Final Project

Here we go.. Union Square where you can shop organic products from small farms

                                     
                                          Fresh organic vegetables

                       You can find the best organic cheese like white cheese

                        with dried herbs

                      Raw Ruby Sauerkraut ( red cabbage )

                      I bought these vegetables to make a spinach salad with 

                      green pepper, onion,corn and chick peas.

                Cut the pepper into cubes; add to pan a little olive oil

                with onions, salt and pepper. After add the spinach,  

                chick peas and corn, sprinkle a little oregano. Ready.

Blog18

During this semester attending this class of English has been a very pleasant experience because I learned many things in special how to write an essay. After reviewing and compares with others made earlier in other classes it was a big difference, before I did not know how to structure an essay, now I know I have to include a summary, claims, reason, evidence and conclusion . For me in particular has been very hard and struggling because besides my first language is Spanish but very rewarding, anyway it has been a class in which we share and discussing different topics and ideas according with the subject, with my classmates also we made comments that it was a different way to learn how to write blogs so in general it was a wonderful learning.

 Using media and writing essay in blogs it was a dynamic and new experience, I remember the first day I didn’t know how to using and write in blogs and I asked Dr X that I don’t know how to write in blogs and she was been so sweet and patient, so she said don’t worry “here you are going to learn many things not only English’’ and she was right through different articles and topics like media, food, water, health and watching movies I believe that all my classmates and me we been learning a lot. Go online and share your writing and read with others and make comments also was great because you are able to have the opportunity to see where are your weakness and try to fix and do better. For example for my essay I believe that my favorite is blog 10 Imitation on the Film because that was an personal experience with my friend’s son also the blogs of the food unit it was a good learning about this topic I never imagine that in English class I will be learning the reality of the food industry or the ending of the bottle of water such a good experience and learning in our English class

As evidence from the above will be our final project. We have to cook or do something to show or projecting part of our learning during this class.

Where do you learn all of those things? … Only in English 099 class with Dr X, for your effort and dedication as an educator to students.  ! Thank you very much!

Blog 17

                          Facts from The Story of Stuff

According to Annie Leonard in the “Facts from The Story of Stuff” our system is a linear system in crisis not good for a finite planet. Due to the consumer society  we have to bought much stuff that we do not need and a few months will be obsolete consequently our planet will be on crisis for a accumulation of stuff  that we are not using and we have dispose it as a garbage. Nowadays consumers are the priority on the corporations of manufacture and they planned the obsolescence of the products so if you are part of consumer society you will perceive obsolescence of the stuff due to the media, marketing strategies and the society that you have to work and consume to integrate or be part of this consumer society.

I agree with Annie Leonard that big corporations are planning the obsolescence of the products and make the consumers perceive this obsolescence.

Besides the capitalist system the economy is growing base on projections from big corporation’s that are planning how much money they want, how big the production should be and how much they want we consume not only these but part of the planning strategies are the obsolescence and consequently consumer’s perception of obsolescence.

Who are responsible for this?  I think everyone are/is responsible for this.

First the government because they subsidizes part of large projects of the big corporation also because don't use mechanisms for quality control to make the companies produce longer lasting products.

Second the companies because they are planning the quality of the products that have to last for a certain time and the quality obviously is not good.

Third the media with big ads that torture consumers with products that we are supposed to consume because are good and be in fashion. 

Finally consumers are responsible because we live in a consumer society where we let ourselves be influenced by others think and fear of being criticized.

Unfortunately in our society to be part of it we have to satisfy our own ego maybe buying items don’t need or be in fashion. We have to buy otherwise they make fun or criticize your old habits. For example in the electronics industry daily change designs, computers and televisions are obsolete so people who do not buy a new electronic device feel that their stuff are obsolete or outdated but doesn’t mean that the device is not usable is just changed something is not important for the function so consumers are forced to buy a new device for which friend do not criticize.

Furthermore in this consumer society will value for how much money you make and how much money you spend..

