Arguing a Local Issue

Last semester in my speech class, my final assignment was a persuasive speech on a current event. During this time the elections were just ending, and some of the results were controversial. The controversy came from the results over proposal 2, which banned affirmative action. This topic was, and still is extremely important to me. This topic forced me to pay attention to the news, and I don't even watch the news.

This topic is not something that I want to do just to complete the assignment. Since day1 of this class, I knew that this was what I wanted to write about for the last paper. Moreover, the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative used systematic voter fraud in order to get its name on the ballot. 58% of Michigan voters voted in favor of the banning. These results will potentially push Michigan back to a time when minorities(especially African Americans) were discriminated against. I think that everyone knows that it's a very uneven playing field in our society, and affirmative action tried to level the playing field evenly. I believe that diversity is essential everywhere, especially on college campuses. The banning of affirmative action will not help at all!

Bad Luck

Yesterday, I couldn't even make it to class because m car was trippin!! This is the third time that my car acted up this school year. I think it's time for a new one because I'm sick of the one I have now. Additionally, those stupid idiots at CVS screwed up my photos. Some of my pictures were not on my disk, and the other pictures were not even ready. It's suppose to be a three day process, but they need to hurry up.

Possible Topics

I really wanted to do a photo essay about infidelity---why do men and women cheat--who are the better cheaters. That would have been so fun, and I know that I could pull it off. Unfortunately, I can't do this because of Professor Degenaro's request. I will either do a photo essay on high school students who skip class, or the everyday life of a real drug dealer(sounds so fun and interesting). I didn't know if Professor Degenaro will allow me to do the drug dealer photo essay, so I went ahead and did both. Whichever one I think is best is the one that I'm turning in.

The Photo Essay Process

The entire photo essay process is really wrecking my nerves. There are many things that I want to try for this assignment because I want to set my self apart from other peoples topics. I love to take risks and I really want to take a big risk with this assignment. I don't think people are interested in safe topics nowadays. People want to see something that they tell/show their family and friends. People want to respond to something fun, interesting, daring and creative. I don't want to go down the predictable route with this particular assignment. I want to do something different. Honestly, I don't think I can! But I'm in college now, which means that I should be able to take bigger risks. I'm really confused.

Detroit Graffiti

On flickr.com, there are alot of interesting photos of graffiti that has an important message, some are fun to look at, but others are utterly rediculous. I happen to be a big opposer of graffiti, and I happen to find some photos that support my argument. I was surprised I didn't see any gang signs or R.I.P signs. The funny thing is that I've seen the 8mile sign in person and it still does not make sense to me. What is the real point with these photos? What about the direction sign. Is that suppose to scare anybody that takes that path? I really don't understand. One of the pieces of graffiti that like was the "don't cry for us, cry for them photo" I think that's an interesting viewpoint that alot of people might agree with. Other than that, it was just pointless. my favorite is the throw away your two-faced smile piece of graffiti. I think that sends an important message, and it's a quote that many people can use. I can't wait to browse through some more graffiti photos so see more of what I'm accustomed to.

Graffiti

Leonard Krigell's Graffiti is sort of odd to me. His version of graffiti does not correspond to my version at all. He talks about politics, religion, etc. Some of the paragraphs are relly interesting to read such as when he quotes Norman Mailer, and the 2nd and 3rd paragraphs on page 203. I think I will like Kriegel's version of graffiti much more, because at least it sends a message. The graffiti in my community is completely foolish, and done by foolish people. There are either tons of profanity, R.I.P signs, or words representing a specific group all over buildings, houses, etc. That proves why I think graffiti is pointless.

POOR Britney Spears

What's really going on with this girl? She divorces Kevin Federline(thank GOD), she neglects her children, she goes partying without underwear with Lindsey Lohan and Paris Hilton, then she shaves her head. Is it just me, or does it seems like a publicity stunt. She probably knows that her career is dying and she needs to make some headlines. She has no singing talent at all, and other female artists such as the stunningly talented Christina Aguilera and the beautiful Beyonce, are leaving her in the dust. I think that Britney knows her time is up, and she is doing all of this on purpose to rejuvenate her career. She needs to realize that sometimes talent is more important than sex appeal. Now that she has shaved her head bald, no one may never look at her as a sex symbol again anyways. She definitely can't sing, but she can work an audience, and that''s what I think she's doing. Britney please GROW UP!!

