Bowling For Columbine Review

     April 20^th, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold entered Columbine High School in Jefferson County and murdered twelve students, one teacher, and injured 27 additional people. November 21^st, 2002, Michael Moore releases his movie “Bowling for Columbine,” about the deadliest mass murder committed on an American high school campus as well as American’s obsession with guns, and how a society filled with fear is leading to violence in American society.

     Michael is able to captivate the audience with his witty cartoons that he uses to describe the relationship with the Klu Klux Klan and the National Rifle Association, the terrifyingly dark real footage of the Columbine Massacre, and interesting interviews he conducts with people like musician Marilyn Manson, co-creator of hit T.V. series South Park Matt Stone, and spokesperson for the NRA Charlton Heston.

     In my opinion Moore’s ability to hold the audience’s attention through this documentary like movie is satisfying enough to give a recommendation to others, but not a very strong one. Although Michael brings thought provoking points to the screen, his biased point of view clouds the credibility and sustenance that a video of this subject needs. His respect for those lost, injured, affected, or involved is refreshing compared to similar styled films where the interviewer or speaker lacks the emotion they deserve. 

Green Eggs and Slam

     What is slam poetry? “A type of poetry expressing a person’s personal story and/or struggle usually in an intensely emotional style. Very powerful, sincere, and moving,” according to Urban Dictionary in 2010. The easiest way to view the miracle works of slam poets is by viewing them on YouTube and exploring the captivating flow of creativity.

     Based on a YouTube search of “slam poetry” within a year and highest view count I’ve found Neil Hilborn- “OCD” with an astonishing view count of 7,785,726 to be the top of the results list. This tormenting story is about the effects OCD has had on his relationship as well as how she made him feel like there was nothing abnormal about his quirks, how, “she said she always felt safe like no one would rob us because I defiantly locked the door eighteen times.” Unfortunately, his obsessions soon started to have a negative impact on her schedule, “I want her back so bad I leave the door unlocked,” described how much of a heartbreaking effect she had on him after she left. His story robbed me of breath with the beauty he saw in her even when she saw, and acted, on tendencies of his OCD.

     Starting with the age of twenty-one, when his father died with, “a blood alcohol level 4 times over the legal limit,” and working back to when his mother was pregnant wondering, “if she ever thought her son would be just like his father,” Patrick Roche performing “21” comes in second for most views with 4,105,894. Patrick stops at certain ages and describes an event relating to his father’s alcoholism or thoughts of his at that time. His poem brings awareness of alcoholism as well as how quickly an addiction, relapse, can happen.

     Savannah Brown rocked the 3^rd highest views with 2,096,745 for her video, “What Guys Look For in Girls.” Savannah’s low, driven voice spoke about her experiences with lack of self confidence as society had driven her to hate certain parts of her body as they lacked to bring her attention like she had been taught to yearn for, but she, “made sure [she] kept [herself] beautiful so someone could love [her] someday.” Her response to Nash Grier’s infamous video has opened up a new view to the way young girls are feeling about their body with her raw an blatant words. 

 

Papa-papa-paparazzi

     “Generation Y is obsessed with documenting its social life,” a statement not far from the truth from Toronto blogger Sara Melvin, 22, in, “The new Paparazzi,” by Emma Teitel published in the November 7, 2011 edition of Macleans.  The article discusses social media’s ability to sprout the carelessness generation Y possesses when it comes to the privacy of their photos and information.

     Teitel writes about how most youth now a day’s can’t stand to be out of the loop. They have a, “fear of being absent.” People will know if they weren’t at a party because pictures and videos posted online will have captured almost everyone there. The truth is, if the person in question isn’t in the pictures, videos, snap chats, or tagged in posts there’s no public evidence to show that they were there. This has lead to a new breed of anxiety called “FOMO (fear of Missing Out)”

     Teitel added, “I cared more about invading the privacy of others than I did about protecting my own,” asserting her belief that generation Y doesn’t care about its privacy until it’s been violated. Admitting that she herself had, “over a hundred,” embarrassing photos-none of which she uploaded herself. She’s also a reminder of how easy it is to have jeopardizing photos uploaded without consent. The Macleans author also addressed that what’s important isn’t five years from now but five minutes from now in social media.

     

As an aspiring member of generation Y, who’s seen firsthand how media affects youth, myself included, I agree with all of Emma Teitel’s points about the lack of consciousness towards the image we produce of ourselves when we are captured and posted as well as how they are available to almost anybody in the world. Her article presented intelligible and truthful opinions which opened my mind to my own mistakes in privacy settings and others ability to see my photos and information.