Blog 16

                        Let Them Eat Fat

According to Greg Critser in the article “Let Them Eat Fat”, nutritionist and dietitians have been worried about the companies which sell fast food because they are selling unhealthy items especially in the poor areas where people with low income are living. Due to the economic situation, Cristser mentioned that those people from these poor areas are looking for food that represent low prices and more quantities like items offered in fast food stores where the food contains more fatness and less nutrition.

I agree with the author statement. Fast food companies are in competition against each other and care on the group of business and try increasing the profits. They don’t put their attention on customer nutrition or health as they mention in some advertisements.

Nowadays like the author Crister mentioned in the world of the fast food companies increase the size of the meals to satisfy the need of cheap meals for customers. Obviously the super sized meals are increasing calories and also adding more fat and more sugar in the beverages, even more fast food companies are not thinking how those changes are affecting at the customers health and nutrition. Those kind of food are convenient for the companies because the cost of production is more cheap, but less healthy for consumers.

For example, some statistics published from the Consumer Report Department mentioned that kids at the age of 10 need healthy meals and more nutrients in order to grow up healthy, but in the meantime at this age, 80% of kids love meals from Mc Donald’s or Burger King. Those fast food meals contain double the calories and fat than the daily diet recommended by nutritionist and dietitians. Therefore, the result in the obesity of the kids and teenagers is because they consume twice more than the regular diet that kids at these ages need. Furthermore visits at the doctor’s office were increased due to symptoms or sickness of the stomach pain, also for high levels of sugar on the teenager system and the most relevant condition kids with obesity. Subsequently these results were concern at the Health Department and other Institutions of the Government and recommend that fast food companies publish and print labels in each meal with the components and percent of each ingredient.

In conclusion the Government has to take properly care on these kind of business, they have to have more control, work close with fast food companies, and apply strong sanction make it especially low to control the quality of the food because it is not enough to publish simple labels with some information. These companies are not taking care properly on the quality of the food neither the responsibility that they should have with customers on health and nutrition. Also parents are the most important part on the nutrition because they are the ones who decide what items have to be including on kids nutrition.

Blog 15

                                 The New Industrial Migrants

The New Industrial Migrants (Part I)

In the article “The new industrial migrants (Part I)” from Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser explains that in the jobs of meatpacking during the 1980s had a big offer of illegal workers came from Mexico, Central America and Asia, therefore the high offer of  workers increase the turnovers rate the same way the profits of these companies were higher.

The New Industrial Migrants (Part II)

In “The New Industrial Migrants (Part II)” from Fast Food Nation, Eric Schlosser states that in the companies of meatpacking there were importing and hire cheap labor from different areas of the country so the IPB denied the use of the illegal workers in these companies therefore at some point these practice concern to the Immigration and Naturalization Services.

I agree with the author statement these companies use the migrants labor in order to avoid big wages and other expenses that will increase the cost of production so this practices go in benefice of the companies with higher profits.

According to Schlosser in the 1980 companies of meatpacking were taking advantages of the immigrants labor in order to minimize the costs of the production these companies employed thousands of workers during the year this represent a greater increase to the rate of turnover and also avoiding payments of insurance vacation and salaries under the legal rates in comparison if they use American workers those cost of benefits will be increase because they have to pay benefices under the law to the permanent employees such as higher salaries, vacations and consequently more insurance. Also the office of Immigration and Naturalization Services were concern for the large number of illegal immigrants working in the industry of meatpacking. Furthermore American citizens were complaining about the lack of jobs for the middle class. Moreover these companies import workers they are living in shelters from other states like New York, New Jersey, California,Texas, New Mexico to Minnesota with the offer of rent apartments but these companies try to use the homeless shelter as a workers home so clearly they tricked those workers and call the attention from the authorities and media.

In conclusion those companies of meatpacking they took advantage of the immigrants legal or illegal in order to accomplish their financial enrichment purpose.

Blog 14

                    SLEEP DEALER

In the movie “Sleep Dealer”, due to the decline on the agriculture in Santa Ana del Rio Memo, the protagonist dreams to move and find work in the North of Tijuana where they have the hi-tech factories and make money in order to live the American Dream. But for Memo, this dream was a nightmare.

