Horrible Events In Omaha

Being from Omaha Nebraska, I was very worried to hear of the shootings in the mall. The report really hits home for me because not only was I from the area, but I worked at the same mall in the store that the shootings ocured in. My mom called me and left a message that there had been shootings in Von Maur, a department store in the Westroads mall. That was around 2:15. Since then I have been glued to the TV and my computer that give up to date coverage of the incident. KETV was one of the first on the scene and has been giving up to date coverage of the horrible incidents. Now, nine have been reported dead with as many as 14 injured. The stories have kept me worried all day because no details of the victims have been released. I worked at the store over the past summer and know around 35 people who work at the store. The articles published on various local (in Omaha) news stations list very vauge details, but do keep reposting updates as soon as they are heard. Right now I am very thankful for the regular workers who update the breaking news stories. Because I am in Minneapolis, I don't get local stations that cover Omaha NE. CNN is giving details and has coverage of the scene, but no live coverage. The same shots of the scene are being shown repeatedly. I just am in shock that the nicest area of Omaha NE had such a terrible tragedy take place there.

The Golden Compass

While at home over Thanksgiving break I was reading an article in the local paper, The Omaha World Herald, that discribed the controversy over the movie The Golden Compass that will be released December 7 in theaters. In the article it described the boycott of the film planned by some conservative Catholics. The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights is the group that is fighting for families to boycott the movie. They believe that the movie is anti-Christ and will urge children to think in the same way. I was very interested in this article because it delt with the movie business and I have read the book the movie is based on. In my opinion, I think that this is just another group of people that is over reacting to a fairy tale that is meant to entertain. Like Harry Potter, the Di Vinci Code, and even Pocahantas, the Golden Compass is another movie in a long line that has caused controversy within the church. These people seem to look at the movie industry more like the news, rather than an industry meant for entertainment. The movie is based on a book by an English author who is an athiest. But I still think that the movie which stars Nichole Kidman and Daniel Craig is meant for simple entertainment. Its a fairytale that is more complex and entertaining for the whole family.

Election Debate

Although the Election is close to a year away, canidates are already at each other's necks. The recent Democratic debate in Los Vegas left the Democratic nomination open. The top runners are Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards. Only seven weeks divide the debate and the Iowa caucus so the canidates are trying their best to be the top choice for Democrats. The article in the New York Times reflects the mood of the election, although I didn't watch it on TV, I think that a clear picture is reflected through this article. The canidates seem to attack each other on issues while still trying to make themselves look good. Clinton accuses the other canidates of using Republican like tactics to attack her. In my opinion there is no special tactic for either side. Its politics and there isn't anything in it that is entirely true. The canidates are just trying to get the vote and will stick to "their" opinions and hope that the United States people think that they are the one with the best ideas for the country. We have had some great presidents, but the debates right now seem more like an argument where everyone's fighting for glory, and not for the people of the U.S.

Hillary Clinton of course is the first woman to run for president, so it will be interesting to see how that plays out. I'm sure there are a lot of women who want to see a woman in the white house and are willing to vote for her for that reason. In my opinion you have to look at the canidates and not choose on for their sex or all their opinions. Instead you have to think they will be strong enough and smart enough to run our nation the best way for the American people.

Online TV

Online TV is really taking off. There's not a major network that doesn't have a way for their viewers to watch a program online. I either have night class or end up having to work on week nights so I love being able to watch the episodes that i missed the next day, or anytime at my convienence. I love ABC.com where there are only four thirty second commercial breaks. I also love the fact that I have to click to continue because then you don't have to sit and watch the commercial. Instead you can run to the kitchen to grab something to drink or run to the bathroom. And even if you do end up watching them, its 30 seconds, not 5 minutes. Other networks that I tend to watch don't have as nice of features or video feed. On the CW website there are around six commercials per episode and they go straight into the show from the commercial. Therefore you are basically forced to watch them. It really benefits the advertisers this way, but can annoy the viewer. But either way, I love being able to watch the episodes online. I just found out you can even watch some Disney Channel shows online, which makes me so happy since my apartment thinks we're too mature to offer us the Disney Channel in our cable. Unfortunatly you can only watch the major programing of the network. So far you can't watch your local news or a local sports game online. I think that the internet is the future of TV. It will never entirely be online, but I think eventually anything you can watch on TV you will be able to watch online.

