[Free] personal update.

    I am currently in Mrs. Playsted’s fifth period current life class. We are currently going through the depression unit. There are three or four types of depression - the number of depression seems really irrelevant considering the seriousness of my problem. I fear that I may be mildly depressed for several weeks. In my free time, I try to trace the events in past several weeks to find the origin of my problem but my answer remains unknown. Friends and music have been a temporary escape from my depression but it does not provide any kind solution. I understand why depressed people resort to drugs to relieve themselves of their depression. It’s an escape but drugs will not fix the problem. I want to blame others for my depression but no one around me has recently changed. It’s me. Sometimes, I feel like no one will miss me if I just left or they will forget about me after a week. I feel insignificant at times and how small my value is compared to everyone else. Stress from college admission and school accumulates inside me and I feel like there’s no escape from this. I have only considered suicide once and I blogged about it in my last free post. I feel like no one will read this; or care about my problem. I’ll be called a coward by my friends but it is their way of cheering me up. It’ll work out. I’ll get over it. I’ll make sure it happens.

[Re] Teenagers.

    Adolescents experience feelings they will only feel for this period of time in their life. They have the unnecessary desire to rebel against the norm and doing illegal things such as drugs and drinking under aged may fuel their excitement. Perhaps they feel that “excitement” is “living the life” or “trendy” or “cool”. Lina brings up a good point once people start partying too hard and these things begin to define who they are.

However, once people begin to depend on drugs and alcohol, especially at this age, that's when I feel like it's become a problem. Why do we do this?

We are bored. That's one source of it. Plain and simple.

We are also trying to escape. We're all trying to get away from whatever is going on with our lives.

Recently in current life class, we finished the adolescence unit of the class. I’m sure many people have been aware of the stages of adolescence but was not fully aware of it. Peer pressure seems to be the most influential force that drives adolescents to do drugs or drink under aged. It seems rather immature that they are inducing themselves to be under the influence and demanding independence at the same time. How can parents trust their kids with independence if they drink and do drugs unsupervised and irresponsibly? Some people that are resistant to this particular peer pressure are often called uptight because they will not loosen up. It’s amazing how drugs and alcohol can dramatically change a person.

[CE] Occupy goes global.

http://english.aljazeera.net//news/asia-pacific/2011/10/201110154143743457.html

    “Occupy” protests have expanded from local communities into a global protest. Protests from all over the world are breaking out and creating a unity between the people of foreign countries. These protests mutually ask for economic reform and They will relay a message to the sophisticated societies of the world: "We will peacefully demonstrate, talk and organize until we make it happen. It's time for us to unite; it's time for them to listen." They all have the same empty claims, but have no core or actual demand. Despite their lack of approach, they still demand some kind of economic reform.

Countries in Asia and Australia have broken out into protests. Protests in Japan's Tokyo, the Philippines' Manila, Taiwan's Taipei, South Korea's Seoul and China's Hong Kong have emerged from the depths of society. In Melborne, Australia, Australians witnessed their first “Occupy” protest and their activists claim that they also have the same democratic problems. One of the activists group expressed the percentage of population they represented by chanting “We are the 99 per cent” and wearing Guy Fawkes masks to express the anonymous group of individuals are not “famous”.

“Occupy” protests have also broken out in Europe and Africa, both demonstrating the capability of a weak but uniform interest. "What is happening in Greece now is the nightmare waiting other countries in the future," Real Democracy said in a statement.

"Solidarity is people's weapon."

[Free] So much writing.

Recently, these days has been shitty. I have the Abercrombie essay, three weekly posts, a six paragraph essay to write, editing my personal essays, finishing my UC application, start my resume; there’s just so much to do. We have a minimum of 1750 words due by Friday and hopefully, I will finish all my shit by the end of next week. So much for relaxing. A couple weeks ago, I even contemplated suicide for like five seconds. I felt like shit from stomach and eye pain, pressure from school and getting accepted into a good college. For those five seconds, I felt better. It was strange feeling; knowing if I left this world, I would be free from all the pain and pressure. Let me get this straight - I am NOT suicidal. I just never fully understood why people committed suicide as their escape from the pressure and the pain. In those five seconds, I felt liberated. Free, and the pressure was gone. I felt extremely light and the pain from the pressure in my shoulders subsided. I was amazed, that such a self-destructive thought can be so enlightening; I seriously felt at peace with myself. I feel like everyone should go through that thought process at least once in their life - it seems necessary to truly understand the value of life. I understood that despite my tiny existence, people may be affected if I just left. I understood that I was not alone. Then again, after that experience, I have been more lonely than ever before.

[RE] Stupid Ass Victims

This is a response post to Kelsey’s post about the BART incident.

I hated how this case turned into such a huge race thing. If a white man was in the situation as Grant, I think the same ending would have happened. Just like  in the whole Occupy Wall Street protests, people of color always want to be the victims. Stop being the victims!

Seriously, when will they stop? No offense but black people just do not know when to stop asking for sympathy. They believe they have the right to keep readdressing the issue of racism, but is that really the case? If Grant was Asian or Hispanic or Mexican or any other race than black, no one would even bring up the racism problem we have in America. Anyone that had the same record as Grant and imitated the same actions as he did, any officer would have been extremely defensive. How would he know he was not armed? All officers also sternly warn people to keep their hands where they can see them - they would not have used any force if you did so. Grant should have known better due to his records. The event also took place late at night, approximately 2 AM. Anyone would have been suspicious of what the hell he was doing at the BART station that late. We cannot deny the possibility that Officer Mehserle was not even aware of the record Grant had. He just acted accordingly so he could have shot anyone.

