blog #15

"Wounded vet goes from 'life slipping away' to soap opera star". CNN. 2008. 22 March 2009. http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/02/16/jr.martinez/index.html?iref=newssearch.

J.R. Martinez, 25, served in Iraq and returned back to Georgia with severe burns and a welcome home sign at Applebee's. He got these severe burns when driving a Humvee through a city, and the front left tire hit a land mine and he was trapped inside the vehicle. The other three guys walked away with minor injuries. While he was trapped in the vehicle, with his life slipping away, he thought of his mother(also best friend) being given a flag, but he did not want to put his mother though that. He had also thought of his sister, whom he had never met and passed away. He had an actual visual of his sister coming to him and telling him it was going to be OK and he would be fine. To me it seemed like J.R. always thought positively. He said, "to be strong and to hold on to certain things in life because they'll get you through". This is good advice and that is what got him through the situation he was in. He had lots of faith and just kept believing. Another obstacle he approaches is going into public and having to show his face while getting looks from everyone walking around. He mentions that, " It's one of those things where you've just got to get through it, and you've got to fight the obstacles and you've got to be strong". And this is true, it is what will get you through any situation. Now, he is starring in a soap opera "All My Children" and never ever believed he would ever be in one. This article can't completely relate to my life cause i have never been in such severe situation but he is someone to look up to knowing he goes through every day just being happy he survived and having hope.

blog #14 JONAS:)

Bream, Jon. "Joe Jonas:'We're all about getting closer with our fans'". Star Tribune. 13 March 2009. 17 March 2009. .

The Jonas Brothers are juggling more projects these days than any other celebrities. They are filming their new TV series on Disney Channel called JONAS. JONAS stands for Junior Operatives Networking as Spy's. They are also releasing their brand new album in June, and rehearsing for their summer world tour! Also, the "Camp Rock" movie sequel. For their summer concerts, (JULY 8TH AT TARGET CENTER), the Jonas Brothers let all the members of the Jonas Brothers fan club to buy tickets early before the public sale which begins March 21st. As quoted from the Joe Jonas, "It's a better way for us to connect with our fans; we're all about getting closer wiht our fans. We watned to reach out to every city, but there's reasons beyond me why we're not". This shows their love and passion for their fans because they know that they are what gives them motivation day by day. The 3D concert movie was one of their accomplishments that was the second highest grossing concert film of all time. (Behind Miley Cyrus "Hannah Montana"). Their TV Series will be released in May and they are playing fictional characters and it will be the first time they're acting. I am one of the Jonas Brothers biggest fans so its nice to know that they love me. I have attended all of their concert performances here in Minnesota and one in Boston. I already have the tickets to their July 8th concert because of the Jonas Brothers fan club. I also attended the Jonas Brother 3D movie at midnight opening night! These boys really inspire and amaze me because I love everything they do and they are great role models. Everywhere the boys go, they play their hearts out and enjoy every second of life. I hope they will keep this up forever and always spread their love to their fans.

blog #13

Rahim, Sangar. "4 U.S. Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan". The New York Times. 15 March 2009. 15 March 2009.
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In Kaul, Afghanistan, four American soldiers were killed in a roadside explosion. It was one of the worst of several attacks by insurgents around the country. The Taliban was responsible for this attack because they have been threatening these attacks against Afghan forces. Also, a suicide bomber blew himself up on a main road, killing two Afghan civilians and wounding nine others. The bomber had been standing outside a high school and had been planning to attack members of an Afghan intelligence security force. The people wounded were shopkeepers working in stores nearby and people passing in cars. A bystander said, When the smoke cleared, I saw my father, my brother and my uncle were lying on the ground and blood was pouring from their bodies." I think this is a very scary incident because it was very unexpected. It would be hard to live their knowing it might not always be safe where you live. The war in Iraq still continues today as one of the longest wars ever with many deaths.

blog #12

Kimmelman, Michael. "In France, a War of Memories Over Memories of War." New York Times. 4 March 2009. 10 March 2009. .

The Wall of the Disappeared, located in France, is a large wall that lists the name of some 2,700 "pieds noirs". The term pieds noirs has to do something with black boots and came from Spain, Italy, Germany and other European countries. Then pieds noirs became French citizens when Algeria was under France's thumb. Soon after, Charles de Gaulle ended the colonial war with Algerian nationalists, where more than a million pieds noirs fled to cities. The people who stayed were massacred in places while others disappeared. These people were looking for hope and wanted rights among Africa and colonized in its colonies to promote these colonies fully developing. Later on, a series of wars approached because of the french government not supporting the citizens of France. This finally led to thousands of deaths which are shown on the Wall of the Disappeared. I think that this Wall is a great structure and a way for the people to die be remembered. 

blog #11

Sutter, John. "To find a job, ignore doom-and-gloom news, experts say." CNN. 6 March 2009. 8 March 2008. .

An economic crisis that is occurring today is a cut back on jobs. The unemployment rates continues to climb day by day. A chief executive reported that you need to block out the doom and good news about the economy and don't listen to it, saying that its not relevant to any one persons search. His advice was to go search for a job now. But that doesn't seem that easy. It is said that more jobs are available in health care, education, government and agriculture. These jobs are thought to be more stable than those failing in banking, manufacturing and construction.  Jennifer Grasz, from CareerBuilder.com, said that the highest rate of jobs listed on the site is in the South where health care and energy are leading the way. People should be open to moving in order to find a new job. One of the worst places to look for jobs is the Midwest where unemployment is high. This crisis is occurring everywhere not only in the U.S., but people need to look to industries that they think everyone would need even when their budgets have shrunk.

blog #10

Boddy-Evans, Alistair. "South Africa's National Holidays."About. 5 Mar 2009. .

South Africa celebrates many different Holidays than America. Some holidays that South Africa celebrate are Human Rights Day, Freedom Day, Workers Day, Youth Day, National Women's Day, Heritage Day and Day of Reconciliation. Human Rights Day is making sure South African people are aware of their rights and ensure abuses never occur again. Freedom Day is when the first election was help and allowed all adults of any race to vote. Workers Day is to protest for better wages and working conditions. Youth Day is in honor of all the young people that lost their lives in the struggle against Apartheid and Banthu Education. National Women's Day is a reminder of the contribution women made to society. Heritage Day is the celebration of diversity. Finally, Day of Reconciliation is overcoming the conflicts of the past building a new nation. I think all these holiday are important days for South Africa to celebrate and everyone to appreciate. We have different holidays here in America too that we celebrate and enjoy just like they do in South Africa. I thought this was really interesting learning about what is important to there society.

blog #9

Giridharadas, Anand. "Hollywood Starts Making Bollywood Films in India."The New York Times. 7 Aug 2007. 5 Mar 2009. .

For us, movies are just what we like to watch for entertainment or even a little laugher. For people in India, these are things they love to watch and cherish because some don't even have a television set so they only get to go to movies. A movie produced in India makes a lot of money. Since they make so much money, Bollywood films do not like this concept. Today, Hollywood producers are staring to create Bollywood films because of the passion that other people have for them. They think they can create a very realistic film. This puts Hollywood against India's own studios. The main features of a Bollywood film are dancing and singing. After watching the film Bride and Prejudice in class, I learned a lot about the "Bollywood" field and the competition there is between America and India. Competition is not bad, but it makes the producers work even harder to produce a fantastic film.