In Santa Ana, Memo has a homemade radio and he spend many hours listening conversations from the other side, which was from The United States so he always dreamed to cross the border and experience the American dream. In the other hand, his father reminded him that the dream was in his land where they have to dedicate time and work in the agriculture. Also his brother thought that the American dream doesn’t exist, that it is only an illusion that you can seen only on television.

One night Memo hacked the security of The United States, so the American forces persecuted and located his house through a drone remote-pilot. Memo was watching the persecution on television live and tried to escape, but they attacked his house and killed his father by Rudy Ramirez, an American soldier. After this odyssey, Memo left his town and went to work in the cybermaquilas, where people were connected to the nodes that were implanted on the human bodies and worked like robots. They never crossed the border to see and live in the city where the American dream was suppose to be.

American Dream is only a dystopia because people like Memo lives in the system where it is not true where they have to sacrifice human feelings and work like robots to be part of the system.

BLOG 13

                   REFLECTION FOR THE FOOD UNIT

          During the process to learn the Food Unit we were learning different things or facts that make us to be aware how the process of the food is, also we learned the different steps that the companies have to have in order to get the final product so after the product is ready we have to brought to our homes to feed our families. Therefore in connection with the other units the food companies were created a fantasy chain using the commercials by radio, TV and the media in order to cover the truth, a world like Allegoric of the Cave were consumers we are living in the darkness world ignoring the reality like marionettes that we are moving for the need of satisfy the hunger but we didn’t know what the truth was outside in the factory world where the process of the food was done, also we are living in the darkness ignoring the reality, in the fantasy world like Truman in the world created for the big food companies in order to commit the financial purpose, furthermore we have to choose to face the truth like The Matrix so we have to pass different levels then in some case it is hard to understand why the companies are so untrustworthy and also with the truth many people will  be mad or upset  but we have to end and face the reality and try to change our habits of ate.

          My experience during the time of this unit was very helpful now I know many things about the food process before I don’t even think on how is this processed of the food before we consume the final product, also I was thinking in the pass when my grandma use to cook delicious meals with natural products that we have in our country, and the most important thing I will avoid some products that are not healthy, changing my habits of eat.

          In the CAT evaluation of the two students I have a good and bad feeling good because I was following the steps you were teaching in class like if the article have main idea, summary, and support details, in the other hand bad feeling because I am not ready to give my opinion because I know I have weakness in grammar and vocabulary. I am in the process to learn so every day I am able to understand new words and try to improve my grammar, the biggest issue I am concern is the time, at this time I am worry of it because I take too much time thinking and planning how and what I will included in my writing so the time is passed I feel nervous and I start to write and this written don’t make sense because I am in hurry in consequence have more and big mistakes.

Blog 12

                                               Happy Meals

In the extract from In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan give advice for different ways to eat healthy.

1.- Don’t eat anything your grandmother wouldn’t recognize                as food,

2.- Avoid food products containing ingredients that are you don’t even understand

3.- Avoid products that make health claims

4.- Shop in the peripheries of the supermarket and stay out of the middle

5.- Get out of the supermarket whenever possible

6.- Eat mostly plants, especially leaves

7.- Pay more, eat less

8.- Cook. If you can, plant a garden. Eat complete meals at a table, if possible not alone. Eat slowly.

           Nowadays the 80% of products in the supermarket I don’t know if my grandmother would be able to recognize if some are for eat or what, there is hundreds of new fancy look products on the shelves many contain additives, fatness, flavors, high percent of sugar, colorants and many small names of things that were added to makes the products have different flavors consequently consumers would looking for it more and more.

          Unfortunately in this country industrialized everyone are suffering for time, many of us we are not able to do all these suggestions, but we have to think that we have to change the bad habit of eating these changes are necessary for our family wellness and we have to have to considerate all the facts that the companies of the food are using in the products that ending in our body making unhealthy and the consequences that we have to assume for it.

          From the list of suggestion from Michael Pollan, actually I am doing some of them,  eat more plants some leaves or green products, also I love to cook if I have more time I will cook every single day, is not hard for me avoid some products. So I will try to complete the rest of the suggested list.

