Ethics and Values. Wow. That's another really, almost impossibly vague blog topic. So...ethics. Ethics are just defined as a system of moral principles. Pretty much everyone in the world has a system of their own ethics, and pretty much everyone's ethics are at least a little bit diffferent from each other. For instance, there are some people that think that it is perfectly okay to get all up in someones bubble, and other people respect boundaries as part as their own personal ethics. But that's okay, because sometimes you just have to tolerate people and understand that everyone acts differently.
Values are a little harder to describe...my beloved www.dictionary.com says they are 'relatives worths, merits, or importance'. So they are a lot like ethics, and just like ethics, basically everyone has a different set of values going on. It all depends on how you think and behave. Factors like environment, upbringing, and religion also have a big impact on a persons system of ethics and values. But another definition of the word 'values' is 'to regard or esteem highly'. This pertains more to material possessions or people rather than personal beliefs. For instance, a person can value their friends, but that does not have much to do with their 'values'.
Ugh. They're similar but still different, if that makes even a little bit of sense. Like cubic zarconia vs. real diamonds. They look like they are the same thing, but the huge difference comes into play when you look at the cost. There's a big difference between Gordman's and Tiffany's, if you get what I'm saying here.
Okay, back to ethics. If you google the word 'ethics', a bunch of pictures of those old fashioned scales/weighing things come up. That is because ethics is a balance (really clever, because the pictures are of balancing scales...) of good and bad and right and wrong and all that kind of fun stuff. There are a whole bunch of different branches of ethics in philosophy, but they can be really hard to understand, because ethics in general are pretty hard to understand.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Journal #10: Science/Religion
I personally think that Religion vs. Science is a very touchy, not to mention extremely vague, subject for anyone to talk about. I do not think that writing a blog about the conflict between science and religion is something I really want to do. Because although I definitely know what side of the argument I am on, I don't think that I should have to talk about it on a blog. Nothing against this wonderful blog, but I just do not want to. So I'll yammer on for 325+ words about religion and science and how I really just think that these touchy topics should be kept separate basically forever and ever. It makes me uncomfortable when people get all worked up about whatever side they believe in and I usually just check out of the conversation if it gets to that point. But I'm kind of trying to avoid people who spend their free time debating such things, so there's a plus.
Whew. This is quite a controversial blog topic. I don't think there's anything wrong with a little good old controversy, but still. I am not a fan of being involved in it...I'm more of a 'sidelines' kind of lady myself. But Science and Religion have pretty much always been against each other, on opposing sides, because they're totally different. It's very much like the Enlightenment (Religious Ideas) vs. The Great Awakening (Rational/Scientific Thinking), Divine Intervention vs. Structured Plans, or Evolution vs. Creation by God.
Even though Science and Religion are supposed to be completely separate, they are often meshed together in debate and whatnot. But really, you can't really take both sides. It is basically just impossible, like believing in Catholicism and Hinduism at the same time. Well, it is not really that extreme, but still. It would be pretty hard to mesh the ideas of Religion and Science into one great little belief all tied together with a ribbon. But some people attempt it, like Tom Cruise. I would really prefer not to go down that road, even though Tom Cruise and I are probably pretty much the same when it comes to height.
Whew. This is quite a controversial blog topic. I don't think there's anything wrong with a little good old controversy, but still. I am not a fan of being involved in it...I'm more of a 'sidelines' kind of lady myself. But Science and Religion have pretty much always been against each other, on opposing sides, because they're totally different. It's very much like the Enlightenment (Religious Ideas) vs. The Great Awakening (Rational/Scientific Thinking), Divine Intervention vs. Structured Plans, or Evolution vs. Creation by God.
Even though Science and Religion are supposed to be completely separate, they are often meshed together in debate and whatnot. But really, you can't really take both sides. It is basically just impossible, like believing in Catholicism and Hinduism at the same time. Well, it is not really that extreme, but still. It would be pretty hard to mesh the ideas of Religion and Science into one great little belief all tied together with a ribbon. But some people attempt it, like Tom Cruise. I would really prefer not to go down that road, even though Tom Cruise and I are probably pretty much the same when it comes to height.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Journal #9: Organized Religion
There are literally thousand different types of organized religion. There is Judaism, Hinduism, Islam (Like Muslims), Buddhism, Shinto, Bahaism, Confucianism, and Christianity, and those are just some of the most recognizable religions. Christianity is the biggest religion with over 2 billion followers, including Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, Baptists, and Protestants. A lot of people are intolerant of some religions, but I definitely am not.
