Counter Culture Prevails

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Gamers

It's interesting that some people really do think that gamers could have some skills that are useful to the rest of society.  I don't really think the way that the article described everyone solving huge world problems through video games is realistic, but I do think that there is something that gamers are learning that makes them superior in some respect.  They learn to strategize and think quickly about situations, which could be useful in some way.  Maybe not in a way that solves world problems, but it could solve problems on a smaller scale.
This whole thing actually reminds me of the South Park episode where Kenny gets a PSP and it comes with the heaven vs. hell game.  In the episode, the PSP was created so angels could see who got to the highest level on the game, and then they would call the kid up to command the armies of heaven against the armies of hell.  Kenny gets to level 60 and gets hit by a bus so he can come up and lead the army.  Also not a realistic situation, but that's what I was thinking of during the whole class discussion.
I also think that gamers aren't necessarily hurting anyone with their habits, so it doesn't really matter to me if they want to spend their time sitting inside rather than doing other things.  Would I do that with all my time? No.  Do I care that they want to, though? Nope.

Gender and sports

A while ago we talked about the girl whose gender was questioned because she outran the other girls in the race by a huge amount of time.  For some reason I was thinking about this today again and the reasons why some things about it are frustrating.
First of all, I think it's more demeaning to not test the girl for multiple things when she beats the other girls by such a huge gap.  I think they would test a man if he was winning races by a landslide, too, even if they were testing him for drugs instead of things that have to do with gender.  The thing is, men really can't have a genetic factor that will make them have an unfair advantage in the way that a woman could. If a woman has an abnormal amount of testosterone, it can give her an advantage that would make it almost impossible for a woman with less testosterone to compete with her in a race.  I'm not saying that it's fair to the girl with more male genetics to throw her out of the race or anything, but I do think it's important to acknowledge that it really is an unfair advantage in the same way that drugs would be an advantage for a man in a race. 
I would be more offended if people sugar coated everything and took special measures not to test me just because I am a woman.  I wouldn't want different treatment, I would want to be treated the same as any other athlete.
Second, the whole thing about singling people out with random testing could be solved if you just test every single athlete for both gender abnormalities and drugs.  You can't only test someone when they win, because then things like this happen.  Everyone should just be tested to begin with to eliminate the argument that there was some sort of bias when it comes to choosing who gets tested.

Disney and Young Girls

Disney has been around for a long time showing young girls what they should expect in the future.  Disney princesses have dim lives with their families before they're finally whisked away by a man to a brighter future.  Not only that, but they show the girls that to be happy, you need glass slippers and fancy dresses.  Girls watch these movies from the time the can walk, so they get a lot of exposure to these lessons for a long period of time.
It seems like all girls still love Disney movies even in their high school years.  This has always kind of bothered me, because a lot of girls also still call themselves princesses in their high school years.  It seems like these movies are teaching girls that the main goal in life is to get married to a man that will put you up in an expensive house and give you the wedding of your dreams.  Girls seem to just be awaiting the day that they can finally get married, and they spend all their years before that wishing away their time.
I understand the desire to feel special and look nice, but I don't really see guys ever getting excited at the thought of being a prince.  Why is it that girls aspire to royalty status and the guys are just expected to provide whatever it takes to get them there?

Food, instagram and eating healthier

A lot of people post pictures of their food all over Instagram, but is this necessarily a bad thing?  We all live in our social media worlds just about 24/7, so people decide to post a lot of things online that they never would have thought to post when social media was just something that they did every once in a while.  Now, people post meals just about every day.  There are even whole Instagram accounts that are devoted to showing only pictures of food.  However, this has changed my eating habits for the better. 
When I get on Instagram and see pictures of all of the fresh, healthy food that a lot of people post, it makes me want to eat healthy foods.  The pictures and filters make the food look amazing, and it makes me want those healthy foods instead of fast food or sweets.  There are accounts that post healthy foods every day, and following these accounts makes me want to stick to a healthy diet rather than stuff my face with greasy fast food.
People are also proud to actually make a real meal and show it to their friends.  People are now using social media to get encouragement from friends and strangers about their new, healthy lifestyles, which can help them stay on track and keep making those healthy meals.  Sometimes people need the support of others to do something that they would really like to do.  While it is weird to see someone take a picture of their food and obsess over showing it to the public, it could be an okay thing for them to do.  If it helps them maintain a more healthy lifestyle, then more power to them.

War and Popular Culture

War is really emphasized in our culture through toys, shows, games and all kinds of other things.  From the time boys are little, they're expected to be aggressive and learn to protect others.  When I was little, my dad always taught my two brothers that they were responsible for protecting me, even if that meant using violence.  I think now-a-days, that's more of an old-fashioned way of thinking.  It's not necessarily just men anymore that get involved in the war hype; there are women who join the army and enjoy video games that simulate war.  I like to play Call of Duty, but that's just because i think it's a fun game.  There is no connection to being a real-life soldier, like people said in class today. 
We are desensitized to war-like behavior, though.  I remember that when I first played Call of Duty, I didn't like shooting the people in the game.  Now I don't think anything of it.  People also enjoy movies that are based on real war stories, while some soldiers who have real memories of those wars can't bring themselves to talk about what they saw.  I think most people understand that what they play and what they see is not in any way as real as it would be to actually participate as a soldier, but it would be dangerous to desensitize ourselves too much and start to believe that the consequences of violence aren't serious.