Propaganda

            Merriam Webster defines propaganda as the spreading of ideas, information, or rumor for the purpose of helping or injuring an institution, a cause, or a person. However, this definition changes from blog to blog. What is similar about the blogs though is that propaganda is very bold. It is a lie that someone or some institution has spread and in the 2011 society it most likely has gotten spread through mass media. The sole reason for this propaganda is competition. As long as there is competition there will be propaganda to relegate the opposing party. Whether its politics, legal rights, or where to buy the greasiest burger.

            In 2011 we see many examples of propaganda. There has been propaganda with the issue in Egypt, where Vodafone has promoted pro-government messages. There is propaganda in the mayoral election where every single commercial has to deal with the faults of the other candidate and not with the strong points of the actual contender. Even with cell phone companies like Verizon, who insist that their phone gets better service than AT&T (true). Additionally, the biggest that I have seen this year has been the propaganda between car insurance companies, when one says that you save more money with them and the other says the exact opposite. So, is propaganda just a white lie, or is just a notion that will be with us forever?

Passion in Beat Street

            Beat Street was a very interesting movie and it really opened my eyes to an era that I have not seen before. In this day in age communication between teenagers, and adults for that matter, is an email, a Facebook, a Tweet, or a phone call. However, in Beat Street we see real friends, who enjoy each other’s company. In Beat Street we see kids break dancing in subway stations, people creatively mixing and putting together real hip-hop beats and sounds, and we see the true artist in everyone especially Ramo. We see the passion that is in everyone character in the movie, a passion that is not really seen in our society today. I think that one of the main things that made this movie so cool was that it was filmed in New York City. I think that if it was not filmed in a big city the whole concept of passion, dance, music, and struggle would not be there. So, Beat Street has been a great movie so far and it keeps getting better and better.

Hungry

          In Black Boy, the main character Richard is hungry for many things. In the beginning of the book we see that he is hungry for attention, when he sets the house on fire. We also see that he is hungry for knowledge also. He wants to learn how to read and write, and he seems to want to learn what his piers know. Also, throughout the book we see that Richard is hungry, for food, and most importantly love.

          However, Richard is not the only one hungry. Richard's brother also seems hungry for attention when he tells on Richard all the time, his mother seems hungry for attention, but she doesn't publicly display it like Richard does. I also believe that Richard's dad is hungry for a better lifestyle, which is why he leaves his family for a different one. Also, I believe that everyone, in the book or in reality, is hungry for something, but some express their hunger in different ways