I practice both Catholicism and Methodism, but I still think that everyone has the right to choose which religion they want to practice. And I know that a lot of people have a problem with Muslims and think that all Muslims are terrorists, and I couldn't disagree more. While I am not a Muslim, I actually have an understanding of the religion. When I was growing up, my babysitter was Muslim, and so were the rest of the members of her family. She never schooled us on religion and never really brought it up, but I remember seeing her wearing a hijab and taking an hour every day to pray when I was little.
I also remember when 9/11 happened, and I was so confused as to why people thought all Muslims were terrorists, because when I think of Muslims, I think of the women that took care of me everyday for the first several years of my life and who would never hurt a fly. I knew that she was Muslim, and that was it.
And I never thought anything of it. I just knew that was what she believed, and I didn't care one way or the other. In recent years, I've still visited her and asked questions to get a better understanding of her religion. Basically, Muslims believe in God, and believe in Jesus. A big difference is that the Muslim religion also believes in prophets, and believe that Jesus was simply another prophet like Moses or Abraham.
Unfortunately, there are also groups of Muslims that are very extreme, and those are the groups that are usually associated with terrorism.
I practice both Catholicism and Methodism, but I still think that everyone has the right to choose which religion they want to practice. And I know that a lot of people have a problem with Muslims and think that all Muslims are terrorists, and I couldn't disagree more. While I am not a Muslim, I actually have an understanding of the religion. When I was growing up, my babysitter was Muslim, and so were the rest of the members of her family. She never schooled us on religion and never really brought it up, but I remember seeing her wearing a hijab and taking an hour every day to pray when I was little.
I also remember when 9/11 happened, and I was so confused as to why people thought all Muslims were terrorists, because when I think of Muslims, I think of the women that took care of me everyday for the first several years of my life and who would never hurt a fly. I knew that she was Muslim, and that was it.
And I never thought anything of it. I just knew that was what she believed, and I didn't care one way or the other. In recent years, I've still visited her and asked questions to get a better understanding of her religion. Basically, Muslims believe in God, and believe in Jesus. A big difference is that the Muslim religion also believes in prophets, and believe that Jesus was simply another prophet like Moses or Abraham.
Unfortunately, there are also groups of Muslims that are very extreme, and those are the groups that are usually associated with terrorism.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Journal #8: Proofreading Video
I thought that the proofreading video was kind of funny but still a little weird. Although proofreading is really important when you are writing a paper, I think a lot of the stuff the comedian mentioned would not happen in most papers, especially for high school students. I am sure there are a lot of idiots that could make over the top, funny mistakes that the comedian mentioned in the video, but I really hope people that I know do not have that problem.
I know that the video was meant to be funny, but it was also very over the top, and I think that factor made it less funny and more annoying than it was meant to be. People who are in high school really should be able to write a half decent paper without the help of spell check. A lot of the time you may have spelling mistakes in the paper, but you should not be spelling so poorly that spell check cannot even distinguish that point that you are trying to get across.
Since the video was so over dramatic, I think the comedian failed to make it very funny. The whole idea seemed ridiculous because I seriously hope that no high school student, especially one in the honor's class, has that much of a problem with spelling and typing. Because I think that after years of sitting through English class, a student should have at least a little bit of common sense when it comes to writing a paper and proofreading.
Even though the mistakes in the video were over dramatic, proofreading is still really important to get rid of any little errors that spell check could have missed, like the difference between 'there' and 'their' and other things that can be overlooked by the computer and spell check. You should always look over your own paper, and you should also have at least one other person go over it as well.
I know that the video was meant to be funny, but it was also very over the top, and I think that factor made it less funny and more annoying than it was meant to be. People who are in high school really should be able to write a half decent paper without the help of spell check. A lot of the time you may have spelling mistakes in the paper, but you should not be spelling so poorly that spell check cannot even distinguish that point that you are trying to get across.
Since the video was so over dramatic, I think the comedian failed to make it very funny. The whole idea seemed ridiculous because I seriously hope that no high school student, especially one in the honor's class, has that much of a problem with spelling and typing. Because I think that after years of sitting through English class, a student should have at least a little bit of common sense when it comes to writing a paper and proofreading.