Blog 11

                                  The Story of Bottle Water   
     

          In the film “The Story of Bottle Water” the author explains how our system is in crisis for the large amount of garbage collected for the of bottle water that we consume.

          As a consumers we have the wrong idea that the tap water is no good or unhealthy because the companies send the wrong message trough the commercials that the good or pure water is the one they sale.

          But the reality is completed different. According to some result of the analysis the bottle water sending to different laboratories they concluded that some of them contain the same tap water like we consume in our house, furthermore the studies reveals some brand names are not pure like they affirm.

          I was surprised because I believe the tap water have too much chemicals used in the process to purify and is no good for our health also I was surprise from the enormous quantity of garbage that accumulates from the bottles of water we consumed and were send to India for recycle. 
         After I watched the film I believe the companies only make business with us and always don’t said the true, they want more money cheating and lie to consumers they don’t think about our health even they don’t worry for the environment as always they mention in commercials. So we have to stop part of this pollution. How? our contribution could be "do not bought bottle water." this way we save money and also we do something for the environment try to stop to increase the pollution.

Blog 10

                                   
        Imitation of the Film: Here's Smoking at You, Kid


          The author Nicholas Balakar in this passage "Imitation of the Film: Here's Smoking at you, Kid" states that according to a nationwide survey reports that thirty eight percent of kids of ages 10 to 14 likely starts smoking because they have been influenced from movies. Kids are imitated because in the film, most of the actors are smoking. Also when kids go the movies, they are exposed to smoking from the other viewers. Further more movies rated “R has two times as much smoking."

          I disagree with this statement. Kids don’t always start smoking from the influence of the movie stars. Kids could be influenced from friends more than from movie actors. Also, they can get influenced from parents because they are spending much more time with friends and parents than in the movie theater.

          According to Nicholas Balakar in the article “Imitation of the Film: Here’s Smoking at You, Kid” from the nationwide survey kids likely start to smoke from influence of the movies because they try to copy or imitate the movie stars. This is a big issue when kids start smoking. It is not necessarily a strong influence of movies because kids want to imitate the actors. Kids can be influence from parents, friends, teachers and many more. But I think the biggest influence comes from friends because they share more time and often forced them to smoke to be part of the group otherwise they are not been accepted or join the group.   

          For example my friend’s son went to a party, during the party a group of friends were to smoking and offered him to do the same. He refused and they insisted many times, later they made fun of him, also they intimidate and finally those friends told him if he does not smoke he will not be considerate part of the group because they state that he must to smoke to join in the group of friends, he was very scare and worry for the situation and my friend the mother advise him to go away from the group and try to avoid them. Obviously these friends have a bad influence as mentioned.


           In conclusion kids are exposed to different kind of situations and could be influenced by different people, such as friends, parent’s, teacher and many more not only by movies stars like the author state in this article. But we have to be aware and try to advise and prevent them from these types of situations and avoid these friends, like in the example for friends who shares daily at school and may be a good or bad influence.

           

Blog 9

                                              The Meatrix

         The Meatrix video show the reality of the industrialism of the farm in order to maximizes the production. This industrialization cause adverse effects such us destruction  the small family business farms, the animals been packet, increase the animal cruelty also they over use antibiotics strains resistant germs, massive pollution furthermore the destruction of communities.

        

                                 The Meatrix Revolting

         Leo was dreaming on the nice environment of the family farms in the past how nice where those days were with sunny day’s clean air and happy animals. However Morpheus show him the reality of the factory farms where everything around is moving with machines. The animals grow up in unhealthy conditions; they were fed with blood of dead cows with mad cow disease, overuse antibiotics, artificial hormones. These unhealthy and contaminated process of the factory can be stop by the consumers who are aware to eating healthy products buying from the family farms.   

                                       The Meatrix II ½

         In the world of the factory farms where the production was multiply “To fed our fast food nation”, in fact they created a dangerous work conditions for employs with high speed
on the process of production consequently tired and accident for workers, also the manure leaked on the meat and contaminated in these case the final products have had EColi.

Blog 8

Does Knowledge Make You Happier?

