My Opinion...

In my opinion, the most important things to consider in the debate over music downloading are the artist and the law. It is important to consider the artist first, because his or her income is at stake. This is especially important for emerging artists, who depend on the sale of music for much of their income. In addition to hurting the artists, downloading music from unauthorized sites is also illegal. This fact was also very important in leading me to believe that illegal downloading is wrong. No matter how strongly people disagree with the price of music or the fact that downloading should be illegal, downloading IS illegal and therefore people should not do it.

The Music Industry in Danger

The CQ Researcher article discusses the future of the music industry at length, focusing on the effect of illegally downloading music on the entire music industry as a whole. This article appears to place heavy emphasis on the fact that the music industry simply cannot keep up with the pace of people finding new ways to acquire music for very little cost or no cost at all. It goes into great detail about the severely negative impact that this has on artists, as well as producers and labels. The second article is a case study. It offers a scenario, and asks people to react to it. It is not surprising that many people seem sympathetic of the fictional John, and don't seem to think that illegal file sharing is a huge issue. Both articles discuss illegal internet file sharing as a major issue facing our society.

A New Museum!

If I was given money to create a museum with a purpose, I would create a museum dedicated to the wildlife living in Australia's Great Barrier Reef. This museum would show visitors the important of preserving the nature of the reef. Visitors would be able to see some of the animals that live and around the reef, as well as view videos and workshops on the effects of humans on the Great Barrier Reef. The goal of this museum is ultimately to educate visitors on the global effects of both climate change and pollution. Emphasis on the Great Barrier Reef will act as an interesting microcosm for the rest of out planet.

The New England Aquarium

http://www.neaq.org/index.php

The New England Aquarium in Boston, Massachusetts is home to thousands of sea creatures presented in habitats closely mimicking their natural environments. At the aquarium, visitors will experience penguins, live reefs, and even a tide pool with creatures that can be touched and picked up by visitors, among many other exhibits. Perhaps the highlight of a trip to the aquarium is experiencing the Giant Ocean Tank--a four-story, 200,000 gallon tank that is the center of the aquarium. The New England Aquarium is certainly a great place to learn about creatures that most people have never seen or even heard of before, especially since they are all presented in environments that are extremely similar to their natural environments. The aquarium is well organized, as all exhibits have placards discussing what animals live in each tank and how they adapt to living in their certain environments. There is also lots of information about preserving the ocean and the wildlife that inhabits it throughout the building. The New England Aquarium is certainly a must for anyone visiting the Boston area, as it is one of the country's finest aquariums, as well as a live museum that certainly leaves an impact on all visitors.

A Necessary Apology

In the wake of the 1982 Tylenol crisis, the chairman of Johnson & Johnson offered an apology to customers of Tylenol. Although Tylenol was not to blame for the cyanide poisonings, James Burke still offered an apology, and promised that the company would place more emphasis on safe packaging of its products. While this apology certainly made consumers feel as though Tylenol was concerned about their best interest over profit, it also saved the company. Tylenol distributed coupons for free tylenol, helping to gain back Americans' trust in the brand. In addition, packaging of the product was completely reengineered, making it impossible for another poisoning to occur. In conclusion, while Tylenol was not to blame for these poisonings, it was a strategic and crucial business move to offer an apology to consumers.

The Tylenol Tragedy

In 1982, Tylenol was faced with a tragedy--7 people in the Chicago area had died due to taking Tylenol. Tylenol, the country's leading over-the-counter pain killer, was suddenly associated with death. After investigation, the police found that somebody had contaminated Tylenol with cyanide while the product was on the shelves in local grocery stores and pharmacies. This case is extremely important in the business world and is widely studied, as Tylenol enforced the first ever nationwide recall of a product. The chairman of Johnson & Johnson at the time, James Burke, is still widely praised for his response to this tragedy. He quickly took the blame for the event on behalf of J&J, and proceeded to offer Americans with vouchers for Tylenol tablets, the type that were impossible to tamper with. This recall cost Tylenol $100 million, but it made Americans feel safe--like they were more important to the company than profit. This strategic business move saved the company. Tylenol went on to package their product in three-layer packaging that was impossible to tamper with.

While Americans saw this apology and action by James Burke as heroism, he has said that he was simply trying to do what was best for business. Since Burke had the peoples' best interest in mind only to save the multi-million dollar Johnson & Johnson empire, are his apology and response still as relevant and heroic?

Partisan Rhetoric Quote

Following the September 11th Attacks, President George W. Bush stated in a speech, "Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us or your are with the terrorists."

This is certainly a quote that is often taken out of context and misconstrued. I do not think this statement was dangerous at all--especially given the times. Although it is perhaps a bit exaggerated, I believe that Bush's goal was simply to bluntly say that the United States needed as much unity and partnership as it could get from other nations. This statement was certainly in reference to the global war on terror. If we were to censor speech such as this, this statement would certainly have had less impact.

Issues with Civility and Bipartisanship

For our second paper, we were asked to write about the controversy surrounding civility in public discourse, specifically surrounding the political environment in America. This is an issue that is certainly at the forefront of political debates, and different political parties undoubtedly have vastly varying opinions of the line which separates civility from squelching free speech. While civility and bipartisanship are often praised for being "politically correct" and safe in the political arena, they are certainly flawed. For example, this type of speech often fails to alert Americans of the true severity and seriousness of the issue being discussed. If politicians are not blunt about certain topics, specifically national security, for example, their followers are less likely to heed their suggestions and information. These "feel good" responses are also under critique because they often lead to certain fakeness of the political world. If politicians no longer feel comfortable with sharing their true opinions in a way that they feel is most effective, politics suddenly take on an image of falseness, where politicians spend more time critiquing each other and crafting eloquent arguments than actually trying to help the nation. This strays from the actual point of politics--to make America a better place.

New Insight on "Back Home"

Since I have been working on the paper, I have uncovered some more evidence in Yellowcard's "Back Home" to use in my paper. For example, I realized the lyrics "Sometimes I wish that it would rain here, and wash away the west coast dreaming from my eyes, there's nothing real for them to see here," pretty much sums up much of what this song is trying to accomplish. First of all, the point of this song is to let people back home on the East Coast know that life in California is not as glamorous as it looks in movies or on television. With this verse, Yellowcard is describing the fact that California is beautiful on the outside, but is really fake and shallow underneath. The band expresses their wish for rain, which would hopefully alert people to reality and sincerity, which life in California certainly is not. All in all, the subject of this song is that fact that life in California, even when you have "made it" like Yellowcard, is not something to be sought after. California is certainly not the utopia that everyone thinks it is.

Yellowcard's Back Home

Many people come to California in order to achieve their own "California Dream." While this dream can be different for different people, for many it means hopes of "making it," or simply to just find a more fulfilling life. People come to California with the images of perfection, beauty, youth, and easy living imbedded in their minds. However, this California Dream is often defaced once one arrives and realizes that this image of perfection that seems to embody everything California is often fake. In addition, people who come here to "make it" often end up waiting tables and never finding fame.

The song "Back Home" by Yellowcard from their album "Ocean Avenue" describes the feelings of sorrow and longing that often go hand in hand with the California dream. Yellowcard certainly knows all about the California dream, as they came from Florida to sign with Capitol Records. However, while they "made it," this song proves that they believe that everything is not perfect in California. Throughout the song, they certainly suggest that California is often fake and insincere. They tire of the constant perfect weather and wish to stop their hopeless California Dreaming and return to reality.

This song certainly refutes the California dream, as it describes how fake California can be and how people often have skewed views about the reality of California.

This is my blog for Writing 130 at USC!