[CE] Wall Street Protests

http://www.democracynow.org/2011/9/30/inside_occupy_wall_st_a_tour

Protests are breaking out all over major cities in the United States demanding some kind of economic reform. However, they have no solid demand and they are just shooting blind shots of demands. The protests share the same name but they share no core; no unity nor teamwork. They blindly demand reform but they themselves do not how to reform. How ironic.

The economy is just a system of theories driven by the exchange of money between limitless transactions. It is surprising how something that just deals with numbers and scraps of paper can become so complex and valuable. What happened to the relaxing days where money was not a monstrous issue? 99% of the population demand economic reform and are tired of being controlled by the top 1%. Although reforms are necessary, there are reasons why the top 1% are the top 1%. How do you think they got there in the first place? I believe the secret is to find loopholes in the system which we call the economy. It has been brought to my attention that most people are suffering due to taxes, and the top 1% benefit from their tax rates. However, they gain more revenue in proportion to “normal” people because they own other sources of income. They go around the huge tax percentages by making most of their money off something else. In a system as complex as economy, there are bound to be loopholes.

[A&F] Profit vs Morals

To increase sales of a certain brand, retailers have developed methods that immediately captures their consumers attention. By hiring a specific target group, they attract another certain type of group - consumers want to look like good-looking people. By hiring these attractive people, retailers can achieve their two goals: getting the job done, and gain more revenue. Employees directly represent the image of the company or retailer because they are the ones that are directly involved with the consumers. Retailers should have the right to alter their store’s environment or employees in order to profit or become more successful.
A business profits when a customer spends their money at their store. Several methods such as advertisements and their stores’ presentations all contribute subtle factors that can affect a customer’s decision to buy the product. There are two distinct types of method retailers can use to attract customers: indirect and direct interaction. Indirect interaction can be but not limited to advertisements. Advertisements such as billboards provide an image for the retailer and attract a consumer’s attention. Direct interaction is the interaction between an employee and customer at the store. The employee can convince the shopper to buy the products by offering discounts and substantial deals. However, employees are also people, and individual variety is random and broad. A business that profits off selling goods that affect one’s appearance, providing good-looking people can substantially alter their standpoint in their decision. Given certain conditions, retailers will profit based on the store’s employees environment, and price of their exclusive products.
By having specific employees, retailers will attract their buyers more easily. Would you be more likely to purchase products from a store filled with beautiful people or grimy people? Most employees are required to wear the store’s attire as part of their uniform. However, consumers will observe that the attractive employees look good despite what they are wearing. They may conclude that the store’s produce helps improve their attractiveness and be prompt to purchase products for themselves. Retailers will be more likely to higher attractive people over experienced ones. Although experienced employees are easier to manage, a less attractive person does not become more attractive over time. The physical appearance of a person is set in stone; however, their ability to get their job done is not. Training an attractive employee will eventually be more beneficial than hiring a less attractive but experienced employee. An attractive employee fulfill two roles in an employer’s perspective: someone who can get the job done and model for their consumers.
The environment also contributes consumers to be more prone to purchasing their products. Music, aroma, and type of clothing that the store has contribute to a consumer’s decision. Music plays a role in the mood of the people inside the store by providing a taste of modern culture. It subtly expresses of what the store considers “fashionably acceptable” and the music may appeal to mood of the shopper. Would you purchase items from a store that played music that you did not enjoy or a store that did? By providing a favorable and lively environment, people are more likely to buy their products. The smell of the store also provide the similar contributions to a shopper’s mood. Would you buy items from a store that smelled bad or good? The type of clothing presented and the manner in which they are presented also play subtle factors of a shopper’s final decision. Would you even enter a store that displayed unfashionable clothing in the front? All of these subtle factors ultimately contributes a more significant role in a shopper’s decision.
Many people are often swayed by the expensive price of a retailer’s products. They become reluctant to buy and the retailer will lose revenue. However, if a good-looking employee assisted and complimented the consumer, they would be more willing to buy their products. By having employees directly interacting with the customers, the customers are more aware of what the employees are wearing. They will acknowledge that how they present themselves is attractive with a taste of modern culture. The customers will more willing to purchase expensive clothing if the good-looking employee approves of what they are trying to buy. If good-looking employees are more capable of convincing consumers to purchase more expensive products, the retailer will profit more than it would with less good-looking employees. Good-looking employees will become the base of the retailer’s success.
Many people believe retailers’ method of hiring attractive people is immoral and wrong. They believe that they are discriminating people for their race, age and disabilities. However, a business should hire with the mindset of profiting and they should have the ability to manipulate the factors that affect their revenue. Why should they hire people that may squander their business? Should they hire people for the people’s benefit or because it is simply more “fair”? In a capitalistic society, employers should hire people who satisfy their requirements the best; otherwise, they should just randomly hire people. Would that be more fair? Maybe to the potential employees, but the business will not benefit as well as it should. Employers run their business, not the employees.
The type of employees an employer will hire will be the biggest contribute to the success of a business. A business that relies heavily on appearance should also have employees that provide such an appearance. With many people applying for jobs, retailers must decide who to hire and who not to hire. These employees will conduct direct interaction with the consumers and influence them to buy their products. These people will ultimately produce the image of the company and the business should have control over how they want to represent their business.  Although morals and discrimination will always be a pr oblem in the United States or any other nation, a business should have the right to hire the ones who are most qualified for their position. “A guy wants to go hang out in a store where he can see good-looking gals”.