Even though the mistakes in the video were over dramatic, proofreading is still really important to get rid of any little errors that spell check could have missed, like the difference between 'there' and 'their' and other things that can be overlooked by the computer and spell check. You should always look over your own paper, and you should also have at least one other person go over it as well.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Journal #7: Superstitions
I am not a very superstitious person, but there are some superstitions that I kind of follow. For instance, I think that it is bad luck to break a mirror. Because if you look into a mirror and it breaks, you've obviously got some bad luck going on. If I were to break a mirror while looking into it, I would mostly like break down into tears. And when I was younger, my sister and I would hold our breath when we drove past a cemetery so that 'the ghosts wouldn't follow us home', and would do silly things like run away from black cats and make sure to not walk under any ladders. But that was when we were little, and we did not actually believe the superstitions- we were just messing around and having fun.
But there are not any superstitions that I really, truly believe in. For instance, I do not have any problems with spilling salt or being crossed by a black cat or walking under a later. I do not think that a person's good or bad luck can be decided by things like that, because I think that luck is simply random, and there is nothing you can really do to change it.
Even though I do not really believe in any superstitions, I know there are a lot of people who do. They might believe in superstitions for religious reasons or just because of stories they have heard, but I think people can believe in any kind of superstition they want- it does not matter to me, and it should not really matter to anyone else.
I am sure there is some old superstition that people believe but do not really know about or know where it came from, so I think that most people at least follow a superstition without even realizing it, not walking under a ladder. Because really, not walking under a ladder kind of just seems like it should be common sense.
But there are not any superstitions that I really, truly believe in. For instance, I do not have any problems with spilling salt or being crossed by a black cat or walking under a later. I do not think that a person's good or bad luck can be decided by things like that, because I think that luck is simply random, and there is nothing you can really do to change it.
Even though I do not really believe in any superstitions, I know there are a lot of people who do. They might believe in superstitions for religious reasons or just because of stories they have heard, but I think people can believe in any kind of superstition they want- it does not matter to me, and it should not really matter to anyone else.
I am sure there is some old superstition that people believe but do not really know about or know where it came from, so I think that most people at least follow a superstition without even realizing it, not walking under a ladder. Because really, not walking under a ladder kind of just seems like it should be common sense.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Journal #6: Falsely Blaming Someone
I think that everyone has blamed someone else for doing something that he or she really did not do. It can be something simple like "She was the one who drank the last of the milk." But it could also be something a lot more serious, like "She was the one who murdered him." An example of a serious false accusation is in The Crucible by Arthur Miller.
In those times, witchcraft was a very serious crime that almost always resulted in the accused being put to death. In The Crucible, three teenage girls begin to point fingers at others because they are scared of the consequences of some of the things that they had done. In their case, the repercussions were almost as serious as the crime in question. If someone figured out the the girls were lying, then they definitely would have been accused of practicing witchcraft and most likely would have been put to death.
However, in modern times, there could be very similar consequences. If someone were to wrongly accuse another person of murder and someone found out, the wrongful person would be punished accordingly.
For simple, everyday things, like blaming other people for little mistakes or wrong doings, there are still consequences of pointing fingers. If you were to blame someone else for doing something wrong at work, for instance, there would be repercussions. You would probably feel a lot of guilt, first of all, and that may drive you a little crazy and bother you for a long time. And if your boss was to find out, you would be blamed for both doing your job wrong and for blaming another person that did not deserve to take the fall.
One the other hand, you could also blame someone for doing something that you actually did, and they may actually be praised instead of punished. As an example, if you were to handle a business deal in an conventional way and then say it was someone elses idea, your boss may actually think it is a good idea and give the other person all the praise.
Instead of pointing fingers at other people, it would be better for everyone to step up and take the blame for the things that they have done. However, this will probably never happen. It's natural for people to want to blame others out of fear or uncertainty, and it will probably continue for the rest of our lives.
In those times, witchcraft was a very serious crime that almost always resulted in the accused being put to death. In The Crucible, three teenage girls begin to point fingers at others because they are scared of the consequences of some of the things that they had done. In their case, the repercussions were almost as serious as the crime in question. If someone figured out the the girls were lying, then they definitely would have been accused of practicing witchcraft and most likely would have been put to death.
However, in modern times, there could be very similar consequences. If someone were to wrongly accuse another person of murder and someone found out, the wrongful person would be punished accordingly.