Downloading

Today in lecture when we were discussing downloading, it made me think about how many people download and listen to their music. I don’t know very many people who actually go out and buy CD’s anymore. I have bought one I the past year. Otherwise, I’ll burn CD’s or download them from iTunes. Today, buying an actual CD is usually pointless when you can get it on iTunes usually for a better price. Most of the time when I buy an actual CD, I’ll upload it to my computer, put it on my iPod, and then put the CD on my rack and then rarely touch it again. Its so much easier to have all my CD’s on my iTunes so that I can play them at the same time. Even when driving, instead of listening to CD’s I’ll plug in my iPod and listen to my music that way. I honestly think that the MP3’s are going to win over the CD’s.

I also wonder how many people are downloading their songs illegally. I thought it was so funny when I learned that the industry thought they were winning the battle against illegal downloading because the illegal downloads are about even with the legal ones. Its funny to me because half the people are still downloading music illegally, which usually isn’t really a good percentage. I know that it’s really easy to be able to download music illegally and I wonder if it’s really a big deal to be able to do so. More facts on illegal downloading can be found here. If everyone did so, then the music industry would be broke. But we listen to the radio for free, so why can’t we listen to our iPods for free? It will be interesting to see if illegal downloading will ever be completely under control.

As I was reading the New York Times online, I came across an article about a break in to a Paris museum. The break in happened at the Musé D’Orsay early Sunday morning. In the break in a painting by Claude Monet was damaged. In the article, which can be found here, a picture of the damage is shown. I was just in Paris a little over a year ago and actually visited this museum. I can’t believe that someone would just enter a museum, a place where art history is preserved and decide to punch a hole in a painting. It may have caught people’s attention, but damaging a painting seems like the worst thing you could do to get attention. The damage was to a painting done in the impressionist era of the Seine River. Its not a political or at all controversial. It instead was just a lasting piece of art that should be enjoyed by all. So far no arrests have been made. The French Cultural minister thinks that the 4 inch rip in the canvas can still be preserved. What makes someone want to do that though? Was it anger, was it publicity, or was it just a drunken rage. I hope that once arrests are made, we will get a better idea of why a person would want to damage the painting. It just seems so pointless and difficult for me to understand. If it was a political or offensive painting I could better understand their thinking, although I would still feel hatred towards their actions. Also if the reason was rage I would have expected more paintings to have been vandalized. I just hope the person is caught and punished.

Homosexuality in Iran

I was reading in the New York Times about the Iranian Prime Minister and his denial of gay people existing in Iran. The Iranian government prohibits homosexuality and can punish this by death. Here is an article that I found describing the deaths of 2 gay Iranian teenagers. I can’t believe that a government would be so horrible to innocent human beings. In the article, many Iranian homosexuals are interviewed. Its interesting to read about them and how hidden they keep their sexual preference. Most don’t even admit it to their families in fear of being shunned. Many homosexuals marry into a heterosexual relationship in order to cover their true identity. The law against homosexuality comes from Koran, which states homosexuality as a sin. The law is very harsh, and strict. It even mentions in the article, that if men dress to femininely, they can be arrested. The police are on the look out for homosexuals and are treated as criminals. I also find it interesting that they encourage sex changes. Transsexuals are seen as being sick as if diseased, but are allowed in the Iranian society. But because of the religion, homosexuality is prohibited. Authority figures have tried to ban different websites dealing with homosexuality, but because of the ease of the Internet, new sites are created daily that allow Iranian homosexuals to meet others. I just can’t believe that in such modern times people need to hide their true feelings towards other human beings. Its even worse that how one person feels can be punishable by the law so harshly.