THE PHOTO ESSAY

This process is something that I've never done before. It seems simple, but I'm not really sure. I know for a fact that I will have it done on time, I just don't know what I want my photo essay to be about. There are many possibilities that I can choose from, and they are all in my neighborhood. There are so many storylines that I can use from my neighborhood, that are important. I don't stay in a bad neighborhood, but there are certain people that can sometimes bring the community down. Or maybe I will do something that's not part of my neighborhood. This will be a really interesting assignment.

The NCAA Tournament

Without a doubt, this is the best time of the year in sports. Yes there's the Super Bowl, the MLB, NHL, NBA playoffs, and College Football's bowl season, but none of those sporting events are more exciting than March Madness. The NCAA Tournament is so enthralling. every year there seems to be a Cinderella team , which makes it stand out from other team sporting events. There are many favorites to win this year such as Florida, North Carolina, Kansas, Georgetown, UCLA, and Ohio State. My sentimental favorite is Gonzaga because for some reason, I love that program. I think that either Kansas or North Carolina will win the championship. Only God knows and only time will tell. I will certainly be tuned into every game to see if my brackets are accurate. A little mini prediction is ...... Gonzaga will make it to the elite 8!! I sure hope so. GO ZAGS!!!

The Free Press

What really caught my attention is the story about the teenage student who brought a gun to school. He attends Redford high, and I know alot people that go there. What's interesting to me is the fact that no one knows why the guy brought the gun on campus anyways, or no one knows his intentions. Another story is the Tara Grant case, which is really shocking. I don't really know why he murdered Tara, but I would love to read on to find out. The Comerica headquarters are moving to Texas and that's terrible for the state of Michigan, and the city of Detroit. I guess he has a point because Michigan is not growing at a fast rate, but it's a terrible loss for Detroit. I wonder if the Tigers have to change the name of their ballpark.

Anna Nicole Smith

Last Friday, Anna Nicole was finally laid to rest long after her death. This lady has been through so much, and I found myself feeling so sorry for her. She's been in and out of court for years upon years, she gained weight, her husband died, she became bankrupt, her son Daniel died three days after the birth of her daughter, and she was addicted to drugs too. How much can a person endure? I'm surprise that she didn't die sooner. Hopefully she's in a better place. Now this innocent baby is a part of a huge ordeal that she can't handle. Who's the baby's real father? That's a big question. Danielynn could be worth millions of dollars, and I don't think anybody wants the baby, they just want what's she's worth, and that's a shame.

Wrestlemania 23 at Ford Field on April 1st

I was very fortunate to get tickets to this years wrestlemania. I have been watching wrestling since I very young, and now that wrestlemania is in Detroit, I was not going to miss out on this opportunity. On April 1st, I will be at Ford Field alongside 70 to 80 thousand fans, and I can't wait. I'll be in the 24th row, but that's fine with me. I would have been blogged about this earlier because I have had the ticket since December. I waited until it was close enough, and decided to blog about. I'm sure that I will have an unforgetable experience!!

Spring Break

This has been one my most enjoyable spring breaks in quite a while. I didn't go anywhere, but I have been getting alot of much needed rest. I've been so exhausted this entire semester, and I need the time off. I have been spending alot of time with family, and my girlfriend, which is always good. I hope to come back to class rejuvenated, because I was such a drag before the break. Only time will tell.

Restaraunt review process

The process for my restaurant review is going well, but I'm having a hard time choosing which restaurant to choose from. I'm definately will do a soul food restaurant because that's what I'm most familiar with. I don't want to give my choice away at this moment because I might switch. I also beleive that this paper will be easier to write, but I may be wrong. Stay tuned.