For simple, everyday things, like blaming other people for little mistakes or wrong doings, there are still consequences of pointing fingers. If you were to blame someone else for doing something wrong at work, for instance, there would be repercussions. You would probably feel a lot of guilt, first of all, and that may drive you a little crazy and bother you for a long time. And if your boss was to find out, you would be blamed for both doing your job wrong and for blaming another person that did not deserve to take the fall.
One the other hand, you could also blame someone for doing something that you actually did, and they may actually be praised instead of punished. As an example, if you were to handle a business deal in an conventional way and then say it was someone elses idea, your boss may actually think it is a good idea and give the other person all the praise.
Instead of pointing fingers at other people, it would be better for everyone to step up and take the blame for the things that they have done. However, this will probably never happen. It's natural for people to want to blame others out of fear or uncertainty, and it will probably continue for the rest of our lives.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Journal #5: Facebook Punishment
A lot of parents in the 21st century punish their children by taking away things like television, facebook, and the internet in general. While facebook seems to be a sort of lifeline for many teenagers, I think taking facebook away from them for a couple days is a fair punishment. Even though a lot of teenagers would say that is not a fair punishment, I think that it is. You're not supposed to enjoy your punishment, and you are definitely not supposed to like it. The whole point of a punishment is to learn from your mistakes and not do it again.
But I think that some punishments, such as taking away cell phones, can sometimes be a little unfair. While cell phones are typically used to text your friends, teenagers also use them to ask questions about homework and tests, get a ride to school, and to tell parents that they've gotten somewhere safely and what time they will be home. The parents could tell their child to stop texting, but then a lot of other things could be more difficult as a result.
Taking away a child's internet privileges is also a little bit unfair. While the internet is commonly used for facebook, email, and online games, a lot of students, especially ones in high school, have to use the internet for school projects. That includes research for a paper, blog posts for class, and getting notes off of a teacher's website. So if a parent were to stop their child from using the internet, they would have some problems with things relating to schoolwork.
Punishments that are more fair could be something like doing more work around the house, having restricted time on the internet, not be able to drive anywhere but work and school, or not being able to hang with friends during the weekend. Taking away facebook is not a bad punishment, but it could be hard to reinforce. A child could say they were doing homework and then get on facebook instead, and there would be no way for the parent to know.
But I think that some punishments, such as taking away cell phones, can sometimes be a little unfair. While cell phones are typically used to text your friends, teenagers also use them to ask questions about homework and tests, get a ride to school, and to tell parents that they've gotten somewhere safely and what time they will be home. The parents could tell their child to stop texting, but then a lot of other things could be more difficult as a result.
Taking away a child's internet privileges is also a little bit unfair. While the internet is commonly used for facebook, email, and online games, a lot of students, especially ones in high school, have to use the internet for school projects. That includes research for a paper, blog posts for class, and getting notes off of a teacher's website. So if a parent were to stop their child from using the internet, they would have some problems with things relating to schoolwork.
Punishments that are more fair could be something like doing more work around the house, having restricted time on the internet, not be able to drive anywhere but work and school, or not being able to hang with friends during the weekend. Taking away facebook is not a bad punishment, but it could be hard to reinforce. A child could say they were doing homework and then get on facebook instead, and there would be no way for the parent to know.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Journal #4: Travel
Traveling is one of my favorite things to do. Over the past year, I have gone on several vacations with my family members, including Washington D.C., New York City, Florida, and Kentucky.
For Spring Break, my parents and sister and our friend Jenna went to Washington D.C. to stay for a couple of days. Over the four days that we were there, we stayed in a hotel in Springfield, Virginia and took the Metro into D.C. every morning. During our vacation we went to the Holocaust Museum, Lincoln's Monument, Washington's Monument, and several other monuments. We also went on a very extremely boring tour of the Capitol building, and almost had to tour a wing of the White House. Luckily, we got out of that one because the line was too long and it was so hot that people started passing out. Overall, our vacation was boring except for when Jenna got captured by the Metro one day.
In June, my sister and grandma and I, along with our friend Brianna, went to New York City. While we were there, we shopped and went to a lot of museums and whatnot. After eating some seriously disgusting street vendor food, we also saw two Broadway shows and went to the Hershey store and the M&M store. We stayed for five days and lived out the dream of tourists everywhere.
In July, I went with my parents, sister, grandma, uncle, two cousins, and best friend Alexis to Florida. For four days, we stayed in Disney World and went to all of the parks and rode a lot of rides. Then, after our stay in Orlando was over, we all drove over to Vero Beach, Florida, to spend the next five days at the beach.
