 The Wolf
Queens of the Stone Age – Into the Hollow
The Raconteurs – Intimate Secretary
The Rapture – Get Myself Into It
Rogue Wave – Chicago X 12
Say Anything – Alive With The Glory Of Love
The Shys – Having It Large
Sigur Ros – Ny Batteri
Tilly and the Wall – You and I Misbehaving
Tokyo Police Club – Tessellate
Vampire Weekend – A-Punk
The Vines – Winning Days
Zolof The Rock & Roll Destroyer – Super OK
The Zutons – Zuton Fever
+/- – Steal The Blueprints
65 Days of Static – I Swallowed Hard, Like I Understood

Rhetoric in media

In an episode of the simpsons Lisa discovers that the bees in springfield are dying.  Bees have a very important role in the world in pollinating flowers and blossoms so fruit and such can grow.

Homer is convinced that there’s no reason for him to worry or care about that until Lisa brings up that if there are no more bees there won’t be any more honey.  At that point homer starts to daydream about what the world would be like without honey.  In his day-dream he is running down a street where all the buildings are falling apart, things are on fire, and no other soul is seen.

This is ironic because of all the possible results of environmental change, a lack of honey is the least of our worries, but it is the only thing that gets Homer worried and he proceeds to imagine that it will be the sole cause of the destruction of society.

I was watching The Simpsons the other day and noticed a strange bit of irony in it. In an episode of the simpsons Lisa discovers that the bees in springfield are dying.  Bees have a very important role in the world in pollinating flowers and blossoms so fruit and such can grow.

Homer is convinced that there’s no reason for him to worry or care about that until Lisa brings up that if there are no more bees there won’t be any more honey.  At that point homer starts to daydream about what the world would be like without honey.  In his day-dream he is running down a street where all the buildings are falling apart, things are on fire, and no other soul is seen.

This is ironic because of all the possible results of environmental change, a lack of honey is probably the least of our worries, but it is the only thing that gets Homer worried and causes him to imagine that it will be the sole cause of the destruction of society.

For me this was pretty persuasive because it got me thinking about what things do actually need to be worried about.  This may have mostly been used to just create humor, but it does cause you to at least have in mind the importance of taking care of the environment and being aware of what issues there actually are.

AF Canyon climbing

Utah has lots of famous places for climbing.  I spent the day today in American Fork Canyon.  American Fork Canyon is one of the most famous places to climb in Utah.  It is known throughout the world for its challenging and exciting climbing.

One of the best parts of American Fork Canyon is that it is in national forest land and is very well taken care of.  There is an entrance fee to the canyon and all of that money goes into taking care of the canyon.  There are great picnic and camping areas all around.

Today we were climbing in the gray cliffs area on a crag called Hard Rock.  It’s a pretty neat area on the north side of the canyon.  As you start the climbs you’re kind of in the trees, but by the time you’re at the top of the climbs, 90+ feet up, you’re above the trees and have an amazing view down the canyon towards the valley.

The climb we did wasn’t a particularly difficult one, except for one part that had me stumped for a while.  I was getting ready to clip the 4th bolt and had my feet on some negative edges so i really had to use my arms to hold me in place.  Unfortunately, as I was reaching to clip with my left arm, my right hand lost its hold and i took a fall.  With the amount of slack I had gathered from the 3rd bolt I fell all the way down past the 2nd bolt and got whipped against the cliff.    My right ankle may be somewhat sprained from the impact against the wall.  Oh well. I still made it up the rest of the climb anyway.

All in all, AF Canyon makes for an absolutely beautiful place to climb.

Animal testing

Okay, I was in a discussion with some friends a few days ago about animal testing and if it’s ethical or not.    Mostly we were discussing the two different sides to the argument that seem to come up and talking about the different people who argue the points.

The first thing we realized is that the people who are in opposition to it are often extremists and people who ruin their own credibility with how constantly they are against the common things of our society.

The people who are for it are often the people who stand to gain from it, but they are also usually far more educated and in powerful positions that give them such better credibility.

The points being argued are that animals have rights and that they feel pain also.  It is a very logical argument against it and I think that helps the people in opposition to it.

On the emotional basis, the people in opposition also have a much more appealing argument.  People have emotional attachments to animals and by appealing to that attachment they can be very persuasive to getting people to join their cause.

So the side in opposition definitely has the emotional and logical backing in their argument.   The side in favor of animal testing doesn’t have as strong of a position in those areas, but they have their own status and credibility to base their argument on.