Blog Entry #8: Mid-term Essay

Advertisements that targeted children seems to be a trend that companies use to get their products across to consumers. Now most advertisements that are targeted at children send a negative message in the long run. Fast food companies target children to eat unhealthy food without the care f the impact it will have on them in the future. Parents try to set children in the right direction but due to the numerous amounts of advertising that appeals to the children, many of them realize that they are fighting a losing battle. This is why I believe that the government should take more action and regulate the advertisements of the food industry so that the health of children won't be compromised.

One reason why the government should crack down on unhealthy food advertisements is that the government is dealing with a nationwide weight issue. The government reports that many people, especially children and adolescents are overweight or obese. This problem is due to the many ads that illustrate unhealthy foods such as Mcdonald’s with their Big Mac and Burger King with their Whopper. According to the article, “Public Agrees on Obesity’s Impact,” obesity is ranked the second most public health problem. This is caused by the fact that the ads are played more frequently during children's’ shows, which induces the children to be more influenced by the unhealthy advertisement. If the government limited the number of unhealthy food ads that were shown during a child’s problem, then the obesity problem would decrease.

Another reason why the government should step up is due to the fact that the government is a huge influence and they’re the second line of authority in the nation, following parents. Every day children are taught to follow these two people: parents and the government When it comes to food, children tend to rebel against their parents when anything healthy comes to the table. But when the government advertises McDonald’s, or Pizza Hut on T.V., the child tends to be influenced more than they would be if they saw an ad about healthy products. The government, as the second authority to children's’ lives, should team up with parents to focus more on healthy products.

            In conclusion, advertisements that are targeting children are harming them in the long run. The government has taken small measures to improve the health of children by limiting the number of fast food companies in certain schools. Also, Michelle Obama has started a campaign to help get children into shape. But these actions aren’t enough; more actions should be taken into consideration so that our children don’t end up living short lives. The government regulates the media, so they should regulate more4 of these unhealthy ads. Ask yourself, “Would children would be better off with short lives filled with complications or long lives with good health?”

Blog Entry #7: The Meatrix Issues

The issue that i want to look more into is animal cruelty. this issue concerns everyone and shouldn’t be taken lightly. Animal cruelty has been a problem since the food industry changed from regular farming to production line based slaughterhouses. The way animals are treated today is and I believe that we should take action and help these poor animals by reverting back to farming. If the animals were back on a farm and raised the way they are supposed to be, the risks for diseased animals and poor treatment would decrease.

Blog Entry #6: Brand identification

One brand name item that is constantly seen in my house is Jordans. My family has a history of buying Jordans almost every Saturday that they come out. We mostly buy the sneakers because that’s the only thing that we crave from the company. It’s like these sneakers are a hobby in our family. I remember when my mother and I went shopping for Jordans. We would go to Brooklyn and shop on Nostrand Avenue at V.I.M.S. Every Saturday we would go early so that we could get our sizes before the store ran out. When we would go, we would always have fun going and picking out the latest styles they had. Most of the time we bought matching Jordans because my mom wanted people to know that her daughter is just like her and when people asked about our matching sneakers she would always say, “like mother, like daughter.” I would feel amazingly happy due to the fact that no matter what my mom would always buy me Jordans just like hers to show that I was her daughter and that I would be just like her. Now I limit the number of Jordans I purchase to about two or three times a year due to the fact that Jordans costs much more than they did back then. I also limit the purchases because I have a huge collection of Jordans that are in my closet. I like to wear the old school Jordans because some of the old ones can’t be found anywhere and I also love the comments that people give me when I wear them. Some people wonder how got them and I always tell them that I had them since they first came out. To get comments like that gives me a sense of happiness and proudness because I can keep my Jordans up like new and people always wonder about the different styles and where they can find them.

Another brand name that is seen around my house frequently is Sony. We purchase a bunch of Sony products that include one PlayStation One, two PlayStation 2s, one PlayStation 3, six PlayStation Portables, and the very first PlayStation console. In my house, we’re all hardcore gamers, excluding my grandma. My brothers and I always play games no matter what time of day it is. The game that we play nonstop is Black Ops. That game turns all of us into animals due to the fact that we get so hooked into the game that the only time we actually take a break from it is when we’re either hungry or if one of us has to use the bathroom. The reason a person would see multiple PlayStation consoles from Sony is due to the fact that we’re hardcore gamers as I explained before. It all started when my brothers and I went to visit my aunt. My aunt had the first PlayStation ever made and she was playing her favorite game, Tony Hawk. We heard about the game but we never played it. So, she let us play the game a little so they we could experience the game. After a few rounds we got hooked on the game and eventually my brothers and I had knockout battles against my aunt. After that day, my grandma decided that for Christmas instead of buying a bunch of toys that she knew that we would eventually get bored of, she bought a PlayStation 2. When we found out that she bought it, we opened it and played the PlayStation 2 that whole Christmas day. Now we use the PlayStation Portables to play against each other when we’re not home to play the other consoles. My brothers and I even play against our neighbors. Our neighbors have Sony products as well and we connect with them when we have rounds of Black Ops on the PlayStation 3. When my brothers and I play against our neighbors, nothing comes between our battles and all hell breaks loose. We close ourselves in one room away from any distractions and we go all in. We get so into the game that we get a little reckless with our language when the game gets too serious.