Towards the end of July, I went on a mission trip with my youth group at church. It was through the Appalachian Service Project, and 23 of us went to Jackson, Kentucky. During our trip we fixed up a house and did insulation, paneling, and painting. It was extremely hot, and the house did not have any air conditioning and also had very poor air circulation. By the end of the week, I was extremely relieved to be going home.
For Spring Break, my parents and sister and our friend Jenna went to Washington D.C. to stay for a couple of days. Over the four days that we were there, we stayed in a hotel in Springfield, Virginia and took the Metro into D.C. every morning. During our vacation we went to the Holocaust Museum, Lincoln's Monument, Washington's Monument, and several other monuments. We also went on a very extremely boring tour of the Capitol building, and almost had to tour a wing of the White House. Luckily, we got out of that one because the line was too long and it was so hot that people started passing out. Overall, our vacation was boring except for when Jenna got captured by the Metro one day.
In June, my sister and grandma and I, along with our friend Brianna, went to New York City. While we were there, we shopped and went to a lot of museums and whatnot. After eating some seriously disgusting street vendor food, we also saw two Broadway shows and went to the Hershey store and the M&M store. We stayed for five days and lived out the dream of tourists everywhere.
In July, I went with my parents, sister, grandma, uncle, two cousins, and best friend Alexis to Florida. For four days, we stayed in Disney World and went to all of the parks and rode a lot of rides. Then, after our stay in Orlando was over, we all drove over to Vero Beach, Florida, to spend the next five days at the beach.
Towards the end of July, I went on a mission trip with my youth group at church. It was through the Appalachian Service Project, and 23 of us went to Jackson, Kentucky. During our trip we fixed up a house and did insulation, paneling, and painting. It was extremely hot, and the house did not have any air conditioning and also had very poor air circulation. By the end of the week, I was extremely relieved to be going home.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Journal #3: Hostage Situation
If I were in a hostage situation, I have a feeling that I would not be taking it very well.
First, I am guessing that the shock and disbelief would set in. I would probably just be sitting around wherever I am being imprisoned and stare off into space. After a little while, the initial hysteria would most likely occur. I am guessing there would be a lot of screaming and crying and I would probably be dropping a lot of expletives. After all of that, the emotion I'd be feeling would most likely just be hopelessness.
Usually when a person is in a tough situation, 'fight or flight' kicks in. And my instinct would most likely be 'flight'. I would probably do anything possible to get away. There would be a lot of crying and bargaining and whatnot, and if that did not work out for me I would just mope. I'm sure if I were in the situation for long enough,like if it had been months or years, I would eventually come up with a plan to escape my captor or captors.
But honestly, most people in situations like these are usually scared or threatened, and even if they do have some kind of escape plan, there's a pretty small chance that it would actually work out unless you are extremely resourceful or your captors are just really bad at keeping people hostage. I guess I would just be a mopey little hostage and try not to have anymore complete panic attacks before I either die, escape, or get rescued.
If I were in a situation identical to the one that Mary Rowlandson, I would probably just try and wait things out and trust that somehow, I would be rescued, just like she did. Even though hostage situations are much different than how they were back in those times, the fear and uncertainty that the hostage experiences is still very much the same.
First, I am guessing that the shock and disbelief would set in. I would probably just be sitting around wherever I am being imprisoned and stare off into space. After a little while, the initial hysteria would most likely occur. I am guessing there would be a lot of screaming and crying and I would probably be dropping a lot of expletives. After all of that, the emotion I'd be feeling would most likely just be hopelessness.
Usually when a person is in a tough situation, 'fight or flight' kicks in. And my instinct would most likely be 'flight'. I would probably do anything possible to get away. There would be a lot of crying and bargaining and whatnot, and if that did not work out for me I would just mope. I'm sure if I were in the situation for long enough,like if it had been months or years, I would eventually come up with a plan to escape my captor or captors.
But honestly, most people in situations like these are usually scared or threatened, and even if they do have some kind of escape plan, there's a pretty small chance that it would actually work out unless you are extremely resourceful or your captors are just really bad at keeping people hostage. I guess I would just be a mopey little hostage and try not to have anymore complete panic attacks before I either die, escape, or get rescued.
If I were in a situation identical to the one that Mary Rowlandson, I would probably just try and wait things out and trust that somehow, I would be rescued, just like she did. Even though hostage situations are much different than how they were back in those times, the fear and uncertainty that the hostage experiences is still very much the same.
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