As the author Cornell and Malcolmson's states in the film “The Matrix” Neon in this film the process of knowledge can experience positive and adverse aspects that affects him in different ways. On a positive way, we can experiment the feeling of happiness, joy, and feeling to explore something different we don’t know as Neo in the beginning of the film he was exited with the curiosity of knowledge and he does not mind the consequences because he wants to experiment how or what is the truth. In the negative sense, he can experience frustration, anger, depression and the feeling to stop all sensations of frustration because that is not good, as Neo during the learning process he wanted to get out because the feeling is so painful.

         Some times Knowledge can be good because Knowing the truth can be very rewarding and can give you much joy and happiness, but to achieve this happiness you have to go through many levels of learning that are not easy,  sometimes can be sacrificed but the end is very rewarding. Neo who wanted to have knowledge of the truth of this new life offered him by Morpheus he had to experiment a lot of physical pain to know that he was the chosen one to save humanity.

         For example, in the human process when women want to be mothers, we are happy to get this experience so in the way to accomplish this happiness you can experiment the feeling of pain during the waiting process, sometimes can be painful because complications can occur, but this does not prevent us from knowledge understanding and the wish to be mothers because in the end the joy of knowledge that the child was born is the most sublime feeling that fills us with satisfaction and happiness. Like Neo, he wants go into the process of knowledge for the truth and  no matter the process he has to go to rescue the humanity and live in the new world.

         Further more, during the process the knowledge you can feel the negative way like the decision is wrong because this true you don’t like or is not like you thing it will be, so you react in the negative way. This is because you feel that the process to get it is so difficult and you feel depressed, angry, sad, and you want to get out, like Neo when relies that this new life or the knowledge for the truth is based on robots, machines and the challenge to pass these obstacles is difficult.

         Another example, right now in the process of knowledge on how to write an essay, I am practicing many times but sometimes when I do not feel so confident and we have a quiz the result is not like I want. My immediate reaction is the feeling of frustration, sometimes anger and I want to quit but I know this is the process to succeed in this challenge to get better in writing. Also like Neo when he went back and rescue Morpheus, he feel frustrate and sad with the idea that Morpheus will die, after that he decide to rescue  and prepare to confront the enemy with guns and other things that help to accomplish the rescue.

         In conclusion the process of knowledge could be with obstacles that affect people with positive and negative feelings. Positive with good feelings and happiness, and negative with sadness and frustration so the best we can do is be prepared for knowledge of the truth.

Blog 7

                              
 

                               The Dangers of Reality TV

           The writer Timothy Sexton in his article “The Dangers of Reality TV” states that reality shows on TV are sending a risk message to the audience especially young viewers. For instance, the author refers to the emphasis on competition, participants must compete with each other to win and become rich and famous. Sexton also mentioned in this article that these shows require people to care and give great importance to the image more than the ability they may have. Moreover, the message most hazardous that these programs are sending to the young viewers is the wrong message about education which for such programs is not important.

 I agree with the points made by the author in this article, especially the education The education is the most important thing that a person can achieve for their personal development in the future; fame and fortune that participants gain in these programs are not permanent and can be vanished, education instead stays with the person for the rest of his life.

             Unfortunately, these TV shows do not require a level of education for participants and send the wrong message to the audience into thinking that on these programs is much easier to make a lot more money than a person who sacrificed studying to get a college degree.'

As an example of the value and importance of education. My friend brothers who finish only school I think 8 grades won the lottery. When the news came out in newspapers, appeared many friends who did not see in years start to visit him asking for money, also he get started to spend money on many things that were not necessary, and lead a life as a millionaire in many parties and fun, plus a lot of people asking them to invest money  with them, in the end it happened that the money is finished, also he take a lot of credits and the worst part that my friend discovered was the administrator stolen money. This experience was a warning for him and many people that think the study is not important to succeed, of course the education is necessary so that other people do not take advantage of us.


In conclusion, we should become aware as an audience and especially as parents to explain to our young children that these programs are part of the fantasies created by the producers of the Programs to earn more money by sending erroneous and negative messages like thinking that life which can be as easy without education.